ARTS DIARY
Star patron: Scarborough’s Stephen Joseph Theatre has announced that actor James Norton, above, has agreed to become its patron. The star of Happy Valley, McMafia and Grantchester grew up just down the A64 in Malton, and came to the SJT on work experience when he was 15, which he has always credited with kickstarting his interest in theatre. “I’ve always remembered my time at the Stephen Joseph Theatre fondly, so I’m delighted to be able to add my name to the illustrious roll call of people associated with it,” he said. “It’s a beacon of excellence in my home county.” The theatre’s artistic director, Paul Robinson, said: “James has always been remarkably generous in crediting the SJT as such an influence on his career, so when we started talking about a patron, he was our obvious first choice.”
Stage set for food bank: Following a sold-out spring tour and standing ovations in every venue, I, Daniel Blake is coming to Leeds Playhouse from October 3-7 as part of an autumn tour. This first stage adaptation of Ken Loach’s award-winning film is written by actor and comedian Dave Johns, who won the Best Actor award at the British Independent Film Awards for his role in the 2016 movie. The production features interviews, speeches and social media posts showing the impact of government decisions on people’s lives. To honour the play’s themes, the Playhouse is becoming a collection point for South & East Leeds Food Bank, which has supported more than 14,000 local people with emergency food in 2022-23. Audiences and visitors to the Playhouse are being invited to donate items to help it keep up its good work.
Donkey work rewarded: A naïve painting of a donkey and a bird has won the People’s Choice Award at Scarborough Art Gallery’s East Coast Open exhibition. Louise Bass’s winning painting, Big Donkey Small Bird, was chosen by members of the public who visited the show, which ran from May until earlier this month. Visitors were asked to vote for their favourite work of art. Big Donkey Small Bird, painted in acrylics on cardboard, was one of 100 artworks in the exhibition, most of which were for sale.