'Beautiful Darling' at the NFT

This evening we went to see 'Beautiful Darling' at the National Film Theatre, a new documentary film about Candy Darling. If you haven't heard of her, she was one of Andy Warhol's film superstars and subject of one of the verses of Lou Reed's 'Walk On The Wild Side' - that should help you place her in context. But, to paraphrase Lou Reed, she was a he.

The film is clearly a labour of love from Jeremiah Newton who was Candy's friend back in the '60s and early '70s before she died of cancer at the age of 29 in 1974. The film is set around the rather odd premise of Jeremiah burying Candy's ashes along with those of his mother who recently died. The film looks back at Candy's short life, a boy in the suburbs of Long Island who reinvents himself as Candy Darling in New York in the mid-'60s and she goes on to become an actress of stage and screen.

It includes film clips and interviews with a wide range of people, from Jayne County (formerly Wayne County of Electric Chairs fame) and Penny Arcade to clips of interviews with Andy Warhol and even footage of a young Lou Reed. She was a staple of the early Factory films and a glamour-puss to boot. Her delicate bone structure only needed a hint of make-up to transform her, and blond hair completed the transformation.

The film included excerpts from her diary and letters which, if they're representative, indicate a very literate and thoughtful person, very self-aware that she is her own creation. I'll need to track down a copy of her diary, I think. The film ends with a quote from Candy: 'There is one thing I must tell you because I just found it to be truth...You must always be yourself no matter what the price. It is the highest form of morality.'

Jeremiah was on hand to do a Q&A after the film and he sounds like a nice guy with a whole history himself. The film was obviously a labour of love for him, keeping Candy's name and memory alive and supporting the hard choices of transgendered people. In the normal, run of the mill, lives most of us live it's nice to know there are some exotic creatures out there who we will probably never understand or meet, but who find another way to live. I don't want to find another way to live - I'm quite happy with what I have at the moment - but I admire those brave souls who live life on their own terms.

I don't know if there are any plans to release the film more widely but do go and see it if you get the chance. It's on in London for a couple of days, I think, and then plays in New York as part of a film festival. Hopefully you won't be subjected to an enhanced 12" remix of the Velvet's 'Venus In Furs' before and after the film.

'Mrs Warren's Profession' at The Comedy Theatre

This evening we went to see 'Mrs Warren's Profession' at the Comedy Theatre off Leicester Square, an old theatre with the stage and stalls so far underground that you could hear the tube trains rattling in the depths. The audience was also rather old and deeply home counties. But that's ok because Felicity Kendal was the star of the show. I've been a fan of Felicity since I fell in love with her as Barbara Good in 'The Good Life' oh so many decades ago.

I'm not a big Shaw fan and his plays always feel very wordy - why use 10 words if 20 will make it longer? It's the tale of Mrs Warren who is a rich madam with 'hotels' dotted around Europe and her Cambridge-educated daughter who has no idea what her mother does or where the money comes from. Until, that is, the mother comes clean about her past, her humble origins and how she and her sister used their charms to build a business. What she doesn't explain is that the business is still thriving and that's what causes a rift between mother and daughter, with the daughter heading off to London to make her own way in the world. There's a love interest (of course) and other characters, but that's the nub of the story. The play is about money and capitalism, about society's double-standards, about the rotten core of the upper classes, about dignity and morality. Oh, it's about lots of things.

The cast was excellent - they've been on tour so are well rehearsed and knit together well. The leading roles are Felicity as Mrs Warren and Lucy Briggs-Owen as her daughter, played with a rather brittle exterior that doesn't let you see the churning emotion beneath. It was great to finally see Felicity on stage and she played the part with a mix of knowing cocquettishness and middle aged world weariness - until the final scene when she announced she couldn't give up her job since she craved the excitement of it, and that summed up her character and explains the flashes of anger or annoyance she displays at various points during the play.

Some of the twists and turns of the plotting were a bit obvious but, then again, the play has probably been plagiarised quite a bit over the years so I can forgive that. It was also a brave attempt at the time at an early feminist tract - how else could a woman make money except by selling her body? I'm sure there were lots of other ways, but this is the obvious (and most theatrical) one.

