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A bit of culture

(19 posts) (8 voices)

Started 1 year ago by Scroat
Latest reply from waylandsmithy

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Aplomb or aplump?

Scroat

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Went to the cinema last night to see a live satellite broadcast of the Royal Ballet's Romeo and Juliet at the Royal Opera House.

It was fantastic. The music, Kenneth MacMillan's interpretation, the performance itself, and the way it was filmed. Absolutely amazing.

And to bring the whole thing up to date, tweets were rolling across the screen in the interval from people watching the same thing live all round the world.

If you get the chance to see this or something similar, it's well worth the £13 or so it costs. James Corden's One Man Two Guvnors was brilliant apparently, if you're not into ballet.

Posted 1 year ago #
Al OPecia

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Yep have seen that advertised at the Cineworld we go to - we'll have to give it a go thanks, shall report back.

Posted 1 year ago #
shitsu_tonka

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Saw it at my local Vue. Fabulous production, very moving.

Scroat speaks wisely, if you've not done the whole live at the cinema thing then it's well worth a go. Plus being a total snob I've noticed that the audiences at these things tend to be far more civilised than the usual texting chattering riff-raff that one normally encounters at the cinema.

Posted 1 year ago #
Scroat

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Glad you liked it Shits.

You get a close up view of all the body language and subtle eye contact stuff that's going on, as well as getting a real insight into how much hard work they put in. Better than being at Covent Garden, in fact. Fantastic costume. And the orchestra is working hard throughout. They certainly earn their money.

And you get to see what's happening backstage.

My God - first Hockney, now this. I'm turning into a culture vulture in my old age.

Posted 1 year ago #
waylandsmithy

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I guess the only problem with a cinema is the performers can't hear you boo.

Posted 1 year ago #
Scroat

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I came close - it was that moving.

Posted 1 year ago #
waylandsmithy

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I think I'd like Romeo and Juliet if it had more napalm in it, or a clever sci-fi twist. And ballet falls into 'musicals' as far as I'm concerned.

I loathe Shakespeare with a passion, I can't get my head round why he's still popular. It's like John Carpenter: ok in his day, but story telling has moved on.

I know this makes me a pleb, but I'm a pleb with integrity! Don't get me started on Thomas Hardy. I dream of the day when resurrection is possible, so I can continually bring him back and kill him for the pain I felt in GCSE English.

Posted 1 year ago #
Golgo13

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I went to a Noh performance once. Sat through three fucking hours!

Top that!

Why did the audience boo the Noh performer?

Because he was shite.

(It's Noh joke)

Posted 1 year ago #
waylandsmithy

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Just yahoo'd 'Noh'. It looks...confusing. Do they ever perform bank heists or car chases?

Posted 1 year ago #
Golgo13

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Noh. They don't.

Posted 1 year ago #
John Ffitch-Rucker

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I suspect that the way to ensure any aspect of culture is eroded is to compulsorily teach it to bored teenagers. It comes to something when Seamus Heaney praises eminem for introducing a generation to poetry that they can understand.

Posted 1 year ago #
Scroat

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I do draw the line at opera though. So that's one satellite broadcast I won't be tempted by.

Posted 1 year ago #
button

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They tried to make me go to Izutsu but I said Noh Noh Noh.

Tried my own Noh joke there, I like the sound of the funny bit inbetween the two long tedious bits.

Posted 1 year ago #
John Ffitch-Rucker

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I draw the line at watercolours.

Posted 1 year ago #
shitsu_tonka

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I love opera. It's so consistently barking mad, it's like having a semi-lucid dream backed by a full orchestra. Rigaletto is being live cinema broadcast next week, very excited.

Don't like 'comic' operas though, sat through a couple and failed to find the mirth. And as for Gilbert and Sullivan *shudders in horror* I'd rather eat my shoes.

Posted 1 year ago #
Scroat

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I'd rather eat your shoes too!

Posted 1 year ago #
beau-jolly

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Well I did enjoy an evening's open air ballet last year.
We managed to get a better table than the pain in the arse millionaire London week-enders. At £120 a pop I wasn't keen but 2 free tickets at the last minute persuaded me. It was at a very grand house nearby. As we knew the groom and the gardener who were helping out, we got VIP treatment. After all the posh folk were settled we were escorted to the table at the front in the middle while thay all watched and wondered who we were and why they didn't know us. The others on the table were some young sloane ranger friends of the organiser, the mother of one of the Russian primas and a charming, down to earth, lady who turned out to be heavily titled and who gave Maddy a luxury spa weekend she had won. Bloody marvelous evening and the very fit young people thrusting themselves around the stage were impressive - It's good to have friends low places.

Posted 1 year ago #
John Ffitch-Rucker

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The ‘Battle’ proms at Burghley House are great; classical music, beer, cavalry charges, gunfire and a Spitfire fly-past. Bliss.

Posted 1 year ago #
waylandsmithy

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Scroat, I think we need to swap usernames.

Posted 1 year ago #

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