A very very merry good morning/afternoon/evening to you all! Its time for your weekly W.O.A.M. fix! (What’s on at mac, just in case you weren’t quite clear).
We have a wide range of performances going on to suit all tastes, including Cinema screenings, Theatre performances, Exhibitions, Music performances, Comedy shows and talks from a number of speakers!
Without further ado, lets get browsing! And as always ladies and gentlemen, browse safely
Have a great week everyone!
Work hard, play harder
Andy and Amelia
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Cinema: This week in the Cinema we have ‘While We’re Young’ Acclaimed indie auteur Noah Baumbach (The Squid and the Whale, Frances Ha) has created another witty and exploratory comedy-drama with While We’re Young, here reuniting with his Greenberg star Ben Stiller, who plays documentary filmmaker Josh, married to Naomi Watts’ Cornelia. They’re a somewhat neurotic couple considering their future – while most of their friends have had children, they’re still unsure, becoming ever more aware that their lives are fleeting and their remaining choices, limiting – when they meet carefree Jamie (Adam Driver) and Darby (Amanda Seyfried), a pair of bohemian, louche 20-somethings whose hipster cool they find endlessly appealing. But is their friendship the real deal or are Josh and Cornelia just trying to avoid grappling with the actualities of middle-age?
For fans of Foreign films, mac cinema can offer ‘The Invisible Life’ Hugo, a man on the cusp of middle age is in the grip of an unshakeable torpor, squandering his life away. Facing the impending death of his friend and professional mentor Antonio, he realises something must change. Existing somewhere between the existential horror of Bergman and absurdist literary dread of Kafka,The Invisible Life explores how Hugo’s past smothers his ability to imagine and create a future for himself.
In addition to this the Cinema is also showing National Theatre Live: ‘Man and Superman’ Academy Award® nominee Ralph Fiennes (The English Patient, Schindler’s List; Oedipus at the National Theatre) plays Jack Tanner in this exhilarating reinvention of George Bernard Shaw’s witty, provocative classic. A romantic comedy, an epic fairytale, a fiery philosophical debate, Man and Superman asks fundamental questions about how we live.
This week mac are also showing ‘Far From The Madding Crowd’. Based on the literary classic by Thomas Hardy, FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD is the story of independent, beautiful and headstrong Bathsheba Everdene (Carey Mulligan), who attracts three very different suitors: Gabriel Oak (Matthias Schoenaerts), a sheep farmer, captivated by her wilful spirit; Frank Troy (Tom Sturridge), a handsome and reckless sergeant; and William Boldwood (Michael Sheen), a prosperous and mature bachelor. This timeless story of Bathsheba’s choices and passions explores the nature of relationships and love – as well as the human ability to overcome hardships through resilience and perseverance.
Also coming to mac cinema: ‘X + Y’. Preferring to hide in the safety of his own private world, Nathan struggles to connect with people, often pushing away those who want to be closest to him, including his mother, Julie. Without the ability to understand love or affection, Nathan finds the comfort and security he needs in numbers and mathematics. Mentored by his unconventional and anarchic teacher, Mr Humphreys, it becomes clear that Nathan’s talents are enough to win him a place on the British team competing at the highly revered International Mathematics Olympiad. Being part of a team and one which has a real chance of winning seems like it could change Nathan’s life forever. But when the team go to train in Taiwan, Nathan is faced with a multitude of unexpected challenges, not least the new and unfamiliar feelings he begins to experience for one of the Chinese competitors, the beautiful Zhang Mei. From England to Taipei and back again, this inspiring and life-affirming story follows the unconventional and hilarious relationship between student and teacher, whose roles are often reversed, and the unfathomable experience of first love – when you don’t even understand what love is.
If installations are your thing, then look no further than ‘Queer Traces: Paris is Burning’ Black Hole Club members Michael Lightborne and Kate Spence present a live AV installation deconstructing Jennie Livingston’s seminal documentary of the 80s vogue ball scene Paris is Burning (1990). The installation will feature the durational performance ‘Strike a Pose’ by Kate Spence, Lightborne’s ‘New Gods’ video sculptures, and a throbbing, otherworldly, disco soundtrack. A Museums at Night 2015 event.
Finally this week mac cinema are showing ‘The Lodger’ (With live score from Minima). Set in a foggy and unsettled London with a Jack the Ripper type serial killer on the loose, The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927) was Alfred Hitchcock’s first major commercial and critical success. Based on a story by Marie Belloc Lowndes, the film is a masterpiece of atmospheric thriller filmmaking. It contains many of Hitchcock’s subsequent trademark themes, and also features his first recognisable film cameo. This screening will be accompanied by a new live score from Minima.
For more on mac cinema screenings past present and future, click the link below!
