Author Archives: Mary Tynan

Karaoke Box Smithfield Review

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Having been asked to review the recently re-launched Karaoke Box Smithfield for Frost Magazine, I duly rounded up a posse and proceeded to check it out on Friday night. After a couple of last-minute cancellations, our group consisted of three musical theatre professionals, two old hands at karaoke, and one “virgin” who had no intention of singing.

The first thing that struck me on arrival was the staff who were friendly, welcoming and helpful, particularly bar manager Paolo Espinosa, who set everything up in the room and showed me how it all works, and Lois Roberts on reception. The second was the venue itself: the bar area was airy and very tastefully decorated, as were the booths which also had interesting lighting systems. On a more prosaic note, the toilets were lovely and clean.

All of our troupe enjoyed the privacy of the booth setting, feeling “quite relaxed as opposed to standing up and singing in a bar,” and our non-singer had lost her virginity within 20 minutes (to Suzi Quatro’s “Can the Can”), saying “as a virgin singer I felt very safe to sing (there).” Another guest loved that the booths allowed separate parties to enjoy themselves without risk of intrusion and the ability to talk and be heard.

The playlist also came in for praise: with over 9,000 songs, everybody found something they knew. The background videos caused some hilarity in our party, with the suicidal goat being the highlight of one person’s night!

The only complaints were about the system itself: a few of the songs were quite badly out of sync; and there seemed to be quite a long wait between songs, even when they were queued up. A key change facility would also be nice, as I believe people who take their karaoke seriously often look for this facility. However, the mikes worked very well; it was very easy to adjust the mix between backing and vocals; and the screen was a very good size.

We were in Room 3, which according to the website is a 14 person room, although I think that would be rather crowded and I wouldn’t personally recommend more than 10 people for comfort. This room costs £70 per hour before 9pm and £98 per hour afterwards. While this seems quite expensive, it doesn’t actually work out to much more per head than people pay for children’s birthday parties or a visit to the cinema.

The bar at Karaoke Box is well stocked, and cocktails and pizzas are both on sale (although we didn’t sample either).

I would recommend Karaoke Box to anyone who seriously enjoys karaoke, as it is much more pleasant that waiting for hours in a crowded bar just to get to sing once or twice. It’s also ideal for birthdays, hen parties, office parties or for anyone who enjoys an activity-based night out. Rooms vary in capacity from 2 to 30 people, and in price from £20 to £210 (for the VIP room) per hour. For more information, visit http://karaokebox.co.uk/smithfield/ or telephone their friendly staff on 020 7329 9991.

Re-examination Pays Dividends

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New Possibilities: Abstract Paintings from the Seventies at the Piper Gallery

This exhibition presents the work of artists whose work became less fashionable during the 1970s with the rise of conceptual and performance art.  While these artists are still working today, most of the work on display is from this period.  This is a very diverse exhibition: all of the artists have very individual styles.  However, a common feature is an attention to craft, precision and formal values in painting.

The range of approaches is very clear when you compare the work of Tess Jaray and Frank Bowling.  Tess’ Alhambra (1979) is deceptively simple at first glance, but closer examination draws the viewer in and reveals the surprising complexity hidden in what you believe to be predictable pattern.  What at first appears to be a repetitive motif, on closer observation shows itself to have complex variation in colour, form and scale.  Frank Bowling’s Rush Green (1977) seems to be more the sum of its parts.  His deployment of paint by pouring it directly onto the canvas and utilising flow may seem haphazard, but on inspection the result is more mysterious.  There appears to be an equivalence with art from the past – for example, Monet’s paintings of the garden at Giverney – sustained attention is rewarded.

William Henderson and Barrie Cook both use a particular vocabulary to produce very different results.  Henderson’s Funky, Black and Catch Me (1978) creates a feeling of depth and jaggedness, with a definite sense of illusionistic space, reminding one of the microscopic world when magnified.  Cook’s Blue, Red and Yellow Grid (1977) is an optical work which plays with the eyes.  It is reminiscent of cathode ray tubes warming up in a old-fashioned television.  There is a richness in the fact that the two paintings, both using repetitive linear forms, can produce such varied results.

Other highlights of the exhibition include Gary Wragg’s Carnival (1977-79), which is driven by the process of drawing; Patricia Poullain’s Untitled (1973), which has a lightness and openness whose accessibility reminds one of a childhood telescope; and finally, Trevor Sutton’s measured, well proportioned That Swing.4.K (1979) combines electric blue and black, demarcated by a delicate green line.  The piece is poised and balanced and seems to be very much of its time.

