VENUE
ISSUE 294 Chris Corby
concrete.venue@uea.ac.uk
www.concrete-online.co.uk
25.02.14
VENUE
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contents
MUSIC
interview: george ezra Welcome back folks! The weather is so sunny and balmy at the moment you might even call it beer garden worthy. For some this is a hopeful gilmpse of spring and summer, but for others it’s a sign of the ever approaching dissertation deadline or even graduation. Either way, make the most of the good weather, it won’t be long until it’s time for Pimm’s with all the trimmings. We’ve had the BAFTAs and it’s not long until the wee gold man himself is handed out at the Academy Awards. Anyone else feel that Lupita Nyong’o was completely robbed at the BAFTAs? Hopefuly it’ll be her time to shine this week. Finally a big hug and a thank you to our troop of proof-readers who came in to the Concrete office this week. Venue has been decorated
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review: weekly wipe
with red pen over the weekend, and we greatly appreciate all of your hard work. Who knew so many people cared about spelling? Stay cute, Ciara and Hayden Calling all photographers: Venue would love to have some new and original photography for the front and back covers of our publication. In collaboration with UEA Photo Soc, we will be running fortnightly competitions to showcase talent. Whether you make the cover or not, all entries will be featured in our website’s brand new online gallery. To enter, contact Jonathan Alomoto at ueaphotosoc@gmail. com for more details.
FILM
our oscar predictions
Editor-in-Chief | Sidonie Chaffer-Melley Venue Editors | Hayden East and Ciara Jack Music | Editors | Jack Enright and Alex Flood Music Contributors: Joe Collier, Myles Earle, Laura Higgins, Mike Vinti Fashion | Editors | Madz Abbasi and Ella Sharp Fashion Contributors: Helena Urquhart, Victoria Sellars, Katie Tsappas, Arts | Editor | Callum Graham Arts Contributors: Lewis Buxton, Callum Graham, Pichai Rachasombat Creative Writing | Editor | Holly McDede Creative Writing Contributors: Deniel Delargy, Alex Munro, Bella Thompson Gaming | Editor | Sam Emsley Gaming Contributors: Sam Emsley, Adam Riza Television | Editor | Robert Drury Television Contributors: Louisa Baldwin, Adam Dawson, Melissa Haggar, Elliot Wengler Film | Editors | Holly Wade and Adam White Film Contributors: Louis Cheslaw, Melissa Haggar, Thomas Hall, Emma Holbrook, Luke Keleher, Jack Lusby, Josh Mott, Luke Plummer, Holly Wade, Adam White Competitions & Listings | Editor | Saul Holmes
Issue 294
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MUSIC
concrete.music@uea.ac.uk
Interview: George Ezra
Venue’s Laura Higgins sat down with the Bristol singer song-writer
othervoices.ie
On the first day of his UK headline tour, George Ezra mulls over his recent rise to success in a back room at Norwich’s Waterfront venue. Calm and collected, you would never think that Ezra was about to head out on a 7 week sold out tour across the UK and Europe at the tender age of twenty. Ezra has been a busy man since his performance at BBC Maida Vale in January 2013; it is from around then that he found a buzz starting to surround him. In addition to this, he was recently awarded 5th place in the BBC Sound of 2014 poll making him a top artist to look out for this year. Despite the huge amount of attention he is now receiving, when asked what has changed most for him he says “nothing has changed really, I’ve always been doing interviews and gigs, just more now.” Refreshingly down to earth, Ezra expresses his gratitude to his fans and says how it is “nice knowing that people are interested in what I am doing.” The bulk of ideas for Ezra’s songs have
come from a summer travelling round Europe by himself. On his travels, he filled journals with details of places he visited and people he met along the way. These journals became the driving force and inspiration behind his song writing for the debut album. One of Ezra’s more well-known songs, ‘Budapest’, has received substantial Radio 1 airplay and even been used in some adverts and commercials. However, interestingly ‘Budapest’ was one of the places Ezra failed to visit on his travels. With his debut studio album recorded and due to be released around summer time, anticipation and support for Ezra is rising, particularly with the release of his EP ‘Cassy O’ scheduled for mid-March. During the recording of the album Ezra recalls how “we forgot everything; we forgot how to talk to people. I was useless.” The insanity of 13 hour days from November to January undoubtedly took their toll on Ezra. However, after a relaxing break over Christmas it was
straight back to work for the young vocalist. Gigging, first and foremost, is the thing Ezra says he loves most about being a musician and states how he feels “strangely at home stood in front of people, which is weird, but I enjoy it.” He continues to be amazed by the response he receives from his fans when performing, “people sing along, even I forget the lyrics sometimes, people singing them back to me, it’s wicked!” Things like this are a reminder that although Ezra is an incredibly talented musician, headlining gigs is something that will take him time to acclimatise to. When I asked him his dream duet or artist collaboration, Ezra said “my answer would be Elvis, but I don’t see that happening anytime soon.” Growing up George listened to a lot of indie bands such as the Libertines he says, but has been influenced by a number of different genres such as acoustic and blues, giving a unique sound to his voice. The statement ‘old before his time’ has
been used a lot in other interviews, his distinct tone sounds far more mature than a twenty year old’s, and for this Ezra really stands out from the crowd. For those who follow Ezra on twitter you may be wondering what the hashtag ‘petan’ actually means, this reporter certainly has been curious. If you were thinking it stood for something in particular then you would be wrong, in fact, it is completely made up. It started off as a word Ezra used back home with his friends and seems to have caught on, now Ezra hashtags it in most tweets and fans use it too. ‘Petan’ key rings were even for sale on the merchandise stall at the gig to the delight of many of his fans. So what’s the next step for George Ezra? With a whirlwind of gigs and the release of his debut studio album, 2014 is set to be a jam-packed year in which we will undoubtedly see a strengthening of Ezra’s fan base and reputation. Oh – and getting ‘petan’ into the dictionary of course.
MUSIC concrete.music@uea.ac.uk
www.concrete-online.co.uk
Interview: Daniel Tuffs
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Joe Collier sits down with the man behind some of Norwich’s most innovative club nights
Charlie Wallis
Since hosting his first Just-Is party in the nurturing womb of Bedford’s Crypt back in January 2012, Daniel Tuffs has come a long way. In just two years his nights have grown from humble skanks in a local basement to sell-out shows in the 1000-capacity main room at Open. Focusing primarily on reggae and its derivatives, Dan has been associated with myriad club nights and live music events, most recently inaugurating Trod This Land at Hideout and bringing such names as Mungo’s Hi-fi, Reggae Roast, and Channel One Soundsystem to the city. A Norwich native, it is his loyalty to the city’s musical heritage coupled with a keen ear for moving trends in underground bass-led music that has been at the heart of his success. “For the last twenty-odd years, Norwich has had a really strong reggae and soundsystem culture… in the early to mid 2000’s, East Anglia was one of the main destinations for the rave scene nationwide.” Paying homage to that sense of tradition while simultaneously keeping things contemporary has always been a characteristic of Daniel’s events. Upon venturing through the door, more often
than not there will be an even split of students and locals getting sweaty on the dancefloor. “I try and incorporate the origins of the Norwich reggae scene with a combination of new and current acts from in and around the country.” Perhaps the most visible (or rather, audible) impression the city has left on Daniel’s work has been the emphasis placed on the soundsystem. “I always love to hear a new soundsystem as there are so many different sounds you can achieve… There’s nothing like being able to feel the music.” What’s special about soundsystem culture is the kind of atmosphere it creates; rather than dancing in closed circles, revellers come shoulder to shoulder either to face the monstrous subwoofers, or the live MC as they incite the dance. Asked whether or not he think this creates a strong sense of community at his events, Daniel emphatically agrees. “Absolutely, people come together to appreciate the selections and the music itself – it breaks down barriers between people as the focus is on the music and the atmosphere rather than anything else.” Having retired the ‘Just-Is’ moniker for his monthly Hideout shindigs last
year, Daniel re-launched and rebranded as ‘Trod This Land’. The reasons for the shake-up are equal parts aesthetic and musical. “After starting Just-Is I feel like I’ve moved on a lot from that. Where Just-Is functioned as a crossover night, now I’ve honed in to a Jamaican focus while keeping the modern club-night feel, maintaining different genres on different floors.” Keen to keep the night cohesive, the kind of styles Daniel alludes to are all, as he explains, cut from the same cloth. “Genres like jungle that came about in the mid 90’s heavily sample dancehall and reggae tracks, and continue to do so, and drum ‘n’ bass came from that in turn – it all comes back to the roots which is reggae, and a philosophy of love and inclusion.” On the night of TTL’s launch party, Hideout hit full capacity after an hour of opening its doors, and a queue stretching around the corner persisted nearly all evening. However, running such a successful night only meant Daniel sought out more challenges to sink his teeth into. “Just-Is became a free-to-download online record label as a way for me to release music me and
my mates were making as the Chief Rockas Collective. Our first release featuring Dark Angel has been getting some decent attention up and down the country, in clubs and on the radio.” In addition to the club night and the label, Daniel recently launched ‘Trod This Land Live!’. “After running events in clubs for two years now, I thought it would be exciting to bring in an extra live element, a completely different feel from the club nights.” His first live event at Open hosting Gentleman’s Dub Club was originally lined up for the smaller room and was later moved into the main room due to popular demand. “There is nothing like selling out an enormous room like Open. I’ve only had a positive response for that show and plan to run a quarterly ‘TTL Live!’, bringing Reggae and Ska bands of that calibre to Norwich’s best live music venue.” TTL at Hideout falls on the second Friday of every month, with the next taking place on the 14th of March. “When you come to Trod This Land you can expect a lot of happy faces on a lively dancefloor, energetic performances from top DJs and live vocalists that are big on the festival circuit, and a variety of music set over three floors. My main goal is to bring the carnival vibes into the club.” TTL has something for everyone, but crucially it has something most large club nights fail to achieve: a warm and inviting atmosphere, and a strong sense of community that reminds you why dance music was conceived in the first place.
