The ‘Allo’ Allo’’ Dinner Theatre Experience Comes to Reading For the Jubilee!!
On the 7th and 8th of June at Shehnai Zuloo Productions invite you to join us for a spectacular dinner and theatre experience of the hilariously entertaining production of the sitcom Allo Allo! Enjoy a 3-course meal at Café Rene before the show and then watch this sidesplitting farce written by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft.

We all remember this fantastic sitcom that ran for 10 years back in the 80s and 90s, following the unfortunate life of Rene Artois, a cafe owner in France stuck in the midst of chaos during World War 2. The characters are unforgettable – the sex-crazed waitresses, the English secret agent with the dreadful French accent, the Nazi Lieutenant with his little tank and his crush on Rene, the nasty and kinky Herr Flick of the Gestapo and many more.

The story of the play is written by the same writers and contains the infamous Fallen Madonna with the big boobies hidden inside the great big sausage. The double entendres come thick and fast and there's barely a second without a ridiculous joke. Not only does the evening include this classic show but also a delectable 3 course dinner of fantastic French cuisine.

The show will be held in the beautiful Shehnai Banqueting Suites on London Street, on the 7th and 8th of June.  Tickets for the show are £15 and for the buffet, £12. The buffet starts at 7pm and the shows at 8.15pm don’t miss out! 
Hurry, book your tickets today at http://alloallo.eventbrite.co.uk or to find out more go to www.zuloo.co.uk.

Come and join us this Saturday, 19 May from 11am until 4pm at Christchurch Meadows (near Reading Bridge) for Meadow Madness.

This is the great launch event for Reading Children's Festival 2012 and the riverside setting is the perfect venue for the whole family to have fun. Not only are we there all day delivering arts workshops but there will also be children's entertainment, workshops, stalls, tombola, face painting and this year the theme is sporty, to celebrate the Olympics.

There will be plenty of sporting activity to take part in or help us in our marathon bid to create 10000 Postcards from Reading. We want everyone (all ages) to each create a postcard that will then be exhibited over the year through out Reading. We really need your help and there will also be sculpture and beading workshops too and it's all free – so come along and join Jo and Ivy at Christchurch Meadows this weekend.

Thank you to Reading Borough Council Community grant for supporting this activity, John Lewis for donating all the beads and Earley Charity for helping us kick start our "Postcard from Reading" project – thank you

A big thank you to everyone that came to help us this Saturday finish up our bunting project and to all the people who have donated bunting. There are some great stories around the bunting making from the self titled "old bags" who have been cutting up their old clothes, to the children who have drawn their own bunting, bunting bundles that have arrived in the post by artists and makers to the bunting donated by a 70yr old that had been used at her family party. Thank you all.

The bunting will be making it's own mark on the town for the Jubilee weekend in Market Place.

A guest post from Reading Arts Week 2012

Submit your works!

Submitting work into Reading Arts Week is open to anyone over the age of 16 living or working in the greater Reading area.  You needn't be a professional established artist, may be you enjoy painting or taking photographs or are currently on a part-time creative course and would like to enter your work into the exhibition.

This years Reading Arts Week takes place from Saturday 23 to Friday 29 June 2012 with a VIP private launch night on Friday 22 June at the Penta Reading Hotel.

We welcome paintings, sculpture, photography, textiles, ceramics, furniture, glass, mosaics, jewellery and digital art including video.  A maximum of two works may be submitted, for a supporting fee of £15.00 (which is non-refundable and includes VAT). There is no charge for those who are currently studying on a full or part time course in the Reading area.

Deadline for submissions is 11:59 GMT on Thursday 31 May 2012.  Any submissions after this time will not be accepted.

