53 YEARS The Number One Magazine for Visitors
APOLLO VICTORIA THEATRE • LONDON
Est. 1956 Issue 2738 Friday 27 March, 2009 OLYMPIC CITY 2012
Welcome to London Friday 27 March, 2009 CONTENTS EVENTS Sonnet Celebrations at the Globe Oxford v Cambridge Boat Race Great Bridges of the World
4
MUSIC 10 Spring Dance at London Coliseum Easter Services at St Paul’s EXHIBITIONS 14 New Medieval Gallery Turner and Rothko at Tate Britain THEATRE Burnt by the Sun Entertaining Mr Sloane
17
EATING OUT Sushino in the King’s Road
22
Proprietor Julie Jones Advertising Janet Gardener Editorial Sue Webster
© This is London Magazine Limited 42 Conduit Street, London, W1R 9FB. Telephone: 020 7434 1281 www.thisislondonmagazine.com
A very warm welcome to all our friends and neighbours visiting our fine capital for this week's G20 summit. Even in these tough economic times London is still the place to be. Our capital is a unique city that offers great diversity and choice, with over 300 languages spoken and a skilled and talented workforce to help businesses in the capital to grow and succeed. With the recent fall in the value of sterling there has never been a better time to visit London and get great value on every pound, dollar, euro or yuan. In fact, a Big Mac is now cheaper in London than in New York, a pint of Guinness is cheaper in our fair city than in Dublin and fashionistas will be glad to know that a Hermès scarf can be purchased cheaper here in London than in Paris. It is of the utmost importance that we continue to celebrate and advertise the richness and diversity of our unique city and the world-beating attractions, galleries, exhibitions, theatre and restaurants on offer here. That is why we've launched a new international campaign, 'Only in London', to encourage overseas visitors to come to the capital for the experience of a lifetime. London is continuing to invest in growth opportunities and the jewel in the crown is the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, which will generate an estimated £4 billion economic opportunity. We are also investing in large infrastructure projects such as Crossrail, the largest addition to the transport network in London and the South East for 50 years, and upgrading our Victorian Tube lines so that they are fit for the 21st century. My message is loud and clear. In London we are working furiously to protect the economy during the downturn and I believe that the capital will emerge from this period of economic uncertainty in a very strong position providing unrivalled opportunities over the coming decades.
www.til.com
Boris Johnson
Mayor of London
VISITOR INFORMATION Emergencies 999 Police Ambulance Fire 24 Hour Casualty 020 8746 8000 Dentistry 0808 155 3256 The Berkeley Clinic, 19 Upper Berkeley St, W1. Tel: 020 7724 4004 www.theberkeleyclinic.com Victim Support 0845 30 30 900 free and confidential service
Visit London 020 7234 5833 Heathrow Airport 0870 0000123 Gatwick Airport 0870 0002468 Taxis 020 7272 5471
Watches 7493 5916
Dry Clean 7491 3426 Optician 7581 6336 Weather 0870 9000100 THIS
Florist 7831 6776 IS
LONDON
MAGAZINE
•
THIS
IS
LONDON
ONLINE
4
HIT MUSICAL WICKED ANNOUNCES NEW CAST The smash hit musical WICKED, which recently celebrated its 1000th performance at the Apollo Victoria Theatre, will have cast changes from 11 May. Sam Kelly joins the company as The Wizard, Natalie Anderson as Nessarose and the production also welcomes back Alexia Khadime as Elphaba. Since the early seventies, Sam Kelly has been one of the UK's best-loved and most popular actors. His National Theatre appearances include The Homecoming with Michael Sheen, War and Peace and A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum. Natalie Anderson is best known as 'Nurse Stella Davenport' in ITV's The Royal, a role she has been playing since 2004. She also starred in the BBC children's television drama series The Biz with Paul Nicholls. The award-winning musical opened at London’s Apollo Victoria Theatre in September 2006 and has now been seen by almost two million people and taken £70 million at the Box Office. In addition to the London production, WICKED is also currently running in North America (4 productions), Japan, Germany and Australia. Box Office 0844 826 8000. Online at www.WickedTheMusical.co.uk. T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
PUTNEY MUSIC FESTIVAL HERALDS THE BOAT RACE Putney’s annual three day music festival will take place over the Oxford versus Cambridge Boat Race weekend, beginning Friday, 27 March. Now in its twelfth year, the festival is an established highlight of the London music calendar. For three days and nights, Putney’s bars, pubs, restaurants and clubs transform into live music venues with bands and DJs performing live to packed audiences. The festival caters for all musical tastes with everything from rock, opera, Spanish, Latin, folk and blues. Many venues will be offering special festival menus such as hog-roasts and there will be a French food market where the High Street meets the river. Festivalgoers can watch the Boat Race on Sunday 29 March (starts 15.40) from Putney Bridge or the riverside.
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
SHAKESPEARE’S BIRTHDAY AND SONNET CELEBRATIONS AT GLOBE Shakespeare's Globe Theatre will celebrate Shakespeare’s birthday this year with a programme of events inspired by the 400th anniversary of the publication of his Sonnets. The activities start on Saturday 18 April with Mark Rylance’s muchloved Sonnet Walks, as part of a week packed with events. The annual free open day, Sonnet Sunday, will take place on Sunday 19 April, and on Thursday 23 April – Shakespeare’s birthday – the Globe will launch the 2009 theatre season Young Hearts. On Saturday 25 April, Globe musicians will join the Mayor of London's St George's Day celebrations in Trafalgar Square. Shakespeare is the best-known sonnet writer, having composed 154 of them – all of which appeared in a collection published by Thomas Thorpe on 20 May 1609. The Sonnets explore the themes of love, beauty, desire and mortality, and have long been regarded as Shakespeare’s most important and distinctive contributions to lyric poetry. During the summer, the Globe will present three of Shakespeare’s four plays which feature sonnets – Romeo and Juliet, As You Like It and Love’s Labour’s Lost. The entire season includes four Shakespeare plays and three pieces of new writing that explore the great expanse of the heart – from purity to wild passion, and from the rekindling of old love to an evergreen love of life. The Sonnet is a short lyric poem, which originated in Italy and was introduced into England by Thomas Wyatt. A Shakespearian sonnet consists of 14 lines, each line contains ten syllables, and each line is written in iambic pentameter, in which the last two lines are a rhyming couplet. L O N D O N
O N L I N E
ST PAUL’S DEBATE: MY WORD IS MY BOND? REBUILDING TRUST The Bishop of London, Dr Richard Chartres, will be joined by a leading member of the Cabinet in St Paul’s Cathedral on Tuesday 31 March (11.00) as he chairs a high-level debate dealing with moral questions raised by the current economic crisis on the eve of the G20 summit. Everyone is welcome to attend and the debate will be open to questions from the audience. St Paul’s Cathedral will bring together political and spiritual leaders to address some of the vital questions arising from the current economic crisis. Has there been a disconnection between morality, policy-making and practice? What are the prospects for remaking the global order, rebuilding financial systems and re-establishing trust? How will a new global order actively include development goals and address climate change? This event is the first in the St Paul's Institute 2009 programme – ‘Money, Integrity and Wellbeing’. St Paul’s Institute is the Cathedral’s forum for contemporary ethics and seeks to recapture the cathedral’s ancient role as a centre of education and public debate.
