A double dose of drama, and some Hot Words

“Never boring for a split second” was Noel Coward’s view of Harold Pinter’s dramas: that's certainly true for Theatre Royal Bath’s new production of The Homecoming, arguably  the most Pinteresque of all this playwright's plays. Complex family relationships are revealed by conversational interaction which, whether brutal or benign, always seems banal. On a superb set (designer Liz Ashcroft) conveying in its spaciness the isolation of each inhabitant, director Jamie Glover ensures that every utterance contributes to the sense of non-connection and personal fantasy. The whole saga is brutal, physically and emotionally, yet the stylised unreality of speech with Pinter's iconic pauses and nonsequiturs ensure that it’s more intriguing than scary.All the men are steeped in their own delusions, never fully interacting, their speeches full of self-important fantasies. When these are challenged they crumple, several times literally. They don’t listen to each other, except to scoff. In reality these men are weak and seedy, and when Ruth arrives, the prism tilts. In a society more than ever concerned with gender roles, it’s interesting to surmise what Ruth’s effortless dominance signifies. Her husband’s passivity is as bizarre as her behaviour, and the unseen children are another insoluble: it’s almost as if Pinter didn't want his puzzling play to be ‘solved’ at all...

There are big names here: Mathew Horne - a million miles now from Stacey’s patient adoring Gavin - is impressive as Lenny, one of the strange sons of Max, who is well played by Keith Allen (Trainspotting), and the rest of the cast all have strings of credits. Shanaya Rafaat takes the role of Ruth, the wife who accepts her husband’s family’s offer to adopt her as a whore with the unforgettable farewell to her husband ‘Don’t become a stranger’; Ian Bartholomew is moving as Sam, the more-nearly-normal brother of Max; Geoffrey Lumb is touching as the quiet boxer and Sam Alexander plays Teddy, the homecoming brother.  The best thing I've seen on that stage for a long while. Images: Alan Henning

                                                                                                        

We move, theatrically speaking, now from the social attitudes of England in the 20th Century to those prevailing in 1782, when 133 men and women were thrown off the Zong slave ship as unwanted 'cargo' to preserve their drinking water. The radio version of The Meaning of Zong, produced by Bristol Old Vic, was broadcast on Radio 3 last year (reviewed in this blog March 28) and was both shocking and moving , but this full-stage 2-act version brought spectacular imagery and sound to the tragedy. Giles Terera, who took the role of the agitator for justice Olaudah Equiano (an actual 18th Century campaigner who was himself a stolen for slavery as a child) has been working with director Tom Morris for six years to bring this story to the stage. During that time Bristol became a hub for Black Lives Matter protests, culminating in the toppling of the Colston statue to join the bones of the many black slaves drowned there for their insurance money. As a case study of an era when black men and women were simply cargo, and their

killers were prosecuted not for murder but for an insurance scam, this is fascinating, but it's superb as theatrical performance too, shifting from spectacular displays of djembe drumming (Sediki Dembelo, music designer & performer) to dreamlike sequences under the sea, then shifting to eloquent arguments as the legal case is gathering momentum. Paul Higgins is brilliant as Granville Sharp, nearly worn out by his lonely role of opposition to the slave trade, but sharp enough to see the case through.  Jean Chan's stage & costume design enhanced every mood, with wooden planks a powerful link between the scenes whether as ship decks or menacing threats. Images @curtisrichardphotography.

Readers with particular interest in the theatre bits of this blog will find more on Plays International website here, and here 😊 

Moving on now to a group enterprise in environmental awareness:  Poets have been concerned about the damage caused by mankind to the earth's environment since at least 1820, when John Clare published Poems Descriptive of Rural Life and Nature but since COP 26 this concern has become - in the southwest at least - a coordinated effort to create positive change, through raised awareness and informed action. Hot Poets is the result of a collaboration between performance poets Liv Torc and Chris Redmond, supported by a raft of institutions and individuals, and last year they produced a collection of 12 Poems About Saving the World.  Liv and Chris have now taken Hot Poets a stage further, with online workshops to create performance pieces about a chosen environmental project: this week they hosted two readings. At the session on Monday (thank you David Thompson for inviting me!) all of the sixteen poems presented were excellent: impressive in their research, compelling in their message, cleverly crafted, and moving in their delivery. 

