Of all the markets I went to on this trip, I believe that the market I stumbled upon whilst exploring Banglatown. I was with a small group on the hunt for some good thrifting, but as we kept walking, we ran into a small market with tables and tables of trinkets. I dug through jewelry and tshirts and spent far too long rooting around in piles of watches and digital cameras. Along with all of this, there were street musicians all around and food vendors. I stop and got some delicious Pad Thai. The people in Banglatown were so unbelievably well dressed. I felt incredibly lame in my tshirt and cargos. The style and fashion around the area was incredible. It was simply full of people fully expressing themselves. Outdoor seating was filled with people spending the day out and enjoying drinks, coffee or otherwise.

As for a one of my favorite food experiences, I loved having lunch at Borough market. First of all I got a serious bargain on a huge thing of raspberries. I snacked on those as I looked for lunch. I found a little cheese toastie shop. I think the name is a lot more fun than a grilled cheese. This shop had a long line leading from it and was fully ran by three people. It looked to me like they were very close if not family. I thought the line might get tiring, but I honestly just enjoyed seeing them work. They worked in a way in which you could tell they’d been doing it for a while and that really showed their closeness. In the end, the cheese toastie was amazing and came with a good seat and excellent people watching.

The food and market scene has been spectacular here in London and I still have time left to keep hunting for more!

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art did an exceptional job with this play by David Byrne. It is by far my favorite straight play that I have ever seen. It constantly broke the 4th wall. All characters speak directly to the audience but the main narrator, Ava uses the audience as students in a university lecture room. Ava gives her lecture, the past literally intruding upon the stage. The play seamlessly morphs from her presentation into physical scenes from the 1940s.

I was in the first row so it was incredible & being included in this story about humanity was a very special experience.

The dialogue is so complex & I was super impressed by the actors ability to perform these huge monologues. I happened to go to the day they were doing a Q&A and I asked them how they approached this as well as addressing the audience directly. They said it was daunting in a way, especially because it is such a small room & they can see every single persons face. They could see how everything landed on everyone & each day was different. Although, living as the character & focusing on their intention, it was fulfilling work for them. During the Q/A I realized that the actor who played Bruno did not have a lisp & that is when I figured out that the real life mathematician had a lisp. I genuinely believed that the actor had a natural lisp!

The set & tech was incredible!

This play is directly inspired by the book, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah & is inspired by the true story and life of the mathematician and broadcaster Dr. Jacob “Bruno” Bronowski.

David Byrnes play is philosophical & It spans three time frames: the present, Bronowski’s wartime career working for the government on a top secret project that led to the firebombing of Dresden and thousands of civilian deaths, and the distant past when our ancestors walked the earth. It considers the vestigial traits that we carry with us from the past and what it is that truly makes us human.

“What could one of the world’s leading intellectuals want to hide in a locked room in his house? Long after his death, his grandson, Jamie, meets a young research assistant, Ava, on Tinder. She persuades him to open the room and together they unearth six million years of human history… along with a more personal and disturbing secret about Jamie’s grandfather” – Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.

This painting is my favorite from the National Portrait Gallery.

Was an important ally of the British during the American War of Independence. The prominent Mohawk military and political leader, spoke at least 7 languages.

Known as a talented leader & was proud of his identity, independence & ability to move between two worlds which is clearly conveyed in this painting.

Stepping into this painting I see a meadow. A dense green forest with tall trees & deep glacial valleys. He’s wearing a red and white feathered gustoweh aka. a headdress with a black headband ornamented with small silver rings. As well as a large white shell 🐚 (an object of ritual significance to the Iroquois.) The feathers & his clothes, the clouds & the sky, his flushed cheeks, peaceful but fierce expression showcase Brant’s power & influence.

This is the first portrait that caught my attention. Craig was an English modernist Theatre practitioner! Known as the Father of modern stage design and was highly influential & revolutionized stage design by advocating for symbolic, minimalistic sets & dramatic lighting over pictorial realism. An innovator in the use of mobile, non-representational screens & in stage lighting.