– While We’re Young: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/while-were-young/
– The invisible life: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/the-invisible-life/
– NT Live: Man & Superman: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/nt-live-man-and-superman/
– Far from the Maddening Crowd: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/far-from-the-madding-crowd-1/
– X & Y: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/x-y/
– Queer Traces: Paris is Burning: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/whats-on/cinema/
– The Lodger (With live score from Minima): http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/the-lodger-with-live-score-by-minima/
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Theatre: This week in mac’s Theatre offerings include an exciting offering from (h) experiment: ‘Slot Together’ The same 8’ x 6’ stage, the same 12 props, 8 newly commissioned shows, each 20 minutes long, playing by the same rules. We have been promised: Hamlet’s Gravediggers in the Ebola Zone; a DIY Gone With The Wind tribute; clever tricks with time; visual play with objects; a comic lesson in Croatian; comic tools for thinking and the tale of Satish Kumar’s extraordinary walk for peace in 1961. Part two is this Saturday, don’t miss out!
Also this week Cardboard Citizends presents: ‘Benefit’. Three interwoven stories unlock the frustrations and passions of characters struggling with their bank balances, their histories and their own sense of self. A coup in a foreign country half a century ago, a disability leaves a person isolated, and a sex addiction that’s destroying a relationship link three characters in a carefully crafted story about lives and loves and the social systems they have come to depend upon.
For more on mac’s Theatre offerings, check the links below!
– (h) experiment: Slot Together: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/hexperiment-slot-together/
– Cardboard Citizens: Benefit: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/cardboard-citizens-benefit/
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Exhibitions: This week, mac are hosting two exciting Exhibitions! Firstly is work from Trevor Appleson: ‘Birmingham’. Appleson’s classic portrait photographs of carefully selected demographic groups made in his makeshift portable studio are now well known. In towns and settlements from Cape Town to Mexico City to Kibbutz Hatzerim in Israel, Appleson sets up on beaches, street corners, and other public spaces, enabling a captivating representation of place.
Also this week ‘Wish You Were Here’ Selected from Jeremy Cooper’s major artists’ postcards collection, Wish you were here? presents works by some of today’s most famous artists. Featuring over 200 artists including Carl Andre, Joseph Beuys, Ruth Claxton, Julie Cockburn, Gilbert & George, Richard Long, Yoko Ono, Ruth Proctor, Dieter Roth, amongst many others, this is a unique opportunity to see works from the collection, some for the first time, before its donation to the British Museum Prints and Drawings Department in 2018.
Fore more on mac’s exciting Exhibitions check out the links below!
– Trevor Appleson: Birmingham: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/exhibition/birmingham/
– Wish You Were Here: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/exhibition/wish-you-were-here/
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Music: The Music offerings at mac this week include an exciting showing from (h) experiment: ‘Sparks may Fly’. Two world class musicians come together for a day of music making and the result of their collaboration will be performed for an intimate audience that evening. There are just a few simple rules: each pair of musicians should have some common ground, they should never have played together before (at least not in public) and they should be natural improvisers, happy to collaborate and embrace risk.
Also this week at mac ‘Brebach’ Ever since launching their career as winners of an Open Stage Award at Celtic Connections 2005, Breabach’s star has been steeply on the rise, an ascent that continues with the release of their fourth album, Ùrlar. They are often described as the new faces of Scottish Traditional music. Their career has already seen them voted ‘Best Group’ at the Scots Trad Music Awards and nominated for BBC Radio 2 Folk and German Folk Awards.
For more information on music at mac, check the links below!
– (h) experiment: Sparks may fly: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/sparks-may-fly/
– Breabach: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/breabach/
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Comedy: The Comedy offerings at mac this week include (h) experiment: ‘Quizshowreoke’. Are you feeling lucky? Can you sing in tune…or blag it with enthusiasm? Are you good at board games and puzzles under pressure? Quizshowreoke is an interactive game show from Team Party Unicorn. The Hexagon Theatre is turned into one big board game and contestants from the audience will get the chance to win prizes with their wits or sing in a battle to the death in a no expense (as in very low budget) musical finale!
Fore more on this, and other comedy shows at mac, click the links below!
– (h) experiment: Quizshowreoke: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/quizshowreoke/
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Talks: This week mac are hosting some really exciting talks, including: Cannon Hill Art School Lecture: ‘Art School & Education’.Led by Peter Jenkinson OBE, Chancellor of Cannon Hill Art School, who will consider the contemporary role and value of art in education.
Cannon Hill Art School are also presenting: ‘Artist Study Day’. Led by practising artists who will introduce their work and their process of making, the Study Day will also explore ways of exhibiting and engaging audiences. Drop in sessions will run from 10.30am to 3.30pm.
Finally, mac are also showing ‘In The Space with Nikki Tanner’. Hosted by local BBC radio presenter, Nikki Tapper. An evening of live music, conversation accompanied by dance and poetry in front of a live audience. Come willing to participate, laugh and be blessed! Live music, live chat, life stories.
For more on these talks, and up and coming talks held at mac, see the links below!
– Cannon Hill Art School Lecture: Art School & Education: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/cannon-hill-art-school-lecture-art-schools-art-education/
– Cannon Hill Art School: Artist Study Day: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/cannon-hill-art-school-artist-study-day/
– In The Space With Nikki Tapper: http://macbirmingham.co.uk/event/in-the-space-with-nikki-tapper/
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Well, that’s your weekly W.O.A.M fix this week people (Is W.O.A.M catching on? I hope so!) come back this time next week for yet another look at what your favourite arts centre are offering you!
ciao for now folks
Andy and Amelia
#workplacement
Bsaatmac 