Posts in ‘Film, Art, Theatre, Music & Dance’

Berlin is certainly one of the most beautiful cities to explore, but once winter hits, you might find that walking and bike tours are more fitting for the warmer months.  Don’t rule out winter as a time to visit, as Berlin’s charm is still visible, if not accentuated by freshly fallen snow, Christmas decorations, and multiple activities reminding you that wintertime isn’t just for hibernating.

Christmas Markets

With over 50 different Christmas markets spread over the large squares and smaller allys, Berlin really captures the spirit of the holiday season wherever you run into them.  And you won’t be running into the same products over and over again, each market seems to specialize in different areas offering you a wide variety of gifts, gadgets, and goodies to browse through.

You can go to the Gendarmenmarkt which features not only local embroidery, woodwork, stonemasonry, and food, but also there are shows which include performances by acrobatics, jugglers, musicians, and artists.  Or if you’re looking for something more low-key (relatively speaking to the glitz and glamour that can take over these markets), you can try the international Market of the Continents which supports social and structural projects from around the world.  When the native, handmade products are purchased from these traders it goes to their community to help their development.  Even better, this market is held indoors so even the snow can’t stop you.

Shows and Ballets

Outside may be snowy, dark, and cold, but what better way to capture the spirit of the holidays than a show by a world-renowned ballet, soothing orchestra, or fantastical entertainment?

I’ll be the first to admit that anything with the word “palace” sparks my interest, and this experience wouldn’t fall short of any expectations.  Enjoying a sumptuous dinner by candlelight in the Charlottenburg Palace Orangery, followed by what feels like a personal performance from the Berlin Palace Orchestra couldn’t make me feel better about escaping the cold in the warm and cozy comforts of this palace.

The Friedrichstadt Palast Stage Show is another alternative, less emphasis on the romance and instead, a complete focus on putting the audience in awe.  It’s safe to say that goal is always accomplished at the state-of-the-art theater where the stage is a show in itself.  With the addition of talented dancers, acrobatics, singers, and musicians, you’re mind will be in disbelief at what is presented in front of you.  Just call it a Christmas miracle.

Who could forget the Nutcracker?  Follow the classic story of a young girl and her doll on a Christmas Eve adventure.  Music by the infamous Tchaikovsky, and performed by the internationally acclaimed Russian National Ballet, this is one show that is sure to put you in the Christmas spirit!

Pubs

Finally, there is no better way to warm up than having a drink at a local pub.  With authentic taverns and numerous choices of drinks at the cocktail lounges, live music and even rooftop gardens over looking the city, there is no shortage to your options.  Berlin is filled with a wide variety of relaxing pubs and lively clubs, but they all give you a taste of the nightlife culture.

If you are around in London this weekend, make sure to visit the Mayor Thames Festival. This free (!) festival is London largest outdoor arts festival with all kinds of activities dotted around the river Thames. Every year the Thames Festival attracts 800.000 visitors.

The festival is accessible for all ages, the festival committee has commissioned new work: a mixture of music, dance and various forms of street arts.

Performances
Look out for performances by Dionne Bromfield (goddaughter of the late Amy Winehouse),  a variety of DJs on the Lady Luck Jive Stage, the BFI’s vintage mobile cinema and displays of Korean Taekwondo and Argentinean tango.
The Thames area is divided in four different zones spreading from Westminster Bridge (Zone 1) to Tower Bridge and beyond (Zone 4) Each Zone has its own colour and performances will be easier to find with the map that will be handed out during the weekend or which you can find on the official website.

St Katherine Docks will have its annual displays of vintage boats and retro fashion. Southwark Bridge will be closed to traffic and transformed into the Feast on the Bridge; it will home to the many foodstalls cooking up a treat. There will also be craft stalls whose helpful owners will encourage you and the kids to get stuck in yourselves. Last year, there was a home made flower-hat contest and children of all ages made their own corn-dolls.

Sunday evening the Illuminated Night Carnival will take place and brings together over 2000 dancers, drummers and masqueraders.  The Thames Festival will close with the traditional Fireworks Finale.

Tips:

• Bring an umbrella on Sunday as rain is forecasted.
• Check if there are any planned Tube closures on the Transport for London website.
• Can’t make it to London this weekend: plan a Thames tour to discover the capital in your own time.

