Blog | Oxford City Guide

What's in the Cinema This Week? (Fri 08 - Thu 14 August)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:29:00 +0000

Make It Happen (PG) starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead. Contains mild language and sexy dancing. 'Make it Happen' is the story of Lauryn, a small town girl with a big heart and even bigger aspirations, to make it as a top dancer and musician. But when she leaves home for Chicago, and is rejected from the school, she finds a job in the most unlikely of places - a burlesque house. Soon she discovers things about herself she never knew and, conflicted by her surroundings, realises that even though plans may change, dreams never do.

The Fox and the Child (U) starring Kate Winslet (narrator), Bertille Noel-Bruneau, Isabelle Carre, Thomas Laliberte. Contains mild distress and dangerous behaviour. A touching family friendly film, brought to us by Luc Jacquet, Director of 'The March of the Penguins'. 'The Fox & the Child' follows a young girl living in France, who discovers a fox on route to school one day. In the months that follow, she becomes fascinated and spends her time searching out the fox, but doesn't see it again before winter falls. 'The Fox & the Child' follows the story of this young girl and her adventures, in which we see her attempting to tame the fox.

Elegy (15) starring Patricia Clarkson, Ben Kingsley, Penelope Cruz, Peter Sarsgaard. Adapted from Philip Roth's novella 'The Dying Animal', a cruel anatomisation of sexual obsession and a study of male foibles and attitudes towards women, the exquisitely performed ELEGY features Sir Ben Kingsley at his peerless best. He plays Kepesh, a professor who falls for Cruz's intelligent and beautiful grad student, only to find her sheer loveliness an impossible challenge to his ego. The direction from Coixet is faultlessly restrained and the supporting performances from Hopper and Clarkson are riveting. Scripted by Nicholas Meyer, the film also audaciously takes a more feminist tract, emphasising what Kepesh cannot see: the emotional void at the centre of his obsession. Crisply shot by Jean-Claude Larrieu, this is an elegant and challenging modern romance.

Get showtimes for all the cinemas in Oxford

What's in the Theatres this Week? (Fri 08 - Thu 14 August)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:26:00 +0000

Oxford Playhouse:

Gertrude's Secret - Lonely Gertrude waits for her daughter to call on her birthday but there is a shocking revelation to come… what exactly is Gertrude's terrible secret? And what is the dreadful fate of ten-year-old Emily, stranded alone in a seedy Amsterdam hotel room? These and other questions are answered in this frequently hilarious yet often disturbing series of stories that comes to Oxford following a sell-out run in London and at the Chichester Festival Theatre.

Born in the Gardens - Maud and her son Mo live in a decaying mock-Tudor house in Bristol. She chats to people on the telly, he converses with the cat and both share a penchant for bizarre cocktails, tinned food and keeping the past alive. When older son Hedley and Mo's twin, Queenie, return for their father's funeral, they try to persuade Maud and Mo that the time is ripe to escape the confi nes of their crumbling home - but not everyone wants freedom when it's offered...

Creation Theatre Company:

Much Ado About Nothing - A sparkling new production of one of Shakespeare's most popular comedies, Charlotte Conquest (Measure for Measure 2008, The Oxford Passion 2007) returns to direct this raucous romance following two of Shakespeare's feistiest and funniest characters, Benedick and Beatrice. Oxford Castle Unlocked Castleyard

Shakespeare's Saints and Sinners - In this inspiring new one-man show, we recreate some of Shakespeare's most memorable characters - the good, the bad and the downright psychotic. Shakespeare's most incisive insights into the human condition are exposed and explored by director Heather Davies (The Taming of the Shrew, 2007) and veteran Creation actor Tom Peters. St Michael at the North Gate

Old Fire Station:

The Wind in the Willows - Shy Mole, who dreams of an exciting new life by the endless River. Ratty, a friendly, unflappable, altogether civilized chap. Gruff Badger, who hates absolutely Everyone - except all his friend. And Toad. Ohh, Toad - glorious, crazy, doomed Toad: Toad the pampered braggart, Toad the desperate thief, Toad the haunted fugitive and the hero of his own silly dreams. From buzzing summer days to winter's killing cold, from gentle picnics to deeds of might and daring, from wild escapes to meeting with a god... Everyone should have a life like this - And friends like these.

Burton Taylor Theatre:

Falstaff - This adaptation is a portrait of Shakespeare's great comic character exploring the man and the myth. It paints a wonderful historical and humorous portrait of Great Britain seen through the eyes of the great man himself holding court one last-time for a bawdy evening at The Boars Head tavern.

New Theatre:

Bugsy Malone - Set in 1929 in New York, the era of Gang Warfare, hoodlums, showgirls, dreamers and the unforgettable "splurge-gun". The big city is turned into a state of chaos where double crosses and custard pies are rife. Fat Sam and his arch rival Dandy Dan battle for Top Dog status. Meanwhile newcomer Blousey Brown falls into bad company with gangster Fat Sam and his sharp tongued girlfriend Tallulah, when all she wants is fame, fortune and to go to Hollywood. Can Bugsy Malone save the day?

Lee Evans Big - Uk Tour 2008

Miscellaneous Theatre:

Sleeping Beauty on Ice - Blenheim Palace - Imperial Ice Stars Present 'Sleeping Beauty on Ice'. A Big-Top Tent brings this magical ice performance to the Park at Blenheim Palace. Both matinee and evening performances will be available.

For all theatre information, times and dates, click here

This Week's Music Highlights (Fri 08 - Thu 14 August)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 16:22:00 +0000

Friday:

Charivari Agreable: Early Music By Candlelight - The Fayrest Quene - Exeter College Chapel
Tim Lapthorne (piano), Tim Dawes (double bass), Mark Hanslip (tenor sax) - The Old Parsonage
Coo Coo Club presents Jason Ringenberg / Piney Gir / Emit Bloch - Bullingdon Arms
Charity for Accord Hospice with Winchell Riots (acoustic) + The Half Rabbits (acoustic) - Port Mahon
Dodgy + The Candyskins + A Silent Film + Frank Turner - Carling Academy

Saturday:

A Night of African Music - Bullingdon Arms
Dirty Boys presents All-Day Festival - Port Mahon
Rue the Day + Desert Storm - The Wheatsheaf

Sunday:

Coffee Concert: The Rhodes Trio - Adderbury Ensemble
Charivari Agreable: A Sweet Concord - Exeter College Chapel
Andrea Mann (vocals), Tim Dawes (double bass), Dave Newton (piano) - Gee's
The Life of Liszt (Jack Gibbons Piano) - Holywell Music Room
Matt Skelton (drums), Gareth Lockrane (flute), Tim Dawes (double bass), Tim Lapthorne (piano) - Quod
All day festival with Twat Daddies + Black Powder + DJs. etc - Port Mahon

Monday:

Famous Monday Night Blues - featuring Blue Bishops (UK) -
Backroom at the Bully
Carina Round with the Gutter Twins - Carling Academy

Tuesday:

The Oxford Jazz Club featuring The Hugh Turner Band - Backroom at the Bully
Dave Priseman Trio - The Big Bang
Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - Consonanze Stravaganti - Exeter College Chapel

Wednesday:

Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - Singet dem Herrn - Exeter College Chapel
The Life of J.S. Bach ( Jack Gibbons Piano) - Holywell Music Room

Thursday:

A Level Results Party - The Regal
Big Hair presents The Stiff Lips, Joe Allen - The Cellar
Shirley + Chris Lacey & Dan Austin - Jericho Tavern

Get a complete list of Music Events in Oxford: Classical, Gig Guide, Folk, Jazz

What's in the Cinema This Week? (Fri 01 - Thu 07 August)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 10:00:00 +0000

The X-files: I Want to Believe (15) starring David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Amanda Peet, Xzibit. Contains scenes of strong violence and horror. Ending six years ago, the series still plays around world, enthralling millions of viewers. With 3 Golden Globes for best TV series and a movie box office hit in 1998, the franchise has reunited David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson as Mulder and Scully along with other members of the original cast and crew, to bring you the best ever 'X-Files' mystery, directed by the show's original creator Chris Carter.

The Love Guru (12A) starring Mike Myers, Jessica Alba, Justin Timberlake. Contains frequent moderate sex references and moderate language.
A story of Pitka, an American child left in India and raised by guru's. After moving back to America to seek fame and fortune in the land of self help and spirituality, his unorthodox methods are put to the test when he is enlisted to help the love life of an ice hockey star.

Space Chimps (U) starring Jeff Daniels, Stanley Tucci, Patrick Warburton, Cheryl Hines. Contains infrequent mild scary moments. When a space mission is too dangerous, who do you call? Meet Titan, squadron leader and respected by all. Now meet Ham, a goofball group member, together these two chimpanzees will be the ones facing that mission. 'Space Chimps' is brought to you by the team behind 'Shrek' and produced by the man behind 'Men In Black' and 'Wild Wild West'.

There are advanced screenings this Tuesday of Hellboy II: The Golden Army(12A) starring Ron Perlmen, Selma Blair. Contains moderate fantasy violence and infrequent strong language. When an ancient truce between humankind and the invisible realm of the 'fantastic' is broken, it's left to Hellboy with his team of paranormal friends to travel between the two worlds and stop an evil dictator from unleashing his drones and killing all of mankind.

Opening Wednesday is The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor (12A) starring Brendan Fraser, Mario Bello, Jet Li, John Hannah. Contains moderate violence and horror. 'The Mummy' series continues as Rick is set to fight the resurrected Han Emperor (Jet Li) that takes him on an epic journey from the catacombs of ancient China into the deadly Himalayas. Joined by his son Alex, wife Evelyn (Maria Bello) and brother-in-law Jonathan (John Hannah), the O'Connells must stop the 2000 year old mummy before he controls the world in his unending power.

Get showtimes for all the cinemas in Oxford

What's in the Theatres this Week? (Fri 01 - Thu 07 August)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 09:58:00 +0000

Oxford Playhouse:

Creation Theatre Company:

Burton Taylor Theatre:

New Theatre:

College Theatre:

Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare - Wadham College - Lady Olivia is too busy mourning the demise of her brother to notice the young Duke Orsino, even his letters remain un-read. Malvolio, the pompous head steward, is harbouring a bad case of sexual self denial and the maids are being pursued by the debauched uncle, Sir Toby Belch. Into this step the twins, Viola and Sebastian, both capable of arousing infatuation whenever they appear. The trouble is, it's impossible to tell them apart. Twelfth Night is a masterpiece of desire from the unforgettable opening line to the deliciously comic conclusion.

Romeo and Juliet - Queen's College Oxford - Provost's Garden - Shakespeare's classic tale of tragic love, presented in a fresh and powerful new production. Oxford University Dramatic Society's annual tour to Japan kicks off with three gala performances in London before touring to Stratford, Oxford and Tokyo.

Miscellaneous Theatre:

Children's Theatre in the Gardens - Peter Pan - Heartbreak Productions bring their own unique touch to this enduring family classic, telling stories of magical lands, children who can fly, pirates and crocodiles! Join Peter, Wendy and the Lost Boys in our equally magical ornamental gardens - the perfect backdrop for Neverland! Gates open 1 hour before the performance for picnics. No seating is provided so please bring your own picnic chairs or blankets. All tickets are NON-refundable. The performance will go ahead regardless of the weather unless extreme conditions prevail. Waterperry Gardens

For all theatre information, times and dates, click here

This Week's Music Highlights (Fri 01 - Thurs 07 August)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 09:55:00 +0000

Friday:

Simon Lea (drums), Gareth Lockrane (flute), Tim Dawes (double bass), Tim Lapthorne - The Old Parsonage
Oxford Philomusica International Piano Festival: Piano Trio - Holywell Music Room
Charivari Agreable: Early Music By Candlelight - A Sweet Concord - Exeter College Chapel
Ballboy + Stornoway + The Zebras - Exeter Hall
Twelve Signs + Satellite State + Red Valve + Serious Lego Dance Band - Jericho Tavern

Saturday:

Oxford Philomusica International Piano Festival: Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky - Oxford Town Hall, St. Aldates
Summer Concert Series 2008 - Adderbury Ensemble - Holywell Music Room
John Etheridge Guitar - The Spin at the Wheatsheaf
Brainlove Festival - Jericho Tavern
Paige + Blast Stereo Loud + Not Advised + Collisions & Consequences + South Central Heroes - Exeter Hall
The Pete Fryer Band - The Magdalen

Sunday:

Coffee Concert: Adderbury Ensemble - Adderbury Ensemble
Charivari Agreable: Singing in Secret - Exeter College Chapel
Jaqui Hicks (vocals), Tim Dawes (double bass), Tim Lapthorne (piano) - Gee's
Oxford Philomusica International Piano Festival Participants' Recital - Jacqueline Du Pre Music Building
Nic France (drums), Simon Finch (trumpet), Tim Dawes (double bass), Tim Lapthorne (piano) - Quod

Monday:

Famous Monday Night Blues - featuring Big Mama's Door (UK) - Backroom at the Bully
Oxford Philomusica International Piano Festival: Oxford Philomusica/Joanna MacGregor - Mansfield College Chapel

Tuesday:

The Oxford Jazz Club featuring The Hugh Turner Band - Backroom at the Bully
Tim Wilson Trio - The Big Bang
Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - The Three Countertenors - Exeter College Chapel
Oxford Philomusica International Piano Festival: Andras Schiff Piano Recital - Christ Church Cathedral

Wednesday:

Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - Singet dem Herrn - Exeter College Chapel
303 Did This To Me + I Am Thieves + Mewgatz - The Wheatsheaf
Owen Tromans + The Black Hats + The Deputees - Exeter Hall

Thursday:

Little Fish + The Family Machine + Baby Gravy - Thirst Lodge
The Stanley Blacks + The Scarletts + Kango Bill + John Peacock - Jericho Tavern

Get a complete list of Music Events in Oxford: Classical, Gig Guide, Folk, Jazz

'La Dolce Vita' Opera Cruise on the River Thames

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 06:21:00 +0000

Bringing a touch of Venice to Oxford with the "Opera Cruise", Opera Anywhere's finest singers host intimate 2 hour cruises, either on a 12 seater boat or a 6 seater punt. The cruise includes a performance of popular arias whilst guests are encouraged to picnic on the boat followed by strawberries and cream served up by the captain. From $65/pp on the 12-seater cruiser with canopy or £35/pp on a 6 seater punt.