The diversity of chosen projects was fascinating, as was the diversity of approaches to crafting a poem: 

Angela Higgs wrote from the future, 'remembering' the transformation of brown-fill sites to solar farms, while Tokoni mourned the sinking islands ('is it home when you can no longer stand on it?') and Jay Farley's marvellous combination of scientific research and clever word play actually managed to convince me that mushrooms can, or at least could, save the world... 

Music spot this week goes to the marvellous Brue River Band, who promised and delivered 'floor-filling funky blues' at the Sun Inn on Saturday - a friendly venue great for atmosphere but not for photos - and Sunday saw quite a lot of people at Rise Community Centre in  Whittox Lane chapel for a fabulous exhibition of wildlife recorded in Easthill, the most ancient of all Frome's undeveloped sites. As well as a large number of screens filled with superb images and fascinating information, there were quizzes to inform and intrigue, cakes and plants for sale, and music to enhance the mood. 

Signing off this week on a personal note: my devoted MacBook, constant companion for the last 7 years, had a heart attack on Thursday and has been dying by degrees. It's currently on a life support system - a new separate keyboard - but requires so many rests, and splutters for words so often, (eg this paragraph has taken 5 minutes) that I've had buy a replacement, on which, hopefully, normal service will eventually be resumed. Massive appreciation to David Goodman, without whose technical - and emotional - support, my MacCrisis would be still unresolved.  Off now to the Proof Pudding book club, for review-sharing and cake.

A dramatic week for personal passions

Sorry, You're Not a Winner, the new play by Samuel Bailey produced by Paines Plough & Theatre Royal Plymouth and currently ending its tour, arrived at Bristol Old Vic for only three nights so unless you live in Newcastle you won't be able to see it now, which is sad because it's absolutely brilliant. The title is an ironic comment on a social setting the writer knows well - but Liam has stepped up, he's got a place at Oxford, moving away from the drab neighbourhood that limits his options, and leaving his best friend Fletch who's too ready-to-be-rough to ever succeed. This 90 minute play is about friendship, lost yet enduring, and how hard it can be when you come from a place where success feels a bit like shame. It's also immensely rich in humour and insights that go beyond social cliches, tightly written, and superbly acted. 

Eddie-Joe Robinson is compelling as the clever lad who doesn't feel comfortable with the Oxford crowd but can't reclaim his home territory; Kyle Rowe is utterly believable as his irrepressibly reprobate home-town 'bestie'.  The storyline focus is so strong that this feels mostly like a two-hander although the lads' women are also very well-played, especially Shannon (Alice Stokoe) with Katja Quist as posh Georgia. Also integral to the production's success is Jesse Jones' tight direction and Lucy Sierra's superbly simple set: an immovable environment where doors both invite and abruptly bar entry. As a social comment on Unequal Britain, this is unarguably convincing; as a drama it's mesmeric.  Images: Steve Tanner.

As a footnote, Sam Bailey won the Papatango Prize with his first play Shook which was released as an online production after plague stopped play on the stage of Southwark Playhouse: you can read my review in this blog Feb 7th last year. 

Back in Frome, the Merlin stage was filled with elaborate costumes from the decadent end-game days of the French 'Ancient Regime' as revived in Frome Drama Club's production of Les Liaison Dangereuses. This version of the epistolary novel by Pierre Choderios de Lacios is from Christopher Hampton: it's all about decadence and deceit, and this production involved fantastic costume and a lot of scene changes - in fact the set-movers were on stage more frequently than several of the characters. It's also a tour-de-force for Laurence Parnell, onstage most of the time as the tirelessly immoral Vicomte de Valmont. Director John Palmer confesses in the programme notes to a longstanding desire to produce this saga of decadence and abuse on a delirious scale in pre-Revolution France.

