We come to you from a sweltering DI office with cool drinks and even cooler shows to beat the heat - plus how to use that sun for green energy!

Waiting for the Weekend

Cor, what a scorcher! The current heatwave has us craving something cold and refreshing - thankfully, IRL Oxford is on hand with a bit of white wine and a bit of fizzy pop. What’s that? Sangria! If Operation Mincemeat hadn’t already sold us on the glories of this simple and delicious cocktail, IRL’s Salsa and Sangria Fiesta would certainly have us convinced; fill your cup while also grabbing a street food snack, then settle on the lawn for some mellow summer tunes. Entry is free and unticketed, so all you have to do is soak up the sun.

If you favour another tipple, there’s not one, but two beer bashes taking place this weekend; one at Chadlington Memorial Hall and the other at Little Ox Brewery. In addition to its selection of 34 beers and ciders, Chadlington Beer Festival will also be serving up burgers, pizza and ice-cream from local vendors, as well as folk, jazz, rock and more on their musical main stage and magic, bouncy castles and a creative corner to keep the kids entertained. Little Ox, meanwhile, will be showcasing their own artisanal brews at their monthly open day (they recommend their peachy and citrus-edged All Sorts NEIPA). Squiers of Benson will be bringing the spice with Mexican fusion cuisine, and Rev Ferriday’s bluesy tunes make for the perfect laid-back soundtrack.

Lastly, a weekend for all the 90s kids - Totally 90s Festival is back at Cutteslowe Park to honour the era of grunge, Britpop and girl power. Fans of Robbie Williams, Eminem, Blur and Britney Spears will get to live out their concert fantasies with a lineup of killer tribute acts, plus fairground rides, retro gaming and a special guest appearance by a certain Gladiator…

Totally 90s is just one of many fantastic weekender festivals taking place in Oxfordshire and beyond this summer; you can check out our blog for our rundown on some of this year’s biggest events.

Salsa and Sangria Fiesta: Manzil Way Gardens, Sat 30th May, 1pm - 7pm. Free, just turn up!

Chadlington Beer Festival: Chadlington Memorial Hall, Sat 30th May, midday - 9pm. Tickets £15 inc glass, programme & 2 tokens; children £4.

Little Ox Open Day: Little Ox Brewery, Witney, Sat 30th May, 2pm - 11.30pm. Free.

Totally 90s Festival: Cutteslowe Park, Sat 30th - Sun 31st May, 1pm - 10.30pm. Tickets £23 day ticket, £40 weekend, Under 12s free

From Bollywood to Salem

Next week the Playhouse dazzles with colour, glamour and a feel-good celebration of love and courage. Frankie Goes To Bollywood is a new British musical (from the makers of Britain’s Got Bhangra) diving into the world of Indian cinema and featuring Frankie, a young British woman happy living a normal life, until a chance encounter sends her into the spotlight. But in Bollywood women are expected to play by the rules: can she find fame without losing herself? Expect lavish costumes, big choreography, some Bollywood in-jokes and a universal theme about self-discovery.

Over in the BT early slot, Lucy Prebble’s play The Effect puts medical ethics and the messy business of falling in love on the operating table. In a clinic in a London suburb, Raushen Pharmaceuticals are trialling an experimental new drug. It might cure depression. It might make you fall in love. Or it might just be a placebo. Fennec Fox stage this contemporary classic. Prepare to distrust your own emotions.

Back in time for our next two shows, which you can catch this week. Duet For One at the OFS is set in a consulting room, where therapist and patient circle one another, as Stephanie confronts the unsettling question of who she is. As a perfectionist and celebrated musician who can no longer perform, when her identity is stripped away she must find out what’s left. Two different actors play the therapist in different performances - one younger, one older, and the dynamic of talking therapy changes. With dark humour, this is an uncompromising watch but a rare opportunity to witness dismantling and rebuilding a self.

Another acclaimed student company, Boulevard Productions, are staging a searing indictment of mass hysteria and injustice, Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. A brutal dramatisation of the 1692 Salem witch trials, it was written in the shadow of McCarthyism, and may ring true for the next generation for other reasons, as the accused try to fend off punishment by firing off accusations all around, and things spiral out of control. In the hot confines of the Michael Pilch this should be a truly hellish and tightly directed production.

Out into the fresh air again for next week’s Haunted House, a new musical comedy by Louise Guy. Scatterbrained novelist Peter is desperate to sell his haunted manor, but the ghost takes against the plan. Can the buyer, his lawyer, Peter, and the ghost sort it out in a weekend at the manor house? It’ll be whimsical and spooky, and we hope not too rained on!

Frankie Goes to Bollywood: Oxford Playhouse, Tue 2nd - Sat 6th June, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm mat Thu & Sat. Tickets £15 - £36 (£2.75 booking fee may apply).

The Effect: Burton Taylor Studio, Tue 2nd - Sat 6th June, 7.30pm. Tickets: £8 (concessions £6). Age guide 14+.

Duet for One: The Old Fire Station, Thu 28th & Sat 30th, 3pm & 7.30pm, Fri 29th, 7.30pm, & Sun 31st May, 3pm. Tickets: £10 - £20.

The Crucible: Michael Pilch Studio, on until Sat 30th May, 7.30pm. Tickets: £10 (£7 concessions) + booking fee.

The Haunted House: Christ Church Cathedral Gardens, Tue 2nd - Wed 3rd June, 7.30pm. Tickets: £8 (£5 concession) plus booking fee.

Syncopation, Swift, Spring and Silent Songs

In music, Sean Noonan is a drummer and composer whose work enthusiastically defies category: he prefers the title “Rhythmic Storyteller”. Accompanied by pianist Matthew Bourne (awarded “Jazz Innovation” at the BBC Radio Jazz Awards) and double bassist Michael Bardon (Zappanation Rock Opera), The Noonan Trio blends jazz rock, improvisation, and rhythmic storytelling. They will be performing music from their first album Inherit a Memory at St John’s College Auditorium.

