‘Word’s got out that St James is a great venue’

At the time of writing, I clocked up seven classical and choral concerts, an evening of comedy, six nights of live contemporary music, a gaming and board game convention and an art exhibition. And that’s only up to November.

‘St James is becoming a true cultural hub,’ said executive director Jon Bisson. ‘This year we’ve hosted everything from hip-hop and comedy to top-line classical musicians and the Shakespeare’s Globe Touring Ensemble, as well as events for the Guernsey Literature Festival and last year, the Guernsey Photography Festival.

‘We liaise with the Performing Arts Centre, the Vale Earth Fair Collective, Chaos and the Fermain Tavern as regards to events and timings and we are now engaging with the island’s educational institutions. College of FE performing arts students come here to learn about staging and event management and English students write reviews of concerts. Time spent at St James is part of their curriculum.

‘Pianists also come in to use the Steinway grand piano – some are in tears – and choirs practice here for free.

‘We’re also consolidating our relationship with the Guernsey Arts Commission and working hard to develop free or subsidised access to much that we offer.

‘When I was 15 years old I volunteered at the Vale Earth Fair for a week. That welcoming people vibe, where everyone is treated equal, that’s the kind of what we want to do.’

In October 2018, introducing a new era of fresh programming and diversity, Jon nailed his colours to the mast and for the Pride march over-16s after party he booked the Cuban Brothers.

‘The board and council of St James are very supportive of change. Stephen Ainsworth, who’s the current president, saw the need to change and to implement a broader range of content.

‘Since then, attendance has doubled and gross ticket sales have doubled. People come here because they want to come where a venue feels special. There are great acts and a great space, but it’s a great effort to get it right.

‘Every age group embraces what’s going on. The audience isn’t just young people, it’s 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70-year-olds. It’s a great place to come and watch new music, new comedy, new classical musicians. People like it because it’s not a pub but we put the bar in during gigs.’

Jon has plans for the Dorey Room.

‘As comedy is so popular I’d like to have smaller comedy nights in there – perhaps even junior stand-up. Big stuff every two months then younger comedians.

‘We’ll be redecorating the Dorey Room as it’s a bit tired. We need two venues for music – the big hall and a smaller one for an audience of around 80 or 90 – and this will be it.’

And the stars who perform at St James love Guernsey.

‘Well for one, look at the view from the cafe,’ said Jon.

‘When Omid Djalili came over this year, he was holding court in the OGH till one in the morning, and Marcus Brigstocke loved swimming in the Duke of Richmond swimming pool. Marcus is a huge foodie and him and his support act, Rob Rouse, went to La Reunion on the Sunday. They had 10 oysters to start and then a mixed seafood platter. You usually share it but they had one each.

‘And when Bristol drum ’n’ bass band Dr Meaker came over, their leader was a real history buff and on the Sunday after the gig he got all nine members to go round the island to the German Underground Hospital and the Occupation Museum. He hired a mini-bus.

‘Most of them don’t fly out until late on Sunday. Word’s got out that St James is a really great venue. We have the seats and we have the capacity. We should be that place.’

Bringing the arts community together

LAST October saw Sound at St James, a weekend of live music with three-venues-within-a-venue – the main stage in the hall, an acoustic stage upstairs in the cafe and a stage run by the Peace Tent Crew in the Dorey Room. With two licensed bars and the cafe serving Thai street food (cooked by the team that run the Bao Asian Cafe), the building had a truly cosmopolitan art centre atmosphere.

‘There will be another in February,’ said Jon. ‘And we’ll be doing what we did last time, championing live, original music across three stages.’

This September it’s the turn of the visual arts as St James, as sponsors Guernsey Arts Commission (GAC) and the local arts community join together to provide a weekend of creativity.

The Guernsey Community Arts Festival will brings together many of the local arts organisations for a celebration of the diversity and skill found in the community. With activities for all ages and skills, the festival will feature exhibitions, walk-in and pre-booked workshops with some of the island’s top artists and talks, all free of charge.

‘We have been working on an inclusive approach to our programming, be it music, theatre, or visual arts,’ said Jon. ‘St James is States-owned, run by a charity and there’s a certain freedom to open up the doors. It belongs to Guernsey’s community and as such should be open to all. This festival is yet another initiative we have created to make this possible.’

He said that accessibility is the key.

‘We want to make the arts accessible. We want people to come and see something they don’t expect. Every visual arts shareholder will be there. Arts for Guernsey will be involved as will Sarnia Arts & Crafts Club. In the Dorey Room the Gate House Gallery’s Adam Stephens will be running his life-drawing classes. Digital Greenhouse will be there, as well as digital artists and graphic novel illustrators Mikal Dyas and Kit Gillson, who will be running workshops and creating new characters. Local bands, including Tantale and Track Not Found, will be discussing album artwork and how to achieve a strong visual ID.

‘Even the St James forecourt will be covered and, with the help of the Creation Station, it will be turned into a workshop for the island’s younger artists to get involved.’

There will be many things to do for those who just walk into the festival, but some workshops will require pre-registration.

‘We are very grateful to the representatives of the arts community who have joined forces with St James and the GAC in bringing this two-day event to fruition.’

Russ Fossey, GAC’s head of arts development, said he was looking forward to a vibrant and creative weekend.

‘The GAC believes that there is much to be gained from joint ventures and the arts community working closer together in maximising our assets.’

• The Guernsey Community Art Festival launches on Friday 13 September and will be open to the public on Saturday and Sunday, 14 and 15, throughout the day.

• For more information and to pre-book workshops during the weekend, visit stjames.gg.

WIN tickets to every St James event for the rest of the year

Courtesy of our friends at St James, we are offering readers the chance to win two free tickets to every event at St James for the rest of the year. If you would like to win this fabulous prize, email competitions@guernseypress.com with ‘St James Competition’ in the subject line and leave your name, contact details and the answer to this question:

Who performed at the Pride march over-16s after party at St James last October?

Competition closes on Wednesday 28 August. No cash or alternative prizes offered.

• For details of upcoming events at St James, check out their website, stjames.gg, or find them on Facebook.