Experienced: Bird & Blend Advent Calendar Workshop

On a dark and cold Tuesday evening, fresh from a work meeting and running late, I headed from the depths of Sutton all the way to Borough to the loveliest tea shop I know, Bird & Blend Tea.

I have been a few times, having discovered them before the summer on a recommendation from a friend. I bought 5 teas and a cold brew bottle, and spent the summer drinking delicious cold brew teas with names like "Butter Brew", "Birthday Cake", "Eton Mess", "Strawberry Lemonade", and "Cherry Bakewell".

Fast forward to winter, and I was longing after an advent calendar that was fun and not the most expensive thing. I love the look of some of the beauty ones, but they are way out of our budget! So when I came across a tea advent calendar on the Bird and Blend website, it seemed perfect. Plus, you can go and build it custom and do it yourself!

On arrival, we were given a tea cocktail. I had the Salted Caramel Lebekuchken iced tea with brandy and whipped cream, which was so lovely! We also got given a tote bag, which we filled with 24 individually wrapped tea bags from many, many options. It took a while to choose, and I did double up, but not that many  (only my existing favourites).

After that, we were given the advent boxes as nd showed how to fold up my tea bags so that they fit snugly in the spaces. This was an interesting game in that I wanted to have a little bit of order to it (matcha on weekends, doubles separated, and the others randomised) and everyone had a different strategy to working this out.

After that it was time to put the outside on, wick I did need a little help with, and the decorative ribbon. Then the evening was over, except for shopping time (with 10% off because it was an event!). So I picked up a few extra teas which weren't options in the advent calendar: "Bears Like Marmalade", "Birthday Cake", and a coconut oolong which I've forgotten the name of.

It was a fantastic way to spend an evening, and I am so looking forward to having a lovely cup of tea every night until Christmas!

Theatre Trip: Six on Tour

SIX

Rose Theatre, Kingston

Date: 15 November (Friday), 8:30pm

Seats: Upper Circle, A54-55

(Catherine Parr was played by alternate Harriet Watson)

(Seen with Jess!)

Notes: After a long work week, the thing I want the most is to relax, and how do I relax? By going to the theatre, of course! We had booked in 2 cheap tickets to see Six on tour while on it’s stop at the Rose Theatre in Kingston. It was my first time at the Rose, given that usually we see touring productions in Wimbledon, however Six wasn’t going there (I suspect it’s because the Rose is much smaller than the New Wimbledon).

We had many transport dramas on the way, so it is lucky that it is an 8:30 evening show (they also had a 6pm “matinee” that evening) - my journey by bus was 15 minutes delayed and Jess’ was delayed by more than a half hour! So it was lucky we had planned to meet 2 hours before the show... We still had time to eat dinner and get to the theatre with plenty of time.

I’ve not been to the Rose before, and it was really lovely! Small, but the seats were comfy. We only paid 18 pounds for our tickets and it became immeadiately apparent why... We were very side on (not an issue in itself, really), but there were also spotlights rigged up in our way, so at any one time I could only see half the stage, and moved a lot to choose whether to see the top half of the performers or the bottom half while they were dancing. It was definitely the worst 18 pound tickets, especially compared to Wimbledon. Noted for next time, I guess.

Both Jess and I really love this show and we have been trying to get tickets to go back to it on the West End ever since we saw it the first time. However, it’s proving really, really hard to get tickets to! So we thought the Tour would be a good option. None of the Queens from the West End came on the tour, so it was all new cast, however there were a couple of girls from Heathers (Lauren Drewe and Jodie Steele) who we were familiar with. Overall, I felt that the vocals were a bit lacking compared to the West End, but that they played the comedy really hard and that usually worked in their favour. Of course, the music is fantastic and I really felt the lyrical jokes much more live than compared to when I listen to the album. There were a few girls in the row behind us who I had to glare at after key lines because they were joining in when they shouldn’t... But they stopped after I did it the second time!

