It was great to see York Theatre Royal fully booked last night for Poet Laureate Simon Armitage and LYR’s one night stand.
By Angie Millard
Feature Photo by Paul Stuart Photography Ltd
Armitage began with a reading of his poems in the first half and continued in the second part by performing his poetry with the musical backing of the band.
The audience were enchanted and many had travelled from all over Yorkshire for this treat. Armitage was suffering from a troublesome cough during the first half but managed to overcome this (with the help of throat lozenges) for his set with the band.
The poetry is sharply observed and includes a sense of the Northern grit one could expect, references to Barnsley, Harrogate and Doncaster became an in-joke. Zodiac T-Shirt was particularly arresting, capturing the excitement of first relationships and forays into adulthood. Armitage sees poetry in odd places, as in a poem written while he was lounging on a hammock in his garden. A hot air balloon drifts past and he imagines the occupants calling to him. He describes a bride in a meringue like gown and her groom in pinstriped suit, consummating their union.
Like all successful spoken word poets, he conjures up startling images and reminds me of a York poet, Laurence O’Reilly, who does much the same, directing you to see things differently and giving you images which stay with you.
The second half was not as successful for me. The musicians and lead singer Richard Walters are undoubtedly superb. The producer and keyboard player Patrick Pearson has established the band as part of the contemporary music scene. However, the balancing of sound was poor and the insistent bass beat masked any musicality there may have been. Audience around me were nodding their heads to the rhythms but I found the sound too insistent. I found it difficult to hear the lyrics and the melodies merged into a wall of sound not unlike early punk.
What is important, however, is that YTR are offering a wide range of shows and the audience last night approved.
Simon Armitage and LYR performed at York Theatre Royal on Friday 24 January 2025.
