Various ramblings by the small hobbit

This time last year SM and I went to see La Boheme.  We were both very disappointed and at the time I said I wanted to see a Mozart opera, and one sung in the original language.  So, when, one month later (last March) I saw the Welsh National Opera were performing The Marriage of Figaro at the Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff in Italian, with surtitles I booked us tickets.

What I didn't realise was that this was the day before a Six Nations rugby international match with Wales against France at Cardiff Arms Park.  So my plan to stay overnight was not feasible (hotel costs being astronomic).  We ummed and erred and decided we'd go by train.  Except the last train was at 11.20 and we wouldn't leave the Millennium Centre until 10.30 and would have to get back to the train station (with rugby preparations already underway).  Which was a bit of a concern, until finally I came up with a plan: we'd drive to Newport, stay at an Ibis and get the train to and from Cardiff from there (if we missed the 11.20 there were a couple of later ones).  Which is what we did.  Traffic was horrendous along the M4 (as per normal) and we ended up walking back from Newport station to the hotel which wouldn't have been too bad if it hadn't started raining halfway back.  But overall the plan worked.

As for the opera - okay, opera's never going to be one of my great loves.  But the WNO are extremely good, and although I don't speak Italian I could make out the words very clearly.  The surtitles were clear, and once I'd convinced my brain I only needed to read half (the other half being in Welsh) it was easy to glance up and then go back to watching the action.  Apart from a couple of the arias, most of Mozart's music is variations on a theme, which isn't inspiring, and by the end I was tiring of the solos.  But as I said, opera isn't one of my great loves, and I accept I'm not going to be wowed by everything.  The costumes were beautiful - very much of Mozart's time.  The scenery was good and used very well.  I found it an excellent production.

At some point I would go and see the WNO again, but preferrably not on a rugby international weekend, so we could stay in Cardiff and spend some time wandering around Cardiff Bay.  I'm included this as part of February's 'Something New' being an opera sung in the original language.

September has been a month for doing new things, of various types.

At the beginning of the month I took an all day sketching workshop.  I learnt some things, and had a chance to experiment with some different media, which was good.  But the person who was leading the day concentrated on learning to sketch and create in a similar way to what he did, so when it came to the one-to-one assistance in the afternoon he was stressing how I should be trying a certain way, when what I wanted would have rather more basic.  Yes, I learnt some things, and had it been simply a morning, and the cost of a morning, I would have been very happy with it.  As it was, I didn't feel I got as much benefit from it as I should have done.

As some of you know, I volunteer with Gloucestershire Bundles, a local baby bank (like a food bank but with clothing and equipment for babies/mother-to-be/children).  At the beginning of the month I went to a committee meeting - committee is a fairly loose term, it was all those volunteers who were interested and able to come.  There I said I might be interested in helping raise funds by applying for grants, and so joined the grant application team.  I met the team leader on Friday, and am now going to be applying for small grants to various organisations.  I have half wondered why I'm doing yet another activity, but it's a charity I believe in very firmly and I want to support it, and this is one way I can do so.

And lastly I went to Cardiff yesterday and met the delightful luthienberen .  We wandered round about half of the art collection in the Cardiff Museum and then went for lunch in M&S café (chosen because it wouldn't be full of football/speedway fans).  It was lovely getting to meet her and I've very glad we managed to meet up.

As I said in my last review, we went up to London to see the play because the run finished before I was having my short break in London.  It turned out the same was true of the exhibition at the Tate Gallery Van Gogh and Britain.  So we bought tickets for the Saturday afternoon.  SM enjoyed the exhibition greatly, I was slightly less taken with it, although it was still good and I managed to do some sketching (hooray!).  I suppose in some ways it felt like the idea was to display a number of van Gogh's paintings (good idea) but then they'd looked for a handle for it.  The first two galleries were mostly by artists who had influenced van Gogh, so it wasn't until the third room that his paintings started to predominate.  Which, together with my realisation that I like some of van Gogh's paintings, but not all, meant that it wasn't the best exhibition I've been to.  However, it was worth seeing and I liked the last two galleries which showed paintings by people who had been influenced by van Gogh (including Vanessa Bell).

