If you visited us during our trial opening at the wonderful Ventnor Fringe Festival you saw the building with its hardboard cladding, carpet tiles and high but ubiquitous tiled office ceiling. The building was a perfect example of a 70s / 80s cover up.
Building work is now well under way and the first thing that Matt and the boys have done is reveal the ceiling, mahogany vestibule and other original features of the 1924 banking hall. You are in for a big surprise.
All hail to Jack and his amazing team for pulling off a great third year of the Ventnor Fringe Festival. It was ambitious, diverse and full of surprises. One of the surprises was our venue, listed as The Secret Bar; we were treated to lovely, capacity audiences and some great performances.
It was a baptism of fire as we only completed on the acquisition of the property one week before, rushed through an event license application and equipped ourselves to serve our guests with cold drinks on some very hot evenings. Air conditioning is a must in the refurb, but for the four nights of the festival, our new fridges kept the beverages cold and our audiences refreshed. Never has a bank vault been put to such good use.
Thanks to everyone that visited us and a massive thanks to the artists who performed. If ever we had any doubt that Ventnor would accept our intentions for this beautiful building they melted away during a magical set by C.H.A.M.P.S. The audience was engaged and eclectic; a mix of young and older creatives, visitors and open minded locals who lapped up what they didn’t know existed so near home. Tula and the Blackgang closed the week and again, a capacity crowd were spellbound with lilting, lyrical gorgeousness from the humour of Hairdo to a haunting cover of Wicked Games. Loved it.
A performance of The Musical Detective Agency proved that we could switch from music to completely ridiculous comedy and hold onto an audience. If the story of a demon hamster who possessed it’s bounty hunter can do it, we feel sure some of the comedians we have in mind are going to do OK.
Now the work begins. Architects have been in and flooring experts gave their horrible verdict that the 1920’s floor is beyond restoration as the Bankers covered it in screed. We have a ceiling to uncover and a whole building to re-purpose. We will install an AV system for film screenings, integrate a PA system so we can support some more great performances, rewire, re-plumb, install a kitchen, build a proper bar (in the vault) and reconfigure the loos. Then it’s many licks of paint, lots of polishing, new lighting and furnishing the space for comfort with sofas and easy chairs.
The papers have stopped shuffling, money has been exchanged and the venue is ours. Lots to do, planning permissions, premises licence and of course the refurb. We’re going to up and running for a few days before we have refurbished, as part of the Ventnor Fringe.We have a temporary license and it’s a chance for you to get a sense of the before ahead of the after, which we hope will be delivered by Christmas. That’s the plan but we have aurthorities, the quirkiness of the building and of course the ineviatble unexpected to deal with first.
Still cant say exactly where we are because it’s a secret location within the V-fringe. But if you take part in that, you’ll probably stumble upon us. We hope you do.
With just four weeks to go until the Ventnor Fringe returns we’re thrilled to announce our largest programme to date, with more than 200 participants performing, exhibiting and showcasing work accross the town from the 15th – 18th August, coinciding with the 123rd annual Carnival celebrations.
Spanning from theatre to the visual arts, music to film the Fringe will feature ‘pop up’ bars, venues and exhibition spaces in more then 20 locations, creating an exciting hub for artists and audiences alike.
Amongst the diverse events on offer; highlights include the Isle of Wight Film Festival, which is running as part of the Ventnor Fringe for the first time this year and will be featuring a full competative shorts sections as well as British Premiers of feature films from across the world sponsored by On the Wight.
Theatre is well represented this year with renowned new writing company Paines Plough (Love, Love, Love by Mike Barlett – Royal Court & National Tour / Wasted by Kate Tempest – National Tour) offering free workshops in producing and writing for stage, as well as hosting readings of four writers work who have been especially comissioned as part of their ‘Come To Where I’m From’ project.
A new Studio Theatre space located at St Francis’ Primary School will host work from graduates of London’s Central School of Speech and Drama, the premiere of a new play by Island writer Kevin Wilson and devised pieces by MOTUS and Replica Dance Company amongst much more.
The music offering at the Fringe this year is more diverse then ever, varying from performances by the IW Camerta Chamber Choir and a classical concert for Oboe and Piano by Suzie Shrubb in St Catherine’s Church, to ‘Lounge Around Town’ a programme of intimate shows in private houses, gardens and secret venues accross the town. These tiny shows will host carefully selected acts from accross the UK and abroad including French Kora player Stranded Horse, Rozi Plain who has supported the likes of Beach House and Devendra Banhart and talented spoken word artists Indigo Williams and Toby Thompson.
Beyond performances there are opportunites to learn from the award winning team at Prufrock Coffee who will be travelling from London’s Leather Lane to Ventnor’s Church Street to run special courses in making the finest expressos. You can also try your hand at the Charleston in the Blind Tiger Club, a 1920’s inspired speakeasy, watch the fireworks from the Observatory, our bar with a view and if your lucky you may even find one of our famous secret venues or events!
Lots more information and tickets are available on website www.vfringe.co.uk
Surveys have been carried out. Meetings with the council have taken place. Searches are underway with solicitors and the contract of sale has been drafted, sent, debated a little and returned. We’re now just weeks off from owning our lovely, tardis like venue.
Refurbishment of our building to create an intimate, clubby and comfortable place to spend time, soak up some culture, and some good wine, will begin this autumn. Before that it’s likely we’ll be celebrate our acquisition of the space, in its most raw form, with some special events in conjunction with the V-Fringe crew. Keep an eye on their website for announcements. Better still, join up and be among the first to be offered access to our special preview events later this year.
We’ll be bringing you talent from all over the place – some overland but many from over the water. Singer songwriters, poets, comedians, story tellers – people who entertain, sometimes challenge but always do their best to engage you. Our screenings will exhibit films probably not shown at the multiplex in Newport but almost definitely in the Curzon cinemas around London. Backgammon nights, poker lessons and tournaments, life drawing and wine tasting session are opportunities to play as well as mingle.It will all develop as fast as is comfortable and in a direction you help us to define. More to come….much more.