Pam Ayres...

Last night Stuart and I went to see the poetic goddess that is Pam Ayres at The Gordon Craig Theatre in Hertfordshire's unglitzy Stevenage.

Telling us stories, reading from her books and reciting poetry she had us in stitches. We haven't laughed so much in ages.

National treasure.

Olivier Dubois Company’s Tragédie...

Last Friday night Stuart, Darren and I went to see Olivier Dubois Company’s Tragédie at the Sadler’s Wells in London’s glitzy Islington.

Consisting of three parts; it was in turns repetitive, desensitising, hypnotic, visceral, a little bit rude. Nine men, nine women and not a stitch on.

Initially all the naked dancers did was walk from the back of the stage directly to the front of the stage and turned on the heels to repeat the process once again. This was performed to a dull thumping bass line. After half an hour we kind of got it. We were desensitising to the nudity.

As the piece progressed to the later stages however things got more interesting. The dancers started to twitch. And jump. And move in diagonals. The music got more chaotic and the movement reflected this. Soon the piece became more tribal with a wild pumping beat and the dancers started to synchronise their pulsating actions.

By the final section the dancers were performing to a thumping techno beat and hectic, vibrant dancing ended up as writhing around on stage in an ecstatic orgy of humping flesh.

We loved it.


Teaser Tragedie from Tommy Pascal on Vimeo.

The Velvelettes and Brenda Holloway...

Last Friday Juggy, Stu, Bryn, Andrew and I went to the 229 Club to see The Velvelettes and Brenda Holloway perform as part of the Modstock festival.

Big-bosomed Brenda was great. The tight-dressed Velvelettes were fantastic. Great voices, great songs, what's not to like?

Sam's Exhibtion...

Sam had her first exhibition opening on Monday at The Modern Pantry. It was great. I bought two pieces. No, not these two idiots - the ones below.

Jean-Paul Gautier Exhibition...

Last Sunday Stuart and I went to see the Jean-Paul Gautier at the Barbican Art Gallery. It was amazeballs. The mannequins had video projections of faces on them that were sexy, creepy and funny all at the same time. Some winked, some talked, some sang. Oh and the clothes weren't bad either. And we got to see Madonna's conical bra outfit.

Sophie Eliis-Bextor...

Last Friday Darren treated me to a trip to London's glitzy Union Chapel to see Sophie Ellis-Bextor.

In fine voice she treated us to an hour of her fab new album Wanderlust and then half an hour of crowd-pleasing disco stompers.

As the end of the set approached and in the throws of a fist-in-the-air-pumping-ecstastic move her eyes bounced heavenward and she squealed, "God loves DISCOOOOO!"

A nice coda to the evening was her rushing up to the upper tier of the chapel and under the gaze of a single spotlight she sang us a beautiful a capella farewell ditty. She was quiche.

Secret Cinema 21...

On Saturday night Stu, Darren, Tim and I went to the latest Secret Cinema in the old Town Hall in London's trendy Crouch End. We'd been told what to wear, where to go and who to meet - but were a bit surprised (and mildly disappointed) by the film. It was a 'classic' - just a not very good one!

The 'business' beforehand was excellent would with all the actors playing their part very well.

Still worth a punt on SC even if the film choices can be a bit variable.

Petula Clark...

On Sunday Darren, Stu and I went to see Petula Clark at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. It was a night of lists.

The catalogue of songs she sang:-

• Colour My World
• Don't sleep in the subway
• My Love
• Crazy (Gnarls Barkley cover)
• Imagine (John Lennon cover)
• Someone To Watch Over Me / The Man I Love 
• Lost In You 
• Who Am I?
• Sailor
• Sign of the Times
• Downtown
• I couldn't live without your love
• Rainbow is Coming (?)
• With One Look (from Sunset Boulevard)
• If This Isn't Love (from Finian's Rainbow)
• Cut Copy Me
• The Other Man's Grass Is Always Greener
• Reflections (set to Bach)

The people she had met:-

• Jimmy Page
• Francis Ford Coppola
• George Lucas
• Charlie Chaplin
• Fred Astaire
• Tony Hatch
• Tommy Steele
• Sophie Lorraine
• Frank Sinatra
• Elvis
• Dusty Springfield
• Karen Carpenter
• Georgie Fame
• Johann Sebastian Bach (OK, not really)

 She sang, she played piano, she entertained. And all at 81 years old. What a star.

The Sound Of Music at Open Air Theatre Regents Park...

Last night Stu and I went to see nuns and Nazis singing and sinning in the park. That's the nuns doing the singing and the Nazis doing the sinning not the other way around.

Stu's favourite musical is The Sound Of Music and the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre put on a great show. The leads were excellent, the script funny, the supports acted well, the kids were great and the orchestra did us proud.

It was the regular musical version with the oft omitted songs re-added and the score in the correct order - not the mixed up film version order.

One funny bit was the abbess saying VERY dis-tinct-ly... "What is it you... CAAAN'T.. face?" Which produced loads of sniggers.