From the avant garde to the mainstream: The Eras Tour may be over and wedding bells may be ringing this summer so Taylor Swift is unlikely to be performing in Oxford in the foreseeable future. Fortunately, Katy Ellis will be taking to the stage at The New Theatre with Taylormania . Along with an incredible live band and dancers, she promises to deliver the most authentic recreation of a Taylor Swift show you will ever see.

Founded in 2000, The Oxford Chamber Music Foundation has grown from an ambitious gathering of classical musicians into a world class festival. This year’s Spring festival sees three concerts in the Cotswolds. Music by Schumann, Debussy, Pärt, Bloch, Fauré, Joni Mitchell, Bach, Vivaldi, Mozart and pieces from The Great American Songbook will be performed in ancient stone churches and walled gardens at dusk.

As part of the Kafka centenary celebrations in 2024, in partnership with the Oxford Kafka Research Centre and the Bodleian Libraries, Oxford Song commissioned the composer Can Bilir to create a new song cycle based on Kafka. The result is The Silent Songs of Josefine, a breathtaking and bold new work which will be performed by pianist Maki Sekiya and soprano Loré Lixenberg at The Holywell Music Room and followed by a round table discussion.

The Noonan Trio: St John’s College Auditorium. Sat 30th May, 7.30pm. Tickets £9.50-£25

Taylormania: New Theatre. Sun 31st May, 5.00pm. Tickets £29.12 - £39.52.

OCMF Spring Festival in the Cotswolds: Fri 29th - Sun 31st May. Tickets £15 - £95.

The Silent Songs of Josefine: Holywell Music Room. Thu 4th Jun Jun, 4.00pm. Free.

Exhibition Impossible

Two major exhibitions opened this week in the Upper Gallery at Modern Art Oxford. Kira Freije’s Unspeak the Chorus is an installation of life-sized figures sculpted from steel strips and aluminium casts. A tale in fragments, it invites the viewer to engage in the narrative. This exhibition sees the artist bringing in elements of the animal world as well as the use of textiles, and together with the work of lighting designer, Matt Daw, this presentation promises an immersive experience. The second exhibition from Plender - Little Fennel’s Complaint - is an exploration of the history of, and history of thought on, on issues of women’s healthcare. Presented across a variety of media, from embroidery to sound works, and drawing from diverse sources, Plender’s exhibition displays 17th-century manuscripts alongside botanical watercolours and hanging mobiles. The display interrogates the received wisdom that shaped medical practices for women, for better and, often, for worse, and asks how we can shape a more informed understanding for the future.

For one afternoon only, the exhibition on display at New College, Royal Regalia: Signatures, Statecraft, and Sovereignty looks at the myriad ways that royal authority has, over time, been communicated and documented. Admission is free of charge, but bookings must be made by sending an e-mail to the organiser via Daily Info’s webpage for the event.

The Storytellers is a very different exhibition: this one an outdoor installation of fourteen Shakespeare-inspired figurative sculptures in the gardens of Worcester College, home for over 90 years to the Buskins’ Shakespeare productions. Again, entry is free, but advance booking is essential (except for Alumni or University card-holders). The exhibition will be open for most of May and June, and the start of July, but do note that there will be several June dates towards the end of the month when the exhibition will be closed.

And you'll find even more storytellers at The Story Museum’s latest pop-up exhibition, opening on Sat 6th Jun, admission to which is included in the standard Galleries ticket. Curated in collaboration with Professor Karen Sands-O’Connor of the University of Sheffield, Listen to This Story! traces Black lives over 200 years as depicted in British children’s literature. The exhibition is closed on several dates in July, so do check on their website prior to your visit!

Kira Freije: Unspeak the Chorus / Olivia Plender: Little Fennel's Complaint: Modern Art Oxford, 23rd May - 16th Aug (closed Mondays). Tickets for access to both exhibitions: tiered pay-what-you-can £6/£9/£12 + online booking fee; free for U12 and Friends of MAO

Royal Regalia: Signatures, Statecraft, and Sovereignty: Lecture Rooms 4 and 6, New College, Fri 5 Jun, 12.00 noon - 5.00pm. Free entry (email to confirm attendance). (http://library@new.ox.ac.uk)

The Storytellers: Worcester College gardens, 1 May - 5 Jul (closed Mondays and 24, 25, 26 and 27 June), 11.30am - 5.00pm. Free entry, booking mandatory (except for alumni and University card-holders). No admission to unaccompanied U18s.

Listen to This Story!: From History to Our Story: The Story Museum, 6th Jun - 17th Jul (closed Mondays). Tickets: (included in Galleries admission) ages 5+ £16.00/£14.50; ages 1-4 £8.25/£7.50.

And Finally

Most of us this week will be thinking about how to best enjoy (and stay safe in) the blazing sunshine. But Low Carbon Hub Oxford have been figuring out a way to turn that sunshine into renewable community energy - and you can play a part in it, too!

The team are seeking investments for the UK’s first ever community-owned solar battery, to help maximise the efficiency of one of the country’s largest solar parks. Ray Valley Solar produces enough electricity to fuel over 7000 homes a year, but at its current capacity produces more energy than the team can export, resulting in clean energy being lost. Investment in the new battery will help to power more than 1,100 homes daily for four hours at peak demand, with all surplus income reinvested into local climate action projects. Learn more about the project and how you can become an investor in green energy on the Low Carbon Hub website.

Image credits: Chadlington Beer Festival, Richard Lakos, Kaja Gwincinska, Lewis Ronald, Adam Hale