By submitting this application you agree to the following conditions:

• My work will be available from Thursday 21 June 2012 to Monday 25 June 2012
• I agree to pay £15.00 (If not currently studying on a full or part time course in the Reading area) by cheque to ‘Reading Borough Council’ (which is non-refundable and includes VAT).
• I understand that I will be responsible for the delivery and collection of my work and that I must be available to delivery my work to the Penta Reading Hotel on Thursday 21 June 2012 between 6pm-8pm and to collect my work on Sunday 24 June 2012 between 5.30pm-7pm.
• All pieces of my framed work must be fitted with secure findings ready for hanging, including wire and strong fastenings. I understand art work with poor quality frames and findings will not be accepted.
• I agree for my work to be shown on Facebook and Twitter and other media sites as promotion for Reading Arts Week
• My work submitted has not previously been exhibited at Reading Arts Week.
• I live or work in the greater Reading area and I am over 16 years of age.
• Organisers have the right to remove any submitted work if it’s deemed offensive or abusive.
• If selling work, I am responsible for taking enquires and organising payment
• Whilst every endeavour will be made for the security and safety of your work, Reading Borough Council is not responsible for any damages or of lost or stolen work.

Please make cheques payable to 'Reading Borough Council’ and sent to Chris Brant, Reading Borough Council, Corporate Communications, Civic Centre, Reading, RG1 7AE.

To submit your work simply visit www.reading.gov.uk/artsweek

For any further information please call 0118 937 2373 follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/rdgartsweek or Facebook www.facebook.com/rdgartsweek

It's tomorrow night, Friday 11th May – meet us in Market Place and we will end up in the Milk bar after the walking tour, all welcome. (sadly no under 18's allowed in the Milk Bar though)

Context: Chris Stevens
Town-wide exhibition
Reading
Friday 11^th May Private view & free walking tour with the artist & curator
Saturday 12^th May – Saturday 3rd June 2012 exhibition open

Two Reading-based art organisations, roves and roams and Jelly, are working in collaboration to produce a town-wide exhibition of paintings by London-based painter Chris Stevens. Stevens, who graduated from Reading University in 1978, has exhibited internationally since and was awarded the BP Portrait Award from the National Portrait Gallery in the ‘90’s.

As you know probably all know by now, we have been busy making bunting, people have been sending bunting in and this weekend if you want to take part you can join us at a special bunting workshop. From 10am-1pm on Saturday 12 May we will be up in the jelly workspace at 42 Market Place (that's opposite picnic).  To get into the space, press the buzzer and someone will let you in.

Come along and join us, bring your bunting in progress or just help us start new bunting. We have material, thread and just need some help.

All ages welcome, there are jobs for everyone!

Easter is behind us, summer is on its way and with this in mind, pop-up cinema company Summer Screens has just announced their first two open air events of the year starting at Caversham Court Gardens on Friday 11^th and 12^th May and The Stubbings Estate near Maidenhead on 18^th and 19^th May.

Starting the season off at Caversham on ‘Fright Night Friday’ is the mother all horror films, The Exorcist, a film that is as terrifying today as it was at release in 1973. You’ll need to find a friend who doesn’t mind you jumping on them in terror as you watch this cult horror film in this most atmospheric of settings and we’ve heard there’s a surprise or two in store for you on the night to send a shiver down the spine. Then on Saturday 12^th May, have your flux capacitors at the ready as making its way back onto the big screen is one of the most perfectly crafted films of all time, with time travelling Delorians, mad scientists and starring Michael J. Fox as Marty ‘Calvin Klein’ McFly, a teenager caught in the most uncomfortable of love triangles, Back to the Future.

A week later the cinema moves onto the lawn at Stubbings Estate near Maidenhead. On the Friday night is a chiller from the ‘Master of Suspense’ himself Alfred Hitchcock, his 1960 classic, Psycho. The setting, the shower scene, the music, the mother in the cellar… this is iconic cinema at its finest. Then on Saturday 19^th May, its time for some cult British comedy as Summer Screens calls all on members of the People’s Front of Judea (or is it The Judean Peoples Front?) would-be Messiahs, wise men and any friend of Biggus Dickus to make their way to Stubbings as Monty Pythons Life of Brian makes a return to the big screen.

There is a lot new at the cinemas for 2012. You can lounge on giant bean bag or in a deckchair and drink mojitos or the best local ales, whilst listening to great live music at sunset, all before watching one of the greatest films ever made under the stars in an amazing location. This is what is in store for those who venture to one of their events this year and with classics such as The Third Man, Breakfast at Tiffany’s and Brief Encounter making their way back onto the big screen, along with many cult favourites and recent hits like Drive, Inception and The Dark Knight, a cinematic treat is promised like no other.

