Today’s the day for my major immersion in the Edinburgh International Festival.
Obviously, I attend all Mrs M’s performances, although she has let me off ‘Daphnis & Cloe’ because I think that it is a total load of Boleros and because I have already watched the Proms performance this year on BBC 4. Got a good review but I still don’t relish Ravel.
The ‘Mahler 2’ tomorrow has, apparently, been superb in rehearsal and I expect to be blown away, particularly as I will be going to it immediately after watching Hearts stuffing Hibs yet again. Not that it would matter if we lost because that would put me in the proper mood for a bit of Mahler in any case.
Moving on, when we get the Festival programme, I always leaf through it and pick one of the biggies to go to. Don’t do ballet and the Shakespeare plays in Korean, Mandarin or Chinese did not appeal either.
In the end, I picked ‘One Thousand and One Nights’ in French, Arabic and English with English supertitles.
This was the blurb about it in said programme. It sounded all right so I signed up for both parts today starting at 2pm and finishing at 10 pm.
This is now a worry. I have checked the reviews and it would appear that the show is not just ‘erotic’ as advertised but is, in fact, pure porn and brutality throughout as well as being an unremitting indictment of the appalling treatment of women in the Arab world.
Part of that worry is that Mrs M is in Weegieland rehearsing today so I am going on my own which is always an irritant at the Festival. One does sometimes get approached in the interval by other unaccompanied men who appear to be keen to discuss artistic and related matters with you in depth.
Actually, that’s just reminded me of the only time that I went out on my own in Bangkok. Mrs M was having a snooze and I had broken my watchstrap. I went out to get a new one at the nearby street market. It was about 150 yards to and from the hotel. I still blush to think of the many varied and interesting offers which I received from several attractive ladies, most of whom I am fairly certain were women.
Anyhow, back to that worry which is compounded by the fact that I like a bit of space around me to enjoy the show. Given its nature as described in the reviews, I wondered whether I should wear a long, dirty macintosh and sit there muttering and twitching. Alternatively, I could get kitted up in Arab gear and sit there radiating approval of all the brutal treatment of women that I am allegedly going to be watching.
I reckon either option would give me a bit of elbow room in the auditorium but the first one might get me lifted as a pervert and the second would probably increase the chance of being approached by the aforementioned unaccompanied single men or, even worse, Grauniad readers anxious to demonstrate their militantly non-racist credentials.
I’ll maybe just go as myself and suffer what sounds like it is going to be a deeply unenjoyable cultural experience if those reviews are to be believed. On the plus side, I have heard there have been a few non-shows and walk-outs so there’ll probably be plenty of room.
Boadicea's Chariot 
I thought the whole idea of the Edinburgh Festival was to enjoy oneself. Is it a peculiarly Embra characteristic to go to something that they know they almost certainly will dislike?
🙂
As a Glaswegian, Boadicea, I would say that citizens of Edinburgh will suffer in the name of culture so they can then tell their friends about it after. Keeping up with the MacJoneses?
Good read John. Don’t forget the popcorn 🙂
I always maintained there was a dour and self-flagellating aspect to the Scottish character. Something to do with the weather, probably……. Try to enjoy it anyway, JM. I’m just about to watch the second half of the RL Challenge Cup final from Wembley which is nicely poised at Leeds 10-16 Wigan.
OZ
Just pop along to the Tattoo. That should get you going!
And a great victory for Wigan by ten points (18-28)
Here you go Toc (and JM)
The very best bit for me starts at 3 mins, but it’s all superb!
OZ
Woops, sorry FEEG!.
OZ
That’s half-time and I’ve nipped home for the pie and Bovril..
Disney it’s not, but, quite frankly, I can’t see what all the fuss is about. So far, we’ve had less than 40 sex-act simulations (of which only one was was anal), about 20 amputations of body bits (one penile) and the total body count is still not over 50,
I just hope that it hots up a bit in the second half after the watershed. The only problem is that I seem to have developed this facial tic and I can’t find my mackintosh anywhere.
In seriousness, It’s actually a very well acted and powerful piece of theatre which is worth the admission price and I am looking forward to Part 2. Some of the critics who write these reviews know nothing, in my opinion. .
Not a problem OZ. I have been there with Mrs FEEG and it really is magnificent. I think there is a TV broadcast on BBC1 from it on Monday 29th in the early evening, if anyone wants to watch some highlights.
JM, a sure-fire way of avoiding unwelcome company would be to wear a small badge declaring you are a solicitor. 🙂
For some reason, I read your entire post with a Billy Connolly accent. I must have had too much to drink following Australia’s, yes Australia’s victory over the All Blacks and England’s victory over Ireland. I know that you speak English like an Englishman, because you implied as much in one of your posts from the antipodes, so forgive me.
Go the Wallabies!
It’s only taken us 10 years! 😕
I once marched to the band of the Brigade of Guards at Guards Depot Pirbright. Believe it or not, it was a truly exhilarating experience. Like them, these guys were terrific.
Bearsy, you have some awesome players. I reckon that was the final of the world cup being played there today, or yesterday in your case.
I once spent six weeks at Pirbright attending the All Arms Drill Course. They are world class at what they do.
Right then, back from the whole CE bit.
Part 2 was not as good. A bit clunky in production terms and it seemed to rush to its conclusion with minimal content which had been spun out to try to make it a game of two equal halves. I could, of course, be wrong.
Still good and just needs to be tightened up, in my opinion.. And it did produce one totally memorable moment.
The sea devil’s wife told the two kings who were hiding up the tree to come down and ‘visit’ her while her husband was asleep. She was speaking in French and used ‘baiser’. The English supertitles did not chicken out with ‘kiss’ but used the slang translation for ‘baiser’,
The kings were in Arabic at that point and I have no idea what was said but the supertitles rendered it as ‘I am afraid that we can not for our fear has made us flaccid’.
Thanks for all the comments, except, of course, the ones which have told me the scores for the two games which I had recorded and was intending to watch first thing tomorrow. Whatever, these things happen. I am glad that Oz, Sipu and Bearsy enjoyed the games concerned and that I’ll now get a lie in tomorrow (although I might still watch the Aussies beating the chokers just because).
Oo ouch JM, didn’t take long for the chokers reference to come out. I’ve just watched the Aus NZ game with great interest – I don’t remember the Wallabies playing like that for years. Hence they won it for the first time in 10. But, that’s them playing at their best and the ABs not.
Still the All Blacks for me. So much strength in depth and a level of consistency will see them through. I feel World Cup Rugby blog coming on……