Cinema

Gimme The Loot – May 3rd sees the long-awaited UK cinema release of a American graffiti flick/love story that won the Grand Jury prize at SXSW and featured at Cannes last year.

Music

Saluting The Black President: Fela Kuti  May 17th - To mark a new release of the Afrobeat legend’s entire back catalogue comes a unique concert featuring some of Fela’s contemporaries (like Tony Allen) and the new-gen of artists influenced by him, including Ty, Blak Twang and the Noisette’s Shingai Shoniwa.

Art & Culture

Breakin’ Convention 2013, May 4-6th  -10 years in existence,  Breakin Convention continues to be a celebration of Hip Hop dance – the groups showing this year will be from around the globe including, Korea, France, Spain, and USA – and for the first time the festival will have a UK only night, showcasing the latest in UK urban dance style.

Alternative

Spin London, May 3rd-5th – Spin London is the world’s first urban focused bicycle show and festival, featuring talks, music, installations, demonstrations, films, food, static cycle racing (!!) and an opportunity to feast your eyes on some of the leading fashion brands in the world of two-wheeled transport.

Music

Field Day festival at Victoria Park, May 25th – Field Day is all about hip, electronica music with an ear-poppingly good line up, so get ready to  get lost in the crowds, have a sweaty dance off in a packed tent and glory in the fact that all of East London will be there.

Art & Culture

Art of the Moment Festival, May 11-12 - This new festival is all about celebrating innovation in music and art and will feature a whole host of workshops, interactive installations, live cinema and a few other  experimental surprises that might just blow your mind.

Best bits from last month

• What we’ve been up to… cheering at the London Marathon 2013
• Somewhere you should go… Bouchon Fourchette, Mare Street
• Something you should see… Claire Aho: Studio Works at The Photographers’ Gallery
• Somewhere you should go… SLAM Last Fridays
• Somewhere You Should Go… Pick Me Up Graphic Arts Festival at Somerset House
• Something You Should See… Screens at Space Studios

The Cultural Exposé

The Cultural Exposé is a creative lifestyle listings site that covers what’s on in London and beyond.

More Posts – Website – Twitter – Facebook

Cinema

Bird’s Eye View Film Festival: Celebrating Arab Women Filmmakers, April 3-10th – This year’s BEV will be honouring the work of women in the Arab world, offering insightful docs, film shorts, Q&As, live music and a special Fashion Loves Films programme, offering a host of parties and galas.

Art & Culture

Gaia: A Show of Hands at Nelly Duff, April 11th – One of the most thought-provoking street artists of our time will be presenting his first UK exhibition for one week only. The New York-born, Baltimore-based artist has built an international rep for his street murals, and this show will demonstrate his continuous fascination with hands through his unique style.

Eat & Drink

Dante Fried Chicken at Death by Burrito April 11-14th – We happily chowed down at Mr Dante’s finger-lickin’ pop-up last year so pleased to hear he’s back on our shores, this time with a cookbook and an exhibition. He’ll also be joining forces with Death by Burrito for a guest chef residency, where he’ll be serving up an exclusive dinner menu and all day brunch on April 14th, to mark the final day of the show.

Nightlife

The Doctor’s Orders Presents
The Doctor’s Orders 250 Featuring DJ Jazzy Jeff, The Nextmen And Rich Medina At Scala, April 13th – To mark their 250th event, the Doctor’s Orders guys are going all out to bring together some of the most celebrated DJs in hip-hop – and this is one party that won’t stop until the sun comes up.

Art & Culture

Pick Me Up 2013: Graphic Arts Festival at Somerset House, April 18-28th – Feast your eyes on an incredible array of illustrations and designs at this 11-day celebration of all things graphic. Highlights include workshops, creative forums and lively events every evening.

Eat & Drink

The Lab at Tobacco Docks, April 25-27th – The creators of the Taste of London fest are debuting a new experimental foodie weekend, featuring some of the most innovative chefs from around the world and masterclasses in experiencing food like never before.