As a footnote, blatant sexual importuning unexpectedly became topical at the weekend when news broke - on every national media outlet - that Frome's MP is suspended for sexual shenanigans & drug use. And we thought all he did in parliament was abstain!

A very different performance event came to Frome with the first session of Dirty Laundry, an evening of story-telling and poetry at The Three Swans on Wednesday. The brain-child of Olly Davy, a superb raconteur himself, this was a really brilliant event with a wide range of themes and styles offered by the ten performers to an enthusiastic audience - I'm chuffed to have been one of them, and look forward to the next session on May 19th. Here's guest headliner Chris Redmond, currently working with the 'Hot Poets' at "the hopeful end of climate change" with a brief to change the narrative to 'imagine a future we love rather than one we fear.' 

 

The Three Swans upstairs room was also the choice of Vicki Burke, multi-talented musician who plays sax in funky-folk band Flash Harry as well as performing on harp and singing her own compositions: she used all her self-expression talents on Monday at in the launch of her new CD, Beauty in the Beast, a Musical Journey into the Labyrinth. These compositions complement the spiritual journey described in her book, from which Vicki read extracts, supported by violinist Gina Griffin. A well-planned and fascinating event.

Pete Gage, widely admired as a talented musician, became well known as a poet after publishing 44 Poems with Hobnob Press last year, and has followed this with his second collection Gerontius: deeply-felt personal reflections illustrated with atmospheric colour photographs also by Pete. His launch for this collection was at Hunting Raven Books on Thursday, and Pete talked about his influences and his central theme of light and darkness, to an attentive & appreciative audience. He also brought his piano and played some favourite songs that chimed movingly with the themes of his poems: Evening, Motherless Child, and Nobody's Fault But Mine - these links are to live performances by Pete with his band at The Cornerhouse in Frome and The Bell in Bath, but Pete is just as impressive on his own, in a bookshop... We're privileged, in Frome.

Art top spot this week goes to Si Griffiths' exhibition at Spacecraft in Westbury, a wonderful shop selling arty things of all kinds, including guitars handmade by Lucas Vermeeren.  Si's work is in a separate gallery and looks terrific: there are several paintings featuring his iconic clown character, some sinister but most poignant, but a street-art influence is emerging in Si's newer work which is really impressive. This image (right) is one of his largest, and visitors all found it fascinating.

(You can see the painting I bought last year in his 'Sold' gallery - line 8 down, 2nd along, which he has titled Grief but I saw as My Parents' Marriage. So, same thing really.)

And a shout-out to Tony, the kindly bus-driver who generously drove me all the way back to Frome when I'd misread the timetable and there were actually no more buses running beyond Dilton Marsh.... 

Still with paintings: Artists for Ukraine, the new exhibition at Black Swan Round Tower, is showing works donated by over 30 local artists for auction, with all proceeds going to the Town Council's fundraising for Frome’s twin town Rabka-Zdrój in Poland, which is arranging to take in over 500 Ukrainian refugees.  This painting is Freedom and Truth, by Sabrina Rowan Hamilton: There's a wide range of styles and themes, some from very well known names, and the exhibition is showing until 24 April so plenty of time to view and bid - you can see all the art works and bid online here.

And finally: Sunday could not have been more busy, with a Frome Independent - market, that is - in the morning, including the usual busking stage where Back of the Bus drew a large crowd of supporters (and several toddler-dancers) then the brilliant Rosco Shakes at Bar Lotte all afternoon, with a Jazz Jam at the Cornerhouse in the evening... So I'll end with an image of each, and hope you can work out which is which... Good luck everyone with next week's promised snow!

 

Is it springtime yet? Apparently Yes...

Theatre first this week, as a stunning new show jumps on stage at Bristol Old Vic: Wonder Boy, the product of a new concept in collaboration between city's theatre and its schools, also brings new concept to performance by literally visualising the spoken words in a way that's hugely entertaining.