While we were in the Tate I went to see the other Vanessa Bell painting, together with a couple by Duncan Grant, to tie up with my reading about the Bloomsbury Set in the spring.  I also saw a painting by Stanley Spencer, who I'd heard about, but don't recall ever seeing.

( Tate 1910 Gallery )

To continue with the theme of 'things finishing before I want them to' Sam Troughton was in a play at the National Theatre called Rutherford and Son.  Fortunately Rutherford himself was played by Roger Allam, (and therefore the father of John Jnr, played by Troughton) so SM said he'd be happy to go and see it.

The play, written by Githa Sowerby, is set in the home of the owner of a Tyneside glass works in about 1910.  Rutherford dominates the household and his three adult children and the play shows how they ultimately rebel and walk away from the house, but without any particular hope that their new lives will be successful as they are shells of what they could be.  The whole cast are excellent.  I've seen both Justine Mitchell (daughter, Janet) and Joe Armstrong (Martin, the work's foreman) before and really enjoyed their performances, as well as the rest of the cast.

The ending is dramatic, more realistic in its outcome than hopeful, and although the play won't get the recognition of Present Laughter, I thought it equally good, if rather different in tone.  It was totally absorbing and again I'd recommend it.

For Lent I am giving up unnecessary use of the internet - no following amusing, but irrelevant twitter threads; no random quizzes like 'which Disney princess are you'; no online games like solitaire and 2048.

That being said, I had an email newsletter from the Tate Gallery this morning which included Which Woman Artist Are You? I know very little about women artists, and this seemed a good way to pick one to learn something.  And therefore within my 'learn new things' ethic.  I ended up with Vanessa Bell, who was part of the Bloomsbury Set, and the sister of Virginia Woolf.  A bit of a search on the county library website and I've reserved two books.

Also, a couple a days ago I reserved the latest Kate Atkinson book: Transcription.  I hadn't been sure whether I wanted to read it, but if I get it from the library I don't lose anything.  I discovered I could reserve both the hardback and paperback version at the same time.  The paperback isn't published yet, but the county has eight copies on order.  So I am 101st on the list for the hardback and 13th on the list for the paperback.

Oh, and the vicar sent me an email the other day asking if I'd consider standing for church warden at the next church elections.  I waited until I had finished laughing to send my reply: 'No!'  I'm not even going to stand for the PCC this year.

In fact, I think we can safely say my time spent with the church continues to reduce.  Brownies, as per yesterday's post, continues to take up time - which is fine in that I like to see the girls growing.  (To that end, I have a particular problem with one girl, very outgoing and seems to want everyone's attention, but apparently unable to cope with basic challenges - when we were finger spelling our names she could not manage to learn hers, which is six letters long with four vowels - the easiest of the letters.  If anyone has any suggestions I would be delighted to discuss the matter with you - PM or email.)

And last Saturday I helped with Gloucestershire Bundles (they provide baby and children's clothing and equipment for families in need) Nearly New Sale.  They took in the region of £3,400 of which they got to keep just under £1,900.  A great effort and a charity I'm delighted to support.

And there you have it - the many and varied life of The Small Hobbit!

I was supposed to see Timon of Athens in Stratford-upon-Avon a couple of weeks ago, but then TD said I could be more usefully employed by going to London with her.  So I rearranged my trip.

Which worked out really well, because debriswoman  was going to see the same performance.  Which meant we could finally meet up - we've seen a number of the same plays, but never at the same time until now.  It was lovely to meet her (and her husband) and we chatted all the way through lunch and then as we walked to the theatre.  And since we had seats quite close to each other, we met up at the interval as well.  A truly lovely lady.

As for the play itself - I'd gone to see it primarily to tick off my list of Shakespeare plays.  I only have two left.  Timon had been gender changed, being played by Kathryn Hunter.  For me the best parts were the set - which was impressive throughout - and the music, which was live, with the musicians being in the gallery almost directly opposite from where I was sitting.  The plot isn't inspiring, and although reading the programme afterwards provided greater depth, it doesn't have that much to say.

