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REVIEW: WNO Ainadamar – Fountain of Tears at Mayflower Theatre

Owen Noon

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The Welsh National Opera was back at the Mayflower with their instalment of ‘Ainadamar’ by Osvaldo Golijov. This opera has a perfect balance of everything; music, dance and theatre – all coming together hand in hand to tell this powerfully poignant story. With full disclosure, I must say that this is actually my very first opera, and from what I saw tonight I can also say that it is hopefully my first of many. ‘Ainadamar’, which is Arabic for ‘Fountain of Tears’, is a two-time Grammy winning opera which uses a mixture of Spanish singing, flamenco dancing and poetic outbursts.

With this being my first opera, I was quite worried that the story would get lost and I would struggle to understand what was going on. This was absolutely not the case. The shifting of the music and production, really helps guide you through the story without being left behind. Director, ‘Deborah Colker’, has done a fantastic job by working with the whole company to make this so smooth.

Ainadamar’ (‘Fountain of Tears’), is the ancient well near Granada where Federico García Lorca (Spanish poet and playwright) was brutally executed during the Spanish civil war in 1936, after being branded as a ‘homosexual socialist’. This opera takes us through Lorca’s life via a flashback of memories from his muse, Margarita Xirgu, an actress. Xirgu now in her final moments, is wanting to pass on the hopes and passion of her generation onto one of her students, Nuria. Throughout the story, there’s lots of different tones that are portrayed – and the opera is non linear, meaning that the time frames do jump around. This again, could be quite confusing but the way WNO have put this piece together makes it so you can follow along with ease. 

If you’re new to opera or have never even thought about going to see one, I can absolutely recommend Welsh National Opera

One thing I really liked was how the opera just continued to flow. The live orchestra, mixed with the superbly talented cast made the 1 hour and 20 minutes with no interval just fly by. At the end, I heard multiple people all saying, “that definitely didn’t feel like 80 minutes.” Can’t get much higher praise than that, time flies when you’re having fun – job well done! Jacquelina Livieri, who played the role of ‘Margarita Xirgu’, was just exceptional. Her vocals were fantastic and the way that she had the audience there with her on her every word was expertly done. Much the same has to be said about Julieth Lozano Rolong (Nuria). ‘Nuria’ is almost the voice of the audience on stage because she is being told Lorca’s story – just as we are in the audience – and the bond between herself and ‘Xirgu’ comes across so eloquently. Fantastic Job! I think I also need to mention Hanna Hip, who had the role of ‘Federico García Lorca’, as it goes without saying the vocals were flawless, but the way she brought a different edge to the character was so creative. Every single member of the cast brought a big level of energy to that stage – and the tone of the whole opera went with them. Amazing! 

I’d also like to add, that with Hanna Hip playing ‘Lorca’ – the three main protagonists in the show were all played by females, even when one of their characters was male. This was incredibly refreshing. The majority of the cast was actually female and it seemed like the male figures in the opera were the oppressive authority in the story and the female figures were fighting against this to help remind us, “of the vital role the artist plays in championing freedom in all its forms” – Aidan Lang, General Director of WNO. That was a repeated theme throughout the opera, and a theme that really speaks to musical theatre now as it also did then. 

This set was also extremely effective yet so simple. The main bulk of the set was a fringe like curtain in a round with four rectangular tables that would move to show different places/scenes. Every now and then you would have some drop downs of different fringe curtains, or wood like debris which when all put together were fantastic. I thought the way they stacked the tables to create almost a barricade was ingenious. The curtains were weirdly mesmerising. The way they would use light and projections together on the curtains was just beautiful. Also the way the cast would interact with the curtains to show either a ripple effect, a doorway, or pinning it back showing us what was happening inside – just amazing. Something so simple, with such an impact. I also liked how you could still see through the curtain and the projections would be used to help tell certain parts of the story. Designers, Jon Bausor (stage), Paul Keogan (lighting), and Tap Rosner (projection) have all done a brilliant job at intertwining their work to create a literal masterpiece! 

WNO tour the UK with multiple different operas/operatic experiences and if they are coming to a theatre near you – I think you’d be silly to miss them. 

When it comes to the music – WOW. It wouldn’t be an opera without a stunning orchestra. I’ve already mentioned how amazing the vocals were from the whole cast, but the accompaniment of WNO’s orchestra made it that much more meaningful. The mixture of classical music with Spanish, Arabic and Jewish influences alongside the rhythms of Cuba and the flamenco were again, a big help in shifting the tempo of the opera and helping the story progress further. I particularly liked when at the start of one the early flashbacks, we see a couple of the musicians on stage playing classical, up tempo, Spanish music with a cajon drum and guitar. At that moment, the music wasn’t a separate entity to the theatre, it was its own specific role that was interacting within the scene. A fine detail that really helped in polishing a complex story.

