St. Tropez

I must admit that when first introduced to this product I was suspicious...Mind you, I do like siting out in the sun on a beach and turn from my natural raw almond shade to a nice roasted almond. However, I wasn't so sure that a product normally associated with WAGs and, well, St. Tropez, was the way forward.

...I was very pleasantly surprised. There are several products in St. Tropez's Perfect Radiance range: the pebbles, the blush and my personal fave, the mousse. Designed to help "enhance your St. Tropez tan", you apply a small amount to the face and décolletage area to provide a subtle soft sheen (their words, not mine).

I could almost eat this stuff, it's so lurvely and fluffy and the packaging is very stylish, indeed. I need only use it sparingly as a blusher on the cheek bones but come summer will definitely venture down towards my décolletage (don't you just love that word? The French, they think of everything...baguettes...macaroons...I digress).

One of the mothers on the school run even commented on how I glowed. Result.

Precious

Before I went to see Precious, I had my reservations, for starters I didn't like Lee Daniels's previous work, Monsters Ball. Also there was much hype around the film which made me wary of its true worth. Often when a film is hyped, everyone else jumps on the bandwagon regardless of how they truly feel. If Time Out gives it a 4 star and Jonathan Ross writes that this movie will stay with you long after you leave the cinema, how can you argue with the experts?
In my humble opinion, these reviews don’t even begin to do justice to the pure brilliance that is Gabourey Sidibe's performance or Mo'nique's complete lack of inhibition as she portrays the character of the evil mother who is not only complicit in Precious suffering but also guilty of exacting revenge through more horrific physical, emotional and sexual abuse. Even Mariah Carey did a sterling job although her role was minor. Admittedly not being a big fan of Mariah's, I didn't think there was much of physical transformation, just that the makeup came off and her true beauty was there for all too see. Or am I just hating?
The film was brilliantly directed. Lee Daniels deserves his Oscar nomination without a shadow of a doubt. There were moments of sadness but also laughter at times, Precious was a beautiful and likeable young lady who you could not help but sympathise with but also admire for her resilience in the face of so much adversity.
What really got me were the moments when I was so taken in, so shocked by what I saw in front of my eyes, I could not longer tell fact from fiction and the result was uncontrollable sobbing, and I mean out and out balling. Tears + runny nose + strained breathing. My friends thought I was having an asthma attack. I have never cried so much at a film. Infact the entire cinema was gripped at certain moments, the munching of popcorn stopped, as did the sipping of various sugary beverages, some of us held our heads in disbelief. Such was the power of Gabourey and Mo'nique's performance that an entire audience seemed to forget that they were simply watching a movie, a dramatisation of a work of fiction. A friend who sat at the end crying, eyes red, tissues soaked was comforted by complete strangers who were sat next to her and reassured her that it will be okay.

Precious is an incredible movie that deserves every accolade that it receives. I would recommend it to anyone who is brave enough to face the truth and prepared to admit their powerlessness to stop the nightmare someone out there is facing.

Cat on a hot tin roof

Directed by Debbie Allen
Novello Theatre, Aldwych, London

I knew what to expect the moment I agreed to go and see this play with friends, with greats like James Earl Jones, and Phylicia Rashad – there was no doubt that the performances would be as stellar as the cast. In 2hours and 45 minutes, they certainly did not disappoint. James Earl Jones played Big Daddy, the patriarch of the family whose illness and anticipated death is the catalyst for family bickering and ensuing revelations. The stunning Sanaa Lathan is brilliant as the title character, although her ability to wear her frustrated alcoholic husband played by Adrian Lester down makes it hard for us to sympathise with her. Yet somehow we can still relate to Maggie’s pain, her desperate pleas to Brick for his love which by all accounts she never had. Debbie Allen has done a phenomenal job of transforming Tennessee Williams’ play into a production which although has an all black cast, does not focus on colour or race but rather on family issues which we can all relate to regardless of our class and race. A friend suggested that there was not enough evidence of the outrage that would have been felt towards the homosexual issue; I would argue though that given the dynamics of families, there is often a silent complicity – we know the issues that plague our families but choose to ignore them. When brought out in the open, there is little need for feigned surprise at facts which everyone knew but choose to ignore. Well worth the £30 which we paid for the best seats - there was a discount for early and a large group booking. Otherwise prices range from £22- £54. http://www.catwestend.com/

Sex & Violence, Death & Silence

Writing about the art world and extracting some coherent thoughts of artists is difficult. But Burn is able to do so with ease. How so? It could be the fact that he has been writing about art for a long time or perhaps as it was stated that he was "very chummy" with many of the so-called Young British Artists whose lives and work are the focus of about half of this book. Artsist such as Damien Hirst, Rachel Whiteread and Tracey Emin would send him notes on postcards,  it could have been for publicity. Sadly, Burns is not here to answers these queries himself, however there are many references throughout.

What is so appealing about this book is that he manages to capture succintcly interviews with David Hockney from 1971, Gilbert and George from 1973 but to name a few. He is a true interviewer by not interpreting what he thinks the artist is saying. He acknowledges the importance of the dealers and the collectors, so that we have a complete picture of the 'Art World'.  Burn also picks up on the hostility of some people towards conceptual art. One good answer he gets is from the scultptor Richard Wentworth: "I think people are threatened when commonplace things are used in art because they are very bad at acknowledging the spiritual value they invest in commonplace things . . . [and] are very bad at accommodating the fact that meaning is migrating in everything all the time."

The point the book makes is whether you an artist, art teacher, student or Joe Blog art has penetrated the public consciousness, and this book is an essential read.