Tales of a Culture Hedonist

The Gambler was well paced at the Royal Opera

Having only seen two operas by Prokoviev (Betrothral in a Monastery and War and Peace), I was intrigued to see The Gambler at the Royal Opera. My secret wish was that it wouldn't be like The Queen of Spade which I found difficult.

Roberto Saccà (Alexei) really got across his internal turmoil while Angela Denoke played the hard-to-get Polina. Richard Jones's direction was great - where each act and sequence had an authentic feel with just enough caricature to deliver entertainment value.

Antony McDonald's set and Nicky Gillibrand's costume designs were great - giving the production a contemporary feel. The zoo, the hotel corridor and even the big gambling tables really worked well. My friend also thought perhaps the revolving door was synced to the key changes and rhythm. Speaking of rhythm, Pappano and the orchestra really kept the pace of the work going. The gambling sequence, in particular, had a quicken pulse that really conveyed the excitement of a buzzy casino.

Yannick Nézet-Séguin delivered a sensual French evening

Fresh off the plane from conducting a successful run of Bizet Carmen at the Metropolitan Opera, Yannick Nézet-Séguin worked tirelessly with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir for this evening's concert at the Royal Festival Hall. It started with Le tombeau de Couperin. There was a lot of poise in the orchestra's playing - kind of stately yet pensive at the same time. This was followed by Pavane pour une Infante défunte. The players in the orchestra caressed each and every phrase. The sound was lush and intimate - not a single harsh note. And the horns carried their parts well. Debussy's Nocturnes was next. The first of the three movement work Nuages started with the lower string section portraying floating clouds, which got darker as the piece progressed - but not angry ones. The middle movement Fête was a lot of fun with fantastic playing from the brass section. A small section of the sopranos and altos joined in the last movement Sirenes with a seductive sound - reminiscent of Ravel's Daphne and Chloé. The first half of the concert was very involving and the audience was definitely pulled into the French sound world that Nézet-Séguin wanted to invoke.

The second half of the concert included two rarely performed works: Fauré Pavane with Choir and Poulenc Stabat Mater. As a performer in these two pieces it would be inappropriate for me to review them.

The iPhone made it to Così fan tutte at the Royal Opera

Conductor Julia Jones kept a good pace going. Sally Matthews (as Fiordiligi) and Nino Surguladze (as Dorabella) portrayed the emotional tension well through out. Troy Cook (Guglielmo) and Charles Castronovo (Ferrando) were convincing in their various disguises and melodramatic entrances. I wondered how they got their tattoos. I was not sure about William Shimell's Don Alfonso - he was fine when in an ensemble, but sounded rather dull when on his own. Helene Schniederman's Despina was ok - though she could have delivered her role with greater dramatic gestures. 

Jonathan Miller's production originally included stylish costume by Giorgio Armani which really worked with his textured walls and contemporary staging. Subsequent revivals, however, included the Marks and Spencer's clothing. This run at the Royal Opera included updated costumes (slim fit suits for the men, still rather dull clothing for the women) and Apple iPhones. The audience seemed to have liked it.

Great potential for Café Gray at The Upper House in Hong Kong

Probably the newest boutique hotel in Hong Kong, The Upper House which opened in October 2009, has its bar, restaurant as well as the hotel lobby on the 49th floor. No doubt to take advantage of the view as well as lots of natural light.

Café Gray Bar  was buzzing on a Wednesday night with well-heeled tourists and expats alike (not many locals were sighted). The drinks menu has a number of delectable cocktails to entice the palette. My pineapple and thyme martini was unusual yet tasty.

We then progressed to Café Gray Deluxe - the restaurant adjacent to the bar. It seems brighter than the bar with a similar view of the harbour and Central. The menu, devised by Gray Kunz, has many interesting dishes and combinations. Our gnocchi with artichokes and sunchokes (aka Jerusalem artichokes) was light and tasty.  The richness of the short-ribs was balanced by a sharp tomato compote and mustard sauce. The pomfret meunière was good but on the large side.

 

(Gnocchi with artichokes and sunchokes)

(short ribs)

The wine list is extensive - one that befits a 3-Michelin star restaurant rather than the brasserie of a boutique hotel. Perhaps Café Gray has starry aspirations, but for now it's a bit of an overkill. As for the service, there is room for improvement. Despite of the fine cutlery and deco, the service seemed brisk to the point of abrupt - plates were removed too quickly, waiters too ready to take orders, chocolates appeared before the dessert: they need to work on the pace of the meal to achieve a more rounded and luxurious experience.

Let's see how it does in a few months.

Fried Curry Crab at Somboon in Bangkok

OK, it was all Thai to me! Being whisked away by a friend's fiancée I found myself walking into this rather large restaurant Somboon that featured a crab in its logo. Not entirely sure what to expect, I let my hostess do the ordering. In true Thai fashion, dishes just turned up as they were freshly prepared and cooked. The "star" dish was, surprise surprise, curry crab. It was just crab meat cooked in an Asian curry sauce which was delicious with just the right balance of spices and richness - all went down swimmingly well with jasmine rice. We also had the classic tom yum koong which was rich and tasty. The koong woosen (prawns with vemicelli noodles) was great, so was the grilled cockles. The mean was concluded with sticky rice and Thai mangoes. Yum yum.

NB: There are several branches of Somboon in Bangkok. Unfortunately, Google has found the site being associated with malware and viruses so can't pull any pictures here. Apologies.