Harborough Culture Cafe
Louisa's Place, St Mary's Road, Market Harborough LE16 7DU
Harborough Culture Cafe is a series of informal talks covering different areas of the arts - music, performance, art, film and literature.Come along if you would like to:- learn more about different areas of the arts,
- meet people with similar interests,
- find out about local arts events and activities,
- and raise money for arts charities.Our goal is to make the arts accessible to everyone.We are a not-for-profit organisation and, thanks to our hosts Louisa's Place and the support of our speakers, we are able to keep ticket prices to just £6 per event (or £15 for a series), and still make a significant donation to arts charities each year.
RECENT EVENTS
April 2023: Literature to Movies
May 2023: Is Jazz Really Difficult?
June 2023: 30 Years of the Leicester Comedy Festival
July 2023: Arts Quiz
September 2023: No, Your 5-Year-old Couldn't Do It - An Introduction To Modern Art
October 2023: The Life and Times of a Radio Broadcaster, with Charles Nove
November 2023: A Winter's Tale - Ghost Stories in Film and Literature
December 2023: Sunday Supplement - The best cultural events of 2023 and a look ahead to 2024
January 2024: Meet the Composer
February 2024: In the End, We All Become Stories
WINTER 2024 SERIES
Wednesday 31st January 2024:
Meet the Composer
What’s involved in writing music? Where does the inspiration come from? Have you ever wondered if you could do it?
Charlie James is an extraordinary local composer whose work features regularly on Radio 3 and Radio 4, and who has been recognised as Radio 3's Artist in Spotlight and Composer of the Week. Three of his CD's have even been included into the national archives. He loves sharing with people the art of composition - how to write ‘that’ song or piece, the one we all have in us.
Wednesday 28th February 2024:
In the End, We’ll All Become Stories
Margaret Atwood’s famous quote inevitably invites us all to consider how our own lives might become stories. Three local writers join us to tell how they have turned very different real-life inspiration into successful novels.
Nick Everard is a thriller writer whose former Army Officer experience feeds into his recent scandal-based murder mystery; Sarah Lee has written a moving novel based on her mother’s experiences as part of the Windrush generation; and Sue Moorcroft used a selection of love letters sent to her by a reader as inspiration for just one of her many best-selling novels.
Signed books will be available to purchase on the evening.
Wednesday 27th March 2024:
Nordic Noir - White Nights, Dark Deeds
Film expert Alan Seaman is our guide for a whistle-stop tour around the fictional crime scenes of Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Iceland.
He’ll be looking at the cultural and socio-political differences that inform the narratives of some of the most popular Nordic Noir films and television programmes.
Alan is an experienced freelance film teacher who works for numerous venues across the East Midlands. He has also recently completed his first crime novel.
Additional information about each evening
Doors open for all events at 6.30pm and talks will start at 7.30.
There will be opportunities to continue the conversation and the bar will remain open after each talk.Food platters will also be available:
- the Meat Platter will include Parma ham, salami, chorizo, olives, humous, cheddar, brie, bread, crackers, grapes and chilli jam;
- the Veggie Platter will include falafels, beetroot, salad sticks, humous, olives, cheddar, brie, bread, crackers, grapes and chilli jam;
- £9.95 each /£17.95 to share: please order your food with your tickets and pay on the night.
SPRING 2024 SERIES
Wednesday 24th April 2024:
A History of Fakes, Forgeries and Copies in the Art World
Fakes and forgeries have existed in the art world since classical times. Dr Len Holden’s talk traces this phenomenon through history, looking at some of the great Masters’ works as well as more modern works.Len will briefly examine some of the scientific techniques which can reveal forgeries or authenticate a painting or work of art as valid. He will then relate some famous modern day ingenious forgeries, including highly questionable modern works generated by artificial intelligence.
Wednesday 29th May 2024:
Film Soundtracks - Are They Heroes or Villains?
