Exposure the Musical – Life Through a Lens Is One for the Instagram Generation

"Shut up and shoot me," Pandora (Niamh Perry) says to Jimmy (David Albury), photo courtesy of Pamela Raith

             At the beginning of July, I wrote about visiting the cast of Exposure The Musical – Life Through A Lens during their rehearsals. It made me all the more eager to see the show come to fruition, especially after learning about its back-story and hearing from the creative team. For a recap of what happened, read my post here, where you’ll also find a general synopsis of the musical.

             As I entered the St. James Theatre, where there is not a bad seat in its steep setup, I experienced the uncanny feeling that I was being watched. An unwavering eye stared out at the audience, blinking only sporadically. We were exposed as the subjects of an unknown photographer, with camera shutters clicking all around us. Then suddenly, a surge of images commanded the screens on stage to an echoing chorus of “live life, love life” that increased in urgency with each newly revealed photograph. They have all been sourced from the vast archive that is Getty Images. The stock photo agency was a supporter of the production from the very beginning and its library of photographs makes up the majority of Exposure’s “set.”

Jimmy with his two loves: Tara (Natalie Anderson) and his camera, photo courtesy of Pamela Raith

             The songs are a medley of gospel, soul, and rock, all delivered by an ultra talented cast. When David Albury (protagonist Jimmy Tucker) sings with Kurt Kansley (Jimmy’s deceased father) in “Father’s Lament,” the result is goose bump-inducing. Niamh Perry’s (Jimmy’s childhood friend Pandora, who becomes a famous singer) rendition of “My Last Goodbye” is heartbreakingly beautiful and places her incredible vocal range front and center. Natalie Anderson is instantly likeable as the warm and engaging Tara, who becomes Jimmy’s love interest. Michael Greco is stellar in his role as Miles Mason, a PR mogul who just happens to moonlight as the devil. Manny Tsakanika (dance captain), along with the rest of the ensemble, is a delight to watch dancing to Lindon Barr’s fluid and effortless choreography.

             Exposure is a musical for the Instagram generation, a generation that is so accustomed to a constant influx of images and visual stimuli. The material is energetic and relatable, but it also serves as a warning to our faltering attention spans. It’s a wonder that the two girls in front of me managed to stay off their phones during the duration of the show. As soon as the intermission rolled around, they were off chasing elusive Pokémon once again and scrolling through pictures of cats (I kid you not). What there needs to be is a conversation, a meeting of minds and ideas, and that is what Exposure is giving us. It’s opening up a discussion about good and evil, right and wrong, true and false. A photograph used to be pure; the camera never lies. Except, now the camera, or Photoshop and Instagram for that matter, can tell monstrous, ferocious lies and sometimes we don’t even know it.   

Snap it! (ensemble from left: Kurt Kansley, Andy Barke, Jahrel Thomas, Manny Tsakanika, and Zeph Gould), photo courtesy of Pamela Raith

             Photographer Jimmy wrestles with these moral dilemmas. His subject matter is typically worn-out people from war-torn countries. While these kinds of images are horrific, it raises the question of whether we have become desensitized to suffering. Will it take more and more extreme scenes to shock us? Jimmy’s own father died after taking a photo that he knew he wasn’t supposed to take of a rainmaker hiding his face from the soul-stealing camera. Clearly it stirred up some bad juju and Jimmy goes on to snatch a secret photo of Tara when she’s asked him not to. Miles takes his chance to burst onto the scene. He showers Jimmy with presents: the same type of camera his father used and an aptly named Diavel Ducati.

             Thus, we have arrived at the main premise of the musical and it’s a very good one at that: the seven deadly sins. Above the London skyline, way up in the Eye, Jimmy sells his soul to the devil. Jimmy initially writes off the notion of the seven deadly sins as a somewhat draconian concept. With all of the guile that one would expect from a horned demon, Miles merely laughs through his maniacal smile: “Sinning never goes out of fashion.” He’s right of course. Ensnared by Miles’ offer to photograph the seven deadly sins alive and kicking in London in 24 hours, Jimmy doesn’t quite realize how dangerous they truly can be until his mission hits a little too close to home. I would have liked there to be more emphasis on Jimmy trawling the city to find and capture the different sins. The rest of the musical builds up to this moment and the song “7even Deadly Sins” seems hurried and doesn’t do the crux of the plot justice. However, Exposure’s script was originally about three times the length of the current one, so understandably something had to give.

