The Curious Incident of the Dog in the night time – the play

If you love the book as I do – you will probably like the play as much as I do too!

I bought myself a birthday present and hoped this fantastic book translated well to stage. And it did! The cast was fantastic, it had great stage design and the story worked very well. Very recommended if you are in London!

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A week of Wows

Despite the job hunting going like wading through ever in thickness increasing mud, I had a week of wows. I witnessed beautiful things that really made me stop and say “Wow”.

Dan and Hugh


The first WOW was Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman, Thursday a week ago exactly. I already wrote about that here, so I will spare you any further remarks. Clearly they have the wow factor. For obvious reasons.

Tim Burton Exhibition – Moma, New York


On Monday I visited the Tim Burton exhibitions in the museum of Modern Art (Moma) in New York. It was great. I am a big fan of Tim Burton’s film work and have seen most of his films. He has a very distinctive style and the exhibition showed a lot of film props from his films, models, drawings and paintings by Tim Burton. It was great to see some of the models used in stop motion productions (The Nightmare of Christmas, The Corpse Bride). Sketches of what the hands of Edward Scissorhands should look like and more. It is amazing what a creative and weird brain this man has. Very enjoyable and wow if you are a fan.

My favourite Tim Burton films: Big Fish and Edward Scissorhands. I also quite liked Sweeney Todd and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and can’t wait for his take on Alice in Wonderland (the trailer with Johnny Depp looks amazing).

You can read more about the Tim Burton exhibition here, and also have a look at some videos. The photo above is the only photo we were allowed to take, a Tim Burton designed inflatable in the entrance area of the museum.

Do you like Tim Burton’s work and what are your favourite Burton films?

Snow Patrol in the Royal Albert Hall

And yesterday there was Snow Patrol in the Royal Albert Hall. I admit that I was quite late in discovering Snow Patrol but better late than never. The Royal Albert Hall is a fantastic place for concerts and Snow Patrol made good use of the hall’s possibilities. They even used the amazingly huge Albert Hall organ in one of their songs. They had a lot of musicians with them on stage (I counted 15 people at some point!), strikers, a horns sections, a harpist, and lots more and also had an amazing light show.

They played most of the songs from their latest Up to Now – The Best Of album. The first half was dedicated to the more quiet numbers (Run played with the violinists made me cry, as did the thousands of people singing along to it, fantastic atmosphere). And the second half was more rock ‘n roll and people got out of their comfy seats. It was an amazing experience.

The concerts are filmed for a later to be published Live DVD.

Some of my favourite Snow Patrol songs:

And some others:
Chasing Cars
Run
Take Back the City

Do you know Snow Patrol and what are your favourites?

Oh and a final Wow !! for all those people who have signed up for the non-xmas-card thingy. You can still signup if you haven’t done so and I better start drawing soon!

Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman in A Steady Rain, New York

Now this was bound to be a magical evening and it was. I am not sure if it was the fantastic well acted and intense play that this is, or if it was the two leads auctioning off their shirts at the end of the show. Tough choice!

It was a challenge to get a decent ticket for this. Not the least because Ticketmaster (the ticket company selling the tickets) gives American Express creditcard holders a chance to buy tickets one week before all others. A very irritating gesture for all other people wanting to have a ticket.

So at the day the left over tickets became available I went to through all performance days until I found a ticket that wasn’t in the back of the theatre. And I fond one, for the 19th of November.

Needless to say that tickets for this show are immensely popular (when will you ever have a chance to see James Bond and Wolverine on stage together again?). And while it seemed that most of the Americans seemed to be there for Hugh Jackman, I certainly had nothing against watching Daniel Craig too.

Both actors played Chicago cops, best friends, in good and in very bad. It was a very naked staged, two chairs, a little bit of background and one and a half hour of intense acting. (There wasn’t an interval, which was great).

I admit that I was just interested to see those two men without really caring about the play – but the play was absolutely gripping. It took a little time to get used to the Chicago accents with which both actors speak, and it did take a little more time to get used to Daniel Craig’s moustache, but I was drawn into this intense story very quickly and forgot all about insignificant details like that.

All I can say is that if you are lucky enough to have scored a ticket, you have something to look forward too.

When I saw Bill Nighy in the Music Box theatre in 2007 (which was just opposite the Schoenfeld theatre as you can see on the photo), after the play the actors would come out and sign tickets and Playbill programs. I can only imagine the mess it would create if Craig and Jackman would do this. They were fully aware of this too, and decided to use their stardom to support charity. This meant that you could buy signed posters and Playbills in stead (for quite a spicey price I must say), and to raise even more money, they took off their outer shirt (big approval from the audience!) and offered to sell their under shirt to the public. The shirt would be signed, and you would have a chance to briefly meet them backstage. The two shirts went for $12000!

