Banksy, Snow White and The Stranglers… what a week!
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Alice in Wonderland: Starring Johnny Depp, many critics commented on its stunning visuals and others said it's a bout of lunacy too far
By Susie Weldon
Bristol’s own Banksy brings his first foray into film – Exit Through the Gift Shop – to the Watershed and Vue Longwell Green tonight; while The Stranglers return to the O2 Academy on Monday and Snow White on Ice comes to the Hippodrome.
Here’s our pick of the best entertainment in Bristol in the next seven days…
Cinema
Exit Through the Gift Shop – Watershed and Vue Longwell Green from Friday
Exit Through The Gift Shop is, at first appearance, a documentary on the phenomenon of street art which quickly reveals itself to be something altogether more subversive with all the playfulness of Orson Welles’s F for Fake and the humour of some of Christopher Guest’s (This Is Spinal Tap, Best In Show) best work. Click here for Lloyd Rundle’s review…
Alice in Wonderland — all cinemas, from Friday
Johnny Depp dons his whimsical hat as the Mad Hatter in Tim Burton’s magical version of Alice in Wonderland which opens in Bristol this week. It’s had mixed reviews — with many critics commenting on its stunning visuals and others saying it’s a bout of lunacy too far.
But it’s worth seeing it in 3D for Alice — aged 19 in Burton’s tale – tumbling down the rabbit hole. It’s showing in 3D at Cinema de Lux Cabot Circus, and Vue Cribbs Causeway and Vue Longwell Green, plus in 2D at all of the above, plus Cineworld Hengrove and the Odeon.
Theatre
Snow White on Ice: Bristol Hippodrome hosts this stunning show from Thursday
Snow White on Ice — Bristol Hippodrome, Thursday
If you’ve been enjoying Dancing on Ice, you’ll love this one — a fabulous theatrical performance of Snow White on Ice performed by Russian Ice Stars.
Elegant and exhilarating, it’s filled with all the sequins and magic you’d expect. It opens at the Bristol Hippodrome on Thursday 11 and runs to Sunday 14. Tickets cost £19 to £32. http://bristolhippodrome.org.uk/prod-productions_details.asp?VenueID=90&pid=1641
Juliet and her Romeo — Bristol Old Vic, Wednesday
Creative director Tom Morris has chosen Shakespeare’s classic love tragedy as his first major production at Bristol Old Vic — and given the familiar tale an intriguing twist.
Juliet and her Romeo is the story of thwarted and doomed love, but this time the lovers are in their 80s and it’s their horrified children who are desperate to prevent the unsuitable match.
The production has attracted actors of ‘global stature’ who never thought they’d play these roles again, says the Old Vic. Sian Phillips plays Juliet and Michael Byrne Romeo. It opens on Wednesday 10 and runs to April 24; tickets cost from £5 to £28. http://www.bristololdvic.org.uk/760.html
A Handful of Henna — Tobacco Factory, Sunday
Based on real stories of Muslim women, A Handful of Henna is a joyous and moving story about lives lived across two cultures and one girl’s journey to understanding her mother as she is dragged back to the village thousands of miles away in monsoon season.
Skipping back and forth across time, four actresses create a bustling, colourful world bursting with music, dance and family celebration. Tickets cost £10 (conc £8). It’s at the Tobacco Factory this Sunday. http://tobaccofactorytheatre.com/shows/detail/handful_of_henna/
Music
The Stranglers: Coming to the O2 Academy on Monday
The Stranglers & Stiff Little Fingers — O2 Academy, Monday & Wednesday
It’s the battle of the Seventies bands at O2 Academy this week. First The Stranglers, formed in 1974 and often dubbed the most enduring and least recognised band of the UK punk/new wave era, play on Monday 8. Tickets cost £23.50.
Then Stiff Little Fingers (who formed in 1977) bring their vintage explosive punk sound to the Academy on Wednesday 10. Tickets cost £14. http://www.o2academybristol.co.uk
COI — Thekla, Saturday
Feeling patriotic? Check out Bristol indie-pop band COI (Concepts of Inebriation) who play at the Thekla tomorrow supported by Bristol bands The Wildmutts and Know Buses. Tickets only cost £5. http://www.theklabristol.co.uk/gigs.html
Pasion de Buena Vista — Colston Hall, Wednesday
Love Cuban rhythms? Don’t miss Pasion de Buena Vista at the Colston Hall on Wednesday. Filled with hot rhythms, delicate dances, and beautiful melodies, the three top Cuban singers, dancers from the world famous Tropicana Club in Havana and 10-piece live band lead you on a tour through Cuban music and dance. Tickets cost from £20 to £26. http://www.colstonhall.org/whatson/Event1213
- For details of venues, visit bristol247.com/whatson
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