Saturday morning, determined to see some good theatre, Bridgette and I woke up at 6:15 and headed out to queue for Matilda the Musical. Just like rush tickets in the US, most big London theatres offer dirt cheap tickets IF you get a good spot in the line that forms early in the morning in advance of the opening of the box office. While waiting for several hours, we befriended several girls in line behind us who are studying at the British American Drama Academy (BADA) from USC. It turns out that we share several professors! They were extremely nice, and I hope that we will meet up with them again before we leave the city. After hours of waiting, Bridgette and I did procure the last two tickets to that evening's performance of Matilda! Unfortunately, we didn't get the £5 tickets, but we had woken up at 6:15 in the morning and, by god, we were going to see that play! Also unfortunately, the girls behind us in line weren't able to get tickets, but I think they saw another show, so all is well that ends well.
Matilda was STUNNING. The little girl who played Matilda, Georgia Pemberton, is not yet 11, but carries the show with whimsy, spunk, and a phenomenal voice. The chorus of children are really outstanding, all armed with the ability to strongly complete their movements and send energy past the reaches of the limbs. They all radiate the childish charisma needed to counter their often disappointing adult role models. I am honestly devastated that I will never be able to be a child in this show. They are given so much fun material, great songs, and brave characterizations. Alex Gaumond, a man, plays the evil Miss Agatha Trunchbull. He is brilliant in his portrayal of a comically nefarious grinch. The whole show glistens with quirkiness. The set brilliantly mirrors motifs of the story, particularly the importance of books. With smooth use of stage mechanics, the scene changes are so inconspicuous, they are almost a joy to watch unto themselves. Basically, the show was amazing. I would highly consider seeing it again before I leave if I could get cheap enough tickets.
Matilda was STUNNING. The little girl who played Matilda, Georgia Pemberton, is not yet 11, but carries the show with whimsy, spunk, and a phenomenal voice. The chorus of children are really outstanding, all armed with the ability to strongly complete their movements and send energy past the reaches of the limbs. They all radiate the childish charisma needed to counter their often disappointing adult role models. I am honestly devastated that I will never be able to be a child in this show. They are given so much fun material, great songs, and brave characterizations. Alex Gaumond, a man, plays the evil Miss Agatha Trunchbull. He is brilliant in his portrayal of a comically nefarious grinch. The whole show glistens with quirkiness. The set brilliantly mirrors motifs of the story, particularly the importance of books. With smooth use of stage mechanics, the scene changes are so inconspicuous, they are almost a joy to watch unto themselves. Basically, the show was amazing. I would highly consider seeing it again before I leave if I could get cheap enough tickets.
So, we queued in the morning for tickets, but the show wasn't until the evening, so Bridgette and I got lunch at a little cafe in Covent Garden, Cafe la Roche. Cat agreed to meet us in Piccadilly Circus, but Bridgette and I got distracted on the way...
Click here to see what else we saw!
Finally accompanied by Cat, we briefly wandered around Piccadilly Circus. Our best find was Carpo, a gourmet dried fruits, nuts, chocolate, and coffee shop. Cat and I each got a couple chocolates to try. It has been funny to see how much of a language barrier there is for us in London between the different dialects of English and all of the immigrants/foreigners. Example: I asked one of the employees at Carpo to describe one of the chocolates and this is what I got... "It's a little bit like a raisin....but from inside the gum....you can really taste the mountains." Well, with a description like that I knew I had to give it a try. It was great, but I have never licked a mountain, so I guess I'll never know exactly what she meant.
Finally accompanied by Cat, we briefly wandered around Piccadilly Circus. Our best find was Carpo, a gourmet dried fruits, nuts, chocolate, and coffee shop. Cat and I each got a couple chocolates to try. It has been funny to see how much of a language barrier there is for us in London between the different dialects of English and all of the immigrants/foreigners. Example: I asked one of the employees at Carpo to describe one of the chocolates and this is what I got... "It's a little bit like a raisin....but from inside the gum....you can really taste the mountains." Well, with a description like that I knew I had to give it a try. It was great, but I have never licked a mountain, so I guess I'll never know exactly what she meant.
As you can see, Bridgette, Cat, and I grabbed a hop-on/hop-off bus tour! The tour came highly recommended by Jay (Hi Jay!), and he was right (Thank you!). For a flat rate, we got to take several different bus routes around the city. We were also offered cheaper student rates at the attractions along the way. Some we had seen already, others weren't too interesting, so we decided to just buy tickets to Kensington Palace. The tours around the palace are self-guided. You follow 4 tracks they have set up: Fashion Rules (obviously our first stop), Queen Victoria, the Glorious Revolution, and the state apartments. Not only was the building gorgeous, but the museum was set up in a way that combined whimsy with the historical facts. For instance, in many rooms there were window seats with pillow cushions embroidered with the words "Sit here to hear the walls whisper." When you sat down, it activated a small speaker which would whisper gossipy conversations that may have happened in that room 250 years ago or surreptitiously fill you in on historical details. It was a very active way to introduce new information. I really enjoyed the museum and wandering around the gardens a little bit. We even saw a rainbow!
Sunday Funday
Sunday was an awesome day. We went to Frae, a shop specializing in frozen yogurt, smoothies, and belgian waffles. Mine looked like this:
We spent another couple hours dashing in and out of vintage shops in Islington trying on silly clothing. We came back to Nido for a couple hours and then returned to Islington for thai food for dinner!
In general...
Everything is going really well, but it is still EXHAUSTING. I really love school, but our first show is a week from tomorrow and we aren't even completely set with who is playing which parts! Line memorizing is going to be the #1 chore of this weekend, considering we got our grocery shopping done tonight after class. Yay Tesco! Our fridge is now completely overflowing with fruits and vegetables. After January being the longest month of my life, I cannot believe we are almost a week into February! I'll be home before I know it!
In general...
Everything is going really well, but it is still EXHAUSTING. I really love school, but our first show is a week from tomorrow and we aren't even completely set with who is playing which parts! Line memorizing is going to be the #1 chore of this weekend, considering we got our grocery shopping done tonight after class. Yay Tesco! Our fridge is now completely overflowing with fruits and vegetables. After January being the longest month of my life, I cannot believe we are almost a week into February! I'll be home before I know it!