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| | | Robert Lowell: Memoirs, edited by Steven Gould Axelrod and Grzegorz Kosc – review | | by Declan Ryan Aug 1, 2022 | | A collection of the poet’s stately prose from the 1950s reveals his shift into confessional writing and the bipolar disorder that led to hospitalisation and regrets In an exceptionally gifted generation of American poets, Robert Lowell was, in his lifetime, number one. That was the critical consensus at least after Robert Frost’s death in 1963 left space at the head of the table. Since Lowell’s own death in 1977, however, his reputation has waned, while others in his circle – especially his friend Elizabeth Bishop – have outstripped him. Born to one of the grandest families in the US, Lowell was a difficult figure. His early work was all hellfire and bombast, leaning on Milton and his zealous Catholicism. It won him acclaim, but the brimstone fervour was accompanied by what we would now call bipolar disorder, resulting in bouts of “enthusiasm”; short-lived love affairs, hospitalisation and stultifying regret. Continue reading... | | | | | 'My karaoke song? Pure & Simple by Hear'Say, because I wrote it!': Betty Boo's honest playlist | | by Rich Pelley Aug 1, 2022 | | The pop star practised rapping to Run-DMC and gets a thrill when she hears Teenage Kicks – but which Depeche Mode song makes her shudder? The first song I remember hearing
My dad would constantly play Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley, because he played the guitar. So my fascination with music started with rock’n’roll.
The first single I bought
I would go down to WH Smith at Hammersmith to buy all my stationery for school. I had a little bit more pocket money one week and I bought Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough by Michael Jackson. My dad was a train driver on the Central line, and that same week, he found a 45 single of Pop Muzik by M in an Our Price bag. So I got two records for the price of one. The song I do at karaoke
Pure & Simple by Hear’Say, because I wrote it, so I know it really well. It’s a great sing-along track because everyone knows the chorus, so I sing it at festivals for a bit of fun.
The song I inexplicably know every lyric to
I used to practise rapping to Sucker MCs by Run-DMC, because the timing is very clear with a strict backbeat, as a little test to see if I could rap or not. Continue reading... | | | | | Tikkun Olam review – gripping dissection of identity politics and the culture wars | | by Arifa Akbar Aug 1, 2022 | | Available online
Centred around a proposed Holocaust memorial, this debut from playwright Teunkie Van Der Sluijs probes the intersections of Black and Jewish identity with an eloquent flair This play’s name comes from the religious concept of repairing or rebuilding the world in Judaism, though you’re never sure whether it is meant ironically. What is clear is the desperately topical nature of playwright Teunkie Van Der Sluijs’ debut with its culture wars, identity politics and, at the centre, a discussion about whom we choose to memorialise and why. An aspiring MP, Steve Alexander (Jake Fairbrother), is running his election campaign on a proposed Holocaust memorial near Parliament Square in the hope to win constituency votes and rehabilitate his party against charges of antisemitism (the Labour party is never mentioned by name). Available online until 21 July 2023 Continue reading... | | | | | |
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