Shakespeare and Stuff

After Alice Roberts and Neil Jordan, my day of Bath Lit. Fest. on Saturday continued with their 'Shakespeare Gala', which I saw with my friend T.

The brochure wasn't very detailed, so I was not sure what to expect.

The first half of the evening was series of short scenes presented by The Salon Collective , who explained that the scenes were prepared for in the way that actors in Shakespeare's own day would have received them: each actor being given only their own lines, and the 'cue word' -the last word of the preceding speaker's line, so they do not necessarily know what the scene is about or who else is involved.

The scenes they performed were all Shakespearean, mainly linking scenes, so we had Emilia helping Desdemona prepare for bed, rather than a big confrontation between Othello and Desdemona.

It was interesting, although not as much fun as I had hoped.

There was then an extremely long interval, and I think a lot of people left  during the interval,as there seemed to be a lot of empty seats for the second half. Which is a shame, as the second event was a lot of fun!

It was a largely improvised performance, based on suggestions as to style and content from the audience, and performed in extempore Shakespearean verse. Our show was a late comedy, entitled 'The Wives of Bath' and involving  mistaken identity, lechery, treachery, and just a soupcon of history, all interspersed with occasional pauses for the artists to explain the rhyme schemes they were using.

It was very, very clever, and enormous fun.

Celts and others

It's the Bath Festival of Literature again, and so far, the events I've been to have been excellent.

The first was a talk by Dr Alice Roberts, about the Celts.  I had watched the programme which she and Neil Oliver made for the BBC, which was shown last November - its a fascinating subject; so much is known, but also there are so many things which are not known, and cannot be known.

Prof. Alice Roberts

Dr Roberts is an excellent speaker, and her enthusiasm is infectious. She is not, herself an archaeologist; she is an anatomist, and is currently Professor of Public Engagement in Science, at Birmingham University.

She explained the uncertainties about the origins of the Celts (hint: not where you thought) , and the fact that certain things we think we know (such as druids and human sacrifice, and Celtic warriors taking heads) seem to come from just one (Roman) source, with no confirmation..

She talked about some recent discoveries in Germany, and the quality of the work being done there, and waxed enthusiastic about proofs of decapitation.!

It was very interesting, and although I didn't buy a copy of her book then and there,I may yet succumb! (It's a big, glossy, physically heavy hardback)

After this event, my friend T and I indulged in tea and cakes, and a visit to Mr B's Emporium of reading Delights, where I was very restrained about the number of books I bought, then, after a little more shopping, I headed to the Masonic Hall, to hear Neil Jordan interviewed about his most recent novel, The Drowned Detective.  

Neil Jordan. 

I have to admit that I have not read any of his books, I was aware of him as the director of films such as The Crying Game, Michael Collins, and Interview with the Vampire. However, I enjoyed hearing him talk about the new book, which is a detective story about relationships, and memories, and a touch of the supernatural, set in an unidentified eastern European country.. it sounds intriguing.

He also spoke about the respect writers have in Ireland, about how he 'drifted' into becoming a director, a little about Interview with the Vampire. I'd have loved the chance to sit down with him for a chat - he's the sort of person who it would be interesting to get to know him better. And I have bought one of the earlier books to get started!

Marmalade

I posted a couple of weeks ago about making this year's first batch of marmalade - I have now worked my way through all 8lbs (or so) of oranges, and have an impressive-looking stock of jars full of marmalade, like bottled sunshine.

A chance thought as I was enjoying a glass of gin and tonic led me to ponder the possibility of using other kinds of citrus fruit, limes in particular. 

Which resulted in me making 2 small batches of lime marmalade, one lime with Gin and Tonic, and the other Mojito - lime with fresh mint and rum.

I think they worked out reasonably well. 

Marmalade harvest

I have, I think, ended up with a little more than 15lbs of orange marmalade, and around a pound of each variety of lime marmalade. I shall not, of course, be eating it all myself, but will be giving or sending jars to various friends and family members (postage charges permitting) 

I may also use some in baking - chocolate and orange cupcakes,perhaps. . .

Wind and Weather

As an English person I am, of course, accustomed to talking about the weather, and am also familiar with the fact that people who live in places which have real extremes of weather mock us for thinking we have extreme weather...

But this week was pretty exciting . ..

We've had some very wild and windy weather.

Storm Imogen hit the UK, and while we weren't in the worst hit areas, we were forecast to have winds gusting at up to 62 mph, and while I don't have a weather station on my roof so can't be sure, I suspect we got them - it was certainly very wild and noisy,and there were a lot of floods, although fortunately none which directly affected me, although a couple of colleagues had to make detours around fallen trees and blocked roads.

