The full event listings for Wonder Women, running across Manchester 1 – 31 March 2014.
Throughout
EXHIBITION: Joana Vasconcelos: Time Machine: The UK’s most ambitious exhibition of works the Portuguese contemporary artist, Vasconcelos brings her seductive and subversive large-scale sculptures to Manchester for an exclusive site-specific exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery. This major new show features over 20 of her most significant sculptures, which fill the gallery’s major exhibition spaces, adorn its exterior and act as interventions with the permanent collection in spaces across the whole building. The exhibition will include new and recent works, the majority of which are previously unseen in the UK. Read our preview of the exhibition. Manchester Art Gallery, until 1 June. Tickets £7.50 adults, £6 concessions.
PERFORMANCE: Orlando: What would it be like to live for 400 years? How would it feel to be both a man and a woman? Beginning life as a boy, Orlando is a hit with the ladies in Queen Elizabeth’s court, even winning the heart of the Virgin Queen herself. But his love life spins out of control and, after a crazy night out in Constantinople, he wakes up to find he has become a woman. She then has to find her way home, with the added difficulty of spinning through time – through the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. Read our preview here. Royal Exchange Theatre, 20 February-22 March. Tickets from £10.
PERFORMANCE: The Seagull: The Library Theatre Company’s last ever production is Chekhov’s masterpiece, The Seagull, a captivating study of the corrosion of youthful idealism, wasted ambitions and unrequited love. It is also the first regional outing for Anya Reiss’s new adaptation of the play; Reiss is one of the most exciting new voices in British theatre, and she brings The Seagull right up to date while keeping the timeless quality of the great original. The Lowry, 21 February-8 March. Tickets £12-£20.
EXHIBITION: Stature: This simple “yarnstorming” exhibition at the Town Hall takes as its starting point the simple fact that Manchester – the birthplace of the Suffragette movement – still only has municipal statues that celebrate the achievements of historical men. As organisers Warp & Weft note: “we thought it was about time they honoured some great female role models”. In Stature, eight marble busts of Manchester’s great and the good will wear crochet masks of some of their female counterparts, who range from author Elizabeth Gaskell and a scientist who has an annual Japanese festival named after her, to Annie Horniman, the founder of Britain’s first regional repertory theatre and the mathematician and former Lord Mayor of Manchester, Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw. Manchester Town Hall (ground floor), 24 February-9 March, free.
EXHIBITION: Women & Industry in the First World War: 2014 marks the centenary of the start of the First World War. This new outdoor display shows a series of photographs taken by G P Lewis to document women’s vital contribution to the war effort in factories across the North West almost 100 years ago. Lewis, an official photographer of the home front, specialised in documenting heavy industry and photographed women workers in the glass, vehicle and food industries. The images, jointly commissioned by the Imperial War Museum and the Ministry of Information, demonstrate the wide range of roles performed by women. IWM North, until 28 September, free.
EXHIBITION: Alison Goldfrapp: Performer as Curator: The last chance to see a rare exhibition by this Grammy-nominated musician; Alison Goldfrapp brings together some of her favourite paintings, illustration and even books in this dark, fairy-tale themed exhibition at The Lowry. Read our review. The Lowry, until 2 March, free.
TOUR: A Closer Look: International Women’s Day: To mark International Women’s Day, join IWM North for a 20-minute walk and talk around its Main Exhibition Space to find out more about some of the personal stories and items in its collections. Explore women’s role in peace-making and in times of conflict, from the Women’s International League in the First World War to Greenham Common in the Cold War. Learn more about the work of aid agencies and relief workers such as Emma Kay, an aid worker in Bosnia-Herzegovina during the break-up of the former Yugoslavia, and see documentary photography of Syrian Arab Red Crescent volunteers in the new display, Syria: Humanity in Conflict, made in association with the British Red Cross. IWM North, 3.30pm daily, 1-31 March, free (14 years+).
