Concerts and Nightlife

The best gigs, festivals and live music performances in Leeds this month | September 2022

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Sophie Smith Sophie Smith - 6th September 2022

The top ten gigs, live music, comedy sketches and key note speakers to go to this month in Leeds.

Festival season is on its way out, the seasons are changing- but there's loads of live music, comedy performances and key speakers in Leeds this month to keep the feel-good summer feeling alive, even in the colder months.

Whether you're looking for an excuse to get back out as another Uni year begins or want to listen to serious key speakers discussing some of the most crucial questions of our time, we've got a range of live events for you to choose from.

Keep reading to find out more about the top ten events this month in Leeds.

Strand of Oaks

Wednesday 7 September 2022 | Brudenell Social Club, Queens Road, Burley

Image: Brudenell Social Club

Tim Showalter is bringing his eighth studio album to the Brudenell Social Club this month, and with it a performance that is set to be as heartbreaking as it is mesmerising. Described as a 'stunning, hopeful reflection on love, loss and enlightenment', In Heaven is the latest album that describes a strong narrative using vocals, featuring Carl Broemel from My Morning Jacket, James Iha from The Smashing Pumpkins

Find out more here.

Adam Kay- This Is Going To Hurt... More

Friday 9 September 2022 | First Direct Arena, Arena Way

Image: First Direct Arena

Award-winning writer and comedian Adam Kay is coming to Leeds, and bringing all of his diaries as a junior doctor with him. Expect a night of stand-up comedy and music, as well as new stories from Kay's upcoming book, Undoctored: The story of a medic who ran out of patients. Taking on First Direct Arena, seats are still available to book, as well as the option to add a signed copy of Undoctored to your order.

Find out more here.

BBC Radio 2 Festival

Saturday 17 September – Sunday 18 September 2022 | Temple Newsam, Leeds

Image: Hanny Naibaho, Unsplash

Robbie Williams, Simple Minds, Tears For Fears, Elbow, Craig David, Ella Henderson, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Sara Coz, George Ezra, Mel C, Emeli Sande, Olly Murs, Heather Small (draws breath) and there’s even more artists playing this two-day festival to bring the BBC Radio 2 to life in Leeds. The event is said to have doubled in size from previous years and will feature a weekend to remember, regardless of which headliner you’re heading over for.

Find out more here.

Kodaline

Wednesday 21 September 2022 | The Wardrobe, St Peter's Square

Image: Kodaline

Performing an intimate album launch show at The Wardrobe, Kodaline will be bringing their highly-anticipated Our Roots Run Deep to Leeds. The fifth album follows a series of top hits, including from their debut In A Perfect World, then Coming Up For Air, Politics of Living and more recently with the band's 2020 album, One Day at a Time. Door open at the earlier than usual time of 7pm for this one with a set shortly after, so make sure to get there on time.

Find out more here.

Leeds International Festival of Ideas

Thursday 22 September – Sunday 25 September 2022 | Howard Assembly Room and Howard Opera Centre

This year we’ll be hearing from some of the UK’s biggest voices and beyond as panels and key speakers take on some of the most crucial questions of our time. For those unfamiliar with Leeds International Festival of Ideas (LIFI), it’s quite simply a four-day festival that takes on important subjects and brings in experts from their chosen field to discuss their ideas in front of a live audience. There’s big names like Kevin McCloud, Mary Beard, Jon Hopkins, Yoyam Ottolenghi, Aisling Bea, David Olusoga, Christopher Wylie, Jamali Maddix and so many more in attendance, this will be real food for thought.

Find out more here.

Read More: Leeds International Festival of Ideas is less than a month away- here’s how to get tickets

Oktoberfest

Friday 23 September – Saturday 24 September 2022 | Chow Down, Temple Arches

Image: Oktoberfest Leeds

Bringing the much-loved Bavarian music and steins to Leeds for Oktoberfest, the festival is back for another year. Famous for its electric atmosphere and guaranteed mayhem, expect steins of beer bigger than your head, traditional German eats and plenty of dancing. What better way to celebrate the end of the summer than with the world’s biggest beer celebration in Leeds’ biggest beer garden? It seems like a no brainer to us.