He developed “Übermarionette” which is a metaphor for an ideal performer whose body has a purely “corporeal/material” quality.

He refused to compromise & demanded total artistic control, loyalty & strict obedience. In the 1920s & 1930s his writings grew increasingly reactionary, expressing intense misogyny & fascination with fascist authority.

The darkness & shadows of this portrait, his black robe & how you can only see half of his face bring the rigidness & deeply atmospheric style of how he approached stage design.

This painting is fascinating ! & was designed to make him look odd. He was the last king of the house of Plantagenet & died fighting Henry Tudor. The dark crimson background & flower design, his royal robe & red, silver & golden jewelry demonstrates his royalty but also weariness. King Richard III looks anxious, cold and untrustworthy.

“He holds no symbols of power, like a sceptre, and the one item he does have, a sovereign ring on his little finger, he fiddles with nervously.”

Fun fact: King Richard III had scoliosis!

I am disappointed to report that Grace Prevades did not have the biggest influence on me during my time watching it, or reflecting back on it afterwards. I was excited to see this show because it was one of the few period pieces we had seen on the trip so far, and I was excited to watch Ralph Fiennes perform in real life #IRL, after being a fan of his for years. I am not sure if it was my own lack of preparation and understanding of this show, or because my view of the stage was not the best, but it was very hard for me to follow along with what was happening. There were times that I could not hear exactly what the actors were saying, there would be projections of dates, times, and locations that forwarded the plot that I missed, and I missed a lot of the intentional character choice facials the actors made because my vision is so bad (now I know to bring my glasses to the theater next time LOL!). None of the circumstances that made me feel negative towards the show are a reflection of the actors’ performances at all. While I found the show overall slowly paced at times, I thought the actors were incredible. It is a difficult task to play such influential theater groundbreakers, and knowing the power of your own performance depicts the way the audience feels about these theater “heros” burdens a heavy weight on your shoulders, and I thought the actors carried that beautifully. I really liked how simple the stage and props were, but still contrasting back and forth from the different plot points of the show, like being outside a house, (poor) directing of a show, backstage of the theater, etc., I thought the simple set provided space for the actors to tell and carry the story with their acting and dialogue, not getting congested by the set. I would definitely recommend doing your own research about who these people are and the story and Grave Prevades before going to see it. I think if I would have done that, I would have respected the storyline more and would have had a deeper impact. 

The other night, we all time-traveled back to Shakespearean days of old. We walked into Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre and were absolutely stunned! Just kidding, we literally were here the other day for Mother Courage and Her Children. Anyways, this time we were at this theatre, we saw A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and it was as cool and mystical as it was the first time we set foot into it. Honestly, it may have been better dressed up for its audience due to the flowers and stage decorations. The stage and stands for the spectators were round, allowing for everyone to see, no matter what seat or standing room you had. This type of environment and setting was perfect for the playful and fun energy the play brought to the audience’s ears. 

Interactions with the audience are what made this play for me, and the lively spirit of all. Sometimes, I’ll admit, I get sleepy when watching a play or musical in the theatre, even if it is my favorite play or musical in the world. However, this play kept me alive and on my toes the whole time through the audience-actor interactions. They kept the audience engaged in the play through their conversations, callbacks, and immersion in the audience, simply by the shape of the stage. This was special compared to the other plays we have seen so far, which is what made it stand out so much. 

Watching this play and being so awake and alive for it also got me thinking about what it must have been like to live in Shakespearean days. If the wood in this theatre could talk, it would speak of all the plays and people that it has seen. This almost 30-year-old theatre resembles what the 1599 original theatre was, where Shakespeare himself acted. Having this replica filled with history makes me feel as if I went back in time. What an experience, and I am not talking about the time traveler in Silver Dollar City. 
 

To be standing in the building that is the exact replica of the theatre that Shakespeare’s plays were performed in in the 16th and 17th centuries felt absolutely unreal. It almost felt like stepping back in time, and there were times where I had to remind myself where I was, simply because it’s so easy to get wrapped up in the experience that The Globe presents. The wooden structure of the theatre itself, along with the openness of it all, made it feel a million times more authentic than a modern theatre today. 