Things have calmed down a little now, but it's still breezy and wet. Although we have had one very bright and frosty morning.

Blood and Farce

On Friday evening I went to give blood. I nearly didn't, as I had forgotten the appointment (which was later than I normally go), but I did make it.

They were very busy, so the wait was longer than usual, too (Apparently Management has decided that you can fit more appointments into an hour, with predictable results)

All of which meant that it was about 6.45 before I started my donation. All went smoothly until right at the end, when (probably because it was about an hour and a half later than I usually donate, and I hadn't yet had supper) I felt very slightly woozy just as they took the needle out.

So, I mentioned this, and they tilted the chair down so my feet were up and my head down..t which point the farcial element began. You see, the chairs evidently have some kind of catch or clip to hold them in place when they are moved to sit you with your feet up and head down, but mine was either faulty, or (more likely) the nurse couldn't quite reach the catch while simultaneously keeping pressure on my arm where she's just taken the needle out. And, as it turned out, the chairs must be designed to default to an upright-ish position, as it kept swinging back up... The nurse kept pushing it back down, it swung up.

At this stage I was (a) feeling entirely non-woozy (b) starting to get the giggles and (c) beginning to wonder whether sea-sickness was going to set in and (d) protesting that actually, I feel absolutely fine now, and would like to get up and have my free chocolate biscuit, please.

Which they let me do, in the end.

Anyway, all's well that ends well - they got my blood, I got my chocolate biscuit.

And, all joking aside, if you're eligible, do consider registering as a donor, or donating. Wonky chairs aside, it's pretty quick, and painless, and there can't be many easier ways to help save a life. 

If you're in the UK, you can sign up, or find more information  here.

Reader, She Married Him.

On Saturday evening, I went to Bristol, to visit the Old Vic Theatre to see their production of 'Jane Eyre', which is now back in Bristol (where it began) after a season in London.

It's a long time since I have been to the Old Vic. I used, with a friend, to go fairly regularly, and saw my first Hamlet (Iain Glen) there in 1991. 

It is a lovely little theatre, and has the distinction of being the longest continuously-running theatre in the country, having first opened in 1766 (and thus celebrating it's 250th anniversary this year), and has recently been renovated.

Although the theatre is old, this production of Jane Eyre is new - and very good.

It has a small cast, so everyone, except Madeleine Worrall (Jane) and Melanie Marshall (Bertha Rochester) plays multiple roles - this does lead to one or two distracting moments (Lowood Institute turns out to have several remarkably hirsute and deep-voiced orphan girls, for instance)



I thought it was a really imaginative adaptation. I had some reservations about the number of ladders involved in the set, and would have liked the sub-plot about Jane's inheritance to have been left in,as that does emphasise that Jane has a real choice, between returning to Mr Rochester, marrying St John, or remaining unmarried and financially independent, but of course there is a limit to how much you can squeeze in to a 3 hour play!

I shall be looking out for more work from Sally Cookson, the director,and from the cast. 

A visit to Wells, and a glimpse of the past

Although I am not a churchgoer, I love the buildings, and the music, and the poetry of the book of  common prayer. I often pop into the Cathedral when I go to Wells, and last weekend was no different.

In January each year, the cathedral removes all the seats from the Nave, to allow it to be seen in all its uncluttered glory, and to give an idea of what it may have felt like when it was new, back in 1348 when the Scissor Arches were built.

Although of course it would have been much less austere in those days, before the reformation and then the Roundheads whitewashed over or removed all of the frescos and gilding and other decoration.

I was lucky that it was also nearly empty when I went in, so I got the full effect. It's beautiful. 

I'm also looking forward to seeing it soon, on screen, when the BBC screens the second 'Hollow Crown' plays - some parts of Richard III, which stars Benedict Cumberbatch and Judi Dench, among other,  were filmed at Wells, and the cathedral appears (very recognisably) in the trailer which has just been released.

It's an amazing building.

Oranges, and things

I was supposed to have guests this weekend but sadly they had to cancel, but I have been keeping busy, never the less.

It is marmalade season once again, so I have been shopping, and bought about 6lbs of Seville oranges with a view to making an initial batch or two of marmalade.

It's a couple of years since I have made any - two years ago I was preparing to move house, and had people viewing the house a lot (and I decided that it wasn't really practical to also move loads of jars of marmalade). 

Last year I didn't organise myself to do the thing properly and ended up making a small batch using a tin  of pre-prepared orange pulp and peel (which, it has to be admitted, works pretty well, but isn't quite the same, and doesn't, at least if you are me, give quite the same sense of achievement!

So this year I am back to doing it the old-fashioned way. 