Written by Ross Willis and directed by Sally Cookson, this is a feel-good tale with a familiar scenario - damaged child, wounded healer - but the  edgy, entertaining, script is projected behind the action as well as spoken, a brilliant device that as well as enhancing the show also subtly making visible the point that what we try to say matters and those who can't vocalise are just as vital to society as the articulate. The cast are all superb: Raphel Famotibe plays the chronic stammerer, here with his less-than-helpful superhero alter-ego (Ramesh Meyyappan) and his more sympathetic tutor Miss Wainwright (Amanda Lawrence) There's also a bitchy headteacher, and all are great but best of all is his marvellous friend Roshi (Juliet Agnes), pictured above, with an example of the effective & entertaining script projections which kept up with the action even at the noisiest of moments.  At the end of the 90-minute straight-through show on Thursday's press night the entire audience rose to applaud, and quite right too.  It's on till 26 March, hugely recommended - or watch the livestream!  photos: Steve Tanner

Running concurrently, on the Weston stage, Bristol Old Vic has another excellent production with a very different mood. What Remains of Us is an imagined reunion between an elderly ex-soldier who has made a life in the North Korea since the end of the war and his daughter who remained with rest of his family in the South. This largely-forgotten war, formally ended in 1952 but never resolved, separated thousands of families and there were a few state-organised & supervised reunions arranged. This is one: Seung-Ki re-meets her father, Kwan-Suk after 50 years. This is no rejoining of twin souls: after the initial emotional reconnection, they can barely communicate so rigid is each in the conviction their society is the 'right' one. For nearly 90 minutes, political disagreement seems their only shared language. Much of their struggle to connect is shown in dance and imagined fight sequences (choreographed by Dan Canham) which, with the dislocated fragments of their dialogue, combine to create an extraordinary and powerful performance. Kwong Loke as the initially intransigent father, remeeting his child only because it is his duty, brings an extraordinary emotion to his stilted speech, and Jung Sunn den Hollander as the daughter of his first marriage shares her backstory with poignant passion.  Written by David Lane, Sita Calvert-Ennals' direction ensures that unspoken emotions are the strongest. My only reservation is that it wasn't clear to me whether military personnel were observing them at some times but not always, and whether they were aware of that difference, which would have been an important factor.  But it's a moving production and a reminder that politics like puppies stay with you for life.  (My full reviews for both these plays published in Plays International here.)

While we're still in Bristol, there's an impressive Paula Rego exhibition -free - at the Arnolfini, where three galleries are filled with the artist's prints and commentaries on her themes & techniques. Like Angela Carter this artist is fascinated by feminist themes, and the etchings  & paintings in this collection explore psychological narratives & human dramas. There's more info & an audio link here: "Subversive Stories".

Music now, and Rosco Shakes were again at Bar Lotte on Wednesday evening to entertain a crowded room with their "high-energy jump blues and rock & roll" style of music-making, joined for a couple of numbers by Pete Gage. This event is so popular now that there's barely room for dancing, though we still manage to...

Dancing featured in a big way too at the Red Brick Building in Glastonbury for Friday Night Blues with the Brue River Band, an exciting six-piece band playing electric blues Chicago style, which seems to be more upbeat & funky than Mississippi blues - there's a sample of their style here. 

And more music on Sunday, too,  with the welcome return of live music in Nunney at the Cafe that puts the electronics in Acoustic, and a brilliant afternoon session with a superb young band as main guest: Afraid of the Dark play alternative indie with fluency & style and a wonderful singer, Gwen Sutterby.  Gwen's father Carl, a popular punk/uke player, ended the session.  

After all which excitement, let's finish the week with a glimpse of the river path at Nunney, brimming with snowdrops. Yes, folks, spring is definitely coming...

Decisions and revisions which a ruling will reverse...

