We’re celebrating Brighton Fringe with official coffee sponsors Alpro. Get involved by tweeting your #MugShotMoments to win a weekend break in Rome (see bottom of this page) and find out what’s going on during the Fringe in some of Brighton’s coffee shops.
ART: 5 Down, 20 Across
Bom-Bane’s, Every Fri, Sat & Sun
May’s a busy month for seeing new things in Brighton, and thanks to Bom-Bane’s you no longer need to pause for lunch. This quirky musical café delivers custom songs and performances with every course, which is a baffling concept to the uninitiated but wildly appreciated by all who have attended before. Jane Bom-Bane’s Fringe event is a curious mixture of crosswords, exploration, local artists, laughter and a delicious afternoon tea. (JMM)
THEATRE: The Big Bite-Size Breakfast
Latest MusicBar, Every Sun
A series of playlets from White Room Theatre, The Big Bite-Size Breakfast’s Sunday shows at the Latest MusicBar comprise a selection of Fringe hits under the theme ‘Desire’. Each piece lasts a mere 10 minutes, ideal to digest while you’re having your morning repast. The company present a bunch of alternate selections in residence at Theatre Royal throughout the Fringe, culminating in a family friendly half term run in the final week. (SH)
FILM: Boutique Cinema
Slice Sussex, Every Weds
Brighton’s film-making talents find an outlet at Slice’s regular Boutique Cinema screenings, running throughout the Fringe. The cosy Church Road eaterie puts together an eclectic range of shorts each Wednesday evening from 8pm – an ever-surprising selection that mixes up animation, music video and drama. In other words, we don’t know exactly what you’re gonna get, but the strike rate’s always high, and damn those chairs are comfy. (SH)
THEATRE: Breakfast At Dalkey
Redroaster Coffee House, Sat 18th – Fri 24th (not Mon)
Think of Dublin in the theatre and an impressive roll call of playwrights springs to mind: Beckett, Shaw, WB Yeats, Brendan Behan, Seàn O Casey, the list goes on. Following in those inspiring footprints, Irish author Eddie Alford’s new play Breakfast At Dalkey is set in Dublin of the 1930s, and takes in themes of love and betrayal, family and ballroom dancing. How do you fit ballroom dancing into a narrow space like Redroaster? One way to find out. (SH)
THEATRE: The Importance Of Being Earnest, 1936
Metrodeco, Tues 7th – Sat 18th (not Sun or Mon)
There are two versions of Wilde’s classic comedy running at the Fringe this year, a faithful production over afternoon tea at the Grand Hotel and this reimagined take at Metrodeco. POLiTiKER Productions shunt the farce forward a few decades to 1936, allowing all manner of new satirical twists and historical nods to enter by the back door. This could be akin to old Oscar scripting the “Don’t mention the war” episode of Fawlty Towers, or nothing of the sort, but laughs are pretty much guaranteed. (SH)
THEATRE: Lyrics To Life
Moksha Caffe, Thurs 9th – Sat 11th
Lyrics To Life is (almost) a one-woman show that does unexpected things with the words of our favourite songs, and perhaps a few of the worst. Inspired by her teenage world of compilation tapes. Brighton’s Rosaline Nickerson takes well-known lyrics as the springboard for some imaginative sketches, sidelining the singing as the songs take on new lives of their own. As with pop itself, this should unite themes both personal and universal, but she’s promising it’ll be fun. (SH)
TOUR: Pavilion Gardens Café History Tour
Pavilion Gardens Café, Various dates Fri 10th – Sun 26th
A 90 minute tour of the Lanes, focused on its starting point of the iconic Pavilion Gardens Café. The present Art Deco style café was built in 1950, but its original owner had been trading in the Royal Pavilion Gardens for many years before. Tour guide Geoffrey Mead can tell you more as he guides you around the gardens, Pavilion, Dome and surrounding areas. It’d be foolish not to grab refreshments while you’re there though. (SH)
MUSIC: The Red Lamps
Pavilion Gardens Café, Weds 8th
The Red Lamps are a group of children and young adults from Chailey Heritage School near Lewes, some of whom have profound and multiple learning difficulties. At this morning’s free concert, the musicians will take to the streets to perform jazz improvisations with soundbeam technology, intercepting ultra-sonic beams with their body movements to create unique sound art. No other musician in the Fringe is doing anything like this, so chalk one up for the kids. (SH)
THEATRE: The Revenge Fantasy Club
Metrodeco, Sat 4th – Sun 5th,
Mange Tout, Mon 6th – Weds 8th
If you’re one of those people who like a good eavesdrop in the hope of hearing something juicy then Mark C Hewitt’s play The Revenge Fantasy Club may be the perfect way to spend an evening. In a very intimate venue it starts out as merely overhearing a couple of ladies having an idle chat. As it progresses however, the idle chat gradually gets ever more spicy until your initial preconceptions about these two seemingly innocent ladies are shattered. (LL)
THEATRE: Signor Baffo
St Ann’s Well Gardens Café, Sat 11th, Sat 25th, Weds 29th – Sat 1st June
A lively helping of kids’ theatre, slap bang in the middle of the beautiful St Ann’s Well Gardens. Chef Signor Baffo (Brighton actor Oliver Harrison) serves up silliness, mischief and adventure in this interactive show, ideal for children ages 3 – 7. It’s another Brighton Fringe premiere, so we’ve no previews to fall back on to give you an idea on quite how loud or messy this’ll get. The kids’ll lap it up though. (SH)
SPOKEN WORD: Stories With Tea
Latest MusicBar, Every Sun
Under the Fringe’s Literature strand, Stories For Tea finds senior celebrity Lynn Ruth Miller welcoming festival-goers for a cuppa and a selection of tales from yesterday and today. As well as her regular speaking appearances, Miller previously popped up on Britain’s Got Talent, and she’s also known as a stand up comedian, novelist, columnist and television presenter. A Renaissance woman and a much loved Brightonian, an afternoon in her company is time pleasurably spent. (SH)
THEATRE: The Tempest
Pavilion Garden Café, Weds 15th – Fri 17th
Having produced enviable success stories such as Adele, Amy Winehouse and Brighton natives Rizzle Kicks, the BRIT School name carries considerable weight in the performing arts world. Some of their current students now turn their attention to Shakespeare’s epic of shipwreck, love and jealousy, The Tempest. Performing three interpretations over three days, with three casts and free tickets, there’s no reason not to go down to see a possible future star in the making. (LL)
Share your #MugShotMoments with Alpro
To celebrate being the official coffee sponsor of Brighton Fringe, Alpro is encouraging us to share our #MugShotMoments and there are some great prizes up for grabs too. So, whether you’re enjoying a coffee with your mates on the pier, taking in a show or simply relaxing at your favourite coffee shop, tweet your #MugShotMoments or upload your pic to www.alpro.com/mugshotmoments
The person that comes up with the most creative coffee moment, that captures the essence of Brighton’s coffee culture, could be jetting off to Rome – the original coffee capital of the world. There are also 200 Keep Cups that will be given away to entrants. So, get tweeting your #MugShotMoments!
And don’t forget to add a dash of plant power to your coffee moment! ‘Alproccinos’ and ‘Alprolattes’ are now available in most of Brighton’s coffee shops. An ‘Alproccino’ has a whopping four times less saturated fat than a cappuccino made with dairy milk. On top of that, it takes two and a half times less water to make a cappuccino using Alpro soya plant-based milk alternative than with dairy milk, making it a green choice as well. Click here for full terms and conditions.
Words by Stuart Huggett, Liam Lawrence, Jessica Marshall McHattie