Catherine of Aragon (Lauren Drewe) was the stand out for me. Having not seen her in a leading role before, and, having only ever experienced people of colour playing this Catherine, I was really wowed by her vocal punch and the quality of her runs. She also was a joy to watch during the rest of the show, showing a great energy and facial expressions throughout the night. Anne Boleyn (Maddison Bulleyment) fell a bit flat vocally for me, but I loved her deadpan sarcastic line deliveries which I felt made up for it. She was just so bitter (and historically, she has a right to be!) Jane Seymour (Lauren Byrne) was also excellent and a close second for me vocally. She really pushed the emotional side of her song and I think it was a better live rendition than the West End version. Shekinah McFarlane played Anne of Cleves, and unfortunately I was underwhelmed by her as well. I just felt that she wasn’t as good vocally as she should have been, although she was hilarious!  Jodie Steele (Katherine Howard) is really great. We knew the most about her going in after seeing her play Heather Chandler multiple times in Heathers and although her voice sounded a little thin (might have just been the sound being directed not directly at us...) she really pulled off the character well. And the alternate we had for Catherine Parr (Harriet Watson), I really felt for her. She didn’t seem to be in tune, or able to do the riffs the way she neeeded to. Basically, it kind of felt like I was watching a rehearsal and her number didn’t sound like a final, polished performance. I found myself wondering if it was her first show...

Six on tour is still a great night out, but I did feel like we were slightly spoilt by the West End version and that the Queens on tour just didn’t quite live up to that expectation. It can’t have been helped that I felt so removed from the action by our restricted view that I found it hard to lose myself like I usually do. Ah well, back to trying to get tickets at the Arts!

Theatre Trip: Jeremy Jordan

JEREMY JORDAN

Cadogan Hall

Date: 26 October (Saturday), 7:30pm

Seats: Centre Gallery, D33

(Seen solo!)

Notes: After getting back from Majorca less than 24 hours ago, I was already off to my next concert! This concert was scheduled for last year, however was cancelled before I bought tickets. I was going to go with my friend Karla last year, but now she has moved back to Australia, so I went on my own.

Cadogan Hall is a new venue for me, and it was lovely! Even my £12 seats had a great view, and I'm not sure there would be a bad seat in the house. It's a large hall with a church kind of aesthetic and acoustics and it was lovely.

Jeremy Jordan was amazing! I wasn’t familiar with his entire history, but he was fantastic in Smash and I’d seen other clips of him singing and knew that it would be a great concert.

He sang a lot of medleys, mostly for things he had been in - Smash, Bonnie and Clyde, Newsies, plus a Disney princess medley as well! He also sang an original song as well as some pop songs. I think, for me, the most interesting part was when he did a whole  bit about the Greatest Showman movie. He actually recorded the demos of the album, and was on track to play Philip Carlyle (the part played by Zac Efron in the film), and he went into the green light performance to sing both that part and for Hugh Jackman. Unfortunately, that didn't go well because Jeremy was unwell, and then he also found out that they had Zac Efron in talks. It just sounded like the most frustrating situation.

Such a lovely concert and we got two curtain calls before he shooed us out! He was also very funny which was not expected and made the night all the more special. I'm definitely going to keep my eye out on other concerts at Cadogan Hall in the future.

Half Term Holidays: Majorca Escape

This last week we have been enjoying perhaps the most relaxed holiday I’ve ever had (certainly it has been the most relaxed since I got married) and it has been such a pleasant time. I was going to do a daily blog post, but then I was also too busy relaxing - plus, we haven’t been doing enough stuff to warrant a post every day.

We got up Sunday morning and took the long route to Heathrow (the district line trains weren’t running last weekend, which was a pain). With a lunchtime flight, we didn’t have to get to the airport too early which makes a nice change to previous trips. The flight was fine - we had been warned that it might be bumpy, but that didn’t really eventuate which was good. We landed around 4pm local time and then went straight to the coach for the transfer to the hotel. It took us about an hour to get to the hotel. We were in a 4 star, adults only hotel which I requested after the last half term of business at school! Our room was small but there are lots of communal spaces which we certainly used.

Every day we went to the beach, which is only a few minutes walk away from the hotel. The weather certainly wasn’t great early on in the week, with lots of threatening clouds and rain on and off, but when it was clear we tried to make the best of it. A typical day looked like this: sleep in until 9-9:30, breakfast buffet, the Husband going for a ride and me crafting/relaxing/going for a walk/having lunch, then us going together to the beach, then resting in the room, before a shower and going out for dinner. Then it was time to sleep and do it all over again.

In terms of dinners, most were fine. We had 2 tapas, one italian, but the highlights were the seafood restaurant we went to (Las Sirenas) and the burger place (my personal favourite - called New Cacao). They were great! 

I have to say that was so great. Even when on holidays at home, I feel the pressure to do things - whether it is washing, sewing, or other busy things. Here I only had the things I brought, so I could be much more relaxed. I read a whole book (Carrie Hope Fletcher’s newest novel, In the Time We Lost), finished a cross stitch, and generally had a lovely time.