3pm and 7pm

For bookings and information visit operaanywhere.com or call 01865 735910

Western Civ 101

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 06:14:00 +0000

Grand Tour
Western Civ 101
It hasn't always been just but, come on, tea time and a Keeper of the Paintings?
By Paula Marantz Cohen

I’ve just returned from Oxford, England, where everything is twice as expensive as it is here, where the weather is crappy and most of the food tastes like boiled cardboard. That said, I still want to take a room in one of those lopsided little houses built in the 12th century and stay for the rest of my life. It’s something I’ve felt fleetingly during previous visits to Europe, but, this time, the feeling was more pronounced. At Oxford, I had the sense of being truly in Western Civilization, with the added poignancy that this might be a last and dying outpost.

As everyone knows, Western civilization has its faults — which I will return to discuss later — but it’s hard to think ill of it when you stride through the cobbled streets of Oxford. There you are in the midst of a good-sized city, interpenetrated with the vast and variegated structures of an ancient university: some 40 self-contained colleges, each with its own unique architectural style and grassy quadrangle, its own library and its own dining hall. Each undergraduate college houses about 350 students who for three years immerse themselves in one subject and meet regularly with an assigned tutor. It is a setting and an atmosphere conducive to the development of intellectual rigor and gentle camaraderie. Venerable but not fusty, privileged but not showy, secure in its sense of excellence, but not arrogant, Oxford is, in a word, civilized. The cobbled walks, the placid quads, the soft tolling bells, the hushed interiors of the Ashmolean Museum and the Bodleian Library all seem the antithesis of everything ugly, vulgar, and mean.

Yet during a tour of the Bodleian Library we learned that Henry VIII’s son, Edward VI, seeking to enforce his father’s new Anglican Church, ordered all Catholic manuscripts burned, and that there was a great bonfire outside this beautiful edifice. How could an act of such barbaric destruction be reconciled with such a civilized place?

Somehow it could. After all, an entire nation was converted in a stroke from one religion to another, its massive prelature revamped down to the last monk through the whim of its monarch. The point being: It did not fall apart but continued doing the same essential work as before. That’s civilization for you. It carries on in the face of even the most seemingly dislocating effects. Lop off the right hand and the civilized person learns to write with the left.

As I thought more, it occurred to me that Western Civilization is not, as one might imagine, defined by progress, even though many of its effects involve improvement and development on what came before. Neither is it regressive, though its effects may well be the study and sometimes obsessive preservation of the past. It is mostly about the maintenance of order in the present. Western Civilization remains attached to manners, customs, ideas, and institutions for the reason that they give meaning and structure to life as it is lived. Thus, one sees the students of Oxford striding about the city in black ceremonial robes, worn because this has been the custom during final exams for centuries and because the customs lends dignity and stature to the mundane act of taking a test. You would think that on a warm summer day, robes would be discarded in favor of Bermuda shorts. But no — it is a mark of being civilized to put ennobling custom ahead of creature comfort.

An alumni list for Oxford University and its more bucolic twin, Cambridge, is a Who’s Who of the big guns of Western Civilization: heads of state and regal sovereigns, captains of industry and science, the flowers of literature. Up through the 19th century, the two schools split the luminaries of Western culture between them. Wandering the streets, one can’t help imagine Donne musing under that tree, Shelley ruminating along that walk, Wilde scribbling here, Auden or Eliot there. The very air seems infused with the Great Tradition.

At one point during our stay, we went into Corpus Christi College to see a painting that a friend had donated to the college. We were taken through the ancient rooms by a professor of Classics who held the additional title of “Keeper of the Paintings.” Think of it: a Keeper of the Paintings. The title implies first that there are paintings to be kept; then, that they are to be kept in a certain way: kept clean, well lighted, catalogued. To put a faculty member in such a role suggests that the intellectual life of the college is bound up with its material life. One wonders if there is also a Keeper of the Furniture, and even a Keeper of the Silverware and China, since these items are also necessary to the material well-being of the college, and require informed maintenance.

The painting we had come to see had been hung in a room called the Founder’s Lounge, which contained a large oak table, set on the day we visited with 15 place settings. It seems that this was Open Day, when high school students come to visit, accompanied by their high school teachers. The teachers have tea with the college tutors in this room.

The whole arrangement seemed much more — well, civilized — than the American version of the college visit when prospective students schlep around the campus accompanied by a ragtag assortment of rowdy younger siblings and frazzled, clueless parents. Nothing could be more remote from the carnival air of the American college tour than bringing one’s high school teacher to meet with one’s potential college professor for tea in a private room overseen by the Keeper of the Paintings.

As for the taking of tea, it too pertains to a larger, more civilized idea. We Americans grab a donut or a bag of Fritos to stave off hunger pangs until dinner, but tea is something else and sating hunger is the least of it. At both Oriel and Wadham Colleges, where I took some of my meals, tea was one of the established meals of the day, and it wasn’t about food but about form. There were the cups and saucers, the teapot, the plates, the little spoons and forks. There was a great deal of pouring, stirring, picking up and putting down. In the midst of all this, the dry scone was an afterthought — almost required not to be very good.

What is gained by such a labor-intensive, content-light ritual? The answer, in part, lies in the talk that occurs over the clatter of cups and saucers — a way of making a connection with others without having to try too hard. But more important than what happens during tea is what doesn’t happen. The ceremony is a way of resting the mind and the spirit, taking a break from active exertion and strenuous thought. One isn’t pushing through a hostile takeover when one is obliged to pour a bit of cream into a cup and finger a stale sandwich. By the same token, one isn’t fighting an inequitable law either. This may be why Western Civilization has tended to be slow to enact social reform — all that time maneuvering lumps of sugar with little silver tongs into little teacups has a way of distracting the mind from weightier issues.

At this point, I am brought up short and must recall the bigotry and exclusionary practices of Western Civilization: how Oxford, until recently, was the precinct of white male members of the Church of England. All the rest of us — women and minorities — had no place, or rather, had a place only downstairs in the kitchen or the servants’ quarters. In the old days, the Oxford dons would sit in the Founder’s Lounge that I visited with the Keeper of the Paintings, read their newspapers, and drop them on the floor, knowing the papers would be picked up by one of the faceless workers employed for the purpose. Unlike the Keeper of the Paintings, the Picker up of the Newspapers, like the Maker of the Beds and the Cleaner of the Toilets, had no stake in the life of the University.

