NEWS
TOP SOLOISTS ANNOUNCED FOR CLASSICAL CONCERT
Organisers of this year ’ s Leeds Castle Classical Concert on Saturday 8th July have announced the two soloists who will take to the stage this summer .
John Rigby , artistic director for the concert is delighted to welcome soprano Katie Bird and tenor Anthony Flaum as part of this year ' s stunning openair classical live music event held at “ the loveliest castle in the world ”.
John said : “ Both soloists bring freshness and energy to the programme , which combined with their remarkable voices , provides the perfect combination for the evening that the audience of the Leeds Castle Classical Concert has come to expect .”
Growing up with the Leeds Castle Classical Concert on her doorstep , British Soprano Katie Bird , originally from Bearsted in Kent , is looking forward to performing to a home crowd .
London born tenor Anthony Flaum is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music and studied with Katie at the National Opera Studio . His studies were generously supported by English National Opera , where he is about to make his debut in their acclaimed production of Rigoletto . Anthony Flaum has appeared for the last two years at the Leeds Castle Classical Concert and is delighted to be returning for 2017 .
Tickets are currently available until the 28th February at the winter offer rates of £ 37 picnic style or £ 48 for reserved seating in front of the stage . For more information and to book tickets visit www . leedscastleconcert . co . uk .
PARK MALL INCUBATOR SPACE SPRINGBOARD TO GREATER THINGS
Since June 2015 , the work to revitalise Park Mall , Ashford , which was prompted by residents ’ calls for something to be done to improve the then ailing centre , has seen ten new shops open . These shops have been quality independent retailers , who have proudly formed the backbone of the new Park Mall .
One of the shops is ‘ Made in Ashford ’, which is run by the council . It is a collective of innovative start-up businesses testing their business on the high street through flexible tenancies .
At a time when independent shops were considered to be in decline across the country , this shop has been a key element of the council ’ s belief that independent shops should be the spine of the reinvigorated Park Mall and create a unique selling point for Ashford town centre .
Within Park Mall there are ‘ business incubator ’ spaces . These are smaller kiosks that enable businesses to be the sole trader in the unit . This affords them a real opportunity to test their business on its own on the High Street .
One retailer who took advantage of this option is Kate Tompsett from Happy & Glorious . Kate advanced her business to the kiosk having originally been in the PopUp Ashford shop in 2014 . She has been hugely proactive while in Park Mall and has been part of that surge of renewed pride in that area of the town centre .
Kate said : “ In my 12 months in Park Mall I have made great friends , grown and developed my business and feel much more confident to take it forward to the next level .
“ I simply couldn ' t have got this far without the council ’ s support , and that of the LoveAshford team . The flexibility with the license as well as the mentoring has been invaluable and I could not have done this without such a proactive council and the personal touch from Jo . I truly believe in Park Mall and not just its own reinvigoration but the town centre as a whole . Residents should know what they have here because I don ’ t believe it ’ s evident everywhere else .”
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