From Stratford I drove down to Tewkesbury, where I was going to a concert by Tewkesbury Camerata. vix_spes   is the leader of the orchestra, and I arrived early enough to have a chat with her, which was great.  I enjoyed the concert: Vaughan Williams' English Folk Song Suite and Quick March from the Sea Songs, both of which I know.  I'm not a great fan of Vaughan Williams, but I did enjoy hearing these played live.  There was a piece by Arturo Marquez, Danzon No 3, which I didn't know, plus Aaron Copland's Appalachian Spring which I have heard before.  It was just lovely to sit and enjoy the music.

So all in all, a very good day, meeting two fandom friends, hearing some great music, and adding one more to my list of Shakespeare plays wot I have seen.

Since SM was off singing Christmas songs (of the Handel's Messiah and Berlioz Shepherd's Farewell sort) I had the Saturday morning to myself.  So I went to the National Army Museum to see an exhibition of Alfred Munnings war paintings.  Munnings was known as a painter who specialised in painting horses and he was commissioned by the Canadian War Office to accompany the Canadian mounted troops in the early part of 1918 to record life on the Western Front.

The paintings were excellent.  He painted some of the officers, but also the ordinary troopers.  When this commission was finished he was invited to go further south to see where many Canadian soldiers (frequently ex-lumberjacks) were involved in the logging process to provide the wood which was needed.  Again his paintings were a fascinating insight into life at the time.  And not only the horses, but the way he painted the men really captured them.

I sketched some of the paintings - the ones which spoke to me in particular ways - and then bought a pack of postcards.

In the afternoon I went to see Pinter 5.  This autumn/winter the Harold Pinter theatre are putting on a season of all of Harold Pinter's one act plays.  Pinter 5 comprised The Room, Victoria Station and Family Voices.  My sole reason for going was seeing Rupert Graves on stage, because it's many years since he was last on stage.  I didn't like Pinter before I went, and I think I like his plays even less now.  But I can say I've seen Rupert Graves on stage.

SM wanted to do another 'Come & Sing' morning at St Martin's in the Fields (this time was Mozart), so it seemed sensible to have another overnight stay in London, since it begins at 10am.  Also, because it was the end of half term week, we were able to go up during the day, so quite a good ending to our week.

Because we were in London by mid-afternoon I booked for us to go to an evening slot at the National Gallery to see the Monet & Architecture exhibition.  It was a really interesting exhibition, concentrating on Monet's paintings of various buildings, beginning with his early life in Normandy and visiting the Netherlands, through his trips to the French and northern Italian coasts, with his paintings of various villages.  From there the exhibition progressed to the more industrial architecture of Paris - bridges and railway stations - and then to his later paintings of Rouen, London and Venice.  I found it very interesting, and made various small sketches in the little booklet they provided.  It took us over an hour to wander round the exhibition.

Saturday morning SM went to sing, and I went shopping.  After which I went to the theatre, because I really couldn't have a stay in London without seeing a play.  When I'd been looking there wasn't that much I wanted to see, at a price I was prepared to pay, but The Moderate Soprano looked promising - and I could get a ticket for £25 and still see the stage.

When I got to the theatre I found I'd been upgraded, which meant instead of being in the Upper Circle I was in the Royal Circle, and in what turned out (I checked later) to be an £85 seat.  And the play was very good.  It was about how John Christie founded the opera season at Glyndebourne (his family home).  Roger Allam, the reason why I was attracted to the play, was Christie, and really good.  As was Nancy Carroll as his wife Audrey Mildmay, the moderate soprano of the play's title.  But it was very much an ensemble piece, as Anthony Calf (Carl Ebert), Jacob Fortune-Lloyd (Rudi Bing), Paul Jesson (Fritz Busch) and Jade Williams (Jane Smith), all made great contributions.

The play's subject might not be of great interest, but what captured my attention was the relationships between the characters, and how the audience's sympathy moved between them - all very true to life.  The main action occurs in the mid-1930s, and Christie's attitude towards Ebert, Bing and Busch who have all recently left Germany, whilst cringeworthy to a modern audience is no doubt accurate to that of many at the time.  Christie accepted what they told him about their experiences, but felt they were being over dramatic.

