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Day: 1 March 2013

Kukoos

Kukoos is a new fast food joint on Oxford Road from the team behind award-winning Indian restaurant, Zouk. Despite the area being overrun with chicken houses, supermarkets, a Greggs and a Subway, this isn’t your typical takeaway, and sits as a beacon of light amongst its neighbours. With queues out the door every lunchtime, we obviously weren’t the only students to be enticed by a change from the Sainsbury’s meal deal.

It serves up fresh Indian, Moroccan and Lebanese street food, all intended for you to take on the go. There are no tables beckoning you inside, just one long and cumbersome bench that stretches along the length of the shop. This is quite difficult to negotiate and is so high up that your legs dangle, confused, from your seat – but street food has never claimed to be comfortable.

The street food concept is expertly reflected in the menu, which boasts wraps, dosas, salads, soups and sweet and savoury snacks. All act as perfect substitutes for the pre-packaged sandwich, which may rival in cost and convenience, but are no comparison in flavour and freshness.

Filling, delicious and at only £3, the hot wraps are the best choice for lunch on the go, and for an extra £2 you can add any 3 salads. Wrap fillings include lamb, spinach and hummus, spicy meatball, chicken tikka and vegetarian alternatives such as cheese and onion bhaji, aubergine and falafel. All are encased in warm, doughy flatbreads with a choice of garnishes and sauces. Be careful, though, as they sometimes run out of the popular meaty fillings towards the end of the day.

Dosas, which are large, thin pancakes, are made to order before your eyes on a contraption reminiscent of a French crêpe griddle. One man photographed the whole process on his phone, clearly impressed. These also come with a range of fillings and are slightly cheaper than their thicker wrap counterparts.

The salad bar gleams behind its glass display, colourful and inviting. We sampled the beetroot, chilli and broccoli, a slaw of roughly grated carrots and raisins, Bombay spiced potatoes, Baba Ganoush, Kukoos’ variation of a Greek salad and deliciously crunchy spiced cauliflower. The choice is extensive despite all being vegetable-based, and unlike the homogeneous mayo-heavy salad bars we have become accustomed to, each dish seems to pack a distinct and flavourful punch.

Initially, the long, extensive stretch of counter seems intimidating, almost overwhelming its customers with the amount of choice it holds behind the glass. However, once you become aware that this is a place where you are encouraged to pick and choose exactly what you want, you realise that the intent is not to intimidate, but merely to feed you a good range of tasty and affordable street food. It stands out from other takeaway dives with an exciting, flavoursome and seemingly much healthier menu, and, even when queues sprawl out onto Oxford Road, Kukoos still manages to produce speedy service.

The only downside was the difficulty of eating a wrap, which is perhaps something that is overseen when you enjoy a drunken kebab and, more importantly, just the nature of street food. However, every dribble of meat juices or sauce that slid down our faces was dutifully scooped back up – a good sign if ever there was one.

Brecht’s piece set to be a success

‘I didn’t know anything about Mother Courage when I auditioned for the role, and I’m glad I didn’t,’ laughed Eve Polycarpou, the title carrying character.

I was surprised to hear this given not only the reputation of Brecht’s play, hailed as the best anti-war play ever written, but also the influence of the translation, they were using Tony Kushner’s who was recently nominated for an Academy Award for his screenplay for Lincoln.

However, Eve went on to say ‘I was lucky not to know anything about it’ due to it’s proud heritage, and ‘started to discover things along the way about the play, and the people who I immensely respect, who formed it’s reputation.’

The play would prove not only a massive task for an experienced actress such as Eve, but also for two student actors from Manchester School of Theatre – Alex Bennett and Ben Boskovic. Alex described his acquisition of the role as ‘magic.’

The director Chris Honer, who is praised by both for his broad casting, asked the school of Theatre’s director for two students who were simply picked out of the hat.

Although believing there is an ‘immense pressure’ that comes with performing such an influential play, there is a notable excitement, not only, as Ben believed, because it is ‘our first insight into the professional process’ but also to just to ‘sit and watch maters such as Eve.’

It is a respect that is reciprocated between the cast, Eve stating she believes it is ‘invaluable’ to have young actors like Alex and Ben alongside her, not only for the enthusiasm they bring, but also for the skill of the young men involved.

The reality of this production is startling. Not only because of the reputation that it carries but also from a performance perspective.

The play is over two and a half hours long and has 12 scenes, with Mother Courage present on the stage for all but one scene. There is a heavy reliance on musicianship which all three are involved in, not only do they sing but they also form part of the ensemble when not on stage.

Ben said: ‘There is an extreme challenge to switch between acting and musicianship and an added pressure from being a character on stage to then playing the glockenspiel, not many writers demand so much of a challenge in one show.’ Alex reaffirmed the challenge posed by the production but added ‘once you’re exhausted, you know you’ve told the story well.’

There is a message that transcends generations in Brecht’s play. Eve commented on the piece saying ‘one of the things I find incredible is it is today’s piece, not only in the context of overseas war, but also the horrific reality of internal wars, such as mothers and fathers bringing up children without enough money.’ The character of Mother Courage is also one that she believes encompasses the idea of contemporary struggle.