Once one gets started, it is easy to continue thinking about the injustices perpetrated by Western Civilization on those outside of it. Shakespeare must have had such thoughts when he wrote The Tempest, and imagined how it might feel to be one of the indigenous peoples lately undergoing colonization by his country. “You taught me language, and my profit on’t/ Is I know how to curse,” growls Caliban, native of the island where Prospero, a sort of Oxford don, sought to make him over in his own image. Western Civilization has bullied and brainwashed the populations under its sway to adopt its way of being, and where it hasn’t succeeded, it has created a vast army of Calibans, adept at Western-style cursing.

The response to such criticism is to say that it is the attribute of Western Civilization to gradually incorporate greater tolerance and awareness into itself and, hence, to rectify inequities, if slowly and in piece-meal fashion. One of the virtues of tea time is that it allows for leisurely, unencumbered thought. Eventually, big ideas and larger perspectives begin to impinge. With enough time, the takers of tea begin to see how unjust and exclusionary they are. Oxford remains a bastion of privilege, but there are now outreach efforts underway to create a more integrated and diverse population. In a place like this, change takes time but change does happen. The question is: Can Western Civilization survive this desultory pace — letting ideas take shape slowly and deliberately over the clatter of teacups?

As one walks along the cobbled paths of Oxford, gazes up at the gothic spires, and watches the students, their robes flapping, one realizes how different Western Civilization is from the crass vigor of American enterprise and reform. Of course, American civilization is part of Western Civilization — it is its extrapolation into the present. But this extrapolation is such that it seems less an extension than a mutation of what came before. We see this in the Starbucks franchises that have settled in next to the quirky pubs and teahouses. The coffee is excellent, but there are no surprises here, no deviations from the standardized fare, no esthetic flights of fancy in the décor. Go in one and you could just as well be in New Jersey. The same can be said for the garish brochures that the colleges have begun to produce in an effort to emulate American promotional techniques. The college wardens say these brochures are a necessary part of a larger fund-raising effort: The buildings at Oxford are old and require expensive renovation and upkeep; you’d be surprised how little an 800 year endowment brings in without a professional apparatus to help out.

Western Civilization sought to turn everything into its own image. American civilization, in the form of globalization, does the same thing, only that image is standardized and vulgar, not refined and esthetically appealing. In voicing this sort of distinction, I may be indulging in sentimental nostalgia. Indeed, I know I am. But that’s what a week at Oxford can do. It can make you feel attached to leisurely rhythms, off-kilter structures, and impractical ceremonies. It can make you fall in love with beauty.

The triumph of globalization may preserve Oxford as an architectural marvel, but it may not save the University. On the contrary, it is likely to destroy it by turning the Keeper of the Paintings into a standardized item like a tall mocha latte. This outpost of Western civilization, which survived book-burning in the 16thcentury, may not survive American marketing in the 21st.

Until the end comes, however, I am content to walk the cobbled streets, wander the ancient corridors, and pause to take my tea in one of the ornate, high-ceilinged rooms that, admittedly, need a new roof and a better heating system. • 18 July 2008

Paula Marantz Cohen is Distinguished Professor of English at Drexel University. She is author of the bestselling novels Jane Austen in Boca, Much Ado About Jessie Kaplan, and Jane Austen in Scarsdale or Love, Death, and the SATs. Her essays and stories have appeared in The Yale Review, The American Scholar, The Hudson Review, the Times Literary Supplement, and other publications. She can be reached at cohenpm@drexel.edu.

What's in the Cinemas This Week? (Fri 17 - Thu 24 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:31:00 +0000

WALL-E (U) starring Fred Willard, Jeff Garlin. Contains very mild threat and violence. Wall-E (Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth-Class) discovers a new purpose in life when he meets a sleek search robot named EVE. EVE comes to realize that WALL-E has inadvertently stumbled upon the key to the planet's future, and races back to space to report her findings to the humans (who have been eagerly awaiting word that it is safe to return home). Meanwhile, WALL-E chases EVE across the galaxy and sets into motion one of the most exciting and imaginative comedy adventures ever brought to the big screen. WALL-E is brought to you by Disney Pixar - the team who created masterpieces like The Incredibles, Finding Nemo, Cars and last year's blockbuster Ratatouille.

A Complete History of My Sexual Failures (18) starring Chris Waitt. The first feature from innovative production company WarpX, A Complete History of My Sexual Failures premiered to sell-out crowds and rave reviews at the Sundance Film Festival. A fly-on-the-wall documentary, this seriously low-budget gem follows bumbling independent filmmaker Chris Waitt as he attempts to interview his ex-girlfriends to find out why they dumped him. This revealing and humorous documentary sees the slacker filmmaker go on a sexual and emotional odyssey in a desperate quest to solve his innumerable problems. Hysterical, heartbreaking, sickening and sad, this is a film of audacity and originality.

Donkey Punch (18) starring Jaime Winstone, Tom Burke, Julian Morris, Robert Boulter. When a trio of girls are out in a nightclub, they quickly hook up with three seemingly friendly guys who invite them to a smaller party on their private yacht. After an orgy of sex and drugs, tragedy strikes when there's a grave accident and the young revellers are split on how to properly deal with the predicament.

Advanced screenings are showing this week of The Dark Knight (12A) starring Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine. Contains moderate violence and sustained threat. 'The Dark Knight' follows on from 'Batman Begins' seeing Bruce Wayne's alter ego taking to the streets and one by one putting the bad guys behind bars while making Gotham a safer place. But there's a new criminal in town with every intention of ruining Batman's crusade and bringing the city under his own control. The Joker's psychotic insanity spreads fear across the city, rallying an army of followers to join his campaign and kill Batman in the process.

Get showtimes for all the cinemas in Oxford

What's in the Theatres this Week? (Fri 18 - Thu 24 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:29:00 +0000

Oxford Playhouse:

Topless Mum - A topical satire on tabloid journalism - how far can the story be spun to stop the real truth leaking out?

Gervase Phinn - With his keen ear for the absurd and sharp eye for the ludicrous, Gervase Phinn has delighted audiences all over the UK with his hilarious tales of life as a schools inspector in the Yorkshire Dales.

Rafael and Friends - An evening of raw energy, passion and dance Following his previous sell out performances at the Playhouse, internationally renowned flamenco guitarist Rafael is back and pushing the boundaries of this passionate art form. Rafael's unique yet instantly recognisable sound will combine with exquisite performances from his special guests Domingo Patricio and Rafael de Utrera to bring audiences a night of passion and virtuosity.

Have You Had It Long Madam? - Join Hilary Kay and Paul Atterbury for their tales from the Antiques Roadshow

Creation Theatre Company:

Burton Taylor Studio:

Little Red Hen - A Stuff & Nonsense Theatre production with Salisbury Playhouse Down on the farm all seems quiet and peaceful, Cow is chewing the cud, Pig is snoozing in the sun and Rat is munching on a piece of cheese. The only animal moving in the whole farmyard is Little Red Hen.She's just found a grain of wheat and she's got a plan... Stuff and Nonsense tell the classic tale of Little Red Hen using beautiful puppets, story-telling and original music. Meet the cast and puppets after the show.

