George Frideric Handel was born in Germany, but he spent a whopping 47 years in London, arriving here when he was just 26. He went on to write some of the world’s most famous operas and oratorios in the capital and became the toast of London town. His patrons included a queen, two Georgian kings…
Things to do this week in London: 2 to 8 March 2020
Majestic trees are coming to Southbank’s Hayward Gallery this week in all their arty guises, and Vanessa Williams is swirling into town for her stint in the award-winnng “City of Angels” at the Garrick Theatre. An exhibition marking Florence Nightingale’s 200th birthday opens at the Florence Nightingale Museum, just in time for International Women’s Day….
Things to do this week in London: 24 February to 1 March 2020
As we blast into March (I must admit I’ve never been happier to see London coming into bloom), the master of pop and colour, David Hockney, bursts onto the National Portrait Gallery. The much-anticipated British Surrealism opens at the Dulwich Picture Gallery, always a good excuse for a day out in south east London, and…
Review: Message in a Bottle – Peacock Theatre, London
What do you get when you weave Kate Prince’s hip hop choreography together with Sting’s greatest hits, a dance company with superpowers and a story that centres on the plight of refugees? You get Message in a Bottle, a dance-off at the Peacock Theatre which is dizzying to watch and which will leave you weak…
Luisa Miller at the English National Opera
I braced Storm Dennis’s ferocious embrace on Saturday night for a dose of operatic drama in the company of the English National Opera’s Luisa Miller. This is the ENO’s first staging of Verdi’s fifteenth opera and one which I have been longing to see for years. Written when Verdi was 36, the opera marks the…
Things to do this week in London 17 to 23 February
The Europeans are taking over London this week with Dutch master Nicolaes Maes coming to the National Gallery and Belgian symbolist artist Léon Spilliaert over at the Royal Academy. You can also celebrate German-born cum Londoner Handel’s birthday this weekend and enjoy a staging of Verdi’s Luisa Miller at the English National Opera, on until…
Things to do this week in London 10 to 16 February
I’ve never been a fan of Cupid’s shenanigans in February, so I am going to skim over anything icky which might be happening in the capital this Friday. I do have a free concert on Thursday for you if love is on your weekly agenda, and I do sincerely wish you all copious amounts of…
Alice’s Adventures Under Ground at the Royal Opera House
Alice’s Adventures Under Ground at the Royal Opera House is as mad as a box of frogs. The much-loved children’s tale of delicious nonsense has been condensed into a 55-minute rollercoaster of an opera, written by Irish composer Gerald Barry and directed and designed by Antony McDonald. Anything is possible during this topsy-turvy muchness of…
Northern Chords Ensemble at King’s Place
The Steinway piano was happily purring away on the King’s Place stage on Sunday night, with virtuoso Daniel Lebhardt on keys. He was in the musical company of his other Northern Chords Ensemble bedfellows, Benjamin Baker on violin and Jonathan Bloxham on cello. BBC New Generation Artist Timothy Ridout and his Peregerino di Zanetto viola…
Things to do this week in London: 3 to 9 February
Things to do this week in London 3 to 9 February. It’s safe to say most of us will be happy to wave goodbye to January. It was dry for those doing the inevitable post-Christmas penance (I lift my martini glass up to you in awe), and yet it was also one of the soggiest Januarys…