Life is good in New York. A little bit of (steady) rain yesterday (nothing more than appropriate) but today the sun is out. I am just checking the latest emails, try to not be too worried that there aren’t any concrete job related ones, and then I am off to Coney Island for some sun, sea and fresh air.

Have a nice weekend!

What to do in London

Bill, Bill and Priscill
First an update from the moving front:

I had planned to meet quite a lot of people tonight who wanted to have a look at the two rooms available in my current flat, but I fear that the planned tube strike from 7pm tonight might mess things up a bit. Just when I started to worry about that, my Italian landlord called, he is currently in the UK and said he was in no hurry at all to get the rooms filled. So I guess that means I will stop looking and he can sort it out himself. Which is good news – no more effort required from me then, me thinks.

My IKEA sofa bed has been sold and will be picked up on the 28th of June.

I sent 2 letters of recommendation to my new landlord for my approval (should not be a problem at all according to Angus)
I have ordered moving boxes and will start packing soon.
I need:
to find a reliable man with a van who can move the boxes to the new place on the 1st of July.
to sort out a Royal Mail auto mail redirection for my post
to quit all bills and send a change of address to a long list of companies

Moving date still set for the 1st of July which is 22 days from now. It can’t go fast enough for me.

This weekend I had my good friend over and we have been enjoying London. Here are some things that we can highly recommend:

  • Last Chance Harvey with Dustin Hoffman and Emma Thompson. Decent chick flick rom (and a bit of com) and recommended. Out now.
  • Yeah it is still on, so we couldn’t help ourselves.
  • We visited the Camden Stables (market). I had been to Camden before but I never made it to the stables section and we liked it. They also have a very nice area where you can sit down with your coffee and get something to eat from one of the many food stalls around. We opted for a pancake with nutella/banana. Not bad we can tell you!
  • We saw Priscilla Queen of the Desert – the musical And can be short about this: go see it! It was fantastic, great music, fantastic cast and an evening full of fun. An absolute joy to watch.
  • On Sunday we went to see immensely mad, crazy, hilariously funny Bill Bailey in the Riverside Studios. He did two tryouts in London before going on tour in the rest of the UK and I laughed my socks off. He is so funny. Catch him if he comes to a place near you.
  • We also enjoyed the view from Parliament Hill (Hampstead Heath), had a coffee in the cafe with the most incapable staff on Leicester Square (All Bar One – please don’t go there they are totally rubbish), had lunch while having a nice view over the Thames in Greenwich, and checked where Lord Sandwich hung out in the National Maritime Museum (free entry).

We had a great weekend! And you?

La Cage aux Folles – Playhouse Theatre, London – review

I wouldn’t have picked it myself, as I thought it would just be another silly musical. But I went along with a friend and yes it was a musical but it was far from silly. La Cage Aux Folles (which first was a play then a film, then a US film with Robin Williams (The Bird Cage) and now a musical on the London West End) was uplifting and touching.

The idyllic existence of Georges and the dazzling drag artiste Albin, star of the La Cage aux Folles club, is threatened when Georges’ son announces his engagement to the daughter of a right-wing politician, who wants to close down the local colourful nightlife! With a visit from the prospective in-laws imminent, they all decide to take drastic action to hide their lifestyle… but can they keep it up?

Worth seeing alone for Graham Norton who gave a surprisingly steady performance as Albin, drag queen extraordinaire. (But be quick as his last performance is next week. The show will extend its run though, just with another cast).

If you like a feel good musical with a good story then this is your thing. It’s also very watchable for the incredible dance performances of the rest of the male dragqueens. I think I might have to see the Priscilla Queen of the Desert musical now too.

Official website for La Cage aux Folles
[Rating: 5/5]

New Boy, Trafalgar Studios – London and Paris preparations

New Boy

The story is a bit wobbly here and there but what great performances of especially Nicholas Hoult (from About a Boy with Hugh Grant/Skins) and Gregg Lowe. It’s refreshing to see great young actors like these, the future of British stage and theatre is looking good.

The play is both funny and serious (without ever becoming too serious) and makes for an enjoyable night out.

I can only highly recommend you to catch it, but it seems so popular that the complete run has already sold out. It’s performed in a very small (but intimate) theatre, and deserves to be extended, and maybe even moved to a bigger theatre.