ESCAPE TO THE TROPICS FOR KEW’S 250TH ANNIVERSARY Kew Gardens’ Tropical Extravaganza is a hot-weather oasis of vibrant orchids and dramatic jungle plants, the first festival in a year of events celebrating the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew’s 250th anniversary. Kew is home to one of the world's oldest and most comprehensive collection of living orchids. This includes year round displays in the Princess of Wales Conservatory, which has two distinct climatic zones to provide the right growing conditions for different types of orchids. 2009 is the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin, whose studies included orchids. Inspired by Darwin, a Thinking Walk about how plants are adapted to live in different environments will be
mapped out for visitors to follow. In the Nash conservatory, the British Council’s exciting new ‘Darwin Now’ exhibition explores Darwin’s life, how he came up with his ground-breaking theory, and how his ideas are still relevant today. The exhibition sheds light on contemporary reactions to Darwin’s theories of evolution and how advances in fields as diverse as geology and economics influenced his thinking. It also explores the importance of the theory of evolution to the contemporary world and modern science and highlights the work of several UK-based researchers who are pushing back the boundaries of evolutionary science. As part of the of the British Council's Darwin Now initiative, the exhibition will will be shown worldwide in 2009.
Piccadilly Market Perfect for all your Piccadilly market is held Christmas Gifts in the charming setting of the courtyard at St James’s Church Piccadilly Market is held–in the charming setting of the just yards from Piccadilly courtyard St James’s Church Circus. Aatpopular – just yards from the Royal destination for over 20 Academy. The market has been market offers a years, popularthe destination for over an exciting selection of twenty years and each week it antiques, plays host to up & tocrafts, 50 stalls arts offering an exciting selection of jewellery, souvenirs, antiques, crafts, arts, jewellery, fashions, furnishings and souvenirs, fashions, furnishings more. and more.
LOST MUSICALS PREMIERE ‘THE NEW YORKERS’ ‘The New Yorkers’ will receive its UK première at the Lilian Baylis Theatre at Sadler’s Wells as part of Ian Marshall Fisher’s Lost Musicals. The semi-staged performances will be on Sundays 29 March, 5, 12, 19 April at 16.00. ‘The New Yorkers’ was originally produced in 1930 and written by Herbert Fields with music by Cole Porter. The fascination of low life for high society makes for madcap hilarity in this romance between an heiress and a gangster, which also had a part for that great disturber of the peace, Jimmy Durante. It’s a combination of comedy and sexy wit, with songs like ‘The Great Indoors’ and ‘Love for Sale’, which was banned from radio for many years.
The market has aopen growing Craft Market reputation for its contemporary Wednesday-Saturday jewellery designers who offer a 10am-6pm. range of unique pieces in St James’s Antiques and Murano glass, Baltic amber and vegetable ivory. Collectors Market open
Tuesday 10am-6pm.
Craft Market open: Wednesday-Saturday 10am-6pm. James’s Church, StSt James’s Antiques and Collectors Market open: 197 Piccadilly, Tuesday 10am-6pm. London W1J 9LL
Tel: 020 7734 4511
St James’s Church Piccadilly Tube: Piccadilly 197 Piccadilly, W1Circus/ Green 020 7734Park 4511 Tube: Piccadilly Circus/Green Park
Market closed 7-11 April.
Market closed: 23 December – 2 January 2009
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
O N L I N E
5
6
GREAT BRIDGES OF THE WORLD EXHIBITION AT TOWER BRIDGE From 27 March to 30 June, the most famous bridge in the world is staging a spectacular display of full colour, largescale photographs which celebrate the highest achievements of the bridgebuilder’s art. The new exhibition, Great Bridges of the World, is housed in the panoramic high-level West Walkway of Tower Bridge, poised 42 metres above the Thames. Twenty-two giants of the genre are featured in the exhibition, each of which represents a breathtaking feat of engineering, an architectural tour de force or the realisation of a dream. Images will be interchanged, with twelve on display at any one time. Subjects span the centuries, beginning with the Roman Pont du Gard aqueduct at Nimes, constructed between 40 and 60 A.D. and now a World Heritage Site. The most contemporary is the audacious Millau Viaduct on the Paris/Barcelona highway, completed in 2005 – the world’s highest vehicular bridge and a stunning work of art. Beautiful, breathtaking, familiar or fantastic, in brick or timber, steel or stone, many other icons selected for display are also the first, the highest or the boldest of their kind. Shropshire’s revolutionary Iron Bridge appears along with Lucerne’s awesome Kapellbrucke/Chapel Bridge (Europe’s oldest wooded trestle bridge), the inter-continental Bridge of the Americas and Japan’s six-lane Akashi Kaikyo Bridge, the longest suspension bridge in the world. In South Africa, the Bloukrans Bridge (the largest singlespan concrete arch bridge) is noted for offering the ultimate adrenalin bungee jump. In contrast, Iran’s elegant Allahverdi Khan Bridge provides a ‘contemplative space’ while Shanghai’s 16th-century Zig-Zag Bridge harnesses the forces of Yin and Yang to smooth the path to its ‘garden of quiet joy.’
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
ANTARCTIC WILDERNESS AT ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY At a time of high attention on changes to Antarctic glaciers as an indicator of human-induced climate change, the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) this week offers a rare chance for members of the public to view dramatic collection of images which amply demonstrate the majestic power and backdrop of the Antarctic landscape. On display will be enlarged images from the Society’s archives collection of the dramatic events of Ernest Shackleton’s 1914-17 adventure. In his journey, Shackleton and his crew were left stranded when their ship the Endurance was dramatically crushed in the pack ice. Through the eyes of Frank Hurley, official photographer to the expedition, the display starts with the slow pace of daily life on board ship on the long voyage, before capturing its violent destruction and recording Shackleton’s ultimately successful efforts to rescue his crew. Shackleton, Hurley and the crew endured some of the most gruelling conditions for a period of twenty months before they returned to safety. The exhibition is a must for anyone interested in Shackleton, the Antarctic wilderness, the spirit of exploration and triumph over adversity. Telephone 020 7591 3000.
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
FLORA LONDON MARATHON The Flora London Marathon takes place this year on 26 April, bringing over 45,000 runners to the nation’s capital to race and raise money for charity. As tradition dictates, the event will have competitors of all types – professionals, amateurs and celebrities, all willing to undertake the 26 mile run, which starts at Greenwich and ends at St James’s Park. The London Marathon was founded in 1981 by former Olympic champion Chris Brasher and was an instant success. Since its inception over 711,260 people have completed the race – 34,497 in the 2008 race alone. As a fundraising event, there is no marathon in the world which comes close to London. Since 1981, it is estimated that over £200 million has been raised for charities world-wide and the London Marathon also has its own Charitable Trust which distributes all profits made from the events to fund and part-fund recreational projects across the capital. Over £12 million has been given in grants by the Trust to local community projects including sports equipment for schools and community groups; ramps and lifts to help disabled people enjoy sport; establishing nature trails; and to improve leisure facilities. One of the dominant images of the race is that of thousands clad in fancy dress, tramping the cobbles in support of charitable causes dressed as rhinos, football team mascots, giant trees and the like. Look out for THIS IS LONDON runner, Richard Chapman. In addition, this year there will be a Marathon Expo, at ExCel, from 22 to 25 April. Whether you are running in the race or not, the exhibition is an opportunity that’s too good to miss for anyone interested in running and fitness. All the major athletic brands will be present showing and selling everything from socks and global navigation devices to the latest niche products and everything between.
