Month: November 2022

Malena and the male gaze

Written by Evie Knight on 27th November 2022. Posted in Film.

Painful and powerful, Giuseppe Tornatore’s 2000 film Malena is a composite film centred on the sexualisation of Malena Scordia (Monica Bellucci) – with a narrative that feels very real, especially in the context of Reclaim the Night. Misunderstood, it is often advertised as ‘sexy’, ‘fun’, or even ‘erotic’, when in reality Malena is a disturbing warning to all viewers.

Laura Mulvey’s theory of the Male Gaze is tangible as Malena’s story is only viewed from the perspective of the adolescent boy, Renato (Giuseppe Sulfaro). Malena is treated as the catalyst of his bizarre sexual awakening. The innocence and comedy that come from this point of view provoke a very interesting commentary on how sexual violence towards women is nurtured and normalised from a young age. Likewise, this film made me realise how damaging it is when the feminine rage is directed towards other women.

(TW: mentions of sexual violence)

Nevertheless, Malena is a beautiful film. From the same director as the much-loved Cinema Paradiso (1998), Malena has one of the best musical scores of all time. Monica Bellucci is wonderful as Malena, and although she has virtually no lines, her sadness seeps into you, reminiscent of her role in Irreversible (2002), which comments on sexual violence and rape in the most extreme and disturbing way. Set in fascist Italy in the midst of World War II, Malena’s complexity is that it is framed as a love story amidst political turmoil. Renato believes that his infatuation is love and that this love is mutual. Yet, he is really no different from the other men in the small town in Sicily, where his sexual obsession consumes him.

Malena is objectified by the film itself and everyone in it. Before we even see Malena, her body is fragmented in shots of her legs, breasts, hair, and lips as she gets ready. The boys in town ride their bicycles to go and see her, literally gazing at her as she walks past. This is the first time Renato has seen her and from here on he remains besotted. He watches her at every second, even in her most intimate moments, peeping through holes in the most voyeuristic way, observing her wash, sew, and cry. One of the most beautiful scenes is turned sour by his male gaze, as she dances with her husband’s photograph to ‘Ma l’amore no’, as the camera focuses on her legs, breasts and her slightly see-through dress, instead of her love, emotion, and melancholy.

Renato also witnesses other men ‘gazing’ at Malena. When she walks past, they seem to sniff the air, hiss under their breaths, and turn to watch her from behind, commenting on her “beautiful ass”. All Malena can do is look straight ahead and continue walking. A feeling familiar to many of us. An intriguing sentiment is made by her lawyer, turned rapist, “here is her crime: her beauty!”.

The film focuses often on adolescence and masculinity. It is not only the boys at school who joke about Malena, objectifying her constantly, but the men of the town as well. Watch Melina should provoke conversations on how society should teach boys to respect women from a young age. Especially as Renato’s sexual fantasies become increasingly detrimental, with a fetishization of female pain. He dreams of saving Malena from violence, of committing his own sexual assault against her, and worst of all, holding her naked, dead body in his arms. He takes enjoyment in such misery.

At the death of her father, Malena is forced to turn to prostitution to survive. One man provides her with food, asking for a sexual arrangement in return, to which she replies, “I can come every Thursday, as long as you bring food”. This circumstance is not out of choice or empowerment, but desperation. Malena cuts her hair short and dyes it red, perhaps in an attempt to take ownership her body. Sitting in the street with a cigarette in her mouth, she is offered many lighters all at once. This iconic scene is symbolic of her lack of choice, and the downward spiral of her life.

The most terrifying scene of the entire film, however – which continues to haunt me– is the act of female violence committed against Malena. Throughout the film, the women of the town do not try to hide their hatred and jealousy of Malena, for “stealing their men.” On the day the allies liberate Italy, they become one angry mass. Malena is dragged into the streets; she is beaten half to death, her hair is cut off, and her clothing torn to rags, as she is held down by the women of the town.

But she does not scream at the women. She screams at the men. Who is this feminine rage really directed towards? It is undoubtedly with guilt, shame, and perhaps a level of respect, that the women of the town show kindness to Malena by the end of the film.

Malena is host to an incredible commentary on how the female body is commodified to be openly gazed at. It is also indicative of how men are brought up to think about, talk about, and treat women. For me, however, the most potent emotions were conjured by the women within Malena. Their cruelty towards her was unnerving. The primary lesson we may learn from Malena is the importance of supporting one another in the face of sexual violence and discrimination.

COP27: Where do we go from here?

Written by Daniel Galloway on 27th November 2022. Posted in Opinion.

After the events of another COP climate summit, this year in Egypt, a number of questions must be raised as to how truly effective this conference is at solving the problems posed by climate change. Whilst it is a key forum for proposing collective action and enabling developing nations to voice concerns, the lack of state action regarding previous agreements suggests this may be a renegotiation of our demise rather than a true search for solutions. In the face of the climate crisis, states must revolutionise how they think and behave. A more powerful international process is likely required to achieve this.

The current geological period is defined by many as the Anthropocene, in which human actions like carbon emissions and deforestation defines the conditions of the earth. As rates of species extinction are between a hundred and a thousand times regular levels and the proximity to a mass extinction event is growing, traditional forms of political thought are becoming impossible. Counteracting the Anthropocene calls for the radical overhaul of societal values, economic systems, and governmental approaches. When directly aiming to counter the climate impacts of the Anthropocene, COP must take these approaches on board.

Yet even in this context, state leaders continue to pursue self-interest at all levels of policymaking. We only have to look to Russia’s undermining of grain exports and weaponization of energy production during an expansionist war, or the fallout of Brexit culminating in ever-increasingly hostile approaches, namely Braverman’s dubbing of immigration as an “invasion”. Day-to-day international affairs continually damage cooperation, with even supranational organisations like the UN failing to prevent irrationality. If the climate crisis requires such drastic measures of cooperation, organisations at an international level need to be stronger in order to improve attitudes.

To look at COP in itself, there remains a failure to be as powerful as is required to incite change. The 2015 Paris agreement was supposed to be a landmark step towards combatting climate change, with commitments to lessening temperatures to below 2°C, avoiding the worst tipping points of a climate catastrophe. However, Trump’s withdrawal of the US from this agreement proves that its impact may be futile, as malleable implementation fails to enforce collective action. Despite Biden having re-joined this agreement, the ability of states to pass in and out so easily is dangerously weak.

The formation of agreements in itself is often an impossibility, with a fear of utter failure continuing right up to the final days of negotiations at almost every conference. Even the UK, who hosted COP26 last year, have failed to realise their rhetoric: plans for the West Cumbrian coal mine remain in existence, and blatant hostility towards climate change measures was a hallmark of the Truss Government. Without taking a stronger, more homogenous approach to this multitude of crises, COP will fail to achieve even a fraction of its intent.

At COP27, we saw these same failures stronger than ever. Concerns surrounding the welfare of activist Alaa ab del-Fattah were a worrying distraction from negotiation. What’s more, former Prime Minister Boris Johnson flew himself out, fostering his own populist cause as an attempt to undermine Sunak. This was both state-level politicking at its worst, distracting from the key issues at hand, yet also served to highlight Sunak’s failures to take climate change seriously. Days of deadlock and midnight negotiations resulted in a lacklustre outcome, a symbol of just how unproductive this conference can be.

The final agreement barely hung on to key commitments surrounding fossil fuels and failed even to definitively uphold the commitment to 1.5c. Loss and damage – a system of payments to improve and repair the infrastructure of developing economies in the face of climate catastrophe – is seen as a historic milestone, yet has no framework for implementation and must be cast in doubt as previous fiscal commitments for the climate fund have failed to materialise. This conference has been an expensive, time-consuming method of kicking the can, with even its major agreements having very little real impact.

We must go beyond the weakness of COP as a conference to question whether even the intentions are appropriate for the Anthropocene. It has only aimed to limit carbon emissions to a certain level, not to restructure the processes of industry and profit that power pollution. Pledges to developing economies are not only lacklustre, but see throwing money at a problem as the solution to a flawed and heavily imbalanced global economy, damaged far beyond what funding can repair. The malleable nature of conference commitments prevents any kind of reform from being taken seriously and reduces the image of climate change to merely another piece on the political agenda.

Solutions, therefore, must be more radical. A new economic status quo is imperative to replace the failures of neoliberalism, diverting from a tactless growth-focused carbon economy to facilitating selfless cooperation. Social reform must also be enacted to educate on the realities of climate change – for example in NGOs like Greenpeace – as only by mass acceptance and understanding of this dire situation can we incite real change. The capitalist drive for ever-increasing income and efficiency with no regard for outside concern has pushed us to the brink of no return, and it is time to rethink our entire notion of progress if we are even to survive. To profit and die or to change and survive is the decision of world leaders now. It may seem like a huge leap to take, but it is a necessary one.

The achievements of COP have done much to improve the discourse surrounding climate change, enabling more marginal perspectives and ideas to come to the fore. Yet, this system is too weak to impose the agreements formed under its jurisdiction and fails fundamentally to provide an arena for real change. The agreements of COP must be a stronger force in modernising the discourse surrounding climate change, not a tool for filling a political quota, but a real drive for hope.

Live review: Sudan Archives raises the bar at Band on the Wall

Written by Francesca Hall on 27th November 2022. Posted in Music.

Los Angeles’ Sudan Archives (AKA Brittney Parks) is a force of nature. A self-taught violinist and self-described “punk”, she has released two incredible albums to date: 2019’s Athena and 2022’s Natural Brown Prom Queen. The latter was released in September and boasts 18 truly unique tracks that masterfully blend RnB, jazz, folk, and electronic influences in a dazzling whirlwind of sound quite unlike anything that anyone else is creating right now. Last Thursday, the artist performed to a sold out Band on the Wall, and completely raised the bar.

