Invitation to 'A Hymn to Old Age' 2nd and 3rd July

[Steve Nash]

Hello everyone!

Apologies if you already received this via another route - but I am delighted to invite you to 'A Hymn to Old Age'.

With music from Shunyata Improvisation Group, poetry from Alex Reed, and a Playback Theatre Northeast Performance, these will be thought-provoking and emotionally resonant live events, with audiences involved through reflections on their own ideas and experiences of old age. We are using the holistic perspectives of Herman Hesse (writer 1877-1962) as a contrasting inspiration point to the pervasive divisive ideology of ageism.

Tickets:

Tickets are £10 (please buy in advance to be sure of your seat)

Thursday 2nd July 2026 The Quakers Meeting House 1 West Ave, Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne NE3 4ES

Tickets https://buy.stripe.com/6oU6oHapI9pk9Rge9N0gw07

Friday 3rd July 2026 Hexham Trinity Methodist Church, Beaumont Street, Hexham, NE46 3LS

Tickets https://buy.stripe.com/00w9AT41kcBw7J83v90gw08

More info about the performances:

Part 1: A performance of Alex Reed (spoken word) and the Shunyata Improvisation Group. The performance is inspired by the writings of Herman Hesse on old age (permission of use kindly granted by Pushkin Press) and Alex’s poetic response within live spontaneous music.

Intermission

Part 2: Playback Theatre Northeast will invite the audience to share stories about their personal experience of old age, and these will be played back by actors and musicians using spontaneous improvised drama and music.    

Doors 6:30pm. Performances 7pm to 9:45pm with an intermission. Strictly no alcohol at either venue. Hot and cold soft drinks available      

The performers:

Alex Reed

Alex is a Northeast published poet with several works in print with V. Press, including: A Career in Accompaniment, These Nights at Home and knots, tangles, fankles, the latter a re-imagining of the work of radical psychiatrists R.D. Laing and A. Esterson on family life and ‘schizophrenia’. Alex has a wide experience of working in collaboration with other artists, performing with musicians and visual artists leading to mixed-media performances, the creation of CDs and print publications.

Playback Theatre

Playback Theatre is a form of improvisational theatre where audience members share personal stories, which are then immediately re-enacted by the performers. It is a collaborative process involving actors, musicians, the audience, and a conductor who helps to guide the storytelling and re-enactment. Playback Theatre aims to create a shared communal experience that builds social connection by exploring personal narratives through artistic performance.

Shunyata Improvisation Group (SIG)

SIG, established in 2018, has developed an extraordinary style of musical improvisational language; intimate, distinct, quiet, acoustic, spacious, and entirely composed in the moment.  Their concerts provide an immersive meditative experience, inspired by Zen aesthetic approaches to art. SIG have released six physical albums on independent labels, broadcasted on Radio 3, Tusk TV and Panic Radio France and have played at the following renowned festivals; Tusk, Newcastle Festival for Jazz and Improvised Music and the National Trust Festival of Bloom. SIG has a track record in co-producing multi-media projects. These events will be SIG's final shows, and your last opportunity to see them perform.

https://www.instagram.com/shunyataimprovisationgroup

Hoping you can make it!

Steve 

PS Please feel free to share this invitation with others who may be interested.

Steve Nash

07824 555221