Best bits from last month

• Somewhere you should go… Mama Shelter, Paris
• Something you should see… David Bowie Is at the V&A
• Metropolitans: Leo Bedford, DJ
• Somewhere you should eat… Morena Bakery
• Something you should see… Yinka Shonibare: POP! is on at the Stephen Friedman Gallery

The Cultural Exposé

The Cultural Exposé is a creative lifestyle listings site that covers what’s on in London and beyond.

More Posts – Website – Twitter – Facebook

As central London’s largest rooftop bar, if you’re for looking for somewhere a bit special  - perhaps for a date or celebration –  just take the lift up to the sixth floor and stop by for a drink. Fitting in with the impressive surroundings is a drinks menu which of course features champagne and cocktails (though the usual bar drinks are all available). My favourite was the Gin Mary, a Bloody Mary given an update with bacon (!) infused gin.  It gives it an extra kick that somehow works and makes you wonder why more drinks don’t have bacon added to them.

It’s certainly not the cheapest bar in the capital but considering the location it is the perfect place if you’re looking for something special and areas can be hired making it great for a birthday celebration. As for  food, the menu is a relaxed mix of nibbly bits, salads and snacks perfect for picking and even includes caviar if you really want to go all out.

Despite  the chilly winter months ahead,  Vista plans to cover the roof and put on extra heating for comfort, so it’ll be worth the visit – just note  it gets busy and is often used for private events – plus there’s a £5 entry charge after 4pm, though they do donate a £1 to charity.  (Words: Lucy Palmer) 

Lucy Palmer

Lucy is a freelance writer who also works in advertising with a love of Christmas, shopping and coffee.

More Posts – Twitter

Having travelled across the world, this remarkable ‘performative installation’ returns to its original home at Ambika P3, Marylebone Road. The massive monolithic interior of the former concrete testing facility has once again been transformed to become Goebbels’ cavernous laboratory of sound and light. Stifter’s Dinge defies definition: it is at once a theatrical performance, a visual spectacle, a musical sculpture – and yet it is none of these things exclusively.

A towering structure blinking with LEDs supports five pianos which appear to play themselves, singing out short melodies which combine and blend with the clanking and clunking of other components in the installation. Bodies of water bubble and ripple with the reverberations of sound; a thin mist hovers across the scene. Lights flash and dance across the space, casting abstract patterns on vast gauze screens that lower themselves from the ceiling at various intervals. Phantom-like voices hauntingly play out over projected images of idealised landscape paintings. At times meditative, at times unsettling, the experience is totally mesmerizing.

The title of the work translates as ‘Stifter’s Things’, after nineteenth-century writer Adalbert Stifter who was (in)famous for his fastidious, vividly detailed descriptions of nature: part of his attempt to close the gap between the ambiguity of language and the reality of experience. Goebbels uses similar tactics of immersion in his ‘no-man show’. The contemporary composer created this piece for instruments, not their players; and as the only human presence in the room, the audience is made to focus on the objects themselves which appear to perform autonomously.

This is a project to experience, not one to read about. Stifter was right – sometimes language just doesn’t have the capacity to adequately describe nature (or a multi-faceted, sensory-immersive installation). Artangel never fail to deliver the cutting-edge of cool – the newest addition to their list of weird and wonderful projects is no exception and should not be missed. (Words: Florence Ritter) 

Heiner Goebbels: Stifter’s Dinge, in its new drop-in 4 hour long format The Unguided Tour, runs until 18th November. For more info, click HERE.  A series of the original performances run between 13th-18th November.

Florence Ritter

Florence is a freelance writer and long-time contemporary arts devotee. Having spent some time living in Edinburgh and Paris, she recently returned to her hometown London and has promptly fallen back in love with the capital.

