‘Three blog posts in 6 months?!’ I hear you cry. Yes, it’s true and I hope these posts might blossom a little more in 2017 too. I’ve never really done one of the more ‘all about me’ posts, so far they’ve either been about art or politics, which can be a little heavy. However, I feel that this is an important one to write about. So, here you have it, a few things I'm grateful for this year.

My Leeds Family

I’m not ashamed to say that I probably didn’t have the best first year ever. I met some incredible people and had some of the best times, but it was all very new and different. However, my housemates in second year have allowed me to lean on them when I thought I didn’t need them, they’ve opened my eyes to the important things in life and helped me to live in the moment. Noizy May forever. To RPA, I love you all, Planet Earth 2 would not have been the same without you. And lastly Mhairi and Liv. You’re amazing. That is all.

Politics

An odd one… but because it has been monumentally shit and hopefully, it can now only get better. (Please, please, please!) Thanks to Brexit and Trump for I have been reminded how important it is to try and do good for the world. No matter how big or small it is, if you stand up for your values, you are true to yourself. And there is nothing worse than not being true to yourself.

Family

Its obvious and it’s cliché but, they're pretty great.

I hate to admit it but…. NYCGB

And not just for the singing! I’ve loved being challenged by this choir, but the thing I love more are

the people who I met while doing it. In particular, Anya, Maisie, Rachel, Georgia, Pippa and Zoe are without doubt some of the most supportive, talented and modest people I know. We see each other far too little, but they are my go-to’s with all things feminism, a reliable source for some of the most hilarious stories and the reason I do NYC. 2017 will be my last year with the choir, and as much as I moan, I really have had a great time and met some even better people.

Dorset

Moving to Dorset in 2012 changed my life in so many weird and wonderful ways. First of all, I met some of the most amazing friends I could ever have imagined. They have supported me through thick and thin and I could not be more grateful to them for everything they have taught me, whether they realise it or not. (Now they might…) I would never be studying Music had it not been for Dorset, and although my job prospects might not be as high as when I wanted to do Law, I have fallen in love with the arts and challenged myself in ways I didn’t think I could.

I’m sensing a theme but, 2017 will also see an end to my family living in Dorset, but I could not be more happy that we moved there in the first place.

Ella

Time to get soppy!!!!! Before 2015 I hadn’t seen Ella for 9 years, and we re-met at a time when I really needed an Ella-type in my life. This year she came over to England for the first time since she moved to Australia, and we spent most of the summer together gallivanting round the South West and London and finishing up, as you do, on a boat in Greece. We were reunited last week after 3 months and to my JOY, she ended up staying with us for Christmas. She has seen me on my grumpiest days and still made me laugh, provided endless fun and met my entire extended family and turns out, she is just as mad as they all are. I am SO glad to have you in my life, Tina, you fat lard. Can’t wait for the next adventures.

So that’s that!! Thanks everyone who made 2016 so memorable. Happy New Year, hope it’s a good‘un. Here’s to 2017!

KB

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These are the words that I found staring at me as I walked across Millennium Bridge towards Tate Modern, en route to The Globe theatre having spontaneously decided to see Caroline Byrne and Emma Rice’s production of The Taming of the Shrew.  As a strong believer in the accessibility of art forms, no matter what your background, these words seemed to resonate with me and this theme continued throughout the afternoon.

Shakespeare’s original script for The Taming of the Shrew, can be seen as dated when it comes to addressing patriarchal conformity. This interpretation of the renowned Shakespeare comedy, distances itself from hierarchical gender roles.  Set in Ireland, Easter 1916, it is a firmly feminist, poignant and refreshing production.  A prime example of how art (and attitudes) change as the world changes.

After the performance there was a Q & A with the actors in which, to my surprise an elderly gentleman queried ‘Was it your intention to drown out the original Shakespeare text with all that physical theatre?’ After a collective gasp from the audience at The Globe and some Cameron-inspired question avoidance, the query got me thinking. On one hand, the man was right. There was a lot of physicality involved in the staging – ‘vulgar’ gestures, the well-known lame cool guy handshake, (Joey and Chandler inspired, I’m sure…) physical comedy, breaking of character, I could go on… But not for one minute did it drown out the Shakespearian text, nor the extremely relevant and important message proclaimed by the directors about how far women’s rights have (or haven’t) come in the past 100 years.  It was accessible for young and old, for the Shakespearian connoisseur or the fresh-faced newbie and that was its beauty.  Honestly, I could talk about this wonderful play for hours on end, but the real reason for my writing this is change.

Art changes, we change. And we do change. I know I certainly have, for one thing I used to find Shakespeare utterly tiresome and yet, on that warm, sunny Saturday afternoon on the Southbank I found myself moved to tears in the final scene. (Thank you Mum for dragging me to so much Shakespeare as a child!) To the surprise of many of my friends, 12-year-old me, when asked if I wanted to go to the opera, replied; ‘Why would I even?!’ and yet here I am, eight years later, studying music at university as a classical soprano. On a more current basis, we in the European Union and the United Kingdom are experiencing many changes as we prepare for a new Prime Minister and a potential life outside of the EU. Ironically, many of the Vote Leave supporters, just like the disdainful theatre man, didn’t like change. They didn’t like that England isn’t ‘English’ anymore, just like he didn’t like that the play wasn’t quite true to the script.

Change and diversity are not something to be feared, it is something that we should embrace, be it socially, culturally or artistically. Unfortunately, we cannot change what has happened, (if you were one of the many 18-25 year olds who did not vote, boo, shame on you) but we can keep an open mind. Art changes, society changes, politics changes, the world changes and we change too. To get stuck in your own outlook is a curse – we should allow the beauty of culture to envelop us because it champions diversity and unity. As T.S Eliot stated, ‘Culture may even be described simply as that which makes life worth living’.

I doubt I will see another production that moved me so much for a while and I want to thank that old man for epitomising so seamlessly my dislike towards the superiority complex surrounding art and politics. The importance that lies in straying from the script is not necessarily an aspiration to improve, but one to develop and understand; something that society should appreciate.

KB 

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