The Yankees have had a pretty good Spring Training with a 15-12 record at the point I am writing this article which ranks them 4th in the American League and 4th in the Grapefruit League.
In this article, we will survey the players who are possibles to make the opening day roster and check out what they have done in the Spring games…
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.
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…
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”.
In the second half of March, our theatre “Ravenscourt Arts” will host “The Shakespearience Too”.
This is the latest venture for our own production company “The Shakespearience” which Darren Hirst founded in 2009 to present an introduction to Shakespeare for young people of pre-GCSE school age.
When the Shakespearience first began to work together, it was actors, a tour bus and props but since our own theatre opened, life has been much easier.
Well, the New York Yankees have had a weird off-season and it just keeps getting weirder. As we walk through the trades the Yankees made in January, I just keep hearing warning bells ringing that tell me that unless almost everyone who had an injury or a downturn in their career last year encounters a significant upward surge than this team looks worse on paper then the one which won 84 games last season and missed out on the post-season. Unless they give their manager Joe Girardi the right tools to work with, he doesn’t have a hope of turning this team into a winner.
What: The Shakespearience Too
Who: The Shakespearience Production Company
Where: Ravenscourt Arts, Hammersmith, London
When: March 2015
In 2009, I had a dream. I mean literally. I had a dream. I woke up in my hotel in Stratford-Upon-Avon with a notion that I should start a theatre company that would present Shakespeare for schoolchildren in a way that would be informative, entertaining and educational. I was in town to review a play by the Bard but I have to say that I can’t even remember which one. But I do remember what happened next.
The last update I wrote saw the Yankees in a peculiar position and making some seemingly bizarre moves. The outfield looked set (if a little prone to injury), the infield had a gaping hole at second base (following the trade to Miami of Martin Prado), the starting rotation looked vulnerable to say the least and missing at least one piece and the bullpen looked fine if a little over-manned.
So it really shouldn’t surprise our readers to see the Yankees making moves which primarily concern the bullpen and leaving the starting rotation and 2nd base quandaries untouched.
Who: Sparks & the Heritage Orchestra (conducted by Jules Buckley)
What: Kimono My House (40th Anniversary Performance)
Where: Barbican Hall. The Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London
When: 19th December 2014
There have been various rock bands down the years who have performed albums and other projects with an orchestra (Deep Purple and Emerson, Lake and Palmer have done whole shows, Eagles used an orchestra on certain sections of their “Hotel California” tour, for example) but for a band like Sparks who are regarded as more of a pop outfit a show like tonight was quite unusual.
Sparks, of course, are an underestimated outfit amongst large sections of the general public and could be said to only really understood by their dedicated band of followers.
Who: John Shuttleworth
What: A Wee Ken to Remember
Where: Bloomsbury Theatre, London
When: 1st December 2014
Few artists have had a book published of their collected lyrics. Bob Dylan has had three (don’t try lifting the most recent one, you’ll do yourself a mischief), Paul Simon has had one, Sting has one (his Mum might have bought a copy) and so has John Shuttleworth. The difference between the first three and Shuttleworth is that John’s is self-published.
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