L O N D O N
O N L I N E
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC LAUNCH REGENT STREET FLAGSHIP STORE More than a traditional retail environment, the National Geographic's Regent Street store features compelling interactive visual displays and state-ofthe-art design dedicated to stimulating, educating and inspiring visitors to celebrate global cultures. In addition to its retail marketplace, the store has an exhibition area, auditorium, tapas café, travel desk and photography studio, set across three floors. The auditorium offers public lectures from some of National Geographic's most renowned explorers, authors, and photographers, and free film screenings. The exhibition hall displays a rotating showcase of curated exhibits, inspired by content from National Geographic's international channels, magazines, and mission-oriented projects, such as the Genographic Project. Visitors can stop by the café to sample a selection of tapas, comprising slow food, organic, fair trade and other specialty items. They can also peruse National Geographic's travel and cartographic library, book National Geographic Expeditions and local tours, and try out apparel and accessories for their forthcoming adventures. The photography studio allows you to test equipment and consult with National Geographic's optics specialists. The marketplace features a wide selection of National Geographic products featuring its award-winning magazines, books, and DVDs, as well as newly created products and unique, hand-crafted items by global artisans. The flagship store specialises in beautiful, hand-crafted items from locations around the world, with products not typically offered in the UK. Locally sourced collectables from Africa make up a portion of these items, and include original artefacts and tools found in indigenous tribes. Custom jewellery and hand-stitched camel hide bags from Kenya are among the authentic and sustainable items to be offered.
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
7
The store also offers items designed for the rigors of adventures and exploration, from casual travel gear to expedition-quality apparel, including hitech waterproof bags and innovative, multi-layered apparel suitable for diverse climates and activities. Consumers can road-test their apparel in the store's product testing chamber, featuring wind gusts, extreme temperature changes and other real-world conditions.
Drawing from its mission to inspire people to care about the planet, National Geographic has built its flagship store with eco-friendly design elements and plans to incorporate additional sustainable practices in its daily operations. National Geographic's net proceeds support the Society's exploration, conservation, research and education programme. The National Geographic Store is at 83-97 Regent Street, W1.
London Handel Festival 2009 250th Anniversary of Handel’s death 23 February to 14 April Laurence Cummings musical director Adrian Butterfield associate director leader London Handel Orchestra
Box Office 01460 54660 or buy online www.london-handel-festival.com Venues: St George’s Hanover Square, Grosvenor Chapel, St Lawrence Whitchurch, Royal College of Music, Foundling Museum, Handel House, & Wigmore Hall Promoted by the London Handel Society 269184
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
O N L I N E
8
THE WESTBURY MAYFAIR The Westbury is a luxurious 5 star hotel in one of the most prestigious locations on Bond Street, Mayfair. The owners of the Westbury recently acquired the neighbouring building, Washington House, at no. 40 Conduit Street, for £30 million. Continuing with The Westbury's current décor, the new building will be designed by Alex Kravetz, who recently oversaw the £25 million refurbishment of the hotel. The Wesbury is returning to the strong heritage upon which it was originally founded. In 1927, the polo playing Phipps family founded the luxurious Westbury Hotel in New York which became a favourite amongst the polo playing set and the creme de la creme of New York high society. The Westbury Mayfair opened its doors for the first time in 1955. To match its New York namesake, the London Westbury also features a Polo Bar and Lounge which took its name from the famous Long Island Polo Ground. The Westbury Cup, which used to be on permanent display at the hotel, is one of the oldest trophies played for at Guards Polo Club, Windsor. The Polo Bar is now the ultimate destination for cosmopolitan drinking with a drinks menu which includes extravagant luxuries such as the world's most expensive champagne at £30,000 or a single cognac shot at £600. There are, however, more modest delights for T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
the discerning guest. The contemporary bar menu includes elegant finger food or whole hearted eats. Suitable for lunch or an evening of champagne and canapés, there is something for every appetite and palate. The lobster spaghetti is highly recommended and traditional afternoon teas are enjoyed throughout the year. The Westbury recently hosted a visit by President Mikhail Gorbachev, who was accompanied by his granddaughter, Anastasia Virganskaya, to attend The Royal Gala Concert and Dinner at St James's Palace. The performance featured the celebrated international pianist, Denis Matsuev, and, from the Royal Opera House, Olga Borodina, a leading dramatic mezzo-soprano. The concert was held in aid of the Gorbachev Foundation children's haematology and transplantation charitable programme and the Philharmonia Trust, in the presence of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, with honoured guests President Gorbachev and Baroness Thatcher. LONDON ORPHEUS CHOIR CONCERT The London Orpheus Choir continue their season at St John’s Smith Square on Saturday 4 April (19.30) with a very mixed programme. Firstly, the exciting ‘Te Deum’ of Dvorák, followed by the short work ‘Ave Maris Stella’ of the composer, Cecilia McDowall. The piece bears the dedication, Pro Pace, and is inspired by the words of Woodrow Wilson: ‘The freedom of the seas is the sine qua non of peace, equality and co-operation’. This is followed by the powerful Organ Concerto of Poulenc. Leslie Pearson joins the London Orpheus Orchestra for a performance of this remarkable work. An absolute ‘must’ for lovers of organ music. The programme finishes with a performance of the beautiful and well loved Fauré Requiem. Jamesena Tait and Leslie MacLeod-Miller are the soloists. James Gaddarn (pictured) conducts the London Orpheus Choir and Orchestra. Tickets telephone 020 7222 1061.
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
BARBICAN BITE09 PERFORMANCES AT THE SILK STREET THEATRE This year, for the first time in the ten years of the annual Barbican festival entitled ‘bite’, four productions in the ‘bite09’ programme will be performed in the Guildhall School of Music & Drama’s Silk Street Theatre, situated next door to the Barbican Centre. The next production is Romeo Castellucci’s installation Paradiso, one part of a trilogy inspired by Dante’s Divine Comedy. Allowing the audience to freely roam through an extraordinary universe, the work is considered by many to be the most visionary experimental theatre of our time. Paradiso runs from 2-9 April, while the two other works will also be shown on 2 and 3 April at the Barbican Theatre. On 14 April, Needcompany makes its debut with The Porcelain Project, which offers an erotic, kitsch, and luscious journey through a dreamlike world that constantly threatens to crack. Hundreds of porcelain objects – some recognisable, some abstract – hang, stand and form sculptures on the stage. Opening on 22 April as the last of bite09’s Silk Street Theatre productions, is the acclaimed production of Jean Racine’s classic French text Andromaque, the story of the Trojan War hero Hector’s widow. Subversive, surprising and ironic, Andromaque exposes our capacity for selfdeception with lacerating clarity. Box office tel: 0845 120 7550.
James Gaddarn. L O N D O N
O N L I N E
Irina Kolesnikova as Nikiya
LaBayadere in
‘A soulful radiance to her technical brilliance that just reeks of potential greatness’ Sunday Express
Sunday 17th May 2009 LONDON COLISEUM
ST PETERSBURG BALLET THEATRE
www.arts-world.co.uk
www.irinakolesnikova.com
10
Nao Sakuma in Birmingham Royal Ballet's Serenade. Photo by Bill Cooper.