Summer Screens opened its doors for the first time last year at Mapledurham House with a screening of The Kings Speech. Since then they have been in hot demand, working in London for some of the capitals biggest promoters producing events as diverse as Halloween screenings in a chapel, The Rocky Horror Picture Show in Zippos Circus and most recently the premiere of this years’ British gangster hit Wild Bill.

The company will be holding events throughout the summer in locations across Berks, Bucks and Oxon. To find out more, join the mailing list or to book tickets please visit their www.summerscreens.co.uk  or by calling 0845 519 8825.

As I've mentioned before we have had so many fabulous artists in the jelly team and two weeks ago, it was Charlotte's turn as an old jelly and this week it is her working partner at jelly back in the day, Sarah Graham. 

Sarah first came to jelly when she was working just after graduating from art school in 2000 and was looking for part time paid work whilst continuing to paint, in fact she just turned up with a painting under her arm (not a small one!) and we took it from her, hung on the wall and sold it almost immediately for £1000 and that was the beginning of Sarah's selling career (and working) at jelly.  Sarah met Charlotte Hardy through jelly, delivered workshops, worked in the gallery and both eventually became the curators of the exhibitions and at the same time shared a studio, exhibited and sold work. Having Sarah and Charlotte as curators meant that they made their own mark on the hanging style and the work selected.

They both have a completely joyous relationship with colour but their painting styles and mediums are very different, whereas Charlotte is a mixed media, fluid and quirky painting style, Sarah is a photo realist painter. And like Charlotte, Sarah was one of the favourite jelly artists, often selling out work at art fairs and events. Sarah has become very successful now (lucky you, if you bought one of her originals from us) and she sells through Washington Green (because of this, this means we are unable to sell her new work but we have been lucky enough to have had two pieces donated to jelly to sell by auction – please contact us if you want more details)

Below is one of Sarah's pieces from a solo show of her work in 2002 at jelly, titled "Road Trip"

She has a fantastic fanbase, we used to sell her works to actors, musicians and stylish people (that might have been you too) and most recently she was featured in The Independent this Sunday in a feature with the lead singer from the Kaiser Chiefs. She has recently created a piece for their forthcoming album "Souvenir" due to be released on 4 June 2012.

Sarah also runs art classes  – all details are available via Sarah's contact page and if you want to see how her works are created, watch the YouTube timelapse movie below.

(I loved typing "A Bezerk Production")

Berzerk Productions present "Doors" by Suzan Zeder at the Oakwood Centre, Woodley June 7th and 8th 2012. Perfect for families with children aged 10+ http://www.ticketsource.co.uk/woodleytheatre or 07939 210121

Excellent contemporary youth theatre, highly recommended.

This is a double treat today, not only is this about one of the people who has been part of the jelly team but Charlotte Hardy is also exhibiting at the Reading Contemporary Art Fair this weekend with us.

Charlotte had been visiting jelly many years before she became a member of the team and without going into too much detail, she wrote a letter after graduating from Manchester in the summer of '99, saying she would love to exhibit. This coincided with jelly opening it's new space at The Oracle that same year, I went to see her, loved her work and asked her to exhibit as the first artist in the solo gallery.

image: Primrose Bakery

In those days, they were very large pieces, with a quirky perspective, full of colour and sometimes bad spellings – in fact she seemed to describe jelly perfectly without even knowing it. It wasn't long after that that she joined the jelly team, running workshops, looking after the gallery and in those days we always doubled up and before long she was joined by Sarah Graham (I'll write about Sarah another day). They both shared a studio and eventually became the curators of jelly.

image: Jubilee Flowers

Charlotte makes beautiful work, that is fluid and illustrative and painterly, on canvas, mixed media, print, has created murals (in fact one for another ex jelly, Georgina Worthington of High Tea of Highgate). Commissioned to create murals, pieces for Waitrose, John Lewis and Paperchase and her work is in private collections worldwide and even public collections. Pretty impressive.

image: Ballerina Shoes

What did Charlotte bring to jelly? Firstly her and Sarah developed a different hanging style from Justine and I, introduced new artists, ran great workshops and also made us all smile.

image: Imperial Stripe

We will have some of her work with us this weekend at the Art Fair, or pop over to her webpage and join her mailing list.

image: White Flamingo