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We are nearly there people! This weekend will see the launch of the Lunatic Journal website - www.thelunaticjournal.com so stay tuned and watch this space! The Lunatic Duo x
Dear readers,
The Lunatic duo have decided to take a holiday but don’t fret they will return in January2011! This year has been brilliant and the duo would thank their contributors, fans and readers- thank you!
2011 will see the launch of the duo’s new website www.thelunaticjournal.com basically exactly the same just on a shiny new website and not a blog. As well as your regular arts postings there will be two brand new pages dedicated to all things travel and then another page dedicated to interviews.
The duo say watch this space LJ lovers 2011 is gonna be a good one…..
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Love,
The Lunatic Duo
x
The Cultural Olympiad have announced the first commissions for the London 2012 Festival, which will be a 12 week, UK wide cultural celebration, opening on 21 June 2012.
Dance projects include a Pina Bausch Season from Tanztheater Wuppertal at Sadler’s Wells and the Barbican and Metamorphosis: Titian 2012 - a collaboration between the National Gallery and The Royal Ballet.
Akram Khan will return to his roots at the Northern School of Contemporary Dance where he studied and work with the post-graduate performance company Verve 12; there will be a new film from the Street Dance 3D team Max Giwa and Dania Pasquini and the UK premiere of Philip Glass and Robert Wilson’s legendary Einstein on the Beach, which features choreography by Lucinda Childs. Big Dance led by the Mayor of London and Arts Council England, will be UK-wide in 2012, with the Foundation for Community Dance & Dance Takes the Lead co-ordinating the programme outside of London.
Rebellion and Lies
The duo found themselves in a heated debate over the rise of tuition fees and the student riots. With limited genuine facts available its difficult to know who or what to believe. So for that reason we have sourced some nuggets of information, to ensure you don’t get tongue tied or heaven forbid following your heart in a discussion.
What the National Union of Students have said…. The National Union of Students has urged MPs to vote down the plans to raise tuition fees in England to £9,000 per year. The vote in the House of Commons on far-reaching changes to higher education funding will be the culmination of weeks of political divisions and student protests. The union’s president Aaraon Porter says the government’s plans are an”untested trial” that ” will see English universities become the most expensive public universities in the world”
The Guardian…The vote to raise the tuition fees ceiling in England from £3,290 to a maximum of £9,000 led to the resignation of two ministerial aides – Mike Crockart and Jenny Willott. Two former Lib Dem leaders, Charles Kennedy and Sir Menzies Campbell, were among the 21 Lib Dem MPs who rebelled against the government proposals. Ed Milband, the Labour party leader, said tonight’s vote was “disappointing” for young people in the country.Politics was at an “even lower ebb” as a result of tonight’s vote, he said.”What really concerns me is the impact this will have on social mobility and people getting on in our society,” said Miliband, who voted that his party would campaign for “educational opportunity”.
The Independent…”The Government’s proposal to potentially treble university fees will have a devastating financial impact on thousands of talented young people from low and middle-income backgrounds who want to become the doctors of tomorrow,” said Karin Purshouse, of the British Medical Association’s medical students committee. University lecturers’ leaders also pointed out that graduates’ tax bills would rise by 20 per cent once they had reached a salary of £21,000 a year, which is when repayments kick in. An average teacher would see his or her pay bill rise by almost a quarter.
Do you live in Brighton? If so look out for our friends the mummers
The Brighton Mummers are a fluid group of between 5-10 energetic, enigmatic and wonderous performance wanderers, ever at the alert for the call to perform our handsome and authentic mummers script. Every year, on the last Saturday before Christmas,they knock upon the doors of public houses all over Brighton, entrancing audiences, delighting children and in essence, bringing a truly joyous celebration of the coming year and a sense of Yuletide loveliness to all who’ll hear them.
Save Arts Depot!
On Friday 3 December, Barnet Council announced their proposal to cut all core funding to artsdepot, the only professional arts venue in the borough, with effect from April 2011. This decision comes as a huge shock because of the late notice and our previously good relationship with the Council. At an already uncertain time this leaves the future of artsdepot in an increasingly vulnerable position.