The problem with the old-fashioned way, of course,  is that it does take a long time. Particularly the part where you have to chop orange peel into tiny pieces. (I'm limited, in the size of the batch I can make,  by the size of my largest pan, so I'm only using 2lbs of oranges at a time. However, juicing and chopping 9 oranges (and one lemon) takes time!

However, once that's done, you get to spend the next two hours with the lovely scent of simmering oranges pervading the house!

Then comes the exciting bit of adding lots of sugar, and finding out whether you have misjudged the size of your pan and the extent to which boiling sugar expands... 

And a little after that you get to put the marmalade into jars and to admire that beautiful orange-gold colour.

This original batch has yielded about 5.5lbs of marmalade, and I still have about 4lbs of oranges, so should be able to make a couple more batches, when I get time. Meanwhile, my toast-covering needs for the next few months are sorted, and I should be able to share the orangey goodness with my friends.

Less Exciting Times

I know that if you only know me through this blog, you might think I lead a very exciting life, constantly out at the theatre etc.

I am fortunate that I get to see a lot of good stuff, but it isn't like that all the time, it's just that I tend to assume that people don't really want to hear about the every day stuff, so I normally only blog when something exciting happens!

This past week, and  weekend, for instance, I have been at home, and at work, with nothing of great moment happening. I have seen clients, been to meetings, done laundry and housework.

On Saturday I  met up with the neighbour who lives 1/4 of a mile down the road, and who has agreed that I can keep bees on her land (she owns a big piece of land behind her house, and bordering a couple of fields, which, unlike my garden, is large enough that the bees will be well away from her house, from the main bit of her garden, and from any neighbours) 

Following on from that, I have taken the plunge and have ordered a flat pack hive (which no doubt I will be putting together over the next couple of weekends) and paid a deposit for a nucleus of bees, which I should be able to collect when they are ready, in April of May. 

I've been reading - mostly re-reading some of my favourite Georgette Heyer books, as I have recently unpacked the box they have been in for the past 2 years, and as they are relaxing and require little effort. (although I have discovered that, inexplicably, my copy of 'the Convenient Marriage' seems to be missing, and that my copy of 'Cotillion' has died, and is no longer a book, but simply a collection of individual pages )

I'm also part way through Philippa Gregory's 'The White Queen' which I suspect I bought with the intention of giving it to someone for Christmas, but then forgot about, so now I'm keeping (and reading) it.

I've also been doing a  little bit of non-fiction, around the Plantagenets, and the Wars of the Roses. I do wish that Royal and Aristocratic houses of medieval England had been more considerate of future historians, and used a little more variety in naming their eldest sons, so that it was easier to keep track of *which* Richard, Duke of York is being talked about, for example. . .

Having just seen Richard II I was moved to look up Aumerle, to see whether he was a real, historical character, and whether there was any / much truth in how he was presented by Shakespeare. I was  surprised to learn that not only was he a real person, but he is the same real person who, as the Duke of York, was killed at Agincourt (both in real life and in Shakespeare's play). 

And as well as reading and housework, I've done some cooking (braised beef. Marinaded for 24 hours, then cooked slowly for about 4 hours. It was very nice) and a little tiny bit of gardening, planting out some bulbs between rain showers.

And, following the very sad news of Alan RIckman's death, I also spent some time watching some of his work, and listening to that amazing voice.

Not a thrilling weekend, but restful, and quietly satisfying.

Another Good Weekend - Part 2 : Friends and Food and Fun Stuff

After spending last Saturday at the Barbican, (and having a longer-than-usual journey back, as the train I caught home was allowed to leave Paddington despite being faulty, and only limped as far as Reading, where we all had to wait on a cold platform and then catch another, later train to complete the journey) I was a little knackered, but not too much to enjoy seeing my friend A, who came to send the day and to take me out to see Henry Rollins in Bristol on Sunday evening.

We spent most of the day and evening talking and catching up, some of that time spent at the Pony and Trap in Chew Magna, which is a a gastro-pub with a Michelin star, and which provided us with a  delicious 3-course meal.(consisting, for me, of mussels,followed by a glorious piece of beef, and finally a 'Sticky Ale Pudding with salted caramel sauce and Stout Ice Cream'  which was a deliciously grown-up version of parkin, and just the thing for a damp and chilly Sunday afternoon.

Then in the evening we headed into Bristol, to see Henry Rollins at St George's. 

A had booked the tickets, and invited me to come, ages ago, and I have to admit that I hadn't previously heard of Henry Rollins, and had very little idea what to expect.

In the event, I had a really good time, really enjoyed Rollins' performance (and I was very impressed that he spoke for about 2 and a half hours without so much as a glass of water!