Sadly but inevitably, Nunney Acoustic Café - a major music venue just outside Frome -  cancelled their Christmas party this weekend, planned as a 2-day event to celebrate the ending of those months of disappointing restrictions.  Luckily however, although Stalbridge is a bit further away - in fact, over the border in Dorset - in this delightful little village the Guggleton Farm Arts centre has an outdoor concert-hall (ie large yard) with a covered stage. Here on Friday night, eight brilliant acts played and sang under the stars to an appreciative audience, sustained by a bar and fresh-made pizzas, until nearly midnight. Performers included Frome favourites The MellowTones (pictured) and Nunney's Francis Hayden, as well as six other solo acts, a mix of covers and original compositions. 

Of the former, I especially enjoyed the set from Nick Coleman which included a fabulously evocative version of Radiohead's Creep... A really wonderful party-night event, despite the cold. We may need more outdoor events like this as the weeks crawl past on their relentless way.

Meanwhile, Rosco Shakes at Bar Elle on Wednesday will probably be the last indoor gig of the year for me -  a brilliant finale, though, as the lads never fail to deliver fantastic rhythm&bluesy jazz. 

Words now, with the Frome Writers on Radio festive edition now available online from Frome FM: the opening interview with Tina Gaysford-Waller (at 4.45) on her recommendations features local authors published by Hobnob, including poetry from Pete Gage and David Thompson - and her 'high recommendation' of Deja Lu as a 'fantastic collection, the attention to detail is fabulous' had me purring. There's also an excellent interview with John Killah, seen here signing copies of his wild-fire success Struck Off outside Hunting Raven Bookshop. image: John Chandler

On Monday the Black Swan Arts writing group met in the Long Gallery, and with no art (yet) about which to wax lyrical, our leader Sara Morris enterprisingly encouraged us all to write limericks. Here's one from David Thompson:  

The Tory top brass in South Ken

Don't live all that far from Big Ben.

If they want to get canned

While parties are banned,

They drop by refurbed Number 10.

The last Rainbow Fish Speakeasy of the year was on Thursday: these zoomed poetry performance nights hosted by Frome's Liv Tork are inclusive and friendly open mic sessions with a main guest - this time Matt Harvey with a marvellous poem about whales from the recent Hot Poets project - you can click here to hear Matt recreating his wonderful description of the opulent flocculent fecal plumes of whale poo... There was a very different but also thought-provoking contribution too from Frome's David Thompson also on the theme of global awareness and human domination of earth and its creatures.

Also this week, a reminiscence meeting for my first ever local writing group, now in its 20s: the Fromesbury Set had a wonderfully refreshing catchup over wine spritzers at the Archangel in Frome. Our official photographer, Debs, took this selfie snap. Thursday's ongoing weekly writing group involved much sharing & analysis and a fair bit of feasting too (cranberry mince-pies a feature!) with that tang of this-may-be-the-last-time which is in the ether everywhere now... 

And my week concluded with a festive splash of theatre, as Bristol Old Vic has made their 2019 production of A Christmas Carol  free to view online for the rest of December - which, if you consider what other big theatres charge for their screenings, is a rather wonderful present to all their followers.

My blog review at the time enthused about every aspect of this immersive production which, despite the vast number of liberties taken with characters and dialogue, nevertheless stays powerfully true to the spirit of the story: the damage to community caused by money-hoarding and the indifference to others' suffering shown by the wealthy. John Hopkins in the central role of Scrooge is superb throughout, from rage to reconciliations, with a nice line in repartee during audience participation bits. 

Also delightful is the device to bring a child from the audience to remind Ebenezer of the vulnerable child he once was... here's a couple of screen shots to show the range of visuals. Recommended, click the link above!

So as this is my last bulletin before the traditional day of winter celebrations on our small island, I'll leave you with the wonderful musings of J Alfred Prufrock, by courtesy of TS Eliot: click here and enjoy the luxury of mere melancholy, which is something there's little place for in these times.

Drama in the wild: two forests, and a riverbank.