To support please pledge your support by signing this petition now, and pass it on to others you think may be interested.
http://www.petitiononline.co.uk/petition/save-artsdepot/545
Sssshhh!
Written in 1952 the first performance of John Cage’s ‘four minutes and thirty three seconds’ caused scandal and outrage. The piece was first showcased at Woodstock and was perfromed by pianist David Tudor, apparently the sound of the trees moving in the wind filled the arena. The duo love the fact that this piece of music is still causing so much controvosy and is still as relevant as it was back then. John cage described his music as “an affirmation of life – not an attempt to bring order out of chaos nor to suggest improvements in creation, but simply a way of waking up to the very life we’re living”.
To join the campaign for Peace and Quiet, John Cage for Christmas number one: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=138718099485820
Last night The Lunatic Journal caught the fantastic Thee Oh Sees with Hank Haint in Brixton and were blown away. Stripped down, loud, fast, dangerous and dirty is how we like our rock and roll and if you agree then you need to catch these great live acts if you can.
Choreographer and filmmaker Yvonne Rainer’s seven film features reveal a fascination with performance and politics. Rainer’s influential cinema work is showcased in this major season.
Pompette retourne!!!!
Lunatic Journal favourites, Soiree Pompette host yet another fabulous evening of French Cabaret at Exmouth Market next Thursday 9 December.
Like stumbling upon France in Farringdon, the intention of the evening is to ensure the punters bumble their way along in a playful lingustic interaction. Everything naturally is in French, menus, staff and acts. So get out your phrase book and join us for French dance, art, music and food.
Pompette retourne
La personne déséquilibrée Journal préférés Soiree Pompette héberge pourtant un autre soir fabuleux de Spectacle de cabaret français au Marché d’Exmouth jeudi prochain le 9 décembre.
Comme trébucher sur France dans Farringdon, l’intention du soir est de garantir les clients bafouillent leur façon le long de dans une interaction espiègle. Tout est naturellement en français du, les menus, le personnel et les actes. Si obtenir hors votre livre de phrase et être venu à côté…
Look at for more information: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=132082003504702&v=photos&ref=ts#!/group.php?gid=132082003504702&v=wall http://www.soireepompette.blogspot.com/
To celebrate Jean-Luc Godards 80th birthday, download this fantastic Godard font here, write him a happy birthday card with it then sit down and watch one of his films today..HAPPY BIRTHDAY GODARD!
Il Lunatico duetto amore Miu Miu
Tomorrow the Italian power house Miu Miu open their newly refurbished two floor store on Bond Street. One floor dedicated to accessories and ready to wear pieces (sigh!) although the Lunatic duo say -abbiamo indossato ha qualunque denaro!
The duo didn’t want to discuss this or indeed admit that recently they declared a day of guilty pleasures due to both bad weather and bad hangovers. Bacon sandwiches followed by endless MTV and then a film or two was the order of the day… But what theme would the films be curated by? In the 70’s we had Bennie hill to suit an impromptu tasteless mood. Today (for one half of the Lunatic Duo) we have Sex and the City (cue kazoo music) .
Like a scene from a classic ‘Carry On’ film, the ‘40 something’ clothes whores constantly make innuendo jokes and nothing statements, achieve nothing in a plot that does nothing…all wrapped up in a bout of self ernst and seriousness that makes us want to jump off the nearest bridge…yet, like a moth from a flame we keep coming back…a true guilty pleasure.
Recently we were unlucky enought to see 2010s worst film, Sex and the City 2 where they goto Marrakech, oh no sorry, Abu Dhabi (?!?!). The whole film is an trainwreck of egos, botox, jimmy choo’s and cocktails, but there is also one section that really got us groaning/picking our jaws up off the floor, was where our leads meet 4 local women who wear burka’s but underneath are prada-ed up! Politically don’t get us started about this but it highlights how clueless (on so many levels) SATC are. Overall the lunatic duo can’t help but think the film is Americas attempt to make peace with the east, and there are so many references about women being the same the world over it made us want to hurl - as if by making sex city2 its gonna build bridges to any of these problems (middle east and women’s rights)! Ho ho! Those American folk are so amusing! The makers honestly thought their film would stop wars and change the world. Instead they made a film that we watch because its rubbish when we’re hungover…