My Cultural 2023

Money, Money, Money

The year of trying to see as much as possible in a cost of living crisis world. It is still possible to find cheaper tickets, just factoring in travel etc. too and switching from train to coach, even how I use days strategically to see shows and events. But culture and arts are life, so where there’s a will, there’s a discount ticket deal out there somewhere…

Don’t Mention The…Trains…

Bug bear of 2023 for me has been travel — ongoing train strikes and weird timetables which make booking in advance challenging — i.e. trains back suddenly disappear off the timetable between 11pm and 1am! However, I am very privileged in being able to see as much as I have done and recognise that for many this isn’t financially or situationally possible. I also support people’s right to peaceably protest and strike about their working conditions.

Thank You

Kudos to culture and arts groups still trying to reach out, particularly in schools, education and community programmes, and those providing free access options too. The ongoing situation also highlights how important streamed versions of plays and events are — whilst a difference experience, streamed versions enable access to a much wider audience and a taste of the live experience non-the-less.

My Favourite Cultural Things From 2023

• Mind blown as watched 2001: A Space Odyssey for the first time. Purely due to Barbie reference peaked curiousity.
• Celebrating the ENO in fighting the Arts Council and staying put, successfully. Nothing against regional culture initiatives, but they’re doing a good job where they are.
• Movies as co-promoters, not rivals. Hooray for Barbenheimer getting people back into big screens and the joy of cinema and creative film making. Barbie was such a clever and well done movie, I even bought the t-shirt to celebrate.

• 300 posts! Thanks for all the reads, the kind comments and claps — and being on the journey with me.

• 30+ ShowScore reviews — what fun! Love writing here and thanks again for being on the journey with me.
• Ticket choices. Learnt some amazing ways to get cheaper tickets — thanks MickeyJoTheatre and Aaron James. How could I not know? This year also involved cultural choices — quantity over price. Having found the pandemic and UK Lockdowns really difficult, I was keen to get out and see as much culture as possible, and there was a lot to see! Deeply motivated to support arts and culture as much as possible — cos they got me through the Pandemic and Lockdowns. Therefore I didn’t go to see Uncle Vanya with Andrew Scott because I wasn’t prepared to pay £80–90+ (and thankfully it’s going to be screened as an NT Live). This tactic enabled me to go to more, but choices had to be made. Mostly about how restricted a restricted view in reality and well, it depends on the location and theatre, and how much you’re able to lean without impacting others. A delightful surprise was the Linbury Theatre, Royal Opera House, where you can stand in a ‘restricted’ spot and still see everything — mostly cos you have a wide circle of vision! At the same time I still recognise my privilege in being able to spend on arts and culture and associated travel — and that many people can’t or aren’t able to.
• So glad I got to see: David Harewood in Best of Enemies in-person; MyAnna Buring in Anthropology; Kenneth Branagh’s King Lear (for the staging); Dear England — even though I am clueless about football; Sunset Boulevard with Nicole Scherzinger; Operation Mincemeat (finally); lots of really good new plays — at Hampstead Theatre, Kiln Theatre, Royal Court Theatre, Young Vic and Southwark Playhouse (Elephant).
• The things I missed: Withnail and I with live Bruce Robinson Q&A at Prince Charles Theatre; dancing with Ezra Collective at Royal Albert Hall; Ray Harryhausen 50th celebration at Regents Street Cinema; Rigoletto at the Royal Opera House.
• The ones that got away: Andrew Scott’s Uncle Vanya; I Am Daniel Blake musical; David Tennant’s Macbeth at the Donmar Warehouse (so far); Jersey Boys; some amazing plays at Royal Court Theatre (Blue Mist and Imposter 22); Hadyn Gwynne’s last performance in When Winston Went to War With the Wireless; lots of good things at the Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond; Lumiere Durham; Matthew Halsall and Sam Amidon; Chevalier; anything at Windsor Theatre Royal due to train strikes. But hooray for NT Live, Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond’s streaming (OT on Screen), Guildford Shakespeare Company streaming and more which enables more people to see productions — and avoid the travel costs! Still want to get to the RSC heartland in Stratford. Wish I’d been able to go to more classical concerts too — but there are only so many hours in the day, so much cash and so much one person (even me!) can do! Thanks again to LPO for all the free livestreams on Marquee TV! Looking forward to NT Lives next year — Vanya!!! Sad too to have missed Barbie being shown at Prince Charles Cinema — audience atmosphere would have been great — and the outfits.
• Best moments of 2023 — going to more gigs in person as well as live streaming Blur’s reunion for Ballad of Darren — it was wonderful even as an online audience. Loved it, and as ever (for me) Blur won the Britpop war. Seeing as much theatre as I did with some very stagey names — loved being bounced in my seat by the furious tapping of the Crazy for You cast, and 42nd Street on tour was even better than at Sadler’s Wells. Deliberately choosing independent cinemas over chains where I can (Regents Street Cinema, Prince Charles Cinema, Chichester’s Cinema ‘in the Park’, a lovely Picturehouse); trying some fun jukebox musicals, which I enjoyed and were fight-free. Fan-girling historian Janina Ramirez as jets from Trooping of the Colour whizzed overhead. Love, love, love Prince Charles Cinema, Leicester Square, London — not only do people respect the film and each other, but they clap the film at the end. Love it! (and in the case of Star Wars, the beginning). Seeing a film on the big screen makes all the difference — Xanadu was brilliant, Lost in Seoul a wonder and so moved by Aftersun. Really excellent low-cost but high content exhibitions at Somerset House and Courtaulds Gallery. Cherished hearing Paterson Joseph speak and perform Shakespeare off the cuff at the Globe theatre in an intimate and erudite chat. La La Land in concert at the Royal Albert Hall…with the composer Justin Hurwitz conducting!
• Being a patron and among a community of others, sponsoring a Ukraine photo book by Marc Wilson. Buying tickets for Ukrainian ballet companies.