I just checked my hotel booking for Paris and saw that I have booked a Superior Single room. I wonder what Superior means in this case.

And I prepared a quick Paris map. The camera icons are places I might go to snap some photos. And if you are wondering what the snow flakes are: Ice cream shops, don’t underestimate the importance of those.

And I know there is a lot of talk going on about Google Streetview, but thanks to the genius of it, I just checked out the front of my hotel···, so I know what it looks like (and what to look for) when I arrive. I also checked how to get there from Gare Du Nord, which turns out to be easy peasy as it is right opposite the station. And there is an Italian restuarant right beside it, handy!

I think that is all the preparation I need. Now I just need to pack and catch the train Saturday morning.

Confessions of a stressoholic

  • Confessions of a shopaholic wasn’t the best rom-com ever (it’s Sex in the City meet Devil wears Prada), but I laughed quite a lot at Isla Fisher. She has great comic talent, and she is worth watching the film for. She and Hugh Dancy.
  • I saw A View from the Bridge last week, and wow, Ken Stott blew me away. A must see if you happen to be in London before the 16th of May. Great acting work, also from Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (she was Lady Marianne in Kevin Costner’s Robin Hood!). Don’t miss it!
  • And then my flatmate is leaving. And I have two seperate lines of thoughts about this.

    Line 1:

    I need to find a new flatmate. I know our rent is not the highest, definitely not for the area in London where the flat is based, but loads of people are leaving London because it is so expensive. My worries:
    Will I find a new friendly, funny and reliable flatmate?

    Line 2:
    In American movies like the above Shopaholic they always show flatshares where people are the best of friends and where things just seem to work. I want that too. Which is why I probably need to find another place to live. My current flat does not have a shared living room, so it’s natural to retreat in your own room.
    And if my current flatmate and me have spoken more than 100 words to each other the last 2.5 years I will be surprised.

    So my current dream scenario is finding some really nice people I click with and rent and nice house somewhere in London where there is space for privacy (I still want to be able to sit in my room and read or write or watch a Bill film on my own) but also space for socialness. But where to find the people, and where to find the place to live! It is probably pathetically ignorant to think that that is possible. I must think about this.

  • I am going to tick the lighthouse in Plymouth off my list on Saturday. And will stay with the lovely dogs and my good friend in Devon for the weekend. Here is to good weather for everyone, to sea views, beach walks and Devon creamcakes with tea.
  • It’s Pancake day today.

BBC Writersroom and the Twelfth Night and short films

(Re)Writing

BBC Writersroom

  • I did attend the open BBC Writersroom event. And realised that it is very intimidating to see the competition. Loads and loads of people where there, all writers, all wanting to make it. Not good for self confidence.
  • I had to leave a bit earlier, so I don’t know what I missed at the end of the session, but in the part I did attend the BBC people explained what they were looking for in a script. It wasn’t a lot of new information – they are looking for things every producer looks for – well written, originality, interesting and likable characters, etc. It’s basically the stuff every screen writing book tells you.
  • I did not hand in my script. Wait, wait, I will post it to them today. Seeing as I had to sneak out before it ended I had no chance to hand it to them. But no worries, they did promise all of us that they read the first 10 pages of every single script they receive. They receive, are you ready for it, 10.000 scripts a year.
  • They also explained that they are just checking the quality of the writing of the script you send them and are looking for writers more than scripts. Very very seldom do they buy a script and make it into a film. If people have extraordinary talent, they might be contacted and educated. And a lot of those lucky people get to write on Eastenders, Holby City, Doctors. I don’t want to sound snobbish or anything, but I am not sure I could write for those series, as they don’t interest me at all.
  • I don’t count on anything, if they should happen to read passed the first 10 pages, that would be great, and I would have a script review by an experienced reader for free (it might take up to four months to hear if they read it or not). If they don’t read it – then so be it. If I want to improve my writing, I must pick up my pen and get on with it. Simple.

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Four things that are better in London than in New York

Chubby Checker Hot Chocolate

Four things that are better in London than in New York:

  • The queue culture. There is no queue culture in NY and I so miss it when I am there, I love the built-in politeness of the British people.
  • The language. I am a sucker for the UK English language and prefer it over American anytime.
  • The London underground stations compared to the subway stations in NY. I feel more safe in London, and I also think there are more CCTV cameras over here.

    NY does have a better service (24 hours a day) and the subway trains are quite nice in NY but the seats are hard to sit on (anti vandalism I guess). I do love the newer NY trains which show you exactly where you are on a small map with blinking lights indicating the next station.

    Oh, the Oyster card does beat the MTA card on ease of use though.

