Category Archives: Review

The New York Yankees – The Batters in April (2015)

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The Yankees have got off to a surprisingly good start to the season with a 14-8 record in April. This becomes doubly surprising when we consider that they got off to a 3-6 run in their first nine games. Both the bullpen and large sections of the offensive line-up have done better than we had any reason to expect and whilst there are more than a few weak links, there is good reason to think they can at least stay with the pace of a division which doesn’t have a clearly outstanding team.

Let’s survey who is doing well and not so well…

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Salesman in Stratford

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vWhat: Death of A Salesman by Arthur Miller

Where: Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-Upon-Avon

When: 24th April 2015

There are more stage directions at the beginning of Arthur Miller’s “Death of A Salesman” then there are in an entire play by William Shakespeare. And that is before you get to the first spoken line in the script. The stage directions continue throughout the play – in not such an elongated way – but still extremely detailed. Even the way the actors are to deliver their lines are specified by the playwright. It is clear that there has been a theatrical revolution since Shakespeare’s day and by Miller’s early period. The question is how that revolution is applied now to theatre nearly 70 years after “…Salesman”‘s debut

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More Songs and Stories

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Who: Judie Tzuke

What: Songs and Stories Tour

Where: Ravenscourt Arts, Hammersmith, London

When: 11th April 2015

On the opening night of Judie Tzuke’s first UK wide all-acoustic tour, questions were invited from the audience as they will be on every night of this long jaunt around the country.

One sample question: What do you do to keep your voice so strong for so long?

Answer: Nothing. I was once given some vocal exercises but I’m afraid I’ve forgotten them.

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The Shakespearience Too at Ravenscourt Arts

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Presenting Shakespeare for ages 10-14 (i.e. the ages before they start formally studying the writer for exams in school) is not an easy task but it is a challenge that I have set myself over these last six years and I have to say with some degree of success.

This year was our largest project to date. With 1600-1700 young people signed up to attend and with our troupe now firmly esconced in our own theatre at Ravenscourt Arts, we decided to strip back to basics and bring in a new cast to work with a new script. Time to take some risks.

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The New York Yankees Off Season Update 6 – Part 2

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We continue our survey of the Yankees who have done well and not so well in Spring Training:

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The Strangest Living Boy You Could Ever Wish To See

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Who: Gary Numan

What: Convergence 2015

Where: Royal Festival Hall, South Bank, London

When: 20th March 2015

In 1981, after an exhausting two years, two number one singles and three number one albums, Gary Numan retired from touring with a lavish set of final shows at Wembley Arena in London. On Friday night, at Convergence in the Royal Festival Hall, London, for Numan it is now thirty-four years since he returned from retiring from live shows and he has a one-off special concert to mark his influence as a pioneer of electronica. The poster outside the venue doors described him as having “a ever-growing fanbase”. Apparently despite this, his records no longer trouble the top of the charts. Numan’s career has been a regular conundrum and a game of snakes-and-ladders and tonight was just the latest twist.

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Redfearn and Leeds

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The last time I wrote an article about Leeds United was after Neil Redfearn’s last game in charge as caretaker manager (see https://twilightdawning.com/2014/09/25/ch-ch-changes-2) before Darko Milanic took over the reins for a brief period in charge  – which matched the length of appointment at Elland Road previously only associated with the dark days of David Hockaday, Brian Clough and Jock Stein.

Now Redfearn is back in permanent charge (whatever that means under Massimo Cellino – oh, sorry we’re meant to believe that he has no current involvement in the club’s decision-making process as he is an unfit person), I decided it was time to give another survey of how the team has changed and so I will do so concentrating my energies on the two recent home games against Watford (3-2 loss) and Ipswich (2-1 win). Let’s see what we can learn…

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Songs and Stories

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Who: Judie Tzuke

What: Songs and Stories

Where: Ravenscourt Arts, Hammersmith

When: 20th February 2015

Ravenscourt Arts is a delightful little venue. Seating 160 with immaculate sound reproduction, great lights, an engaging atmosphere and well-thought-out design, it is a great place to host a concert. Consequently, it is the ideal place for the kind of tasty dish that was served up on Friday night.

Tonight is the “secret” launch night for Judie Tzuke’s first ever full acoustic tour in a long and successful career. There’s some joke about the “pineapple gig” that the all-invited audience seem to be in on but we don’t need to dwell on that. What we have is an acoustic set which spans the bases from the debut album “Welcome to the Cruise” right up to the as-yet-unreleased “Woman Overboard”.

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Down To The Waters’ Edge

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Who: The Daughters of Davis

Where: Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith

When: 18th February 2015

Being piggy-in-the-middle on a three act bill is never an enviable task but when even the opening act is allowed access to the higher ranges on the volume sliders of the mixing desk that you’re not and the top act’s target audience is very different from your own then it’s somewhat more problematic.

But having said that Daughters of Davis blew everyone else off stage when it came to artistic integrity and provided a great set for an audience who entered not really caring who they were and exited won over in some numbers.

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Top of the Pops – Christmas 1979

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What: Top of the Pops Christmas Special 1979

Where: BBC 4

When: Christmas 2014

In 2014 I’ve been following as much of the Top of the Pops re-runs from 1979 as the BBC would allow me to. The episodes where Jimmy Saville and Dave Lee Travis were hosts weren’t broadcast but I kept track of the rest right up to the broadcast the other day of the Christmas Day special which covered many of the records from that year which made the top two in the charts.

The only two limitations on the programme seemed that they left out anyone who wouldn’t appear “live” in the studio for the big occasion and the time restraints of the hour long format. In later years, they would probably have just made a second edition for Boxing Day or New Year’s Day but this time it was just the one.

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