New Theatre:

k d lang - k.d.'s latest album is the acclaimed bestseller, Watershed, which was released by Nonesuch Records in January and saw k.d. achieve some of the best chart success of her 25-year career, including her highest ever debut on the US Billboard chart at no.8.

PegasusTheatre:

Rangoli - Rangoli (meaning colourful) is a showcase performance by students, staff and professional artists displaying the vibrant traditions of Asian dance. The evening will be a mixture of traditional and classic as well as Indian folk and contemporary dance styles.

College Theatre:

She Stoops to Conquer - OU Newman Rooms - She Stoops To Conquer or "The Mistakes of a Night": An arranged marriage, a tongue-tied rogue, and a girl who is certainly not a barmaid... Wealthy young buck Charles Marlow is sent by his father to woo Kate Hardcastle, a girl he has never met. He takes with him his college friend George Hastings, who happens to be in love with Kate's cousin Constance. When Kate's stepbrother, Tony Lumpkin, manages to convince these two visitors that their destination, the Hardcastle's house, is in fact an inn, chaos ensues. Charles, unable to woo Kate as herself due to his terrible reserve amongst women of quality, becomes a lecherous rogue when he is duped into believing that she is the barmaid. Kate continues in this masquerade and eventually learns the true nature of her suitor's affection.

As You Like It - Trinity College Gardens, Parks Road - As You Like It is not perhaps so well known as some of Shakespeare's works, yet it includes some of his most memorable poetry and songs. Jacques' recounting of the seven ages of man (All the world's a stage) and the banished Duke's rumination on life in its natural state (Sweet are the uses of adversity) are just two that spring to mind. With banished Dukes, cross-dressing female lead, bawdy wenches, a motley fool and a dubious clergyman, all the ingredients are there for classic Shakespeare comedy. The bucolic setting of the play sits harmoniously in an Oxford college garden to make for an evening of warm entertainment and dry wit - so it can't possibly be another cold, wet summer.

Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare - Wadham College - Lady Olivia is too busy mourning the demise of her brother to notice the young Duke Orsino, even his letters remain un-read. Malvolio, the pompous head steward, is harbouring a bad case of sexual self denial and the maids are being pursued by the debauched uncle, Sir Toby Belch. Into this step the twins, Viola and Sebastian, both capable of arousing infatuation whenever they appear. The trouble is, it's impossible to tell them apart. Twelfth Night is a masterpiece of desire from the unforgettable opening line to the deliciously comic conclusion.

North Wall Arts Centre:

Romeo and Juliet - Romeo and Juliet is a story which speaks to all times, all ages and all cultures. This production brings to life Shakespeare`s exquisitely lyrical text and the heart that beats beneath it.

For all theatre information, times and dates, click here

This Week's Music Highlights (Fri 18 - Thurs 24 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:28:00 +0000

Friday:

Cello And Piano Recital - Holywell Music Room
Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - Consonanze Stravaganti - Exeter College Chapel, Turl St.
Songs for Mary - Hertford College Chapel
Jazz Dinner Concert with the John Hoare Trio - Brookes Restaurant
Martin Shaw (trumpet) Graham Harvey (piano) Tim Dawes (double bass) - The Old Parsonage
College Green Dissidents + The Brentflood + Cafe Racers + Trawlers - Jericho Tavern
Truck Festival Warm Up Gig - Backroom at the Bully

Saturday:

Prokofiev War Sonatas - Magdalen College Auditorium
Concert of sacred and secular music - Brixi Singers - Merton College Chapel

Sunday:

Coffee Concert: Lawrence Power & Huw Watkins - Adderbury Ensemble
Cushion Concert- Jacqueline du Pre Music Building
The Life of Gershwin (Jack Gibbons Piano) - Holywell Music Room
Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - The Three Countertenors - Exeter College Chapel
Jaqui Hicks (vocals) Tim Lapthorne (piano), Tim Dawes (double bass) - Gee's
Truck Festival - Hill Farm, Steventon

Monday:

Famous Monday Night Blues - featuring the Larry Miller Band (UK) -
Backroom at the Bully

Tuesday:

The Oxford Jazz Club featuring Alvin Roy's Reeds Unlimited- Backroom at the Bully
Sophie Garner Trio - The Big Bang
Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - Singet dem Herrn - Exeter College Chapel
Adderbury Ensemble - The North Wall

Wednesday:

Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - O Dulcis Jesu - Exeter College Chapel
kd lang - New Theatre

Thursday:

Daryl Jahnke Guitar- The Spin at the Wheatsheaf
Blossom Street Singers - Hertford College Chapel
Echo Boomer + Dead Spies + Ute - Jericho Tavern

Get a complete list of Music Events in Oxford: Classical, Gig Guide, Folk, Jazz

What's in the Cinemas This Week? (Fri 11 - Thu 17 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 14:49:00 +0000

Journey to the Center of the Earth (PG) starring Brenden Fraser, Josh Hutcherson. Contains intense adventure action and some scary scenes. Journey to the Center of the Earth stars Brendan Fraser as a science professor whose untraditional hypotheses have made him the laughing stock of the academic community. But on an expedition in Iceland, he and his nephew stumble upon a major discovery that launches them on a thrilling journey deep beneath the Earth's surface, where they travel through never-before-seen worlds and encounter a variety of unusual creatures.

The Visitor (15) starring Hiam Abbas, Danai Gurira, Richard Jenkins, Haaz Sleiman. In Thomas McCarthy's follow-up to his award-winning debut THE STATION AGENT, Richard Jenkins (Six Feet Under) stars as widower Walter Vale who discovers that a young immigrant couple, Tarek (Sleiman) and Zainab (Gurira), have been scammed into illegally renting his vacant flat in New York City. Walter agrees to let them stay until they find a place and soon Walter and Tarek form a friendship. When Tarek is confined to a detention centre, and his mother arrives in search of him, Walter's emotional commitment to Tarek's case is sealed. As the four people struggle to deal with the stark realities of the US immigration system and their own individual lives, their shared humanity is revealed in awkward, humorous and dramatic ways.

Meet Dave (PG) starring Eddie Murphy, Elizabeth Banks. Contains mild language, violence, toilet humour and scary moments. 'Meet Dave', he's a nice guy, nothing unusual to report, only that Dave is no ordinary person. A race of tiny humanoid aliens have landed on earth, and their "spaceship" of sorts is a 6ft human representation of their leader - Dave. Soon the Aliens have to discover what world Earth is and if they can integrate their society with average human beings.

Get showtimes for all the cinemas in Oxford

What's in the Theatres this Week? (Fri 11 - Thu 17 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 14:47:00 +0000

Oxford Playhouse:

Kit and the Widow - With fifty years apiece, this leading piano-and-voice-based lounge act may well be in their prime. Almost unbelievably (until you see what they look like now) their unbroken stand at the crease has lasted 30 years! Touring internationally over the last three years as support for stand up Joan Rivers, they are delighted to have sloughed her off for long enough to mount their own tour. Kit's adored contributions on Radio 4's Just A Minute are always a pleasure but only offer a modest stipend, and The Widow's involvement in Alan Bennett's The History Boys is just about milked dry, hence the tour!