  • In London what the pricetag says is what you pay in shops. In NY they always add tax to the price when you pay for your item and I still haven’t figured out how to calculate it, you never know what you end up paying.

Four things that are better in New York than in London:

  • The skyline. I never get tired of the Chrysler building by night nor of the view of any of the other impressive skyscrapers.
  • There is more water around. I love the Battery Park area with all the piers and the view on the Hudson river and the Brooklyn bridge. It feels like you are more away from the city than you do when looking at the Thames from central London.
  • They have Taco Bell. Yes, and yes before you start – you are probably going to tell me that Taco Bell food has nothing to do with Mexican food. Maybe you are right, but I love Taco Bell food. I wonder why there isn’t one in London!
  • I love the diners. I know there are some NY diner wannabees in London too but the ones in New York are best. And hey they have the New York cheesecake and the above Chubby Checkers Hot Chocolate. I mean, who can say no to that! (And I love that formica table)

So which city do you prefer?

Noted

  • I saw My Zinc Bed on BBC2. It was originally a play by David Hare, who now adapted it for television.

    The problem with theatre plays being adapted for telly is that there is so much talk in them. My Zinc Bed was no exception. And despite an interesting cast (Paddy Considine, Jonathan Pryce and Uma Thurman) it did not manage to pull me in. I made it to the end, but didn’t feel touched. I think they should have left it as a play. And I also felt that Paddy Considine was completely wrongly casted.

    Clearly my interest for David Hare plays have been awakened by both The Vertical Hour (Nighy) and Amy’s View (Felicity Kendall), which I both saw and loved.

  • I saw Get Smart with the lovely Steve Carell. He is a master of dead pan comedy and great to watch, but the rest of the film was a bit, ehrm, predictable. Let’s have Steve do a rom-com again, as he does that so well.
    [rating:3/5]
  • I still have problems sitting. The stitches will be removed on Monday, so hopefully things will improve after that. And I also might get rid of my new nickname then: Frankenstein
  • The Portobello Filmfestival starts tonight. A big part of it is held in Westbourne Studios, which is where I work. I am not planning to see much, but will for sure try to get a ticket to Hammer&Tongs, an evening about the work of the geniuses behind both the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy film and Son of Rambow. Wicked.
  • Only 16 nights until my holiday. You so don’t care about hearing that, but it’s what keeps me going.

And yes I am still working on my film.

Wrong Day Wrong Time

Wrong Day Wrong Time

  • I just took this picture, on my way back to the office after lunch in a posh burger bar on Portobello Road. It struck me how appropriate it was. This is the tape you get taped on your garbage if you happen to put it out on the street on the wrong day: Wrong Day Wrong Time. On this photo it is stuck on a role of carpet.
  • Now why is that appropriate you wonder. Well my short film seem to have hit Wrong Day Wrong Time too. As in it is the middle of the summer and people are on holiday. So in stead of stressing about not being able to find any people, I move it ahead a month. This does not mean nothing is happening, something is:
    • tomorrow I have a coffee with a very experienced producer who will give me some advice
    • on Tuesday I have a coffee with a very experienced camera man and I am going to try to convince him to shoot the film. Not sure I will succeed but it is worth the try!

    Don’t worry I am not giving it up or anything. I am just being practical. And trust me there are some people who have a close eye on me making this film and there is no way I can get out it any more. Not that I want to. I want to make this film and will.

  • It is incredible hot in London at the moment. Too hot for me actually.
  • I hope the weather will be like this next weekend, as I have planned another coast weekend. We will return to Weymouth and visit:

    Chesil Beach
    Lulworth cove
    Durdle Door

    And OK, we also really miss Victor so we will for sure visit him too.

  • I have also planned a week of holiday to the land of the many sheep. I will stay not too far from Coornagillagh (map) That’s in Ireland. I have been told there are lots of sheep, lighthouses, seals and loads of fresh air. More about that later, it will be in September and no I have never been to Ireland before!

    Depending on how the film shooting schedule is going to be, I am currently considering taking some days on the Isle of Man first, take the ferry from there to Ireland and take the train to Cork where I will be picked up for Coornagillagh. I really need to practise on that name!

  • I saw 50 Ways to leave your lover yesterday. What a cracking cast, and despite the fact that in those 50 Ways Love did not conquer, it was a joy to watch. The Bush theatre is probably the smallest theatre I have visited in London, but it was a very nice intimate theatre. (And it was very bearable to be inside despite the 25 degrees heatwave we are having at the moment!) Shepherd’s Bush is an area where I wouldn’t want to walk around at night, but you can get a great pizza there which I ate right beside the drummer of the Dandy Warhols. I know, I know I am such a celeb junkie.