The new single ‘People Keep Skanking’ from Chief Rockas and Dark Angel is now available as a free download on JUST-IS Records.
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MUSIC
concrete.music@uea.ac.uk
Live Review
airwaves.grapevine.is
YOUNG FATHERS NAC 08.02.14 Mike Vinti LAW is already on stage as I enter the arts centre, half her face bathed in white light, half in shadow as she stands legs apart, her upper body at a slight angle for the entirety of her set. Her eyes stare into the crowd, wide and hypnotic as she works her way through her ‘Haters and Gangsters’ EP. Her music is from the same vein as tonight’s main act, her instrumentals cut in and out, toying with hip hop and R&B sensibilities. Yet where Young Fathers’ work borders on avant-garde, LAW’s is more celebratory, incorporating samples seemingly from children’s toys on ‘Number One’. LAW’s stage presence is undeniably intriguing, if a little unsettling, as her set goes on the arts centre begins to feel like some kind of David Lynch style carnival. Her voice, like her music, is both bizarre and brilliant, a little restrained in places on record, she has real power behind her vocals on stage. The highlight of her set comes in the form of EP closer ‘OG’ as
she adopts yet another off kilter pose, her brassy voice echoing through the arches of the arts centre, her odd, experimental R&B the perfect taster for Young Fathers’ dark, psychedelic rap. As Young Fathers’ step in to the spotlight there is no greeting, no plug for their recently released album, hell, they barely look at the crowd for the entire set, yet from the off they have the audience captivated. Towering over the crowd Alloysious, Kayus and ‘G’ dominate the stage with their unique blend of pure fury and joyous dancing, staring constantly towards the back of the venue, as if taking direction from some unseen entity. Their logo, a figure wrapped in Arabian style scarves, hangs above their drummer, staking their claim to tonight’s venue. Young Fathers’ retain all the mystery of their records live and, despite the fact none of them speak a word to the crowd all night, there is a strange connection between them and the crowd from the minute they step on stage. Their dark brand of experimental hip-hop perfectly suited to the series of Pony Up! shows that run on Saturday’s at the Arts Centre and to the venue itself, the arches of this former church adding another layer to what is already a near-spiritual show. Young Fathers are completed live by a backing drummer and an analogue
synthesiser, which all three members take turns with, distorting and warping their instrumentals. The night gets underway with a fantastically chaotic rendition of ‘Queen is Dead’, setting the mood perfectly for the rest of their set. Kayus and Alloysious stand onstage edge soulfully crooning before ‘G’ brings in the roaring hook. Barely a second passes after the audience’s applause dies down before the tribal pounding of drums fills the room, to the delight of those in the know as breakout single ‘Deadline’ thunders into life. A handful of songs later and ‘Rumbling’ sees the front of the crowd rivalling our hosts for energy, feet stomping as Young Fathers bound around the stage with strangely intimidating grace, twisting and turning as they rap. Alloysious is undeniably the star when it comes to throwing shapes, working his way across the stage with moves like Michael Jackson possessed during an extended intro to ‘Mmmh Mmmh’. No sooner has Alloysious got the mic back in hand when support act for the tour and friend of the band LAW hops out of the crowd to accompany the boys on their next track. With ‘War’ comes Young Fathers’ moment to show tonight’s crowd the extent of their talent and the power of their voices, Kayus and ‘G’s call
and response accapella is staggering in person and more than one crowd member has a crack at ‘G’s howl of ‘Forgive them LoooOOooord’. ‘I’ve Heard’ provides a few well needed minutes of heart-wrenching serenity while Lead single and personal favourite ‘Low’ has the arts centre echoing Kayus’ pleas of ‘take my humanity’ and things are only getting louder. The delicate arts centre speakers pounded by the synth bass and crashing drums that function as Young Fathers backing for the night. Bursting straight into ‘Get Up’ the crowd and the band reach fever pitch, leaving no audience member stationary as bodies twitch and grove, totally enthralled in the majesty of Young Fathers’ live show, clapping and stamping their feet along to the OutKast-esque drum loop. Young Fathers’ live shows are far more than the album plugging tours that so much of live music, especially hip-hop, has become, they’re cultivated and crafted, almost theatrical performances that complement their experimentalism on record perfectly. Walking off stage as wordlessly as they came on, cries of ‘one more song’ ring out the second our boys are out of sight. However, true to form, they leave us wild for more.
MUSIC concrete.music@uea.ac.uk
www.concrete-online.co.uk
Brit Awards 2014
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Venue’s Myles Earle reviews this year’s awards extravaganza The Brit Awards 2014, in association with MasterCard, was the highly anticipated and exciting event most, if not all, British artists and producers were looking forward to. The vast amount of rumours of who were going to win awards, as well as who was going to perform at the award show, were spreading like wildfire all across radio stations and newspapers throughout the nation. It was evident that this event seemed to hold some gravitas for the British music industry and listeners, and rightly so. The event, taking place in London’s O2 Arena, held performances that were both bone-chillingly amazing and possibly just above average. The unexpected collaboration of Lorde’s ‘Royals’, with Disclosure’s famous garage and techno beats saw to an outstanding performance from two pillars of young music. This, in comparison with the surprising debut performance of Beyonce’s ‘XO’, was far more intense and threw the crowd in wonderment. Unfortunately, Beyonce’s performance was not up to her typical standard was quite disappointing. The
Lorde/Disclosure collaboration was a great exhibition of the young New Zealand-born singer songwriter’s talent, and proved why she was in the running for International Female Solo Act. Up against many well established female artists who may have cast a shadow on the young singer with their names, Lorde came strong and won the award, her first Brit and a well-deserved win at that. For the home-grown talent, the award for British Male Solo Act was a surprise to many if not most watchers of the awards show. Not only did this award celebrate the finest of British male artists through its nominations, but also celebrated one of the greatest pop stars of all time – David Bowie. Keeping the recording of his 2013 album The Next Day a secret from the public, the award-winning Bowie released the album at midnight on his sixty-sixth birthday. However, even though the greatness of his history precedes any of the other nominees in this category, it’s possible that the other potential recipients of the award including James Blake and John Newman
could have been pushed aside merely due to being fresh to the industry in comparison. The other side of the award, the award for British Female Solo Act went to the 27-year old Ellie Goulding, racing past her fellow nominees like Jessie J and Laura Mvula. Her repackaged album Halcyon Days caught the ears of many listeners worldwide, and her track Burn found its way onto the playlists of many iPods and DJ sets. Proving her worth, Goulding performed ‘Burn’ on the Brits stage, and blew the audience’s minds with her bright, intense and energetic stage presence, not to mention with her phenomenal voice. Another artist who, coming out on top and receiving the award for the International Male Solo Act, matched the massive stage presence and phenomenal voice was ‘Lazy Song’ singer Bruno Mars, performing ‘Treasure’ with his soulful band The Smeezingtons. Mars got the crowd standing on their feet and swaying. Although, being up against fellow nominees Drake, Justin Timberlake and Eminem who had all released albums in
2013, one can only think whether Mars was the right choice for this award. Unsurprisingly, the award for British Group and the MasterCard British Album of the Year went to the unstoppable Arctic Monkeys, racking up two awards for the evening. Kick-starting the evening with their performance of ‘R U Mine?’, the band set the bar high for the night in terms of performances and delivered a dynamic set. The international side of this, being the award for International Group, went to the trail-blazing Daft Punk, a group whose tracks found their way into everyone’s ears, from the 80-year old lady in Morrisons to the UEA student – a deserving win for the French robot duo. Amongst the other awards were the Critic’s Choice Awards which went to the talented voice that is Sam Smith, and Rudimental winning the British Single award for ‘Waiting All Night’. Overall, the Brit Awards 2014 was full of energy and appreciation for artists across a variety of genres – a celebration of British and International music indeed.
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SMOKIN’
Solange for Puma The brazillian inspred collection is out now Hunter’s first catwalk Making a splash at London Fashion Week
Join Swap Shop UEA Hosting their first event soon - find them on facebook
CHOKIN’ #neknominate Please, please just stop.
Jessie J’s BRITs Lips Alien mouth? No thanks.
FASHION
concrete.fashion@uea.ac.uk
Forty Years of Furstenburg
Helena Urquhart looks at the designer’s iconic wrap dress Every so often a fashion innovation comes around that fits so seamlessly into our lives that we wonder just what we did without it. The wrap dress is just one of those innovations and has stood the test of time like nothing else. This year Diane Von Furstenberg’s wrap dress turns 40. She celebrated last week with a flamboyant, colourful, print flecked Autumn Winter catwalk show in New York, as well as an exhibition in Los Angeles entitled ‘Journey of a Dress’ honouring the wrap dress’s legacy. The legacy started in 1974, when at just 26 years old, Von Furstenberg turned one simple design into a multimillion dollar empire that has lasted over 40 years. To say that the wrap dress was a smash hit when it was first launched is an understatement - within two years Von Furstenberg had sold over 5 million dresses (20,000 a week), had appeared in Newsweek who hailed her ‘the most remarkable woman since Coco Chanel’ and was worth over £100m. So what was the secret to the dress’s success? Simple: it can at once be glamorous and every day, one of the many reasons why it is still relevant today and a sure staple in
wardrobes everywhere. The wrap shape itself was an innovation. The low cut neckline made it instantly sexy, yet the long sleeves and length made it respectable at the same time. The shape of the dress combined with the cotton jersey created a dress that was so chic, so functional that it quickly gained iconic status. It is this timeless essence that makes it still relevant today.