Now today is Friday and it’s going home day. And the weather is great today! Luckily out flight isn’t until 10:20pm, and our coach pickup is 6:40pm outside the hotel. So we basically get another whole day! The downside is that now we might not get back until 2am from the airport, but at least we don’t have any plans until Saturday afternoon. On the plus side, we are already intending to make this a yearly October half term trip - for the Husband to cycle, and me to relax!!!

Theatre Trip: Ian McKellen on Stage

IAN MCKELLEN ON STAGE

Harold Pinter Theatre

Date: 18 October (Friday), 7:30pm

Seats: Royal Circle, B7-8

(Seen with Richard!)

Notes: Ian McKellen is a legend. He is so well known for many things, from Gandalf to Magneto, and he has been around so many famous actors and actresses. And when he turned 80, instead of throwing a fabulous party (which to be honest, he may have done anyway), he went on tour doing a solo show around 80 venues. He is now settled in London and we booked tickets which were above our usual budget (of about 25 pounds) to get to see him live.

We met 45 minutes before the show and picked up a swift sushi dinner so that we weren’t going hungry... And then we headed straight in! We were booked in the Royal Circle, the second floor up and although even in Row B we were supposed to have the safety rail in view, which we did but it was barely noticeable so I definitely would recommend those seats for the price.

This was really a show for theatre lovers. The first act, Ian opened with the famous speech that Gandalf does in Lord of the Rings (YOU. SHALL NOT. PASS!) and then he talked about his family, his childhood, and how he got into acting. He began by attending shows and fell in love with the theatre, and then he wanted to be behind the scenes, then on stage... It really resonated with me. My favourite moment in Act 1 was actually when he talked about poetry, then he recited Gus the Theatre Cat by T. S. Eliot! I love those poems and the Cats musical, and Ian is playing Gus in the film which is out in December; it was quite magical to hear him recite this.

Act 2 was really interesting. Ian has done a lot of Shakespeare in his time, and he had with him a copy of every single Shakespeare play. Then, with the house lights up, he invited the audience to call out the names of Shakespeare plays - we were able to name them all eventually. As they were called out, he picked up each copy and told a small story - about something famous and interesting in the play, about his roles in them, and for some he even recited sections (Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Hamlet). That was really interesting and makes me want to see more Shakespeare - particularly I want to go and see the RSC at Stratford-Upon-Avon next summer! So hopefully I can do that.

Sir Ian McKellen really is an amazing human being, and he has so many interesting stories to tell! We really have been lucky to experience him live, and he really is doing amazingly at 80 and beyond. I feel so lucky to have had that experience.

Theatre Trip: Priscilla, Queen of the Desert

PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT

New Wimbledon Theatre

Date: 11 October (Friday), 7:30pm

Seats: Upper Circle, G1-2

(Seen with Jess!)

Notes: This trip I had booked quite a ways in advance, not wanting to miss out on this classic Australian  show. It has actually been around for quite a while, but when it was on in Australia I missed it (I don't know how) and I didn't want to miss my chance  again. Priscilla is based on the film from the early 90s which is perhaps one of the most iconic Australian films of all time. Weirdly, Jess has never actually seen it, but I had seen it many times and know it very well. I knew that it could never replace the film, particularly with such iconic actors in it (Terence Stamp, Hugo Weaving and Guy Pearce) and such a bold story.

They adapted the movie into the musical really well. It maintained its character quite well, with most of the iconic moments and lines remaining in the show. The biggest change they made was to the costumes, with none of the costumes from the movie in the show. I assume that was simply logistics, with the three main boys changing costumes into and out of drag quite a lot and needing to be able to sing and dance in them night after night. But the best lines and moments were all there for those who know the movie like me! The accents in the show were quite good too, despite only one actor being Australian (oh, actually, I was guessing about that based purely on the Neighbours and Blue Heelers in his credits - a pretty safe guess though!)

The music in this show is fantastic. It uses songs featured in the movie such as 'Shake Your Groove Thing' and 'Finally' plus so many other chart topping hits. It really has you dancing, clapping and wanting to sing along! As they don't sing (in the film), when the boys are performing they have actresses on stage singing the tunes so that it is still live.

I thought the casting was great on the whole. The biggest disappointment for me was the role they added to the beginning of the show, to ‘warm up’ the crowd I guess. She was Miss Understanding, and she was camp and over the top in the worst possible way. I thought she was tacky and was very glad when, after her initial introduction, she came off stage and barely returned for the rest of the show. For the best, I think. The standout in the main cast was Jacqui Sanchez (Cynthia). Her part was just hilarious and had everyone in hysterics (I was crying with laughter!)