Find out more here.

Get tickets for Oktoberfest at Chow Down on Friday 23 September or Saturday 24 September here.

X Ambassadors

Thursday 29 September 2022 | Leeds University Stylus, Lifton Place, Woodhouse

Image: Ticketmaster

The New York pop-rock band will be making an appearance at Leeds University Stylus for Freshers, students and the wider population of Leeds to embrace a night of unforgettable music. Leeds marks the midway point of their six-stop tour across England, and the band is likely bringing hits like Unsteady, Jungle and Renegades to UK shows with just as much enthusiasm as ever.

Find out more here.

Brooke Combe

Friday 30 September 2022 | Headrow House, The Headrow

Image: Brooke Combe

Having supported the likes of The Snuts and The Courteeners, Brooke Combe could be one of the UK's next big names and the last day of the month is bringing an opportunity to watch (and dance to) the singer in a small, intimate venue. Set to bring the house down at Headrow House, you won't want to miss this.

Find out more here.

Smoove and Turrell Live

Friday 30 September 2022 | Brudenell Social Club, Queens Road, Burley

Image: Smoove and Turrell

Returning with their sixth studio album, Stratos Bleu, Smoove and Turrell are bringing their analogue synths to the Brudenell Social Club this September- and it’s set to be a showstopper of an evening. With a fusion of early 90s clubbing music, reminiscent of hedonistic nights gone by, expect a night filled with conscious lyrics all to the steady beat of Mike Porter on the keyboard.

Tickets cost £17.00 each plus a booking fee. 

Get tickets to see Smoove and Turrell Live at the Brudenell Social Club on Friday 30 September 2022 here.

Worried About Henry Presents Sleepless

Friday 30 September 2022 | O2 Academy, Cookridge Street

Image: Skiddle

Brought to you by Afterglow and Used To This producer Wilkinson, Worried About Henry Presents Sleepless is the night for Drum and Bass lovers in Leeds. With Ad-Apt as your MC for the night, listen to the latest mixes from Bou & Haribo; Serum & Inja; Polar & Bryson; Krakota; A Little Sound; Kara; Mozey; Katalyst and Ferguson, as well as a DJ set from Wilkinson himself. Please note this is an 18+ only event.

Tickets cost £23.25 each, plus a booking fee.

Get tickets for Worried About Henry Presents Sleepless at Leeds O2 Academy Leeds on Friday 30 September 2022 here.

Feature Image- Hanny Naibaho, Unsplash

Concerts and Nightlife

Conan Gray AND Jacob Alon join Lewis Capaldi’s Roundhay Festival line-up

Thomas Melia Thomas Melia

US pop star Conan Gray and BRIT award winner Jacob Alon join the line-up for Lewis Capaldi's headline date at Roundhay Festival.

Leeds' Roundhay Park is welcoming back live music to its grounds this summer for two outdoor gigs headlined by Lewis Capaldi and Pitbull titled Roundhay Festival, with special guests slowly being announced.

Gray is recognised for standout tracks like 'Heather' and 'Maniac' while Alon has built a cult following of fans around their indie tunes like 'Fairy in a Bottle' as well as 'Liquid Gold 25'.

Jacob Alon has been showing off their artistry within the indie music scene thanks to their 2025 LP In Limerence catching the attention of many in the process.

This album has gone onto attract widespread love from music listeners and even industry professionals bagging themselves their first-ever BRIT award nomination and win - The Critics' Choice award.

Conan Gray AND Jacob Alon join Lewis Capaldi's Roundhay Festival line-up / Credit: Supplied via Press Shots

Conan Gray started out covering other artists hits before creating some of his own and releasing debut studio album Kid Krow back in 2020.

The project has production credits shared between Gray and Dan Nigro, Grammy-winning producer who has worked with Chappell Roan, Olivia Rodrigo, Lorde and more.

It's always exciting hearing updates like these, but this one is even more impressive as it's not just one stellar act joining the Roundhay Festival line-up but two, with further acts to be announced.

The almost 70,000 crowd who are heading down to Roundhay Festival when Lewis Capaldi makes his way to Leeds next summer are going to be blessed with some phenomenal live music. 

