2015: That Was The Year That Was

A quick review of my cultural outings in 2015. I'm not reviewing here much lately, so not linking to tags, but you are welcome to dig out whatever's there.

Intro bit in bold is range over the last 12 years [eeep! see 'year-in-review' tag for my Cultural History for over a decade]:

* 4 - 20 films (10 in 2015, 12 trips to cinema, most enjoyed The Martian, Jurassic World. Objectively best: probably Mad Max: Fury Road. Also saw Jupiter Ascending, Age of Ultron x 3, Ant-Man, Child 44, Man from UNCLE, SPECTRE, Star Wars: The Force Awakens.)

* 1 - 15 theatre trips (14 in 2015, highlights were Bakkhai, Oresteia, Nell Gwynn. Also saw Antigone, Waiting for Godot, Hamlet, To Kill a Mockingbird, Crossing Jerusalem, The Other Mozart, The Cocktail Party, misc Edinburgh Festival things.)

* 2 - 22 classical concerts (12 in 2015 including two performances of Beethoven's 9th. Most enjoyed Beethoven Piano Concerto #5, pianist Freddy Kempf. Also Berlin Phil x 2, plenty more Beethoven, some Rachmaninoff and Sibelius, Berlioz Requiem at Albert Hall with a friend singing in the choir).

* 0 - 6 operas (5 in 2015: Purcell's Indian Queen (disappointing); Tom Randle's Love Me to Death workshop / preview, Offenbach's Tales of Hoffman (excellent); Donizetti's Wild Man of the West Indies; Figaro Fugit.)

* 0 - 9 gigs (4 in 2015: Paloma Faith, Will Butler, FFS (best musically), One Direction (best experience, possibly because my expectations were low, possibly because of atmosphere created by 20,000-strong, predominantly young female, audience).)

Other highlights included meeting Elizabeth Knox and discovering that she knows who I am :) :) :); my third year co-running a track at Nine Worlds; four holidays (Lyon, Edinburgh, Rome, Gran Canaria); my first Edinburgh [Fringe] Festival, thanks anef and doubtingmichael.

I've cut down on the Coursera courses due to Real Life, but managed a few:

Introduction to Classical Music

Sagas and Space - Thinking Space in Viking Age and Medieval Scandinavia [this was excellent]

Miracles of Human Language: An Introduction to Linguistics [this was hard]

Superhero Entertainments

2015 books already done here.

2015/30: Travel Light -- Naomi Mitchison

2015/30: Travel Light -- Naomi Mitchison

"What kind of game has All-Father been having with me?”

“What did he say to you, Halla?”

“He said,Travel Light.”

“If you did that, if you travelled light, you might travel through the years and travel faster than some. Would you have it otherwise, Halla?”

“I think he might have told me.” [p. 134]

Travel Light begins in the realm of fairytale, moves into history, and ends in mythology.( slightly spoilery review )