DR HAZE, ringmaster from the Circus Of Horrors, will be the star speaker at the inaugural Live Entertainment Confab in York on Wednesday lunchtime at The Basement, City Screen. His circus is in town that night for an 8pm performance of The Never Ending Nightmare at York Barbican.

Earlier in the day, at 1pm, he will be joined in The Basement by confab organiser Susanna Jeffery; Nicola Wilkinson, one half of the award-winning comedy double act The Kagools, from Hull; John Tomlinson, associate producer at York Theatre Royal, and comedian, pantomime dame and comedy promoter Philip Smith, who set up York's newest comedy club, Love Comedy Live, at Haxby Sports Club last September.

"My background is in comedy and solo theatre production in London and Edinburgh, but I've recently moved to York and I wanted to create something that brought local talent together to get inspired," says Susanna. "The confab will be two hours of mini talks about theatre, comedy, performing and writing, followed by a Q&A.

"Nicola Wilkinson, who has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe and Melbourne comedy festival, will talk about physical and silent comedy. John Wilkinson, who is also director of the York company SBC Theatre, will speak on York Theatre Royal's inclusion policy and how to get local people involved in theatre who might not otherwise do that.

York Press:

Confab organiser Susan Jeffery

"Philip Smith, who was a Harrogate Comedian of the Year finalist and Leicester Square New Comedian semi-finalist, will discuss how to get into stand-up and how to put together your first five minutes of material. He's done brilliantly in competitions and is now running his own comedy night."

Susanna lived in London for five years, working first in a bar, progressing into stand-up comedy from there and then becoming a comedy agent. "I've been in York for two years, working in the funding department at York College, helping students on the breadline so that they can go to college, but I've also been keen to put on a confab event, and one of the reasons I wanted to do that was to find out more about local talent," she says.

"I've chosen the 'Confab' title as I just liked the word, and because the event is in The Basement with a capacity that I've set at 40, it will feel quite a closed gathering, so that in a way it will be like overhearing a private conversation. But I want the stories to come and if the speakers had a bad time in their career as well as good times, tell us about it."

The question-and-answer session will be hosted by Al Greaves, promoter of York's Burning Duck Comedy Club. "He'll compere it and take questions from the audience, when it's a chance for people to ask anything," says Susanna.

Admission is £5 and tickets are available from the City Screen box office, on 0871 902 5726, at picturehouses.com/cinema/info/York_Picturehouse or on the door.