Good evening everyone! Today was a day full of good food and good entertainment (not just good… but inspiring entertainment!). I had a late start to the day, but when I woke I got some sushi and onigiri from Wasabi again- yum!
Today was also my makeup day for Borough Market! Sad news though, the majority of the market was closed. Because of this, my roommate and I decided to do some more taste testing around Spitalfields Market instead! I absolutely love covered markets, so Spitalfields was the next best thing to Borough. We decided to start off with some matcha boba, which never disappoints. I think this has been my favorite boba place throughout the trip! After boba we decided to walk around Spitalfields a bit and I surprisingly bought some clothes that I ended up liking a lot. I have been wanting to do some clothes shopping in London, but nothing has caught my eye up until today. I’m so glad I got some stuff for good prices too! After shopping, we made our way to the Brick Lane Vintage Market. I love this market!!!! This was my second time going, and I actually bought some accessories this time. I’ll be wearing them for tomorrow’s day out!
After the Vintage Market, we walked back to Spitalfields to try more food. I ended up getting hand pulled noodles with cumin beef, and also a masala chai. This food was DELICIOUS! I’m happy we went back to Spitalfields (for a third time haha) because if not, I wouldn’t have gotten to try so many different things throughout my visits there. I will probably go back again to try even more new things later on during our trip!
After shopping and eating a lot of amazing food, it was time to go to the play of the day, House of Shades at the Almeida Theatre. Going into House of Shades, I did not have high expectations. I read reviews for the production beforehand and they were less than stellar. One reviewer even began his review with the sentence, “What a disappointment.” After reading these reviews, I found out the play would be nearly 3 hours. I was really thinking I’d be bored out of my mind for 3 hours watching a play about a broken family’s political discourse, but House of Shades was so much more than that. This is by far the most moving and gut wrenching production I have seen on this study abroad.
The House of Shades follows the lives of a working-class family over five decades… I’m honestly not sure what else I should disclose about this play, because I want all of its audiences to have the same jaw dropping reaction to its plot that I did; however, I will say this- it is fully worth the time and trepidation it induces. The casting and performances in this play were absolutely phenomenal, and I needed it to be a 4 hour production rather than a 3 hour production! When the show finished, I was in disbelief and awe. This show was genius! There were so many parallels and symbolisms within it that I’m sure once I sit and really think about what I just saw, I will find a lot more connections than I originally perceived. I don’t think I have ever felt this way after a play, and it wasn’t even on the West End! The House of Shades is a must-see. I cannot say too much without ruining the experience that is seeing it for the first time, but it was a beautiful production that has stemmed from an exquisitely written script. Bravo!
And that is that! Tomorrow we have another day trip, and another show, so I’ll talk to you all again tomorrow 🙂
Theatre in London U of A 