Most of my favourite stories throughout childhood involved small children made unhappy by rejection - The Secret Garden, A Little Princess, and other such classics, all involving ultimate vindication and social acclaim. Bristol Old Vic has found a way to fit a tale of reckless robbers into this satisfying mould with Robin Hood: Legend of the Forgotten Forest, stirring into their novel mixture various fairytale memes and popular songs, to the delight of both children and adults in the audience. When young JJ (played by the most mature member of the cast incidentally) is given a magic book to comfort him, he finds his way into the most unusual version of the traditional story imaginable... and of course, becomes a hero. This festive offering has been devised by the Wardrobe Ensemble so narrative anarchy is guaranteed, though channelling Bryan Adams was a surprise. And there are masses of oblique references to other whacky tales and memorable absurdities - Alice's Wonderland, The Blues Brothers wild quest, BlackAdder, Peter Pan, Boris... in other words, plenty for the adult children in the audience to pick up on and relish. 

 My favourite characters were yuppy Will Scarlet (Tom England) and the very very very wicked Sheriff of Nottingham (James Newton, who was the boxer's girlfriend in The Rocky Horror Show at the Wardrobe Theatre last time I saw him.)  There's a message of hope though, as Robin finally decides "The days of greed are over," and abandons his trip to the Costa Sol to stay and to "fight for an England that is fair, to make our children proud."  Wouldn't that be nice.  Directed by Tom Brennan and Helena Middleton, full cast & credits here, Images are screenshots of the promo.

A dramatic move next night from fantasy forest to rural riverside, for Frome's Merlin Theatre's musical version of Kenneth Graham's famous classic The Wind in the Willows. With three -football-teams-worth of interacting animals, singing/dancing woodland creatures, and a live band, the slick & professional-looking delivery of this production was a tribute to everyone involved, especially director Claudia Pepler. Credit for costumes must go to the 17 dedicated hat/glove/tail and ear constructors: all were delightful with road-hog Toad, resplendent in an amazing pond-weed-colour costume with hair to match, absolutely standout. Huge credit to the dedication and talent of this team.

From theatrical forests and woodlands to the real thing: a visit with my family to Westonbirt Arboretum to wander the paths of the illuminated trees, with occasional interruptions for mulled wine or churros and chocolate...  A balmy evening - and the limited group-number ensured by the organisers - ensured a really lovely experience.

No music to report in this week's edition, as all these theatricals & visuals clashed with Wednesday's jazz and also with Saturday night's double-band bonanza in Frome. But I was back in town by Sunday evening for the final Proof Pudding Club meeting of the year. This reading-group-with-a-difference, conceived and led by Hunting Raven Bookshop manager Tina Gaysford-Waller, reports over coffee & cake in River House Cafe on the proof copies arriving in the shop each month - this time we had mulled wine & mince pies in honour of the season, and a Secret Santa book gift for everyone. Here's Tina's pic of some of the gift-pile as I forgot to take a snap, and to finish this week's bulletin, a look back at Monday night in the Hydeaway, Frome's fabulous 'speakeasy' - cocktails in a converted print shop with fellow writer Nikki Lloyd.

 

Wild wuthering and other fantastic displays

 

FORGET WHAT YOU KNOW, the preview for Wuthering Heights at Bristol Old Vic urges, THIS IS NO PERIOD DRAMA, and director Emma Rice's version of Emily Brontë's gothic fantasy of passion revenge and redemption, enhanced with music, lighting, fights, dance and puppetry, is indeed no ordinary remake. It's spectacularly wonderful, especially in the first act - in fact you could practically leave in the interval: the recovery strand doesn't grip or intrigue as much as the dark themes of child abuse and Bristol's own connection with slave shipping. 