Topless Mum - A topical satire on tabloid journalism - how far can the story be spun to stop the real truth leaking out?

Creation Theatre Company:

Old Fire Station:

Moby Dick! - Performed by Sands Theatre Arts School. The highly comic, satirical romp through this age-old mariner's tale that ensues proves to be a world of endless, funny dialogue and wonderful, pastiche-y company numbers.

Burton Taylor Studio:

Little Hippo and His Magic Pen - For his birthday Little Hippo received lots of beautiful presents, his favourite a special red pen from Daddy Hippo. Inside the red pen are the most beautiful things in the world, but how to get them out? Based on the story Petit Hippo et son Stylo Magique, by West African writer Alain Serge Dzotap, Tam Tam Theatre brings you their interactive version of this enchanting tale where the very young are invited to make their own use of Little Hippo's pen. Age 2-5 years

Little Red Hen - A Stuff & Nonsense Theatre production with Salisbury Playhouse Down on the farm all seems quiet and peaceful, Cow is chewing the cud, Pig is snoozing in the sun and Rat is munching on a piece of cheese. The only animal moving in the whole farmyard is Little Red Hen.She's just found a grain of wheat and she's got a plan… Stuff and Nonsense tell the classic tale of Little Red Hen using beautiful puppets, story-telling and original music. Meet the cast and puppets after the show.

New Theatre:

College Theatre:

She Stoops to Conquer - OU Newman Rooms - She Stoops To Conquer or "The Mistakes of a Night": An arranged marriage, a tongue-tied rogue, and a girl who is certainly not a barmaid… Wealthy young buck Charles Marlow is sent by his father to woo Kate Hardcastle, a girl he has never met. He takes with him his college friend George Hastings, who happens to be in love with Kate's cousin Constance. When Kate's stepbrother, Tony Lumpkin, manages to convince these two visitors that their destination, the Hardcastle's house, is in fact an inn, chaos ensues. Charles, unable to woo Kate as herself due to his terrible reserve amongst women of quality, becomes a lecherous rogue when he is duped into believing that she is the barmaid. Kate continues in this masquerade and eventually learns the true nature of her suitor's affection.

North Wall Arts Centre:

Shoot/Get Treasure/Repeat - Paines Plough presents a selection from Mark Ravenhill`s new epic play cycle Shoot/Get Treasure/Repeat. Each 20 minute play takes its title from a classic work. Seen together they form a collage of astute, witty scenes exploring the personal and political effect of war on modern life. "Fragments, individual moments, that capture our urge to bring our model of freedom and democracy to the world" (Mark Ravenhill). An extraordinary ensemble of actors encapsulate these mini-masterpieces.

Paul Tonkinson - My Anti-Midlife Crisis - Witness Tonks doing what he does best, live stand-up. Gasp as he survives the terror of modern living. Delight as he dances with intriguing issues, such as, `What is a no-bread sandwich?` Wince, as he unravels live on TV during a pro-celebrity football match. And cheer when he finally finds happiness.

A Portrait of Shazia Mirza - As seen on F*** Off I`m A Hairy woman and Miss Real World (BBC), Have I Got News For You (BBC), World Stands UP (Paramount), 60Mins (CBS). Voted one of the 100 Greatest Stand Ups. Award nominated columnist for New Statesman.

Play Reading: The Count of Monte Cristo by Joel Horwood - Edmund Dantes is looking pretty: young, in love and newly promoted Captain of his own ship! But when greed and envy conspire to throw him into a lifetime of jail for a crime he didn`t commit, all seems lost. Facing an eternity of darkness and solitude, Dantes must dig deep to find the strength to escape and seek his revenge - he must find new steel within his soul - he must become The Count of Monte Cristo. A fast-paced, swashbuckling new version by writer Joel Horwood (Mikey the Pikey, Food) amd director Alan Lane (artistic director, Slung Low).

Nick Webber and Archangel - Nick Webber started playing the piano from the moment he was allowed to as a boy and has written scores for many award-winning short films. Archangel began as a pet project. Stripped down, grandiose, pathos-fuelled, piano-driven songs were recorded for debut album `How To Lose Your Best Friend`, due for release this Autumn and already heard on Radio 1 and MTV2.

For all theatre information, times and dates, click here

This Week's Music Highlights (Fri 11 - Thu 17 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 14:45:00 +0000

Friday:

Opera For Midsummer - Jacqueline du Pre Music Building
Acoustic Improvisation: Voice - St Barnabas Church
Mark Hanslip (sax) with Tim Lapthorne (piano), Tim Dawes (double bass) - Old Parsonage
14Ten - Jericho Tavern
The Shaker Heights + Freakishly Long Mirrors - The Wheatsheaf

Saturday:

Romantic Vienna: a Schubertiad - University Church of St. Mary the Virgin
Sonic Bob + Mondo Cada + Mr Shaodow - The Cellar

Sunday:

Coffee Concert: David Lepage (Violin) - Adderbury Ensemble
Cushion Concert- Jacqueline du Pre Music Building
The Life of Beethoven (Jack Gibbons Piano) - Holywell Music Room
Jasmin Nelson (vocals) Tim Lapthorne (piano), Tim Dawes (double bass) - Gees
We Are The Ocean - Carling Academy

Monday:

Famous Monday Night Blues - featuring Primo Blues Band (UK) -
Backroom at the Bully
Camerata Lacunensis - Jacqueline du Pre Music Building

Tuesday:

The Oxford Jazz Club featuring The Howard Peacock Quintet - Backroom at the Bully
Emma Blake Trio - The Big Bang
Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - The Fayrest Quene - Exeter College Chapel, Turl St.
Mugison - Carling Academy

Wednesday:

Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - O Dulcis Jesu - Exeter College Chapel, Turl St.
Jaimeson + HPR + Midnight Drive + The Youngs Plan - The Wheatsheaf
Global Icon Night - Jericho Tavern

Thursday:

Dylan Howe Band - The Spin at the Wheatsheaf
We Aeronauts + Script + No Despair - Jericho Tavern

Get a complete list of Music Events in Oxford: Classical, Gig Guide, Folk, Jazz

What's in the Cinemas This Week? (Fri 04 - Thu 10 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 09:22:00 +0000

This Wednesday and Thursday there are advanced screenings of Forbidden Kingdom (12A) starring Jackie Chan, Jet Li. Contains frequent moderate violence. In 'Forbidden Kingdom', American, Kung Fu-obsessed teenager Jason (Michael Angarano), finds an antique Chinese staff in a pawn shop. This turns out to be the legendary stick weapon of the Chinese sage and warrior, the Monkey King (Jet Li). With the lost relic in hand, Jason unexpectedly finds himself transported back to ancient China. There, he meets the drunken Kung Fu master, Lu Yan (Jackie Chan); an enigmatic and skillful Silent Monk (Jet Li); who leads him on his quest to return the staff to its rightful owner, the Monkey King. While attempting to outmaneuver scores of Jade Warriors, Cult Killers and the deadly White Hair Demoness, Ni Chang (Li Bing Bing), Jason learns about honor, loyalty and friendship, and the true meaning of Kung Fu, and thus frees himself.

