GALA Concert To Celebrate Beacon Venue’s First Decade

13 January, 2023 | Local, Noticeboard

BEACON Arts Centre will mark its 10th birthday with a special performance by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra this weekend.

The Beacon opened its doors at Greenock waterfront in 2013, providing a new home for Greenock Arts Guild which had been serving the local community since 1946.

To celebrate its first decade, the venue will welcome the RSNO for a dazzling evening of music as it performs its Viennese Gala.

Conductor David Niemann and tenor Jamie MacDougall will lead the orchestra through the melodies of Johann Strauss and friends.

They will play favourites including the overture to Die Fledermaus, On the Beautiful Blue Danube, and the Thunder and Lightning Polka.

Tickets for the RSNO performance tomorrow night (Saturday) start from £22.50, or £5 for under 18s, and can be booked at www.beaconartscentre.co.uk.

The concert marks the start of a year-long programme of theatre, comedy and music celebrating the Beacon’s 10th year, and follows a record-breaking run of the venue’s annual pantomime.

A new monthly Classical Concert series will launch on the afternoon of Sunday 29 January, with Scottish guitarist and Gramophone Award winner Sean Shibe performing.

Other event highlights will include:

— 25 February: Comedian Milton Jones will return to the Beacon stage, where he will be joined by three top Scottish comedians.

— 28 March to 1 April: The Beacon will welcome back the National Theatre of Scotland with preview performances and the start of the UK tour of ‘Kidnapped’.

— 8 April: 80s icon Paul Young will visit the Beacon on his 2023 ‘Behind The Lens’ tour.

— 26 May: Beacon Jazz Club, which takes place on the last Thursday of every month, will celebrate its first anniversary with a ‘World of the Gods’ performance from the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra. The orchestra will be joined by the Mugenkyo Taiko Drummers.

Pauline Kane, director of Beacon Arts Centre, said: “Everyone at the Beacon is incredibly excited to celebrate the 10th year of our wonderful venue.

“We are delighted to welcome the Royal Scottish National Orchestra for a special performance of its Viennese Gala which will help us mark the occasion.

“After a hugely successful run of our pantomime, Aladdin –- which broke our previous record for ticket sales –- we are looking forward to a packed programme in the year ahead.

“Our key mission is to make the arts accessible to all and we hope to continue bringing a fun and varied programme of theatre, comedy, music and workshops in the years to come.

“As well as this, the Beacon runs an extensive engagement programme to take the arts out into the community, and to increase accessibility for young people and those with additional needs.”

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