The audience was alive with anticipation as they waited for Sudan Archives to enter the stage, like a swarm of bees ready to collectively descend on a flourishing flower. And she did not disappoint: prowling onstage dressed in a high-cut black leotard, sparkling tights and long black gloves, complete with a blonde dreadlock mullet that fell down to her waist, the singer seemed to hypnotise every member of the crowd before she even opened her mouth.

Opening with songs off her new album including ‘Homemaker’ and ‘Ciara’, it became immediately apparent that Parks lives for performing. She addressed the audience with wide, mischievous smiles, covering every inch of the stage and transitioning from vocals to violin so effortlessly that you didn’t even notice. “Y’all ready from some throwbacks?” She shouted, before playing the divine, life-affirming ‘Confessions’ from her debut album. This song sees Sudan Archives at perhaps her most tender and open, her violin crying out desperately as she appeals to an anonymous entity: “There is a place that I call home / But it’s not where I am welcome / And if I saw all the angels / Why is my presence so painful?” Experiencing this track live, it was impossible not to get goosebumps.

The mood then shifted as the set moved into more high-octane material. “I’m feeling freaky!” Parks exclaimed as she flirtatiously removed one of her gloves. “Where my freaks at?!” She launched into the riotous ‘Freakalizer’, whose tight drums and autotuned vocals are reminiscent of early-2000s RnB hits such as Fergie and will.i.am‘s ‘Fergalicious’ and Britney Spears‘ ‘Womanizer’. Sudan Archives came down to interact with the audience, fans pushing forwards to try to get a closer look at this goddess-like woman. Witnessing the way she captivated the crowd, you could almost mistake her for a world-renowned popstar playing the main stage at Coachella.

Parks returned to the stage and confessed that she’d actually lost her voice after playing Dublin three days prior. “Give it up for steroids!” she quipped, and slipped straight back into her set without a second thought. Only Sudan Archives could follow the harmonic, neo-soul ‘Loyal EDD’ with the African and Irish folk inspired ‘Glorious’ and the trap anthem ‘OMG BRITT’ – and do it in such a way that made the incongruous combination of genres feel completely natural to the listener.

Later in the set, Parks revealed how excited she was to visit Dublin earlier that week. “My violin inspiration is Irish fiddle music”, she explained. As if to prove it, she deftly performed a traditional Irish jig on her violin, the audience stamping and cheering in support as the tempo steadily ramped up. The energy in the room swelled with a palpable sense of togetherness: Parks had become one with her fans.

Playing off this newfound understanding between her and her fans, Sudan Archives took the show to daring new heights. “These next songs are about titties”, she said with a sly grin, before playing the provocative ‘Milk Me’ and fan favourite ‘NBPQ (Topless)’ (during which she had everyone singing along). Parks danced seductively, fixing her gaze on the crowd as she enunciated each lyric, like a siren luring unsuspecting sailors into the rocks. “I just wanna have my titties out!” she repeated – and she did just that, pulling down her leotard in a fearless display of body confidence that left everyone in a state of shocked admiration.

Sudan Archives ended her set with ‘Homesick (Gorgeous & Arrogant)’, a track that brings together both ends of her lyrical spectrum in its defiant and vulnerable refrain: “I just want the D-I-C-K / Problems is not what I’m seeking / I just miss my homie TK / I just miss my mama Shay Shay, yeah”. She disappeared offstage to rapturous applause, the crowd stamping wildly until she returned for the encore. ‘Come Meh Way’, the standout single from Parks’ eponymous 2017 EP, closed the show – but, from the volume of cheering, it was obvious that many fans would have happily watched the singer perform for several more hours.

Thursday night was a masterclass in artistry and performance, and it exemplified everything exciting about music right now. In an era in which genre lines are becoming increasingly blurred and artists are becoming more and more experimental, Parks proves that there is absolutely nothing to fear from this new frontier. Her art is diverse, eclectic, and utterly inimitable: the product of someone shaking off all restraints and simply doing whatever her heart desires. And, as the venue emptied out, you were left wondering: is there anything that Sudan Archives can’t do?

Natural Brown Prom Queen is out now, and you can stream it below:

Feel festive at Manchester’s Lightopia!

Written by Erin Botten on 27th November 2022. Posted in Lifestyle.

Lightopia is back in Manchester for another year, providing an immersive escape from the winter chill. But at £22.50 per person, is it worth your money?

It’s fair to say that Lightopia has a lot to offer. From dazzling exhibitions and light instalments, to fairgrounds and delicious food stalls, there’s something for everyone. However, it’s clear from the start that the exhibition is aimed at families, with bundled-up children being ushered by the parents everywhere you look. To some extent, it adds to the festive spirit of the exhibition, providing a chance for guests to relive their own festive childhoods. However, it can slow things down with parents snapping pictures or gushing tantrums.

Food-wise, it was hard to resist what was on offer. Stalls were dotted throughout the trail, resembling German Christmas markets with vendors selling from wooden huts. Unlike some Christmas shows, everything was reasonably priced. You could get hot chocolates from £3, or opt for a spiced hot choc for £4. Food met most allergen requirements, with vegan and gluten-free items available. Guests had the option to pick from sweet treats, stone-baked pizzas, roasts, German Christmas classics, and carnival snacks, keeping you well-fed throughout the trail.

As for the trail, each display varied in ‘wow’ factor. Each had a theme such as Water Creatures, A Book of Rebirth, and Rise of the Pheonix. There’s no denying the exhibition quality was high, with each light feature being carefully crafted and glowing beautifully. However, some themes were a little lacklustre, such as the Rainbow Umbrella, which was a small display that stood isolated from the rest of the trail.

There were definitely some standouts on the trail, such as the Water Show. What initially appears as just a park fountain is quickly transformed into anything and everything. One minute, the fountain depicts an angel spreading its wings and taking off, the next it’s replicating the winter wonderland landscape from Elf. Paired with Christmas tunes like George Michael’s ‘Last Christmas’ and the Jackson 5’s ‘Santa Claus is Comin to Town’, it provides a wholesome and mesmerising display.

That being said, my all-time favourite display was set in the Secret Flower Garden. As you pass the extravagant and bold Pheonix display, the sound of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast starts echoing through the trees. As you turn the corner, the forest corridor is illuminated with giant roses and lilies, with a canopy of stars twinkling above. It couldn’t have gotten any better for me, creating a sense of comfort and awe.

Overall, Lightopia is the perfect place to take parents or dates. You have the chance to explore North Manchester and have an alcohol-free night out with loved ones. The exhibition is far less crowded or stressful than Manchester’s Christmas Markets, whilst still providing the Christmas spirit. The only downside is the cost. At £22.50, alongside the commute costs to even get to Heaton Park, its’ undoubtedly a pricey night out. If you have the budget, it’s well worth a visit. Otherwise, a cosy night in will work just as well.

Book here to visit Manchester’s Lightopia between 24 November 2022 – 2 January 2023.

Hatch yourself a merry little Christmas!

Written by Hannah Wellock on 27th November 2022. Posted in Food & Drink.

As the days get shorter and the nights get colder, the city is starting to feel a little more festive and entering into the Christmas spirit. This year Hatch is no exception, transforming itself into a sparkling winter wonderland and ready to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year.

With an assortment of festive workshops and seasonal offerings from independent traders, Hatch is delivering the most wholesome night out for you and your friends to kick off the festivities in style.

Hatch’s fabulous Festive Village is adorned with fairy lights, Christmas trees, and baubles as though Father Christmas decorated it himself. And to really get you in the festive cheer, there will be Christmas choirs every Sunday throughout December performing Christmas classics with a twist.

As part of Hatch’s series of Festive Workshops, we joined Last Ember in a Candle Making workshop where we created our very own personalised scented candles. We opted for Ude and Ginger scents but there were scents ranging from Rose to Sandalwood. With two in December, the workshops would be perfect as a gift or a date night activity.

The first trader putting a festive twist on their menu was Kong’s with their Pulled Turkey Toastie. This pimped-up boxing day sandwich with pulled turkey leg, herby stuffing, brie, and cranberry aioli on a grilled, chewy sourdough is the ultimate taste of Christmas.

Bondi Bowls Winter Earth Bowl and Kong’s Pulled Turkey Toastie – Photo: Hannah Wellock @ The Mancunion

It doesn’t stop there for the meat lovers, Kong’s are also serving up a mammoth pigs in blankets burger with a 6oz pork patty, pulled turkey, crispy bacon, shredded maple sprouts, baconnaise, and stuffing. With all the trimming, there is no excuse to not get it straight down the hatch.

Next up was Bondi Bowls putting a festive flourish on their menu, offering up their Winter Earth Bowl. With a variety of seasonal root vegetables, kale, shaved parsnips, carrots and walnuts, this dish brought a wide range of contrasting textures and colours to the plate. However, this was notably lighter than your typical nourish bowl. It’s the perfect accompaniment to something a little more carb-heavy.

Grandad’s Sausages was next to follow, pulling out all the stops with their loaded fries and really embracing the true indulgence of Christmas. Messy fries stacked high with stuffing, crispy bacon bits, cranberry sauce, chipolatas, and a generous drizzling of gravy will certainly have everyone unbuckling their belts in the new year.

Parmaggedon are also getting merry, combining their classic buttermilk Chicken Parmo with another undisputed classic – pigs in blankets. Accompanied with deep-fried stuffing, this makes for a winning festive bite. Despite the juiciness of the chicken, this dish did seem to lack an element of sauciness.

Up next were the Cheeky Tikka Chaat bombs. Sweet and fragrant, these chaat bombs were a flavour sensation, when eaten the only appropriate way… all in one. With chickpeas as the base, drizzled with a tangy molasses sauce and topped with fresh pomegranate these bombs really made you keep coming back for more. Although they did seem to be missing the classic ingredient: raita. It was overall a refreshing palette cleanser from the typical stodginess around the festive period.