EXHIBITION: Vanishing for the Vote: Following demands from the Liberal government for every household to comply with its 1914 census requirements, Suffragette organisations urged women, all still voteless, to boycott the census. Many did. Some wrote “Votes for Women” boldly across their census forms. Others hid in darkened houses or, in the case of Emily Wilding Davison, in a cupboard within the Houses of Parliament. Find out more about this fascinating episode in British political history via a new exhibition at the People’s History Museum. People’s History Museum, 24 February-27 April, free.
EXHIBITION: The Mothers: This growing, online-only project is the result of photographer Rebecca Lupton’s desire to record the realities of motherhood – to create a place “where women could share their stories and experiences of being mothers without feeling judged”. In this series of portraits, Lupton has photographed and interviewed an enormous range of women about what motherhood is really like. The result is a realistic and moving collective portrait, one that’s about as far removed from the cosy, romantic image of motherhood so often peddled in the media – and is all the more beautiful for it. Online now.
1 March
WALK: “Up Then Brave Women”: Manchester’s Radical Women: This guided walk follows in the footsteps of Manchester’s radical women, including the Owenite feminists, socialist women, Mary and Lizzy Burns, women writers on the Manchester Guardian, Mrs Gaskell, the Manchester Society of Women Artists and women at Peterloo. The walk is led by Red Flag Walks’ Michael Herbert, a trustee of the Working Class Movement Library and history writer who has led walks in Manchester for 25 years. Meet at the Co-operative Bank, Corporation Street, 11am, £6/£5, book via redflagwalks@gmail.com.
3 March
WORKSHOP: Snapshot on Women: Did you know that the People’s History Museum holds an archive of over 80,000 photographs? Go behind the scenes and delve into the museum’s unique photography collections, including those belonging to the Labour Party and Communist Party of Great Britain. In this lunchtime drop-in session, browse through images on the theme of women and uncover history through the lens. People’s History Museum, 12.30pm-1.30pm, free but booking advised.
4 March
PERFORMANCE: Vincent Dance Theatre: Motherland: Inching its way through airbrushed beauty, boob jobs and Botox, victim-blaming, slut-shaming and misled motherhood, Motherland is a funny, moving show about what it means to be a woman. Spurred on by the Spice Girls, Germaine Greer and Caitlin Moran, Vincent Dance Theatre goes into battle with the big boys, arguing against a narrow, over-sexualised definition of femininity. A multi-talented ensemble of men, women and children cut across movement, live music, spoken word and song. Dismantling the dream that women can “have it all”, the production calls into question the gender we are born into and the price we pay for it. Contact, 7.30pm, £14/£8, over 14s only.
7 March
TALK: Women in Print: Print as an agent of change: Contemporary illustrators and writers have been asked to create a personal tribute, in chapbook form, to a woman designer whom they feel deserves to be better known. Copies of these chapbooks will be given away on the day. Speakers include Carolyn Trant talking about artist, designer and educator Peggy Angus, Harriet Cory-Wright talking about the women illustrators of Puffin picture books and Desdemona McCannon talking about female designers who also collected and wrote about folk art. Dr. Rosemary Shirley chairs the discussion. MMU Special Collections, 10am-12.30pm, free but booking essential via Eventbrite or 0161 247 6107.
TOUR: Women’s History Gallery Tour: Come along for a guided tour of the main galleries of the People’s History Museum and discover how women shaped our history. Including the “first feminist” Mary Wollstonecraft, the Suffragettes, the peace campaigners at Greenham Common and, love her or hate her, Britain’s first female Prime Minister. People’s History Museum, 1.15pm-2pm, free but booking is advised.
8 March
CONFERENCE: Suffragette Legacy Conference: A one-day and one-off conference that brings together academics, artists, politicians and activists to present and speak about how their work is affected by the Suffragette legacy of feminism. People’s History Museum, 10am-4pm, £25/£15, booking essential via Eventbrite.
WALK: The Pankhursts: Manchester played a key role in the campaign to win women the vote thanks to a local family – the Pankhursts – who put the issue at the centre of politics. Many of the key sites which featured in the long campaign can be found in the city centre, such as the Free Trade Hall, Manchester Art Gallery and what was the Pankhurst shop – as we will discover on this guided walk. Meet at the Midland Hotel, 11am, £6, no need to book.
