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Belters and bohemians: Opera Locos @Sadlers_wells

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At the start of the Opera Locos performance, the announcement says that they really are singing. You could be forgiven for wondering that, given the amplification turns up the backing track and the voices so loud that you can't always tell what's real. But this is a mostly harmless and slightly eccentric blend of opera classics fused with the occasional pop classic. However, recognising the pop tunes would help if you were over a certain age. The most recent of them dates back twenty years. It's currently playing at the Peacock Theatre .  Five performers play out a variety of archetype opera characters. There's the worn-out tenor (Jesús Álvarez), the macho baritone (Enrique Sánchez-Ramos), the eccentric counter-tenor (Michaël Kone), the dreamy soprano (María Rey-Joly) and the wild mezzo-soprano (Mayca Teba). Since my singing days, I haven't recognised these types of performers. However, once, I recall a conductor saying he wanted no mezzo-sopranos singing with the s

Overhead conversations of the summer...

Woman near Soho Square: I don't even say knickers any more; I just say, "get your daks off..." Homeless man on Oxford Street: I 'ope your 'ouse 'as been buuuurgled...

Movies: Wall-E

Earlier this week I caught Wall-E at the movies with Francois. I was keen to see what all the fuss was about. After watching it Francois told me that the central message of the film really was that it is okay to like musicals. I thought that was a fair assessment but added that given that Hello Dolly is central to the love story between Wall-E and Eve (the sexy female robot), it is reassuring that Jerry Herman musicals can appeal to heterosexual robots... Worth catching even if you don't like musicals as it is not a bad film... And there are a number of sci-fi film references too...

Hot news this week in London...

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Meanwhile, in Kilburn... , originally uploaded by LinkMachineGo . Well in Kilburn anyway ... At least there is still the Tricycle Theatre for entertainment...

Scenes from Soho Pride Sunday

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Soho Pride Sunday 17 August 2008 , originally uploaded by Paul-in-London . Pectorals galore too... Soho Pride isn't anything other than an excuse to close streets in Soho and have some drinks and a good time... Fair enough... Of course there was competition with the Olympics on television ...

Trends in London this week...

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Giant Lasagna , originally uploaded by pg73 . The growing threat of giant lasagne attacking the London population this summer has been underestimated...

Hot news this week (even outside) London...

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Popcorn Ban , originally uploaded by gerry balding . Not a lot happens in Norwich... But the Picturehouse chain's plans to get rid of popcorn from its arthouse cinemas was big news Sunday ... Of course in Clapham the biggest problem at the cinema is the sound of clinking wine glasses... Well it was last night anyway...

Office banter

Paul: You know he's very Web 2.0 Colleague: I don't even know what that means... Paul: Well... What's it matter... It sounds impressive...

Trends in London this week...

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Class: someone has it! , originally uploaded by Carlo Nicora . Shaving is so last month... Grrr...