I enjoyed it and wished we'd been closer to the stage. The staging was a bit awkward with long lulls between acts (which seemed odd since the changes to the set weren't that drastic) but that's ok. Most thing are ok when you know you're going to see Felicity. She did good swish of her floor length skirts (knocking over a chair at one point - now, that's good swish!), much better than the men in the mandatory late-Victorian linen suits.

Why I Love Amanda Palmer No 73

If you've ever looked at this blog before then you'll know that I admire Amanda Palmer as Art and as Life and as a total MadPerson. A hug from Amanda can soothe the cares of the world as I know first-hand and her songs can make you laugh and cry. Amanda is, as she says herself, far from perfection, but why let factual accuracy get in the way of a good blog?

This morning Amanda tweeted a link to her latest blog in which she describes the pits of her depression in New Zealand which, unfortunately, coincided with her fiance (Neil Gaiman) being with her after she'd spent a few weeks of joyful gigging and recording in Oz. This is part of what I love about Miss Palmer. She doesn't feel that she has to be on top form all the time - she can tell us when she feels the walls are closing in and doesn't have to worry about how we - the fans - will react. That also means that her blogs are from her, not some anonymous PR-person. That instantly makes me trust Amanda.

I don't like hearing that she's not having fun. She's my hero and I much prefer the Amanda that travels the world, makes up songs about Vegemite and takes the piss out of the Golden Globes by posing dead on the red carpet in a see-through dress. But you have to respect the integrity. And I do.

I will see Amanda again in April at the Evelyn Evelyn gig at Bush Hall and will do all in my power to engineer another Amanda-hug. They are life-affirming - get one if you can.

Sugababes - 'Sweet 7'

It was with some trepidation that I first bought and then listened to the Sugababes new record, 'Sweet 7' this evening. This is not the Sugababes I'm used to - not the same faces, the same sound or the same amount of clothing (there's more flesh on display than ever before) - and I'm not keen on the cover, but it's the Sugababes so I have to give it a go, if only for Heidi.

The album opens with the three singles to date, starting with the awful, misogynistic, 'Get Sexy' for which I chastised the 'Babes last year so I won't go over old ground. Then we have the superior stomper 'Wear My Kiss' and the more standard 'About A Girl' that sounds like it should've been released in the early '00s. Then we're into new territory.

The 'Babes hit their stride with 'Wait For You' and stay in the same vibe until the last few songs, some relentless dance electro-pop designed for clubs and dancefloors and, y'know what? I think it works. I'll need to listen a few more times but it gets the thumbs up.

I like 'Thank You For The Heartbreak' but I'm not keen on 'Miss Everything' that feeds the 'Babe's voices through a vocoder (why? they've got perfectly good voices) and features Sean Kingston - who? - singing more than the 'Babes. 'She's A Mess' is a bit formulaic but 'Give It To Me Now' sounds like classic 'Babes. It slows down with 'Crash And Burn' and the following tracks which is an odd way to sequence an album, rather than finishing on a high, but maybe I just need to listen to it more. I think 'Sweet And Amazing' will grow on me.

Anyway, well done 'Babes! But please remember that you don't have to be semi-naked to be sexy and powerful women.

'Requiem For Detroit?'

Last night I watched Julien Temple's documentary, 'Requiem For Detroit?' about the city of Detroit. And what an astonishing film it is, full of what could easily be post-apocalyptic images of the 20th Century. Vast open and empty spaces of the inner city, majestic freeways with no cars compared to film from 50 years ago with the same freeways log-jammed with cars, and trees growing on the top of empty sky-scrapers. Images of a city reverting back to nature with buildings being eaten by greenery and debris covered streets beside burnt out buildings. What has happened to Detroit and why didn't we know about it before?