FAMILY: Open Studio: Meet Nancy and hear her tales of life in the Land Army in the Second World War. Learn about her wartime experiences away from home and making new friends, especially with a quiet and timid horse called Rufus. In this interactive family session, visitors can choose what happens – each storytelling session will be different, with puppets and multi-sensory resources used to bring Nancy’s story to life. Enjoy the tale, and then make your own Nancy or Rufus to take home and keep. IWM North, 11am-12.30pm & 2pm-3pm, free (also runs 9 March).
TOUR: Meet Enriqueta: Discover the woman behind the construction of the John Rylands Library in this half-hour tour, talk and mini exhibition; the indomitable Mrs Rylands built the library as a memorial to her late husband. John Rylands Library, 11am & 2pm, free.
TOUR: Women’s Football Day: Come and meet FC United of Manchester and chat to them about their great community work and watch fantastic demonstrations throughout the afternoon performed by Women Footballers. National Football Museum, 12pm and 3pm (lasts 30 minutes), free with purchase of guidebook. Plus: buy one, get one free on all Women’s Football Plus tickets.
WORKSHOP: Women in Art: Meet artists Lucy Burscough, Rachael Elwell and Nicky Colclough as they discuss their artistic practice, their female influences past and present, and their current work at Manchester Museum – as part of Coral: Something Rich & Strange. The artists will lead a series of drop-in workshops and demonstrations. Manchester Museum, 1pm – 4pm, talks 1pm Lucy Burscough, 2pm Rachael Elwell, 3pm Nicky Colclough, free.
WORKSHOP: You can keep your clothes on: Women in the Performing Arts: Finding your way in the performing arts can be a challenge for anyone, especially young women. Come and join a panel of experts to discuss issues relevant to careers in music, drama, dance and events management, and explore ways in which you can better assert yourself in the industry. Royal Exchange Theatre, 1pm-4pm, £3, booking essential on 0161 833 9833. This session is open to young women aged 16-21; part of the Exchange’s Truth about Youth programme run in partnership with The Co-operative Foundation.
PERFORMANCE: Living History Performance – The Hard Way Up: Celebrate International Women’s Day and watch the People’s History Museum’s “living history” character based on the life of Suffragette Hannah Mitchell. Hannah spoke out for women and the poor and became a peace campaigner after the First World War. This event is supported by Manchester City Council. People’s History Museum, 1.15pm-2pm, free.
TALK: International Women’s Day talk: Join June Hannam, Professor of History at the University of the West of England, on the topic “Socialist women of the Independent Labour Party – political propagandists and trade union organisers, 1890s-1914.” Her talk will consider how socialist women highlighted the specific issues and inequalities facing working women, and will explore the different, and often competing, strategies they put forward for improving their social and economic position, including trade union organisation and the vote. Working Class Movement Library, 2pm, free.
WORKSHOP: (re)Making peace: There are many things that destroy women’s peace on a daily basis: from bare breasts on page 3 to fear on the streets after dark. Take part in the (Re)Making Peace workshops by looking at what destroys your peace and then, using words, images, sound and the senses, reimagine, redefine and rebuild it! Curator and No More Page 3 campaigner Anne Louise Kershaw explores the female image with a mass collage, For Book’s Sake invite you to rewrite your own story, and conceptual artist Debbie Sharp hosts a talk, a walk and a workshop. Events conclude with a performance by artist Rosanne Robertson. You are free to drop in and join in with any or all of the participatory arts events. The Penthouse, 5th Floor, Hilton house, 26–28 Hilton Street, M1 1EH, 4pm-10pm, free (suggested donation £3), full details here.
EXHIBITION: Tessellate: The group ArtAnon, working with Curated Place, have worked with groups and organisations across the city to create the materials for this, a one-day exhibition at Manchester Craft and Design Centre that comprises a giant collection of individual origami pieces. Visit the exhibition, enjoy a women-inspired set from DJ (B)ronwen and find out more about ArtAnon’s other projects. Manchester Craft & Design Centre, 6pm-9pm, free.