The moments when the doors open and we all rush to secure a spot as close to the stage as we can possibly get are ironic, as that’s probably exactly what the groundlings did in the 16th century. It’s amazing to me that in Shakespeare’s time, people would pay a mere penny to see a show performed at a famous theatre, and now we pay five pounds to have what I assume to be a similar experience in maybe not all, but in many aspects. As I leaned against the stage and looked around me- the people sitting in the galleries, those standing on their tiptoes to find a better spot to stand, and even those who were completely still, eyes scanning the stage and eager for the show to begin- it felt strangely reflective of how this theatre must’ve been like 400 years ago. 

Seeing the Globe become full with people physically, but also the energy and excitement in the air, it wasn’t hard for me to imagine how the experience must’ve been in Shakespeare’s day. I can imagine the audience cheering and egging on the actors, getting completely lost and swept up in the performance, much like we do now. It’s refreshing to know that while theatre is constantly evolving, sometimes the most important parts remain unchanged: people from all different backgrounds coming together to forget about the outside world and experience art that has the power to make us look at the world a little differently.

Walking through the National Portrait Gallery, I was particularly struck by the portrait of Dame Christabel Pankhurst by Ethel Wright in about 1908. The subject stands in a dark space, reaching out to something out of distance. She wears a light green dress as well as a purple, green, and white sash. Christabel Pankhurst was the daughter of Emmeline Pankhurst, the founder of the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU). Christabel was a suffragette who led campaigns that called for women’s right to vote in the UK. The sash she wears displays the colors of the suffrage movement at the time: purple representing royalty, white for purity, and green meaning hope. Though she is surrounded by darkness in this painting, Pankhurst is illuminated by a soft, warm light from above her. She stands and we see the entire length of her body, a contrast to other portraits painted around this time that mainly display women sitting from the waist up. With her right hand she reaches out to something, looking off into the distance. Her facial expression is indistinct, she looks nervous yet expectant. This painting is a representation of hope. Fully dressed in the color of growth and prosperity, her arm extended, about to take a step, we see Pankhurst full of hope. Out of the darkness that surrounds her, she is reaching for an equal future. Though she is fearful, still she steps forward into the unknown. Wright captured this moment beautifully, a moment on the precipice of greatness. Only another woman could encapsulate the feeling of such incredible hope and fear that Pankhurst must have felt. Looking at this painting today, it is such a great reminder of those who fought for women’s rights in the face of a world that was not made for them. Wright’s piece serves as a reminder to always have hope and to continue reaching for a brighter future.

-Milly Medlock

Being at Shakespeare’s globe was so surreal!!! I cant believe that plays were performed in the original of this replica over 400 years ago, that seems so unreal. Shakespeare is known is one of the greatest writers of his century and honestly in every century and getting to be in the replica of where he acted and became a star was such an honor. Standing outside right at the front of the stage and looking around made me feel like I really could imagine actors from back then on stage and the community crowding in to come see a play. The theatre made Shakespeare so much more real to me and exciting and helped me understand more what theatre was like and how it functioned during the Elizabethan era.

Watching a Midsummer Nights Dream at the Globe differs from seeing an American production in many ways. First off you stand the whole time, which is not always the most fun thing. Second, the stage extends to the audience and there was pieces of stage in the audience. This set up creates a more intimate connection between the actors and the audience.The actors also interact with the audience, we literally had an actor grab our hands and ask us to sing with her. The theater also relies on natural lighting from outside but most modern productions use a lot of artificial lighting throughout the plays. This causes the audience to focus more on the play and dialogue rather than the visual aspects.

There are definitely important differences in plays put on at the Globe today than there would be back in Shakespeares time. All female roles were played by men during Shakespeares time, whereas now almost always female roles are played by female actors. The costumes were more modern than they would be back then. Some elements are still very similar in today’s productions though, one being that actors still performed in Shakespeares language. The Globe’s architecture and the performance made the play still interactive with the audience and created a connection between the actors and the audience. We are so extremely lucky to have experienced a similar sort of way of how people in Shakespeares time would’ve experienced a play at the Globe.