In a programme that demonstrates the variety and quality of the dance world, the Coliseum stage will play host to a mix of classical works presented on an epic scale; some of the world’s greatest dancers testing themselves in unfamiliar choreographic territory; the diverse repertoire of one of the UK’s best loved companies and the hugely popular world of ballroom dancing. American Ballet Theatre are bringing full scale productions of Swan Lake and Le Corsaire; Russell Maliphant will work with a range of new collaborators including Adam Cooper, Agnes Oaks and Thomas Edur, and Ivan Putrov; Birmingham Royal Ballet brings two programmes: Pomp & Circumstances and Sylvia; and Anton du Beke and Erin Boag present Cheek to Cheek – their celebration of ballroom and latin dance. Performances will take place from 25 March to 26 April. Tickets from the Coliseum box office tel: 0871 911 0200.
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
Agnes Oaks and Thomas Edur perform in Spring Dance at the Coliseum. Photo by Hugo Glendinning.
LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: A LIFE IN FILM The London Symphony Orchestra is one of the world’s foremost film music orchestras and has a long history in film music, 75 years-worth of film scores recorded, including some of the biggest – Star Wars, Superman, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Harry Potter II and IV; and earlier examples such as Blithe Spirit, 49th Parallel, Brief Encounter, Dangerous Moonlight and even the very first commercially produced soundtrack, for Alexander Korda’s Things to Come. On Saturday 4 April (19.30), the LSO will be joined in concert by composers Patrick Doyle and Trevor Jones for a celebration of film music drawn from the films for which the orchestra recorded
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
the original soundtracks, and, from Los Angeles, via specially-recorded video interviews, John Williams and James Horner. The evening will be hosted by UK film music specialist and broadcaster Tommy Pearson, and conducted by veteran film soundtrack conductor Harry Rabinowitz. Box Office 020 7638 8891. KIRILL GERSTEIN DEBUT RECITAL AT QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL Kirill Gerstein was First Prize winner at the 2001 Artur Rubinstein Piano Comptition in Tel Aviv and since then his career has gone from strength to strength. He was chosen to receive the 2002 Gilmore Young Artist Award and was selected as Carnegie Hall's 'Rising Star' for the season 2005/06. This season sees a whole range of high profile performances from appearances with the Cleveland Orchestra and the LA Philharmonic to a concert with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, as well as recitals from Sydney to Vienna.
Kirill Gerstein.
SPRING DANCE AT THE LONDON COLISEUM Dance has experienced an explosion in popularity over the last few years. Spring Dance at the London Coliseum is a showcase season which provides an unrivalled opportunity for these dance fans to watch world class companies and artists in a unique arena.
In his Queen Elizabeth Hall debut recital on Tuesday 31 March at 19.30, Gerstein chooses to display the enormous range of his talents with repertoire that extends from Bach to Schoenberg, taking in two epic works from the Romantic repertoire – Rachmaninov's Corelli Variations and the Chopin Fantasy. Tel: 0871 663 2500. L O N D O N
O N L I N E
12
EASTER FAMILY FUN AT ST PAUL’S CATHEDRAL St Paul’s Cathedral is celebrating Easter with storytelling sessions, mosaic-making workshops and Easter trails. Visitors with children can sign up for one of five storytelling sessions running each day between 11 and 18 April. Each story tells the tale of a different character in the Cathedral’s history, including Sir Christopher Wren, Florence Nightingale, Admiral Nelson and the Fire Watchers who saved St Paul’s during the Blitz. Children can also sign up for a mosaic-making workshop. This kicks off with a 15-minute storytelling session about the artists who made the mosaics in St Paul’s. Participants will then produce their own mosaic inspired by the patterns, shapes and colours they have seen in the cathedral. Throughout the Easter holidays, families will be able to follow the St Paul’s Cathedral Easter trail. This selfguided trail leads visitors on a journey
Saturday 4 April at 7.30pm
LONDON ORPHEUS CHOIR & ORCHESTRA James Gaddarn conductor Jamesena Tait soprano Leslie MacLeod-Miller bass Leslie Pearson organ Dvorák Te Deum McDowall Ave Maris Stella Poulenc Organ Concerto Fauré Requiem
St John’s Smith Square £20.00 £15.00 £10.00
Box Office telephone 020 7222 1061 T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
The magnificent interior of St Paul’s Cathedral. through the Cathedral and will help discover more about the Easter story and this iconic building. On completion of the trail, children will be able to claim a special Easter prize. Bishop Michael Colclough, Canon Pastor said ‘These new Easter activities are an imaginative and exciting way for families to not only discover St Paul’s Cathedral but also to learn more about the Easter story.’ Places are limited, so book a space by calling 0207 246 8353. As well as its programme of family activities, St Paul’s will be holding a range of worship throughout Easter. See page 11 for more information. St Paul’s is the cathedral church of the diocese of London, which it has served for over 1,400 years. The current building has become a potent symbol of the life of a nation and is also one of the world’s most beautiful buildings, designed by Sir Christopher Wren in the late seventeenth century. Each year nearly two million people flock to the Cathedral for services, concerts, debates, educational events, performing arts and sightseeing. All visitors are most welcome.
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
THE NATIONAL AND BUSH THEATRE PRESENT STOVEPIPE The new Westfield mall in Shepherds Bush may look tempting with its shiny shops and restaurants, but there are more substantial riches to be found beneath the older West 12 shopping centre just across the road. In collaboration with the National and Bush Theatres, HighTide has taken over a basement space beneath a supermarket, transforming it into a post-war landscape full of conflict and contrasts. Written by former journalist Adam Brace and given a striking, fluid, promenade production by Michael Longhurst, this involving, tense and well-researched new play looks at the world of the mercenary, the ex-soldiers who, via private military companies, sell their services – and perhaps their lives – for $600 a day. A succession of drapes is stripped away to reveal location after location – from smart ‘Rebuild Iraq’ conference hall to the airport run where Eddie (Niall MacGregor) and ex-para Alan (Shaun Dooley) see their mate burnt to a crisp in an armoured vehicle, and from the subdued calm of a Welsh chapel to the swanky Amman hotel where Eddie picks up a Russian prostitute before disappearing without trace. Unobtrusively ushered from scene to scene, the audience serves sometimes as extras populating the stages of Alan's search for his missing friend, sometimes more conventionally as mere onlookers. The remaining four actors (including Eleanor Matsuura as a ball-busting entrepreneur and Sargon Yelda, equally impressive as her Iraqi interpreter) seamlessly swap accents and costumes to play an international cast of characters and, although the structure occasionally confuses, the dialogue, staging, performances and atmosphere make this subterranean journey well worth catching. West 12, The Broadway, Shepherds Bush, until 26 April. Louise Kingsley L O N D O N
O N L I N E
14
Reliquary casket of St Thomas Becket, 12th century AD; from Limoges, France. Shield of Parade, late 15th century AD, from Flanders or Burgundy. Š The Trustees of the British Museum
NEW MEDIEVAL GALLERY OPENS AT THE BRITISH MUSEUM The third of four new galleries opening at the British Museum this year, the Paul and Jill Ruddock Gallery of Medieval Europe is devoted to the British Museum's preeminent collection of medieval material. This gallery will place this great collection in its fullest historical context, integrating art with archaeology, covering the period from 1050 - 1500 AD. Some of the greatest British, European and Byzantine treasures will form the centrepieces for this new permanent space. Unique, spellbinding objects such as the celebrated Royal Gold Cup, made in Paris between about 1370-80 under the patronage of the (princely) Jean duc de Berry, will act as gateways to the wider world of noble pursuits afforded by rare survivals of royal art from the Palaces of Westminster and Clarendon. The intricately carved citole, a unique medieval English musical instrument, will serve as a platform from which to understand the rituals and protocols surrounding aristocratic amusement. Centre stage within this context are the T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
world famous Lewis chessmen (around 1150-1200), poignant survivals of a sophisticated courtly culture that existed along the seaboard of northern Europe. Sacred art is equally well represented illustrating the major devotional developments of the age. The flourishing of the monasteries from the mideleventh century to their dissolution in the sixteenth is a topic given dramatic treatment from the Museum's rich resource of objects associated with abbeys, priories and convents. The magnificent tiled pavement from Byland
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
Abbey, North Yorkshire, will be displayed alongside important monastic sculpture from Lewes Priory in East Sussex. The fundamental notion of religious images acting as an aid to devotion is developed by combining precious objects from the Byzantine world with contemporaneous pieces from western Europe in a stirring analysis of how the divine was represented in two different but related Christian cultures. Icon painting and ivories are juxtaposed with wooden figure carvings and jewellery to explore the imagery of Christ and the Virgin and to illustrate the periods of iconoclasm which affected Byzantium and western Christendom equally. The Byzantine Empire was one of the major pivotal points on the medieval map. A section dedicated to Byzantium and its Neighbours examines its role as a trading capital and as a centre of intellectual and artistic ferment. Related displays developing the theme of internationalism demonstrate the vast movement of people and commodities around the medieval world at any one time by focussing on topics such as trade, pilgrimage and Crusade. All of the narratives are emphatically objectled and showcase many of the world's greatest medieval treasures. For more information, telephone the British Museum on 020 7323 8000.
