Culture & Literature – Page 10 of 35

31Oct

By Isobel ClarkeNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

Junk Junk Junk: A Review

Junk Junk Junk, the latest Student Workshop production, featured a quirky ensemble of cardboard box millennials in a gloriously abstract performance. The cast were extremely entertaining to watch, with their personalities shining through with each turn in the performance, particularly with their wildly personal conversations and stories. The production set out with a mission statement, ‘In a time of ecological crisis, what role can theatre practices play in sustainability?’ The production process certainly achieved this, as the company scavenged for any materials they could get to create this piece of theatre. The use of the cardboard box as their focal point, combined with the performers bodies created a visually aesthetic performance that adhered to their goal of sustainable pr...

Review of A Night at the Theatre: A Night of Riotous Fun

26Oct

By Ezra Elver-FiddimoreNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

Review of A Night at the Theatre: A Night of Riotous Fun

On arriving at A Night at the Theatre, a variety night of Royal Holloway’s various performing arts societies, it was hard to know what to expect. There was a palpable air of giddiness and nerves even in the audience: parents and friends excited to see people they knew, but daunted by the hodgepodge of performances ahead. As it happened, though, there was nothing to worry about! This show offered a series of bright, fast-moving snapshots of the workings of an enormous number of societies and their talented members, with all of it pulled together by Daniel Loosley as the MC. The vocal performances gave structure to this show, each of them impressive and totally unique. Absolute Harmony opened the show with a lively, skilful rendition of George Ezra’s ‘Shotgun’, complet...

Lily Parr: the lesbian football icon I didn’t know I needed

24Mar

By Maria GreenNo Comments

Culture & Literature, News

Lily Parr: the lesbian football icon I didn’t know I needed

I'll start off by saying that I don't like sports. I have little to no knowledge about most sports, P.E. was my least favourite lesson at school, and I spent the majority of Sports Days at home 'sick'. But while brainstorming ideas for this LGBT+ issue of Orbital and researching how many premier league footballers have come out as gay (hint: really, really not many at all), I stumbled across a woman who has now introduced me to the incredible history of women's football. Lily Parr's football career began in 1919, at a time when the popularity of women's football was at an unprecedented high, until the Football Association banned women from playing on their member grounds in 1921 (due to women's teams playing charity matches to raise money for the families of striking miners, and also...

10 films and TV shows that would be better if they were gay

24Mar

By Maria GreenNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Film & TV

10 films and TV shows that would be better if they were gay

Love Island It would just be better, right? High School Musical If Chad and Ryan's homoerotic performance of 'I Don't Dance' in HSM 2 didn't convince you something steamy was going on in the locker room after that baseball game, I don't know what will. Titanic ‘Jackie, I want you to draw me like one of your French girls’. To All The Boys I've Loved Before This could be a great bisexual one. Stick a few girls in. You'd have to change the title I guess, but it would be worth it. Gilmore Girls Some people preferred Dean, others preferred Jess, and Logan was there too, but there should be one thing that we can all agree on: Paris should have been gay. Whether or not Rory should have ended up with Paris is up for deb...

23Mar

By Noah KeppenNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Music

Queering Country

Drag superstar and winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 3 Trixie Mattel was on the path to becoming a country singer long before she tried on her signature blonde wig for the first time. In fact, the seed of musicality was planted before the persona of Trixie Mattel existed at all. Brian Firkus, the man behind Trixie’s dramatically contoured face and histrionically feminine figure, was just a child growing up in rural Wisconsin when his grandfather identified his knack for music. “My grandfather was a folk musician,” Firkus tells in an interview with Broadly. “I grew up playing guitar and singing at the kitchen table with my grandpa. That was in my blood, and there was an understanding that I’d grow up and be a musician.” Trixie’s grandfather’s table-side fostering of her musical tal...

19Mar

By Jasmine CoxNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Literature

Diversity in YA Literature

As a genre that has arguably only been a marketed category within in its own right during the last century, YA literature has rapidly progressed to the forefront of diversity discussions. Diversity feels particularly important with regards to the YA community because naturally, they are the next in line to push for intersectional representation. In terms of mainstream publishers, such as Macmillan, Penguin Random House and HarperCollins, statistics show that the numbers of LGBTQ+ YA novels have been increasing rapidly since 2014; Malinda Lo gathered that in 2015, 54 LGBTQ+ novels were published by aforementioned publishers, and in 2016, figures rose to 79. Although recent years show a positive rise in YA novels about sexuality, there seems to be a lack of literature being published s...

19Mar

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

A Glass Slipper is No Match for MTS

As a self-proclaimed Musical Theatre geek, I was surprised that I hadn’t heard of Musical Theatre Society’s (MTS) spring term production, Soho Cinders. It is described as ‘Cinderella with a Twist’, adding in elements of contemporary London and bringing in an LGBT+ relationship as well. It is an interesting show, with catchy up-beat numbers that definitely stick in your head long after it’s over. The show starts slowly, with the ensemble filing in to the room subtly – people barely notice until cast members interact with and speak to audience members, catching their attention and keeping their focus for the first number. A narrator, played by Reuben Havelock, appears to introduce us to the characters as they sing Old Compton Street. Bryony O’Hare as the sassy best friend Velcro shines fro...

18Mar

By Phoebe HaganNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Music

Punk’s Not Dead: 2019 edition

Well, we somehow we made it to 2019, and I feel like I've been writing list after list for the past couple of months. Lists of the top albums of 2018, the best singles of the past year - if you can put it in a list, I probably have by this point. However, I'm not finished yet. I always bring you some of my favourite tracks in every edition of this column, but this time I'm going one step further: not only am I bringing you tracks I think you need to know about, but I'm going to set out to kick off your new year the right way, bringing you four of my favourite artists and bands that I'm really excited about in 2019. Plus, as this issue of Orbital is themed around the LGBTQ+ community, I'll be including some of my favourite queer artists that I'm a huge fan of, and think you should know abou...

Recharge for the New Year! How to discover new music

17Mar

By Tasmin FatoduNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Music

Recharge for the New Year! How to discover new music

January is the dullest time of the year: Christmas has passed, shop windows are filled with gym wear, and uni deadlines are looming. But fear not, music will be your saviour! Here are five ways to discover new music for 2019: 1. Music Apps • Streaming apps give you access to every song you could ever want to listen to or discover. If you are already subscribed to one, try switching it up! They all have features that work in different, or sometimes better, ways. • Shazam will allow you to identify any song wherever you are, rescuing you from a drought of no new music. My findings: Soul No.5 – Caroline Rose Soberland – Hinds 2. Social media • Using YouTube? Play a song that you like and it will recommend artists that are similar. Subscribe to musicians and channels that post ne...

5Mar

By Emma CurrieNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

Wherefore Art Thou, Shakespeare Society

Shakespeare Society’s second term production of Romeo and Juliet was a pleasurable way to spend a Monday night. Set against the backdrop of the Irish Troubles, the play – conceptualised by Matt Bird and assistant directed by George Collins – brought to life Shakespeare’s famous love story. Niamh Smith and Sophie Barton played the eponymous couple, Smith acting with sensitivity and power throughout, notably in the tender reunion scene between the pair. The take on their love was deliberately sweet and chaste – not quite to my liking as it lacked some of the desperate irrational passion that drives them to their eventual deaths – however, they captured the youthful innocence of their love. Some of these tender moments sadly were swallowed up by the sound void that is the SU. Special ment...