Clacton Arts & Literary Society

Archive for the ‘Reviews’ Category

I wanted to write a report about our night spent in the company of multi
talented and, lately, public raconteur extraordinaire – Michael Portillo
superlatives like handsome, articulate, extremely well presented came to mind
but the whole evening can be summed up by one word really -`stupendous.` With
not a sign of notes this very well prepared programme was eagerly devoured by a
packed theatre of enthusiastic members and also many who came just for the
evening.

The first half was speckled with humorous anecdote and this man was not at
all afraid to admit defeats along the very varied path of life he has so far
trodden. From adviser and close confidant of one of the most famous prime
ministers of all time – Margaret `Iron lady` Thatcher , to his many and varied
documentaries and appearances on political programmes to his regular columns on
many subjects in the news paper media.

In the second half he answered questions from the floor which again displayed
his polished, yet never compromising, expert way of communication-his replies
never too complicated but succinct in the extreme.

This was truly a spectacular coup for the society – Cindy Hardy continues to
amaze us with the sheer calibre and variety of the artistes she manages to bring
to Clacton throughout the winter period.

Jennifer Kersey.

Clacton Arts and Literary Society. 5/12/2011

The season came to a rousing close, on Monday night at the Princes theatre, with

the return visit of the ever popular London Festival Opera and their presentation `A Christmas night at the opera.`

Very ably accompanied by Jenny Trew at the piano, they gave an evening of light operetta , the ladies in sumptuous dress of the Victorian era and the men complimenting them in suitable male evening attire of the period. .

The stage `set` was the inside of a huge theatre, with tiered boxes and a lovely decorated Christmas tree completing the theme for this festive time. We were invited to join in with the carols in the second half.

Another very memorable event followed by the traditional `mince pies and hot  mulled wine.`(very welcome on a chilly night)

The next meeting is on January 15 when `Hatstand Opera` will present a `tongue in the cheek` look at this medium through the theatrical ages.

Jennifer Kersey.

The members of the Arts and Literary Society experienced a magical
mystery tour of Botswana on Monday evening when David Edwards presented his
slide lecture of ‘Botswana and the Okavango Delta’.   His pictures were
delightful and very graphic.  The magnificent elephants, hyenas. lions, etc.
were brought to life as he described several adventures because of them.   The
most impressive was when he was charged by a very large bull elephant and
escaped.

He started his lecture by describing how he lost his passport and
luggage on Bulawayo station and yet managed to get into Botswana and set up camp
with thirty young people.   On their first night in the bush the camp was
“attacked” by hyenas but they survived unscathed.   That was the first of many
adventures.   The audience were enthralled by his stories and were very
surprised to learn that there are only 43 lions in Botswana but 60,000
elephants.

During the second half of the programme, David told the story of
Sir Seretse Khama and his wife, Ruth, and the problems their marriage caused
among politicians as she was a white woman in southern Africa where this was not
permitted.

The evening was sponsored by Mark Mobility Centre..

                                   Audrey Owens Press Officer

Stringfever-Arts and Lits-the Prices theatre November 21st
2011.
A thought occurred to me as I sat in the audience, enthralled (as,
I`m
sure by the reaction after each individual piece, was everyone in
the
theatre!) by this group of musicians and I could hardly wait to
open
my dictionary when I got home.

`Bent`-bias, tendency , inclination, to one’s heart’s
content…………
`Broad`-widely encompassing, extensive, of stated
breadth,
manifest,bold……………

I think that aptly describes the outstanding talents of the
Broadbent
family(three brothers and a cousin with the same surname)
who,
in this instance, are together known as `Stringfever.`
Their lovely,
smart, stage outfits, the humour (well balanced at all
times) superb playing
of the modern string instruments(with their
multiple sounds and no wires
anywhere to be seen)-each one a
`veritable virtuoso` in his own right!

No bad language needed, no judges’ panel, with their
inane
comments, no jungle-……`oh, what a joy to share this
magical
experience-I can easily see why they were voted as favourite
artistes
last time they visited us!`

Of special note was the point where Cindy and Patricia(do they
have
hidden musical talents?)were invited on to the stage for an
incredible
rendition of Ravel`s Bolero, whereupon all four were playing on
one
instrument-absolutely(and I’m always careful howI use that
word)
unbelievable and as the Americans would have us credit
every
movement in life-AWESOME!!!

This was a night of triumph-all who left were busy chattering
about it
and I`m sure it will come into conversation in a wider context
for
some time to come.

What else can one add to a perfect evening-Cindy and her team
have
amazed us yet again.

Jennifer Kersey.

The members of the Arts and Literary Society experienced again the
truly remarkable skills of Stringfever on Monday evening when they appeared for
the second time, the first being in 2008.

The Broadbents, Giles, Ralph and Neal together with their cousin,
Graham, gave a scintillating evening of music on their five and six-stringed
electric violins, viola and cello.  Their energy was incredible and the music
marvellous.   They offered such contrasting music as Vivaldi, the Beatles,
Brahms, Ravel and some of their own compositions.   A great highlight was their
Movie Themes Medley in which the audience had to guess the films from which the
snippets came.    The most spectacular item was Ravel’s Bolero when all four of
them played it on the cello – standing on chairs and sitting on the floor – the
result a chaotic and evocative event.   They completed their programme with the
History of Music – in 5 minutes.   This was a masterpiece of compilation which
everyone loved.   As an encore they played The Lark by Dinicu, changing
instruments with each other.   Fantastic!

The evening was sponsored by the West Cliff Theatre.

Audrey Owens Press Officer