The heat wave may be over but the joy of jazz is still worth getting out of doors for, with the Greenwich Beer & Jazz Festival at the Old Royal Naval College from Wednesday. There are three live acts every day with a good mix of renowned jazz and blues experts, such as saxophonist Courteney Pine, with some emerging talent like the Hammond funk band Jezebel Sextet. This energetic troupe will no doubt have you dancing round the lawns in no time, especially if you’ve taken the challenge of sampling the 70 beers on offer seriously. The ale is as much the star of the show as the music, with a focus on smaller brewing companies -local Meantime is heavily featured – and every variety of ale known to man.
If you like your al fresco music a little less crowded The Wantage Brass Band are playing a mix of favourites and new arrangements at the bandstand in Greenwich Park on Sunday afternoon.
Said the witches in Macbeth: “When shall we three meet again?” Well, this Tuesday onwards at Greenwich Playhouse, apparently, in Something Wicked This Way Comes. I admire anyone who tries to do something new with the ubiquitous Shakespeare and writer/director David Hunt has risen to the challenge by making an entire play out of the bard’s best villains. Check back to read my take on it later in the week on Greenwich.co.uk. Along those literary lines there’s also a discussion of The Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis at St Alfege’s on Tuesday.
A little further afield the Plumstead Harmonies are performing Music for a Midsummer Evening at St Mark and St Margaret Church on Saturday in Woolwich. There’s instrumental music and singing with a programme covering baroque to present day and there’s also some poetry and light refreshments, so it should be a very pleasant affair.
Anything else happening in Greenwich this week? If so, post it below in the comments section…