PenArts

Bite size: THE PLYMOUTH CONTEMPORARY with Ben Borthwick

Join Ben Borthwick, Artistic Director at Plymouth Arts Centre, who gives us an intriguing insight into the Plymouth Contemporary.

Hear his views on the exhibition as a format, the pleasure of discovering new artists, and the rationale of selection for the post exhibition Artist Showcase.

A must for all artists.

Time:13:00-13:40 Free admission, booking advised

www.plymouth.ac.uk/whats-on/bite-size-the-plymouth-contemporary

Poetry reading: Rory Waterman

Born in Belfast, Rory Waterman’s debut collection Tonight the Summer’s Over (Carcanet, 2013) was a Poetry Book Society recommendation and shortlisted for the Heaney Prize.

His second full-length collection is Sarajevo Roses (Carcanet, 2017) and he has published two pamphlets including Brexit Day on the Balmoral Estate (Rack Press, 2017).

Rory is a Senior Lecturer in English at Nottingham Trent University and he writes critical prose for various publications, most frequently The Times Literary Supplement.

He co-runs the poetry pamphlet publisher (and former literary...

Talk: Choosing War? Choice And Tragedy In The Origins And Escalations Of Vietnam’s Wars

Professor of History at Exeter University and Director of the Centre for the Study of War, State and Society, Martin Thomas has written a number of books about the French colonial empire.

He is especially interested in why the end of European empire was bitterly – and violently – contested in some places but less so in others. He argues that 20th century war in Indochina showed the futility of resisting decolonisation, and could be seen as being a hugely costly and ultimately pointless conflict.

Tickets: £6 (standard), £4.20 (concessions), Peninsula Arts Friends free/ Free...

Film: Suffragette (2015)

Suffragette is the first feature film to tell the story of the foot soldiers of the early feminist movement who risked everything in the fight for equality. Based on true events, it explores the passion and heartbreak of those who risked all they had for women’s right to vote. Suffragette is the first British film for which the Houses of Parliament opened its doors as a location.

Introduced by Dr Kayla Parker, artist film-maker and Lecturer in Media Arts at Plymouth University, whose research interests include feminist film practices.

Director: Sarah Gavron Running time:...

Exhibition: Plymouth Contemporary Artist Showcase 2018

Selected artwork from the major Plymouth biennial

Opening hours: Monday-Friday 10:00-17:00, Saturday 11:00-16:00 Free admission

We are delighted to present the work of Georgie Grace, Jennet Thomas and Serial Composition as part of this artist showcase. The artists were selected from the 2017 Plymouth Contemporary, a major Plymouth biennial exhibition hosted by Peninsula Arts and KARST.

They were recognised for presenting new and original ideas and pushing the boundaries of their field, which include film, animation, painting and drawing.

Animal Condensed and...

Performance: Beowulf

Before we begin, we should warn you: This story ends with a dragon…

Seth Kriebel returns to Plymouth with Beowulf, an interactive performance-game inviting the audience to explore the world of a story from our legendary past… without leaving their seats.

Each show is unique, depending on the audience’s choices, bringing the world of the ancient epic to life… and asking why, after all these years, we still tell each other stories about the monsters that lurk in the dark.

Duration: 60 minutes (approx)

Tickets: £10 (standard)/£7 (concession)/ Free to Plymouth...

Poetry reading: Christopher DeWeese

Christopher DeWeese is the author of The Black Forest and The Father of the Arrow is the Thought, both published in the US by Octopus Books. His third book, The Confessions, was published by Plymouth University's Periplum Poetry imprint in 2017.

He is currently Associate Professor of Poetry at Wright State University, Ohio.

Tickets: £6 (standard), £4.20 (concessions), Peninsula Arts Friends free/ Free to Plymouth University students via SPIA

www.plymouth.ac.uk/whats-on/poetry-reading-christopher-deweese

Performance: STORY #1

A reflective consideration of how and why we construct narrative.

Rachel Mars and Greg Wohead take Pixar’s 22 Rules for Storytelling and How Stories Make Us Human, make them f*ck each other, kidnap the resulting baby and dance out a prophecy of its future life before its barely opened eyes.

We promise no less than 110 minutes. We promise real fictional characters. We promise a plot. We promise a surprise twist. We promise a rupture. We promise an ending. We promise a rupture.

Please note, this performance contains explicit sexual content and images, and is therefore...

Film: Young Soul Rebels (1991)

In his first narrative feature film, director Isaac Julien aimed to champion "black independent cinema, which deals with questions of sexuality, gender and national identity".

In the long hot summer of 1977, London prepared for the Silver Jubilee celebrations to the sounds of the burgeoning punk, soul and funk scenes. Soul boys Chris and Caz, a pair of pirate radio DJs, broadcast their show from a friend's garage, tussling with the local skinheads and clubbing with Chris' sassy music-industry girlfriend Tracy. But, social and sexual tensions in the community...

Talk: Luther and the Invention of the Reformation

Luther’s posting of 95 Theses to the door of the Wittenberg Castle Church in 1517 is among the most famous events of the Reformation. But did it really happen?

This talk reviews the evidence, and concludes it probably didn’t. So how did a ‘non-event’ end up becoming the defining moment of the Reformation and an iconic episode of the modern historical imagination?

Professor Peter Marshall from the University of Warwick explores what Luther’s theses-hammering has meant in different times and places, and the variety of purposes to which it has been put.

Tickets: £6 (...

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