More Posts – Website – Twitter

Described as a “live interactive stand-up documentary”, it follows the story of how performer Nathan Penlington found somebody’s childhood diary and decided to track down the writer. What makes it a little different from your usual theatric experience is that at each step of the way, the audience is given the power to decide what happens next. With the option to partake in electronic voting (could this be the first X Factor/ theatre mashup?) what this means is that there are theoretically over 1500 possible routes that the story can take – think of it as truly democratic storytelling. If it’s anything like my experiences, you’ll be locked in a room with a murderous clown in the first fifteen minutes, but if nothing else, you can guarantee that this is one show where every night will be truly different. (Words: Charlotte Lydia) 

Choose Your Own Documentary runs from 6-10 November at the Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX

Charlotte Lydia

Charlotte Lydia is a relocated Northerner who has found herself in London as an MA student, almost by accident. Addictions include coffee, books and for some reason, otters.

More Posts – Website – Twitter

Theatre

Rent at Greenwich Theatre, September 5th-16th - The outstanding Tony-nominated musical (and the longest running production on Broadway) comes to the capital for a limited run. Based on Puccini’s La Bohème, it’s tells the story of creatives living in New York’s Lower East Side struggling with life, love and HIV/AIDS.

Special Event

The Mayor’s Thames Festival, September 8 and 9th- Boris Johnson throws his annual end-of-summer fête for Londoners which features shows, music, a carnival (and costs us absolutely nada!)

Arts & Culture

Everything Was Moving: Photography from the 60s and 70s at the Barbican Art Gallery, September 13th to January 13th 2013  (pictured ) – Have a look at over 400 rarely seen photos taken during a revolutionary era, which also coincided with the golden age of photography.  Featured photographers include Bruce Davidson, Malick Sidibé  and Li Zhensheng.

Activity 

The Hide & Seek Weekender 2012 at Southbank Centre, September 14th-16th - If you love games as much as we do, you’ll enjoy this unique weekend of playtime and performances.

 Best bits from last month

• Something you should do… visit Cambridge 
• Somewhere you should go… Soho House’s Dirty Little Secret: Dirty Burger
• Something you should see… Carousel at The Barbican 
• Where to try alternative ice creams in London 
• Something you should see… The Curious Incident of the Dog at Night-Time at the National Theatre

Matilda Egere-Cooper

Matilda Egere-Cooper is the founder and editor of The Cultural Exposé, but has been a freelance journalist since 2002. Her work has featured in i-D, Dazed & Confused, The Mirror, Blues & Soul, BBC Entertainment and The Independent amongst others, and she picked up a prize for her writing at the Record of the Day Music Journalism and PR Awards in 2007. When she’s not managing TCé, Matilda’s a journalism lecturer, mentor and freelance photographer.

More Posts – Website – Twitter – Facebook

Originating in the US back in the 80s, the poetry slam event draws on a variety of influences and styles. It may have all begun in a Jazz club in Chicago but performances range from Hip-Hip rap deliveries to dub poetry and unrhyming narrative formulas. The content of the performances can be anything from politicised verse to current events (could there be some olympic references in there too?). Last year Zia Ahmed took the prize and it’s not hard to see why. Since the performers will be aged between 16 and 25 the subject are likely to be more politicised than ever, just like the days of Alan Ginsberg and the beat poets. So it’s sure to be a great event at the Roundhouse – a place that always concerns itself with pushing the boundaries – and we just can’t resist that! (Words: Laura Thornley) 

The Poetry Slam kicks off on August 15th. For more info, visit http://www.roundhouse.org.uk/whats-on/productions/roundhouse-poetry-slam-2012

Words: Laura Thornley

Laura Thornley

Laura is a writer and journalist working across disciplines. Her background is within the arts, having studied both its history and practice at undergraduate and postgraduate level. If she isn’t digesting the latest in visual culture, she can be found indulging her other passion – seeking out the best grub from around the world.

More Posts – Website

Nightlife

The Love Below at Trailer Happiness, August 5th - There’s a new monthly Sunday lounge coming to Notting Hill for those cool Londoners who like their music hip, chilled and classic. It’s called The Love Below (and if you remember anything about its namesake album by Andre 3000, you’ll know you want to be here).

Nightlife

No Long Ting at The Brick Box, 354 Coldharbour Lane, August 10th - Illustrious London MC Ty curates a night of music, artwork, films, DJs, food (and cheap drinks) in Brixton – and whether this is the one-off or the start of something regular, it sounds BRILLIANT.