L O N D O N
O N L I N E
15 Turner: ‘A pink sky above a grey sea’, circa 1822.
Rothko: ‘Black on Maroon’, 1958.
TURNER AND ROTHKO AT TATE BRITAIN Tate Britain is bringing together two of the world’s most influential painters, JMW Turner and Mark Rothko, as part of the BP British Art Displays, a unique display of works from the Tate Collection which will be on show until 26 July. The links between these two artists are well documented. After visiting an exhibition of Turner’s works at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1966, Rothko reportedly commented that ‘This man Turner, he learnt a lot from me’. A few years later, Tate’s renowned Turner Bequest was a major influence on Rothko’s decision to donate nine of his Seagram murals to the Collection.
For the first time, Tate Britain visitors will be able to move directly from the immersive, meditative environment of the so-called ‘Rothko Room’ into a display of Turners from the 1966 MoMA exhibition that Rothko attended. These will include a key selection of loose, experimental watercolours, which demonstrate the striking affinity between these two great painters. Six works from Rothko’s Seagram series will be on show, as will a selection of other works by the artist. These will be accompanied by a series of rooms that focus on correlating aspects of Turner’s work, such as the expansive late seascapes in which Turner’s images are reduced to their bare essentials, and the unusual group of darkened interior scenes he painted in the early 1830s. Joseph Mallord William Turner is regarded as being among the greatest artists in history. Born in London, he was the son of a barber of humble means. He entered the Royal Academy Schools in 1789 at the age of 14 before
becoming a member of the RA in 1802 and Professor of Perspective in 1807. Mark Rothko was born in Dvinsk, Russia (now Daugavpils, Latvia) in 1903. He emigrated to the USA at the age of 10 and went on to become one of America’s most important post-war painters. He was commissioned to paint the Seagram murals in 1958 for Manhattan’s Four Seasons restaurant. Shortly before his death in 1970, he presented nine of them to the Tate Gallery, citing his deep affection for the Collection, and especially for Turner. Tate Britain information line telephone 020 7887 8888.
supported by:
Was Mrs Beeton the first female commuter? In 1860 she took the train into London each day. She had no laptop, but may have worked on her famous cookbook on the way. Grab more food for thought at the new Museum. www.ltmuseum.co.uk
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
O N L I N E
On the opening day of the exhibition, there will be a special performance by Plan Be, a young hip-hop artist born in Dominica and raised in South Africa and London. Plan Be will perform pieces from a personal perspective, incorporating the recordings of voices of people from Africa talking about their sense of belonging and how they identify themselves, in order to try and create a connection between the ‘living ancestors’ and the young. The performance will be on 1 April at Museum of London Docklands, 1 Warehouse, West India Quay from 19:30 - 21:30 and is an adult event.
16
THE ‘LIVING ANCESTORS’ OF DOMINICA IN DOCKLANDS This week sees the launch of ‘Living Ancestors’, a thought-provoking display of portraits by London-based artist Gabrielle Le Roux, on view at the Museum of London Docklands. Of the 71,000 people living on the Caribbean island of Dominica, there are close to 100 centenarians and many more people in their nineties – the majority of these are women. Gabrielle Le Roux’s ‘Living Ancestors’ display celebrates the remarkable lives of these centenarian women and suggests reasons for their ‘staying power’. Based on conversations with the people of Dominica, Le Roux suggests that the theory behind the women’s long lives dates back to their history as descendants of the transatlantic slave trade and their strong survivalist spirit. Le Roux’s portraits pay tribute to the women’s optimism and determination, despite their long history of poverty and oppression. Meeting, talking to and painting the world’s oldest woman and nine other centenarians was a life changing experience for Le Roux and marked the beginning of a new chapter in her work as a feminist activist. Through drawing the portraits from life and understanding each personal story, Le Roux skilfully captures the experiences and essence of these women. T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
EVENING PLAYTIME FOR ADULTS AT THE SCIENCE MUSEUM To help banish the winter weather memories, the Science Museum has announced a permanent programme of free, adult-only, late-night events, when adults can have the Museum, its worldclass collections and interactive galleries, all to themselves in the new Science Museum Lates. Adults can enjoy shameless playtime in the famous interactive gallery Launchpad – blowing bubbles, spinning like skaters and capturing multicoloured shadows – without having to let the kids go first. The next date is 22 April. ROYAL AIR FORCE MUSEUM LONDON Back by popular request until 19 April, the Royal Air Force Museum London is once again displaying the 'Royal Air Force Photographer of the Year' exhibition. The Royal Air Force was formed on 1 April 1918. To celebrate the 91st anniversary of its foundation, there will also be a series of re-enactors at the Museum on 4 & 5 April who will talk about the contribution the people they represent made to the development of the RAF and the defence of the UK. Groups will include members of the Royal Flying Corps, 1930s airmen, World War II Fighter Aces, plus test pilots from the 60s and 70s.
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
Bonhams will be returning to the RAF Museum from 17-20 April for their annual car auction. A host of vintage cars will be on display in the aircraft halls, with the auction itself taking place on Monday 20 April.