If you like your paintings to repay prolonged attention, then New Possibilities at the Piper Gallery is definitely worth a visit.

New Possibilities: Abstract Paintings from the Seventies is at The Piper Gallery, 18 Newman Street, W1T 1PE from 16 November to 21 December

Written with Ian MacNaughton

(Pictures courtesy of the artists and The Piper Gallery)

A Tale of two Cities

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Good Vibrations and Spike Island at the London Film Festival

I had great plans for the London film festival, with many press screenings marked out on my diary.  Unfortunately timing was against me, as it turned out to be a very busy period in my other two jobs (acting and teaching), and apart from “A Liar’s Autobiography,” which got cancelled (read the article here), I actually only ended up at two screenings.  But they were good ones.

Good Vibrations

My regular readers (if there are such people) will be aware that I enjoy a bit of music from the 1980s, so I was in a positive frame of mind when I turned up to see Good Vibrations – The Story of Terri Hooley.

For every Richard Branson, there are probably hundreds of Terri Hooleys.  Known as the Godfather of Ulster Punk, Terri was the owner of Good Vibrations record shop and label, was responsible for discovering the Undertones, and encouraged punk and alternative music to flourish during a dark time in Northern Ireland’s history.  I imagine that there were people like him in towns and cities all over the UK and Ireland during the 70s and 80s; running record shops, managing and/or playing in bands organising events.  Do these people ever make a profit in the long run or do their charming mix of naivety and idealism work against them in the end?  Good Vibrations never released a top 40 record, and Terri sold the rights to “Teenage Kicks” for £500 and a signed photo of The Shangri Las (which he never got.)  But that isn’t the point, as this film shows: Terri Hooley made a lot of people very happy, which was in itself no mean feat in Belfast at the height of the troubles.

This was a highly enjoyable film from start to finish.  Richard Dormer made an excellent Terri, and I particularly enjoyed Jodie Whittaker’s performance as his wife.  It’s hard to pick out anyone else as cast lists are not given out at press screening, but everyone performed very well.  It would have been nice to have a few more female characters – maybe some girls who hung around the record shop for instance – but apart from that I completely loved it.  One particularly memorable scene is when an RUC officer is hassling a girl in a bar for suspected underage drinking and Terri comes over and tells him he’d like to report a civil war.  Scenes like these show the bravery of the character as well as the naivety and idealism.

Of course, being a film about music, the soundtrack is a major part of the experience.  Set in a fertile time for Northern Irish music, the tracks chosen add to the energy and exuberance of the story, as obviously does the setting with its air of menace just under the surface.

Go and see this if you’re interested in music, Belfast, or just plain enjoy a good film.

Spike Island

Good Vibrations is a true story about a real man, with a real record shop/label, and the punk scene in Belfast, whereas Spike Island, my second choice of film, is a coming of age drama set in Manchester in the 1990s with the music of the Stone Roses providing more of a secondary theme.  As such it worked well, and the soundtrack (a mix of the Roses and the characters own band, Shadow Caster) added greatly to the ambience and power of the film.  The characters did seem to blend into each other a bit at points, and some of what could have been more potent moments could have been better explained (I was never sure why one boy joined the army for instance).  Having more female characters would have added more variety, and this film does not have the excuse of being a true story as a reason for not doing so.  Teenagers since the 1960s or 1970s onwards generally tend to hang around in groups of both sexes (I did) and the whole male bonding theme seemed to me a little old-fashioned.

That said, the music really lifts everything up, and the festival atmosphere of Spike Island and young love is captured perfectly (leaving aside the dubious morality of deserting your father on his deathbed to go to a Stone Roses concert that you don’t even have tickets for!)

Once again, I am hampered by a lack of a cast list, however everyone concerned gave a very competent performance, with Emilia Clarke standing out in particular.

Go and see this film if you enjoy a good coming of age drama with an excellent soundtrack, or want to recapture your youth!