Guys, I cannot get over how amazing it was to see two shows at The Globe! As a Theatre major who’s been studying Shakespeare for years, it was so remarkably cool to be in an exact replica of his theatre from the 16th/17th centuries. It has always been a dream to see any show at The Globe, but getting to see
1-Mother Courage and Her Children, a BRECHT show (one of my favorite playwrights)
AND
2-A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the first Shakespeare show I ever acted in, was such a DREAMMM!

Truly, both of these shows were some of the best theatre I’ve ever seen. Being in The Globe is a theatre experience like no other. Thrust, Blackbox, and Proscenium theatres all meet, which gives the ultimate intimate theatrical experience. With actors entering through the audience, communicating with AND even bringing audience members on stage, these were such special experiences. 

I already knew how the theatre was situated, so that wasn’t new, but being groundlings was! At both shows, our group stood up against the stage and watched the show standing. This scared me at first because I was afraid I would get tired, but I actually really enjoyed it. Watching theatre that close was magical; getting right up next to the action kept me enthralled and deepened the experience. The shows differed from anything we would see in contemporary America just because of how real everything is. At Midsummer, for example, the cast was on stage and in the audience 30 minutes before the show even started. They were talking to audience members and even bringing some of us up on stage to dance/perform- 

which- sidenote, I technically had my Globe DEBUT?!?! Right before the show started, I got to go up on THE Globe stage and dance with the actor playing Nick Bottom! (full circle because I was Nick Bottom in high school!) 

But anyways, The Globe has such a special performance technique that truly makes everyone there feel like one, which ended up becoming the ending theme in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Overall, I think many of the performance techniques would have been similar in Shakespeare’s real Globe long ago, and that he would truly love the way his theatre is used and performed today!

-Erin

Gooood morning! Last week we took a trip to The National Portrait Gallery, and as of right now it’s my favorite place we’ve been in London! The gallery sits right in Central London and holds portraits of historically important and famous British people. I’ve always really loved photography and what a single still can tell about a person, so I was very very excited to see what the gallery held! Immediately upon walking in I saw one of my favorite portraits of Harry Styles and I just knew this was going to be the best day ever.

The entire gallery was full of so much emotion and history, images of British royalty, pop bands, actors, activists, scientists and more told a rich story of England. Every section in the museum was handcrafted and visually appealing, down below is one of my favorite walls that covered music artists such as Mick Jagger, David Bowie, The Beatles, and Elton John.

My favorite portrait however was the “Me as Mapplethorpe” done by Gillian Wearing. Wearing is a British photographer and artist who is best known for her photography and video works with masks that explore human identity, confessions, and the boundary between private lives and public personas. In this piece she is recreating an iconic photograph taken by American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, best known for his provocative, technically flawless black-and-white photographs.

Original portrait by Robert Mapplethorpe:

In Mapplethrope’s original self portrait he faces straight on, as though confronting death. At the time of the portrait in 1988 Mapplethorpe had been diagnosed with AIDS, which would take his life the following year. In his portrait the skull cane he holds signifies notions of mortality, he wears black to appear floating. His head is disembodied and this way, he is seemingly floating free from his fate. This portrait differed from his usual works that featured self-portraits in which he assumed various personae such as rocker, leather fetishist, cross-dresser, and fashion plate. This portrait signifies to me the powerful connection between art and life as well as Mapplethorpe’s own transitory existence.

Gillian Wearings recreation:

Flashforward to the present, Gillian Wearing recreates the iconic portrait. For this portrait, Wearing replaces the photographer’s psychologically intense gaze with her own, as the eyes are the only part of her face not covered with the silicone mask of Mapplethorpe. Wearing’s ongoing contemplation of mortality, on the one hand, and the artist as an immortalized celebrity figure, on the other, is embodied in this tribute, as she “becomes” Mapplethorpe. This portrait really stood out to me because it signifies how artists interpret death and emotion. She wanted to explore how Mapplethorpe felt and what pain he endured composing this image when knowing he had only months left to live.

-Erin