It wasn't a play I'd have wanted to make a special trip to see, but being in London I'm very glad to have seen it.

SM was thinking of going to a singing workshop (Handel) at St Martins-in-the-fields, which means staying over Friday night for a 10am start Saturday morning.  So I suggested I come up too, and we stay in a Travelodge, and I'll find a show to go to in the afternoon.  I'd been toying with the idea of seeing 42nd Street for a while, so this seemed a good opportunity.

And before that, in the morning I went to Primark (pyjamas for me, cute t-shirts and dress for granddaughter), and then onto the Winnie-the-Pooh exhibition at the V&A.  Again this was half price with my Art Card.  And it was surprisingly good.  Of course, some of the display was aimed at children, but a considerable section was adult oriented.  There were a large number of original E H Shepard (the illustrator) sketches with information about them.  Shepard drew everything from life - trees from Ashdown Forest, the toys were Christopher Robin Milne's own, plus Shepard's son's bear.  There were many examples shown and explanations of what Shepard had done, and why it worked, including other drafts which weren't as successful.  I'd thoroughly recommend the exhibition if you have any interest in Winnie-the-Pooh, or any artistic interest because there's a lot which can be learnt.

After which it was time to go to the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane to see 42nd Street.  I'm a fan of old-style musicals and for me this was just perfect.  The theatre is ideal for large scale singing and dancing.  The costumes were spectacular, bright and cheerful.  Lots of tap dancing and musical numbers - including 'We're in the money', 'Keep young and beautiful' and my favourite 'Lullaby of Broadway'.  I hadn't realised at the time, Sheena Easton was playing Dorothy Brock.  For me, the best actors were Tom Lister as Julian Marsh and Jasna Ivir as Maggie Jones.  For anyone who likes musicals and is looking for an great afternoon with a feel-good factor, I can thoroughly recommend this production.

SM and I spent a couple of days in London just before the New Year.  We came home on New Year's Eve, rather than watching the firework spectacular, which might have been fun, but I suspect it was as good watching it on the television and then being able to go to bed rather than spending hours getting back.

I saw The Car Man, which is a Matthew Bourne ballet a couple of years ago, and when I noticed Cinderella, also by Matthew Bourne, was being staged at Sadler's Wells while we were in London I suggested to SM that we go.  The ballet is set during the London blitz in 1940, and has little of the traditional trappings of Cinderella - no pumpkin coach or white mice, for instance - but there is still a lost shoe.  Cinderella remains the poor relation, but Prince Charming is a wounded airman.  The music is by Prokofiev, which suited the timeframe very well - much better than a more fairy tale version by say Tchaikovsky.  We both really enjoyed it, although didn't agree as to whether Cinderella and her prince were together in the end, the way a proper fairy tale would finish (Me), or whether this was all part of her dream (SM).  It didn't matter, as we were both satisfied with our own versions of the outcome.

The following morning, SM went to sing Christmassy music at St Martin's in the Fields, and I followed him in later.  We met at the Victoria & Albert Museum where we saw the Opera: Passion, Power and Politics exhibition.  It's a multi-sensory exhibition, for which the visitor wears headphones to hear various opera extracts whilst walking round seven different sections showing the way opera progressed.  I found it very interesting, despite not being a great opera fan, and we both learnt a lot.

Then, having time to kill before our evening theatre trip, we went to the National Gallery to see a free exhibition: Drawn in Colour: Degas from the Burrell.  SM thought I might find it interesting, since a number of the pictures were drawn in pastels.  Surprisingly, knowing a little about the material did help, and I got some ideas, although I am most certainly not a star of impressionism.

A few month's ago SM signed up to take part in a bring and sing at the Holywell Music Room as part of the Oxford Lieder Festival.  There's no charge, apart from paying for the accompanist and you get to sing two songs of your own choice in the music rooms where Haydn and Handel both played.  We decided to make a proper trip, travel up on the Friday, spend a bit of time in Oxford that day, stay over, SM would do his singing bit in the morning while I did my thing and we'd look round a bit more in the afternoon before coming home.

( Oxford pics )