Summer Party & Musical: Lovestuck

Last night, we had our work summer party, at the Rotunda in King's Place, of all places! Gee, took me ages to make that connection.. I should have gone into the office first, especially as they had drinks, games, and prizes before the evening event - but I was afraid of there being too much competition for desks, so I didn't, setting out by bus from home instead. And wow, was it hot.. I could have got a bus closer, but in the end was glad it was delayed, and I didn't - it was lovely to have a bit of a walk to cool down a bit.

As I approached the building, whom did I meet but two women who work with me, and had come together - at least one of them was wearing sunglasses, and I wouldn't have recognised them at all if they hadn't spotted me first! Just as well I met them, too - they were about to get horribly lost, heading around the side of the building, saying they'd seen a sign pointing them that way. I redirected them - to be fair, why would you expect to have to go into what looks like an office building to find a restaurant? But I led them in, across the lobby, and into the bar. And sure enough, they proclaimed the building very impressive..

With no-one on the door, we meandered through the bar, looking for someone to direct us - the Project Manager of the group taking the lead. It turned out that we had a roped-off section, towards the end of the canalside garden - I knew it for ours as soon as I saw a bowl full of ice, with white wine bottles chilling in it. There was a barbecue too, which got fired up after a while.

As I approached the table with the white wine, one of the ushers started to pour into one of the glasses, all lined up and ready for use. Must have seen me coming, as I joked when I returned to the others - of course, she probably actually did! And the whole time we were outside, they wended their way through us, topping up readily - someone asked me how many glasses I thought I'd had, and of course I had no idea.. it was impossible to measure. The wine wasn't actually great, but as I remarked to someone, that's the thing about wine - after you've had some, you don't really notice. She agreed, sighing that the same wasn't true of the lemonade she was having instead, which she didn't much like either..

There were four plates on the barbecue - chicken, lamb, fish (cod & salmon), and something vegetarian - I had some chicken and some lamb, not fancying the others. Salad ingredients and bread rolls were laid out for us on a side table. And it was all only gorgeous.. including the bread rolls they supplied. I had another round, asked whether they could manage a double helping of the lamb, but no.. and I would have had a third roll, but by the time I finished the second, they were out of them. Ah well.. we were well fed.

We stayed out there for hours, and honestly, had a great chat; at some point in the evening, we were told we'd have to go inside - but not all the wine was finished yet, and I had more than I could drink. Which, for me, is saying something. More chat ensued, and it turned out to be a great evening. I even had someone give me his number to let him know I'd got home safely. Which I did. Too tired to blog, of course - I just crashed. And with being in the office today - and having tons to do before going on holiday - I couldn't get it done today either.

This evening, I was back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS) for Lovestuck, a comedy musical at the Theatre Royal, Stratford East. Got a Time Out ticket offer. I was so glad I could get the Elizabeth Line - today was roasting hot, and I knew that'd be air-conditioned. The "business class version of the Tube" as tonight's organiser said she'd heard someone call it. I didn't get a seat, mind - it's a victim of its own success, always crowded. Of course, it's nowhere near as frequent as the Tube, which doesn't help. I could actually have got a seat eventually, but I was halfway there by that time, and it didn't seem worth it. The aircon was delicious, though.

Arrived in time to grab something to eat - and headed for the Sichuan Grand, as usual out here. I never have to book - I was almost the first to arrive this evening. Had the gung bao chicken - I dunno though, it's the most appealing to me, but is slightly uncomfortably spicy - I might reconsider my options in future. Finished slightly late to meet the others - the organiser had said she'd be late anyway. I headed to the bar, where we were to meet - and wow, have never seen it so crowded! I queued for a drink, and we eventually all found each other. I had a general admission ticket, which I had to show at the box office to get my actual ticket - it turned out I was in the last row of the Circle:

Which was fine, except I moved over one as the show started - there was no-one to my right, and I didn't want to be squashed against the fellow to my left.

Well, this is just simply marvellous - catchy, beautifully sung, and so true to life! It is actually based on a true story - a couple are on a first date, she uses his toilet but it doesn't flush properly - so she attempts to fling her poo out the window. Icky enough - but on top of that, there's actually another window outside that window, and the poo gets caught in the gap between. Mortified, she tries to retrieve it - and gets stuck, forcing him to try to free her..

From the start, the story is elevated by a deadpan narrator that is absolutely hilarious. And the doubts in our protagonist's head, before she meets the man whose toilet she'll get stuck in, are a rollcall of classic female angst - she's not young enough, not pretty enough, too frumpy. Crucially, she has too many interests - to appear more attractive to men, she should empty her head and just agree with them. Oh, very apt.. and I had to laugh when the misery-guts in her head suggested she get a cat - cue the arrival onstage of a whole troupe of dancers dressed as cats. 

Keen social observation, mixed with great music and terrific performances - what's not to love? Any show centred on a song about how "everyone's got their shit", which the audience is humming as they leave, has to be a must-see.. Runs until Saturday, but if you can make it at all, I highly recommend it!

Elizabeth Line home again - and a seat, this time.

Tomorrow - I'm off on holiday! to the classical music festival in Aix-en-Provence, in the company of my companion for the Swiss trip. We're flying to Marseille. Now, the region is home to a number of historic towns, which I'm keen to see.. hopefully the weather won't be so hot as to prevent travel. Or sleep. Checking this evening, I see there's been an awful wildfire in the area, which even closed the airport - hopefully, the area has seen the last of that. 

We could finally check in for our flight today - and with our flight leaving from Heathrow, I'll be on the Elizabeth Line again. Unfortunately, of course, as mentioned, I was in the office, and needed my passport number, but hadn't brought it with me! So, by the time I could check in, we couldn't get seats together. Anyway, we're staying in the Mirabeau student flats, and our first two nights are at the Grand Théatre de Provence - that night, we're attending a concert by Jakub Józef Orlinski.

On Saturday, we're at the opera Don Giovanni. 

On Monday, we're at La Calisto, at the Théatre de l' Archeveché (open-air).

Next Thursday, we're at a concert by the Orchestre des Jeunes de la Méditeranée, at the Théatre Antique d' Orange (also open-air) - getting a shuttle bus to that. And then she's flying home - I'm flying to Ireland for the weekend, a trip that was booked months ago, and which might be the next chance I get to blog. Finally back to London on the 20th.

And on the 21st, back with UITCS for Noughts & Crosses, at Regent's Park Open-Air Theatre.