What' s on Your Cultural Wish list for the next few months and beyond?

[Earlybird]

After a summer of virtually no cultural stimulation, I'm thinking ahead to an autumn of inspired and uplifting experiences. As many of the in-demand shows require advance ticket purchases (and thus a bit of planning), I'm hoping that culturally savvy Mumsnetters can point me toward the "must sees".

I've already secured opening night tickets for "Porgy and Bess" at the Savoy, but would love to add some equally inspiring events to the list to take me away from the mundane.

What current/upcoming events are on your "wish list" for theatre, art, music and dance?

My highlight is in the Autumn, Bridgwater carnival, one of the best free performances you will ever experience- I guarantee it. I shall get you a link, but trust me the web pages don't do it justice. Performance, music, dance..... spot on. In the unlikely event you believe me (nobody ever does but Im telling the truth- why esle would 100K people plus pile in to a smelly somerset town in the cold otherwise?), then I could lend you a video to give you a vague idea. Picture 100 ft long floats, all moving at a cost of up to 60K each, animatronics at state of the art, 30k light bulbs on each of the big clubs entries...

(Can you tell I'm a carnivalite myself? LOL)

Shall get a link

remember this float is 100 ft long, about 17 foot high too

I know I'll get loads of 'that's not culture comments. Sorry, it is. coomunity culture: the best sort of all

peachyclair - that looks alot of fun. Thanks for the tip. The 100,000 people bit puts me off a bit though....is it unbearably crowded and difficult to get to?

I'll give you a tip: the same carnival goes to several places. Bridgwater gets a bit OTT as does North Petherton. Shepton Mallett is usually under attended and has quite big spaces to stand in . Apparently Glastonbury has lots of people, but it never feels like it and for atmosphere you can't beat it! it's also kid friendly.

Also, if you go on the bridgwater carnival website and e-mail the committee you can buy grandstand seats which solves the problem of finding a space, that's what my aprents (locals) do now, but you have to do it early.

Our kids club not doing the big ones this year sadly (death in the club- still doing the smaller circuit) but have done it several times and it's just fab.

if you want last year's DVD cat me.

harry christopher's sixteen's Choral Pigrimage - Victoria Requiem in Wells Cathedral if I can possibly manage it

it's on atthRSC MT< that's near you?

hahaha at the Ravenhill panto
Marina i am really in the mood for a little Sondheim. ideally into the woods or Sweeney Todd (OAfter hearing a marvellous thing on R4 the other day)
anything coming up tha you've heard of?

the only culture I get is the hundreds of festivals on the kent coastline and the gigs down in folkestone (thanks to my lovely babysitter)

Is it cultured to have a planned trip to new york to buy fabric?

HC, nothing that I know of. I missed Sunday in the Park with George and my mother and sister had the neck to bring me back the programme and yack on about how great it was.
I will be keeping my ears open - one of the tutors on our acting course is a music theatre director and he usually knows what's on. The Bridewell and I guess the Menier are the usual new production houses for Sondheim in town at the mo.
The panto is Dick Whittington and His Marvellous (effing?) Cat. Should be good, he does write excellent youth theatre

And the answer to that is yes Fio . How lovely!

thanks MArina
I keep singing
It's priest.
Have a little priest.
Sir, it's too good, at least.
Then again they don't commit
Sins of the flesh,.
So it's pretty fresh.that's what I call a rhyme

Visit to Straford upon Avon

Visit to Rome,Florence and Venice by train from UK

Looooong trip around Britain taking in the sights (am so bored of abroad)

Lol (in nice way) at Peachy with her carnival.
I remember yuo posting links for me a few months ago-was astounded.thought nothing went on in Bridgwater apart from Assoc. for Breastfeeding Mothers!

Batters we saw that with our kids this year Very funny.

MIne is going to Amsterdam to see all the galleries etc... which I am doing in December

I'm going to see the Pierre Huyghe exhibition at the Tate this weekend, and in three weeks the Liverpool Biennial will open so I will go to EVERYTHING that is on. I'm hoping to go to see Lambchop at the Liverpool Phil in October.

More than anything though I am hoping that Liverpool's council don't utterly muck up the whole Capital of Culture thing. Its not looking too clever so far.

Saw Tom Stoppard's new thing Rock'n'Roll (Duke of York's) last night and would recommend it. Some very good bits and some satisfying jokes (all the reviews about "best since R&G" are not quite merited, but nearly).

Oddly similar in jumping-off mood to Mike Leigh's 2000 Years, in that both are about personal histories/experiences (done over vignettes of several decades) of an ideology - communism for TS, Zionism for ML. So both must be "late period" work, I guess.

Haven't myself planned anything else going forward, though I know dh has made a great batch of Wigmore bookings.

moondog do u mind me asking how are you planning your trip to italy by train - is that with children?

I too have been a culture-free zone all summer and am working myself back in gently before choir starts for the new term.

was and to see that my old choir are singing at the last night of the Proms without me [sob sob]. Not that special comissions by young English composers and the Brahms requiem (this winter's programme) are inferior, but I wanted to wave a flag.

i'm going to see the woman in black sometime shortly. is it the last night of the proms on sat? that always signifies the end of the summer to me

Anyone seen or heard about any of the plays currently on/planned for the fall at the National in London?

Also curious to know - where do most of you find out about things you'd like to see? Are you on various theatre mailing lists? Are there special websites or newsletters? Do you wait and read newspaper reviews? Seems I'm often hearing about things when tickets are already impossible to purchase, so would love to know how to be on the "inside track".