The Cheeky Tikka Chaat bombs – Photo: Hannah Wellock @ The Mancunion

Last, but certainly not least, was the T’arricrri Christmas Cannelloni. With silky smooth pistachio cream and a crispy exterior, this was a gorgeous alternative to the British Christmas classic – the brandy snap. Vegan and made with Italian panettone, it was the perfect something sweet to finish the night while cosying up under some blankets by the tree.

Other festive specials include Herbivorous’ plant-based Christmas ‘turkey’ and stuffing burger, and Block Steak Shop’s deep-fried camembert with spicy tomato dip.

To wash it all down, as expected the festive tipple is also in full flow. Mulled wine is a staple at Christmas, warming the heart and the hands and this one did not disappoint. Steamy and spiced, it is perfect to take the chill and the edge off as the temperature drops.

If you fancied something a little stronger, the cocktails were unquestionably the highlight of the night. The Clementine Cosmo was a beautiful blend of Absolut Vodka, clementine liqueur, lime and cranberry, a fabulous balance between sweet and tart. My personal favourite, The Jolly Gingerbread, was a creamy, Baileys, gingerbread heaven served with whipped cream, cinnamon, and a mini gingerbread man… the ultimate nightcap.

All the independent traders’ Christmas specials will be available all throughout November and December with the Festive Village open until Friday 23 December.

Hatch is open seven days a week from 12pm-late. Book a table here.

Turtle Bay’s Late Night Happy Hour

Written by Violet Robins on 25th November 2022. Posted in Food & Drink.

Turtle Bay’s two locations in Northern Quarter and Oxford Road are always sure to provide us with a summer vibe all year round. The Caribbean-inspired rum bar and restaurant has always been a classic among students, especially during their late-night Happy Hour. However, you are not here to hear me go on about how Turtle Bay’s atmosphere transports you to your dream summer holiday. No, you are here because they are offering students a free £10 to spend during their late-night Happy Hour. This means two free cocktails!

You can understand the excitement and why my mate and I jumped at this opportunity. After weeks of coursework, this offer was a brilliant way to wind down. We decided to visit the Northern Quarter branch, which was criminally quiet. However, this did not stop us from enjoying ourselves because the staff set the tone; they were cheery, dancing, and overall friendly. We even befriended one of the bar staff, Alex — he is literally the coolest bartender and was not shy with the rum!

Being Turtle Bay regulars, we decided to try their newer cocktails first. All the new cocktails remained in theme with Turtle Bay’s classic Caribbean aesthetic, and we tried the Dessert Island, Tobago Tea, and the Tingwray. However, they also have two more brand new cocktails: the Caribbean Candy Sour and the Jamrock Punch.

Dessert Island (V)

This is their only non-vegan cocktail due to its inclusion of salted caramel sauce. In classic Turtle Bay fashion, it included rum on top of Tia Maria, cold brew coffee, salted caramel sauce, and vanilla.

This cocktail was so divine that we ordered it twice. The Dessert Island was essentially an alcoholic Starbucks iced coffee. I likened it to a liquid tiramisu. Genuinely worth trying one, two, or five times! My only problem with it is the same issue I have with any coffee that includes syrups — the sugar sinks straight to the bottom, making the end of this cocktail quite hard to drink.

4/5

Photo: Violet Robins @ The Mancunion

Tobago Tea (Ve)

Duppy white rum, vodka, tequila, gin & triple sec, grapefruit, mango, and fresh lime.

This was a relatively underwhelming drink. While it tasted like a mango Solero, I found that it just didn’t stand out. Even after mixing it, we realised that the flavours would pop up one after the other, making it an adventure of a drink. However, this had its downside as it meant that the alcohol came last and took short sips to finish off. It did remind me of a summer’s day, though — I could envision myself drinking this in a can in the middle of Platt Fields with an ice lolly.

3/5

Tingwray (Ve)

Wray & Nephew, white rum, grapefruit, and fresh lime.

I was terrified to try this cocktail. Take it from someone who has worked in rum bars, Wray & Nephew is no joke — it has a 63% ABV. However, this was a surprisingly pleasant and refreshing drink. Of course, you will still taste the rum considering how strong it is, but it is also citrusy and reminded me of homemade lemonade. If you’re looking to go hard during the Late Night Happy Hour, I strongly suggest ordering the Tingwray.

4/5

The Mojito Showdown

My mate and I, both avid mojito enjoyers, were curious to try Turtle Bay’s two different types of mojito too: the Classic Mojito (Ve) and the Marley Mojito (Ve).

First up was the Classic Mojito. The taste of rum was strong in this one — I’m not sure if it was because the bartender over-poured or the quantities were off. This made it a very unpleasant experience to try and finish it. If you are new to mojitos, avoid this and opt for a vodka-based mojito instead. However, if you are a seasoned mojito enjoyer, it’s an interesting one to try.

2/5

The Marley Mojito was worse. I don’t know what possessed me to try this considering it was a melon-flavoured drink, and I’m usually quite anti-melon. However, I will give the Marley Mojito props and say it tasted like actual watermelon rather than the typical artificial melon flavour that I despise. You could hardly taste the alcohol in this one too, which can be positive or negative depending on whether you’re planning on going hard or having casual drinks. While I am biased against melon, this was definitely better than the Classic Mojito.

3/5

Overall thoughts

Overall, this is a fabulous night out. With the temperatures dropping, we are becoming highly nostalgic for boozy late summer nights again, and Turtle Bay’s Late Night Happy Hour delivers on bringing this memory back to life. The free £10 makes the night even better, especially considering that I think most of our student loans have run out by now. Let’s not mention how incredible the value for money is — during the happy hour, its 2-4-1 cocktails are all £9.40.

The only downside to my experience is that the happy hour is relatively short. While it states that it lasts from 9:30 PM until they close, the bar was shut down early. It did get in our way in tasting every new cocktail. However, I think this may have been our saving grace as we had a lot of Wray & Nephew and various types of rum by that point.

To claim the £10 before the end of November, click here!

Thursday – the new Friday?

Written by The Mancunion on 25th November 2022. Posted in Lifestyle.

I’m really not a dating app kind of girl. Not (I hope!) in an obnoxious superiority complex way. Not even because I’m holding on to dwindling childhood fantasies of a meet-cute, secretly longing for a whirlwind romance with a rugged stranger. Okay, maybe still nursing that dream slightly. But realistically, I’m not a good texter (3-minute or 3-week replies), I hate the talking stage, and un-ironic flirting makes me nauseous. Not exactly Tinder’s target market.

So when I initially heard about the hottest new dating app, Thursday, I was characteristically uninterested. Until that is I had it explained to me…

The premise of Thursday is to bridge the gap between online dating and offline experience. Here’s a neat little summary of what exactly that means:

It only works on…yes, you guessed it – Thursday! All you have to do is flick the toggle, and just like that your profile becomes active “for one night, and one night only.” Goodbye eternal pinning and compulsively checking your phone. Get on with life 86% of the time and commit to one concentrated day of dating. Fantastic.
Matching – the app retains some elements of its more conventional counterparts namely in that you create your own profile/glorified match attax card. However, you’re limited to 12 matches every week and all conversations and connections are wiped once the bell tolls midnight.
The exciting bit – date night! Each week a new location is released and you buy tickets on the app. It’s just like a normal night out, except that everyone in there is single and overtly aware of it.

As I’d like to think I’m #BetterInPerson (the app’s tagline, not mine), I grabbed one of my sexy single friends – who happens to be much more competent when it comes to both dating and dating apps than I am. After sharing some of Sainsbury’s finest Sauvignon Blanc we headed on over to the appointed bar, Spinningfields’s The Alchemist, to try our luck with love.

The Event

You’ve all been to bars before. You know the drill. As much as the English Literature student inside me would delight in detailing a full description of the night I’ll cut straight to it.

The turnout was impressive. It was no Friendship on a Sunday night but the bar was happily populated. Within moments of walking in my friend and I found ourselves sat and squared away with two men who, like us, had come together. After eventually disentangling ourselves from them we were in conversation with another group in under a minute. However, surprisingly no part of the event felt like the hectic, scrambling frenzy I imagine organised speed-dating to be. Unlike one friend who cautioned me it was neither a “sausage party” nor “fish market” (direct quote, I’m so sorry), and it didn’t feel like there was an onus or expectation on men to make the first move.

Honestly, it really did just feel like I’d gone out for drinks with my mate.

Other Observations

It’s very straight. I’m not exactly Zoella, Pumpkin Spice Latte, Adidas Superstars looking, but if I’m being told I’m one of the most alternative-looking people in there. I don’t think we’re in Gay Village anymore. Both from pursuing profiles on the app and the conversations I had with other singletons it was pretty evident that most people there were on the hunt for a heterosexual relationship.

It’s an older crowd. Living in the depths of Fallowfield it can be pretty easy to forget about anyone and everyone outside of the 18-25 focus group. While there were a few standard student types it was primarily populated by ‘young professionals’. From a completely cursory, aesthetic glance I reckon the average age range was about 23-32, with a sweet spot at 26.

Safety is where Thursday is really onto something. Thursday has independent bouncers/ticket checkers on the door who seemed friendly and professional. The bartenders were particularly charming and they operated the ‘Ask For Angela’ practice. Although I was with a friend, I genuinely would have felt comfortable entering, leaving and existing there on my own. Thursday really does address the understandable anxieties that can surround the choice to move online to in-person. If you normally feel hesitant about meeting up with an online match it offers you a safe, central, neutral environment. Also I imagine the novelty of the situation makes for a pretty good conversation starter.

