Play: Sing Street

Last night, my one Meetup of the week - Up in the Cheap Seats were doing a couple of different things, and I chose the play Sing Street, which sounded fun. Based on a film I saw some years back, it's set in Dublin in the 80s, and focuses on schoolkids trying to start up a band. Playing in the Lyric Hammersmith.

As we were chatting about beforehand, for most people, this isn't the most convenient destination. Oh, the theatre itself is fine - albeit with a lot of stairs - and it has ok-priced wine and a roof garden. But wow, it's a long way from me - so, Tube it was. The Jubilee Line was crowded and uncomfortable, as usual - although I did manage to squeeze onto the first train - and Google Maps was recommending me to change to the Piccadilly Line. Which is fair enough - you miss out a stop on that line, so it's slightly quicker. However, you do have to navigate the chaos of Green Park station - and the Piccadilly Line wasn't exactly uncrowded or comfortable either. I did manage to grab a seat after a couple of stops on each, though.

In this direction, I tend to head to Wasabi for food. They only had two chicken katsu curries left - I took one (carefully, they're hot) and a bottle of water. I tell you though - I doubt I'll be back. I've noticed for a while that the portions aren't as big as I was used to when I started to eat in Wasabi - sure enough, I was still hungry when I finished. Not only that, but although the sauce was lovely, the chicken itself was meh, and the coating was decidedly chewy. You know, right across from the theatre is the William Morris, which is a Wetherspoons's - and they do quite a nice chicken katsu curry. And wine.. Anyway, on my way out, I passed a Pret, and stopped in for a couple of their moreish chocolate bars to assuage my hunger.

A short walk to the theatre, got a glass of wine, headed to the roof garden, where we'd agreed to meet, weather permitting. As it happened, I was first there - managed to grab a table near the bar, where the others joined me, and we chatted until showtime - you can take your drink in if it's in plastic, those look like tumblers, FYI.

Boy, they do have a lot of stairs.. one flight up to the lobby, another to the Stalls, and I was in the Circle, which was one up again - happily, when I got my ticket, as I recall, they had nothing left in the Upper Circle, which would have been yet another flight! Down again at the interval, and as I panted my way back up, I was sympathising with the woman at the end of my row (who sounded like she had a Dublin accent), telling her about the Palais des Papes, with all its stairs, and how my companion had likened it to a mediaeval gym. More stairs in the Circle, but only a few rows up to mine, at the back - and with only four seats in my side, and me in the fourth, I had neither anyone behind me, nor to my left: nor, as it happened, to my right! Which gave me full freedom to bop around as much as I wanted. 

Just about visible on stage in the photo is a wee house, representing, of course, the house of our protagonist, a teenage boy whose life is about to change in startling ways! You'd have to wonder whether they got the idea from Bono, who had a similar theme in U2's tours - for the song 13 (There is a Light), they had a little house on stage, and indeed for the song Cedarwood Road, they played a scrolling video of houses, representing the road he lived on as a teenager. Hell, that was the t-shirt I wore to the concert - thought it was kind of appropriate, didn't realise it'd be quite that appropriate!

I generally don't like remakes of things I've seen in another format - stage representations of films, in particular. I guess I'm afraid it'll just remind me of the film, but not as good. Wow though, I was glad I took a punt on this! All I remembered was this kid starts a band in school, and wants this cool girl to be in the music video. So, the full story is that he's a student at Gonzaga College - a real-life, posh, fee-paying college, run by the Jesuits. But it's 1986, times are tough in Ireland - I remember the same myself.. it didn't affect me at the time, but the country was in a bad way. The Celtic Tiger hadn't yet been born, U2 itself was making a stir, but hadn't yet achieved the megastardom they would the following year, putting the country on the world music map - there wasn't, at this stage, much to give the country an ego boost. Most of my class would end up emigrating - and they weren't unusual. And yes, as referenced in the play, the boat was really the only way to go.. Ryanair wouldn't even arrive until the following decade, to make air travel affordable! For anyone who wonders why they didn't just fly, the only option at the time was Aer Lingus, which was fairly astronomical.. anyone flying was filthy rich, or on expenses. (A bit of competition when Ryanair arrived did wonders for that..)