Although the dress has changed in some aspects - it is now mainly made of silk and higher in price - it still garners that same practicality whilst being chic and sexy. Von Furstenberg today sells the dress to a different generation but to the same variety of women as she did before. The exhibition in Los Angeles charts the variation of the wrap dress’s many clients. Michelle Obama chose a pink chain link DVF wrap dress to wear in the first White House Christmas card – a pretty big deal. Madonna and Amy Winehouse both feature in the exhibition as big fans. The Oscar nominated film American Hustle sees Amy Adams modelling a vintage DVF wrap, showing just how far one dress’s appeal can stretch, it is perfect for the everyday woman to the big screen of Hollywood. The wrap dress is timeless, still standing for the same mantra as it did 40 years ago ‘Freedom, Empowerment, Comfort’. At the finale of last week’s fashion show the models stepped out in a variety of gold wraps as confetti rained down – a fitting celebration for the dress that made Diane Von Furstenberg a household name.
London Fashion Week: A/W 2014 Katie Tsappas highlights the top shows
London Fashion Week is always an eagerly awaited event and, according to the British Fashion Council, this twice-annual celebration of fashion is worth £26 million to the UK economy. This season’s event saw many anticipated brands producing garments that will soon overwhelm our high-street stores. We’ve discovered that contrasting patterns will again be in style, as well as Spanish inspired ruffled dresses. Here are the most inspirational features and memorable moments of the stand out designers this season: Christopher Kane Always eagerly anticipated, and this year was no different. His beautiful leather creations were juxtaposed with pastel yellow knitwear to create a sense of glamour and provocation. His ready-towear pieces were casual yet enticing, with rich textures being used such as PVC and fur. John Rocha One of the stand-out shows of this LFW,
Rocha’s ready-to-wear pieces seemed to be in full bloom. The layers of ruffled fabric were a memorable feature among the audience, with the shoulder pieces evoking a flower in its prime. JW Anderson His flamenco style dresses went down a storm. Seen also at John Rocha and Sister By Sibling, his subtle touches of orange were a beautiful hint at the exotic locations of his inspiration, and the shoes that emblazoned the feet of every model evoked a sense of middle-eastern street wear. His pre-show was inspired by artist Joseph Beuy who uses insulation felt to surround his objects. Anderson recreated this by covering his seats at the catwalk in the same material, possibly to create a sense of industrialism. Mary Katrantzou Some might say that Katrantzou stole the week. Her stunning gowns with split seams floated across the catwalk, along with their heavily embroidered panels.
As always, Katrantzou’s use of pattern had an astounding effect with its baroque inspired symmetry. Topshop Unique The Topshop Unique fashion house irrevocably wowed their audience. Many would argue that their patchwork faux fur coat is the most desirable and innovative item of the season. The front row viewers included Kate Moss, Poppy Delevingne, Philip Green, and Anna Wintour, which is a clear example of the brands popularity and varying customer focus. The beautiful fur gilets and slouchy-worn sheepskin coats were key items among the collection. Vivienne Westwood Dressing the power woman, Westwood combined sharp tailored suits with an edge of femininity. The neutral tones of her palette were contrasted with a bright evocative red; adding extra drama to the collection. The fur shorts with matching suit jacket was a real highlight, showing Westwood’s creativity and innovation.
FASHION concrete.fashion@uea.ac.uk
www.concrete-online.co.uk
25.02.2014
Photographer: Moji Adegbile. Stylists: Madz Abbasi, Model: Shanice Beckford
Rock the Colour Block
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Victoria Sellars Colour blocking is an easy trend you can always rely on, great for recreating those summer vibes. From neon’s to pastels, it’s all about bright hues and mixing colours. But how can you make this work without looking like a confused Rubix cube? Don’t worry, it’s actually pretty easy! This trend can easily be styled using items you already own, which is great for those on a budget, think bright, think bold, and think blocky. Coloured tops in neat shapes can be paired with black or grey tailored trousers or skirts; useful for those occasions when outfits need to be slightly smarter (for third years it’s the looming prospect of job interviews and the real world!) Feel free to mix it up for braver look, but be weary of miss-matched hues, as much as we love a two piece
there is nothing worse than wearing two colours that don’t quite work. If you can’t match it, clash it! Want to wear that orange shirt with that neon pink jacket? Go for it! Just don’t team it with those mint green jeans or you could leave some people reaching for their sunglasses when they look at you. The look really needs to be kept to a minimum of three colours, any more than that and it can start to look like you’ve fallen through a jumble sale. Patterns can also be a difficult issue with this trend. Go for a more simple design if you’re planning to pile on the colours. Bright, bold colours are a confident pick, but to chill it out for a more girly look try mixing pastels. Tops, skirts, jackets and jumpers are all great things to mix and match, but don’t underestimate the effect of good accessories. Statement necklaces, belts and
shoes can really jazz up an outfit. Cut out boots can be teamed with with bright socks, Topshop have what appears to be hundreds of frilly socks in pretty much every colour. Try a more neutral shoe, think dark blue or even white for some on trend footwear that will go with pretty much everything. Colour blocking is super flattering when done right, slimming dark panels down the side of dresses can create an hourglass silhouette and statement bags and shoes can be used to draw attention away from any problem areas. Wash in wash out hair dyes are also a great way to experiment with colour in a new way for those feeling brave. Hair chalks, like those available in Urban Outfitters and Boots are fun to experiment with and will look hot for the festival season.
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ARTS
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tudent in
concrete.arts@uea.ac.uk
First Solo Exhibiton
Callum Graham meets artist Jack Coleman to discuss his work
Will Cockram
Third year Literature and History student Jack Coleman is currently exhibiting his work at the Anteros Arts Foundation Gallery in his first solo exhibition. Unusually, and rather enviably, artistic flair seems to run in the Coleman family: “My Dad and Grandma are both artists, so naturally they’ve been really supportive and I’ve always been involved in making art with them ever since I can remember. We actually had a joint exhibition a few years ago back home in Kent at the Whitstable gallery.” Jack first began painting at a young age with his family, but it wasn’t until a few years later that he really started to develop the techniques evident in his exhibition: “I’ve always been interested in painting, but it was only really with GCSE and A Level that I began to hone my skills and see what I could develop and focus on.” Like a lot of GCSE
art students Jack was drawn to bright colours and bold lines. “For my earlier pieces I didn’t really have any particular influences, I think I just had to get them out of my system. I wanted to create bright bold pieces and of course it’s very pop art, like a lot of people enjoy playing around with at that age.” More recently Coleman has moved into painting landscapes, and took inspiration from “Wayne Thiebaud, an American who was around in the 1960s. His Californian landscapes, taken from above are really stylised with bold colours. And I thought that would be a great style to try on the landscapes that I enjoy working, with which are mainly Mediterranean, and so vibrant. So I looked in from above, really stylised them and tried to bring the colours out as fully as I could, and feel that in most of the pieces I have here that things have really come together.”
The majority of Coleman’s works are Oil on Canvas, and his skill in layering colour really is exceptional, particularly in his landscapes. “The right tones and the right combinations of colour are really all you need, and I’ve found that oil paint is best for achieving what I want. I’ve been painting in oil since I was about ten and sold my first piece at the same age.” Although a large portion of the exhibition is dedicated to his Mediterranean landscapes, portraiture is something the artist has been developing more recently. Several of the portraits on show are of his family members, and Venue could feel a real warmth and passion when he spoke of creating and developing them. For someone in their final year of university and featuring in their first solo exhibition, thoughts inevitably turn to the future and art as a profession. “I’m a Lit-History student at UEA so
obviously I enjoy those areas of study as well. In an ideal world I’d just be an artist and paint, but that seems pretty difficult in this day and age. I’m possibly going to do an MA after this degree in fine art just to take it a bit further and see what else I can do.” On the overall exhibition, Coleman commented: “This collection of work ranges from recent landscapes to some early still life but it gives people an overall introduction and to me as an artist. I feel that the variety in the exhibition really shows my progression as an artist over the last five years.” Jack Coleman’s exhibition ‘Introductions’ can be found at the Anteros Arts Foundation until the 21st of March, and Venue believes it’s definitely worth a look, so make sure you check out the free entry exhibition. Now, if only we had the budget to buy one of his pieces for the Concrete office!
ARTS
concrete.arts@uea.ac.uk
www.concrete-online.co.uk
25.02.2014
The Spoken Word Scene
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Lewis Buxton gives us the who’s who of Norwich CargoCollective
The Birdcage
JMAC
A city full of artists, that is also a UNESCO City of Literature and home of one of the best creative writing programmes in the country, cannot fail to produce some startling poetic talent. Venue has compiled some of the best poets to come out of Norwich, most of whom are still working in the city. Helen Ivory is a writer, editor and artist who currently lives and works in Norwich and around East Anglia. She has had four books published by Bloodaxe Press, the most recent of which is ‘Waiting for Bluebeard’. In the collection Ivory takes a ironic, darkly humorous and deeply unsettling view of the the ‘Bluebeard’ fairytale. She regularly reads at venues round Norwich, and the U.K and you can find her work at www.helenivory.co.uk and @nellivory. Andy Bennett is a performance poet and comedian, originally from York but now living in Norwich. He is a UEA
Graduate and regularly appears at venues around East Anglia. Bennett has run regular nights at The Birdcage but recently retired the event to work on his one man show ‘Don Jon’. The show exhibits Bennett’s poetic prowess, his control of meter, his comedic timing and satirical accruement, as well as his impressive historical knowledge. In February each year Bennett and three other poets take part in unique project called ’28 Sonnets’ later where collectively they write a sonnet for each day of February and publish a pamphlet. Find him www.andybennettpoet.co.uk @AndyBennettPoet. Tim Clare is a performance poet, again a UEA Graduate who was part of poetry collective, Aisle 16 who came out of Norwich ten years ago. Clare is an energetic and hilarious performer who grabs the audience with an enthusiastic hug at the beginning of each show and does not let
them go. His spontaneity and quick wit are hemmed in by his precise meter and well structured poems. His collection ‘Pub Stuntman’ is a wonderful comparison to his performance work. Although funny and energetic there is also a slowness and a sincerity to the book which is quite rewarding. He is a permanent fixture of the spoken word scene and you’ll find him hosting a day at Latitude festival each year. Leanne Moden is not strictly a Norwich poet. She is currently the Fenland Poet Laureate as well as being part of the aforementioned ‘28 Sonnets Later’ collective. Moden has a tender sense of humour which disguises a deeper, darker, more sexually explicit set of jokes. She runs a monthly open mic, ‘Fen Speak’ which takes place in Ely. Moden gigs around East Anglia, regularly to be seen on stages in Norwich and Cambridge. She is an insular but engaging performer and can be
followed at @CrimsonEbolg. Sam Riviere finished his PHD at UEA in 2012 and has since been working on his own brand of internet poetry. His blog ‘81 Austerities’ was published by Faber and won the 2009 Eric Gregory Award. Although he now lives in Belfast, Riviere returned to Norwich to read for the UEA Live series last November and still has many ties in the city. You can imagine many of his poems happening in any of Norwich’s pubs or taxis. His poems touch of the politics of the coalition government, the nature of jealous relationships and many other topics. Find him at: www.samriviere.com @borispasterlike. East Anglia is buzzing with poetic and literary talent. Most weeks will find a couple of poetry readings happening at The Birdcage, The Workshop, Olives’ Cafe, Take 5 or right here on campus at the UEA Drama Studio.