Despite continually coming across as heartless during the play, Eve does empathise with the character ‘because she is really struggling to keep her children alive, and keep them out of the war,’ however, she does concede that ‘she doesn’t always do it in the best way.’

There is an irony within the play as it carries the concept of Epic Theatre, which rather than allowing the audience to become enthralled with the characters themselves, is more focused on the message, which is one of the reasons for the constant scene changes, as well as the fact that Ben and Alex will play more than one character.

However, judging by the experience and enthusiasm of the cast, it may be hard not to become captivated with the characters, and alongside the skilled musicianship, it all suggests that Mother Courage will be a must see show.

Runs 22nd February – 9th March at The Lowry

University: myth vs. reality

‘University is easier than A Levels’

Most of us heard this one before starting university. Second year students will probably beg to differ and final years definitely will. While first year may not be the most academically challenging (it literally counts for nothing), the workload does steadily increase throughout the course of your degree (and it does start to count, unfortunately).

The conclusion: if you want to come out with one of the top classifications, you have to put in the hours at Ali G. So, in hindsight, this should probably be corrected to: ‘First year is easier than A Levels.’

Verdict: myth.

‘Your university days are the best of your life/University is one big party’

University offers freedom, independence and the opportunity to grow as an individual. There are new people, new places and a whole host of new things to get involved with. You will probably attend more nights out than lectures in your fresher year, this much is true. However, there are other things to contend with, which people fail to mention.

Homesickness, money worries and exam/essay related stress certainly don’t feel like a party. Plus, once you progress to second or third year, you may find that you hit the dance floor less (due to the previously mentioned increase in workload). It’s not all doom and gloom once the first year is over, though. On the whole, the good times definitely outweigh the bad times, and the shenanigans of your university years are never to be forgotten.

Verdict: reality, with a pinch of myth.

‘You meet your best friends at university’

Opinions on this differ, but university does give you the opportunity to build life-long friendships. Living together can make you really close, or it can highlight tensions within your friendship. Generally speaking though, as family support is not immediately on hand at uni, flatmates or coursemates often rely on each other to fill that gap and perform a similar role.

It can be easy to lose touch with friends at home or feel as though you no longer have much in common with them once you move away to start your degree. Having said that, there are always those friends you see at home during holidays, with whom things always stay the same. It seems like people find out who their real friends are during this period, and this can often consist of a mix of uni and home based friends.

Verdict: for some a reality, for some a myth.

Student loan = shop until you drop

Now, I don’t know about you, but I was quite disappointed when I found out that my student loan literally covered my rent and tuition fees. AND NOTHING ELSE.

There was not even a penny spare to be spent on alcohol, clothes or Nando’s, as I had been led to believe that there might be. Before arriving in Manchester, I was under the impression that students spent a high percentage of their time happily squandering their loans in the Arndale (using their discount of course). Unfortunately not, that’s where the overdraft comes in.

Verdict: myth.

 ‘You will have soooo much sex’

This really depends on the individual; there are those who shag anything with a pulse during Freshers Week. Equally, there are those with other halves back at home or at other universities, who are too loved up to so much as glance at the relationship status on another’s Facehall t-shirt. Then there are those who meet a long-term boyfriend/girlfriend at uni and of course, there are those who become or remain single, and have as much or as little fun as they want.

Verdict: for some a reality, for some a myth.

Must See: 18th-25th February

Mother Courage and Her Children

The Library theatre company performs Tony Krushner’s adaptation of Brecht’s classic piece about the relationship between war and business set in the Thirty Years War, fought across mainland Europe in the 1600s. It depicts the extent to which Mother Courage is willing to go to make a profit from war and protect her children.

Runs 22nd February – 9th March at The Lowry. Tickets £10.

 

To Kill a Mockingbird

Christopher Sergel’s adaptation of Harper Lee’s renowned novel the drama explores race and prejudice in the America’s deep south during the Depression.

Runs 20th February – 30th March at The Royal Exchange. Tickets £10.

 

Paper Shield

An original piece of theatre written and directed by Piers Black-Hawkins

‘Paper Shield’ follows the story of a young journalist who has just started his career at the biggest selling tabloid in England. The newspaper is covering the high profile case of Sammy Norton; a young girl whose recent kidnapping has touched the hearts of the nation. The drama follows Nick’s devloping involvment with the case which borders on obsession. He eventually spirals out of control and surfaces amidst one of the nation’s darkest scandals.

20th-22nd February, 7pm at John Thaw Studio – Martin Harris Centre

 

My Boy Jack

by David Haig, directed by Rob Beck

Set in 1913 and with war with Germany imminent the drama follows Rudyard Kipling’s determination to send his myopic son to war, something which triggers a bitter family conflict. The conflict leaves Britain’s most renowned patriot devastated by the warring of his own greatest passions; his love for children – above all, his own – and his devotion to King and Country. The piece accurately details the effects warfare has on those left behind and the personal battles that rage when one is forced to balance a sense of duty with love of a child. My Boy Jack is a moving account of the anguish at the heart of the well renowned literary figure.

24th-26th February, 7pm at the Council Chambers, Students’ Union