Cowpuncher My Ass to return to the Southbank Centre with London Contemporary Orchestra
βTheir return to the Southbank Centre in February will be an early highlight of 2023βs performance and dance programme.β
-Mark Ball, Artistic Director of the Southbank Centre
Southbank Centre announces the anticipated return of Holly Blakeyβs Cowpuncher My Ass featuring London Contemporary Orchestra (LCO). An expanded Cowpuncher My Ass will be on show for one night only at the Royal Festival Hall on Wednesday 15 February 2023, following the sell-out success of its previous stagings in the Queen Elizabeth Hall in 2018 and 2020. The genre-defying performance piece commissioned by the Southbank Centre with choreographer Holly Blakey, original score by Mica Levi and costume design by Andreas Kronthaler for Vivenne Westwood, has been developed by the creative team to transform the Royal Festival Hall into Blakey and Leviβs visceral Western-inspired world, alongside the London Contemporary Orchestra for the first time.
Image: Cowpuncher My Ass Β© Daniele Fummo
Cowpuncher My Ass explores the vibrant, and often violent, tale of the Wild West genre. Cowboys wrestle with gender stereotypes, identity and sexual politics as they venture into the territory between high art and popular culture. A centrepiece of the production are the bold costumes, from corseted dresses to oversized shirts and western belts, these raw, unisex designs evoke a modern spirit of punk.
Date: Wed 15 Feb 2023, 7.30pm, Price: Β£22.50 β ββ Β£40, Location: Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX.
London Gallery Weekend returns from 5β7 June 2026 for its sixth edition, bringing together 120 galleries across the capital for three days of exhibitions, performances, talks and special events. Here is our pick of art exhibitions to see during London Gallery Weekendβ¦
June sees the return of several summer staples, such as the Serpentine Pavilion and the Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition, alongside Meltdown Festival at the Southbank Centre, curated this year by Harry Styles. London Gallery Weekend also returns, with more than 120 galleries across the city taking partβ¦
The 61st Venice Biennale opened on 9 May 2026 in Venice, with this yearβs edition shaped around In Minor Keys, a curatorial theme conceived by the late Koyo Kouoh. The Biennale once again transforms Venice into a sprawling international exhibition, with more than 80 national pavilions taking over the Giardini, the Arsenale and sites across the city. Sofia, our arts contributor, picks her five standout national pavilions from this yearβs edition.