The Russian State Ballet of Siberia Pichai Rachasombat reviews The Sleeping Beauty
Norwich Theatre Royal played host to The Russian State Ballet of Siberia this week. Led by Artistic Director Sergei Bobrov they performed the classics The Sleeping Beauty, The Nutcracker, and Swan Lake. Venue was there for Monday night’s performance of The Sleeping Beauty, a fairy tale immortalised by the animators of Disney, but first composed for ballet by Tchaikovsky in 1888. Since their first tour in 2002, the company has completed 12 UK tours and holds much international acclaim. From the opening it was obvious to Venue that their reputation is deserved.
The opening prologue, in the palace of King Florestan (Alexander Kuimov), presented the audience with a sumptuous array of colour and frivolity as the fairy tale began to unfold. The costume and set design from Dmitry Tcherbadzhi was first class, a dazzling display of performers resplendent with enough sequins for Priscilla. Princess Aurora (Elena Pogorelaya) and Prince Desire (Nikolai Chevychelov) were the lead dancers and simply stole the show. Both were a perfect harmony of grace and power, with leaps and lifts
that left the audiences gasping with awe. They complimented each other well as the wholesome Prince and innocent Princess and received a standing ovation for their efforts. Humour was brought to the performance in the guise of Evil Fairy Carabosse (Egor Osokin) whose carefully choreographed malevolence brought smiles with his lightness of touch. In fact he was almost the recognisable pantomime villain, reinforced with the audience ‘booing’ him at the curtain call, Venue just hopes it’s a tradition they’re
familiar with in Siberia. Overall it was a wonderfully enchanting performance, and save for a slight stumble, seemed faultless in its execution. The live orchestra added hugely to the overall atmosphere, and although one audience member was overheard saying that they sounded a little sharp, Venue largely suspects that she doesn’t know what she’s talking about. If you missed The Russian State Ballet of Siberia’s Norwich run this time around, be sure to grab yourself a ticket on their return.
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WRITERS ON WRITING
I am a Writer Because Bella Thompson I am a writer because I am the student that cannot sleep, who stays awake as the birds begin to call tentatively, dreaming of pale beaches. I am the lovers pushed against a cold kitchen wall, held in shadow. I am the object of desire. Glittering flashes from hundreds of cameras, my expensive heel dug into the red carpet. I am the beggar woman with a glass eye and a thousand tales. I am the little boy who lost his one eared dog, bashing the railings with a stick and wiping his crusted nose on his sleeve. I am the woman who’s silent tears roll down her pale cheeks as she shakily lights a cigarette after her father’s funeral. I am the girl that grows scales on her shins and bewitches men. I am the cat that lies in the square of sunlight on the bed. I am the analyst blinking at the fluorescent screen, greasy fingerprints glowing. I am the old man that no longer remembers his wife’s grey face. I am the child lost in the dark. I am the boy sick with rage, grabbing handfuls of cow parsley and pulling at their heads. I am the man that watches the contours of his lover’s body beneath a pink silk slip, his wedding ring in his pocket with the car keys. I am the tired mother and the wrinkled new born. I am…
CREATIVE WRITING
concrete.creativewriting@uea.ac.uk
The following pieces were published on
@UEA140: Story:
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Every night, I walk to my window and draw the curtain, hoping to see the moon. One day, neither you nor I will see such simplicity. *** “He masters plot,” said the professor to the tutor. “I know,” said the student. “Where did you come from?” “I master plot, like you said.” *** Marcia so wanted to be part of it; a collection of shorts by women. She tried but every time, building to the point in her story, she ran.
Writer’s Block Daniel Delargy flikr quirkyartist
Skipping Vinyl Alex Munro Someone mentioned ‘the eye of the needle’ my eyes pivot to listen but it’s only god o’clock and bible talk that so often sounds like street lingo. After all anything that’s good has to sound like drugs and widen my eyes so I notice each crack in the walls. I find a pen and write lyrics to a bar Of music in my head. I write about sneaking into a bar underage, that was harder to get in to than a needle eye. Sick of bible lingo I write clichés about crack that I quickly scribble out the way the ticking clock scribbles out minutes, leaving behind scraps of sound to be picked up by ears like litter on the street. That could work, my pen ponders: ‘litter on the street where the beat of passing feet is constant bar the night which falls like a sheet tucking sound into corners and corners into caves where a needle is busy banging on the doors of a vein.’ It’s not crack but it’s the same cliché I want to avoid the way clock hands avoid human eyes. ‘The hands of a clock see people the way people see snow in the street; melting under their movement’. I write about the crack, in my childhood door before I learnt to block it with a bar before blocking with a bar turned to blocking with a needle before ‘needle’ was the only word or only sound I could find to fill rhymes. So now I lay back and sound out letters with my lips. Bible talk tugs on each tick of the clock and the noise wraps me up like my mother’s needle felt jumper she made me wear down the street. Now the bible debate has turned to baptism or bar mitzvahs? Each arguing as though their point would crack the code to life. Counting cracks again, one stocky crack stood like a tree making branches of the others till the sound of the leaves come alive and I scribble down words to that same bar of music but I run out of ways to describe the cracks and the clock then I run out of ways to end the line. Stunted; a one way street going nowhere on the page. Ink dabs from my needle tipped pen are all over the page but my eyes clock the light spilling through a crack in the door that takes me back to my old house in my old street with the sound of a vinyl playing, only the same bar on repeat, skipping under the eye of the needle.
