SHEFFIELD poet Genevieve Carver and her band The Unsung will headline Say Owt's Poetry and Music Fusion bill at The Fulford Arms, York, on April 11.

Originally from York, Genevieve will perform A Beautiful Way To Be Crazy, for which she interviewed female and non-binary artists across the music industry and dug out her old teenage diaries too.

In this tale of growing up and finding a voice, she weaves together spoken word and music, as she and The Unsung explore what it means to be a girl in the business of music, with a little help from Joni Mitchell, Nina Simone and electronic music pioneer Delia Derbyshire.

Formed in 2016, The Unsung toured their self-titled debut show nationally, winning the spoken word award at the 2017 Buxton Fringe and playing the Edinburgh Fringe last summer. The latest show is directed by Natalie Quatermass, who has worked previously for York Theatre Royal and York Shakespeare Project.

Arts Council England funding has enabled York performance poetry organisation Say Owt to bring Genevieve's show to York, where support slots will go to Saint Mike and Hannah Davies.

York band Saint Mike specialise in acoustic songs that integrate spoken word, harmonies and belting choruses, performed by Say Owt associate artist Stu Freestone with Alex Willmott and Chris Andrade. Already, they have been picked up by BBC Introducing.

York writer, actor, director, playwright and spoken-word artist Hannah Davies will perform a series of poems, underscored by York musicians. "By working with cello and guitar, Hannah has added a spellbinding quality to her poetry," says Henry Raby, Say Owt's artistic director.

Looking forward to April 11's triple bill, he adds: "We’re really excited by poets that are working with other genres and mediums. Fusing music with poetry is an exciting and unique skill and Genevieve’s show is not to be missed if you're a fan of either or both!"

Tickets are on sale at £6 at thefulfordarms.bigcartel.com or £7 on the door.

Charles Hutchinson