29 September – 6 October
Theatre dominates as Leeds stages comedy, dance and experimental work alongside sustained exhibition activity
48 events · 14 venues · AI-synthesised from Looge listings
This week brings a pronounced surge in theatre and performance across Leeds's main venues. City Varieties Music Hall and Leeds Playhouse together host nearly half the week's theatre offerings, drawing stand-up comics, spoken-word artists, and music acts alongside more formal dance and drama. The range spans Sh!t-faced Shakespeare and Lemn Sissay's spoken-word evening to Ballet Nights and Bryony Kimmings's new play Bog Witch—a programming breadth that mirrors the city's appetite for both accessible and experimental performance.
Exhibitions, meanwhile, maintain steady presence across galleries and museums, though several are in their final weeks. At Leeds Art Gallery and Henry Moore Institute, shows on sculpture, printmaking and textiles close within days, while longer runs—from Sophie Taeuber-Arp's legacy prints to Genghis Khan at the Royal Armouries—continue through autumn. Film programming clusters around Hyde Park Picture House, anchored by the Trauma-Informed Film Festival and a scatter of feature screenings. Talk and classical music events punctuate the week but remain sparse; a single curatorial discussion on sculptural process at Henry Moore Institute is the only dedicated talk.
Threads this week
Comedy & spoken word at City Varieties
City Varieties Music Hall hosts a concentrated run of comedy and performance this week, from established names like Alan Davies, Grace Campbell and Nish Kumar through to experimental offerings like Thomas Green and Kiell Smith-Bynoe. Lemn Sissay's spoken-word evening anchors the programme, while The Delines bring live music. The venue becomes a de facto comedy hub.
Sculpture & craft in focus
Multiple exhibitions converge on three-dimensional form and material process. Taeuber-Arp's prints and plaster works, Garth Evans's anti-virus sculptures, and Sagarika Sundaram's wool installations occupy Leeds Art Gallery and Henry Moore Institute. Reflections in Silver at Temple Newsam showcases contemporary silversmithing. A curatorial talk on sculptural facture and matter at Henry Moore Institute contextualizes this clustering.
Documentary & recovery at city museums
Leeds City Museum and Abbey House Museum stage exhibitions centred on care, community and witness. Now We Breathe Free documents a trauma-informed recovery programme for women via Photovoice; Behind The Streets celebrates conservation volunteers and their work. It Takes a Community marks twenty years of museum partnerships. These align with the broader Trauma-Informed Film Festival at Hyde Park.
Music & sound across scales
Musical programming spreads across venues and genres: Opera North's Dementia Café at Howard Assembly Room brings classical music to carers; Joshua Stephens performs organ works reflecting cathedral acoustics; chamber ensembles at Leeds International Concert Season and the Joshua Cavanagh-Brierley Sextet at Seven Arts offer intimate settings. Devin Townsend at Howard Assembly Room and The Delines at City Varieties broaden the sonic range.
