Poetic turn of wit .sx English Serenata/ Civic Theatre , Mansfield .sx THE Tango-Pasodoble of William Walton's Facade took on extra colour when Susana Walton , the composer's Argentinian-born widow , appeared in a Mansfield Festival performance at the town's Civic Theatre last night .sx Not that Lady Walton believes in " additional caprices or embellishments .sx " As she says of this brilliant 'Twenties work , all the entertaining is done by Edith Sitwell's poetry in tandem with the music .sx Book Lady Walton had opened the three-part evening with thirty minutes of reminiscences - her first meeting with William , his instant proposal of marriage , and her initiation into his circle of talented friends and patrons .sx It's all , of course , in her recent book , along with much more .sx But here was an opportunity to experience her wit and vitality at first hand .sx Fellow-reciter Richard Baker then introduced members of the English Serenata in a group of three pieces - all , like Facade , with the accent on wind instruments .sx Mozart's Quintet in E flat , K452 , for piano , oboe , clarinet , horn and bassoon , dovetails phrases that are shared more or less equally between the performers .sx In the Serenata's well focused rendering , Michael Revell's beautiful horn playing particularly caught the ear .sx Poulenc's piquant Sextet , a 'Thirties piece which adds a flute to the Mozart ensemble , is even more of a concert hall rarity .sx Its three movements threw up deliberate references to Mozart , Prokofiev and Stravinsky .sx Patchwork A patchwork quilt , but seamlessly designed and absorbing to listen to .sx The same players contrived to alternate as a percussive rhythm section in the course of Rory Boyle's Cinderella , commissioned for the 1990 Solihull festival .sx Definitely another tongue-in-cheek composition , in which the Ugly Sisters literally lose their heads , and Cinderella gets hitched to a jam-maker .sx Roald Dahl's Revolting Rhymes provided the text .sx PETER PALMER .sx Sounds comical .sx A CROSS between Gilbert and Sullivan and Toytown , there's a not-to-be-missed comic opera coming our way when Opera North makes another welcome visit to Nottingham Theatre Royal .sx Among the bicentenary Mozarts in abundance this year can be spotted two performances of jollity and high jinks with L'Etoile .sx ( November 6 and 8) .sx It's staged as a tribute to its composer Emmanuel Chabrier on his 150th anniversary .sx L'Etoile ( The Star , or , as W.S. Gilbert had it in his version , Lucky Star ) whisks the audience off to a garish world where a king lurks disguised as a dustbin and where a princess elopes in a balloon which explodes over a lake .sx The bedraggled girl totters in to explain :sx " It went bang .sx .. " .sx The opera gives Chabrier a glorious excuse to write witty and melodious music with sly parodies of such heavyweights as Wagner .sx It's all about King Ouf I who believes everything the stars foretell .sx To avoid premature death he has to take care of Lazuli , an amorous pedlar in love with the king's daughter and whose destiny is linked with his by the star of the title .sx This hilarious fantasy marks an operatic director's debut for Phyllida Lloyd , recently responsible for the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Virtuoso .sx EMRYS BRYSON .sx Peta and Pete get in the beat .sx FOLK BEAT WITH ROY HARRIS .sx TONIGHT'S the night for the pair with the soundalike names at Beeston .sx Peta Webb and Pete Cooper make a sterling duet with an impressive combination of fiddle and song .sx Peta Webb , slight of stature but mighty in vocal power , is one of the best stylists around .sx Her keen-edged voice with its hints of the late Margaret Barry is an instrument in itself .sx Peter Cooper has a background in American style fiddle playing as an accompanist to Holly Tannen for some years .sx His all-round ability has proved up to the task of backing Webb's very different repertoire , the result being a very classy act indeed .sx Please note that the Scheme Folk Band continue with their very valuable workshop type sessions at the Crown , Beeston , on Tuesday nights .sx The open-floor concept they hold to at the Crown offers a conducive atmosphere for newer players to get into folk music alongside more experienced players .sx Backing off live bands .sx CLUB NIGHT WITH REG ENDERBY .sx I GOT out to see a few solos and duos over the week and was a little disappointed to see all of them using backing tapes .sx What is happening to live music ?sx There seem to be more and more live bands giving up the ghost because they cannot compete in price with the likes of the aforementioned who , helped with today's technology , manage to sound like a band .sx If venues continue to accept increased use of taped backing then I'm afraid there is going to be a severe shortage of good bands in the near future .sx On a brighter note I got to see a new live band from Leicester by the name of Dirty Duvet , who are a breath of fresh air .sx Alternative A lively stage show complemented with lighting , various brass instrumentation , outrageous costumes and a great attitude of fun and enjoyment is returned with equal enthusiasm by their audience .sx Their show is based mainly on rock classics performed with Dirty Duvet's own interpretations as an alternative to how they might have been performed by the likes of Screaming Lord Sutch or spoof band Spinal Tap .sx I look forward to seeing more of them as they make their assault on the Nottingham clubs .sx Poppy Appeals continue throughout the Royal British Legion clubs and on Wednesday November 6 entertainment secretary Dougie Ward has a show on at the Clifton RBL with vocalist Julie Keightley and refreshingly live backing from Roy Marriott .sx I was asked recently if rock horror show Nightmare are in the area soon and I am pleased to inform you that they can be seen at Rainworth MW on Sunday November 3 .sx Bizarre This act is not for the squeamish .sx I have seen human hangings , snakes , blood and guts as just some of their bizarre antics , but with Halloween night just around the corner it couldn't be a better time to see the scariest show in town .sx MARRINER RULES THE AIR WAVES .sx Academy of St Martin in the Fields/ Royal Concert Hall .sx SIR Neville Marriner and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields enjoyed one of the warmest receptions I can recall for a British orchestra when they played at the Royal Concert Hall on Friday .sx Doubtless this had much to do with their recording reputation .sx Few people who have collected classical discs - or just tuned in to Radio 3 - can be unaware of the partnership .sx Diversity So Friday's concert was a chance to thank Marriner and his players for more than thirty years of top flight music-making .sx It also marked the climax of the Evening Post Amadeus series , which has seen a diversity of stylistic approaches to the question of performing Mozart .sx The evening opened with Mozart's festive Haffner Symphony .sx By current standards the string section seemed a bit on the heavy side , hence rather lacking in subtlety .sx But the minuet's trio was nicely executed , and Marriner kept things firmly together in a hell-for-leather finale .sx Aristocratic Both the symphony and Mozart piano concertos like the one in A major , K.488 , come very close to the world of the composer's operas .sx In the case of K.488 , it's the world of The Marriage of Figaro .sx Aristocratic in her playing , as in appearance , Imogen Cooper displayed her usual verve and clarity at the piano .sx She had the audience hanging on every beautifully judged note in the widely-spaced theme of the Adagio movement .sx In the final Allegro , the Academy's first bassoon briefly shared the honours with its virtuosity .sx Its next-door neighbour , the clarinet , eventually stole the show in a skilfully piloted performance of Mendelssohn's The Hebrides , the second half opener .sx Like most maestros , Marriner opted for the revised version of Schumann's Fourth Symphony , although the lighter scoring of the original can make a more Mendelssohnian impression .sx Either way , it begs to be heard more often , especially when delivered with such panache .sx Totally Schumannesque was the eerie prelude to the last movement .sx The concert ended with a similar brilliance - only more romantic - to that with which it began .sx PETER PALMER .sx BLUE MOODS ?sx David Badiel and Rob Newman/ .sx Nottingham Polytechnic .sx HALF the Mary Whitehouse Experience - the half that mattered - played a full house at the Poly last night .sx But it wasn't as good as their last visit to the region in the spring .sx Watching David Badiel and Rob Newman is rather like undergoing police interrogation .sx There's the hard one and the soft one , in the shape of two alternative comedians who take the cult of personality to the limit .sx Friendly David Badiel , the soft one , comes up with some friendly and familiar Jewish jokes and reminds us all what the original Yiddish insult Schmuck means .sx His pal , Rob Newman , is a lot tougher .sx His range covers the fact that Professor Stanley Unwin might be in league with the devil because the gobbeldy-gook sic !sx used in his act resembles the kind of backwards-talk allegedly favoured by heavy metal bands , then takes in far more topical comments about the current musical scene and his own failure to be a New Man .sx Funny Material from the BBC-2 series was much in evidence - with blue variations tailored for a student audience and a familiar closing sketch parodying the South Bank Show failing to live up to expectations .sx But you don't go to see them for that .sx You go to see half the Mary Whitehouse Experience because they're darned funny - and because at a live gig they can relish the kind of political comment and profanity that is still banned on TV .sx CATHERINE ARNOLD ADAMS .sx Kylie turns on the style .sx Kylie Minogue/Royal Concert Hall .sx SHE may be tiny , but Kylie's pop packs an almighty wallop .sx And she received an almighty reception for her first , long overdue performance in Nottingham .sx The capacity crowd - Kool Kat trendies rubbing shoulders with tots and teenies - couldn't have cheered louder or danced more furiously if their lives depended on it .sx And Kylie , out to shock as well as to sock it to 'em , couldn't have worn less if she'd tried .sx Clearly she's been raiding Madonna's undie drawer .sx Panty girdles , minuscule bra tops , thongs and just about anything see-through constituted John Galliano's costume design .sx Fickle bid .sx You could just about see through Kylie's concept , too - a fickle bid to out-raunch her idol .sx But if you're going to rip someone off when you're ripping off your clothes , who better than Madonna ?sx And if you're going to put on a show to prove that you're not just a record company puppet , what better way to do it than this ?sx Kylie showed us she could sing , dance and really get an audience going .sx She deserves an award , as well , for value for money :sx Nearly every song she's ever done crammed into 90 high-energy minutes with barely a pause for breath .sx Some of the well-trendy dance routines - Kylie at the centre of a five-strong troupe - echoed those in Whitney Houston's recent show , but without the showbiz schmaltz .sx Good time .sx And while Madonna , who also might have spotted a couple of familiar dance steps , is all about politics , feminism and thought-provoking controversy , Kylie is simply and purely about having a good time .sx She sang the title track of her Enjoy Yourself album early in the set .sx By the end , I can't imagine anyone claiming they hadn't .sx SIMON BUTTON .sx Songs evoke Tudor times .sx Willoughby Consort/ Holme Pierrepont Hall .sx A MERE three centuries or so since their last performance at Holme Pierrepont Hall , songs by the former house composer Thomas Greaves were heard there on Saturday .sx Tenor Michael Sanderson sang them affectingly as part of a recital by the Willoughby Consort , divided between music of the Tudor and the Stuart eras .sx Expertise The Consort has been playing together for some time , and its entertainment value matches its expertise .sx The quincentenary of the birth of Henry VIII was a good pretext for opening with items from a manuscript named after him , including a Cornish hunting song .sx Stewart McCoy played fantasies from the lute book of Wollaton Hall's Sir Francis Willoughby during the first half .sx