IAIN FAULKNER EXHIBITION OPENS AT THE ABLEMARLE GALLERY An exhibition devoted to the works of Iain Faulkner opens at the Albemarle Gallery on 2 April. The showing marks the tenth anniversary of Faulkner’s first solo show at the Albemarle Gallery; it is therefore both timely and pertinent to recognise how much the artist has achieved in his career up to this point. Since graduating from Glasgow School of Art in 1996 with BA (Honours) Degree in Fine Art, Faulkner has established himself as a skilled draughtsman, an artist with the integrity to embrace the difficult path of contemporary figurative painting wherein the yardsticks of competence and painterly skill can be measured and judged, warts and all. Still only in his thirties, Faulkner has already had numerous successful solo exhibitions abroad in the USA, Italy and Spain. This will be his sixth solo exhibition at the Albemarle Gallery, and will be open until 2 May. Ablemarle Gallery is situated at 49 Ablemarle Street, W1. For further information, telephone 020 7499 1616.
‘The Astronomer II’, oil on canvas, 76x76cm, by Iain Faulkner.
L O N D O N
O N L I N E
17
BURNT BY THE SUN National Theatre The publicity for ‘Burnt by the Sun’ speaks of the Great Terror which took place in Russia towards the end of the 1930s — Stalin’s repression of all his enemies, real and imagined, which resulted in hundreds of thousands of executions, not to mention the wholesale transportation of Socially Harmful Elements to labour camps, where they were literally worked to death. Yet the play – an adaptation by Peter Flannery of a screenplay by Nikita Mikhlkov and Rustam Ibragimbekov – is anything but grim. In its opening scenes, the family of General Kotov are about to take breakfast in their summer dacha when a holiday parade of pioneers (boy scouts with red kerchiefs, marching with musical instruments) causes them to tango about the verandah in their dressing gowns. The dancers are ‘the grannies’ – so termed by their insolent son-in-law, Kotov, who listens nonchalantly as they reminisce about the good old days, before the Revolution. This is a drama imbued with a sense of painful nostalgia, but he has a brutal question for them: if the old life meant so much to them, why did they not defend it? T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
Kotov (played by Ciarán Hinds with the sort of square-shouldered, sugarsprinkled roughness that smokes a cigar with one hand whilst feeling his wife’s buttocks with the other) is Stalin’s right hand man. He has married Maroussia (the very beautiful, porcelain-skinned Michelle Dockery), who finds him coarse, but fascinating – or perhaps she had other reasons for accepting his suit. We long to know, especially since a stranger has turned up from the past, who clearly had a relationship with Maroussia which she does not care to acknowledge. The stranger, Mitia (Rory Kinnear) is part pianist, part storyteller. He can sing and tap dance and his face is full of barely veiled longing, but who is he and what does he want? M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
There is a sense in which the chameleon-like nature of the principal characters reflects the unspoken political situation; but they are so engrossing in their interactions that it is easy to forget what is to come. Music and song are further delightful distractions in Howard Davies’ production, which veers from the high comedy of open mouthed drunks and middle-aged virgins to the breathtakingly sinister: a reminder that the personal is political. We spend most of the evening laughing, or at least smiling. But since nothing and no one are quite what they seem, the contrasting horror of the final scenes comes as a real shock. Only Mitya’s words should have prepared us. When he recalls the words of Maroussia’s dying father – ‘I have lived to see geese on trains,’ we suppose he meant to ridicule a system in which creatures who can fly are forcibly transported to a destination not of their choosing. That there is much to ponder in the aftermath of the performance, is only part of the reason why this production is one of the best shows at the National this season. Sue Webster
I S
L O N D O N
O N L I N E
18
ENTERTAINING MR SLOANE Trafalgar Studios The shock waves created by John Osborne's seminal Look Back In Anger (1956) in the hitherto cosy post-war British theatre, had a mini boost two years later with the appearance of Shelagh Delaney's in-your-face A Taste of Honey, and a seismic one six years after that with the arrival of an iconoclastic playwright bovver boy called Joe Orton. His first play, Entertaining Mr Sloane certainly brought a blush to the cheeks of easily shockable Aunt Ednas everywhere whose ideal West End play was The Chalk Garden or anything by Terence Rattigan. Indeed, it was Rattigan who championed Mr. Sloane after its controversial premiere in 1964, recognising in its young author an exhilaratingly fresh, albeit shocking tone of voice that could simultaneously ruffle feathers as well as excitingly raise the hairs on the back of the neck. In synopsis, the plot couldn't be sleazier. Mr. Sloane, a physically attractive young thug exploits a middle-aged brother and sister, murders their decrepit old father, after which he is blackmailed into sexually servicing both siblings. Orton's achievement isn't simply pushing the boundaries of bad taste to a degree hitherto foreign to British playwriting, but the stylised language he uses to leaven the sleaze and, of course, the humour he draws from the situation. For years it has been fashionable to
compare his use of language with Oscar Wilde's; the high-toned formality appliqued onto mundane thoughts, inspired flashes of wit, elegant phrases camouflaging inelegant thoughts. And, above all, a liberating expose of, in Orton's case, lower middle-class hypocrisy. Orton is particularly in his element with the character of the misogynistic gay brother Ed whose pompous veneer of respectability and many double-entendres provide some delicious verbal pyrotechnics. Kath, the forty-ish sister who picks up Mr. Sloane in a library, brings him back home, changes into a see-through negligée and promptly seduces him, offers much comic ballast as well. As played in director Nick Bagnall's enjoyable revival, a moustachioed Simon Paisley Day and the wonderful Imelda Staunton excavate a gloriously Ortonesque vein of controlled comic acting, and Richard Bremmer is appropriately doddery as the elderly father Kemp. My only reservation is Matthew Horne's uncharismatic Mr. Sloane. Neither sexy nor particularly menacing – two essential qualities for Sloane – it's hard, in Horne's performance, to justify what the verbal and physical sparring for possession of his body is all about. Fortunately the production – with its atmospherically decaying set by Peter McKintosh – survives this flaw. But what could have been a superlative revival is now merely a good one. CLIVE HIRSCHHORN
The Ultimate in Sightseeing Cruise between Westminster, Waterloo (London Eye), Tower and Greenwich Piers. Enjoy the riverside sights with lunch, afternoon tea or a flight on the London Eye
For full details call 02077 400 or www.citycruises.com
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
M A G A Z I N E
•
400
T H I S
I S
MRS AFFLECK Cottesloe Samuel Adamson’s new version of Little Eyolf transports the Allmers family from the fjords of Norway in 1894 to the Kent Coast in 1955, renaming them Affleck en route but staying true to Ibsen’s basic themes. Other characters’ identities are also changed and a couple more are added to this emotionally charged adaptation in which the guiltridden relationship between a husband and wife (Alfred and Rita – the only ones to retain their original names) is ripped even further by the death of their crippled young son. Back from a stay in the Highlands, Angus Wright’s distant, tortured Alfred has abandoned the book he was writing and vowed to concentrate on the education of their son, Ollie. Meanwhile Claire Skinner’s immaculate Rita, posed elegantly in her pristine grey kitchen (designed by Bunny Christie) looks as perfect – and as untouchable – as a 50’s advert. But her soignée exterior belies a desperately possessive and unhappy woman, physically rejected by her husband and shamefully resentful of the child who’s damaged, recriminatory presence – and, later, absence – stands like a barrier between them. Marianne Elliott’s production reveals all the painfully tormented disquiet of the nearincestuous intimacy between Alfred and his half-sister Audrey (Naomi Frederick) but, well acted though it is, Adamson’s sometimes awkward script neither improves nor illuminates the original. Louise Kingsley L O N D O N
O N L I N E
THE INTERNATIONAL SMASH HIT IS NOW
photography by Oleg Micheyev
FRESHER , FASTER AND FUNNIER!