Has your child gone to school this week and brought back friends with exotic names? Recently it seemed a trend among celebs to name their children after places, think David and Victoria’s son Brooklyn or Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger’s daughter Ireland, and Brad and Angie’s gorgeous Zahara. (Yes, we know the desert starts with an S – still.)
However recent these fashion-names may seem, we reckon there are more grown-ups who share their name with a place or city.  Did you know that Elizabeth ( in New Jersey), Helena ( Montana) and Charlotte (in North Carolina) are names of cities too? They say your name influences your personality so see if these celebrities have something in common with their name-sakes.

Victoria Beckham vs. Victoria (Australia)
Victoria Beckham, mother-of-four, former Spice Girl turned designer and married to one of the most eligible man in football. She once tongue in cheek said: “I like a man who can be a real friend, has a good sense of humor, a good pair of shoes and a healthy gold card.”

Victoria is also the smallest, most densely populated state of Australia. Historically people travelled there to dig for gold and hoped for a fortune. Nowadays the state still has rugged landscape, scenic coastline but also modern thriving cities. Melbourne is the most popular and a tour will shows any visitor array of restaurants, culture and entertainment.

Florence and the Machine vs. Florence (Italy)
Florence Welsh is the front-woman of this Grammy nominated band with hits like Rabbit Heart and You’ve Got The Love.  Florence’s mother is a Harvard-educated professor of Renaissance studies.

Florence in Italy calls itself the birthplace of the Renaissance. Its entire city centre is acknowledged as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Famous sites are the Galleria dell’ Academia and the Uffizi Gallery where a multitude of Renaissance paintings and sculptures are displayed.

Paris Hilton vs. Paris (France)
Paris Hilton is great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton of the Hilton hotel chain. Fashionista, reality tv star and business woman, this lady might have inherited wealth, in June this year Variety dubbed the heiress The Billion Dollar Entrepreneur with more than 4.1 million Twitter followers and nose for what products consumers want.

Paris France, is a classy classic city: the city of love has always been a home for fashionistas. What is not to love about Paris. From Montmartre, Versailles and the Louvre, the capital city of France offers a plethora of culture and entertainment.Treat yourselves with dinner during lovely cruise on the Seine and afterwards enjoy some cheeky entertainment with tickets for The Moulin Rouge.

Orlando Bloom vs Orlando (US)
Orlando Bloom rolled straight from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama into one of the biggest cinematic trilogies: playing Legolas in the Lord of The Rings. Since then the actor’s been in hot demand and took on another trilogy this time as Will Turner in Disney’s Pirates of the Carribean.

The city Orlando is situated in central Florida and the fifth largest city of the state.  It’s almost synonym with the theme parks that are build here: Walt Disney World® Resort, Universal Orlando® Resort, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. These parks ensure children will have the time of their lives in the sunny state but it can all add up, so find a good deal and get the best Orlando tickets.

Photo credits Flickr: Victoria- Friskytuna/Mark Sombillo; Florence- JessicaSarahS/ Kevin Poh; Paris- Alex CD/Moyan Brenn; Orlando Schneewante/LOT

Yesterday George Clooney’s political thriller The Ides of March, which he directed and starred in with Ryan Gosling, Philip Seymour-Hoffmann and Evan Rachel Wood, opened the 68^th edition of the Venice Film Festival.

The film festival lasts until 10^th of September and will screen small productions as well as bigger Hollywood contenders. Venice Film Festival has shortlisted 22 international films to compete for the Golden Lion.

Among the nominees are The Ides of March, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by Thomas Alfredson with Gary Oldman, Colin Firth and Tom Hardy; and Shame by Steve McQueen, with Michael Fassbender and Carey Mulligan.

However the critics’ favourite seems to be A Dangerous Method by David Cronenberg starring Michael Fassbender (again) Keira Knightly, Viggo Mortenson and Vincent Cassell, about a young Carl Young, his mentor Sigmund Freud and the woman who came between them.

One film that will most probably not be winning is Madonna’s directorial effort W.E. about the relationship of King Edward VIII and American divorcee Wallis Simpson. The reviews of Madonna’s W.E. have been less than favourable, despite W.E. being backed by movie-mogul Harvey Weinstein.

Last year’s winner was Somewhere, directed by Sofia Coppola, daughter of Francis. Stephen Dorff plays the indifferent Hollywood star who suddenly gets saddled with his estranged daughter played by Elle Fanning. Elle is one to watch, only 13 and recently showed her talent in Stephen Spielberg’s Super 8. We became fans.

