Ushaw will play host to the opening night of the North East Summer tour of The Two Fridas this Saturday. This is a dance-theatre production inspired by two of the 20th Century’s most iconic female artists.
The Two Fridas is one of the country’s most quaint and ambitious dance theatre stage shows of 2021. It embarks on an eight-date tour of the North East in July and August.
About The Two Fridas dance show
The show shines a spotlight on to the life, times and work of two of the art world’s most pioneering and prestigious artists – Frida Kahlo (Mexico) and Amrita Sher-Gil (Hungary/India).
The show is a collaboration between the Billingham International Folklore Festival of World Dance and Balbir Singh Dance Company.
The 50-minute socially distanced show is an explosion of cultural and heritage references. It pulls together emotional and imaginative elements from the eventful lives of both KAHLO and SHER-GIL . It is a production which fuses together Classical Indian Dance, Western Contemporary Dance and Mexican Folk Dance.
The Two Fridas is motivated by one of the world’s most famous self-portraits [The Two Fridas by legendary Mexican artist Frida Kahlo]. It comes to life from the canvas to the stage through an intriguing mixture of storytelling, dance-theatre, music, performance, and live painting.
The tour is in reaction to the overwhelming response to a sell-out ‘World Premiere’ performance that was staged at The Bowes Museum in County Durham back in September 2020.
Olga Maloney, Artistic Director of Billingham International Folklore Festival of World Dance, said:
“As we emerge from our cultural hiatus enforced by Covid-19 – we want to provide audiences with a delightful and beautiful display of dance theatre performance that people have been craving and imagining for the past 15-months.
“We are just bursting with anticipation and excitement with the prospect of bringing The Two Fridas to such a breath-taking array of cultural venues this Summer starting off with Ushaw: Historic House, Chapels & Gardens.”
Jonathan Ward Commercial Director of Ushaw: Historic House, Chapels & Gardens, said:
“After such a long time without live performances we’re delighted to welcome The Two Fridas – we’re certain that our audiences will have an amazing time and enjoy both the event itself, and the spectacular location here at Ushaw.”
Tickets
There are still tickets available for Saturday’s show at and you can buy them by visiting www.ushaw.org/theatre-dance Tickets cost £15 with the performance commencing at 6pm.
(Venue Address: Woodland Road, Durham, DH7 9RH)
The Two Fridas will enjoy seven further dates at venues across the North East including Billingham, Darlington, Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland, and Stockton-on-Tees.
All of the dates, locations and ticket details can be found on the Billingham International Folklore Festival of World Dance website.
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The Two Fridas is supported by Arts Council England through its National Lottery Project Grants Programme.
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