Simon Webb News

Following a very competitive recruitment process, Bill Chandler has been appointed Director of the BBC Symphony Orchestra & Chorus and Adam Szabo has been appointed Director of the BBC Philharmonic.

Anna Clyne will compose three new scores for the BBC Philharmonic in her new role as Composer in Association. Her first piece in the role is Glasslands, which she composed for celebrated saxophonist Jess Gillam, and will have its UK premiere with the BBC Philharmonic at Nottingham Royal Concert Hall on 5 October and broadcast live on BBC Radio 3.

Leading BBC conductors and artists have signed an open letter to the BBC's Director General, protesting against the recent proposals to cut BBC Singers and funding to BBC orchestras, calling the decision 'calamitous'.

The BBC has announced it is to close the BBC Singers in order to invest more widely in the future of choral singing across the UK, working with a wide range of choral groups alongside launching a major choral development programme for new talent.

Simon has been Director of the BBC Philharmonic since 2014 and has substantial experience working in management and leadership roles across the UK’s orchestras, including the London Philharmonic Orchestra, where he was elected chair of the board of directors for four years, and also the CBSO, where he served as Director of Orchestral Management.

Spinning You Home celebrates a haunting chapter in BC gold rush history; promises that transcend death; and the power of love and storytelling.

As the Association of British Orchestra Conference has come to a close today (12 March), the industry body has announced the recipient of its annual ABO Award and the winners of the 2021 ABO/Classical Music Awards, celebrating the achievements of colleagues across the sector during what has been an incredibly challenging year. 

The 2021 Association of British Orchestras Conference is to take place online from Wednesday to Friday (10-12 March), hosted in partnership with Classic FM, Help Musicians, Classical Music and the British Council, and featuring speakers and panellists including Caroline Dinenage MP, Minister of State for Digital & Culture and Sir Nicholas Serota, Chair, Arts Council England.

Two new members have been appointed to the Association of British Orchestras (ABO) Board: Leslie Kwan, Founder and Managing Director, Lionsgate Music and Chris Loughran, Senior Policy & Advocacy Advisor, The HALO Trust.

Director of the BBC Philharmonic, Simon Webb, has been elected as the new Chair of the Association of British Orchestras (ABO). He succeeds Gavin Reid, Chief Executive of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.

Founded in 1970 as the first pub theatre since Shakespeare's time, the 110-seat King's Head Theatre on Islington's Upper Street has played host to everyone from Joanna Lumley to Richard E Grant. In 2020, the theatre is hoping to move down the road to Islington Square, but meanwhile, here is everything you need to know if you're travelling there.

My name is Tom Wright and I am a gay playwright. I feel incredibly fortunate and proud to have broken through this year with two debut plays in back-to-back productions: My Dad's Gap Year at the Park Theatre and Undetectable, about to open at the King's Head Theatre.

Where can friendship take us? The enduring worlds created by J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis changed the face of fantasy forever. Frodo, Aslan, the Pevensie children, and dozens more iconic characters sprang from two fertile imaginations fed by a frienship that spanned decades. The tale of how Narnia and Middle Earth came to be - and how close both came to disappearing - is chronicled in this new play by Pacific Theatre's Artistic Director Ron Reed.

Where can friendship take us? The enduring worlds created by J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis changed the face of fantasy forever. Frodo, Aslan, the Pevensie children, and dozens more iconic characters sprang from two fertile imaginations fed by a frienship that spanned decades. The tale of how Narnia and Middle Earth came to be - and how close both came to disappearing - is chronicled in this new play by Pacific Theatre's Artistic Director Ron Reed.

Beginning next month, a host of stars from the world of entertainment will light up the stages in thirty-five theatres around the UK for this year's Qdos Entertainment pantomime season.

Ben Gernon will take up the position of Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Philharmonic in autumn 2017, one of the youngest conductors to have held a titled position with a BBC orchestra.

City Stage New West presents an evening of Shaw Shorts!, with How He Lied to Her Husband by George Bernard Shaw, and Love Letters to Mrs. Patrick Campbell, edited and arranged from historical correspondence between Shaw and Campbell by Renee Bucciarelli.

The Firehall Arts Centre announced today the addition of the works of two female playwrights to the 2016/2017 season. And Bella Sang With Us, written by Vancouver's own Sally Stubbs, and The Nether, by award-winning American playwright Jennifer Haley.

Beginning this month, a host of stars from the world of entertainment will light up the stages in twenty four towns and cities around the UK for this year's Qdos Entertainment pantomime season. From Aberdeen to Plymouth, over 60 well-known actors, comedians and entertainers will lead the casts of the nation's favourite pantomimes in theatres across the country including, for the first time in nearly three decades, a return to the capital's London Palladium.

Final casting has been announced for the UK tour of Save the Last Dance for Me. Lola Saunders, a finalist on The X Factor 2014, will make her theatrical debut in the role of Jennifer starring alongside previously announced Antony Costa as Milton, with Wayne Robinson as Curtis and Elizabeth Carter returning to the role of Marie.