Here I am. A writer, poised on the edge of a creative breakthrough, ready to embark on that voyage into new worlds! An adventurer of the artistic stratosphere, delving into the unknown depths which few men (and women) have dared tread before! …but, where do I begin? There are so many new worlds to explore, new realms of imagination to conquer! All this potential…and all I have to capture it is this blank page before me. This rectangular, clear box surrounded by grey, provided by a simple computer software to capture these thoughts, and expand upon these ideas…but where to start? I have been asking myself this question for some time now; sitting here, in this quaint little teahouse on the corner of my street. I have been approached several times now by a waitress, asking for my order…I eventually caved and asked for my usual heated beverage – coffee, a teaspoon of sugar with a dab of milk – but not before taking into account her youthful appearance. I have no doubt, then and now, that she still is of an age where she should be heading to university – I identified this through her apparent inexperience in dressage, especially at this time of the year…no matter how stylish it may be, she will undoubtedly learn the hard way that winter is a time to consider warmth over appearance. Either that or she’ll just stop taking my order outside, and stick to the interior, where they huddle in the glorious haze of heat provided by the central heating. As a student, she will no doubt benefit in more ways than one from this unpaid source of heat…crushed by coursework, crushed by the prospect of exams…the independent woman, on the cusp of truly entering the adult world through a society’s recognition of both age and the status of employment… Anyway, enough of that…prior to her admission of my existence as a customer, I had been musing on my next masterpiece. Not that any of my work had been considered such before, oh no…according to those already several steps up the artistic ladder, my work is too…too…oh, what’s that word…“informal”! Aha, got there in the end! Yes…too ‘formal’… just another way of saying ‘try again when you get better at writing, ducky’. Well, maybe not the ‘ducky’ bit, but you catch my meaning…anyway, I digress…I was musing on my next work of art. It can be so tiring sometimes, constructing new and exciting stories…”make good art”, eh…I haven’t really settled for a genre yet, so I am perhaps a bit late of the starting blocks…and so I had all these ideas, swirling around my mind. A train of thought, focused entirely on my potential novel…flitting from idea to idea like a hummingbird flitting from flower to flower… A reflection on society perhaps? Moments of the ordinary man, going through his day-to-day life, completely unaware of the invisible audience which watches his every movement… every step scrutinised, every thought captured…but would something so trivial attract the masses? A realistic drama is something which is undoubtedly popular these days…why, you only have to turn on the television to find a drama which can be seen to reflect aspects of out day-to-day lives – soaps! Dramas! Sitcoms! – and, among this mass of realistic melodrama, there have been those who have stuck out in this genre…but, inevitably, they must stick to it in order to maintain the interests of the audience. Perhaps then something less workdefining in this aspect…I mean, I don’t want to be doing this all my life! To focus on reality would be like shutting out the realms of the impossible forever! No, it would have to be less defining….like a short story perhaps. A small piece based on a personal experience, wouldn’t stick the genre realism to my name…yes, yes, something small but impressive… …but what? I am just the average Englishman – I have no defining moment in my life which changed the course of my destiny, nor do I have I been part of any iconic events. My travels abroad have been pleasant, but not outstanding…I mean, who would want to hear about the life and times of a down-on-his-luck educated man, whose sole memorable experience abroad was a momentary break from life to the remote regions of the French countryside, where I busied myself with sweet nothings all day long. Whilst the scenery was certainly beautiful, and the experience was a nice break from the usual chaos of day-to-day life, what of it? Nothing, that’s what. I mean, come on; a short piece it may be, but what breaks it apart from all the others out there? I have no connection to the settlers on either landscape, and my time was spent idly watching the world go by from the comfort of a deck-chair in the midday sun… No…no, my masterpiece must be grand! Spectacular! It must grab the reader by the ears, and command him to pay attention to every last detail! It must engage the reader, to catch the eye and excite the imagination… That coffee seems to be taking a while… Hm? Oh, how quickly the mind can wander off the beaten track…now, where were we? Ah yes, where to start. Well, having ruled out the realm of realism for the basis of my magnum opus, perhaps this calls for the realm of the more surreal. A fictional heroic adventure…one that would rival the voyage of Odysseus himself as he made him way back to Ithaca from the Trojan War! And yet…who would play the hero of such a piece? The ideal macho man has become so iconic it’s become something of a cliché…the modern day heroes are so much more diverse now…the character are now more diverse…where the men once led the charge, you can now find equally competent women who have transcend the boundaries set on previous generations. The story of ‘man saves woman’ has become an old bedtime tale…perchance a more modern take would be to have a woman headline the tale…though how would she overcome social stereotype? Traditional fantasy is set in a time where civilisation is still in its most base of stages, where gender equality is more than likely to be still but a dream, and the only women who aren’t constrained by society are reflections of the old ‘madwoman in the attic’ character archetype…the angel or the monster… Of course you can find ‘modern fantasy’ these days…eras of monsters living beneath modern day cities, or where history simply took a different turn…adventures in the far and distant future…but…perhaps action and adventure is not the best form to pursue at this moment in time. Hmm…what about a tale of romance instead? Or a murder mystery? Or even a comedy…I have to pick one! Each genre is pivotal in solving the main problem which still persists – who shall play the pivotal protagonist? No matter how I look at it, the genre defines the type of characters involved…the settings, the scenarios, the backstory…and the characters of old seem to base and primitive for an epic of the modern era…and yet many reinventions have often been seen to be inferior when compared with originals! I can’t choose! I… maybe I’m looking at this the wrong way. A work of art can be just a simple painting…and not all paintings need to have subjects to focus on. If I were to focus on the description of a physical state or emotion…to have something surreal enough to transcend to tell a tale of humanity and its passions…like describing peace, and tranquillity. Is it simply enough to define it in a simple phrase…or is its meaning different for everyone? Say, for instance, to one person it can be the moment after a piece of work is completed…whilst, to another, it can simply be a retreat to nature; to extract oneself from modernity and return to simplicity. …it’s times like this, when my mind is churning with all these thoughts and possibilities, that it strikes me - what does it truly take to start a novel? Does it rely on an idea, crossed with a spark of creativity? Does it rely on your motivation, on the driving force behind your writing? Or is it something more personal…a part of yourself, you as a human being, embedded in something you know other people can see? I should know I am a professional, after all. But I guess even the best of us can’t have answers to every question we come across. Now, if you will excuse me, I must see a woman about a certain beverage…
GAMING concrete.gaming@uea.ac.uk
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Review: Left Behind DLC Adam Riza
The Last of Us is not just renowned for being 2013’s Game of the Year, but is also considered one of the greatest achievements of its generation and a masterpiece of modern video game design. Needless to say, the anticipation for the Left Behind DLC was substantial, and fortunately, Naughty Dog’s excellent record of consistency is still intact with Left Behind provides a fantastic further exploration into the already exemplary setting and characters of the main game. Player’s take control of Ellie, one of the two protagonists of the initial release, traversing the landscape of post-apocalyptic Boston, which has been ravaged by a virus that renders those infected as mindless, zombie-like creatures. Whilst The Last of Us possessed perfectly competent and satisfactory game play and combat systems, what instigated its high acclaim was its deeply emotive and powerful storyline. Addressing this, Left Behind contains relatively few combat sections, focusing instead on character development and interaction. The content possesses a dual narrative structure that switches interchangeably, with one acting as a prequel to the events featured in The Last of Us, whilst the other
Sam Emsley The marketplace features of current and last gen consoles provide a huge market platform for the selling of DLC to customers. The Xbox dashboard is plagued with ads for every kind of paid downloadable content be it films, music, even games. The incentives for DLC to be produced are huge, they essentially allow publishers to attach a minimal amount of content with a large price tag. COD DLC
Flickr: djandyw.com
takes place alongside the main game, providing further explanation to aspects of the main game. The latter portion includes the entirety of the combat, and players will be accustomed to the stealth and cover based mechanics needed to surpass both infected and human foes, whilst also scavenging the environment to create health packs, Molotov cocktails and the like. Despite the combat portion being acceptable, Left Behind is such a triumph due to the prequel portion, following Ellie and her friend Riley on an excursion through a devastated Boston. The stereotypical ‘girl’s trip to the mall’ is given a dystopian twist, with the girls’ becoming fascinated by a carousel, and asking such unthinkable questions like ‘what is a Facebook?’ Ellie and Riley’s adventure is something to behold, sharing both moods of playful adolescence and serious emotion. The Last of Us is lauded for its ending, and Left Behind follows suit. At £11.99, Left Behind may be seen as being too expensive for a mere two hour journey, but when it’s likely to be the best two hours of gaming all year, it comes highly recommended.
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Quality Assurance is often a few maps and maybe an extra gun or zombies mode, something which sets the purchaser back £12. In previous packages they even managed to sell old maps with updated textures as DLC, something which one might expect to be free. However it has been left to Warner Bros Interactive, developers of Arkham Origins to make the most anti-consumer statement in
gaming history. Recently they openly stated that instead of fixing all of the game-breaking bugs that people have been complaining about since release, as well as the smaller glitches, they were instead focussing on creating DLC to sell. It has been long suspected that this is the secretive practice of game developers, who eye margins over satisfaction, but for them to come out and say this is a huge step backward for the industry as a whole. If a product is broken it should be fixed promptly as the company has lied to its customers, and this would be the case for anything else, but video games seem to have a different set of rules. Publishers are clearly fine with rushing products to get them to market at the expense of the user experience. There are certain exceptions to this, one being Watch Dogs, which was pushed back from a late 2013 release to one in 2014 as the developers admitted that the game simply would not be ready so early. Instead of cutting corners and cancelling quality assurance they decided to do the responsible thing and release a finished product but at a later date. It is certainly annoying that such a promising looking title is delayed, but releasing it early may mean it is not the
game it could be. This should be absolutely standard practice, but instead it is a rare showing of dedication and honesty. Although this will probably not change a thing, and may even begin a trend of developers and publishers being more honest about these practices instead of trying to save face and release a few bug fixes now and again to silence critics. Simply put, spending time and money on fixing bugs achieves nothing other than improving their image slightly, so the expected revenues from DLC seem far more attractive to the publishers. This is becoming especially relevant where players now expect AAA rated, big budget games to be released in a broken condition with numerous bugs. Titles like Origins, Battlefield 3, Sim City, Total War: Rome II, all released with huge problems but made with the biggest of budgets. Hopefully the brutal honesty from Warner Brothers is the exception, not the rule, and the industry will mature to a point at which it understands that gamers cannot simply be lied to repeatedly and have their trust abused. Where publishers and developers will understand the obligation they have to quality, and not to DLC.
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TELEVISION
concrete.television@uea.ac.uk
Dog: Gaddafi’s Secret World
A striking portrayal of the results of Civil Unrest three years on
Louisa Baldwin The BBC marked the three year anniversary of the death of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi with Mad Dog: Gaddafi’s Secret World. The documentary depicted a harrowing image of a leader intoxicated with power, with the west turning a blind eye to 40 years of brutality, dictatorship and oppression due to the vast oil reserves in Libya. However, Libya is still far from harmonious, with civil unrest still rife across the country. “This mad dog of the Middle East has a goal of a world revolution”. The words spoken by former US President Ronald Reagan in 1986 eerily echo at the beginning of the documentary, before cutting to footage of the crumbled remains of Gaddafi’s palace. But, whilst his palace has become desolate and forgotten, the legacy of his tyrannical leadership is far from a thing of the past and is still causing widespread conflict in Libya. His ‘secret world’ is certainly revealed, and it is one that is uncomfortable, yet importantly uncompromising, to
watch. A megalomaniac that killed anyone who challenged or criticised his regime, putting the bodies of his enemies in a freezer to later gloat at his accomplishments, and hanging students he suspected of being spies in front of schoolchildren. The documentary reveals the horrific extent of his sexual abuse of young Libyan girls, who he would single
out on his sordid visits to local schools and his henchman would bring back to his ‘rape chambers’ in his palace. Worse still, he would then send his victims to mental institutions so no one would believe them. This gutsy documentary provides an invaluable insight into the perplexing character of Gaddafi, through the
accounts of those that served him and cultivated his dreams and ambitions. His former poison dealer Gary Korkala was asked to provide ten briefcases rigged up with explosives, and his bodyguard was forced to cheer at the execution of 17 students. The honesty of the documentary enables a detailed and thorough understanding of the extent of his corruption and the terror he inflicted. However, the execution of Gaddafi in February 2011 has not brought an end to problems in Libya. UEA student Suleiman Ben Sufia lives in the centre of the country’s capital, Tripoli, and recognises the instability that still remains: “Libya is constantly developing but in a slow way. The new government is struggling to bring the rebels who fought against Gaddafi into the army”. He also states that another key reason for stagnation in progress is that Gaddafi’s son, who sought asylum in Niger, is funding tribes that still remain loyal to the regime to cause problems in the country. Although the ‘mad dog’ has gone, there is still much to be done to tackle Libya’s problems.