 

A Liar’s Autobiography

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Anyone who knows me reasonably well will be aware of my penchant for Python (almost to the point of annoyance sometimes to those who don’t share my sense of humour), so, as you can imagine, I was looking forward to this film enormously. Unfortunately, I am still looking forward to it! Due to technical hitches with both the 3d and 2d versions, the press screening failed to take place at the allotted time, and the press conference went ahead with the majority of journalists present (myself included) not having seen the film. Which could be described as just a little bit silly …..
Director Bill Jones described Graham Chapman’s memorial service as the first time he got drunk, and spoke of the film as a way of celebrating Chapman’s life and achievements. Terry Jones spoke of Graham as a complex individual who didn’t really understand himself and who was looking for who he was. Michael Palin described the film as a homage to Graham, and confirmed that it was as close to a Python reunion as we were ever likely to get. Both spoke of Graham’s sense of stillness, and described him as their leading actor. As the press hadn’t seen the film yet, a lot of the questions from the floor were more generally about the Python oeuvre than specifically about the film in question, which led to some interesting reminiscing such as Terry Jones describing smuggling the tapes of Series I out of the BBC to copy on a Phillips VCR before they were destroyed.
The screening has been rescheduled for 4pm this afternoon, but unfortunately one of my other jobs prevents my attending (plug for The Castle at the Lord Stanley in Camden, opening tonight:) but I can tell you that the film uses audio recordings of Graham’s reading of his book, subtitled The Untrue Story of Monty Python’s Graham Chapman, combined with different styles of animation to reflect the different styles of humour, with fourteen different animation studios being involved in the production. Not having seen it yet, I cannot give an informed opinion as to it’s watchability, but with John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Michael Palin and Terry Jones all involved (Terry Jones plays Graham’s mother, apparently), not to mention the late Graham Chapman (as himself) I know I definitely will be giving it a viewing as soon as I get the chance.
And now for something completely different.
A Liar’s Autobiography is showing tonight at 9pm at Leicester Square Empire and on Friday at VUE West End at 3pm as part of the London Film Festival.

Let’s Hear it for the Boys!

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Boylexe, Shadow Lounge, 26 September 2012

Having thoroughly enjoyed Burlexe earlier this year, I was delighted to be invited to the first performance of Howard Wilmot’s latest creation, Boylexe, and see how the boys measured up (so to speak) against the girls.

A 1980s soundtrack is always guaranteed to put a smile on my face, and the resident DJ played us in with some favourites from that decade whilst some of the performers threw shapes to the music (Devoh Bobbie impressed me from the start with his infectious enthusiasm), and when Kele le Roc opened the show with ELO’s hit, Xanadu, I knew I was onto a winner (www.notesfromxanadu.com).  Phil Dzwonkiewicz gave us a teasing taste of what was to come, followed by Randolph Hott, whose suit and tie were soon removed in the first dance of the evening.  We then heard the story of Babette, a boy who ran away to the circus, before Devoh Bobbie took to the stage to the tune of Madonna’s Vogue.  Bobbie’s dancing and acting are both excellent, and his shy-but-cheeky boy act was very well received.

There were many wonderful moments in this show: Mr Mistress’ reverse strip was hilarious, as was Nine Bob Rob’s Playstation, and Phil Dzwonkiewicz made a marvellous transformation from suave to geek.  The monologues tended to be on the humourous side without the edginess that was evident in Burlexe, keeping the mood of the show on a constant upbeat level.  Kele Le Roc was a fantastic hostess, and also showed her acting talent as a drag queen who was, in her own words, “only one nose job away from Janet Jackson.”  Performances from Phil Bedwell, Rob Pryor and Patric Deony also added to the evening’s enjoyment.

So Burlexe or Boylexe?  The boys were funnier, but the girls were sexier.  I’d personally like to see a combined boys and girls show.  Who knows – they may even now be working on it.

Picture by Magnus Arrevad.  For more information about Boylexe, visit www.boylexe.co.uk.

Francis West – Voyages, at the Piper Gallery

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The Piper Gallery, 18 Newman Street, London W1T 1PE
Private View: Thursday 6th September 2012, 6.30 – 8.30pm
Exhibition Dates: Friday 7th September – Friday 5th October 2012

Following the success of its debut show Then and Now in June 2012, The Piper Gallery is proud to present Voyages, an exhibition of work by Francis West. Born in 1936, West spent his childhood in a remote community on the Moray Firth in Scotland often working with his father’s fishing boats.

Some of his earliest visual memories are of tempestuous Scottish seascapes and the exhibition is formed around a series of voyages, centring on the sea cave in West’s Tempestas (1987/2012) where a turbulent wind swells the waves that carry the viewer out to a waiting ship. This belongs to West’s Palimpsests, a pivotal series of large-scale paintings dating from the early 1990s in which he deconstructed several of his earlier acclaimed expressionist pieces through frenzied over-working that sought to disrupt a sense of formal coherence. These came to represent West’s search for new, creative challenges.