He covered topics as wide ranging as conservation and penguin shit, (he has recently returned from a trip to Antarctica), the late Lemmy (of Motörhead) who was a friend of his, politics, music and finding other people who share your particular brand of weirdness.

He's very, very good.

All in all, a very enjoyable day!

Another good weekend - Part 1 - Cabbages and Kings

Last week was the first full week back to work after the Christmas Break. The downside of New Year's Eve being on Friday is of course that you then have a full week as the first week back - no gentle easing into back into work!

The week went reasonably well, and then I had a busy and fun weekend.

On Saturday (9th) I  had another day trip to London for another matinee, at the Barbican, to see David Tennant as Richard II. This is showing as part of the RSC's 'Great Cycle of Kings', comprising Richard II, Henry IV Parts I and II, and Henry V. They were originally produces by the RSC in Stratford in 2013 (which was when I originally saw Richard II (blogged about it here), then in late 2014 I saw Henry IV Part I when it was broadcast live to cinemas, and Part II when it came to Bath on tour (blogged here). The RSC have now repeated the productions, with many of the same key cast members.

I booked myself a ticket on impulse, as I rather liked the idea of seeing the play, and Mr Tennant, again. And needing just a single ticket was able to get one in the stalls, so was hopeful that  I would have a better view than the first time round!

It's a good production - David Tennant is, as expected, excellent. Unlikeable, during much of the play, of course:  Richard, at least as as painted by Shakespeare, is not a terribly attractive or likeable character, and  this production emphasises his basic unsuitability to be a medieval king. Despite that, he evokes a good deal of sympathy as he is, quite clearly, his own worst enemy (despite the stiff competition). 

There were some changes to the cast from last time I saw the production - Bolingbroke, John of Gaunt and Aumerle have all changed, as has the Queen, which made it all the more interesting.

I particularly enjoyed Jasper Britton's Bolingbroke. I think he is my new favourite usurper. (Even if he did break the Barbican stage a little bit)

I was a little underwhelmed by John of Gaunt (Julian Glover) in the 'Scepter'd Isle' speech: it came across as querulous,  which for me meant it lost much of its power, although Gaunt's other scenes were very strong.

And the set and lighting are excellent -the backdrops are projected onto metal curtains which is very effective (and there's a small section, in the foyer, so you can see how it works, and, if you are a small child, run through the curtains creating ghosts on the wall behind!)

There are trumpeters, and a small chorus singing Latin anthems where appropriate (And dressed in blue, a la Wilton Diptych, for the abdication scene, which I don't recall from the Stratford production, although it may simply be that they were not visible from our seats)

Oh, and Mr Britton's damage to the Barbican? During Bolingbroke's conversation with his father, following his banishment, (wherein John of Gaunt encourages him to think of it as a 6-year holiday, and to make lemonade out of the lemons life has given him, and Bolingbroke points out that that's all very well, but that he doesn't like Abroad, as it's full of foreigners and you can't get a decent cup of tea anywhere  (I'm paraphrasing slightly) 

Bolingbroke is, understandably, feeling a little miffed, and stompy, and in stomping upon the stage dislodged a long strip of edging which fell off entirely. Those on stage impressively refrained from laughing.. it was serendipitous that Bolingbroke's next line was ;"Where'er I wander, boast of this I can..."  which Britton made the most of! (and Tennant, behind him on stage, as he exited slipped in a quick 'I'm watching you' mime...)

So, the final verdict ? An excellent production. Well worth seeing.  

New Year, and a Winter's Tale

Happy New Year - a little late, perhaps, as we are 10 days into the  year, but it's my first post this year, so why not!

My parents visited for Christmas, but went home for New Year, so I had a quiet evening in, but then made a day trip to London on 2nd January, so see a matinee of 'The Winter's Tale'  at the Garrick Theatre.

It was a real treat, with Judi Dench (as Paulina) being particularly good. I was a little less enthused at Branagh's Leontes   - I have not seen the play before,so I am not entirely sure whether this is down to the play or the actor - Leontes' behaviour is irrational even for a Shakespearean character, and if you are looking for crazy jealousy I think he (Shakespeare) did it better in Othello!

Hadley Fraser made a convincing Polixenes, particularly during the scenes in which  he learns   that his best and oldest friend is prepared to have him murdered on a mere suspicion. I would have liked to see him in a bigger role however - it might be fun to see him and Branagh switch roles, for instance.

But Judi Dench undoubtedly had the meatiest role, as the older woman prepared to speak out on behalf of the wrongfully accused Queen, even at the risk of her own life. She's great!

Well worth seeing. (And it has been broadcast live to cinemas, so will probably be repeated in future, if you want to see it and don't have the opportunity to get to London)