The storytelling follows the original version in that it's all narrated to Mr Lockwood who, after being blown in by spectacular stage effects and set upon by dogs, is curious to know why a ghostly woman comes screaming at his window. Some of the visual devices, like the birds flying past for every death, do effectively enhance the storytelling but the personification of the moor by various cast members with spiky headdresses as a kind of Greek chorus didn't for me create any real sense of its presence or significance. But overall this is an amazing achievement with a superb cast: Lucy McCormick plays a psychotically disturbed Cathy, and Ash Hunter is stoic as abused, vindictive, Heathliff - both with terrific singing voices. Also particularly engaging are Tama Phethean as both the young Earnshaws, Sam Archer as a lissom Linton and Katy Owen as his adorable little sister Isabella. 

This National Theatre, Wise Children, Bristol Old Vic & York Theatre Royal co-production is at BOV until Nov 6 and the last four performances will be streamed online book here - highly recommended. 

(The pic at the top is the end of the first act, as sneaked from my camera - the others are promo shots from the website.)

This has been a theatrical week in other ways too. 

Frome's blackbirds', previously featured on several TV channels and in the Guardian, are preparing for their protest at COP26 and toured the town on market day to raise awareness.  Their message is simple: if the conference doesn't succeed in changing policies, all birds will die and so will the rest of the life on earth.  We're lucky that our town council supports this message, as do many local groups which monitor our river and local wildlife and, encouraged by our Green councillors, take a practical role in cleaning our streets and general environment. So it probably won't surprise you that there was no town-sponsored firework display to mark Halloween: much better than that, we had a drone display over the old Showfield, watched by thousands. This was designed by Frome-based Celestial using a fleet of 256 drones to create glowing coloured images in the sky to a moving soundtrack of poems read by local children, the best civic event since Jenson Button scorched up and down the high street doing donuts in our 2013 festive celebrations. After sensationally reforming in various ooh-ahh images, the display concluded with a love-message to the town that none of us here will forget. And no dog-owners were enraged.

Moving on to less volatile, though also performance-related art now: and an up-coming exhibition at the Gallery at the Station currently in preparation. 

Artist Marian Bruce is know for her powerful figures, often life-size and embodying a sense of mute suffering. Currently, however, her Frome studio is full of the energy & skill of the dancers of Havana, as Marian prepares for In Movement at the Gallery at the Station - an exhibition of drawings & sculpture inspired by her collaboration with Acosta Danza in 2018. Marian was in Cuba as designer for Chris Bruce's production Rooster and became fascinated with the body postures of these flexible dancers. She showed me her initial sketch: "I was sitting in a bar on a warm night sipping a mojito, sea salt on the breeze and music all around, and I picked up a black biro and on the back of a novel I was reading, I drew these, each of them in one continuous line - that's the Zen influence." You can see the stunning result here and the exhibition will be opening next week.

A double helping of splendid music this week: in Bar Lotte on Wednesday evening it was the sensational combination of saxophonist Iain Ballamy joined by Anders Olinder (keyboard) and Henrik Jenson (double bass). All three of these performance giants are also composers, and a fair amount of creative improvising appeared happening throughout their set, which was hugely exciting. 

Also dimly lit - or actually in this case, erratically & with savage smoke-effects - was the mightily-anticipated return of the magnificent Back Wood Redeemers, hosted by The Cornerhouse on Saturday evening. All our favourites were there - Right Thing Wrong, Hold On, Chocolate Jesus, and other irreligious scurrilousness - with the redemptive line-up further enhanced by Sarah Hobbs on loan from the Hoodoos on double bass.  

With a definite feeling around that the window for shared activities may soon be closed, either by legislation or winter wariness, such events are treasure. Ellie and I snuck in another cocktail night on Monday but most connections are outdoors.  I'm constantly careful, using masks & frequent flow tests and opting for a 'safe' performance of Wuthering Heights instead of press night, but as we all know human contact is a vital aspect of maintaining health. Breakfast chat meetings and coffee catchups can all still be outdoors, and the writers of the 'Fromesbury Group' managed a meet-up after a long break, so I'll leave you with the selfie Debs took of her, me, Emily, and Debby at the Archangel. Other pub gardens are available!