Mamma Mia! (PG) starring Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth opens in limited release on Thursday the 10th. Contains mild language and sexual references. 'Mamma Mia' is the story of Donna (Streep) who is about to attend the wedding of Sophie (Amanda Seyfried), the spirited daughter she's raised alone. For Sophie's wedding, Donna has invited her two lifelong best girlfriends - practical and no-nonsense Rosie (Julie Walters) and wealthy, multi-divorcee Tanya (Christine Baranski) - from her one-time backing band, Donna and the Dynamos. But Sophie has secretly invited three guests of her own. Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgård, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, Amanda Seyfried and Dominic Cooper join Streep in this celebration of a mother, a daughter and three possible dads.

Kung Fu Panda is now in wide release and showing at Odeon George Street and The Vue Cinema.

Get showtimes for all the cinemas in Oxford

What's in the Theatres this Week? (Fri 04 - Thu 10 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 09:20:00 +0000

Oxford Playhouse:

And Then There Were None - Set on a remote island off the coast of Devon, Agatha Christie's own stage adaptation of this dark and captivating tale will thrill and enthral.

Andy Zaltzman and Dan Atkinson's Edinburgh Preview
- Andy Zaltzman boldly unbuttons the cloak of civilisation... Dan Atkinson flicks two fingers to the man....

Creation Theatre Company:

Old Fire Station:

Burton Taylor Studio:

Meco Film Festival 2008 - Showing this week will be Mutluluk (Bliss), Rana's Wedding, Moolaade, Offside, Yasmin. For details of the films and showtimes, please visit Oxford City Guide

New Theatre:

Hucknall - Tribute To Bobby - This summer Mick will release his first solo project under his own name rather than as Simply Red. The first album will be 'Hucknall: Tribute to Bobby' - Bobby being American singer Bobby Bland who released a lot of material in the 50's and 60's and had a big influence on a young Hucknall.

An Evening with Pentangle - Exactly 40 years to the day that unique British folk/jazz 'supergroup' Pentangle recorded the live disc of their seminal double album, Sweet Child, at London's Royal Festival Hall, the original band: Bert Jansch, John Renbourn, Jacqui McShee, Danny Thompson and Terry Cox are tour the UK this Summer.

Pegasus Theatre:

ten thousand things - The Ten Thousand Things - a movement and visual theatre work-in-progress by new performance company, WrongPearls. The Ten Thousand Things is another name for the world, the cosmos and everything in it. Come and help us build a world with ten thousand stones. The performers will then play amidst the stones, their actions and movements leaving traces in the patterns of the stone world.

Headington Theatre:

HSO with MCS present Bugsy Malone - This timeless classic is set in the shady world of 1920's Prohibition America. The world of the speakeasy, reckless living, and the never-ending pursuit of the American Dream. The town is controlled by the infamous Fat Sam and his gang of hapless mobsters until one day the sophisticated Dandy Dab discovers a new technology the will allow him to finally gain the upper hand. Caught up in the ensuring turf war are the smooth talking Bugsy and the undiscovered starlet Blousey full ofHollywood dreams, struggling to survive in the toughest of times.

North Wall Arts Centre:

50 Ways to Leave Your Lover - "I need space"..."Let's take a break"..."It's not you, it's me." There are a million ways to tell someone it's over. A crazy cocktail of characters and stories, 50 Ways to Leave your Lover explores every aspect of 'the break up' whether hilarious, heart breaking or just plain ridiculous. Created by five of The Bush's hottest young writers and inspired by true break-up stories contributed by its audience, it will strike a chord with anyone who's ever loved and left. Get two for one tickets when you quote 'Oxford City Guide' while ordering

Jackajack - A post-apocalyptic fairy tale, created by award-winning storytellers, TuckedIn. Jackajack is a piece of children's theatre for ages 6+.

Chris Cox: Control Freak - 2007 Sell-out and award-winning mind reader who can't read minds is back - reading minds. "Very funny" Time Out.

Powershow - Joyous hybrid of sketches, stand up, music and wonder.

Sympathy for the Devil: Markus Birdman - Fundamentalist Christians don't believe in evolution! Mind you, we still can't believe it's not butter. Despite 2007's Edinburgh Festival sell-out 'Son of a Preacherman' show, Dad's still a vicar and I'm still an atheist. Thank God no Christians were harmed making this show. Sorry. But I did injure a cat.

Rhod Gilbert and the Award-Winning Mince Pie - Multi award-winning Welsh misery and award-winning mince pie collaborate at last. Star of 'Mock The Week', 'Never Mind the Buzzcocks' and BBC Radio Wales.

Tony! The Blair Musical - He's back- and this time it's governmental. If you missed the sell out smash that was Tony! The Blair Musical in 2007, then here's your chance to catch Chris Bush and Ian McCluskey's award-winning show all over again, starring Blair, Bush, Brown and the now infamous Barbershop Quartet of defeated Tory leaders ('an absolutely five star moment' The Times).

Tony of Arabia - Gone but not forgotten -Tony has left the band, but he's still got the music. One country was never enough, and now he's taking on the world. Meanwhile Gordon battles the Tories back home, George W. gets lost in the desert and US primaries inspire Cherie to her true calling: to stand for office. From the team behind Tony! The Blair Musical comes an ongoing saga of one man's battle with destiny.

Chris Neill's got a bun in the oven - Fewer F-words than Gordon, slimmer hips than Nigella, more pukka than Jamie. Sadly, not as good a cook as any of them... Funnier though. But you judge that. You might even get something to eat...

Infinite Lives by Chris Goode - 'Infinite Lives' tells the story of a thirty-something man who quits his job to take some time out and write a gay sci-fi novel. But working from home, and becoming increasingly dependent on internet porn for his connection with the outside world, forces him to confront some painful truths... and some very big numbers.

Play Reading: The Woodcutter's Tale by Orlando Wells - The Woodcutter's son returns with his lover and their unborn child to his family home in the mountains. It's a homecoming, but not what's expected. The secrets of his family's dark past will be revealed, and family bonds tested to their limit. Part gothic fable, part modern parable, this is a tale of love loss and the facing of our deepest fears.

Play Reading: Kurt and Sid by Roy Smiles - April 1994. Kurt Cobain is about to pull the trigger that will end his life when in walks Sid Vicious, which is impressive considering he's been dead for 15 years. Is he a fake, a ghost of a figment of Kurt's death wish imagination? A funny touching play by the author 'Ying Tong and the Year of The Rat'. Presented in association with the West Yorkshire Playhouse.