Each voyage reflects the artist’s experience of real locations although West frequently employs metaphors of voyaging to explore his practice as an artist. He has described his lifelong commitment to painting and drawing as a challenging and risky quest. Although grounded in reality, West’s concepts remain tantalisingly elusive, blurring the boundaries of myth, dream, memory and experience bringing together the flotsam and jetsam of symbolic forms with fragments from poetry and historic painting. West comments on the emergence of figurative beings in this exchange, saying ‘sometimes I am surprised that these acts of deconstruction will pause around a formation which is reminiscent of a specific memory’. His often hybrid human-animal personae, reminiscent of Goya and Bacon, are suspended in a state of transition as West submits them to a process of mutation and erasure where they concurrently materialise and dissolve from the viewer’s vision.

This exhibition offers the viewer the opportunity to explore West’s voyages through several different series of work – some, as above, provide the adrenalin of fishing on a rough sea while others, of his recent Méditerranée series, with their limpid washes of pastel blues and aquamarine, afford the calm of sun-drenched beaches. These works intoxicate viewers, transporting them to the South of France with the reveries of Pierre Bonnard and the poetic pulses of André Gide. West also invokes a female entourage of enchantresses including characters reminiscent of Venus Rising, goddesses, sirens and Picasso’s Bathers.

Other works ensue from trips to the Mojave Desert or, like the Nocturnes, emerge from imagined dreamscapes in West’s Paris studio. Nocturnes are some of his most radical works, representing an internal voyage to the uncharted recesses of the subconscious. They depict an imaginary realm of unexplored forests and caverns which establish fertile womb-like habitats of grotesque flora and fauna.

Gallery Founder and Director Megan Piper says ‘This, our first solo show, gives us the opportunity to explore voyages, a theme pertinent to the ethos of the gallery. It’s exciting to be able to present a lesser-known artist whose recent work is energetic and fresh and whose maturity and experience means that he is able to explore the theme in a way a young artist would never be able to.’

Francis West – Voyages
Friday 7th September – Friday 5th October 2012
The Piper Gallery 18 Newman Street, London W1T 1PE
www.thepipergallery.com, www.twitter.com/thepipergallery
020 7148 0350

Opening Hours Tuesday-Saturday, 10am – 6pm
At other times by appointment

Admission Free

How to get there: The Piper Gallery is located on Newman Street. The nearest underground stations are Tottenham Court Road (on the Central and Northern lines), Oxford Circus Street (on the Bakerloo, Central and Victoria line) and Goodge Street (on the Northern line). The nearest rail station is London Euston.

 

‘Re:Define’, The MTV Staying Alive Foundation’s Aids Benefit Art Exhibition And Auction, Returns To Dallas

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Free Public Exhibition from Thursday 13th – Friday 21st September 2012
VIP Gala Auction to Take Place on Saturday 22nd September 2012
The MTV Staying Alive Foundation has today announced that its flagship RE:DEFINE benefit art exhibition and auction will return to Dallas in 2012.

Hosted at The Goss-Michael Foundation and chaired by Jessica Olsson and Anna-Sophia Van Zweden, the free public exhibition will launch on Thursday 13th September 2012, culminating in the VIP gala auction on the evening of Saturday 22nd September 2012. All money raised will go towards the Foundation’s work empowering young people engaged in fighting the stigma, spread and threat of the HIV and AIDS epidemic through inspiring grantee projects around the world.

Debuting in September 2011 to mark the 30th anniversary of AIDS, the sold-out VIP event raised over $700,000 for the charity, with original works of art from 30 prominent international artists including Damien Hirst, Tracey Emin, Harland Miller and Shepard Fairey, as well as an electrifying live performance from The Boxer Rebellion.

Curated once again by The Future Tense, confirmed artists for 2012 include Michael Craig-Martin, Gérard Rancinan, Ryan McGinness, Ralf Kaspers, Jim Houser, Mat Collishaw, Ryan Gander, Charming Baker, Tomokazu Matsuyama, Chuck Elliott, James Hugonin and Jen Stark.

