Sonata Piano & Cabaret Lounge Announces Upcoming Manchester Shows

Manchester's acclaimed new venue, Sonata Piano & Cabaret Lounge, will host an array of theatre and cabaret stars in the coming weeks, showcasing everything from classic cabaret repertoire to brand new immersive theatre.

· Pride headlined by Bad Girls star Nicole Faraday

· Paulus' 5-star Victoria Wood tribute direct from Edinburgh

· New immersive theatre and music production Dido's Bar

· Cabaret stars Mary Carewe and Tim McArthur

Pride @ Sonata

26th - 28th August

Sonata will celebrate Manchester Pride this August bank holiday weekend with a very special LGBTQ+ line-up, headlined on Saturday by Nicole Faraday (Bad Girls, Casualty, Emmerdale). Outside of her TV work Nicole is best known for her portrayal of Eva Cassidy in sell-out UK tours of Over the Rainbow, and this Pride the award-winning actress showcases her stunning vocals at Sonata with an intimate cabaret of classic hits and musical theatre.

On Sunday, Sonata presents the award-winning Bette: Bathhouse to Broadway!, a loving tribute to the life and career of Bette Midler, with the incredible Jonathan Booth delivering stories and all the hits with his flawless comedic timing, nuances and mannerisms.

The line-up is completed with jazz and musical theatre cabaret from Vivienne Lynsey on Friday, and up-and-coming piano sensation Eden Binks, opening on Saturday and Sunday evenings with her unique interpretations of pop hits.

Looking For Me Friend: The Music of Victoria Wood

10th September

Cabaret performer and TV personality Paulus (BBC's All Together Now) presents a loving tribute to his idol: the late, great Victoria Wood, direct from a 5-star-reviewed run at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Joined on-stage by sought-after Musical Director, and old friend, Michael Roulston (Fascinating Aida, Julie, Madly, Deeply), Paulus will remind us of Victoria's best-loved songs through the decades, and explore the musicality of Victoria's sketches and catchphrases, the northern accent and the modern 'Polari' that has evolved amongst her legions of fans through the quoting of her enormous body of work.

Directed by multi-award-winning cabaret star and close friend Sarah-Louise Young (An Evening Without Kate Bush; Julie Madly Deeply), Looking For Me Friend is a nostalgic evening of entertainment filled with love, laughter and fabulous memories for Victoria Wood fans, as well as the ultimate 'Beginners Guide' for audiences new to her work.

Dido's Bar

11th - 12th October

Set in a music club, teetering on the edge of belonging, Dido's Bar is a new immersive theatre and music production premiering this autumn, presented by Dash Arts in association with Art Reach and Journeys Festival International.

Sonata is delighted to present this epic retelling of Virgil's Aeneid, direct from its London premiere. Dido's Bar is created and performed by a multilingual international ensemble of actor-musicians, bringing to life the classic myth of migration, love, and assimilation, through the eyes of refugees today. Nightly, divine bar managers, Juno and Venus, welcome world-class artists onto their stage, and around their performances, the drama unfolds.

The work is inspired by director Josephine Burton's encounter with Kurdish Iranian refugee and now Finnish resident, composer Marouf Majidi and is written by Hattie Naylor.

Mary Carewe and Philip Mayers: Berlin to Broadway

23rd October

International concert and cabaret singer Mary Carewe, with her long-term collaborator, arranger and pianist, Philip Mayers, present a night of Berlin cabaret and Broadway songs in the intimate atmosphere of Sonata.

They have performed around the world in iconic venues such as New York's Carnegie Hall, London's Royal Albert and Festival Halls, Amsterdam's Concertgebouw and Paris's Théâtre du Châtelet as well as releasing a number of cabaret CDs. Mary's latest CD release is called "Long Ago And Far Away" with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Mary's is a familiar voice to listeners of Radio 2's Friday Night is Music Night having featured as a 'star singer' over 75 times. She has made recordings with many orchestras of film music and classic pop repertoire and regularly records movie and TV soundtracks, including recent releases "Cruella", "Last Night In Soho" and "The Little Mermaid" due out next year, and backing vocals for pop artists ranging from Yusuf 'Cat Stevens' and Eric Clapton to Westlife and Steps.

Tim McArthur Sings Sondheim's Divas

28th October

Sondheim aficionado Tim McArthur performs a classic evening of the leading ladies' songs from Sondheim's greatest musicals, looked at afresh with a gender retake.

This 5-star-reviewed, Critics Choice (The Times) and Pick of the Day (The New York Times) show has been performed at The Arts Theatre in London, The Pride Arts Centre in Chicago and The Tada Theatre in New York. Tim's cabaret appearances have included performing at venues such as Feinstein's 54 Below (New York), New Space Theatre (Cape Town), Don't Tell Mama (New York), The Theatre Lounge (Kuala Lumpur), The Purcell Room and London Hippodrome.

Tim's professional Sondheim credits include roles in Into The Woods, Company, You're Gonna Love Tomorrow and Assassins and he has directed A Little Night Music, Follies and Sweeney Todd.

Tickets for all shows are available now at www.sonatamcr.com/whatson.

These highlights are in addition to live music 7 nights a week at Sonata, with the full programme of established and up-and-coming artists available on the website.

To post a comment, you must register and login.