Tag Archives: dance

Whisky Mist, Phoenicia Hotel, Beirut

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I am aware of Whisky Mist in London, though I haven’t been… well not as far as I can remember anyway! The swanky branch of the club in Beirut is part of the Phoenicia complex, blissfully convenient for hotel guests, and near the centre of town for other partygoers.

Passing the queue of wide-eyed hopeful attendees, we entered a swarm of bunny ears bobbing excitedly in time to the rhythmic music. Recognising the giant iconic rabbit imprinted on the wall, we were alerted to the theme for the night, Playboy Mansion… did we expect anything less?!

Luxurious and expensive Whisky Mist is the rendezvous for Beirut’s elite. A young and beautiful crowd dances expertly, drinking champagne and laughing as if without care in the world. The place smells of sweat and money… the type of joint I’d sneer at in London and yet here, in the very alive town of Beirut, I felt enthused and encouraged by the passion, energy and fun of it all.

Gorgeous skimpily dressed dancers (who we later discovered were English) strutted along raised catwalks, gyrating their sumptuous hips and swinging athletically from poles. It was captivating.

Whisky Mist endeavours to provide the best entertainment in town, and the night we visited they certainly succeeded… with none other than Glamazon singer Kelis in the spotlight, performing a short set for the lucky visitors.

Kelis arrived at her table, fashionably (very) late. Reminding ourselves of her successes earlier in the day and swotting up on the lyrics to her songs, we felt like die-hard devoted fans when the time came to welcome her to the club. (If you can’t remember her, she is the one that sings the Milkshake song.) Without a proper stage, she sang from her corner of the club, protected only by a few bodyguards – it was a very intimate gig.

We were treated with unfaultable hospitality throughout our time at the Phoenicia, and Whisky Mist was no different. Our drinks were refreshed and replaced every few minutes, and a meeting with Kelis and the dancers was even arranged for me after the show.

By 3am we were exhausted and ready to escape, instead of the usual tiresome homeward journey we stumbled to the lift and arrived outside our bedroom door seconds later, surreal but utterly brilliant… and certainly a convenience we were thankful for the next morning.

Visit the Whisky Mist Beirut website here.

Thoroughly Modern Milly travelled with bmi, British Midland International. British Midland International flies direct from London Heathrow to Beirut offering ten flights per week. Flights are twice daily on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays with a daily service on all other days.  Fares are available from £485 return including all taxes and charges. For more information and to book visit www.flybmi.com

Jealousy, The Print Room

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Contemporary dance is not one of my favourite artforms to review, mainly because I lack the expert understanding to do it justice, but also because I rarely find it as captivating as other arts. The Print Room, unconventional as ever, are currently staging a unique dance and sculpture collaboration, ‘Jealousy’; the intimate theatre space has been transformed to create a truly atmospheric show.

The audience sit in the round, well in the rectangle, surrounding the bizarrely sculptural set. We are voyeuristic onlookers peering into a very private story. The dancers are constricted within the confines of Laurence Kavanagh’s sculptural modernist design, they weave in and around the angular hanging props. The hour long piece is a depiction of a vicious love triangle: anger, passion and jealousy are realised through the energetic, balletic movement. The narrative is based loosely on the ‘nouveau’ novel ‘Jealousy’ by Alain Robbe-Grillet, 1957. The four choreographers (James Cousins, Hubert Essakow, Daniel Hay-Gordon and Morgann Runacre-Temple) illustrate the major elements of the piece through object, gesture, soundscape, lighting and viewpoint. Amazingly these four choreographers have worked effectively together creatively a seamless and fluent piece.

Seven talented dancers are used in different pairings, occasionally dancing alone on stage but most often using each other to deliver complex routines, all of which are precisely synced with the sound and music. The dancers display impressive strength, and I found the girls particularly engaging, moving with intense concentration and piercing facial expressions. Aesthetically this production excels – the sound and lighting contribute enormously to presenting a striking show. The music is a montage of sounds, a wildly experimental and unpredictable soundtrack, it is very affecting.

Jealousy is a visually spectacular production that at times I found wholly overwhelming, an hour well spent.

Continues until 18 February, book here.

Singin’ in the Rain, Palace Theatre

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As the snow fell thick and fast outside, musical lovers scurried excitedly into the Palace Theatre for the opening night of Singin’ in the Rain, the vintage musical that has just moved to London after a very popular run at Chichester. My visit was bittersweet – I was delighted to be experiencing this new critically acclaimed show but sad to see the back of Priscilla, the sublime musical production which lived in the Palace previously.

It is amazing to see another retro production nestling into the West End, these old classics deserve to be seen! After making our way up every flight of stairs we reached our seats, at the very top of the theatre the view down was dauntingly steep. The show started fifteen minutes late, the latest curtain up I have ever witnessed at a West End theatre, but this was soon forgotten as the cast bounced onstage with a joyful energy.

The story shows the transition from silent movie to talking pictures and the narrative is incredibly similar to the recent hit film The Artist. Visually this production is great, bright lights and a fun set give the show an immediate lift. It is obvious that the main characters are dancers who can sing rather than singers who can dance. The dancing is jaw-droppingly good, complex routines perfectly executed and performed at a staggering pace, it is very exciting to watch. Adam Cooper looks suitably suave as the stud of the show, Don Lockwood… dashing and charismatic he could have stepped straight out of the 1950s original film. With his training at the Royal Ballet he moves beautifully across the stage, his solo dance for the finale of the first half is sublime. Scarlett Strallen is the perfect vintage beauty for the part of Cathy, her voice sounds just like the stars of bygone eras, so romantic and pretty. Katherine Kingsley is hilarious as the annoying nasal-voiced diva, Lina Lamont, but my absolute favourite on the night was Daniel Crossley who gave an astounding performance as Cosmo Brown. Crossley is charismatic and witty and manages this tricky role without any problems, his rendition of the dance ‘Make ‘em Laugh’ in which he has to run up a wall and do somersaults is brilliant.

There are perhaps a few sound balance issues to iron out… Adam Cooper is often too quiet and his words are sometimes lost entirely when he sings. There are other vocal parts that need a little extra amplification. In fact I think the whole production could have been louder, the energy portrayed through the dancing needs to be matched with an equally lively sound.

The best thing about this show has to be the incredible rain that is generated at the end of both halves. A heavy shower drenches the actors, and yet they still dance, Crossley splashes about and soaks the audience in the front row, much to the delight of the rest of the crowd! For the final ten minutes every cast member comes on stage, each with a brightly coloured umbrella, it is quite a spectacle to watch them all dance so fluently in fake pouring rain!

Considering Britain’s reputation as a country where the rain is constant, I think it is about time that this show found it’s place in the West End, you will leave the theatre singing and dancing.

Singin’ in the Rain continues until, book here.