Wilton's Music Hall burlesque, Sept 21

 Sept 21

We started the day with catching up on emails, the blog etc. We also took a bus to Sainsbury's to buy Hobnobs, a favorite biscuit which is expensive at home.

    We met Maura at Waterloo and made our way together to Tower Hill.

      When we left the underground, we got a bit lost trying to find Wilton's Music Hall. And, it had started to rain fairly hard. However, the rain lessened and a cabbie gave us the directions.

     

  We met Pete and Shirley at Wilton's, the oldest surviving music hall in London. (Pete and Shirley had never met Maura, so that was nice) The building alone was worth the visit with small rooms abounding on two floors, perfect for a drink or a bite to eat. It is a Grade II listed building that began life as 5 houses. It comprises a mid-19th century music hall attached to an 18th Century terrace of 3 houses and a pub. The pub dates from 1743, or even earlier! In the 1860s, they were combined by John Wilton as a music hall. It had gone to decay, but restoration began in 2004 and continues today. 

            

Barbara and Shirley in Wilton's Pub

Pete and Shirley admiring the old bricks

      We had a snack in the pub and then made our way to the first row of the balcony.

           The cabaret show was by Bourgeois & Maurice, a duo (Liv Morris and George Heyworth) that got together in 2007.  This show was called "Pleasure Seekers" as they explored the point of life with its ups and downs. "Is there a point in life?" The pair has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe and have appeared in shows all over the U.K. They write their songs and lyrics and have several albums. 

     In the show, they sang about veganism (Meat), eliminating babies to help in climate change as well as the dopamine rush released by seeking "likes" in social media. There was a parody on obsession with late-night shopping at Amazon and a song about optimism/pessimism.  Their encore was a poignant song, Hold On, composed by a man who died of AIDS. They invited the audience to sing along, which it did.

       We all made our way back to Tower Hill together. Mark and I went one way, and Pete, Shirley and Maura went their way.

   

Mark congratulating the performers

 

 Thus ends our "events" in London. Wow - so many and with such variety. From serious drama in Dr. Semmelweis and The Father and the Assassin to absurdism in Pleasure Seekers and slapstick in The Play that Went Wrong. Musically we were treated to the amazing jazz at Ronnie Scott's and cabaret singing at Wilton's. Thank you to Maura for getting tickets to the National Theatre performances and to Pete and Shirley for the musical performances.

The end of the night - Mark and Pete