BOX OFFICE 08448 112 334 stomplondon.com AMBASSADORS THEATRE West Street, London WC2
20
PLAYS THREE DAYS OF RAIN A major revival of Richard Greenberg’s play, starring James McAvoy and Nigel Harman, explores how the private worlds of one generation are reinterpreted by the next. APOLLO THEATRE Shaftesbury Avenue, W1 (0870 890 1101) THE 39 STEPS Maria Aitken’s tongue-in-cheek adaptation of John Buchan’s whodunnit has four actors playing 150 parts and includes all the legendary scenes from Hitchcock’s movie. CRITERION THEATRE Piccadilly Circus, WC2 (0844 847 1778) DIMETOS A powerful and deeply moving story about love, guilt and retribution, which explores faith in a modern world of moral decay. DONMAR Earlham Street, WC2 (0870 060 6624)
Simon Callow (Pozzo) and Ronald Pickup (Lucky) will join Ian McKellen (Estragon) and Patrick Stewart (Vladimir) in Sean Mathias’ Theatre Royal Haymarket production of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot at the Theatre Royal Haymarket from 30 April.
PLAGUE OVER ENGLAND A new play by Nicholas de Jongh, based around the controversial 1953 conviction of Sir John Gielgud, which played a small, but distinct part in the battle to make homosexuality legal. DUCHESS THEATRE Catherine Street, WC2 (0870 890 1103)
ENGLAND PEOPLE VERY NICE A riotous journey through four waves of immigration from the 17th century to today. The emerging pattern shows that white flight and anxiety over integration is anything but new.
A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE Major revival of Arthur Miller’s classic play with Ken Stott and Mary Elizabeth Mastrontonio. Lindsay Posner directs. DUKE OF YORK’S St. Martin’s Lane, WC2 (0870 060 6623)
BURNT BY THE SUN Poised at the beginning of Stalin’s Great Terror, the play depicts a brutal future encroaching on the last days of a fading world.
THE WOMAN IN BLACK An innocent outsider, a suspicious rural community, a gothic house and a misty marsh are the ingredients of this Victorian ghost story, now in its 17th year. FORTUNE THEATRE Russell Street, WC2 (0870 060 6626)
OLIVIER THEATRE DEATH AND THE KING’S HORSEMAN Set against the conflict of indigenous and invader in Nigeria,1943, Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka’s play examines the essence of corruption and the power of human will, as the Horseman of the newly dead King prepares to escort him to the afterlife. I S
L O N D O N
THE PITMEN PAINTERS Following sell-out seasons, Lee Hall’s new play returns to the Lyttelton. A humorous, deeply moving and timely look at art, class and politics.
MRS AFFLECK Samuel Adamson’s new play takes Ibsen’s ‘Little Eyolf’ as the inspiration for a passionate and tragic tale of obsessive love, set in 1950 England.
Roya l Na t iona l The a t re (Plays In Repertory)
T H I S
LYTTELTON THEATRE
COTTESLOE THEATRE
ENJOY Famously Alan Bennett’s first theatrical failure when it premiered in 1980, director Christopher Luscombe has triumphantly re-visited the play to universal critical acclaim. GIELGUD THEATRE Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2 (0844 482 5130)
DANCING AT LUGHNASA A major revival of Brian Friel’s award-winning play offering a bittersweet reflection on rural Ireland in the thirties on the brink of industrialisation. OLD VIC The Cut, SE1 (0870 060 6628)
DIDO, QUEEN OF CARTHAGE The wit and sheer poetry of Christopher Marlowe’s first play is set on the shores of Carthage and tells the story of Dido and Aeneas. NATIONAL THEATRE South Bank, SE1 (020 7452 3000) CALENDAR GIRLS The true story of the members of the Woman’s Institute who shun their usual cake baking competitions and jam making in order to produce a nude calendar to raise money for Leukaemia Research. NOEL COWARD St Martin’s Lane, WC2 (0870 850 9175)
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
THE MOUSETRAP Agatha Christie’s whodunnit is the longest running play of its kind in the history of the British theatre. ST MARTIN’S THEATRE West Street, WC2 (0870 162 8787) ENTERTAINING MR SLOANE Originally staged in 1964, Joe Orton’s wickedly biting comedy stars Imelda Staunton and Mathew Horne. Until 11 April. TRAFALGAR STUDIOS Whitehall, SW1 (0870 060 6632) ON THE WATERFRONT Best known as the multi-Oscar winning film starring Marlon Brando, Budd Schulberg’s stage play is directed by and stars Steven Berkoff with a 12 strong ensemble – bold physical theatre. THEATRE ROYAL HAYMARKET Haymarket, SW1 (0870 400 0626) WOMAN IN MIND Alan Ayckbourn’s most personal and powerful play which tells the mesmerising tale of a woman’s struggle with her imagination. VAUDEVILLE THEATRE Strand, WC2 (0870 890 0511) MADAME DE SADE Yukio Mishima’s play, translated from the Japanese by Donald Keene, starring Judi Dench, directed by Michael Grandage. WYNDHAM’S THEATRE Charing Cross Road, WC2 (0870 950 0925) L O N D O N
O N L I N E
MUSICALS JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s classic family musical based on the Biblical story of the errant son and his jealous brothers. Includes the hit song, ‘Any Dream Will Do.’ ADELPHI THEATRE Strand, WC2 (0870 403 0303) DIRTY DANCING Based on the ‘80s movie, this famous tale involves a daddy’s girl and a dance instructor at a New York holiday resort during the long, hot summer of 1963. ALDWYCH THEATRE Aldwych, WC2 (0870 4000 704) WICKED THE MUSICAL Hit Broadway story of how a clever, misunderstood girl with emerald green skin and a girl who is beautiful and popular turn into the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch in the Land of Oz. APOLLO VICTORIA THEATRE Wilton Rd, SW1 (0870 161 1977) CHICAGO A dazzling mixture of sinuous bodies, tough broads, murder and fickle fame, the Ebb-Fosse musical goes from strength to strength in this monochrome production. CAMBRIDGE THEATRE Earlham Street, WC2 (0870 890 1102) SUNSET BOULEVARD A new and intimate production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s highly acclaimed musical, which premiered at the Adelphi Theatre in 1993, where it ran for almost four years and played to nearly two million people. COMEDY THEATRE Panton Street, SW1 (0870 060 6637) WE WILL ROCK YOU A unique collaboration between the legends of rock and Ben Elton, reflecting the scale and spectacle that marked Queen’s live performances. DOMINION THEATRE Tottenham Court Rd, W1 (0870 169 0116) A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC Set to a score in waltz time by Stephen Sondheim, the story turns on four couples over a midsummer weekend in turn-of-the-century Sweden, where affairs of the heart are uppermost in everyone’s thoughts. Opens 7 April. GARRICK THEATRE Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2 (0844 412 4662) THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA Long running epic romance by Andrew Lloyd Webber, set behind the scenes of a Paris opera house, where the deformed phantom stalks his prey. HER MAJESTY’S THEATRE Haymarket, SW1 (0870 890 1106) T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