Film is the most collaborative of storytelling mediums - encompassing and incorporating centuries of development across literature, theatre, music, movement and the visual arts. But it is music, perhaps most of all, that has found a fresh form of expression as a part of the cinematic toolbox.In our May talk, filmmaker and author Kenton Hall will be exploring the role music plays in film and the ways in which it can help AND harm a film's impact.
Wednesday 26th June 2024:
Celebrating Summer
In ‘The Great Gatsby’, F. Scott Fitzgerald said, 'And so with the sunshine and the great bursts of leaves growing on trees, just as things grow in fast movies, I had that familiar conviction that life was beginning over again with the summer. 'So, as the Summer Solstice falls just two days before our June event, we have arranged a summer-themed evening of music, readings and performances, including some from favourite past speakers.
Additional information about each evening
Doors open for all events at 6.30pm and talks will start at 7.30.There will be opportunities to continue the conversation and the bar will remain open after each talk.Food platters will also be available:
- the Meat Platter will include Parma ham, salami, chorizo, olives, humous, cheddar, brie, bread, crackers, grapes and chilli jam;
- the Veggie Platter will include falafels, beetroot, salad sticks, humous, olives, cheddar, brie, bread, crackers, grapes and chilli jam;
- £9.95 each /£17.95 to share: please order your food with your tickets and pay on the night.
arts support
In setting up Harborough Culture Cafe, we had several aims:- to provide opportunities for learning about different areas of the arts;
- to provide a forum for people with similar interests to get together;
- to enrich cultural life in the Market Harborough area;
- to promote cultural events and activities in the Market Harborough area;
- and to divide our profits at the end of each year between local and national arts charities.As part of that work, we have researched charities which use different areas of the arts to make life better for people who are struggling in any way.Our selected charities for the 2023 - 2024 season are detailed below, with charity registration details and links to their own websites.
Art Refuge was founded in 2006. They use socially engaged art and adapted art therapy to support the mental health and well-being of people displaced due to conflict, persecution and poverty, both in the UK and internationally.
They deliver long-term programmes and take part in short-term projects, public exhibitions, conferences, cross-disciplinary collaborations and research, as well as tailor-made trainings and skills-sharing activity for frontline workers.
Their work is led by an experienced freelance team of art therapists and artists, including artists with lived experience of displacement.
Charity no: 1114353
BrightSparks Arts in Mental Health CIO is a charity that aims to support people with mental health challenges to develop their confidence and social connections through creativity.
They provide opportunities for people to create, perform, exhibit and showcase their work developed alongside professional artists while advocating for the de-stigmatisation of mental illness.
BrightSparks works in hospitals, community settings, cultural centres, schools, at events and online with a range of partner organisations and is supported by Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust's Arts in Mental Health Coordinators.Charity no: 1190327
SoundCafe Leicester (SCL) supports those who are homeless, isolated and vulnerably housed in Leicester City. They provide weekly safe creative spaces singing with SoundCafe choir; health and well-being with SoundCafe Foxes football; and a café incorporating arts, crafts and creative writing.
Guests can engage and socialise with others in a safe environment, developing their self-esteem, confidence and positivity, with the hope that new talents can be discovered, life skills developed, and lives transformed. These activities also combat social isolation, exclusion and loneliness, and empower guests to find their voice and facilitate it being heard.
By encouraging guests through creative participation SCL supports their positive re-engagement back into society.Charity no: 1162987
CONTACT
To talk to us...
The quickest way to contact us with anything non-urgent is via this form, which will go straight to our email address (harboroughculturecafe@gmail.com)
For anything urgent, you can ring us on 07746 594489.
To keep up to date with news...
Follow or message us at @harboroughculturecafe on Facebook and Instagram.
To find us...
We hold our events on the last Wednesday of every month
(except August and December) at:
Louisa's Place
4 St Mary's Road
Market Harborough
LE16 7DU
Tickets
