Made in the North East: BBC Proms at The Glasshouse

Trailer

Arun is a composer and musician who contains multitudes. Defying all preconceptions of what a Jazz Clarinetist would be like, he brings Hip Hop, Mad-chester, Trance and pop flavours to his energetic sets. 

Playing his first proms, Arun and his band were working to generate a James Brown-inspired momentum and joy to his show. Whereas Alicia and the community choir have been practicing and preparing for their marathon, two-hour acapella set on Saturday night, covering Depeche Mode, Radiohead and others. 

Like so many, Alicia’s mental health took a real hit during the pandemic. So when Sage Gateshead advertised for amateur singers to create a new choir, her dad urged her to audition. There she has begun to grow back into herself, finding new friends, renewed purpose and a chance to perform at the world’s biggest classical music festival.

But hosting an internationally renowned festival doesn’t just happen without a staggering effort of logistics and a tireless team working behind the scenes. Thankfully, Wallsend-native Alyssa can make magic happen with just her clipboard and a walkie talkie. 

This Duty Manager splits her hours between getting the acts and instruments to the stage on time, whilst also keeping the audience’s experience out front seamlessly calm and organised. 

The live-music-loving Richardson family are anything but calm about watching Self Esteem blend her euphoric anthems about self worth with the orchestral power of Royal Northern Sinfonia. And for parents Jack and Ali they’re squeezing all they can out of that limited window before their teenagers prefer nights out with friends instead.

This is no ordinary weekend for Dinis, the face of Sage Gateshead. But rather than feeling nerves, the perpetually-laid-back principle conductor of RNS is exuberant about the prospect of reaching a whole new audience, and showing them that the venue and the Proms are so much more diverse and accessible than people ever imagined.