So, his parents have to take him out of school - and they send him to Synge Street instead. Run by the notorious Christian Brothers, famous for a "spare the rod, spoil the child" attitude, he finds it a tough adjustment - the kids are from a rougher background, there are bullies. Meeting this girl, bluffing that he's in a band, gives him an outlet - he forms a band with schoolmates, and all of a sudden, new horizons open up.

Interesting throwbacks to the 80s include the old phone booth that this girl he's interested in keeps hanging out in, because that's where her boyfriend rings her - they didn't have mobiles, of course, and this was her only chance to have a private conversation. The other major cultural difference was the violence displayed by the principal of Synge Street - he's only allowed two instances of it during the evening, but both shocked the audience. Ah, how times have changed.. for all the good the Brothers have done, they were unfortunately known, in Ireland certainly, for the physical abuse of their students, and were certainly still at it in the 80s.

It's a lovely story, certainly - but what we hadn't expected was such a good musical performance! Never mind the welcome snippets of an 80s soundtrack.. They play multiple instruments - and we are assured at the start that the instruments are played live on stage. But as someone pointed out during the interval - they're doing it while acting, they're doing it as they're moving around stage, at one point on a sofa that's being spun. Terrific stuff, with original songs. They're perhaps not songs that are catchy enough for us to repeat the chorus - but we were happy to stand and clap along when invited, during the concert section at the end.

Oh yes, loved this. Highly recommended - one of the best nights out I've had in a while. Runs to the 23rd- go see.

I didn't have time to blog last night - had to be up early today to get to the office, and was too tired to push my bedtime much. Tonight - yes, film again.. heading to Young Hearts, tonight only in the Curzon Bloomsbury. And being in the office again today, I can walk to it.

Tomorrow, I'm back to Ireland for the weekend to check the house is still standing and the cat still remembers how to purr. Flying there with Aer Lingus because Ryanair, ironically, was so ridiculously expensive.. flying back with Ryanair though. If I have time to go to the cinema, I'll go see Weapons - a new horror film, it's very highly rated, and looks highly original! Stars Josh Brolin. Only sad I won't be here to see it with The Hideout, tomorrow.. Showing in Ennis, which is handiest for me.

Back in London on Monday, again I'm headed to the Summer Organ Festival with CT - this time, the performer is Simon Horgan. The second of four Mondays in a row it's running. My sometime travel companion is coming too, and she being a big fan of Flat Iron, we've booked the nearby Borough branch for afterwards. Even on a Monday, they were already booked out to 8.30..

On Tuesday, I've found what looks like an amazing film.. A State of Passion is a documentary about British-Palestinian surgeon, Dr. Ghassan Abu Sittah, and his work in Palestine - and for all the horrors it shows, it also seems to be a real work of, well, love for the country. "A State of Passion" is his phrase describing Palestine. Showing in the Curzon Bloomsbury - and with my membership renewed, I'm using it as one of my free films, and have booked.

On Wednesday, also thrilled with what I found - back with CT, I have a ticket for Storehouse, a new immersive exhibition in Deptford. A topical show, it puts you in a storehouse containing all news stories since the advent of the internet, but asks you to take a stand, with rival narratives competing for dominance.

Next Thursday, thinking of film again - and The Garden Cinema has a members' suggestion, Smiles of a Summer Night, a romantic comedy by Ingmar Bergman, which looks like an option. Even closer to the office than is the Curzon Bloomsbury! And I've finally bitten the bullet and taken out membership with them too.

On the 15th.. well, The Hideout is off to Friday 13th Part VIII in the Prince Charles.. and the organiser offered me a free ticket. Otherwise you couldn't drag me to it, TBH. We're meeting in Victory House beforehand.

And on the 16th, back with Laurence Summers and the 45+ Not Grumpies, yay - finally getting to do his Beatles walk.