Activity

Street Photography Workshop, August 12th - Our sister site The Culture Club Photography Workshops wants to take you on a journey around Shoreditch where your photography skills will go up a few notches making you the envy of all your mates. One to book.

Bush Bazaar, Bush Theatre, until August 18th - Described as a “90 minute fantastical adventure” this pop-up theatre event brings together some of the capital’s most daring performers to perform a collection of shows that sound pretty intriguing…

Alternative

Midnight Run, August 18th – Poet Inua Ellams leads a creative, after-hours expedition around London to experience the capital in a unique way.  There’s food, games and “experiments” – and no running required – so  just try to hold out until 6am!

Cinema

Guilty Pleasures Cinema Party, August 24th and 25th –  This one’s for all the Madonna lovers out there, as the Troxy Cinema hosts a par-tay to top all partays, featuring a screening of Desperately Seeking Susan.  It’ll be a crazy, colourful  throwback to the 80s with DJs, dancers and bands (and we LOVE that).

Eat & Drink

Flat Iron pop-up steak and cocktail restaurant – this new foodie spot actually launched a few weeks back, but runs for six weeks only until August 28th (so thought it’d be worth a visit this month).  These guys are serving up some serious slabs of meat, so those with carnivorous tendencies should head to The Owl and Pussycat pub, pronto (Tuesday – Saturday, 6pm-10pm)

Special Event

Notting Hill Carnival, August 26th and 27th - there’s dozens of floats, good food and tunes, happy people (although a little overpacked – but meh); it’s Europe’s largest street festival and a brilliant way to spend the bank holiday weekend. See you there?

 Best bits from last month

• Something you should see… Salute
• TCé picks: Where to watch the Olympics in London
• Somewhere you should go… Basecamp at 100 Leonard Street
• Somewhere you should eat… Shrimpy’s at King’s Cross Filling Station
• Something you should do… attend a circus school 

Matilda Egere-Cooper

Matilda Egere-Cooper is the founder and editor of The Cultural Exposé, but has been a freelance journalist since 2002. Her work has featured in i-D, Dazed & Confused, The Mirror, Blues & Soul, BBC Entertainment and The Independent amongst others, and she picked up a prize for her writing at the Record of the Day Music Journalism and PR Awards in 2007. When she’s not managing TCé, Matilda’s a journalism lecturer, mentor and freelance photographer.

More Posts – Website – Twitter – Facebook

Outdoors options (if the weather’s still lovely!)

BT London Live: Hyde Park, Victoria Park and Trafalgar Square (from August 29th for the Paralympics Games)

These are likely to be THE destinations of the fortnight as you can check out live coverage of the Olympic games on gigantic screens, as well as live music, Have-A-Go sports sessions and cultural attractions absolutely FREE – simply turn up and get involved (subject to capacity) or click here  to register for guaranteed entry tickets. Hyde Park will also be hosting a ticketed Opening and Closing Ceremony concert featuring Snow Patrol, Stereophonics and Blur. www.btlondonlive.com/home

Camden Beach at Roundhouse

We’re miles away from the nearest coast, so Camden Beach at the Roundhouse is this year’s thoughtful alternative, giving you the chance to chill out with a margarita and kick back in a deckchair while casually watch the games. It’s free too www.roundhouse.org.uk/camden-beach#.UA66rI7ajOY

Last Mile Festival at London Pleasure Gardens

LMF are giving us live music, food, theatre, sideshows and cabaret alongside screenings of the Olympics and Paralympics. The event marks the first time the full Gardens site is open to the public, so it’s a fab option – especially for those nearish the Docklands. www.londonpleasuregardens.com

Indoor options (in case it starts to pour)

Kona Kai bar, Chelsea

We checked out these guys some months ago and are loving the nod to all things Polynesian – so along with screenings of the events, look forward to hula-hooping, limbo-ing and Hawaiian dancing contests (with prizes!), and a cocktail in honour of the games. Spirit of Olympia Iced tea anyone? www.konakai.co.uk