Inside No. 9’s Quiet Night In
We take a look at a stellar episode of the new comedy series Adam Dawson When you watch a TV show that’s all but completely silent for its 30 minute run, you’re guaranteed to have plenty to say about it. The second episode of Inside No. 9 has about two speaking parts overall. So how do you get to make a show like that be one of the funniest things in the known universe? You get Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton to write and act in it. That’s all you need. That’s half of The League of Gentlemen which should be enough to get you very interested in Inside No 9 anyway. Inside No. 9 is an anthology show linked by the number 9 (in case you hadn’t worked that one out yet). This silent episode is set in house number 9, which just so happens to be owned by a rich old man and his lover. They also have a very expensive painting in their living room which our two gentlemen try to steal (hence why they have to be quiet). This doesn’t sound like it should be a success. With less talented people it would be worse than a six car pile-up that
BBC also took out a baby deer. Thankfully you can push that image out of your mind because you will be laughing so hard you’ll forget all about that dead young deer by the side of the road. This episode, A Quiet Night In, is
basically the burglars having a domestic, albeit silently. The world you enter when you watch it looks like the one we live in, but dogs are thrown at windows and very creative things are done with baking foil and Post-It notes. There are six actors
in this episode and all of them know exactly what they’re doing. In a rather lovely touch that would have been sure to please Granddad Charlie, Oona Chaplin gets a silent part in this. It doesn’t rely on slapstick, but it’s there in a twisted and violent form. Not that that should put you off – every second of the show is put to hilarious use. Other episodes in the series include a homeless man who outstays his welcome and Katherine Parkinson’s dysfunctional family in a wardrobe. Despite how much everyone should clearly love this show and worship it like the coming of comedy-Jesus, some folk won’t like it. Don’t worry though, those people are wrong and they’re not people you have to be friends with. This is comedy so dark it makes the inside of a mine shaft look like the brightest day of the year. Think of it like The Two Ronnies, possessed by a demon. Really, who amongst us wouldn’t want to see that? This episode was a master class in how to do everything right, with the rest of the series proving to be just as good.
TELEVISION concrete.television@uea.ac.uk
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25.02.2014
Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe
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Will we ever find a match to the US’ satire Giants?
Elliot Wengler Another series of Charlie Brooker’s Weekly Wipe has come to an end, and perhaps too soon. It featured Brooker irately and aggregately pin-pointing everything wrong with the world as shown to us by the media, and the final, most rounded evolution of the Screenwipe and Newswipe formats. Everything from the casting and dialogue of Eastenders to urine drinkers on This Morning was up for grabs for attack from Brooker; and some might say, quite rightly. The show is punctuated with weekly contributions from Doug Stanhope (director Al Campbell’s alter ego), Barry Shitpeas, and Philomena Cunk, presenting the confused ‘Paid Rememberer’s’ understanding of the world. This, along with the less-thanstriking documentary parody, ‘Philomena Cunk’s Moments of Wonder’; of which after a couple of weeks, the Brian Cox parody was wearing thin. Controversy arose; however not from any of Brooker’s satirical attacks, but from Twitter fans slamming the use of a
Foolz.us compilation show at the end of the series, branding it as lazy. Brooker pointed out to fans of the show that unlike most, it would feature previously unused material, and BBC commissioning policy usually includes a compilation show. Fans
compared the show (along with Brooker’s other yearly series 10’O’Clock Live) to the US’ Daily Show, hoping Brooker’s offering could be UK’s answer to the daily precision of Jon Stewart’s satirical arena. However, the media landscape of
the UK is dramatically smaller than the United States’, though there will come a time when a daily equivalent might be expected. We can perhaps aspire to have to have an equivalent of The Daily Show, but the law is surprisingly prohibitive in a land of free speech. Comedy and satire shows are legally prevented from using footage from the House of Commons, Lords, or Select Committees. Weekly Wipe is produced across seven days; part of the process is trawling through the few 24-hour channels in the UK and the terrifying variation of news channels in U.S. On 10’O’Clock Live, Rich Hall pointed out that our lack of a daily show is perhaps due to a lack of interestingenough daily occurrences. Maybe it is quintessentially British that we only have Weekly Wipe for a short series and a yearly special, and two runs of Have I Got News For You during the predicable news times of the year; we want to be edgy and intelligent with humour, just when it is convenient. As ever, we can ignore the rest of the year’s news coverage, and catch up in December; as 2014 Wipe has already been commissioned.
FOMOOT
The phobia that makes staying and watching Telly excusable Melissa Haggar It’s the weekend. You’re supposed to be going out with your friends, rocking it up at a gig or attending that all-important social event and suddenly you realise – the latest episode of your favourite TV programme is on, right now! And you’re going to miss it. You’ll be a social pariah, an outcast – what will you talk about come Monday morning when everyone else has seen what you haven’t? So you make up some excuse, I’m sick (cough, cough), I have other arrangements, I’m can’t get to my phone – and then you sit down in a state of perpetual worry, fretting about the consequences of your actions until your favourite programme finally comes on the television. Sound familiar? Yes? Well good news! Apparently – this is an actual thing. According to Freesat, this new phenomena is called FOMOOT, which stands for Fear of Missing out on Telly. No matter how much we all might deny it, there may have come a time when the new episode of Doctor Who or Sherlock is
SciFiScoop.com on and we’ve just had to stop everything and watch it (especially if new episodes only occur every 2 years). Freesat states that new research has found out that “over a third of Brits” admit to staying in to watch a programme, even if it means they miss out on important social events – shocker. Though whether the research, carried out by Freesat after
launching a new app, was carried out with the most rigorous of standards is still up for question. Apparently, more than one in ten of us have also fallen out with friends or family “due to our TV watching habits” and the figure (even more unsurprisingly) rises to one in five amongst the 16-25 year olds. It’s official – we are possibly too
committed to our TV shows. Apparently, some of the top programmes people can’t stand to miss are Sherlock (no surprises there) with 21%, Doctor Who (17%), Coronation Street (15%) and Downton Abbey (15%). It would appear that television has become quite a draw for audiences who are keen to witness live broadcasting of their favourite shows and after all, who can blame us? You know when you need your Game of Thrones fix. Apparently, common bad reactions to missing a beloved show include sulking all night, blaming your partner and even crying. Ouch. Perhaps the safest thing to do if you happen to be the friend/relative of the person who missed their show would be to leave the immediate area; and quickly. So, is there any way of combating this problem – will we ever venture outside? I suppose the answer is quite simple; probably not. However, perhaps a little bit of diligent research will help us calculate when our favourite show is on and extensive planning will make sure we work our schedules around it. It’s either that or we miss out; take your pick.
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FILM
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concrete.film@uea.ac.uk
Going for Gold
To celebrate this Sunday’s 86th annual Academy Awards, we and four of our writers picked our winners! For an expanded list of our ballots, including Supporting acting categories, along with our reasons why, check out concrete-online.co.uk/film Our Consensus - Should Win Her
Best Picture American Hustle Captain Phillips Dallas Buyers Club Gravity Her Nebraska 12 Years a Slave The Wolf of Wall Street
Our Consensus - Should Win Alfonso Cuarón
Best Director Alfonso Cuarón Gravity Steve McQueen 12 Years a Slave Alexander Payne Nebraska David O. Russell American Hustle Martin Scorsese The Wolf of Wall Street
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What Should Win
What Should Have Been Considered
Who Should Win
Who Should Have Been Considered
Even more than its brilliant writing, acting and stylistic attributes, Her is the only contender this year that has commented on and alerted us to the direction that our culture may be heading in. That’s something surely all films should strive to do in some way? Louis Cheslaw Philomena is a lovely and cute British film, based on a true story, and it would be nice for it to be recognised internationally. Judi Dench is amazing as always and her pairing with Steve Coogan, also the film’s co-writer, is great. Holly Wade
Generation-spanning story? Check. Great lead performances? Check. Themes of fatherhood and legacy? Check. If it had been released later in the year, The Place Beyond the Pines would have surely been in contention. Thomas Hall Flawlessly melancholic, and the Coens’ best since Burn After Reading, it’s a travesty Inside Llewyn Davis wasn’t nominated. Jack Lusby Despite much fanfare around its Sundance premier, Fruitvale Station has unfortunately been forgotten about since. Josh Mott
David O. Russell for American Hustle. Any director who ensures that his entire cast receives Academy Award nominations deserves recognition, and did you see some of those swooping shots? Cinematic bliss. Louis Cheslaw Having showed promise for many years, Steve McQueen has delivered one of the best films of this generation. Josh Mott Gravity is big filmmaking at its finest. An extraordinary masterpiece of scale and weight, and visually beyond anything else released this year. Adam White
Park Chan-Wook’s direction was on Hitchcockian levels in the wonderfully twisted family drama Stoker, making use of all sorts of little tricks to create a foreboding atmosphere. Thomas Hall Paul Greengrass’ Captain Phillips was an extremely well-directed film which deserved a look in. Josh Mott Baz Luhrmann is a great director, often underrated for his films. He can only be described as a creative genius for his work on The Great Gatsby, making it as rich as it needed to be. Holly Wade
Best Actor
Our Consensus - Should Win Matthew McConaughey
Best Actress
Our Consensus - Should Win Tie! Amy Adams and Cate Blanchett
Amy Adams American Hustle Cate Blanchett Blue Jasmine Sandra Bullock Gravity Judi Dench Philomena Meryl Streep August: Osage County
Christian Bale American Hustle Bruce Dern Nebraska Leonardo DiCaprio The Wolf of Wall Street Chiwetel Ejiofor 12 Years a Slave Matthew McConaughey Dallas Buyers Club Collider
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Who Should Win
Who Should Have Been Considered
Who Should Win
Who Should Have Been Considered
