pig hog boar

We strolled into the China town area of Manchester, just as it was preparing for the main Golden Dragon Parade to welcome in Kung hei fat choy - the Year of the Pig (sometimes called the year of the Boar). When I looked at the Chinese zodiac sign, it describes the western equivalent that is nearest as the scorpion (Scorpio), which is actually my sign, although that's a November date.

The Chinese district is dominated by the Imperial Chinese Archway, which was a gift to the City from the Chinese people. There's also one in China Town London, but this one is extremely decorative and quite a surprise to find at a small cross roads in China Town. The arch was designed and built by a team of engineers from Beijing and is decorated with ceramics, lacquer, paint and gold leaf. Beside the arch are two pavilions in an ornamental garden, although these were blocked off today as part of the controls for the parade and festivities.

The red lanterns, flags and streamers and the loud firecrackers were all there to ward off evil spirits and to make sure that the Dragon knows its place instead of going around eating people.

star struck

I was told to make this picture large
The visit to see the Vortex was a great idea of Julie, who is quite a Will Young fan. We enjoyed the show and afterwards stayed in the very agreeable Royal Exchange bar having a few drinks. We even sawthe actress Diana Hardcastle who played Florence rushing out from somewhere back stage to buy a drink before the bar closed at around eleven o'clock.

We finished our drinks and decided we would get ready to move on to another venue like the Printworks or Matt and Phred's. Julie headed for the rest-rooms before we departed and we moved to the other end of the bar to where the coats were kept in a cloak room. Actually the cloakroom was locked and we had to find someone to get the door opened.

As I swung around I noticed three people sitting talking at the table at this end of the bar. One was wearing a rather fashionable hat. Yes, you've guessed. It was Will Young. That's the same Will Young that can usually be seen on stages and in arenas and other large venues. Now John was carrying the programme from the production and after a short consultation between us, I decided to ask Will Young if he would mind signing the programme for Julie.

I walked the few steps to where the three people were seated, very conscious that they may well have wanted to relax without being pestered. So I summoned the few words to ask Will if he minded me interrupting and would he mind signing the programme (luckily I had a pen!)

I explained it would make someone's year! He chuckled at this and said, 'what and its still only February!' and very graciously signed his picture on the programe 'to Julie, love Will x' I thanked him and commented also how much I'd enjoyed the play. He smiled before returning to his conversation with his two friends.

Throughout this, behind me had stood John and Melanie, miming approving gestures towards Will and his ensemble. We moved away, delighted that Will had been prepared to do this and feeling slightly sheepish that we had all been somewhat star-struck. I was not expecting the kind of buzz that this brief encounter created and don't think I've ever asked anyone for an autograph. I suppose Will Young is probably quite used to this, but I was very conscious of not wanting to intrude into his 'down-time'. I'm pleased that he signed the programme for Julie and I'd add that even in the few moments of contact, he came across as a charming and gracious individual.

Thank you, Will.

tags technorati : rashbre Will Young Vortex Diana Hardcastle Manchester music theatre

vortex

Noel Coward was 25 when he wrote "The Vortex" in 1924. In those days, the themes were sufficient to almost get the play closed down - with original reviews referring to 'this dustbin of a play'. There's sex and drugs but rock n' roll hadn't been invented so instead its piano and operetta.

The production at Manchester's Royal Exchange used a modest adaptation of the original script, and it is quite interesting to see how understated a lot of the themes of the play are in the production and one realises how much the 'shockability' of modern audiences have moved along.

We have the drug addled Nicky (played by Will Young) returning home from a year in Paris. He is clearly a mixed up and with what appears to be a sexual jealousy for the antics of his mother, Florence (played strongly by Diana Hardcastle). She is in an affair with someone Nicky's own age, behind the back of his starchy father. Florence's two friends at the start of the play act as a goading devil and no-nonsense conscience to Florence's infatuation.

Florence's lover, the guardsman Tom (played by Sam Heughan) is an aloof individual who portrays hardly a care for Florence, who is still blinded by the sexual advances. Will Young's character of Nicky (originally portrayed by Noel Coward himself) appears fragile in some scenes and later becomes downright jittery, presumably a reaction to the drug taking. Young's portrayal of Nicky incorporates an ambiguous sexual unhappiness which may be a cause of his addiction. He has brought a "trial fiancée" back from Paris, Bunty, although this courtship scarcely lasts beyond the introductions as she finds a greater affinity for Tom.