FILM: Pelo Malo (Bad Hair): A poignant portrait of the battle between Marta (Samantha Castillo), a struggling, grieving single mother, and Junior (Samuel Lange Zambrano), her nine-year-old mixed race son, over his sense of identity. The conflict is condensed into a fight over Junior’s obsession with straightening his hair, which his bigoted mother fears is an indication of his burgeoning sexuality. The film’s director, Mariana Rondón, leads a Q&A about the film after the screening. Cornerhouse, 6.30pm, £6/£4.50/£3. Cert. 15. Part of ¡VIVA! Spanish and Latin Film Festival.
GIG: HAIM (DJ set): The Deaf Institute’s monthly indie night, GOO, has managed to secure girl band du jour, HAIM, this March. The LA-based sisters will be playing a rare DJ set in the institute’s glorious music hall, alongside guest DJs from NOW WAVE. Unmissable. The Deaf Institute, 11pm-4am, last remaining tickets £10.
EVENT: International Women’s Day. The city comes together to celebrate International Women’s Day with awards, talks, tours and a range of events. Venues across the city: full details here.
9 March
WALK: ¡Hola Manchester! Manchester guide Jean Bailo leads this special walking tour that explores connections between Manchester and Spain in intermediate-level Spanish. Learn about Emmeline Pankhurst’s Spanish counterpart, Manchester Town Hall’s tribute to the Civil War’s International Brigade, the curvy bridge designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava Valls and Manchester’s love affair with Spanish food and fashion. Meet at Cornerhouse, 11am-12.30pm, £7/£6. Part of the ¡VIVA! Spanish and Latin Film Festival.
FILM: Con La Pata Quebrada (Barefoot and in the Kitchen): This light-hearted, action-packed documentary uses clips from Spanish film history to look at changing depictions of women since the early 20th century. As the clips roll on, look out for many films shown at Cornerhouse over the years. Cornerhouse, 1.30pm, £6/£4.50/£3. Part of the ¡VIVA! Spanish and Latin Film Festival.
WALK: Women as Peacemakers: Celebrate International Women’s Day and join Green Badge Tour Guide Suzanne Hindle, on a walking tour around the city centre. Uncover the stories of historical and modern Manchester women and find out about their contribution to harmony through radicalism, war effort, nursing, science and community work. Meet at the People’s History Museum, 2pm–4pm, free, booking advised via Eventbrite.
GIG: MØ: The Danish electro-pop pioneer and singer/songwriter Karen Marie Ørsted – who performs under the stage name MØ – has yet to release an album, but already she’s being touted as the next Grimes. A string of singles and an EP that featured everything from big brass hooks and hypnotic vocals to a collaboration with LA-based producer Diplo has won the musician many a music-world plaudit – but it’s her combination of icy electronics and heartfelt vulnerability that’s got us interested. We also quite like her slightly surreal version of the Spice Girls’ Say You’ll Be There. Don’t miss her performance at the Deaf Institute this March. Her debut album, No Mythologies to Follow, is due out that day after this gig – perfect timing, huh? Deaf Institute, 7.30pm, £8.50.
11 March
WORKSHOP: Knit and natter: In connection with IWM North’s Aftermath exhibition, marking 100 years of creativity coming out of conflict, get together to enjoy that creative wartime spirit. IWM North, 2pm-4pm, free.
14 March
TOUR: Women’s History Gallery Tour: Come along for a guided tour of the main galleries of the People’s History Museum and discover how women shaped our history. Including the “first feminist” Mary Wollstonecraft, the Suffragettes, the peace campaigners at Greenham Common and, love her or hate her, Britain’s first female Prime Minister. People’s History Museum, 1.15pm-2pm, free but booking is advised.
15 March
EVENT: Saturday Science: Science and technology have shaped the modern world and will continue to make advances in years to come. Join MOSI for National Science & Engineering Week to discover how you could design your own future. Hear first hand from inspirational women (and men) about their contributions to the field, see their work in action and be inspired to give it a go yourself. MOSI, 10.30am-3.30pm, free.