People started leaving Detroit in the '50s to live in suburbia, in satellite towns, that means they no longer need to go into the city, and the ultimate effect of this has meant businesses close down, shops move out of the city and then the infrastructure starts to break down since there aren't enough people paying taxes to keep public services going. According to the film, something like 47% of people still living in Detroit are illiterate and schools are closing. For those left in the city, where is there to send their kids to school and where can they buy food? The film ended with scenes of gardens being turned into allotments to grow food.

There's a highly complex web of explanations behind all this - the impact of the car and capitalism are key - but the saddest is the casual and institutionalised racism that seems to have dogged Detroit throughout the 20th Century. The industrial explosion attracting workers from the south also brought segregation that led to Detroit facing race riots in the '50s and '60s. As white people exited the inner city for the suburbs they've left a city with a population 80% black and in ruins. How has this been allowed to happen to what was once America's fourth biggest city?

It's a very thoughtful film with the central narration coming from the images of the city and current and past residents talking to camera. Peppered with some of the music from Detroit's past (notably Motown and The Stooges) and a snatch of Bowie's 'Panic In Detroit'. It was nice to see an interview with Martha Reeves who is a member of the city council. It was also one of the oddest scenes, with Martha walking through a vast hallway with an endless expanse of carpet in what I assumed was city hall, with no-one else in sight, a huge empty space that should have been buzzing with people, and then in the distance, finally, we see another human being. Most odd. Try Googling 'Detroit ruin' and you get nearly one million results - take a look at some of the images.

Julien Temple wrote a far more eloquent article about his film for The Guardian so take a look at it. Is Detroit dying or evolving? Who knows, but if you get the chance, watch the film.

Hair!

A great performance of 'Hair' by the the Broadway cast of 'Hair' - this brought back some happy memories. The show opens in London in a few weeks time and I hope there'll be a lot of fuss and spectacle - and sold out shows every night.

And yes, the hippies do invade the audience!

'Anyone Can Whistle' at The Jermyn Street Theatre

I continued my Sondheim education this evening with Chris and Angela when we went to see 'Anyone Can Whistle' at The Jermyn Street Theatre. I'm afraid the lesson learnt was to be wary of early Sondheim.

I used to work in St James's Square, just round the corner from the theatre, but I've never been to that theatre before. Bijou is being complimentary, with maybe seating for about 70 people, so we were all very close to the stage. Sometimes it's better to be further away than too close.

I had no idea what the play was about and am not familiar with the songs but my worries started when it was clear that 'the band' was actually the actors who occasionally picked up instruments to play. I consider that to be a worrying sign. And I'm afraid it went downhill rapidly from there, with its almost adolescent plaintiveness, the starchy performances, the poor musicianship and the, well, daft story that strings the songs together. Whether it's Sondheim or the director, I don't know, but I didn't get the whole uniformed sub-Nazi thing going on that just made it a bit of nonsense.

I'm sorry people, I know you've poured sweat and blood into the production, but did you have to be so earnest about it as well? Would it have ruined the thing to smile once or twice? It's not your fault that Sondheim does the whole 'mad people are sane, it's the sane who are mad' '60s thing but how you interpret it is down to you. And I was not impressed. I had to cover my mouth to prevent laughter at the end when the stage was invaded with the cast as grim faced sub-Nazis - what on earth was that all about?

I'll think of Sondheim in the context of seeing 'Sunday In The Park With George', if you don't mind, and consign this to the list of things not to revisit (like 'The Sea').

A Grand Experiment

I am conducting a grand experiment. I am trying to understand Twitter.

I first joined Twitter a couple of years ago when I was told it was going to be the 'next big thing'. I joined and sat there waiting for something to happen. It didn't, so I didn't bother with it. I re-engaged a few months ago to follow the doings of people like Amanda Palmer (of course) but didn't really do anything else. Then, last weekend, I decided I ought to either get with the programme or give it up as a bad job. So I've started twitting or tweeting or whatever and have sent more tweets onto the vast online space in the past few days than I have in the past two years.

I just don't *get* it. So, by trying to actively engage with the thing, I'm hoping to understand how different people use it, what they get out of it and what the benefits are. I've been doing it for a few days so far and it still makes no sense to me but I will persevere. I'm brave like that, y'see.