The accompanying silent auction features exclusive luxury packages including a bespoke furniture piece from 2011 Designer of the Year award winner, Lee Broom, a VIP package to the launch of Stella McCartney’s new collection in New York, a unique series of art-inspired jewellery by Royal Asscher and a private concert orchestrated by Musical America’s ‘Conductor of the Year 2012’, Jaap Van Zweden.

In keeping with the inclusive nature of the event, the free public exhibition will include curator tours, previews and artist talks, and a major public art installation in Dallas by emerging British artist, Lee Baker. The VIP gala reception will feature an auction of key lots led by Phillips de Pury chairman, Simon de Pury, a painting performance by artist Dave White and an exciting live music act. Those unable to attend the auction in person will be able to place absentee bids via the Internet or telephone – please visit www.mtvredefine.com for more information.

“After last year’s incredibly successful inaugural event, we are thrilled to come back and partner once again with such renowned artists from around the world in support of the Foundation,” said Georgia Arnold, Executive Director of The MTV Staying Alive Foundation. “Their enormous generosity and contribution will help us to continue to empower young people who are dedicated to fighting the stigma, spread and threat of the epidemic for many years to come. We are truly thankful for this.”

Support for RE:DEFINE 2012 comes from a range of premium partners including headline sponsor, The Joule Hotel, event sponsor Neiman Marcus, media sponsor D Magazine, luxury spirits sponsor Belvedere Vodka and gift bag sponsor IC Berlin.

“Headington Companies on behalf of The Joule hotel are both excited and honoured to be the title sponsors of MTV’s 2012 RE:DEFINE event in partnership with The Future Tense and The Goss-Michael Foundation,” said Michael Tregoning, CFO of Headington Companies. “Not only is the mission of MTV’s Staying Alive foundation one that we find deeply compelling, but it also provides us the opportunity to work with the extraordinarily talented people at all three organizations.”

With Your Hands You Clap Clap Clap!

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Co-opera Co presents Hansel and Gretel at John McIntosh Arts Centre

I thought I wasn’t familiar with this opera before last night: as a child studying music, Humperdinck was not one of the composers I learnt about, and I’m afraid I encountered the music of the 1960s Englebert before I realised he was named after an eminent musical predecessor.   However, upon hearing that I was attending Hansel and Gretel that evening, a colleague advised me that I would recognise lots of songs from my childhood.  He was right, the aria which provides the title of this piece being but one of them (I have been singing it all day).  This, of course, added a lovely sense of recognition to my enjoyment of the evening.

The action was initially set in 1950s Britain, but later seemed to move forward in time; with the witch using an overhead projector and a camera vintage 70s or 80s, and marking the contents of her fridge “Best Before 2013.”  The set was broadly based around the mother’s washing business, and some of the garments from the washing line were used as Chinese lanterns at the end of the story to great effect.

Musically, this was of a high standard, starting with the orchestra (conducted by Stephen Higgins), whose overture set the tone for the night, being both beautiful and haunting.  There was no chorus, so the production was the work of only five singers (mother doubling with witch).  All five gave excellent vocal performances, with Rahel Moore’s Sandman being particularly evocative.

The show was very well choreographed, and the cast’s movement skills were wonderful, especially Carris Jones drag queen witch, and Gretel’s jerky puppet steps.  Lone man Stephen John Svanholm played the exuberant, drunken father very well, and Susanne Holmes portrayed Hansel with all the exuberance of boyhood.  With such a tight cast and consistent performance, it is difficult to pick out a favourite, but personally I was particularly impressed by Llio Evans (Gretel).

When an adult woman plays a small child, there is a very real danger of her ending up looking like Baby Jane.  The audience had nothing to worry about on that score, however, as Llio’s physicality perfectly captured that of a little girl.  The way she stood, walked, moved her arms, and her facial expressions were all ideally calculated to convey Gretel’s emotions (her terror in the forest at night is a good example).  Her singing was consistently skilful and accomplised: I especially enjoyed her opening aria of Act II.

All in all, Co-opera Co have done a marvellous job with Hansel and Gretel, and much credit is due to director James Bonas, working with the company for the first time.  As he said when I interviewed him prior to the performance, (Hansel and Gretel is) “an absurdly brilliant opera.  It’s full of music so delicious you want to eat it and it’s joyfully short but densely written so that it’s packed with action.”  The same can be said for this production.

Hansel and Gretel, along with Don Giovanni and The Magic Flute will now go on a nationwide tour.  For more information, please visit www.co-opera-co.org.