It forces genuine engagement. If you’re not interested in someone you can’t simply swipe left or resort to the faithful, “Sorry! I have a girl/boyfriend”, line. Yes, occasionally you might be subjected to yet another mansplaining of the stock market, but giving people a chance lead to some unexpectedly entertaining chats. Strangers are full of surprises.

A lot of the people I spoke to said that they normally struggle to make the first move but Thursday pushed them to act confident even when they weren’t feeling it. Whether or not you find your future wife, gaining the self-belief to shoot your shot is a massive win.

Takeaways

Unfortunately, this didn’t include the bartender.

So, did I find the man of my dreams? Absolutely not. Was I really looking for him? Nahhh. Overall however I think Thursday has a lot to offer.

If you’re more mature than me (not hard) and looking for something a bit more serious then I would heartily recommend it. All the conversations I had were amicable, entertaining and engaging. Everyone that approached us was polite and respectful. The lucky few whom I did deign with my number all texted to make sure I got home safe and continued conversations the following days. They seemed genuinely interested in pursuing something serious (ew!).

Even if you’re not after a long-term lover I still think it’s worth a shot. Provided you don’t have a 9am on Friday it’s a worthwhile experience. Grab a friend or fly solo – you’ll meet a new crowd of people and trust me, your ego will experience a tremendous boost thanks to all the attention.

So whether you’re disillusioned with the commodification and cheapening of romance, hunting for someone to cuff now that the Christmas market season is well and truly upon as, or just looking for a laugh and a good anecdote…get downloading and starting making Thursday sexy.

Words by Matilda Child

“Come and join us” says Jo Grady at UCU strikes

Written by Shikhar Talwar on 25th November 2022. Posted in News, Videos.

Students and staff joined the University and College Union (UCU) strikes on November 24. Jo Grady, the General Secretary of the UCU attended the strikes in Manchester.

The picket lines on November 24, 2022, began at 8am outside Crawford House and the Samuel Alexander building distributing flyers, before walking to Whitworth Hall.

Students from the University also joined in the protests. They held signs that read, “Student Solidarity for Strikes.” Along with one banner that said, “Cross the Picket? What a Tory!”

Jo Grady joined in the front of the picket lines laughing in conversation with UCU members. She called the University employers, “the most intransigent and bullying in the country” when talking to The Mancunion.

“The demands are, give us back a part of the 35% Universities took from our pensions during the pandemic,” she stated. Adding, “pay people a proper pay rise, we have been offered 3% when the inflation is way above 10%, so this is not enough.”

However, she continued, “the issue which affects everyone the most is unbearably high workloads… and casualisation.”

A student on the picket line said, “My lecturers who are the people that I see every day, the people who teach me, should be on certain contracts. They should be paid. I just find it horrendous.”

Meanwhile, a lot of UCU members are asking for student support. One such member stated, “I will encourage students to read on the history of the labour movement.”

Jo Grady finished speaking with a call to action, “If you want to see this dispute resolved quickly, come and join us. Demonstrate with us. Let your Vice-Chancellor know, that you know that it is them who is to blame and them who can resolve it.”

When contacted for comment, a University spokesperson said:

“The University remains disappointed with the UCU’s decision and will be taking active steps during this period to ensure minimal disruption to our staff and students.

“We understand how important pay, employment conditions, and pensions are to colleagues – we take their views and concerns very seriously. Pay and the USS pension agreements are negotiated nationally, by UCEA and UUK respectively. As with all Higher Education Institutions, we input into these discussions and decisions.

“We also appreciate the difficult and challenging times in which we are living and are taking active steps to support our staff and students.”

Elon Musk at a recent talk looking fit and healthy after use of new weight loss drug Wegovy

“Fasting and Wegovy”: Elon Musk uses new weight loss drug

Written by Freya Anderson on 25th November 2022. Posted in Science & Tech.

Elon Musk recently replied to a tweet questioning his “fit, ripped and healthy” physique with a pair of tweets stating “Fasting…and Wegovy”. But what is Wegovy and how does it work?

Trigger Warning: Discusses weight loss and unhealthy

And Wegovy
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 2, 2022

Wegovy, also called Ozempic, is traditionally used as an injectable weight loss drug for type-2 diabetics or people with a BMI over 30 (also categorised as obese). While it has been proven to reduce the weight of patients by an average of 35 lbs, patients are also prescribed healthy diets and fitness plans. The objective of practising healthy living alongside treatment is to get patients to a point where they can maintain their weight independent of the drug.

Time for a science lesson…

The active ingredient of Wegovy is semaglutide, an artificial version of the hormone glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). This hormone is produced by the proglucagon gene in L cells after you eat, and released into the small intestine. GLP-1 stimulates the glucose-dependent release of insulin from the pancreas, causing the sugars to be taken up into your cells.

At the same time, GLP-1 prevents the release of glucagon, which causes the body to break down the sugar and fats stored in your cells to increase blood sugar levels. It also suppresses the production of glucose by the liver, a process called gluconeogenesis. Through these mechanisms, GLP-1 plays a vital role in regulating blood sugar levels.

Diabetics have high blood sugar levels and in some type-2 diabetics the natural production of GLP-1 is reduced. This means the patient’s blood sugar levels must be closely monitored and adjusted with insulin injections. Taking Wegovy essentially means more GLP-1, which means more insulin, allowing the cells to open channels and remove sugar from the blood, while also reducing the amount of sugar being released back into the blood.

Alongside its effects on hormone levels, GLP-1 has also been shown to slow gastric emptying. Therefore, patients taking Wegovy will feel full for longer after eating, leading to a reduced appetite. This additional effect has been targeted by the ‘dieting industry’ as a low-effort way to lose weight, beyond altering your diet and fitness routine.

How is Wegovy administered?

Typical diabetic treatments are taking insulin via injection or, more recently, using an electronic tethered or patch pump. Type-2 diabetes treatments are inherently different as the disease can be put into remission by losing weight. The current NHS options are eating healthy foods, weight loss surgery, or drug treatments such as Wegovy.

Wegovy is administered by self-injection once a week and the body’s tolerance to the drug is regulated by increasing the dosage every few weeks for five months until the maximum amount is reached. This level is then further maintained for the rest of the treatment. Wegovy patients lose the majority of weight in the first 20 weeks of taking the drug, so it is a long treatment process.

What does this mean for patients?

Using weight loss drugs against medical advice is, of course, unhealthy. In this case, Elon Musk was using a drug intended for overweight type-2 diabetics while at a normal weight. Consequently, the recent media focus on Wegovy (Ozempic) has led to a shortage of the drug availability in the NHS due to an increased number of patients asking for it.

Wegovy is only manufactured by one company, Novo Nordisk, and they alone cannot meet the rising demand. Novo Nordisk released a public statement describing a plan to use “contracted manufacturing organizations” to increase production, which will come online in the first half of 2023. As a battle continues between the diet and medical industries for a limited resource, patients who urgently require this medication are being left untreated.

Unhealthy eating habits in the media

Elon Musk is just one of a long line of people in the public eye who have gone to the extreme in their quest to look good or are guilty of promoting unhealthy eating habits.

Kim Kardashian managed to lose an unhealthy 21 lbs in 2 weeks for the 2022 MET Gala. The Kardashian clan have previously taken part in paid advertisements for slimming teas and appetite-suppressant lollipops. These advertisements were received with heavy criticism online, given the family’s influence on young women.

Kate Moss was quoted with her personal mantra in Women’s Wear Daily in 2009, “Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels”. She has since tried to distance herself from this statement.

Zac Efron went down to 5% body fat for his role as an ex-Olympic swimmer in Baywatch by “only eating organic protein and leafy greens and maintaining a strict workout regime for months.” For reference, male athletes are suggested to be somewhere between 6-13% body fat according to the American Council on Exercise.

For his role in The Witcher, Henry Cavill chose to follow a dehydration diet in the days leading up to topless scenes. He described over three days he would allow himself a dwindling amount of water in order to get his “skin really thin, so it sits on the muscles”.

On the more experimental side, celebrities like Zoe Kravitz and Shailene Woodley openly discussed how they eat clay as part of a detox diet. There is no scientific evidence that ingesting clay removes toxins from the body.

There’s a wealth of expensive personal trainers, dieticians, nutritionists, and doctors’ prescriptions available, all selling the ‘on trend’ bodies. While a focus on health and well-being is something to be celebrated, the pressure to looking good can be incredibly harmful, especially if the ideal body type requires a weight loss drug, or photoshop, to be achieved.

To find more information on managing your weight through a healthy lifestyle, go to this NHS website.

The Wonder review: Florence Pugh works wonders in gritty period drama

Written by Bethan Watkins on 25th November 2022. Posted in Film.

Trailers and posters for The Wonder prepare you for a broody period drama, set in 19^th century rural Ireland. The film opens with a film set, cluttered with filming equipment and modern technology. The camera slowly pans onto our protagonist, sitting in a set made to be a ship cabin. We’re reminded that the film is just that – a film. In this compelling (and somewhat pretentious) opening, The Wonder immediately establishes its central concern: the boundaries between truth and unquestioning belief.

Based upon the 2016 novel by Emma Donoghue, The Wonder is the product of Chilean director Sebastián Lelio (Gloria, A Fantastic Woman), and British screenwriter Alice Birch (Normal People, Lady Macbeth). We follow Lib Wright (Florence Pugh), an English nurse sent to rural Ireland, a landscape reeling after the Great Famine. Her purpose is to observe Anna (Kíla Lord Cassidy), a pious 11 year-old girl who has not eaten in four months. This supposed ‘miracle’ has made her a talisman for the village and visitors. Upon arrival, outsider Lib is immediately confronted with questions of faith and fact.

Through the bickering men of the village council, the conflict between science and religion emerges. Is Anna really living off “manna from Heaven”? Is she absorbing energy from the sun? Or is it all a hoax?