RIDE: Story Cycles: Nothing to lose but our chains: A cycle ride through history that touches on the lives of some of the Manchester women who contributed to “the cause” of women’s suffrage. Along the way, consider how the bicycle gave women new independence, whilst also challenging prevailing ideas of how women should dress. The tour includes a visit to the National Cycling Centre to hear about today’s elite women cyclists. Meet at the Gallery of Costume, 10.30am, free, booking essential on 0778 0900 811 (distance approx. 17 miles; bring your own bike).
EVENT: Pecha Kucha Manchester. It’s back: the People’s History Museum welcomes anyone to come and talk about any subject they wish (this time on the theme of women), as long as they follow one simple rule: they can only use 20 Powerpoint slides, spending just 20 seconds on each. The result is a quick-fire round of straight to the point presentations that engage and entertain. People’s History Museum, 6pm-8pm, free but booking essential.
GIG: Ellen & the Escapades: This is the first Manchester outing of the Leeds-based alternative folk band in two years, and one of a very limited run of UK shows this spring. Darlings of BBC Radio 2, BBC 6Music, Lauren Laverne and Steve Lamacq, the band blends elements of folk, pop and rock, their well-crafted songs steadily gaining the wider attention of music-loving audiences across the UK. Support comes from Bird to Beast and Bells in the Birches; expect an intimate gig in one of our favourite low-key live music venues. The Castle Hotel, 7.30pm, £6.
16 March
WALK: “Manchester First in the Fight” – Votes for Women, 1866-1928: This guided walk tells the story of the campaign for Votes for Women – in which Manchester played a major part. Encounter the leading figures of the suffragist and suffragette movement, including Lydia Becker, Esther Roper, Annie Kenney, Mabel Capper, Annot Robinson and the Pankhurst family. The walk is led by Red Flag Walks’ Michael Herbert, a trustee of the Working Class Movement Library and history writer who has led walks in Manchester for 25 years. Meet at Friend’s Meeting House, Mount Street, 11am, £6/£5, book via redflagwalks@gmail.com.
RIDE: Story Cycles: Glad the Gloom: Esther Roper and Eva Gore-Booth in Salford and Manchester: A bike ride exploring the lives of two women who played a major role in Trade Union and Women’s Right movements in the late 1800′s. Meet at the Gallery of Costume, 11am, free, booking essential on 07828 466 999 (distance approx. 16 miles; bring your own bike).
TALK: The Pankhursts: The campaign to win women the vote gathered pace 100 years ago thanks to the Pankhurst family. In this talk, Ed Glinert relates the Pankhurst’s story, lining it with national events that saw the campaign finally won in 1928. Gorton Monastery, 12pm, free but booking essential.
18 March
FILM: Con La Pata Quebrada (Barefoot and in the Kitchen): This light-hearted, action-packed documentary uses clips from Spanish film history to look at changing depictions of women since the early 20th century. As the clips roll on, look out for many films shown at Cornerhouse over the years. Cornerhouse, 1.30pm, £6/£4.50/£3. Part of the ¡VIVA! Spanish and Latin Film Festival.
TALK: Wicked Women in Spanish Cinema: To complement the screening of Con la pata quebrada (above), this talk explores how Spanish cinema has responded to the changing status of women in Spanish society since the transition to democracy. This session will concentrate on the representations of “bad” women, focusing on films, genres and stars that criticize or defy female models created and shaped by patriarchal culture and historical, social and cultural vicissitudes. Led by Carmen Herrero, Principal Lecturer in Hispanic Studies at Manchester Metropolitan University. Cornerhouse, 5.15pm-6.15pm, £4/£3. Part of the ¡VIVA! Spanish and Latin Film Festival.
PERFORMANCE: Iron-Oxide: HeLa: In 1951, Henrietta Lacks walked into the coloured section of the John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore with a pain in her abdomen. A biopsy revealed a cancer that would kill her just months later. A cell sample taken without her permission was used as the raw material for some of the most important scientific discoveries of the past 100 years. Against a backdrop that charts the scientific milestones of the HeLa Cell Line, this production brings Henrietta Lacks back to life, using testimony from her family members, the scientific community and the doctors who treated her. Contact, 8pm, £11/£6, over 12s only.