We loved it and are planning a return visit.

Secret Cinema...

A few weeks ago Stu and I went to the latest Secret Cinema event.

There are mild spoilers below so if you are going - read no further!

It's hard not to give the game away with these films  - but to be honest everyone I spoke to knew what it was before they had arrived. Suffice to say it was good film.

This time the event was held down in West Croydon at the old thirteen-story BT offices. The place had been done out like a make-shift Ministry of Information which we could roam about in until the film started proper.

We had become employees of the newly formed G.O.O.D. organisation where we had been assigned to the Committee for Credit Creation (Keynes Department K-4.06/F). We started our 'work' at 6:30pm prompt in our trusty grey suits. About twenty of us sat around a large meeting room table trying to come up with ways to generate wealth and sell the idea to the general public. It was fun and funny.

After that we headed up a floor to the media area where we filmed an advert with a group of other people - something about a mother, a loud-haler and her lazy kids running down for breakfast. Don't ask.

Then we just wandered about - there were masks and a party and a typewriting class and an office with a table that moved and showroom dummies and a restaurant and rooms with paper flowing out of the walls and people, lots of people. It was great fun.

The film was projected in the central atrium with the sound coming out of speakers behind us. The footage was fairly dim and so hard to see but the environment more than made up for that.

Another triumph for SC. Now if only they had sorted out the licencing so we could have had a drink...

Philip Glass...

Last Tuesday I traveled down to Bristol to stay the night with the lovely Paul and Simon. The reason for the trip was that Paul and I were going to see Philip Glass perform some solo piano works - Etudes and Other Work for Solo Piano - in the wonderful St George's.

Consisting of two 45 minute sections Glass wowed us with his mesmerizing compositions and beautiful fingering. Mainly from the 1990s the pieces sounded magnificent in acoustics of the old hall.

The programme included:
Six Etudes (Nos. 1, 2, 4, 6, 9,10) (1994-1999)
Mad Rush (1980)
Metamorphoses (Nos. 2, 3, 4) (1989)
Wichita Vortex Sutra (1990)

A still-evolving series begun in the mid-90s, recorded in 2003, the ‘Etudes’ have, says Glass, a two-fold purpose: “First, to provide new music for my solo piano concerts. And second, for me to expand my piano technique with music that would enhance and challenge my playing. Hence the name Etudes, or “studies”. The result is a body of work that has a broad range of dynamic, tempo and emotion.”

Funk & Ride...

Last Friday night Stu, Darren and I went to Fred Mann's Funk & Ride club at the Barracuda Club under The Famous Cock in London's glitzy Highbury.

We bobbed and boogied to Northern Soul, 60's Girl groups and rare beats. Great fun.

The Mousetrap...

Last Friday Stu treated me to a night out at the theatre. We went to see The Mousetrap - now in it's 60th year - in London's glitzy West End.

It's a dated whodunnit but not without it's charm.

I got it straight off. Stu thought it was the usherette.

Debbie...

Last Saturday night Darren, Stu and I (and Brucie and Fiona and Andrew) all went to Ryan's Bar in Stoke Newington Church Street to a small underground club called Debbie.

"Debbie is a free All-Girl Pop, Rock and Indie dance party - with music by Rock Chicks and Riot Grrrls, Pop Princesses and Indie Queens, Soul Sisters and Disco Divas - for People of All Genders and Persuasions."

Every other record was a Donna Summer record. We had a great time dancing our socks off.

There was a photographer there who took a lovely picture of Stu and I so many thanks to him for taking it.

Noises Off...

Last Saturday Stu and I treated my mother and father to an afternoon at the theatre. We went to see Michael Frayn's Noises Off at the the Novello Theatre in London's glitzy West End.

I have to say we loved it. We laughed and laughed. It's basically a farce - which can be hard to pull off anyway - written as a very clever deconstructive piece using the grammar and language of the genre to spoof itself.

The title comes from the theatrical stage direction indicating sounds that are meant to originate offstage. The conceit of a play within a play then hurtles along at breakneck speed following the backstage antics of a touring theatre company as they stumble their way through rehearsals to a shambolic first night and a final disastrous performance.

Celia Imrie's Dotty Otley was brilliant and deserves the Olivier Award for Best Actress.

If you get a chance - go see!

John Waters...

Last Friday Darren and I went to the Queen Elizabeth Hall on London's glitzy South Bank to see auteur John Waters.

JW is a filmmaker par excellence who exercises creative control over his work and has a strong personal style. And what a fantastically twisted, sick, subversive and funny style it is. Be it in his films, his art or his writing.

He was on stage and in conversation with Phillip Hoare to discuss his life, work and his new book Role Models.

He was very funny. Very. All too short at 90 minutes though. 

Hazel O'Connor...

On Sunday night Darren, Dean, I and a bunch of us went to see the truly wonderful Hazel O'Connor perform Breaking Glass Live at the Leicester Square Theatre.

It was a brilliant show. Hazel has such energy on stage and each classic song was delivered with such passion.