This year marks American Express Presents Roundhay Festival first year with two star-studded dates fronted by powerhouse performers with the second show fronted by Pitbull and special guest Kesha.

These events have been organised with Leeds City Council and are expected to bring benefits to the local area by employing local suppliers, staff and boost spending on accommodation, food and entertainment.

Conan Gray and Jacob Alon will play alongside Lewis Capaldi at Roundhay Festival in Leeds on Saturday 4 July 2026 with tickets available HERE.

Read more: Turnstile to play their only UK headline show this year at Halifax Piece Hall

Featured Images - Supplied via Press Shots

Concerts and Nightlife

Headlong Theatre casts a dark spell on a Shakespearian comedy at Leeds Playhouse 

Declan Kelly Declan Kelly

Winter replaces summer in this unsettling Midsummer Night.

A night of dark magic swarmed Leeds Playhouse last night as Headlong Theatre and Shakespeare’s Globe brought a strikingly dark reimagining of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, transforming Shakespeare’s most effervescent comedy into something far more psychologically raw.

For those who don’t know who Headlong Theatre Company are, they are known for their bold reimaginings of classics and for commissioning powerful contemporary plays that provoke fresh ways of seeing familiar texts, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream was their next task, directed by Holly Race Roughan. 

Gone was the warmth and floral abundance traditionally associated with the play, a play which is fixated on fairies and magic and all things whimsical. Instead, this production unfolded in a stark, wintry landscape.

Image: Supplied

The eerie white setting with pale tones and biting chill created an atmosphere that felt closer to a nightmare than a fantasy. From the outset, there was a sense that this dream would not offer escapism but confrontation. 

In this production, the quartet of lovers Hermia, Lysander, Demetrius and Helena played by Tiwa Lade, David Olaniregun, Lou Jackson and Tara Tijani, rendered a complex love story not as the bright, mischievous romantics of summer light, but as figures caught in a corrosive and bruising emotional spiral.

Image: Supplied

The love potion, rather than a whimsical device, became a symbol of manipulation and control.

Whilst the show did have its comedic parts throughout, laughter was present but not like we’d expect a Shakespearean comedy to be. A standout performance throughout was Danny Kirrane’s portrayal of Bottom. Rather than serving solely as comic relief, Kirrane emerged as unexpectedly poignant.

The play-within-a-play still delivered moments of levity, but even here the humour seemed edged with fragility, as though the comedy might fracture at any moment.

Sergo Vares gives a strikingly original and unforgettable portrayal of Puck, transforming Shakespeare’s playful trickster into a darker, more unsettling figure. Ditching the usual impish charm, Vares appears in a peculiar combination of tutu and dinner jacket, his face painted white and movements measured and haunting, commanding the stage with an eerie intensity.

Image: Supplied

Small, seemingly inconsequential actions, like silently eating a banana, become disquieting, while his prowling presence turns mischief into something deliberate and menacing. Surprising entrances and exits keep both characters and audience on edge, and his closing address to the audience carries a sharp, ironic bite that lingers long after the play’s ending.

What distinguished this production was its commitment to exposing the brutality that pulses beneath Shakespeare’s text. Love was presented not as a harmless folly but as a force capable of humiliation, control and harm. The final moments resisted the usual buoyant reconciliation; instead, the ending felt ambiguous, leaving the audience reflective rather than reassured. This was not a dream bathed in moonlight and romance as we would have expected.

The production took on a colder, more introspective tone, serving as a striking reminder that even Shakespeare’s lightest comedies contain threads of darkness. Whether audiences find this approach exhilarating or simply a departure from the familiar, it is undeniably thought-provoking, prompting reflection on what kind of “dream” they have truly witnessed.

Overall, reimagining Shakespearean texts like this is an exciting venture, offering fresh opportunities to explore themes that might otherwise remain hidden and Roughan accomplishes this with remarkable ease and insight.

Headlong Theatre Company’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is on at  Leeds  Playhouse until 28  February 2026 and you can get your tickets here.

Read more: Inside Leeds’ newest Italian cafe and gelateria that’s inspired by the streets of Puglia

Featured image - Supplied

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