While keeping watch over the seemingly healthy girl, Lib’s own past trauma bubbles under the surface, manifesting itself in opium addiction. Along with a rugged, enigmatic journalist (Tom Burke), Lib remains unconvinced about the miracle. As she tries to uncover the truth, dark secrets slowly start to reveal themselves. The film poses bold questions about the hypocrisy of religion, and how people are sacrificed for underlying motivations. Lib’s previous scepticism turns into a desperate attempt to save Anna’s life from the unmoving forces of religion and conservatism that govern the village people.

The film is anchored by its sensational central performances, particularly by Florence Pugh. After escaping unscathed from the notorious Don’t Worry Darling drama, Pugh is in her element here. Her presence balances being stern yet sympathetic, sensual yet composed, and broken yet determined. Her talents shouldn’t, however, overshadow newcomer Kíla Lord Cassidy who gives Anna a hypnotic intensity that haunts each scene.

The sweeping vistas of rural Ireland depict a land that is hollow and hungry, almost swallowing up the characters as they scamper around the boglands. Matthew Herbert’s score sustains this atmosphere, droning ominously throughout.

Thus, it’s a shame that the film’s opening and closing shots forego immersion in favour of style. It’s a choice that somehow manages to be pretentious and yet surface-level, doing a disservice to the careful complexity of the film that it frames.

The Wonder tackles its heavy themes slowly and methodically, but for some, it may buckle under the weight of its agenda. While not everyone’s cup of tea, it’s a perfect fusion of psychological thriller, mystery, and period drama. The Wonder leaves us hungrily anticipating what Lelio and Pugh will do next.

4/5.

The Wonder is streaming now on Netflix.

Christopher Jackson leaves the University of Manchester following racism row

Written by nuuraahmed on 25th November 2022. Posted in News.

Dr Christopher Jackson, a geoscientist, left the University of Manchester in June 2022 after calling scientific research positions “institutionally racist”.

In 2021, he told the BBC that UK research was “definitely institutionally racist”.

Days later he received an email from Martin Schröder, a Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering, saying that he did not believe that the University was ‘institutionally racist.

Schröder attached an article written by Mercy Muroki, a member of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities for right-wing media outlet GB News. The Commission was criticised by many, such as prominent historian David Olusoga, for wanting to ‘brush history under the carpet’.

The email was also sent to five other members of staff, three of whom were senior to Jackson. Jackson interpreted this email as a personal attack on his beliefs and, despite an apology from Schröder, filed a grievance with the University.

After an internal investigation, the University found that Schröder’s actions were unintentional and that there was a lack of awareness of the challenges minorities in academia faced within the senior leadership team.

Schröder was instructed to formally apologise to Jackson and training for all staff members was recommended. Despite this, Jackson left his post at the University of Manchester in June 2022 for industry.

Upon his exit, he stated that: “The incident here contributed to my decision to leave … It certainly did not give me a reason to stay”.

In late 2021, Jackson said that he had seen a rise in racist abuse in the past four years, following him receiving a letter that told him to “go live in the Caribbean”.

Professor Christopher Jackson letter — Snippet of a racist letter Professor Jackson received before leaving his post at UoM. Photo: Twitter.

He reported the letter to the Greater Manchester Police but was told that the force would not be taking the issue any further.

When contacted for comment, Adèle MacKinlay, Director of People and Organisational development at The University of Manchester, said:

“Our internal investigation into this matter concluded some time ago and we are focused on ensuring that the recommendations and actions from the report are taken forward. Professor Martin Schröder was keen to engage with this process and fully understands that colleagues involved have been impacted deeply.”

“We have made Professor Jackson aware of the report’s findings and I would like to take this opportunity to wish him every success in his future career.”

Gotham Knights: The Freebird Rule

Written by alexharris on 25th November 2022. Posted in Games.

A good way to judge a Batman game is with the Freebird rule. No, this is not the same Freebird rule that is a fixture in tag team wrestling. Rather, this is where the quality of the fighting gameplay is judged by how cool they feel when accompanied by the song ‘Freebird’ by Lynyrd Skynyrd, much like the famous scene from the first Kingsman movie where Colin Firth beats up a church full of feral bigots. I hate to report that Gotham Knights does not follow this rule.

If you have read my retrospective on the Arkham games then you understand my position on how high the bar Rocksteady set is. However, this recent entry into the archive of Batman video games falls short of achieving the same sort of experiences that were intrinsic to the Arkham Saga.

The best way I can describe this game would be Shadow of Mordor if Sauron was replaced with Batman’s ghost. A lot of the gameplay feels the same without a lot of the atmosphere that exploring middle earth provides. No matter what you do in Gotham Knights, it ends up feeling considerably slower in order to account for the online co-op capabilities.

When I first started Gotham Knights, I was surprised at how buggy the game was. It has since gotten less buggy with game patches but it still feels hollow. I managed to beat the game in roughly four nights. In contrast, it took me three weeks to complete each Arkham game, simply because i didn’t want it to be over. The side quests featuring Batman’s Rogues are over as soon as they started to grip me and always felt anticlimactic.

Having only three recognisable villains to pursue while you’re able to explore all of Gotham City with your friends seems to be such wasted potential. Maybe they are planning to add more in future DLC, however with a price tag that’s already £70 with a £20 costume pack to make the characters look how they do in the comics, it’s essentially daylight robbery to ask for more money for something that other Batman games included in the base price.

One of the major selling points for the game, much like Arkham Knight, was the ability to drive a Bat Vehicle. However, unlike Arkham Knight, the execution is really poor, the Batcycle is simply a way to get around quickly but it always feels a lot slower than just grappling from each rooftop so is ultimately pointless. The other method of transportation changes for each character, flying trapeze for Nightwing, mystical leap for Red Hood, weird teleportation for Robin and gliding for Batgirl. However all of these, bar Batgirl, are needlessly tedious and as such are unnecessary for doing anything.

Robin’s Slideways ability is a pain because the teleport area selector moves at a snail’s pace so it essentially makes it redundant for going anywhere and makes stealth missions far too easy to be enjoyable. One part of the game involving clayface and the Batcycle proves how unimaginative the gameplay truly is.

The combat is the most unforgivable part of the game. The removal of the counter function in place of a dodge removes the same flow that was so enjoyable in other Batman games. The inclusion of a levelling up system, similar to games like Shadow of Mordor, removes any sort of challenges from the fights because if you do enough fights, which the game rewards you for doing, the fights become insanely easy and very boring.

The best parts of the game are the graphics and performances by the voice cast, but the decision to make Talia al Ghul speak with a British accent is quite baffling since she’s not a British character. The story is quite gripping due to the Court of Owls making their first video game appearance. However, it is let down by the disappointing final boss that interprets increased difficulty as being longer than previous boss fights.

In summary, I had hope for this game being on the same level as the Arkham Saga, however the myriad of clunky mechanics and overall lack of content in place of boring repetitive fights and investigations makes this the worst Batman-themed game I have ever played – although it is not quite the worst game I have ever played.

2/5.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II: The paradox of keeping games free of politics

Written by Anna Pirie on 24th November 2022. Posted in Games.

A new addition to the Call of Duty series arrives, and once again are we bombarded with material falsely masquerading as a nuanced but non-political exploration of war.

In 2019, Activision rebooted the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare series. The reboot was marketed as a more mature depiction of warfare than its predecessors, with a heavily advertised campaign at the forefront of this marketing. In an interview with Game Informer, narrative director Taylor Kurosaki reels off a list of deeply contentious themes: colonialism, occupation, independence, freedom.

Yet, in a separate interview with Art Director Joel Emslie, the developer definitively answered “no” when asked “is this game political?”. Emslie then doubled down, claiming that they’re “just making games” and, after the interviewer, Ben Hanson, labelled this notion “insane”, the Art Director retorted: “Seems insane to get political”.

Throughout their interview, the Narrative Director and the Campaign Gameplay Director tiptoe around the idea that their game contains politics. The comments are flooded with people seemingly overjoyed that a game containing torture and chemical warfare has supposedly nothing to say about the subjects.

We now live in a post-Gamergate world. Explicitly political games – BioShock, the Fallout series, Dishonored – receive universal praise. Praise, no less, from people who may disagree with these politics if they paused to think about them. Meanwhile, developers on The Last of Us Part II received waves of online harassment for the game’s depiction of women and minorities. We have come to understand that ‘politics’, to sections of the gaming community, is synonymous with ‘includes minorities’.

The most recent Call of Duty game, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, is a sequel to the aforementioned reboot. You’ve probably seen its adverts on the buses, featuring character Simon “Ghost’ Riley. If nothing else, he does certainly have a cool mask.

In the opening scene, the player is thrust into the position of directing a missile sent to assassinate a General Ghorbrani. Many have been quick to point out the similarities between this scene and the real-life assassination of General Qassem Soleimani, authorised by Donald Trump in 2020. The game does not even pause to consider the implications of assassinating a foreign official.

Level ‘Borderline’ has had its controversiality widely discussed. In one heavily covered sequence, the player aims a loaded weapon at civilians in the name of “de-escalation”. Even as Modern Warfare II does feature basic dialogue mechanics, they are noticeably absent from this scene. Apparently, dialogue is not an option when invading a stranger’s home. A similarly worrying feature of this scene is that these “de-escalation” tactics are promoted as relatively effective.

Photo: A Twitter user mocks the gameplay feature

This will be nothing new to players familiar with this series. In Call of Duty (CoD), the ends will always justify the means. As long as you’re on the ‘correct’ team – typically the U.S. and British militaries. Not to mention, the U.S. military has funded and promoted CoD as a recruitment tactic for years; or the fact that, whenever similarly questionable actions are taken by the ‘wrong’ team, they’re denounced for it.

