Sarah Singleton looks at what events are up and coming this weekend

Vibrant solo dance

A thought-provoking contemporary dance called Virago will be performed at Swindon Dance tonight.

Virago is a new dance-digital solo production from Sonia Sabri, the artistic director of Sonia Sabri Company, collaborating with Ludic Rooms. The performance is described as vibrant, compelling, brave and dynamic.

It explores the light versus dark, and the real versus fairytale versions of female existence, teasing the audience with perceptions and misconceptions about woman and gender.

Virago means ‘female warrior’ in Latin, and Vira is ‘the brave one’ in Hindi, while in contemporary parlance a Virago is a woman of stature, strength, and courage.

Sonia’s signature Urban Kathak language merges on stage with digital artistry. The sound-score combines spoken word and music, with rich and diverse influences that include a cacophony of voices from Europe, the Middle East, South Asia and Africa. These represent and speak to women worldwide, but appeal to all people, regardless of gender and culture.

The digital elements bring an experimental layer of sound, light and image manipulation to create a unique sensory dialogue with the live body.

The Sonia Sabri Company has established an international reputation for presenting Kathak dance in a contemporary context.

Tickets are £7-£11. To book, call 01793 601700 or visit swindondance.org.uk

Post grunge spirit haunts the Vic

Alt metal and post grunge Swindon band Ghost of Machines rolls into town for their first show with a new line-up at the Victoria on Saturday night.

The night’s musical entertainments also include The Harlers, the Loved and Lost and Going Rogue.

Ghost of Machines describe themselves as playing a slick brand of dystopian rock, fusing the technicality of alt metal with elements of grunge.

The Harlers are a three-piece alternative rock band from Swindon, formed in 2015 by Chris Pritchard and Jamie Warren, later joined by Mitch Malone. With influences such as The Black Keys, Royal Blood and Queens of the Stone Age, the band released its debut single Your Love in June 2016, soon followed by a video.

Loved and Lost is a female fronted hard rock band from the Midlands, returning to The Vic after a stunning debut in 2017, and Going Rogue is another homegrown Swindon talent, straddling the line between alt rock and metal with hints of post grunge.

The concert kicks off at 8.30pm at the pub in Victoria Road and tickets are £3 in advance or £5 on the door. To book, thevicswindon.com.

Get crafty with art

Have you ever looked at a gorgeous still life picture and wondered if you could do something similar?

Now’s your chance. On Saturday the Swindon Museum and Art Gallery is offering an opportunity to take inspiration from their current exhibition - the Euston Road School - and try your hand at your own still life drawing, photograph or collage.

The free family workshop from 10am to 4pm will have still life arrangements set up, as well as an atmospheric 1930s ambience, to help inspire you to try a Euston School-style work of art. Materials and instructions will be provided so you can create a still life picture to treasure.

The event is part of the UK’s nationwide Get Creative Festival, which takes place from March 17 to 25. The festival was set up to encourage all of us to have a go and try something new and creative at one of many free workshops across the country.

Grown from a one-day event in 2016, to a weekend in 2017, Get Creative returns this year as a glorious nine-day festival aimed at inspiring and celebrating everyday creativity.