Venice Film Festival obviously has a fabulous and glamorous setting for all the filmstars to show off their best frocks and talk about their films. The city streets of water make that they all have to arrive by speedboat - It’s the only way dahlin’- and they all have to be assisted onto shore by their lackeys.

Alas, we can not offer you lackeys but we have plenty of tours in Venice, if you are planning to visit the wonderful city of Venice

Photocredit: Flickr Nico Genin

In an effort to beat the hype when the film-version with Daniel Ratcliff comes out next year, we visited The Woman in Black on the London West End. Warned that it was the scariest play on the West End, we entered the Fortune Theatre with beating heart…

The first person to take the stage is Arthur Kipps (Patrick Drury) he’s trying to tell us about his experience as a young lawyer attending to the affairs of Mrs Alice Drablow of Eel Marsh House.  When he saw a young woman in black at both the funeral and at the empty house, he tried to find out who she is.

The Set Up
We can’t hear Kipps clearly, as he is told by a booming voice from the back (first fright!). The voice is the Actor’s (Anthony Eden) who Kipps has hired to help him recite the story. After it’s become clear that reading the story would take too long, they decide to play out the story. This much to the reluctance of Kipps: he only wants to exorcise a ghost from the past by finally telling his family and friends about it. Still The Actor persists: he will be taking on the part of young Kipps and Kipps all the other parts.

This and other theatrical concepts are set up in the first half of the show: the use of sound to set the scene is explained and Kipps is told to use imagination when speaking about a dog or a horse and cart. This comical exchange ensures relieved laughs when the aforementioned situations arise in the much darker second half.

There is a bit of explicit foreshadowing in the first half, perhaps it benefits the less regular theatre-goers or even less experienced ghost story reader; for the rest of the audience it feels a bit like spoon-feeding.

Tension
The tension is built throughout, sometimes artificially broken like with clanging of buckets that the Actor trips over. Nevertheless it makes you realise you are at the edge of your seat. The sounds in The Woman in Black are heightened to fright – what the young Kipps witnesses outside the house is truly ear piercing.

The visual effects are effective; a opening door, an abandoned rocking chair, it plays with what the audience cannot see. The Woman In Black is simple and old-fashioned: it’s been on stage for the last 23 years, it’s not hi-tech Ghost the musical. (On that note, simplicity needs to be careful: a left open curtain takes away the illusion. You’d expect a ghost to go through the curtain and so make sure it falls back behind you.)

The End
Simplicity adds to the charm of The Woman in Black, just being a ghost story re-enacted by two men… or is it?  The tension heightens to climax as the lines of the “real story” and the “enacted story” are blurred; but when it’s finally explained who the woman in black is, the foreshadowing of the first half takes a bit of the end’s horrific realisation.

Our theatre blog is currently under construction - check soon on www.justlondontheatrebreaks.com/blog

It’s been 34 years after Elvis Presley’s death but fans still hold candlelight vigils at the gates of his Graceland mansion to remember The King.

Elvis was born 1935, in Tupelo Mississippi to his parents Vernon and Gladys Presley. His twin-brother Jesse was still born and Elvis would remain an only child. In 1954 he signed up with Sun Records in Memphis, a label owned by Sam Phillips and deemed the birthplace of rock ‘n’roll. Self-taught producer Philips has a knack for spotting talent: he’d also sign the likes of Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis. A picture of the four jamming in 1956 would later be printed as “The Million Dollar Quartet.” The unique event has recently inspired a jukebox musical Million Dollar Quartet that was sold out on Broadway and a hit in the London West End.

A mere two years after his first recording Elvis had transferred to the bigger label RCA and was on his way to become a world-star. He sold over a billion records, earned 14 Grammy nominations and acted in 33 movies.

In 1967, after an eight year courtship, Elvis Presley married Priscilla Beaulieu. Exactly nine months later their daughter Lisa Marie was born. Elvis and Priscilla in Germany when he drafted for the US Army. Remarkably this would be the only time Elvis would travel outside of the USA, despite his worldwide success.

On the eve of the 34th of anniversary of her father’s death Lisa Marie released a statement, in which she announced a new exhibition at Graceland in Spring 2012 “Elvis Through His Daughter’s Eyes”.

Elvis might have left the building but his legacy still lives on.

Discover the undisputed birthplace of rock ‘n’ roll and visit Graceland and other Memphis music attractions with an audiotour and discount.