It looks likely that Leo will miss out yet again on the Oscar, which is a shame, as he imbues the corrupt fraudster Jordan Belfort with an incredible amount of energy and raw power. Thomas Hall McConaughey’s weight loss alone will benefit him, but his stand out performance is something worthy of the Best Actor accolade. Holly Wade DiCaprio gives a career-best performance as an amoral scumbag feeding off of excess and greed like some kind of deranged Wall Street vampire. Adam White
Even better than in The Master, Joaquin Phoenix does a remarkable job of portraying someone who has lost their way in the world in Her, often with the subtlest of facial inflections. Thomas Hall Tom Hanks for Captain Phillips is a genuine surprise omission following an inspiring performance. Jack Lusby A frankly bizarre snub, Joaquin Phoenix delivers a subtle, loveable and consistently tender performance in Her. It’s one of the very best of the year. Adam White
Blue Jasmine felt like a documentary at times, such was the authenticity of Cate Blanchett’s acting. Louis Cheslaw Amy Adams is a superbly versatile actress, as striking in American Hustle as she is in Her. Jack Lusby Not only does Amy Adams shine in American Hustle, her sassiness managing at times to outshine co-star Jennifer Lawrence, but she is often the star of most of her films and she deserves an Oscar for all her hard work and dedication to the film industry. Holly Wade
In Side Effects, Rooney Mara has the ability to be scary while seeming afraid, hurtful while hurt, and joyous while despairing, making her almost impossible to trust in one of the most intimidating performances of the year. Louis Cheslaw It’s no surprise that Greta Gerwig’s starring role in Frances Ha, all sunny joy and optimism, went largely ignored, primarily when so many equate ‘awardworthy performances’ with characters in great amounts of pain. But this is a lovely, endearing starring role. Adam White
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At Cinemas Near You
Agents of Guard
Her
Director Spike Jonze Starring Joaquin Phoenix, Scarlett Johansson, Amy Adams, Rooney Mara, Chris Pratt, Olivia Wilde Cert 15 Runtime 126mins Emma Holbrook Instead of spending your life searching for love, imagine if your soul mate was given to you, straight into the palm of your hand. The premise of Her is a love story between a man and his computer, making it a tale that could only exist in this modern age, and the way it delicately explores love, relationships and the
The Lego Movie
Directors Phil Lord, Christopher Miller Starring Chris Pratt, Will Arnett, Elizabeth Banks, Alison Brie Cert U Runtime 100mins Melissa Haggar You may think a movie made entirely about Lego would be too commercial, boring or gimmicky. And rather surprisingly, you’d be wrong. Whilst the premise of the film might seem bizarre and a little ‘out there’, The Lego Movie reassures audiences with a double dose of creativity and sharp animation. Chris Pratt stars in the leading role as Emmet, a conformist, who can’t seem to get by in life without specific instructions. No, really. This is until Emmet gets mistaken for the ‘special’, a person who is prophesized to stop Lord Business (Will Ferrell) from using a super-weapon called the ‘Kragle’. Ordinary Lego construction
human condition is timeless. Joaquin Phoenix plays recently divorced Theodore Twombly, who is as socially awkward as his name suggests and living in a Los Angeles of the near future, where computers have evolved to such a degree that they even possess emotional intelligence. The perpetually gloomy Theodore is quickly wooed by a distant relative of Siri: an operating system named Samantha (the dulcet tones of Scarlett Johansson), and the pair embarks on a bizarre romance from the comfort of his phone pocket. But as the pair encounter the difficulties that all couples face (arguments, lack of intimacy, WiFi connectivity problems), Theodore seeks comfort from an old friend, Amy worker Emmet is now thrust into a world where he meets new friends in the form of WyldStyle (Banks), a creative master builder, Uni-Kitty (Brie), Benny (Charlie Day) and a wizard named Vitruvius (Morgan Freeman), who possesses the creepiest glowing eyes you’ve ever seen. Also along for the adventure are a whole heap of Lego superheroes, including Batman (Arnett), Superman (Channing Tatum), Green Lantern (Jonah Hill) and Wonder Woman (Cobie Smulders). The cast is everything you’d want and expect from a ‘Lego’ movie and Pratt doesn’t disappoint with his spot-on portrayal, whilst Banks shines. Considering how many feature animated films can fall short in the script department due to heavy reliance on special visual effects, The Lego Movie is a whirlwind of vibrant colours and slick computer animation which rivals even the Toy Story saga. In a movie where creativity thrives and flourishes through the master builders, it would appear that the ‘master builders’ in this case are indeed the creators of this piece. The film
(a delightfully natural turn from Amy Adams), who is the perfect girl for him if only he would glance up from his computer screen. In fact, the title of the eponymous ‘Her’ varies in ownership throughout the film and Theodore often seems preoccupied with the very idea of a ‘Her’, rather than anyone in particular. It speaks volumes that as a man whose job is to perpetuate an artificial idea of love (by writing love letters for those who cannot find the words themselves), Theodore falls in love with his operating system because she is a preconceived ideal. Her is the brainchild of Being John Malkovich’s Spike Jonze, whose quirky wit leaps out from every page of the screenplay and perfectly complements his directing style throughout. In fact, the cinematography of a futuristic Los Angeles is to die for and the act of emphasising visual beauty as a backdrop for Theodore’s melancholy only furthers the idea of a Gilded Age, where the shiny exterior simply masks the shallowness below. On the surface, film’s bizarre concept asks the audience to suspend their collective disbelief, but Her is well aware of its own absurdity and revels in it, and therein lies its charm. Nonetheless, some vignettes are much less successful than others, and unnerving moments include a scene where Samantha and Theodore try a sex surrogate in order
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to consummate their cyber relationship, which is as cringe-inducing as it sounds. But it would be wrong to let these odd moments detract from Her’s hopelessly endearing heart, and the film’s lack of censorship makes it an almost uncomfortably candid watch. Whether you view Her as a parable for this generation’s extreme reliance on technology or as simply an unconventional yet endearing love story, the film is undoubtedly one of the more creative endeavours alongside its fellow Academy Award nominees and poses a number of meaningful questions. In particular, the film’s central relationship is used to explore whether technology just serves to disconnect us from reality or whether it actually provides us with new stories to tell and new ways to tell them, and although predictable, the ending offers an incredibly heartwarming and reflective conclusion that supports the latter idea. Underpinning the film’s somehow cynical exterior towards mankind’s relationship with machine is a big heart that allows it to be didactic without ever appearing preachy, and for a story that relies so heavily upon technology, you’d be hardpressed to find a film with more modernday humanity.
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Collider
contains an abundance of laughs, quirks and cheeky moments (everything about the quirky Vitruvius to Emmet’s easily fixable hair, and of course, Good Cop/ Bad Cop) which fuel the film and will appeal to the adults watching the flick. Fear not – the amount of pop culture references will particularly resonate with any viewers watching who may have written this movie off as an unfunny commercial for toys. The plot is fairly thought-provoking for a movie essentially about construction
toys. The overall social commentary on conformity is an engaging one. But this does not detract away from the anarchic, chaotic fun that sets the film alive at its core and ignites in it an imagination amongst all ages. Visually electrifying and suitably smart, The Lego Movie does what so many movies fail to do – dazzle and engage its audience.
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Dallas Buyers Club
Director Jean-Marc Vallée Starring Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, Jennifer Garner Cert 15 Runtime 117mins Jack Lusby Jean-Marc Vallée’s treatment of this real-life tale, of an AIDs victim and his struggles to provide himself and those around him with the best medical possibilities available, has been a long time in the works. Dallas Buyers Club tells the story of Ron Woodroof, an apparently homophobic Texan who is, to him inexplicably, diagnosed with AIDs in 1985. Initially volatile, Woodroof delves back into his hedonistic lifestyle. However, in time, the admirably moustachioed outlaw faces his affliction and founds the ‘Dallas Buyers Club’, a means to supply the similarly diagnosed with non-approved drugs, amidst constant haranguing from the FDA. In the process Woodroof develops a softer edge and – wait for it – forgoes his prejudices to become a 1980s Robin Hood. Slated to star Woody Harrelson and then Brad Pitt in the 1990s, then Ryan Gosling in 2008, Dallas Buyers Club has been well worth the wait. Naturally, the first cause for commendation comes with the film’s
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incredibly strong performances, of which there are many. Matthew McConaughey, in the lead role as Woodroof, provides the film with its charming erraticism. McConaughey continues to enjoy somewhat of a renaissance, and deserves every merit he receives. Elsewhere Jared Leto, whom is now perhaps more famous for less credible artistic ventures, is a revelation as transgender AIDs victim Rayon and is the perfect foil to Woodroof ’s overt machismo. One of the film’s more underrated performances comes from Jennifer Garner as Woodroof ’s doctor Eve Saks, who steadies the ship with consummate ease. Much has been made of the dietary exploits of McConaughey and Leto, who reportedly shed 50 pounds and 30 pounds for their roles respectively, and such efforts are indeed praiseworthy. Both have been nominated for Academy Awards – McConaughey as Best Actor, Leto as Best Supporting Actor – and it could be proffered that this may have factored into the nomination procedure. However, these are two performances which wholly deserve the praise of the Academy on technical merit alone. In a year of phenomenal performances, of Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender and Jonah Hill, it wouldn’t be remiss to see a good ol’ fashioned Texas clean sweep. Perhaps unlike some of the film’s Oscar rivals, namely American Hustle, the abundant acting clout of Dallas
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Voltage Pictures
Buyers Club is matched by its script. Screenwriters Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack successfully negotiate the melodramatic pitfalls of such a testing subject, situating the musings of an ailing Woodroof into the vulnerable landscape of a decidedly homophobic, AIDsstricken 1980s America. The prevailing theme is confusion. As Woodroof desperately refutes the advances of the FDA, he himself doesn’t know where these drugs will get him. Similarly, for all of Rayon’s preening confidence, she proves the lynchpin of vulnerability for many. The doctors searching for a sufficient treatment, including Garner’s Saks, are as much in the dark as Woodroof. Even those on the side of the law suffer this confusion: Steve Zahn’s police officer Tucker toes the line between hard-edged enforcement and absolute compassion as he is touched by Woodroof ’s desperation.