The newest release in this series insists on taking itself as seriously as possible. It works to feign complexity without ever questioning its protagonists actions. Ultimately, it can be hard to attempt an ‘anti-war’ narrative whilst also illustrating the playable characters as undeniably cool, gritty heroes.

Nevertheless, it continues to be lapped up by the gaming audience. Modern Warfare II is now the best selling Call of Duty title of all time. The title earned $800 million in the first three days of sales alone.

At the end of the day, Modern Warfare’s politics will remain largely unquestioned by its audience. As much as its developers claim to be interested in discussing difficult topics, introspection is simply not present. This may even act as a microcosm of certain sections of the gaming community. There is this simultaneous need for video games to be viewed as art, and thusly taken seriously, whilst also not being taken seriously enough to actually reflect upon serious political ideas and concepts.

On ‘And In the Darkness, Hearts Aglow’ Weyes Blood shines

Written by Owen Scott on 24th November 2022. Posted in Music.

Weyes Blood has been a big name in the indie scene for a while now. Her first album under her stage name was released in 2014 and she’s since collaborated with industry icons like Lana Del Rey. For many though, her 2019 album Titanic Rising was their first proper introduction to her, as it featured hits like ‘Andromeda’ and was widely regarded as one of the best albums of the year.

Here, with her new album And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow, Weyes Blood furthers her exploration of ethereal chamber pop and reaches grand new heights. Once again, she takes the listener on a journey of love and heartbreak against a 1970s space aesthetic backdrop.

The album’s opener and lead single ‘It’s Not Just Me, It’s Everybody’ is an interesting start as Weyes Blood comes down from space and is instead “sitting in a party”. Here, she speaks the most directly that she ever has as a millennial and spokesperson for Gen Z, as she sits “wondering if anyone knows me” or “really sees who I am”. It’s a refreshingly relatable perspective for listeners, from an artist who so often feels so ethereal in her work. ‘Grapevine’, the album’s second single, also takes her away from her normal otherworldly references, as she name-drops James Dean and references other Americana symbols like “California”, “campfires”, and an “emotional cowboy”.

Weyes Blood’s ethereal sensibilities, though, are sprinkled throughout the album, each track soaked in reverb and synths that recreate the space aesthetic she’s become known for. Tracks like ‘In the Darkness’ and ‘In Holy Flux’ serve as synthy cinematic moments, along with the three-and-a-half-minute outro on ‘God Turn Me Into a Flower’, which is filled with lush vocals and synths that recall a retro sense of space.

These moments add a special touch to the album and help tie it to Weyes Blood’s iconic aesthetic. But they never become overbearing, as there are more subdued moments like the album closer ‘A Given Thing’, where Weyes Blood forgoes the album’s intricate production and opts instead for a simple piano ballad.

The album standout is the second track, ‘Children of the Empire’, which recalls Titanic Rising’s ‘Wild Time’ in its grandiosity and swelling orchestral moments. Weyes Blood’s vocal abilities are on full display as she sings “Children of the empire know they’re not free”, her voice meandering and waving. The outro is one of And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow’s most stunning moments and shows the intricate production to be one of the album’s greatest strengths.

Weyes Blood varies the production throughout, with ‘The Worst Is Done’ feeling like a radio song from the 1970s. It’s more upbeat than the rest of the album, though only in its production; its lyrics are dark and confessional (“I should have stayed with my family, I shouldn’t have stayed in my little place”). Her retro influences are also clear on the tracks ‘Twin Flame’ and ‘Hearts Aglow’: she borrows from the 1980s on ‘Twin Flame’ with the track’s repeating drum machine, while ‘Hearts Aglow’ marks a return to her 1970s chamber pop sound.

With And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow, Weyes Blood follows 2019’s Titanic Rising with another stellar record. While staying true to her indie and chamber pop sensibilities, she varies her song structure more than ever before and delivers strong track after strong track. If you haven’t listened to this album yet, you’re missing out.

5/5.

For news about her upcoming tour and more on Weyes Blood, check out her website here. You can stream And In The Darkness, Hearts Aglow below:

Sigur Ros move and exhilarate at O2 Apollo Manchester

Written by Alex Cooper on 24th November 2022. Posted in Music.

Sigur Ros have been about for over quarter of a century. The Icelandic post-rock pioneers have transcended the relative anonymity of the genre in the mainstream, performing to a spectacular amount of people internationally and achieving impressive chart success. With their music existing in several disciplines (across films, remixes, and video albums), perhaps the most intense and pure form of Sigur Ros a fan can experience is live. And hence, we found ourselves at the first of two sold-out dates at O2 Apollo Manchester.

Sigur Ros, formed in Reykjavik in 1994, returned to Manchester for two nights, their first shows in the city since 2017. Multi-instrumentalist Kjartan Sveinsson has re-joined on this world tour after nearly 10 years out of the band, reuniting with frontman Jón Þór “Jónsi” Birgisson and bassist Georg Hólm. With the move of touring member Ólafur Björn Ólafsson to drums, this iteration of Sigur Ros is complete.

At post-rock concerts like these, there’s a palpable sense of community. It’s a dedicated and in some ways impenetrable genre, with fans often facing an uphill battle when trying to convert anyone who cares to listen. The music spans from minimalist moments of clarity to panoramic walls of sound, often in the same song. 10-minute meandering instrumental pieces are not for everyone, but in this room, the audience were there for exactly that. And it was the love of the genre and sense of mutual understanding between fans that helped create the ethereal nature of last Monday’s performance.

Lightbulbs were staggered across the stage and thin chains were suspended from the tall, historical Apollo ceiling, giving different impressions of the staging at different angles to the audience. In many ways, this mirrored Sigur Ros’ music: everyone had a slightly different reason for being there, but they were unified because the music moved something within them, and played a role of significance in their lives.

From the opening run of the first three tracks from the seminal 2002 album ( ), it became immediately apparent that Sigur Ros’ performance was going to be remarkable. Jónsi’s falsetto vocals were performed with shattering clarity, and every instrument could be recognised in a technically perfect mix. A great test of a band’s dynamism is if each specific instrument holds interest when focusing on it; Sigur Ros passed this with flying colours. The famous use of bowed guitar sat radiantly front and centre, but the way the band were set up also gave every instrument the freedom of expression within the complex structure of the songs.

Photo: Sigur Ros – Alex Cooper @ The Mancunion

By the fourth track, 1999 classic ‘Svefn-g-englar’, we knew Sigur Ros’ mastery wasn’t an exception, but exceptional. The lightbulbs glowed different hues of warm yellows, pensive whites, and intense reds and the Apollo audience were sent on a higher path.

Everything in the Sigur Ros live show worked towards immersion, especially in the first half. After nearly every song, there was a reconfiguring of how the members were situated in order for them to manipulate their instruments and play the most moving, and the most perfect renditions of the music. 2005’s ‘Saeglopur’, with a sublime and awe-inspiring post-rock breakdown, was technically flawless, and the audience’s palpable emotional response to the adrenaline reflected this. It was beautiful to see play out.

Jónsi didn’t break the immersion even when stopping to talk, speaking in Icelandic in the one time he addressed the crowd. It was like the Apollo was transported to the Harpa concert hall in Reykjavik; we were there on their terms. Towards the end of the set, at an extreme minimalist moment, spine-tingling pin-drop silence fell across the Apollo and for a moment, I forgot where I was. As an immersive performance, it could be argued that Sigur Ros are peerless.

The set ended with a few heavier numbers, and concluded with a final pulsation of post-rock defiance within ‘Untitled #8 – Popplagið’. Sobering up from the captivation of the concert, the crowd gave a lengthy and deserved applause twice, under a tape recording of ‘Avalon’. This is what Sigur Ros do; they move audiences across the world with the universal language of music, performing some of the most beautiful and contemplative music of their generation. They’re at the top of their game, 25 years on from starting. What a privilege it was to witness them.

You can stream the 2022 remaster of Sigur Ros’ 2002 album ( ) below:

Black and white clapper board with writing that says Hollywood, Production, Director, Camera

Keeping it in the family: Hollywood’s Nepotism Babies

Written by Imogen Mingos on 24th November 2022. Posted in Film.

We’ve all heard the phrase “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” with regard to job searching, but for Hollywood’s nepotism babies this really is the case. It seems that a new generation is discovering that their favourite actors are the children of former Hollywood stars, and it has brought about strong feelings. With a TikTok hashtag garnering 9.6 million views and the conversation taking centre stage (pun intended!) in pop culture talks, could this be a reckoning for some celebs or just more press for them to gain popularity?

Before we delve deeper into the world of famous Hollywood families, what exactly is a nepotism baby? Glamour magazine defines ‘nepotism babies’ or ‘nepo babies’ as “the children of celebrities who are following in the (well-trodden) footsteps of their parents and pursuing careers in the spotlight.”

However, the term has since become more complex than that. A comment on a Reddit thread on the sub-reddit r/Deuxmois explains that there are three “levels” of nepotism babies. There are those who are the “child of wealth” which technically isn’t nepotism, but they have enough money to try and fail in the showbiz industry even if they don’t have the connections.

Then there is the “child of working artists” (Kate Winslet or Will Ferrell are examples of this) who have minimal connections – enough to get some exposure – even though their “industry pull” and “financial resources” are “limited”. Finally, there are the big nepotism babies: the “child of wealthy entertainment industry folks” who have parents with serious money and industry pull. Their “lineage” provides an automatic selling point for projects as the nepo babies come with built-in publicity due to their parents’ fame.

There is a seemingly infinite number of actors loved by Gen-Z who they have since found out are nepotism babies including Zoë Kravitz, Dakota Johnson, Timothée Chalamet, Lily Rose Depp, Maya Hawke, Sofia Coppola and Maude Apatow. A New York Times article argues that this is simply “how power works in Hollywood” but for this generation, it is news that their favourite celebrities have “benefited from a system that is not strictly meritocratic.”