If you’re new to opera or have never even thought about going to see one, I can absolutely recommend ‘Welsh National Opera’. The production values and cast are superb and from what I thought would be an intimidating night at the theatre, turned out to be another show that I would happily go and watch again. All WNO operas are presented with English surtitles to help you follow the story with even more ease. If you do consider going to see an opera, my top tip would be to do a little bit of research on the general story, just to help yourself understand what is going on. This way when it comes to watching the show, you can sit back and enjoy without worrying too much that you may misunderstand something. WNO tour the UK with multiple different operas/operatic experiences and if they are coming to a theatre near you – I think you’d be silly to miss them. 

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Hampstead movie review

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Hampsted movie poster

With the passing of Diane Keaton I decided that I would watch some of her old work.

I chose to watch the 2017 movie Hampstead as it seemed to be quite a good representation of her acting skills. 

It is based loosely (trying not to give the plot away, however it did come out eight years ago!) on Harry Hallowes real life, he used to live on a plot in Hampstead Heath and then managed to claim rights on it. 

One of the best parts of this movie was the chemistry between Diane Keaton and Brendan Gleeson.

It felt natural and not strained which definitely made it more believable for me.

Their chemistry also helped make their characters seem more natural making their performance that much better. 

I’m not one who normally enjoys romantic (some may say sappy) movies but the mixture of romance and social justice themes in this movie made it not too uncomfortable.

It gives the audience a feel-good time with us feeling like we are doing something right, due to us deciding that Gleeson’s character is right.

It made me feel like I was standing up for the underdog and marginalised communities.

I found it quite clever how they made it an easy movie to watch, not too many sad themes, while also fitting in the themes of community and standing up for the right thing.

I would say that if you are feeling a bit down then this would be a very good movie too watch. 

A perfect movie for a light matinee

As a nature person, the setting of this film was spectacular.

I really liked the idea of an expanse of nature so close to a city.

It creates a very picturesque backdrop for the movie which further added to the warmthness portrayed throughout the movie.

I especially liked where Keaton’s character ended up living in the end. 

However, as always there are critics.

With this movie one of the big critiques was that the story was very predictable and followed the same formula that a lot of other romance movies used.

There was just too many cliches which made it painful for the audience to witness again and due to the lack of surprises it was not the most engaging film to watch.

This goes hand in hand with the fact that the characters where more broad and stereotypical than they should have been. 

The other big critique from this movie was that people thought it lacked tone and depth, saying that while it did touch on different societal problems such as eviction, class divide and property divide it didn’t pronounce it enough.

It felt a bit like dipping one toe into the water of the problems.

While I do agree that it didn’t delve deep into the problems society faces, I didn’t think that was what the movie was about or what the directors were trying to get across to the audience.

I believe that it was simply highlighting these issues in an easy to understand way. 

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Are Max Martin and Shellback the downfall of Taylor Swift’s latest album?

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The release of Taylor Swift’s 12th LP, The Life of a Showgirl, has been met with divided opinions. 

Although a record breaking 2.7m albums were sold on the first day of release, not all these buyers are satisfied.

It might be a push to say the majority are. Online, listeners argue this album is “millennial cringe” and that Swift is showing her “true capitalist self”. 

Alongside Swift herself, Max Martin and Shellback produced the album.

Long-time collaborators, they previously helped define 1989 and Reputation. But this marks the first time the trio have exclusively worked together.

1989 and Reputation catapulted Swift to global pop fame.

Through hits such as Blank Space, Shake it Off and Getaway Car, Martin and Shellback provided Swift a clean break from her country roots, throwing her into the deep end of mainstream pop.

However, a decade later the formula feels tired.

So why has The Life of a Showgirl fallen so flat?

Following Swift’s last album The Tortured Poets Department, a lyrically rich 31 song LP radiating heartbreak and introspection, the synthetic glitz and glamour of Showgirl feel false. 

In a post-Folklore world, where Swift proved her strength as a lyricist with the help of producer Jack Antonoff, the return to maximalism and Martin-Shellback production feels hollow. 

With the loss of Antonoff and the return of Martin and Shellback, has Swift lost the reflective heart of her songwriting? 

That’s not to say Showgirl is without merit.

Its production is faultless, and the album follows a clear and fluid theme.

But perhaps that’s the problem. In collaborating solely with Martin and Shellback, Swift may have created her most technically accomplished album but her least emotionally convincing one. 

