Thursday 17 June 2021

I'm so looking forward to tomorrow and not only because it'll be my first ballet performance in more than a year ... but the thought of lovely air-conditioning at the Royal Festival Hall! For the first few days post-lockdown, I went everywhere - and rather wore myself out! You'd think it all had to be accomplished in a week! The Alice exhibition at the V&A was enormous fun, worth going for the Mad Hatter's tea table alone - and who wouldn't enjoy virtually tumbling down the rabbit hole - even if I did turn out to be completely rubbish at catching hedgehogs and hurling them through croquet hoops.
And Hockney's The Arrival of Spring: Normandy, 2020 was a joyous reminder that pandemic or not, life goes on and lovely things happen. But then came those days and days of biblical downpours - and the realisation that I wouldn't make it as far as the bus stop without getting soaked to the skin. And lethargy set in ... Still, that didn't last and here I am back again and moaning that I'm too hot! I spent a lovely afternoon here sitting under a tree with my book, watching the dragonflies and a family of six tireless ducklings swimming round and round -
And I've discovered a new-to-me ice cream stand on the river (outside Riverside Studios) which is very good indeed, if not quite as good as Gelupo. Marmalade and sour dough highly recommended, but not quite hitting the heights of Gelupo's pear and blackberry crumble. I am rather appalled at how much financial support I have given to the ice cream industry this week and wonder if Boris might consider a Slurp Up to Help Out initiative. Still, I felt I deserved ice-cream after a sunny afternoon on a very uncomfortable chair with Samuel Beckett. I've always been timid about dipping my toe into Beckett, assuming that he's 'difficult' but I saw Lisa Dwan some years ago in a shattering adaptation of this book - one of the best performances I've ever seen on stage - and she's the renowned Beckett interpreter, mentored by the famous Billie Whitelaw ... so this was my chance. Happy Days seemed almost topical, Dwan - who is six months pregnant - gave a virtuoso performance as Winnie, incarcerated up to her waist in a sand dune - and if I rose only partly to the occasion, it was only because I was too damn hot (and those chairs!). Didn't flag for a second though at The Father, which I knew would be good - but this wasn't just good, it was heart-wrenchingly terrifying as the audience is drawn into Anthony Hopkins's confusion, never quite knowing what is really happening, what happened in the past and what is a figment of Alzheimer's. Word of warning, though - if this is close to home, it could be very distressing. What a terrific run of post-lockdown films we're getting - and what a shame that, apart from a good socially-distanced turn-out for In the Heights, the audiences, at least in my experience, have been out-numbered by front of house staff.

13 comments:

Sue said...

Morning, Mary. You have been so busy. Thank you for your words on The Father - I saw the trailer and really want to see it, but...I also wondered if it might be a bit too close to home. I've still got the Hockney to look forward to next month. Glad to hear you enjoyed it. All this booking in advance is getting a bit wearisome.

Mary said...

Making up for lost time, Sue. The Father is brilliant - but possibly should come with a health warning for audiences over a certain age and if I had any personal experience of Alzheimer's, I think it would have been too much.
Hockney was very cheering. I've not found booking too bad - apart from the big exhibitions, there's still quite a lot you can do on impulse. I'm not great at planning ahead!

Vronni's Style Meanderings said...

Oh you have been busy, Mary! But all worth the effort at least. We're off to see 'The Father' next week and I went to Kew Gardens last week.
xxx

Mary said...

It's good to be out and about again, isn't it, Vronni - let's hope it lasts! I haven't been to Kew for ages - and it's only down the road -did you see the colour exhibition, or was it to too hot to be inside?

Julia said...

I'm a long way from Hammersmith but that ice cream does sound delicious. I'm very fond of Udderlicious in Islington and must try Gelupo.

I'm looking forward to seeing 'Alice' next month and have La Boheme at the Royal Opera House tonight. Hope you enjoyed the ballet! Thank goodness London is opening up.

Mary said...

Oh, how lovely, Julia - I was lying in bed this morning thinking what an age since I've been to the Opera House! Have a wonderful evening. The ballet was a mixed bag of bits and pieces - more like a gala evening - but it was a treat just to be out with live music and a friend to go with!
I'm a long way from Udderlicious! Though I think I've been past on my way to the Almeida - probably too last minute to stop! Ice cream is one thing that has improved enormously since I was a child!

Pam said...

You've had very different weather from us. We're in need of rain but it's just been pleasantly warm, not hot.

What was wrong with ice cream when we were young, I wonder? It tasted splendid to me and I'm not a great fan of it now (possibly because I'm thinking about the calories now).

Edinburgh theatres haven't opened up yet. Not sure about cinemas. Still, good for you, supporting the industry.

Mary said...

It has brightened up today, Pam - but I've been going to bed with hot water bottles, would you believe!
I wasn't at all critical of ice-cream when I was a child - but I remember my (Irish) parents moaning about the likes of Walls. Now I can see what they meant! I'm afraid it was Mr Whippy today - and it really was yuck, not worth the calories!
IT's mostly the smaller theatres that have reopened here - not the big shows, but they don't tempt me anyway.

Pam said...

Hmmm, maybe Irish ice cream was better. Or did they have home-made?

Mary said...

Probably nostalgia for a 1920s/30s childhood, Pam!

Mary said...

According to my mum, even the gobstoppers were bigger and better and had more colours!

Pam said...

Goodness, I thought for a moment that you were saying that your childhood was in the 1920s/30s!! You get around a lot for someone of 100+! But actually no.

Mary said...

Well, I'd swear my knees are 20 years older than the rest of me, Pam!