The green-eyed monster, envy (Kurt Kansley as Jimmy's father), comes out to play in the devil's (Michael Greco as Miles Mason) lair, photo courtesy of Pamela Raith

             I can only imagine how writer Mike Dyer must be feeling after 12 years working on the project, one that he developed after a fatal motorbike accident and the death of his father – themes that we have seen emerge within the musical. Since its previews, he has been reworking elements of the production until he gets it just so. It is the same high standard that all of the cast uphold. During the stirring “Rainmaker” finale, their faces illuminate, each and every one of them glistening with eagerness and pride (in this case, it’s definitely not a sin). It’s the expression that someone has when they truly believe in what they’re doing and they’re scanning the room to see if we believe too. Well, I certainly left the evening as a believer and with several of the songs stuck in my head.

             Exposure The Musical – Life Through A Lens is playing at the St. James Theatre until August 27^th. Snap up tickets here.

My Style Gets The MIX With Sunglasses for Summer

             At the first sign of sun, the sunglasses come out. Now that we’re entering the tail end of summer, with rain threatening to cut our precious season short, it’s time we make the most of our sunnies and perhaps even buy a few more. 

  

             The MIX is a women’s eyewear label that creates trendy frames for every occasion. Deriving inspiration from global street styles, music, and fashion, the brand offers an assortment of timeless and one-of-a-kind shapes (aviator, cat eye, round). Most importantly, all of their sunglasses offer 100% UVA and UVB protection, so you can keep your eyes safe from the rays while you bask in them. The prices range from £18 to £25 and several of the designs have been featured in Cosmopolitan magazine. You can also browse through a selection of brands, including Elizabeth & James and Wildfox, on the website. For those of you lucky enough to be going on a late summer holiday, look no further!

             I teamed up with The MIX and took a few pairs of sunglasses with me on a trip to Germany. I styled them with different outfits, shifting shapes as a chameleon of clothes to play up the inherently eclectic nature of fashion and accessorizing. I hope you enjoy what I've come up with, but sunglasses are meant to be worn however you like with whatever you like, so don't be afraid to mix it up for yourselves! I would like to give a big thank you to the ever-patient Alison Rutkowski for taking the photos for this post.

             Come rain, come shine, whether you wear your sunglasses at night or not is up to you, but when they look as good as these ones from The MIX, why wouldn’t you want to make a spectacle out of your spectacles? View the full range here. 

Georgie sunglasses in dark purple galaxy 

Pick up a pair here.

Esme sunglasses in dark tortoiseshell

Pick up a pair here.

Zara sunglasses in matte black

Pick up a pair here.

Scarlett sunglasses in dark tortoiseshell

Pick up a pair here.

Cutter & Squidge Delivers a Hello Kitty Afternoon Tea That’s Almost Too Cute to Eat

             Our favorite furry feline, Hello Kitty, has arrived in the UK for a purrfect afternoon tea. In the first of its kind in Europe, the bottom of Cutter & Squidge’s Soho café has been transformed for the summer into a Secret Garden. It will surely delight big, as well as little, kids. My friend and I arrived with empty stomachs and we left with full ones, fuelled by a sugar rush each and with extra cakes in tow.

             Cutter & Squidge was dreamt up by two food-obsessed sisters, whose humble beginnings started in a “compact” kitchen in North West London. They pride themselves on keeping their fat and sugar content to “just as much as needed to make something delicious.” Does that mean we’re exempt from all of the calories? Oh well, it’s probably best not to think about it! However, you can rest safe knowing that everything at Cutter & Squidge is made from scratch, with no artificial flavorings, preservatives, or colorings (made instead from fruits, vegetables, spices, and flowers) in sight.