Whether this is a misstep or the purpose of the album remains to be seen.

But the reception of The Life of a Showgirl questions the path Swift is on.

Now the world dominating Eras Tour is over, is the peak of Swift’s career over too?

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The End of Strictly Come Dancing as we know it?

Emily Byway

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We all know Strictly Come Dancing as one of the most popular prime time slots on a Saturday night.
But could this be the end of Strictly as we know it?


The BBCs show has struggled recently with allegations of bullying and inappropriate behaviour, but now Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman have released a joint statement to say they are passing the sparkly button on at the end of this series.


Their Instagram statement in full:

We have loved working as a duo and hosting Strictly has been an absolute dream. We were always going to leave together and now feels like the right time. We will have the greatest rest of this amazing series and we just want to say an enormous thank you to the BBC and to every single person who works on the show. They’re the most brilliant team and we’ll miss them every day. We will cry when we say the last “keep dancing” but we will continue to say it to each other. Just possibly in tracksuit bottoms at home while holding some pizza.
Tess & Claud

Following their joint statement they each released their own statements as a follow up.

Tess Daly’s statement in full:

After 21 unforgettable years, the time has come to say goodbye to Strictly Come Dancing. It’s hard to put into words what this show has meant to me, so here goes… Strictly has been more than just a television programme. It’s felt like having a third child, a second family, and a huge part of my life since that very first show back in 2004. I knew then it was something special, but I could never have imagined the magic it would bring.

Strictly has always been about joy, celebration, and bringing people together – and I’m so proud to have played a small part in something that continues to mean so much to so many.

From that very first series, I had the great honour of standing alongside the incomparable Sit Bruce Forsyth.

Brucie set the tine for everything that Strictly became: warmth, wit, connection, and pure showbiz magic.

I have always been in awe of our superbly talented professional dancers, our magnificent judges, and all the celebrities who have taken part. I absolutely adore our brilliant crew – every single member of the Strictly team who have worked tirelessly to make this show what it is. You are the very best in the business – the kindest, most fun, most loyal, and definitely the hardest-working team in television.

Thank you for your laughter, the friendship, and the countless memories over all these years. You’ve filled my heart in ways I’ll never forget. I’ll miss you all so much.

And to you – the viewers at home – the biggest thank you of all. Thank you for welcoming us into your homes for over two decades.

Your love, loyalty, and unwavering support have meant the world. You’ve carried us through every series, and that has never, ever been taken for granted. You are the heart of this show, and I feel so lucky to have shared it with you. Being part of your weekend from September to Christmas for the past 21 years has been one of the greatest joys and privileges of my career.

To my beloved Claud – what an absolute joy and pleasure it has been sharing this adventure with you. You’re one of a kind, and I’ll treasure every giggle, every live show, and every backstage moment we’ve shared. I’m so grateful to have you as my friend for life.

This isn’t goodbye to glitter, sequins, or Saturday night sparkle (I could never say goodbye to those!). Strictly will forever hold a special place in my heart – but it does feel like the right time to hand over the reins.

With all my love and endless gratitude, Tess x


Tess Daly has been on the show since its very first episode seeing over 300 celebrities enter the ballroom and join the competition.

She started the show with Sir Bruce Forsyth, with Claudia Winkleman being a part of their presenting team hosting the sister show It Takes Two.

The duo made history in 2014 becoming the first female presenting duo of a prime time slot.
As a team they have welcomed almost 200 celebrities into the ballroom.

Over their time on the show they have also seen nine judges join and leave the show.

Claudia Winkleman’s statement reads:
It’s very difficult to put into words exactly what Strictly has meant to me. It’s been the greatest relationship of my career. From working on It Takes Two in 2004 until now it has been my everything, the show I will be eternally grateful for. I will never forget Len Goodman trying to teach me what a cucaracha is (I still don’t know) and the complete thrill and honour it was to work with Tess on the results show to cohosting on Saturday nights.

Strictly is a magical, glittery, fake tanned train and it’s been a privilege to be a tiny part of it. The extraordinary talent of the dancers, the band, the hair and makeup and costume teams, the unbelievable production crew and creatives – all utterly amazing. I’ve always believed it’s best to leave a party before you’re fully ready to go and I know the new hosts will be magnificent, I look forward to watching them take Strictly to new heights. As for Tess – I’m so so lucky I got to stand next to you. You’re funny, kind, whip smart and a true friend and I love you.


With two of the biggest jobs in the BBC now up for grabs who will we see step into the glitz and glammer of Saturday night at Strictly Come Dancing?

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