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Death becomes her: A Brief List Of Everyone Who Died @finborough

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For a natural process, death is not a topic that comes up naturally for people. We ask how people are doing but expect the response to be “I’m great”, not “I’m not dead yet”. And so for the main character in A Brief List of Everyone Who Died, Graciela has a death issue. Starting with when she was five and found out only after the matter that her parents had her beloved dog euthanised. So Graciela decides that nobody she loves will die from then on. And so this piece becomes a fruitless attempt at how she spends her life trying to avoid death while it is all around her. It’s currently having its world premiere  at the Finborough Theatre . As the play title suggests, it is a brief list of life moments where death and life intervene for the main character, from the passing of relatives, cancer, suicides, accidents and the loss of parents. Playwright Jacob Marx Rice plots the critical moments of the lives of these characters through their passing or the passing of those around them. Howeve

Sssmouldering Sunday night cabaret: Miss Hope Springs

Miss Hope Springs has a regular Sunday night Cabaret show at The Crazy Coqs in Piccadilly. She now has a new show "Latin a la Springs" which injects a bit of bossa nova and sophistication into the Sunday night proceedings (well a double bass and a syncopated beat always sounds a bit of sophisticated if you ask me).

Miss Hope Springs is a surprise as you don't just get a cabaret show of some great songs at fabulous venue, but you get a character and a back story of a recovering showgirl who has been there and done Hollywood, done Vegas, done worse and is now here for your pleasure. Nothing is taken too seriously and everything from a her hilarious career highlights to the conventions of performing a cabaret set of jazz, pop and bossa nova standards are lovingly sent up.


While the voice is low and gruff, and you could be mistaken initially for assuming she is Rula Lenska's younger sister (which got confusing when the famous actress herself was there on Sunday night), there is some fine music making here. This is no rubbish drag act that you might find at a gay bar.

If you find yourself in Piccadilly on a Sunday evening wondering what there is to do, this is the place to be. An album recorded live at the venue covering some of the material performed, including the excellent "Devil Made Me Do It"is also available as a digital download.

Miss Hope Springs is performed by Ty Jeffries and runs every Sunday night at The Crazy Coqs from 7pm. Doors open from 6.30ish for some great cocktails. The show runs for about two hours including an interval.

 

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