             We were met with jars of pink lemonade with hot pink bows perched on the straws. As we sipped them to combat the sticky heat of the day, we were led downstairs into what our waitress jokingly referred to as the “Hello Kitty dungeon.” A tree sprouting plush Hello Kitty toys and a lit-up version of the character were standing guard. Comprised of leafy archways, soft, colorful cushions, and wall decals of Hello Kitty and friends frolicking in London, if this garden was indeed a dungeon, I wouldn’t mind being locked up in there forever – held hostage by adorable captors.

             After choosing from a range of loose-leaf teas, a stack of bamboo steamers swiftly appeared at our table. My friend’s face was obscured from mine by this tower of treats, but I’m sure both of our mouths were agape. Our waitress unpacked and talked us through the layers one by one. Just as I was thinking that there was no way we would finish it all, she told us that our afternoon tea was unlimited – an endless supply of indulgence!

             We strategically started on the bottommost layer, with tasty finger sandwiches that came in salmon and chives, hummus and pepper, and cheese and red onion variations. The cucumber and cream cheese sandwiches were shaped like Hello Kitty and were even stamped with her signature red bow. It seemed almost barbaric to eat them, but that feeling soon came to pass.

             Plain or fruit scones served with clotted cream and jam is a traditional staple of afternoon tea. Cutter & Squidge has updated this British classic with savory cheese scones and red pepper relish and cream cheese spread, paired with coronation crackers imprinted with Hello Kitty’s face.

             I urged my friend to hurry up eating, prodding, “Can we move to the next layer now?” You see, my sweet tooth was aching and I was eager to start on all of the dessert delights, especially since I’d already seen what was yet to come. An afternoon tea that contains more biscuits and cakes than anything else is exactly what I would call my kind of afternoon tea.

             That brought us to the heavenly layer of fluffy pink marshmallows, Hello Kitty-shaped berry jellies, chocolate cake truffles, and strawberries (it’s important to get one of your five a day, right?). My friend doesn’t hanker after sweets in the same way that I do, so he graciously offered me some of his share. I was slowly but surely being defeated by my afternoon tea at this point, where I think my eyes had grown bigger than the size of my stomach. I was determined, so in the pursuit of a well-rounded blog post, I carried on dear reader, I carried on. It's tough work, but someone's got to do it. 

             Red velvet Hello Kitty biscuits, blondies (blonde brownies, where vanilla is used instead of cocoa), and Biskies were unfolded. Cutter & Squidge is the home of Biskies, which are part biscuit, part cookie, and part cake filled with lightened buttercream, handmade jams, caramels, and more. I squashed mine down into a little sandwich to make it an easier mouthful. In the middle were pools of matcha and chocolate dipping sauces. Dunking the sugary biscuits in the rich sauce led to an unlikely and flavorful concoction that had me plunging in for more. Cutter & Squidge is also known for its decadent Dream Cakes, which line the shop windows in dazzling designs of layered sponge.

             We triumphantly reached the top layer and my friend and I shared a look as if it say, “We can do this.” It turns out we couldn’t, but it wasn’t for our lack of trying. The apple pie mousse in its glass container with a bow biscuit for decoration was to die for with its sour and creamy blend. The delectable chocolate mud pies looked like they might be my favorite of the lot, with chocolate cake wedged between helpings of icing, finished off with more icing, a Hello Kitty white chocolate disc, and gold flecks. Those were the cakes I took away with me and I managed to eat them later on (how I did that, I have no idea) with a nice cup of tea.

             It goes without saying that everything was delicious and Cutter & Squidge pulled out all of the stops to create a Hello Kitty dreamland. On one of their outside windows, as well as desserts and afternoon tea, they promise happiness. By the end of our dining experience, we were replete with the emotion and completely satiated. We less walked away from the experience and more rolled away from it…

             Hello Kitty merchandise is available for purchase in the shop, as well as themed and signature edibles. Hello Kitty’s Secret Garden is open for afternoon tea at Cutter & Squidge until September 14^th, at £40 per person and Tiny Tea for those aged eight and under at £20 per person. Book a table here.