So, if you use Twitter, please get in touch and help me understand the thing.



I've made my life more complicated by setting up a new 'work' account. A lot of the excellent services I work with, like Netmums and DadTalk have active Twitter feeds so I've joined those in my 'work persona' (I keep work online separate from 'me' online to avoid any blurring of the boundaries). That means I have two feeds to check and contribute to - but it also means that I see a different side to Twitter than if I was solely 'me' (if you see what I mean).

I doubt I'll get a thesis out of this experiment, but I might get another blog. Let's see what happens.

Evelyn Evelyn Pre-Order Bundles

Ta-da! The Eveleyn Evelyn record is just around the corner and the Twins' producers, Amanda Palmer and Jason Webley have kindly sent a note round the wires to let the world know:

A NOTE FROM JASON WEBLEY & AMANDA PALMER:

Comrades! (and curious bystanders!): We are proud, at long last, to announce the OFFICIAL LAUNCH of the EVELYN EVELYN DEBUT ALBUM!!!! Below, you'll find options galore. We've tried to make things as interesting as possible... please select your package carefully.

All packages come with a download code for the whole album, which will be delivered via e-mail before the album is officially released on March 30th. Packages will ship one week prior to this date, and should be in your hands well before the record hits stores (foreign orders may take longer to arrive.)

To thank-you for supporting us by pre-ordering, we will randomly choose one lucky person for a free upgrade to the Benefactor Bundle (valued at $1,111)! Eleven others will be chosen to receive copies of the original sold-out Evelyn Evelyn 7" vinyl single, (released in 2007 in a limited edition of 1,111 - these have sold on eBay for more than $100.)

Pop on over to the Evelyn Evelyn Webstore for details of the pre-order bundles. I am *so* tempted by the 'Over The Moon' bundle - a trip to the moon with the Twins for a mere $11,111,111. Sign me up now (while I sort out mortgaging my soul or something).

I think Evelyn Evelyn is going to be a fun adventure...

'London Assurance' at the National Theatre

This evening Chris treated me to a viewing of 'London Assurance' at the National Theatre. It sounds a bit like a play about an insurance firm but that's not it at all. The play by Dion Boucicault first opened in 1841 but it still has a lot to say to us today, particularly about actively taking the piss out of pretentious people.

It portrays a few days in the life of the extended family of Sir Harcourt Courtly, a rather portly 57 year old gentleman who considers himself to be the height of fashion, despite being reliant on marrying the 18 year old daughter of his former neighbour to pay his debts. His son is a bit of a rake but whom he believes is pure and virtuous. The play moves from London to the country seat of Sir Harcourt's friend and guardian of his future wife where the action really starts, since the son and his friend are also invited to the country house where we meet Lady Gay Spanker and things start to get interesting.

I thoroughly enjoyed the play and the performances with a drop of foppishness here and a bit of feminism there, the obvious jokes about the Spankers and, of course, the almost perpetual ridicule of poor Sir Harcourt the over-age fop and dandy played to a T by Simon Russell Beale. Fiona Shaw was Lady Gay Spanker, Mark Addy was the squire and the ever-delightful Richard Briers was Mr Adolphus Spanker (Dolly Spanker). I also liked the youngsters in the cast, Michelle Terry as the knowing 18 year old and Paul Ready as Sir Harcourts son (both of whom have been in National Theatre productions in the last year or two). I'd also single out Nick Sampson as the rather too-knowing valet spinning tales to keep his masters happy.

I liked the set which was mainly the revolving inside and outside of the country house of the country squire. The costumes were great, with the aging dandy of Sir Harcourt having more costume changes than the women, allowing Simon Russell Beale to fully explore the character and give us lots of laughs. He was great fun. The whole production was fun, nicely timed and nicely presented. I liked the rat!

There was an odd age thing going on in the audience - we were definitely in the lower third of the age range, maybe even the lower quarter. Was it just a Tuesday night thing, or is there something 'old' about the demographics of the audience for this type of play? Go on, buck the trend and go and see it irrespective of your age - it's well worth it.