There's another nascent love interest for his mother Florence too; her female friend and apparent conscience Helen (played by Alexandra Mathie) seems to have a somewhat more than friendly longing to spend time with Florence, although that is also fairly understated in the way that the production operates.

The crescendo of the piece takes place in a whirl of emotions between Florence and Nicky when they both make a pact to abstain from the things which have been pulling them into the vortex. We are left to speculate whether the emotionally unsatisfied mother can abstain from the charms of a supply of twenty-something lovers and whether the fractured Nicky can resist the chemical lure of cocaine.

Well staged using a circular black and white set, good pacing and strong performances from the repertory cast. There was no embarrassment that Will Young was moving from his grounding in music to this theatrical piece and he stood up well as a full member of the cast delivering a strong performance. Kudos also to Bunty's stand-in, who did much more of an acted part than a reading.

Altogether, an enjoyable evening, watching a strong and interesting play in great surroundings.

tags technorati : rashbre Will Young Vortex Diana Hardcastle Manchester music theatre

exchange

Saturday evening we are seeing a play at the Royal Exchange. Earlier in the day we decided to locate it and take a look around. Its quite a spectacular structure. The outside is that of an old Corn Exchange in Manchester, but the inside has received a very signiicant makeover.

An entire theatre 'in the round' has been build inside the building. It is suspended from some steel struts which appear to take the load of the new construction.

This gives the Exchange a 'building within a building' feel and indeed the outer shell of the Exchange has mood lightig which can be controlled to suit the time of day or ambience required. The inner building is a very intimate theatre, which can hold something like 750 people, all of whom get excellent views of the circular stage.

rainy night in manchester

Tonight finds me in Manchester, staying at a rather indulgent hotel. We're visiting here for the weekend and have a few things planned including a trip to the theatre.

This afternoon we took a small reconnaisance stroll around the Piccadilly area near to the hotel. There were plenty of shoppers around, even in the rainy weather.

We returned to the hotel in the early evening, as the first of the Friday nighters were making their way out to brave the elements.

But we stayed in the hotel - we'd already planned a convivial dinner in the restaurant.

chill

An evening at home.

Medoc, my home made spaghetti and 'a life less ordinary' on sky.

Parlement of Foules

Not fools this time. More properly fowls, this time from Chaucer. His poem about the birds forming a parliament to debate and choose their mates contains one of the first references to St Valentine's day as a day for love.

"For this was on seynt Volantynys day Whan euery bryd comyth there to chose his mate."

Chaucer held a court position and wrote the poem back in 1382 and dedicated it to King Richard II as a celebration of the Kings' engagement to Anne of Bohemia. In Plato's words,"At the touch of love, everyone becomes a poet."

not ready to make nice

I like the DIxie Chicks, who have just won three Grammy awards for best album, best country album and best song.

I posted about them a while ago because this is the same band that had their CDs burned and crushed by middle America because of a statement made during a concert in England by one of their singers, Natalie Maines. She criticized President Bush along the lines she was ashamed he came from Texas.

When I posted, previously, it was a comment about the level of backlash their statement created leading to a total boycott by many radio stations of their music. The little video, below, shows the scenario and the linkage of the Dixie Chicks with criticism of the way that Bush was handling the situation in Iraq. Even the little trailer (below) was banned by NBC.

But now, some six months since my last post about this topic, the bluegrass singing band seem to have made a successful comeback, despite all of the prior protests.

I'm generally not on the right frequency for American country music (except when driving across some large piece of the nation) and I don't really understand how such an apparently despised band can walk away with three Grammy wins.

This has nothing to do with my personal opinion of their music (which, as I declared at the start), is positive. So here, enjoyably, is a rocking extract from a Dixie Chick show, at Shepherd's Bush, in England.


tags technorati : rashbre Dixie Chicks Grammys George Bush Iraq music bluegrass

ship of fools

The idea of a "Ship of Fools" goes way back into medieval times and there are many depictions of the scene of 'fools' being sent away by boat to another place.

There are several famous recreations of this idea, through time including Hieronymous Bosch's paining, The narrative by Sebastian Brant, with its illustrations by the fledging Albrecht Durer and more up to date renditions in the Richard Paul Russo novel and a topical new play by Andrew Bovell, to be presented at Theatre 503.

Brant: The first long version was 1452's "Das Narrenschiff", where Brant describes 110 assorted follies and vices, each undertaken by a different fool. The chapters are linked by the theme of a ship which will take the fools to Narragonia, the island of fools.