• What would I like for 2024? I want to go further afield — to Stratford, to Birmingham, to Leicester Curve. Looking forward very much to Richard III set play by Philippa Gregory at Bury St Edmunds. And more gigs and concerts. I’d like to see more dance, art and ballet in 2024–2023 has been very theatre focused. No bad thing, but I want to mix things up a little. I feel like I haven’t been to the British Museum or other museums very much this year. Still want to visit Leighton House. And then there’s the rest of the world…
• Dreaming cultural dreams: if I could I’d spend more time at classical concerts generally and in the Royal Albert Hall as an amazing venue. I’d also see everything at the Royal Opera House (ROH) — love the Linbury Theatre and the ROH’s commitment to accessibility and inclusivity as much as possible, from ticket prices to diverse young artists. Most of all I love an over the top plot and dramatic setting accompanied by gorgeous music and singing. Help sponsor me in realising these cultural dreams by buying me a coffee/contributing towards a theatre/cinema ticket at: https://ko-fi.com/susanadventuresinculture

• New (to me) discoveries for this year included:

Ambassador Theatre, Woking — so easy to get to (and the Nova cinema is here too);

The amazing sightlines of SohoPlace;

That cheap tickets for Royal Opera House are a thing — standing is do-able or that some restricted view seats aren’t! Busting the myth that opera is expensive and elitist!

The friendliness of the Kiln Theatre, Kilburn once you work out where it is;

The loveliness of the setting of Riverside Studios, Hammersmith once you’ve navigated there — Fulham Reach is a gorgeous stroll spot;

Menier Chocolate Factory — in a mysterious location round the back of Borough Market, Southwark — but what a gem!

Bristol Hippodrome!

Conquering my fear of navigating from the Tube to Southwark Playhouse…and getting there! Doubly challenging now as there are two venues.

(Ed. Common theme here — where is Google Maps leading me?!!!)

Most of all, thanks for reading and enjoying, and have a very Happy New (cultural) Year!

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