I was just feeling a bit gloomy thinking about all the deleted events from my diary; a trip to Scotland, a visit to the Andy Warhol exhibition at the Tate Modern, cancelled theatre trips - Blythe Spirit, Uncle Vanya, Bang Bang (a new farce written by John Cleese), a concert from Lloyd Cole, as well as cancelled 'significant' birthday parties. But then Terry Waite told us all to stop complaining. A man who spent 1763 days as a hostage in appalling conditions makes a good point.
Change your mindset he said, you're not STUCK at home, you're SAFE at home.
His advice:
Keep your own dignity - get out of your PJs!
Form a structure for the day
Be grateful for what you have - shelter, home, possessions
Read and be creative
Or perhaps enjoy the creativity of others in your own home. Here are a few ideas.
Museums and Galleries
There are lots of virtual tours available on line. Here are just a few:
The Wallace Collection:
And if you missed the Andy Warhol exhibition, which had barely opened, here is a documentary to keep you going:
Theatre
IMMERSIVE LDN presents HOUSETRAP THEATRE & ARTS FESTIVAL 2020
on Wednesday 8th April from 6.30pm to midnight. If you enjoy the likes of the Edinburgh festival, this is the event for you. Housetrap follows the makeup of the traditional festival, with the exception that it's entirely remote. It will, however, be organised by a team with over 50 years of festival experience between them (from Brighton to Edinburgh and Singapore to Adelaide), with performers programmed into a curated evening of entertainment with a mix of genres. The Festival is donation based, so audiences can give as they are able, and the money raised will be shared between the artists performing (with a small percentage going to the running costs).
Hampstead Theatre and The Guardian will re-release the live stream recordings of Mike Bartlett’s Wild, Beth Steel’s Wonderland and Howard Brenton’s Drawing the Line for free.
Available to watch on theguardian.com and hampsteadtheatre.com, the three productions will be made available, on demand, over three consecutive weeks as part of the theatre’s #HampsteadTheatreAtHome series.
Week 1, from Monday 30 March 10am to Sunday 5 April 10pm (GMT), will feature Mike Bartlett’s Wild (2016). Directed by James Macdonald, this darkly comic play explores the unexpected, bewildering, and life-changing consequences of challenging the status quo at a global level, inspired by the case of Edward Snowden, the American whistleblower who copied and leaked classified information from the US National Security Agency in 2013.
Week 2, from Monday 6 April, 10am - Sunday 12 April, 10pm (GMT) will feature Beth Steel’s Wonderland (2014). Directed by the theatre’s previous Artistic Director, Edward Hall, this epic and witty drama takes a look at the clashing ideologies during the UK’s Miners' Strike of 1984–85 and presents the full sweep of the turbulent events that transformed the country.
Week 3, from Monday 13 April, 10am – Sunday 19 April, 10pm (GMT) will feature Howard Brenton’s Drawing the Line (2013). Directed by the late Howard Davies, the play features a large ensemble, and tells the story of the chaotic partitioning of India in 1947 whilst celebrating the strength of humanity.
The National Theatre
NT Live has long broadcast great quality recordings into cinemas throughout the UK to broaden its audience. Now’s it’s bringing those into your home via YouTube.
Beginning with the Richard Bean's brilliant comedy, One Man Two Guvnors, starring James Corden. You can tune into their Youtube channel from 7pm where the plays will be streamed in full and made available for 7 days afterwards.
The initial programme is:
April 2 ‘One Man, Two Guvnors’ by Richard Bean, starring James Corden.
April 9 ‘Jane Eyre’, adapted by Sally Cookson.
April 16 ‘Treasure Island’, adapted by Bryony Lavery.
April 23 ‘Twelfth Night’ by William Shakespeare, starring Tamsin Greig.
Royal Court Theatre
Starring Stephen Rea and directed by Vicky Featherstone, the award-winning Cyprus Avenue by David Ireland mixes live capture of performance from the iconic Royal Court Theatre stage production with location shooting in Belfast.
Eric Miller (Stephen Rea) is a Belfast Loyalist. He is experiencing a psychotic episode and mistakes his five-week old granddaughter for Gerry Adams. Generations of sectarian trauma convince him that his cultural heritage is under siege. He must act.
This hard hitting black comedy Cyprus Avenue tells the story of a man struggling with the past and terrified of the future. It was awarded Best New Play at the Irish Times Theatre Awards and the James Tait Black Prize for Drama in 2017. For his portrayal of Eric, Stephen Rea won Best Actor at the Irish Times Theatre Awards 2017.
You can now watch this amazing play, wherever you are, for free for 30 days:
Music
Many artists are showing either archive concerts or performing to us from their homes. We are rather partial to Frank Turner and will be tuning into his show this evening. Why not search for your favourite artist to see what they are up to? At least you'll be able to get to the bar without difficulty!