Bosch: The 1495 Bosch painting contains embedded symbolism including an owl in a tree and the crescent flying from the ship's flag as symbols of heresy. The lute and bowl of cherries have erotic associations and the people in the water may represent the sins of gluttony or lust. The inverted funnel is symbolic of madness and the large roast bird is a symbol of gluttony. The knife being used to cut it down may be symbolic of the sin of anger. In its day, showing the monk and a nun are singing together had symbolic erotic overtones since men and women in monastic orders were supposed to be separate.

Russo: In the 2001 Russo novel, a class-stratified people travelling on the Antioch, a huge space ship, have forgotten the original reason for their mission. A deserted planet suitable for human life is sending a simple signal. This planet holds a gruesome symbol of evil, but divides the Spaceship's inhabitants, with the under-classes wishing to colonise the planet. After a failed mutiny, the ship sets out to follow the beacon signal to its target, where they discover a huge further spaceship, which is ultimately as horrific as some of the content of the planet. They have followed the signal to a situation which could ultimately kill them, and in a 'devil and the deep blue sea' moment decide that many of the Antioch's inhabitants will return to the planet, whilst the Antioch tries to drag the alien ship into another dimension. A thought provoking look into the head of a protagonist in this situation of dispair.

Bovell: And now, with the 2007 Theatre 503 production of Andrew Bovell's play, we see two journeys with two sets of travellers, five hundred years apart.

Firstly, in 1492, Basel's town council summons the city's 'fools' comprising outcasts, handicapped, homosexuals and subversives. They are herded onto a ship and floated down the Rhine into permanent exile.

Then forward to 2007 in Britain and a populist initiative in which the government selects a group of long-term unemployed, bundles them onto a bus and drives them deep into the unknown to work for their dole. Theatre 503 and Strike Ensemble present a riotous and compelling exploration of how society deals with its outsiders.

tags technorati : rashbre theatre london theatre503 offwestend chelsea battersea latchmere west end metro time out sloane square fringe ship of fools Andrew Bovell

stairway

I was in Denmark Street yesterday, which guitar afficianados will know is the street in London to browse for guitars. No I didn't succumb. I was buying some strings and have been playing guitar again today.

The shop windows in that unassuming street have all manner of temptations, though, but I am happy with my current guitar, which is more than enough for my current level of playing!

tags technorati : rashbre guitar london music soho

primeval

We had the BBC Doctor Who spinoff called Torchwood. It was set in Western part of the Britiish Isles (Wales, actually). There was a gang of around five people who investigated phenomena as a consequence of some strange energy lines and breaks in the space time continuum in the area around their base.

The leader used to wear clothing reminiscent of a World War two airman. He and his group walk around in leather jackets in sort of V formations and diagonal straight lines. Occasionally they have to deal with all manner of strange monster, some clearly Men in Bubble-wrap and some computer generated. They have gadgets to help them and they keep them in their quirky headquarters location which is under a shimmering office location. In the first episode they met a new ex police-woman person who joins their gang.

I enjoyed Torchwood.

Fast forward to Saturday on BBC's rival ITV and there's a new series set in the Western part of the British Isles (Forest of Dean, which is quite close to Wales). Theres a strange crystal energy field in the forest and it appears to be a break in the space time continuum.

The leader of this gang wears an ex army looking jacket and his leather jacketed gang also walk around in V formations and the occasional diagonal grouping. They do use Torches to good effect in the Wood, too. And they seem to be dealing with creatures of a mainly computer generated kind. A few gadgets have been revealed, along with a shimmering headquarters location. In the first episode they seem to have met a new zoo-keeper who has just been told her project has been cancelled. I expect she will join their gang.

Lets see how it develops.

tags technorati : rashbre primeval torchwood itv bbc

syria

Walking through a shortcut via Belgrave Square today, I chanced upon a small demonstration. There are a lot of embassies in that part of London, so I didn't really know who they were pointing towards. I also noted there were quite a few police on hand and another police van was discreetly parked around the next side of the large square.

I didn't recognise the flag immediately, it has the typical Arab colours of black, white and red stripes with green stars, and as there were two stars I think that means Syria. Three means Iraq, of course.

It appeared to be a civil rights protest linked with the 25th anniversary of the ruthless destruction, by the Syrian army, of the city of Hamat claiming it harboured opponents of the Syrian regime.

I can't find any reference on the main news feeds to today's demonstration. But it brings home another example of the ongoing complexities and ambiguities of the Middle East region, this time with the country that borders Israel, Lebanon, Iraq, Turkey and Jordan.