Carom, Soho

This vibrant Indian bar has got an indoor summer garden and a menu of yummy cocktails to choose from as an alternative way to enjoy the games – they’ve also got four screens with the option to make a private booking if you want to watch the Olympics with just a few pals – nice! www.meza-soho.co.uk

Yager Bar, St Pauls

If you work around the city, you might want to head to this popular locale to check out the summer games – they’ve got Bronze, Silver and Gold packages starting from £25 which offers a viewing area, sharing platters and a round of drinks or wine.www.yager-bar.com/summer-sports.php

Waterpoet, Spitalfields

This East-end watering hole is not only screening the Olympics on nine screens but are hosting a massive Opening Ceremony Party with fancy dress and plenty of fun and games such as “olym-ping pong” and “olympic sized pool” (which sounds like good ole’ ping pong and pool to us, but meh). It all goes down from 6pm. www.waterpoet.co.uk

Where are you watching the games? Let us know in the comments section

Matilda Egere-Cooper

Matilda Egere-Cooper is the founder and editor of The Cultural Exposé, but has been a freelance journalist since 2002. Her work has featured in i-D, Dazed & Confused, The Mirror, Blues & Soul, BBC Entertainment and The Independent amongst others, and she picked up a prize for her writing at the Record of the Day Music Journalism and PR Awards in 2007. When she’s not managing TCé, Matilda’s a journalism lecturer, mentor and freelance photographer.

More Posts – Website – Twitter – Facebook

So given the chance to learn how the pros do it best, I recently visited Aircraft Circus in Southeast London as part of the Acer U-Experience  to get a taster of basic skills. Along with Circus Space in Hoxton and Gorilla Circus in Regent’s Park,  they’re one of a few organisations in the capital enabling the general public to experience the circus world by trying it out themselves.

Technical director Nick Ditton, who’s been with the company  since it started five years ago, says it’s a sport that’s becoming increasingly accessible thanks to centres like Aircraft – and what’s more, it takes the monotony out of everyday exercise, engaging the mind and body. “You can’t do these things in your average sports centre,” he adds.

Our session starts off with a lesson in the  three ball juggling cascade – a technique which Nick says is a great  warm-up for the more physical skills we’d be learning later. We start by practicing how to catch two balls, throwing them in the direction of the “infinity” symbol (∞).

The challenge was getting that extra ball in the mix – and confidently throwing it  to catch it with the alternative hand. My left hand just didn’t want to let that third ball go!

We then went on to learn flying trapeze on a petit volant - a smaller version of the grand set-ups you’d find at a circus show.  We were taught the beats of a normal swing, which involved knowing when to kick your legs back to build up momentum, not hit the platform and fly higher which each swing.

My few attempts  were tragic.  I couldn’t quite get a rhythm going, plus I nearly buckled mid-swing because I lacked the upper-body strength needed to hold myself up for long period of time – but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t fun!

Finally, my favourite skill of the day was acro-balance (and maybe because I was the one being lifted, rather than doing all the lifting). That said, you still need to be coordinated and trusting of your fellow acro-balancers to pull off something like the thigh-stand pyramid (see below) – but it makes for a triumphant finish!

If you’d like to give circus skills a go, sunday taster classes take place at Aircraft Circus, starting  from £35 for Adult Trapeze.  They also offer private classes, intensive courses and classes for kids.  For more info, visit http://aircraftcircus.myshopify.com.

This experience comes courtesy of Acer UK. Check out the Acer Intel U-Experience team on our journey and discover more about the challenges at: https://www.facebook.com/AcerUK/app_329103610497351

Matilda Egere-Cooper

Matilda Egere-Cooper is the founder and editor of The Cultural Exposé, but has been a freelance journalist since 2002. Her work has featured in i-D, Dazed & Confused, The Mirror, Blues & Soul, BBC Entertainment and The Independent amongst others, and she picked up a prize for her writing at the Record of the Day Music Journalism and PR Awards in 2007. When she’s not managing TCé, Matilda’s a journalism lecturer, mentor and freelance photographer.

More Posts – Website – Twitter – Facebook