This would make sense as the household names of George Clooney, Liza Minelli, Drew Barrymore, and Gwyneth Paltrow are also nepotism babies. It seems Gen-Z have either forgotten about this fact or were never aware of their privilege in the first place.

Perhaps most interestingly however is the range of views that people have of nepotism babies: from derision to surprise, envy, and admiration. Some people are jealous of the freedom and opportunities that they have since, as one Twitter user put it: “All nepotism babies go thru several phases. 1-failed photography career 2-failed modeling career 3-failed music career 4-failed acting career” which is obviously not possible for the vast majority of people who need to earn money.

Some people only criticise that Hollywood has no fresh faces showcasing talent anymore. Most people seem to be looking for nepotism babies to own up to their privilege. ELLE magazine writes that “privilege is impossible to eradicate… Like any privilege, the presence of it does not mean you do not work hard or do not face other challenges, but it does mean that your life is easier than those without the same privilege.”

The nepotism babies who are trending across the Internet and have been dubbed as people’s ‘favourite’ nepo babies are usually those who actually have talent and have owned up to their privilege. For example, Euphoria actress Maude Apatow (daughter of actress Leslie Mann and filmmaker Judd Apatow) was a fan-favourite in the show’s second season but later said in an interview, after being criticised for being a nepo baby, that she will spend her “whole life trying to prove myself as an individual… It’s really important to me to show that I work really hard because I do. I want to be an individual.”

On the flip side, you have huge Hollywood stars like Jamie Lee Curtis (daughter of Psycho’s Janet Leigh) who owns her privilege as a nepotism baby and doesn’t shy away from it. In an interview printed in The New Yorker, she said “I’ve never really worked hard a day in my life… I’m never going to pretend that I just got that on my own, like I’m just a little girl from nowhere getting it. Clearly, I had a leg up.” She added that being a nepotism baby means “you get this incredible access, you get opportunities to see things that other people don’t get to see, you get ease of access everywhere you go.”

Connections are your bread and butter of making it big in Hollywood: they are “more valuable than having money”. If you know a director who can cast you in a movie or a fellow actor who can put in a good word for you then you’ve got your big break without slogging around London or New York going to audition after audition after audition. Of course, there are plenty of nepotism babies who are talented actors (hence why they’re ‘good’ or ‘favourite’ nepo babies) such as Dakota Johnson who has a People’s Choice Award, and Timothée Chalamet who has been nominated for Academy, Golden Globe and BAFTA Awards.

TikTok has been the platform with the most to say about nepotism babies with some videos explaining their inherent privilege of having an informal showbiz education from their parents and their endless chances to try and fail, whilst others have been pitting celebrities against each other for what they have to say about their nepotistic privileges like Jennifer Aniston and Angelina Jolie. A lot of the videos are just aesthetic edits on aforementioned ‘favourite’ nepo babies, but some are highly critical about them with titles such as “nepotism contributes nothing but mediocrity” and the blame falling on Western society itself.

It seems that the crux of the matter is not simply that these stars have been born into wealthy and privileged families in the industry, but rather whether or not they own up to this advantage. Those who admit that they are privileged to be successful because of their backgrounds and who are nonetheless talented are held in high esteem by audiences.

However, those who pretend that they would have made it despite the leg-up provided by their families and who vocally denounce their privilege seem to run the risk of being added to the ever-growing list of ‘cancelled’ celebrities. Could this be a cautionary tale to future generations of nepotism babies like Gigi Hadid or Rihanna’s children? Or is it a newfound admiration for the already established nepotistic footing of Hollywood? Perhaps we’ll never find out, but one thing is for certain: being a nepotism baby would certainly make being a drama student easier!

The Moon & Back shoots for the stars – and lands among them

Written by Sumayyah Khalid on 24th November 2022. Posted in Film.

The Moon & Back is Leah Bleich’s debut feature film, shot over nine days in November 2020 on a $50,000 budget granted through the Six Feet Apart Experiment filmmaking competition.

This heartfelt coming-of-age story stars Isabel May as Lydia Gilbert, a high school senior struggling to find her way following the death of her father the previous year. She and her mother are increasingly at odds with one another, living in a house they can no longer afford. Lacking in friends, Lydia spends lunchtimes with her guidance counsellor Mr Martin – a dynamic which parallels the one between Nadine and Mr Bruner in The Edge of Seventeen (2016).

Having distanced herself from many people, Lydia feels more lost than ever until she finds a folder on her father’s computer containing a space opera film script which he wrote but never finished. Equipped with only his VHS camera, Lydia decides to bring her father’s script to life – insisting that this project will help her secure a scholarship for film school.

Coming of age involves charting her own path, without the inspiration behind the film to guide her, but she cannot do everything alone. After an awkward reunion with her estranged cinephile friend Simon, a round of auditions, and a bake sale to raise funds, production on the film commences.

Throughout the filmmaking process, Lydia grieves her father, navigates her relationships with Simon and her mother, and overburdens herself and others. These challenges evoke frustration, tempting her to quit at multiple points. However, with some perseverance and guidance from those around her, she finds the motivation and inspiration she needs to complete the film. In a particularly entertaining sequence, Simon teaches Lydia about filmmaking through acting out memorable scenes from classic films with her – rather than passively watching the films together.

Filmmaking helps Lydia to heal her wounds and relationships by improving her understanding of the world. As her mother sagely tells her, “we don’t get to hit pause, we just have to keep moving and let go and hope that that happy ending isn’t our last one”. Lydia realises that life can continue to be fulfilling and meaningful despite the loss she has suffered. The ending she writes for the film immortalises her family’s happiness, reflecting her desire to live hopefully, surrounded by those she cares about both in person and in spirit.

May is a compelling lead, giving a sensitive and grounded performance as a lovably blunt teenager. The passion of the supporting cast further elevates the material. Validating the messiness of human emotion, The Moon & Back trusts the audience to form their own judgements of the characters. There is a good balance of fun, light-hearted moments and emotionally charged scenes which honour the film’s more serious themes. The early 2000s aesthetic and warm colour palette are visually delightful, providing a healthy dose of nostalgia, while the film’s incisive explorations of grief, growth, and relationships maintain its relevance to today’s audience.

4/5.

The Moon & Back is currently available to watch as part of the Portland Film Festival’s online offering.

A film for every course: Interstellar – Physics

Written by Grace Humphreys on 24th November 2022. Posted in Film.

Known notoriously as a time-consuming, social-life-ruining, mental-breakdown-inducing maths hell, Physics has a pretty bad reputation as a subject. However, in my opinion, it is all worth it to study the vast complexity of space. So, if like me, you find yourself in awe of the beauty of our night sky, or find yourself wondering if there exists dimensions beyond our own, look no further than Christopher Nolan’s cinematic masterpiece, Interstellar (2014).

With a star-studded cast including Matthew McConaughey, Michael Caine, Anne Hathaway, and Jessica Chastain, Interstellar is a science-fiction epic, with a run time of almost three hours. The film follows NASA ex-pilot, Cooper (McConaughey), as he is forced to work on a farm due to a global food shortage. All scientific research permitted is solely based on finding a solution to the famine, and areas such as space exploration are deemed a waste of money.

After following gravitational fluctuations found by his daughter, Murph (Chastain), he finds a secret facility containing the remnants of NASA, led by Brand (Caine). Explaining the imminent extinction of humanity, he asks Cooper to pilot an exploratory spacecraft into a newly discovered wormhole to find potentially habitable planets.

As the film progresses, we see Cooper feel the effects of the gravity from a supermassive black hole as decades pass on Earth in the space of minutes on the spaceship, and he watches as his eight year-old daughter becomes a woman before his eyes. As Cooper and his crew attempt to investigate habitable planets, unforeseen problems cause the initial plan to falls away, and they are left with impossible decisions to make. Although the film touches on many scientific topics, the main theme is still one most relevant to us today: the unyielding will of humanity to persevere.

The film manages to question the entire concept of gravity and dimensions, while still being one of the most scientifically accurate fiction films on the scene. Nolan consulted with theoretical physicist, Kip Thorne (scientific consultant and executive producer), when making the film.

Thorne asked Nolan to promise two things – “First, that nothing would violate established physical laws. Second, that all the wild speculations … would spring from science and not from the fertile mind of a screenwriter”. Aside from some creative freedom with “ice clouds”, Nolan stuck to these words, and even used CGI rendering software to recreate an image of a blackhole from the scientific equations that define them. This alone took over 100 hours.

Completely captivating while utterly heart-wrenching, if you are yet to see this film, you are missing out.

5/5.

Call Jane review: Looking back at Roe Vs Wade in the #MeToo era

Written by Alice McQuail on 24th November 2022. Posted in Film.

From Director Phylis Nagy (Carol, Mrs Harris), Call Jane is a fictional narrative based on an illegal abortion network of women in the 1960s, who called themselves “The Janes”. Although Call Jane is a critical look back at darker times the unavailability of abortions is still a widespread problem for many Americans. After the reversal of the Roe v. Wade agreement earlier this year, the right to an abortion is under threat in the US. This film could not be released at a more apt time.

The film follows housewife Joy (Elizabeth Banks) as she finds out that reaching full term on her pregnancy may result in her death. Joy pleads for a medically approved “therapeutic abortion”, but is denied. In an act of desperation, she turns towards the world of underground illegal abortions, before stumbling on an organisation of women called “Jane”. Run by Virginia (Sigourney Weaver), they perform safe abortions and provide care for the after-effects (which incongruously includes a bowl of Spaghetti Bolognese).

Call Jane is undoubtedly heart-warming as Nagy focuses on the importance of female empowerment and sisterhood. Joy soon finds herself part of the organisation and finds solace in their company, she is encouraged by them to achieve more beyond her role as a housewife. Call Jane is reminiscent of the mini-series Mrs. America (2020), also starring Banks, which dramatizes the events of the unsuccessful movement to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s.