THE LION KING Disney‘s phenomenally successful animated film is transformed into a spectacular stage musical, a superb evening of visual delight. LYCEUM THEATRE Wellington Street, WC2 (0870 243 9000) THRILLER – LIVE Spectacular, high octane show celebrating the career of the King of Pop, Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5. LYRIC THEATRE Shaftesbury Avenue, W1 (0870 890 1107) STOMP This British theatrical sensation has enthralled audiences across the world with its combination of theatre, dance, comedy and percussion. NEW AMBASSADORS West Street, WC2 (020 7369 1761) AVENUE Q An unholy comedic alliance of humans and puppets tells the story of life on the wrong side of the tracks in this Tony Award-winning musical by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx. NOEL COWARD St Martin's Lane, WC2 (0870 850 9175) SPRING AWAKENING Inspired by Frank Wedekind’s 1891 masterpiece of repressed emotion and adolescent passion, Steven Sater and Duncan Sheikh’s new musical explodes onto the West End stage following a sell-out season at Lyric Hammersmith. NOVELLO THEATRE Aldwych, WC2 (0870 950 0935) PRISCILLA THE MUSICAL Based on the Oscar award winning film, a glamorous Sydney based performing trio take their show to the middle of the Australian outback. PALACE THEATRE Shaftesbury Avenue, W1 (0870 895 5579) BLOOD BROTHERS Willy Russell’s powerful musical about twins from Liverpool, separated at birth, whose paths cross in friendship and finally in bloodshed. PHOENIX THEATRE Charing Cross Road, WC2 (0870 060 6629) GREASE THE MUSICAL Inimitable slice of 50s Americana, bursting with denim, cheerleaders and well-oiled quiffs. PICCADILLY THEATRE Denman Street, W1 (0870 060 0123)
JERSEY BOYS Rags to riches tale of four blue collar kids working their way from the streets of Newark to the heights of stardom as Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. Features such hits as ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’, ‘Big Girls Don’t Cry’ and ‘Sherry’. PRINCE EDWARD THEATRE Old Compton Street, W1 (0870 850 9191) MAMMA MIA Hit musical based on the songs of ABBA, set around the story of a mother and daughter, on the eve of the daughter’s wedding. PRINCE OF WALES THEATRE Old Compton Street, W1 (0870 850 0393) LES MISERABLES Much praised and spectacularly staged version of Victor Hugo’s epic novel. Mon-Sat at 19.30. Mats Weds & Sat at 14.30. QUEENS THEATRE Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2 (0870 950 0930) CAROUSEL The story of the love affair between Billy Bigelow, a smooth-talking carousel barker, and Julie Jordan, plus one of the most celebrated scores of all time, including The Carousel Waltz, If I Loved You, June is Bustin’ Out All Over and You’ll Never Walk Alone. SAVOY THEATRE Savoy Court, WC2 (0870 164 8787) HAIRSPRAY THE MUSICAL Tracy Turnblad, the big girl with the big hair and an even bigger heart goes from 60s style dance show to a downtown rhythm and blues record shop in this musical based on the John Waters movie. SHAFTESBURY THEATRE Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2 (020 7379 5399) OLIVER! Cameron Mackintosh’s revival of Lionel Bart’s musical masterpiece, starring Rowan Atkinson as ‘Fagin’. The legendary songs include ‘Consider Yourself’, ‘Food Glorious Food’, ‘I’d Do Anything’ and ‘As Long as He Needs Me’. THEATRE ROYAL DRURY LANE Catherine Street, WC2 (0870 890 1109) BILLY ELLIOT - THE MUSICAL The hit British film is transformed into a thrilling stage musical by its original director, Stephen Daldry, with music by Elton John. VICTORIA PALACE Victoria Street, SW1 (0870 895 5577)
LA CAGE AUX FOLLES Major revival of the classic Jerry Herman musical, which became the biggest new American musical of the decade when it opened on Broadway in 1983. A timeless and deliciously funny tale of family values and the need to be proud of who we are, and where life is never a drag! PLAYHOUSE Northumberland Ave, WC2 (0870 060 6631) M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
O N L I N E
21
22
SUSHINHO I love the Kings Road: the bohemian tales of the 60s, the chic re-furbishments of the 80s – the fact that the Bluebird emporium used to be a garage and the street itself was once the private route of kings travelling west to Hampton Court Palace or Kew. These days, there is some new boutique or eatery opening every few months. We are restless consumers; is there anything we have not yet tried? Well, new to me, at least, was the concept of Brazilian-Japanese food. There is a sizeable Japanese community in Brazil – the largest outside Japan, apparently. Sushinho, which opened a few months ago and has just opened a matching bar for those who like their caipirinhas loaded with limes, mint and ice, aims to serve the cuisine of that community in the heart of Chelsea. Of course, cultural differences cannot be entirely obliterated by mere sophistication. My Brazilian friend Sandra protested that her caipirinha had too little cachaca in it to be authentic, whereas I thought it was fresh and citrussy. (I expect they stay up later than we do, dance better and have altogether more fire in their blood.) The restaurant itself is a cosy spot, with rock on the walls, a pebble hearth with gas fire in it, lots of dark wood and
T H I S
I S
L O N D O N
was contrasted with a citrus dressing. My friend would kill me for saying this, but it was so much better than the real feijoada, a peasant dish that you might be grateful for if you were riding a horse across the Pampa…
silk cushions and lots of chic young things eager to indulge in this exotic cuisine. The staff are noticeably warm and friendly. The menu, in truth, is largely Japanese. There is a big range of sushi – try the chef’s special selection of the day for a representative feast of temaki, nigiri and sashimi. It is super fresh and prettily organised – we liked the composites of avocado, asparagus, tuna and so forth. I could see though, that if I were a regular visitor (and there are clearly plenty of those), the seaweed salad would be a favourite, plus the edamame (fresh soy beans sprinkled with sea salt) as they are so simple and wholesome. A highlight was on of the Specials, a boat-like plate of pork belly strips, lined up with military precision on a base of pureed feijoada, the Brazilian bean stew. The puree had a fantastic flavour – sweet with reduced stock no doubt – and
M A G A Z I N E
•
T H I S
I S
Another Brazilian afterthought is a side dish of chips made from cassava. Everyone knows cassava in London is nothing like the fresh, white root of the South America. And so these fat chips, slightly dry and not exactly golden on the outside, were dismissed as nothing like the cassava chips of Brazil. It’s good that there are some things you can only get at home. Besides, two of the biggest prawns I have ever seen cheered my friend up considerably – straight from the grill, hot and juicy, with two different sauces, just delicious. Is ‘passionfruit crumble’ anything like an English crumble? No. It’s a fruity mousse topped by chocolate mouse with, somewhere in the middle, a crunchy sprinkle of something reminiscent of crumble. I liked it. Polenta cake with strawberry ice cream and tiny meringues? This did not meet with my friend’s approval either, but she had to admit the cake was good. Let’s just say that Sushinho is for adventurous diners – and at an average cost of £25-£34 per head, it’s not such an expensive adventure, either.
Sue Webster SUSHINHO 312-314 Kings Road, SW3 020 7349 7496
L O N D O N
O N L I N E
PETER GRIMES DAVID ALDEN’s major new production of BRITTEN’s masterwork Conductor
EDWARD GARDNER Starring
STUART SKELTON AMANDA ROOCROFT GERALD FINLEY 9 – 30 May 2009 9 performances only
Ticke
ts from
£19
ENO LIVE AT THE LONDON COLISEUM Book on 0871 911 0200 or at www.eno.org Illustration by Steve Rawlings