College Theatre:

Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare - Wadham College - Lady Olivia is too busy mourning the demise of her brother to notice the young Duke Orsino, even his letters remain un-read. Malvolio, the pompous head steward, is harbouring a bad case of sexual self denial and the maids are being pursued by the debauched uncle, Sir Toby Belch. Into this step the twins, Viola and Sebastian, both capable of arousing infatuation whenever they appear. The trouble is, it's impossible to tell them apart. Twelfth Night is a masterpiece of desire from the unforgettable opening line to the deliciously comic conclusion.

Miscellaneous Theatre:

Shakespeare in the Garden - Much Ado About Nothing - Enjoy one of Shakespeare's best-loved plays being given the unique Oddsocks treatment at Waterperry. Much Ado About Nothing will be performed against the beautiful backdrop of our ornamental garden - a perfect evening for the whole family. (Suitable for children aged 8+) Waterperry Gardens

England - Performed by Tim Crouch and Hannah Ringham. England is the story of a search for a new heart. It's a tour through spaces and across borders: from an art gallery to a jam factory, from London to Osaka, from a hospital bed to a hotel room. It's a tour to the end of the world. This critically acclaimed promenade performance is both intimate and thought-provoking. The play will take place in Modern Art Oxford against the backdrop of the Gary Hume exhibition.

For all theatre information, times and dates, click here

This Week's Music Highlights (Fri 04 - Thurs 10 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 09:18:00 +0000

Friday:

Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - The Fayrest Quene - Exeter College Chapel, Turl St.

The Original Rabbit Foot Spasm Band - The Anchor, Hayfield Rd

Dave Newton trio (piano led trio) - The Old Parsonage

The Epstein - Crown House Club

South Central Heroes + The Intervals + Sound Connection + Ms Monroe - Jericho Tavern

Saturday:

Die Schone Mullerin - St Margarets Church, St Margarets Road

Meridian - Jacqueline du Pre Music Building

Cornbury Festival

Melting Pot with The Talks + Semaphore + Shirley + Tim Mathews - Jericho Tavern

Sunday:

Coffee Concert: David Lepage (Violin) - Holywell Music Room

Brigitte Berach (vocals) Tim Lapthorne (piano), Tim Dawes (double bass) - Gee's

Corsano/Bevan/Lash - The Wheatsheaf

Cornbury Festival

Carnival After-Show Party - The Regal

Monday:

Famous Monday Night Blues - featuring Joanne Shaw-Taylor Band (UK) - Backroom at the Bully

Yngwie Malmsteen - Carling Academy

National Youth Jazz Orchestra - North Wall

O Duo: Percussion duo Oliver Cox and Owen Gunnell - North Wall

Tuesday:

The Oxford Jazz Club featuring The Howard Peacock Quintet - Backroom at the Bully

Lucy Wendon Quartet - The Big Bang

International Guitar Foundation: Goya - Holywell Music Room

Charivari Agreable: Early Music by Candlelight - French Suites - Exeter College Chapel, Turl St.

Cantamus: 'Mystery and Magic' - North Wall

Wednesday:

Wingates Brass Band - North Wall

Thursday:

Deirdre Cartwright Group - The Spin at the Wheatsheaf

Concert: Evelyn Tubb with Michael Fields and Daphne Clark - Holywell Music Room

Charivari Agreable: Early Music By Candlelight - A Sweet Concord - Exeter College Chapel, Turl St.

Get a complete list of Music Events in Oxford: Classical, Gig Guide, Folk, Jazz

What's in the Cinemas This Week? (Fri 27 June - Thu 03 July)

noreply@blogger.com (Oxford City Guide) — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 10:04:00 +0000

The Edge of Love (15) starring Sienna Miller, Matthew Rhys, Cillian Murphy, Keira Knightley. Contains strong language and bloody injury detail. A beautifully drawn love story revolves around two feisty, free-spirited women, Caitlin (Miller) and Vera (Knightley); Vera's husband, William (Murphy); and the brilliant, charismatic poet Dylan Thomas (Rhys) who loves both women. Broken promises, passion, betrayal, the shadow of war and the constant threat of imminent death push the protagonists to the edge of love. By no means a biopic in the traditional vein, the story explores the collision of the bohemian underworld with war-torn London, and the intimate complexities of two young couples whose lives and loves become dangerously intertwined.

Female Agents (PG) starring Moritz Bleibtreu, Sophie Marceau, Julie Depardieu. Contains strong violence and nudity. Based on real events, FEMALE AGENTS is an espionage thriller set in the final months of World War II. In May 1944, a five-woman commando unit parachuted into occupied France on a daring mission to protect the secret of the D-day landings and eliminate Colonel Heindrich, the head of the German counter-intelligence. Following the liberation of France, General de Gaulle neglected to recognise the role played by these women in favour of the heroes who had fought alongside him in the Free French Forces. The film sets out to make amends for this injustice by turning the spotlight on the female operatives who, in the shadows, risked their lives to defeat the Nazis. Marceau (THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH), Depardieu (BLAME IT ON FIDEL) and Gillain (L'ENFER) lend star-studded allure.

Adulthood (15) starring Scarlett Alice Johnson, Adam Deacon. After Sam Peel is released from jail for killing Trife, he finds difficulty adjusting to life on the outside. He is forced to confront the people he hurt, trying to find out which one is seeking revenge on him. While Sam tries to cope with the effect his actions had on the people he knew, he finds himself being hunted by a group of young thugs, who seem to be following the same path as Sam had in the past - but why are they hunting him and who are they? Sam's first day of freedom will be one he never forgets and as important in his life as the one that lost him his freedom in the first place. Sam is about to go from Kidulthood to Adulthood, if he survives...

Opening in limited release this weekend is Kung Fu Panda (PG) starring Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Ian McShane. Contains mild martial arts action. Kung Fu Panda is the story of Po, (voice Jack Black), a sweet, but clumsy Panda who has dreams of fighting with the legendary Furious Five and protecting the city against all threats. The only problem is that Po has no real life experience of kung fu, and his real job is serving noodles at his dad's noodles shop. News of selecting the Dragon Warrior is sent out from the Jade Temple, and the whole city along with Po, go to the celebration. The competition is between the Furious Five: Tigress (voice Angelina Jolie), Viper (voice Lucy Liu), Crane (voice David Cross), Monkey (voice Jackie Chan), and Mantis (voice Seth Rogen). Po accidentally enters the contest and is named the Dragon Warrior. Master Shifu (voice Dustin Hoffman) must find a way to train Po and make him a Kung Fu Master, especially, after they learn that the snow leopard, Tai Lung (voice Ian McShane), is headed their way.

Advanced screenings will be showing on Wednesday and Thursday of Hancock (12A). Starring Will Smith, Jason Bateman, Charlize Theron. Contains moderate violence, strong and aggressive language and crude humour. Hancock is the story of a misunderstood superhero who has managed to single-handedly destroy most of LA. Whilst his intentions were good, his conflicted, sarcastic and edgy wit don't help when dealing with the very annoyed public he's just saved. Soon, the sardonic superhero discovers that he may have a vulnerable side after saving the life a PR executive, (Jason Bateman) who slowly makes Hancock realise what damage he could be doing to those around him.

Get showtimes for all the cinemas in Oxford