IN a "big coup" for The Fleeting Arms, York's pop-up arts pub in Gillygate has secured Chris Thorpe's Edinburgh Fringe First  winner, Confirmation, for two nights before it tours to New York and Brisbane, Australia.

The West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds and Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough played host to Thorpe's powerhouse one-man show earlier this month on its national tour. Now York will hear Thorpe's "attempt to have an honourable dialogue, real and imagined, with political extremism" on Friday and saturday.

‘We’re so proud that Confirmation is coming to The Fleeting Arms," says programmer and co-ordinator Alexander Wright. "We've been constantly amazed by the breadth of people who have created work here since we opened in March. To add Chris Thorpe to that mix is electric.

"Getting Chris here for Confirmation is quite remarkable for a pop-up venue. We're chuffed to bits, and we hope as many people can see the work as possible."

Written and performed by Thorpe and directed by Rachel Chavkin, who developed the 80-minute piece with him, Confirmation considers the gulfs we can’t talk across and the way we choose to see only the evidence that proves we’re right. Armed with research material, the creative team ponders the phenomenon of "confirmation bias", examining and questioning the rise of extremist thinking within Britain's political landscape and exploring the strength and grounding of people’s beliefs.

Commissioned by Northern Stage and Battersea Arts Centre and presented on tour by Warwick Arts Centre and China Plate, Confirmation will be performed on Friday and Saturday at 7.30pm, with tickets on sale at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk or on 01904 623568.

Looking ahead, Alexander Wright says: "Our pop-up community arts pub, which has welcomed so many artists, makers and punter since March 2015, is set to go out with a debauched yet decadent bang from December 3 to 31, when The Guild Of Misrule and The Fleeting Arms will present a brand new adaptation of F Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby.

"Created as a unique immersive experience, across all three floors of the building, this will be a truly special end to The Fleeting Arms."