At times, Call Jane felt like a romanticised version of the events. The story is told from Joy’s perspective, who, as a privileged white woman, perpetuates white feminism and a white saviour syndrome. When faced with the price of the abortion (a staggering $600) Joy doesn’t bat an eyelid, whereas many other women would never have been able to afford it.

The film does try to acknowledge these issues of white privilege within the organisation. Gwen (Wunmi Mosaku) points out she is the only Black woman in the organisation, and rallies to prioritize Black women for free abortions. Other intersectional problems arise as to who groups should be prioritised and whether it should be victims of sexual assault, children, or to choose randomly.

Although the organisation is illegal and could result in incarceration for the characters, the stakes in Call Jane never seem too high. Joy seems more worried that her husband and daughter will find out than the police. Even as she becomes increasing involved, there never seems to be any real sense that they will be found out.

The film ultimately ends with the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade ruling, effectively legalising abortion so the organisation can continue legally. Virginia finally asks Joy “what should we do next?” – a timely reminder for the audience that the history of human rights is not a linear progression.

4/5.

Call Jane is in cinemas now.

Review: Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty

Written by Jay Darcy on 24th November 2022. Posted in Theatre.

Sir Matthew Bourne OBE is a rare theatre-maker whose works I will always go to see. Even if I have little interest in the story, I’ll go to see it because I know I’ll be in awe of his creativity. I’ve previously seen The Red Shoes and Nutcracker! (the latter, his reimagining of Tchaikovsky’s third and final ballet).

I caught my third Bourne production with The Mancunion‘s Film Editor, Pip Carew, who has previously seen Bourne’s adaptation of Tchaikovsky’s first ballet: Swan Lake (which memorably featured an all-male Swan ensemble).

The third ballet in question completes Tchaikovsky’s ballet trifecta; his second ballet but the third to be adapted by Bourne: Sleeping Beauty.

Bourne (and his dance company, New Adventures) radically reimagine classic stories for contemporary audiences. He has even turned films (such as the aforementioned The Red Shoes) and operas (The Car Man is based on Bizet’s Carmen) into ballets. But reimagining a ballet is arguably more difficult, especially if you wish to win over both fans of the original and modern audiences who might not love traditional ballet (i.e. me).

The Plot

Tchaikovsky’s The Sleeping Beauty is a straightforward adaptation of Perrault’s La Belle au bois dormant. It’s rather uninteresting for a modern audience. Thus, Bourne has crafted an entirely new story. Read ahead for spoilers.

Bourne begins the tale in 1890, the year Marius Petipa choreographed the original production. The good fairies bless the infant Princess Aurora in her bedroom before the wicked fairy, Carabosse, curses her.

Flash-forward to 1911: Carabosse is dead; her son, Caradoc, vows to avenge her. Rather than fall in love with a Prince, Aurora falls for the Royal Gameskeeper, Leo. Whilst dancing with Leo, she pricks her finger on Caradoc’s rose and falls asleep for 100 years. Count Lilac, King of the Fairies, enchants the Kingdom so that everybody falls asleep until the curse is broken, before a shock reveal: he is, in fact, a (fairy) vampire. He bites Leo, turning him into an ageless, immortal fairy-vampire so that he can kiss and awake Aurora in 100 years time.

After the interval, the third act has a mini prologue, with a group of youngsters taking photographs outside the gate of the abandoned castle. It’s a clever, funny way to acknowledge the new, modern setting.

Caradoc guards Aurora, and when Leo kisses and thus awakens her, he has his guards take him away so that he can trick Aurora into thinking it was he who saved her. Aurora knows that she does not love him and tries to resist him, to no avail.

The original ballet’s wedding scene (an unnecessary final act that is essentially just a vehicle for interminable, self-indulgent dance solos) is made far more interesting, with Count Lilac and Leo eventually slaying Caradoc. Aurora and Leo marry, have a baby, and live happily ever after (as fairy-vampires).

Good vs. Bad

Updating the story is a genius idea. Opera and ballet rely on audiences already knowing the story and instead focusing their attention on the remarkable dancing. This ballet, however, puts story first, forcing audiences to pay good attention at all moments so that they do not lose sense of what is going on. You cannot allow yourself to get caught up in the dancing.

That said, the dancing in this ballet is not captivating enough for one to get caught up in. Whilst one cannot fault the skilled dancers, the choreography is far less interesting and enchanting to that you expect to see in a ballet. It’s nice, it’s sweet, it’s touching, but never quite jaw-dropping. Showoff moves take a back seat to the spectacular story, guided by Tchaikovsky’s splendid score – which Bourne juices so much drama from.

The updated setting, alone, is a wise creative decision. Having the post-slumber events take place in contemporary society enable audiences to fathom how long 100 years is and how startling it would be for one to wake up 100 years in the future.

Usually, Sleeping Beauty is set in the Middle Ages, and modern people have a tendency to see long periods of time as the same time (people are often shocked to discover that the Pyramids of Giza were older to Cleopatra than she is to us, for we see Ancient Egypt as one period in time). In reality, 100 years was always a long time – especially in the Middle Ages, where people often died before adulthood.

Of course, 20th century scientific and technological advancements make the jump from 1911 to 2011 bigger than, say, 1611 to 1711 – and the ballet acknowledges that with the de facto prologue of Act 3, in which a group of youngster take photos of the castle with their mobile phones.

The ballet’s most notable change, however, is the reimagined villain. By killing Carabosse (essentially, “Maleficent”) and introducing Caradoc, Bourne inserts a story of sexual domination and male competition. Whilst the six good fairies are evenly split between the sexes, they are ruled by a King. Aurora is caught up in a drama between three men: a wicked fairy, a fairy-vampire, and a gamekeeper-turned-fairy-vampire (but no Prince).

However, by killing Carabosse, the ballet loses its only powerful female character. Sure, Aurora is a little sassy, but she’s hardly an active heroine. The ballet seeks to be feminist, but the result is a little iffy.

A standout performance comes from Paris Fitzpatrick, who plays both Carabosse and her son, Caradoc. Carabosse is not feminine, as most female characters in ballet are, but I had no idea she was played by a man until I read the cast sheet during the interval (before spilling a drink all over myself).

Fitzpatrick has a domineering presence onstage; he’s dark, mysterious and sexy. Likewise, Dominic North is wonderful as the unsettling, liminal Count Lilac, who sits on the periphery of dark (vampire) and good (fairy). By having a wicked fairy and a good vampire, the ballet subverts preconceived notions and stereotypes associated with mythical creatures; Bourne is challenging the very notion of good vs. evil (though both Carabosse and Caradoc are solidly evil, with no redeeming features, aside for Fitzpatrick’s sexiness).

Whilst Aurora is the main character, and Ashley Shaw’s dancing and presence are lovely, she’s just not that interesting a character. She’s saccharine and possesses a little sass, but she’s a textbook fairy tale Princess, devoid of difference. Bourne’s ballet seems to use her as a vehicle to create tension and drama between the men.

However, Andrew Monaghan cannot possibly compete with the complex and compelling fairies. Leo is an amiable cypher, and whilst Monaghan does a great job of embodying a likeable, Prince-like commoner, and the audience is willing to root for him, the story and choreography do not offer him much to play with. Our attention is drawn to Caradoc and Count Lilac (who, might I add, confusingly, look like the same person).

As is always the case with New Adventures’ productions, the design is next-to-none. The stage is lined with golden pillars, Russian Imperial in architecture, a nod to Tchaikovsky’s home country. When the story finds itself in the 21st century – 2011 and “yesterday” – the costumes become contemporary but classic, like a fusion between old-and-new, signifying the 100-year slumber and the immortality of vampires, as well as tradition and honour: Carabosse died long ago but Caradoc still vows to avenge her.

The metamorphosis of Aurora’s bedroom is but one example of the carefully considered design in the ballet. The baby sleeps in a bedroom with a balcony, allowing the wicked fairy and her minions to arrive and enter with ease. When we next see Aurora, she is an adult, and she now sleeps in a bedroom with a window – presumably, in hope of restricting access for the wicked fairy. But when the gameskeeper easily climbs through her window, it is apparent: Aurora cannot escape this curse.

The baby puppet is controlled incredibly. It appears thrice: first, as Princess Aurora escaping from the staff; second, as Princess Aurora, in bed, both blessed and cursed by fairies; and lastly, as Aurora’s winged child (and yes, it flies).

The opening scene, in which Aurora repeatedly tricks her adult staff, is humorous, whilst the following scene sees the good fairies dance beautifully as they bless Aurora – though the dance sequence is never spellbinding, and thus it lasts too long. The act takes an exciting turn with the arrival of Carabosse.

Whilst the dancing is not formally impressive, Bourne masterfully employs different eras of popular dance, such as waltzes during the 1911 garden party. The ballet takes us on a journey through time, fusing and confusing different periods, signifying the challenges that would inevitably arise after a 100-year slumber – and questioning themes such as tradition and honour.

Speaking of tradition, it is something that Bourne is informed but not constrained by. He knows the rules, and he is unafraid to break them.

Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty is at The Lowry until November 26 and tours the UK until late April 2023.

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Month: November 2022

Dessert Island (V)

4/5

Tobago Tea (Ve)

3/5

Tingwray (Ve)

4/5

The Mojito Showdown

2/5

3/5

Overall thoughts

The Event

Other Observations

Takeaways

Words by Matilda Child

Time for a science lesson…

How is Wegovy administered?

What does this mean for patients?

Unhealthy eating habits in the media

4/5.

2/5.

5/5.

4/5.

5/5.

4/5.

Scoop review: Netflix drama rains on Prince Andrew...