But then there were the three boys! Miles Western (Bernadette) was beautiful and graceful and had a lovely face to pull off drag. Nick Hayes (Felicia/Adam) was absolutely gorgeous - the first time you see him it’s just his butt, and that got a cheer! But he was fabulously camp and made a really good Adam. His acting was also great during the tough moments in the show that he goes through! Then there was Joe McFadden (Tick/Mitzi). He played really well in both the male and female roles, I thought he passed for both really effectively! His is a big role and he really did it well - plus, we got all of that feeling right up the back of the theatre in the cheap seats.

For me, not a groundbreaking show, unlike Preludes, but a fantastic Friday night out after a long week!

Theatre Trip: Preludes

PRELUDES

Southwark Playhouse

Date: 9 September (Monday), 7:30pm

Seats: The Large, Row C10

(Seen solo!)

Notes: Another solo show, which I had booked purely on an ad in the bathroom from my trip to Once on this Island, and back at the Southwark Playhouse! This time the staging was arranged in one corner with only two banks of seating. This time I picked row C after being a bit too close to audience interaction at Once on this Island, and it was just about the perfect spot.

Dave Malloy is the composer of this show and I must admit that that was a drawcard for me - not because I had experienced any of his works, but precisely because I hadn't! I had heard a lot about him, primarily about his work Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 (a smash hit in NY in the last few years), and also through my theatre podcasts where they always say amazing things about him. So, given I knew it was by a composer I wanted to experience, and featuring music by a classical composer I really admire, I was sold.

I did a little reading before I arrived at the theatre, brushing up on the life of Rachmaninoff (although I already knew a little about it) and listening to my favorite of his pieces, the Piano Concerto #2. I was in the orchestra playing this years ago, when I was much younger (I must have been 14 or 15?) and it really stuck with me at the time. Ever since then, I come back to it every few months. I have distinct memories of feelings I had while playing it, and the emotions I felt during that time. I do for a few of the pieces I was a part of, but I don't usually have the chance to experience them again in this way.

The music in this show is amazing. The musical numbers fall roughly into 3 categories: pure extracts from classical works, songs inspired and influenced by particular compositions, and original songs. The classical works are mostly Rachmaninoff, but also feature Beethoven, and the mixed numbers really blended them well. The totally original numbers were more unusual, and if I had to choose favourites, it wouldn't be them, but I definitely could see how they fit the story and the moments they were placed in. This combination was clearly not for everyone, because the man next to me wasn't the only one who left during interval.

I did find the opening to Act Two particularly hard to move past, with its crazy strobe lighting and electronica music, but it works in context. With so much variety within one show of musical genres, it could be hard to understand.

In terms of the plot, it takes place during the 3 years of Rachmaninoff's depression - three years in which he barely wrote anything and completely lost his motivation. He ended up seeing a hypnotherapist, and the show take place during these sessions, with flashbacks to the past and hallucinations. In particular, it was interesting because there were really two of him on stage. He never played the piano himself, but there was an alternate version of him that did all the piano playing (and yes, almost entirely real and live, which is a feat in itself) and he often spoke to characters on stage, but who weren't technically in the moment that was being portrayed.

There weren't a huge number of actors - they covered the biggest people in the life of Rachmaninoff. Dahl (Rebecca Caine), his hypnotherapist, was a fully trained opera singer and was really good, as was Natalya (Georgia Louise), Rachmaninoff's cousin and his future wife. The Master (Steven Serlin) was a more fluid character who played a few roles, but Chaliapin (Norton James) was really good as Rachmaninoff's best friend. Then there's the two leads - Tom Noyes played Rachmaninoff, the version of him who was stable and rational and did the piano playing. Keith Ramsay was Rach, the modern version in therapy - he was really good and captured the vibe so well! It was an amazing cast overall with no particular stand out members in a really solid ensemble.

Actually, in the end, I think I may have been the exact target audience of the show. With my love for musical theatre, my appreciation and background in classical music, and in particular my prior experience of Rachmaninoff and the Piano Concerto #2, I think I am right in the centre of the Venn diagram of potential audience members. As it stands, I'm currently trying to work out a way to get myself back to see this again before it closes next month, but unfortunately it is a busy month with guests coming and other things on. I will try and make it work, because my honest and genuine first thought on coming out of the theatre was: I NEED to see this again.