Love – the musical, Lyric theatre Hammersmith – review

LOVE - the musical

I can’t remember how I stumbled upon this, but I blindly bought a ticket on the title and poster alone. No regrets about that I can say.

Yesterday I saw Love – the Musical. And how refreshing to watch actors that are passed 60 and I think, without insulting any of them, some of them were passed 70 too. It was clear they enjoyed this play, and it was a huge cast!

The story was sweet:

Neville is approaching eighty and slowly wasting away in an unremarkable care home in a small English town. His life seems to be heading for an end until Margaret arrives. Brought in by her son for a short stay, Margaret is terrified of what will happen to her — until she meets Neville and he suggests they escape for a night out on the town…

There is a lot of singing going on, a lot of modern songs and it was a joy to hear them performed by people of this age.

I heard Blur, David Bowie, The Rolling Stones, The Verve, Kaiser Chiefs, Franz Ferdinand and many more.

I laughed and I cried. And was shocked and surprised when the old man with the rollator who seemed to live in his own world most of the time, suddenly started singing too. But mostly I enjoyed watching them, trying not to think too much about where I will be when I am that age.

It reminded my of Awakenings, the wonderful film with Robert de Niro and Robin Williams and I can highly recommend this play.

Kevin Spacey in Speed the Plow, Old Vic – London – review – or not

Kevin Spacey - Jeff Goldblum - Speed the Plow
Kevin Spacey and Jeff Goldblum both star in this 90 minutes-performance-without-a-break (toilet before you go in) American play called Speed the Plow.

When I sat down in the Old Vic and the curtain opened and Kevin Spacey stepped into the light I thought:
“Wow, you lucky bastard. Here you are, living in London, that amazing city, sitting in this wonderful theatre, and one of your very favourite actors is performing right there in front of you. You should consider yourself very lucky.”

And trust me, I do. I sometimes wish I had a remote control (something like this, but in real life) so I could pause and freeze frame the world around me and stay in the moment for a while, just looking around, taking it in.

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Tube travel mates and Stephen Fry’s Cinderella Panto

Tube dogs

Those two did accompany me this morning on my travel on the Hammersmith & City Line. Trust me they look more dangerous than they were, they were quite cute, and a bit bored and not too happy to be on the train. And they have this intensely sad look on their face. They are not very pretty either, but I love them just the way they are. (Got that Bridget?)

And I saw Stephen Fry’s Cinderella in the Old Vic today.

More about Cinderella »

Hello New York

New York is familiair but different. I know London well now, walking around in a big city is fine, but I can feel that I am more alert walking around in New York. And New York is different. It’s good, it keeps my eyes open, it makes me more aware and it makes me want to grab my camera all the time. I love that feeling.

It has been a very long day, it’s 22.33 now, local NY time, that’s 3.33am London time. I forced myself not to go to bed too early in order to quickly adjust to the New York time schedule.

Unfortunately both (!) my theatre plays have been cancelled due to a big strike on Broadway (about everything is cancelled on Broadway, has been for some days, and will be for some days to come). I am not too sad about it, I would have loved to see Kevin Kline but there is enough to see here and I am just really(!) grateful they didn’t strike when I came here to see The Vertical Hour last time.

I just came back from the cinema and saw American Gangster. Russell Crowe is not convincing, Denzel Washington on the other hand is cracking in this one.

I haven’t been too far around yet, but walked on Broadway and winked to both the Empire State Building (which is lit in blue at the moment, my favourite colour) and the beautiful Chrysler building.

Need some sleep now so will roll into my bed, which isn’t that far a roll, I am typing this from behind a free internet pc in my hotel.

Good night from New York.

Shadowlands, Wyndham’s Theatre London – review

Charles Dance in Shadowlands[rating: 5/5]
I have 7 plays lined up the coming months, but I doubt any of them will come even close to Shadowlands, which I saw yesterday.

Shadowlands tells the story of C.S. Lewis (writer of Narnia), a confirmed bachelor into his fifties, until he meets Joy, a witty, intelligent American woman who has been writing to him because she is a fan of his books. It is an incredibly tender and touching story, which shows that love is unpredictable and powerful.

Charles Dance (Bleak House, Gosford Park and longer ago he played the villain in The Golden Child with Eddy Murphy) plays C.S. “Jack” Lewis and he swept me off my feet. What a fantastic actor and what a performance, he got me hooked from the second he stepped into the light.
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