Job opportunity with local artist

I am looking for a small-business manager/administrator for initially one day a week (from March/April 2012) to keep me and my accounts organised, look after visitors to my studio and help develop my growing business as part of a small team.

The ideal person will like organising, working with the public, getting detail right and developing creative ideas. You will need good IT skills for book-keeping and accounts (Excel), managing the mailing list (email), stock-keeping and ordering supplies.

The job is based in my open studio at Levisham Station, although some home-working on accounts and projects is possible by agreement. A typical day involves dealing with phone calls and post, meeting visitors, ensuring they enjoy their visit, and processing resulting sales of paintings, prints and cards. Heavy and pushy selling techniques are not required - visitors to the studio enjoy a no-pressure environment where they are enabled to buy pictures they like.

While in the studio you would invoice for work, update annual accounts and prepare them for submission to my accountant, log and manage weekly expenses, and manage and record all sales, including spreadsheets for limited edition prints.

There is potential for involvement in exhibitions, running projects such as group visits and painting expeditions, marketing the website and other initiatives as we seek to expand sales away from the studio.

You can visit my website here.

If interested, please email me at chris@warehouseart.com to arrange an informal discussion at this stage.

Profile: Celebrate North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire is the largest county in England with a rich history of arts and culture with many professional artists and hundreds of voluntary arts groups, societies and clubs, providing opportunities for thousands of people to take part in voluntary arts activity every week with exhibitions, choral evenings, pantomimes and plays, displays and demonstrations, festivals and outings.

People join these groups because they’re fun, they meet other people with similar interests, and get the opportunity to explore and express their creativity, and maybe learn some highly technical skills. They do it because they want to. In this predominately rural area the voluntary arts play a key part in allowing people access to the arts.

York & North Yorkshire Voluntary Arts Partnership has been set up to provide a connection between these groups, offering support through a website, newsletters, meetings, training events and through being an advocate for the sector.
 
To join the Celebrate North Yorkshire website database you must be a voluntary or amateur group or organisation based in York and North Yorkshire.

They will accept listings from individuals and organisations that provide services to voluntary and amateur artists and groups in York and North Yorkshire. These eligibility criteria may be reviewed on a case by case basis and the final decision remains with the steering group of the York & North Yorkshire Voluntary Arts Partnership.

Find out more.

Acoustic Music Night - Friday 13th

It’s time for another great night of live acoustic music this Friday 13th at Helmsley Arts Centre

We’ve another great line-up so hope to see you there.

Taking part will be:

Peter Reynolds
David Swann
Stan Graham
Lynn Sunley
Issy Zarb
Martin Heaton
J2Ali’s
Nick & Lynn Blair
Maggie Groom
Kyle Frazer

Special guest performer: the one and only Bluesbeaten Redshaw who you can see in the video below playing at the UK's first ever Cigar Box Guitar festival!



The evening starts at 7.30 and entry is only £3.00 payable on the door.

Review - 'Rocking Horse Winner'

Many thanks to Jean Richards, a Kirby resident and frequent HAC visitor, for the following review:

North Country Theatre returned to the Helmsley Arts Centre last night (Saturday) with their 2011 touring roduction of The Rocking Horse Winner.

Based on a short story of the same name by D.H. Lawrence, the play follows the fortunes of Paul, a child of uncaring spendthrift parents, whose rocking horse inexplicably gives him the names of winning horses. He makes a fortune, but loses his mind.

The story itself was not particularly gripping, though it may have more appeal if you fancy a flutter yourself. But Artistic Director Nobby Dimon brought his usual imagination and flair to a production which fairly raced along. In particular, he managed, with four actors, a sound track and a bit of projection, to create the excitement of a race meeting as we watched.

Veteran of seven previous North Country productions, Mark Cronfield, had the unenviable task of playing the boy Paul, which he did superbly, with support from other members of the company who have visited Helmsley before, Victoria Brazier (whom many will remember as the brilliant Princess Flavia in ‘The Prisoner of Zenda’) as his mother, Simon Kirk as his uncle, and Thomas Frere as the family gardener and placer of bets. Nobby himself made a welcome return to the stage as the psychiatrist who tried, unsuccessfully, to figure it all out.

In true NCT style, this was ‘a one night stand’, but you can still catch the production, which runs until December 10, at other theatres in the area. Dates and venues are on their website.

At the end of the performance, Nobby reminded the audience that the company had lost the whole of its Arts Council grant in the recent cuts, and so was more dependent than ever on ticket sales, and on supporters joining the Friends group, details of which can be found on the website. Please help to keep this great rural touring company in business.

Sneak preview: the 2012 production will be based on J.S. Fletcher’s Lighthouse on Shivering Sands. The story begins: “When Mordecai Chiddock came to join the lighthouse staff on Shivering Sand, Jezreel Cornish was taking his allowance of sleep, and Chiddock, being new to the place, did not know who it was he would meet when Cornish woke up. Otherwise, the boat which had brought him and a month's provisions over from the mainland would never have gone back without him……”.

Yorkshire arts groups lose lending service

A Yorkshire arts resource used by many amateur dramatic companies, choirs and orchestras has been earmarked for closure.

The Yorkshire Libraries and Information (YLI) Music and Drama Service on Balne Lane in Wakefield is due to close in March 2012.

The fate of its collection of scores and scripts will now be discussed at the YLI council meeting.

Critics fear many groups will close without the lending service.

Read more ..... (source).

Supporting Helmsley Library

Helmsley Arts Centre is keen to support Helmsley Library and Helmsley Town Council, which are seeking volunteers to help maintain library opening hours and develop new activities in the library space. NYCC Library Service's current proposal is to cut staffed opening hours at Helmsley from 19 hours to 15 per week.

