Sarah Singleton looks at best entertainment on offer this weekend

Tale of tragic love

THE haunting beauty of classic ballet Swan Lake comes to the Wyvern Theatre tomorrow night.

Described as the greatest romantic ballet of all time, the story is brought to life by a haunting and unforgettable score by the composer Tchaikovsky.

The story moves from the impressive splendour of the palace ballroom to the moonlit lake, where a flock of swans glides in perfect formation.

Sprinkled with magical effects, the performance by the Russian State Ballet of Siberia is set to delight ballet fans of all ages.

This is the tale of the love between the young Prince Siegfried and the beautiful Queen of the Swans, Odette. She is under the spell of an evil magician, called Von Rothbart, which means that by day she and her friends are turned into swans.

But before the prince can marry the Odette, he is tricked into promising to marry another woman. Will the lovers be reunited and the spell broken, or will Odette and her companions remain as swans for ever?

Formed in 1981, the Russian State Ballet and Orchestra of Siberia has established itself as one of Russia’s leading ballet companies with an international reputation. Both the soloists and the corps de ballet regularly delight audiences with their breathtaking ability and dazzling costumes.

Tickets for the 2.30pm Saturday matinee are £32-£37, and £36-£41 for the 7.30pm evening performance.

To book, call 01793 524481 or visit the website at swindontheatres.co.uk

Jamming at the Meca

FROM the Jam will be getting the Easter holiday weekend off to a rocking start with a concert at Swindon’s MECA tonight.

Bruce Foxton, former bassist with The Jam, will joining Russell Hastings on lead vocals and guitar at the Good Friday concert.

Expect a powerhouse of sound and a string of classic hits to take you back to the early 80s - such as Down in the Tube Station at Midnight, Going Underground, Town Called Malice and The Modern World.

Foxton and Hastings will play alongside drummer Mike Randon and keyboard player Andy Fairclough.

From The Jam have toured frequently over the last eleven years and have played nearly 1000 headline shows in the UK. Their tour, called The Public Gets What the Public Wants, is, as Hastings explains, “basically the big festival set, hit after hit.”

Foxton and Hastings wrote the album Back In The Room, which was released in 2012, and returned to the studio in 2016 to record and release Smash The Clock, which reached number 31 in the UK charts. At the end of 2017, Foxton and Hastings also released a live album.

Tickets are £21. To book, visit www.mecaswindon.co.uk.

Ceramic artists exhibition that broke the mould

IF you fancy a break from Easter events, why not check out an exhibition of art ceramics at Swindon Museum and Art Gallery on Saturday?

Popular artist, writer and cultural critic Grayson Perry has raised the profile of ceramic art, and his work is featured in the exhibition, called Pioneers: Highlights from the Swindon Collection of Studio Ceramics.

With work from artists such as Bernard Leach, up to contemporary stars like Perry, this exhibition celebrates the ceramic artists who broke the mould.

It brings together the most significant modern and contemporary ceramic artists in the Swindon collection, highlighting the diversity and excitement of this medium.

Beginning with Bernard Leach, and his role as the father of British studio ceramics, the exhibition also features Lucy Rie, Hans Coper and Katharine Pleydell-Bouverie, as well as experimental ceramic sculpture by Gordon Baldwin and others.The exhibition runs till April 14.

Admission is free, and the museum is open 10am till 5pm on Saturday this weekend.