20 March
PERFORMANCE: Victoria Melody: Major Tom: This one-woman, one-dog show features Victoria and her Basset Hound, Major Tom and is the story of how an average 34 year-old became a beauty queen – and how her unruly canine became a championship show dog. Major Tom and Victoria increasingly immerse themselves in the obsessive and confusing realm of competition as they participate as genuine contestants, determined to win. The show recounts how research into the exclusive world of pedigree dog showing led them all the way to competing at both Crufts and the Mrs. England 2013 beauty pageant, and reflects on the British fascination with celebrities, beauty, and winning. Contact, 8pm, £11/£6, over 14s only.
22 March
PERFORMANCE: Jackie Hagan: Some People Have Too Many Legs: Jackie Hagan is a council estate Rainbow Brite. Last summer she suddenly had her leg amputated and never got told why. This is the infectiously optimistic story of a dog-eared family that learned to say “I Love You”, some constantly hungover nurses, and a big fat false leg called George. Contact, 8pm, £6/£3, over 14s only.
PERFORMANCE: Sophie Willan: The Novice Detective: Sophie’s father is missing, leaving behind a crumpled photo and a 1990’s pop album. With help from you and her slightly psychic Gran, Sophie is determined to crack the case! Heart-warming, heart-breaking comedy. Contact, 8.30pm, £9/£5, over 14s only.
23 March
GIG: Angel Olsen: The St. Louis singer songwriter whose remarkable voice crackles with hints of folk, country, alt rock and more besides comes to Manchester. Many of the superlatives describing Olsen refer to how seemingly little it takes for her to leave an audience speechless, even spellbound. But Olsen has never been as timid as those descriptors imply, and the noisy, fiery hints in her earlier work find a fuller expression on her newest LP, Burn Your Fire For No Witness. Here, Olsen sings with full-throated exultation, admonition and bold, expressive melody. Also, with the help of producer John Congleton, her music now crackles with a churning, rumbling low end and a brighter energy. Don’t miss her one night only gig in Manchester. Soup Kitchen, 7.30pm, £8.
27 March
CONFERENCE: FutureEverything: The international digital culture conference, art and music event returns to Manchester. Its programme features some of the most exciting female tech speakers – including Superflux’s Anab Jain and interactive product designer, Alexandra Deschamps-Sonsino – currently doing the rounds, while its art programme, called Data As Culture, is curated by Shiri Shalmy. Venues across Manchester, 27 March-1 April, from £75 (concessions £50, art and music events individually ticketed).
29 March
TALK: Woman’s Outlook: A surprisingly modern magazine? Between 1919 and 1967, the women of the co-operative movement had their own magazine, Woman’s Outlook. Providing an enticing mix of the personal and the political, Woman’s Outlook was surprisingly similar to women’s magazines today, and its concerns such as women’s representation in parliament, equal pay and healthy eating remain relevant. Join Natalie Bradbury, writer, researcher and Information Co-ordinator at the Co-operative College, for this fascinating talk. People’s History Museum, 1pm-2pm, free but booking advised.
TALK: Vanishing for the Vote. The Liberal government demanded every household comply with its census requirements. So suffragette organisations urged women, all still voteless, to boycott. Many did. Join author and research fellow Dr Jill Liddington for the fascinating insight into the events of Census Night 1911. Jill is co-author of One Hand Tied behind Us which quickly became a suffrage classic. Her most recent book, Rebel Girls:Their Fight For The Vote was shortlisted for the Portico Book Prize. Part of Manchester Histories Festival and Wonder Women Radical Manchester. People’s History Museum, 3pm – 3.45pm, book signing from 4pm, free but booking required via Eventbrite.
30 March
WORKSHOP: Make do and mend: There’s nothing austere about this fun, drop-in session where you will learn easy ways to recycle and upcycle. John Rylands Library, 12pm-4pm, free.