The summer exodus to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival continues: the cobbled streets are filled with people handing out flyers for their plays, next to groups performing songs from their shows. The atmosphere, despite the inevitable rain – it’s Scotland after all, is electrifying and exciting.

This year we did the Edinburgh festival experience in one day, commuting from Glasgow. The last train is around midnight: an extra service thanks to the fringe. Word of warning: if you have not already sorted out your accommodation you might be in trouble. The hotel prices are extortionate around this time of year and you’d really be best off finding new love for a distant family member who lives close or join the celebrations in the evenings with all the performers and find yourself a local buddy. (That’s a joke, mother.)

For all you people who are still planning to heading up North, a few tips:

1. Be nice to all the people ‘flyering’: they are just promoting their shows. They have worked hard and often put a lot of their own money into it.
2. Pick up an offical Fringe magazine, which contains all the shows and has a very useful map in the front. You can get one from the Box Office on the High Street, which is open from 9am to 9pm.
3. Book tickets online to avoid disappointment, but still be prepared to queue when you pick them up. So leave yourself enough time to get to a show!
4. During down time, climb the stairs of Calton Hill, just a ten-minute walk from Waverly train station. The view from the top is fantastic: you can overlook the bustling city streets and see the gorgeous landscape surrounding the city.
5. Embrace being a tourist and visit the famous Edinburgh Castle (open daily 9.30-5pm; adults £12; child £6).

Should you have time to go sight-seeing, book an Edinburgh tour where you can hop on and hop off, and get the most of your time in Scotland. Enjoy!

It’s Independence day! It is 235 years since the Americans have declared their independence from the United Kingdom. Luckily international relations have long since cleared so get out your star-spangled banner as we highlight the All American options one has when visiting London.

Go for Dinner

Every year on Independence Day there’s a hot dog eating competition in New York’s Coney Island. The current record stands at 54 hotdogs in 10 minutes! For the first time in history there will be a Women’s Only division this year. If you want to take your other half for a more relaxed dinner, there are restaurants aplenty serving traditional American dishes. Recreate the 50’s vibe jukebox and all at Ed’s Diner and get a tasty burger too! For ribs and the like try Bodeans that has four branches spread over London or go to a Byron restaurant for another quality burger.

Celebrate  Jeff “The Dude” Bridges

If America has given us anything, it is Hollywood. One of  best American screen-icons is Jeff Bridges, who created a cult when portraying The Dude in the film The Big Lebowski. He’s been an actor for decades starring in films as The Fabulous Baker Boys, Crazy Heart for which he finally won and Oscar, and last year’s Coen western True Grit. The British Film Institute, BFI, is celebrating his life in film until the end of July.

Fall in Love with an American Sweetheart

In the original movie the bubbly Elle was played by American sweetheart Reese Witherspoon. This Legally Blonde musical adaption follows the same story line of the first film and Elle follows her boyfriend to Harvard to study law. Elle’s determination and style will have you cheering for the red, white, blue and pink!

Raise a glass

Find yourself an American bar: smack-bang in Covent Garden you find the classy Christopher’s American Bar and Grill, they serve beers as well as celebratory cocktails and conveniently located if you want grab a drink after the theatre too! Or go to All Stars they have a bars in Holborn, Bayswater and Brick Lane. Not only do they serve beer,they offer bowling and karaoke too: a full night’s entertainment in one – result!

Live the American Dream

See how the American Dream came true for Frankie and his buddies in Jersey Boys the Musical. The musical the Jersey Boys is based on the true story of the rise to fame of Frankie Valli and the Four seasons, you will no doubt sing-along to all the classics: December 1963 (Oh What A Night), Walk Like a Man and Can’t Take My Eyes of You.

What ever you do, have an awesome day this Independence Day!

Finish a perfect summer weekend away in London with a visit to the West End. Whether you are looking for a romantic London theatre break or just need a relaxing weekend with your girls, this is just the ticket for you: Ghost the musical.

Ghost the musical is based on the 1990 film with Demi Moore, Patrick Swayze and Whoopi Goldberg. Though Whoopi won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, Patrick’s sex-symbol status was cemented with that pottery scene.

The musical pulls all the theatrical stops and trickery to create an amazing live-experience. Smoothly rotating and folded sets are matched with clever projections to set the scene. It is a visual feast, especially when the chorus completes the picture with a tightly choreographed group dance.