Tucker is the personification of the unfortified panic of a populace affected so widely by disease and decay, just one example of the laudable nuances of this film’s dynamic screenwriting. Like all great character studies, Dallas Buyers Club perfectly positions itself between affecting drama and outlandish comedy. Confronting a delicate subject matter, Vallée, Borten and Wallack deliver emphatically, complimented astutely by the performances. The music of Marc Bolan pervades Woodroof ’s illness, and watching Dallas Buyers Club is much like listening to T. Rex now. Gifted with the benefit of retrospect, we know this a tragedy, but it doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the output.
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Representations: Sexuality in Hollywood
Luke Plummer investigates depictions of sexuality in film in the third of a special series
Gyllencrazy
Probably the simplest, most familiar narrative is the one where boy meets girl, they fall in love, and they live happily ever after. It’s nice, it’s comfortable, it’s a little lazy, and it may have had its day. The current climate of “nontraditional” sexual relationships in the UK has been shifting towards one of greater tolerance and acceptance of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender people, or anyone who doesn’t identify with a heteronormative paradigm. In a slower and patently less enthusiastic sense, so too is America. Legalisation of gay marriage in some states in the USA was a big step in the long battle for civil rights, and there is an evergrowing glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. We need only look to some of the controversies around the Sochi games or recent policies in some African countries, though, to realise global opinion is often lagging far behind. Culturally and economically, film is one of America’s greatest exports. Some would argue that film, especially
mass, populist film, has the ability and obligation to both reflect and mould society. This forms the basis for one of the oldest arguments in film studies. So what role should the silver screen play in the representation, portrayal and employment of members of the LGBT community? The recent release of Dallas Buyers Club came in for some criticism over opting to take a vehemently heterosexual viewpoint of AIDS in 1980s America. Equally, it was criticised for casting Jared Leto, a heterosexual man, in the part of a transgender person. This is in keeping with a trend in Hollywood in which portrayals of issues regarding homosexuality or transgender, intended to be sensitive, can often marginalise or exclude. Films like Dallas Buyers Club or Brokeback Mountain aren’t hateful or vindictive films at all, but do they represent wider cultural and social issues? Both Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger faced a barrage of rumours after Brokeback that transgressed to
the absurd, some even claiming secret homosexuality was Ledger’s reason for suicide. Why does this matter? Well, if the audience is unable or unwilling to separate actor from character, shouldn’t homosexual, bisexual or transgender roles be filled by actors who associate with these types? Are we to believe there are no gay, lesbian or transgender actors in Hollywood? That seems a touch unlikely. I find myself somewhere in the middle of this argument, not through indifference but through confusion. On the one hand, as a liberal and a member of the LGBT community, I want the strive for equality, both in representation and in employment, to continue to take the great strides it has in recent years. What I don’t want, though, is to take films about homosexual and transgender people and turn them into an arena for political discussion which ignores the skill and craft of the writers, directors or actors, especially if they have been brave, thoughtful or talented enough to create a provocative piece of art.
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The Art and the Artist
25.02.2014
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Luke Keleher explores whether great art can survive the scandals of their creators What’s your favouite Woody Allen movie?” This was the opening line to Dylan Farrow’s letter, published in the New York Times this year, documenting allegations of sexual abuse at the hands of her estranged father, Woody Allen. Allen’s recent 24th Academy nomination has led many to consider whether abn appreciation of his art can truly be separated from his allegedly tumultuous and deviant personal life. Furthermore, can it ever be morally right to continue to look up to public figures who exhibit potentially immoral or even criminal behavior? The allegations of sexual abuse first arose during the 1993 divorce of Allen and his then wife Mia Farrow, when a doctor raised concerns regarding Dylan. It was arguably the recent accolade of the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2014 Golden Globes that was the breaking point for Farrow. Despite these harrowing accusations against him, the industry is apparently standing by Allen, and continues to support his work. Farrow calls attention to this in her letter, naming Hollywood stars and discussing the way in which
society fails the victims of sexual assault. Should we disregard debatably great pieces of art such as Midnight in Paris, Annie Hall and Manhattan due to the allegations related to his personal life? Do the scandals and illicit activities of those we admire taint our appreciation of their work? Allen is not the first Hollywood legend to be embroiled in a scandal of such magnitude. A name which automatically springs to mind is that of Roman Polanski, the legendary director of movie greats such as Chinatown and The Pianist who in 1977 was arrested for the rape of a thirteen year-old girl. To avoid extradition, Polanski fled to London, eventually settling in Paris. Despite his admission to the crime, he is continually rewarded and honoured with the most prestigious awards in the industry, including the 2003 Academy Award for Best Director for The Pianist. The incident regarding the rape of a child has seemingly been swept under the carpet despite his admission of guilt, which raises worrying questions about the morals of Hollywood. At the time of his arrest, many Hollywood executives came to his defence,
Silver Velvet Sky
which can be seen as the reiteration of the patriarchal system of protection regarding male stars. It is interesting to compare this with the experiences of women in the public eye. After Kate Moss was exposed taking cocaine by a British tabloid, she was dropped from campaigns with H&M, Chanel and Burberry, reportedly worth millions of pounds, a prime example of the way in which a scandal for some is the end of their career while in other cases it proves to be the beginning of stratospheric success.
The most unjust aspect of all of these allegations is the consideration of the differences in treatment with regards to those in the public eye compared with ‘ordinary’ people. Would the rape of a thirteen year old child be taken so lightly if the alleged abuser was a teacher? Would the proven lengthy history of drug abuse be disregarded if those concerned were in any normal office job? The sad truth is probably not, and the deconstruction of the idolisation of those on screen is what Dylan Farrow’s open letter is seeking to do.
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LISTINGS
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25th February - 10th March live music 25th February
2nd March
Rob Heron and the Tea Pad Orchestra The Bicycle Shop £8
Boy Jumps Ship Norwich Arts Centre £5
Oh Mercy! Records The Bicycle Shop £3
Dumb Epic Studios £4-5 26th February
The Answer + Skam The Waterfront £14
Jarrod Dickinson + David Ford + The Turf Club Racebook The Bicycle Shop £6.50 3rd March 28th February
Babyhead Norwich Arts Centre £10
5 Seconds Of Summer UEA LCR £12.50
Verbal High The Bicycle Shop £3
Beth Neilsen Chapman Epic Studios £20
Paper Aeroplanes + Cousin Jac Norwich Arts Centre £8 Toy w/ Proper Ornaments Waterfront Studio £10
LOVE/HATE + Knock Out Kaine + Bad Touch + Wicked Faith Waterfront Studio £13 7th March Yellowman + Dillinger Norwich Arts Centre £16
Jerry Sadowitz: Comedian, Magician, Psychopath The Playhouse £19.50 1st March The Horne Section The Playhouse £16.50-18.50 5th March Andrew Lawrence Norwich Arts Centre £13-15
6th March Austentatious The Playhouse £10-12.50
Hopelessly Devoted The Garage £5-10
Robin Ince The Playhouse £12-14 8th March Kerry Godliman The Playhouse £10-12
The A List UEA LCR £4.50
26th February - 1st March
The A List UEA LCR £4.50
6th-8th March Little Shop Of Horrors UEA Drama Studio £5-7
skin
8th March
4th-5th March Dracula The Playhouse £12-14
Barmy Britain Theatre Royal £5-16
A Night At Hogwarts UEA LCR £2-5
28th February
26th February
3: romans remixed
4th March
1st March
Bombay Bicycle Club w/ Rae Morris UEA LCR £19
Amateur Girl The Garage £5-10
The Vagina Monologues UEA Drama £5-7
club nights
1940s Swing vs 1950s Grease UEA LCR £2-5
9th March
26th February
7th March
25th February
The Electric Swing Circus OPEN £12
theatre
comedy 27th February
8th March The Toy Hearts Norwich Arts Centre £10
6th March 1st March
27th February
Four Days In May + Darwin & The Dinosaur + Tied to the Mast OPEN £5
8th March 10am-4pm 'With the rare opportunity to host the largest ever exhibition of Roman artefacts, on loan from the British Museum, Norwich Castle takes us back thousands of years and ignites a journey to one of history’s richest and most powerful empires. Inspired by these stunning artefacts comes ‘Skin 3: Romans Remixed’ on the 8th of March: exploring the themes of the Roman Empire with a modern twist.' FREE entry for 16-24 year olds. For more information contact Rachel at rachel.trevnor@norfolk.gov.uk
COMPETITIONS 25.02.2014
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the venue crossword
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Across
2. Spirit, genre of music (4) 4. A social gathering (5) 6. A journey or quest (9) 8. Follows Winter (6) 10. 2014 Winter Olympics host city (5) 12. Facial hair (5)
Down
1. White or pink spring flower (5) 3. Off shoot of a tree trunk (6) 5. Small animal with big teeth (6) 7. Preservation in writing or other form (6) 9. A trodden track (4) 11. Opposite of cold (3)
WIN TWO FREE LCR TICKETS! #TUESDAY 4TH MARCH A NIGHT AT HOGWARTS JUST ANSWER THIS QUESTION: What is the name of rita skeeter’s controversial biography? A) Hedwig: A History B) The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore C) The Sorting Hat and I
answer on facebook for a chance to win! www.facebook.com/concretenewspaper
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VENUE Chris Corby