Would you be willing to give a couple of hours per week of your time to help sustain this valuable and much loved amenity of the town?

There will be a meeting for potential library volunteers this Wednesday, 16 November, at 6pm at the Old Library Meeting Room in the Town Hall. Everyone is welcome.

You can register your interest in becoming a volunteer by email.

Welcome to our new Artistic Director!

In fact, welcome to Em Whitfield Brooks, the first holder of what is a new post, made possible by a Lottery Grant through Arts Council England. She begins her job later this month.

On Tuesday evening she met the Board of Trustees for the first time at their November meeting (seen here on the right with Margot Cairncross, Chairman of the Trustees)

Many of them she knew well, of course, because Em has been involved with the Centre for the last thirteen years, as a performer, theatre director and singer.

However, she brings to us a much wider experience of leading (and managing budgets for) arts projects large and small, in the north of England. She has particular expertise in working with community performance and arts education, involving people of all ages and abilities. For example, she is well known locally for her Community Opera productions for the Ryedale Festival. Elsewhere she has led and worked on projects in Durham, Scarborough, Leeds, Hull, Bridlington, York, Tyneside.....

Em is a freelance director, vocal teacher, workshop leader and published songwriter; she was a national trainer for the Sing Up Training Programme, running courses for teachers and singing leaders across the UK for four years; and has led corporate arts training courses internationally for organisations such as Marks & Spencer, HSBC, PwC and The Sage Gateshead. She recently returned from running workshops in Milan for the Map Consortium.

Em says, "I'm really looking forward to embarking on what will be a diverse and challenging role in a thriving organisation. I have particular areas to focus on, and will start planning for events and projects that will reach new audiences and participants, as well as continuing to entertain and nourish the Centre's core followers. There's lots that is already great about this place, and I am honoured to have been chosen to lead the artistic team. There never was a more important time for the arts to serve everyone in the community, and I cant wait to get started."

The appointment is initially for one year and is an important part of a two-year development project supported by Arts Council England. If we fulfill our first year objectives then we anticipate further lottery funding for the second. Thereafter, we'll be in a better position to sustain the post indefinitely.

The objectives are: to increase public involvement in the Centre through more effective marketing; to initiate and support Outreach projects and create new partnerships; to develop new activities and events for young people both at the Centre and in outlying areas; to support a programme that celebrates literature in all its forms; and to increase our income.

Quite a job! But Em is up for it, and has our full support.

'Doubt' at the Helmsley Arts Centre last night, an audience reaction

The Helmsley Arts Centre is very much Clap Trap Productions home theatre as several members of the company have acted and directed with the 1812 Theatre Company and members of the choir in 'Doubt' are in the youth theatre. As a result the audience was full of family and friends who thoroughly enjoyed their night out as these short vox pops illustrate:




Further information of the 'Doubt' tour, which ends at the Theatre Royal in York, can be found here.

Helmsley Arts Centre Poetry Competition

Theatre Stage Manager / Instructor wanted

Ampleforth College seek a Stage Manager with creative flare and technical expertise in equal measure. Ampleforth College Theatre puts on a varied programme of student performances throughout the year and the Stage Manager will be responsible for designing and delivering sets, lighting, SFX and all other technical aspects for each production.

The right candidate will have a talent and enthusiasm for working with young people and would be able to confidently train them in technical theatre production and the safe use of our facilities. Skills in publicity design, web content management, photography and video production would also be highly desirable. This full time role will require flexible working hours during term-time to meet the full demands of our productions but school holidays are given.

Closing date for applications - 4 July 2011.

Interviews will take place 8 July 2011.

Salary - circa £21,000 per annum.

Ampleforth College is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and a Criminal Background check will be carried out on all successful applicants.

For more information and to apply, click here.

Exhibition at Ryedale Folk Museum

What's happening at The Milton Rooms?

Over the last couple of years ambitious plans have been drawn up for the transformation of The Milton Rooms in Malton into a new centre for the arts in Ryedale. A number of dedicated people have been working to translate those plans into action. And this summer sees the first fruits of their labours ripen in a short programme of exciting events both inside the building and outside, in the town.

Helmsley Arts Centre is pleased to be in partnership with The Milton Rooms. We have set up together a framework for future collaboration and mutual support, so that together we can provide Ryedale with an exciting range and balance of arts events and activities.

The Milton Rooms aims to collaborate with established and emerging artists, to make Malton a hub of excellence for the arts, in all creative fields.

With the dedication of a new, energetic team of artists and performers and the support of world famous Patrons (Kathy Burke, Imelda Staunton, Jools Holland and Bill Nighy) the Milton Rooms is set to Launch with an ambitious program of events starting from June an id well under way with the re-animation of this historic building.

"Oh, my word. Brilliant. When can I come up?"

- Imelda Staunton

With the largest sprung dancefloor in North Yorkshire, and a new forty seat Studio Theatre and plans for Artist Studios, the Milton Rooms will be turned into a state of the art venue for visiting productions, community events and in house productions.

"Really Exciting. Makes perfect sense for this to be happening."

- Kathy Burke

The Milton Rooms is launching it’s new program of events with a night of Music, Comedy, Magic and Dance at its Gala Evening hosted by Barry Cryer (June 12th). This is followed on by a night with the Peatbog Faeries and then a unique in-house production of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night's Dream Directed by Nick Bagnall (The Milton Rooms co-artistic Director). With a cast of over 170 taking place throughout Malton for one night only this promises to be an event like no other (June 26th).

For further information on events or how to get involved get in touch, check out the website or visit The Milton Rooms as the doors are always open.

Click image above to view our events calendar