Set in New York, the story starts when artist Molly Jensen (Caissie Levy) and banker Sam Wheat (Richard Fleeshman) move into an apartment in Brooklyn with help of their friend Carl (Andrew Langtree).

The first songs start a little sudden (the “Hey Guys listen up:”- cue music- variation.) but the incorporation of “Unchained Melody” is sheer genius. The charm with which Richard Fleeshman pulls it off makes the female, and no doubt some of the male audience, forget he’s not Swayze: We All Still Would. It’s the moment he grabs us and takes us through the rest of the show.

Visual treats continue when we see the outer body experience happening live on stage. This new technology in set-design is surprising, sudden and impressive. It returns a couple of times but before you can get bored of it, you believe it: so much that even the classic suggestion of a well-lit cloud of evaporated dry-ice near the climax of the play, makes you see apparitions.

Ghost doesn’t just rely on the set for theatrical magic: Sharon D Clarke as medium Oda Mae Brown simply rocks the house! The moment Ms Clarke steps onto stage, she shows you what live performance is about. Her impeccable timing gets her the biggest laughs of the night and she belts the songs while embracing her role of comic-relief in some seriously camp dances.

No such fun for poor Caissie Levy whose devastated Molly has a beautiful voice but who was unfortunately stuck with the love-songs. These songs rather described the situation than moved the plot along but one could argue this fitted the character. (She’s heartbroken, she doesn’t want to move on!)

Despite some of the projections over-egging the love a little, (in particular one ‘intimate’ scene on stage projection: two clasping hands, what kind of 1950s euphemism is that?) we do connect to the story of Molly and Sam.

A huge highlight is the musical’s equivalent of the pottery scene, so fans: don’t be disappointed when that scene seems short. The musical’s triumphant alternative is a slow-dance scene where even the most cynical of us will get goosebumps.

There are references to the film but Ghost the musical has created its own magical moments: theatre is a different medium than cinema after all. Still the musical definitely won’t disappoint the film-fans, in fact they should see it: unlike the film, this is not an experience you can relive on DVD.

Rally together to celebrate London’s tennis event of the year: Wimbledon. It is the start of summer and this year is even more special as we celebrate Wimbledon’s 125-year Jubilee. The famous tennis-tournament at Wimbledon started 1877 with the first Gentlemen’s Single Game. We give you a few Wimbledon inspired ideas to get into the swing of summer!

Museum and Tour:

If you are lucky enough to have a ticket for the Wimbledon tournament, you can also visit the museum. See all the shiny trophies from up-close, the fashion that the players wore through the years, the changing tennis equipment and player’s memorabilia. Apart from during the actual tournament, the museum is open to the public the rest of the year and you can even get a behind-the-scenes tour of the grounds.

Hop on a Red Bus:

Who can forget the impromptu Wimbledon medley that Sir Cliff Richard gave in 1996 when the Centre Court was closed due to the rain? Surrounded by umbrellas Cliff started with Summer Holiday, his hit from the movie in which he drove around on a red double-decker. Explore London in the very same style and book your Hop On-Hop Off tickets for the red busses. All together now: We’re all going on a summerholiday!

Wicked!

Can’t get enough of everything green? Get your Wicked! Musical tickets. The story follows the young Elphaba before she became known as the green-skinned Wicked Witch of the West. The musical has a twist on the classic tale of the Wizard of Oz, it seems there is more to Elphaba. Experience this touching musical about friendship, self-confidence and following dreams at the Apollo Victoria. Get your tickets for the London musical and experience the magic.

Get on the grass

Love the grass but not so keen on tennis? London has a lot of amazing parks to relax in. The Royal Parks consist out of eight parks all together: Greenwich Park, Hyde Park, Richmond Park, Bushy Park, Green Park, St James, Regent’s park and Kensington Gardens. All of the London parks are very central and all have plenty of options when it comes to entertainment: from concerts, like the Wireless Festival in July in Hyde Park to Open Air Cinema Events in Kensington Gardens. Get in on the grass-action!

See Shrek!

Even if the tennis doesn’t have a fairytale ending, you can find one in the London theatre. Book your tickets for Shrek the Musical: everyone’s favourite green ogre is now live on the West End stage. The reluctant hero Shrek goes off on a mission to save a beautiful princess with his sidekick, a very talkative donkey. He’ll soon find out that the princess might not need saving and beauty can come in many different shapes. A very enjoyable musical that will have you swinging and singing in your seat.

Enjoy London this summer!