It has been many years since I last visited Jazz Cafe in Camden. In recent years, I tend to go to 'proper' concerts at the Barbican and South Bank where I would sit quite still for hours. I think I have almost forgotten the joy of standing (and dancing) at a concert [...]

Apart from a string of art fairs taking place in London last month, there was also the 2-week long Dance Umbrella festival, showcasing exceptional talents in the world of choreography from around the world.
At the festival, I saw some brilliant and ground-breaking dance performances produced by two contemporary dance companies. The first one [...]

I have always had a fascination with the Sahara. I think what appeals to me is its mystery, beauty, danger, scale, harshness, unpredictability and 'nothingness'. In my early 20s, I read Paul Bowles' novels, listened to his music and embarked on an adventure with a companion to the Sahara via Morocco. It [...]

Street artists performing in Granada
 
Flamenco is originated from the Romani people ( also known as Gitanos) living in Andalusia centuries ago, with influences from the Moors, the Jews, and the Mozarabic. Many foreigners do not realise that the essence of flamenco is not the dance itself, but rather the cante (song), one [...]

When I was a teenager, I became obsessed with everything 'French' because of their immaculate taste in art, fashion, design, culinary and cinema. I indulged in French cinema ( esp. Eric Rohmer ) and even spent 7 months living in Paris trying to improve my English-accented French learned from school here. During [...]

I have seen several shows choreographed by the experimental Moroccan-Flemish choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's at Sadlers Wells before, including: Sutra ( a collaboration with Antony Gormley and a group of young Shaolin monks in 2008), Babel ( another collaboration with Gormley and Damien Jalet in 2010) and TeZukA ( on the works [...]

I rarely write about music on this blog but in fact, music has always been essential in my life. I don't buy many CDs now ( like everyone else, I have switched to downloading online) because I am running out of space for them; having bought over 700 ( a rough estimation) [...]

 
It has been a while since I last attended a live music/ dance gig, so when I found out about a live flamenco performance at The Forge in Camden, I suggested it to my friend, who is also a fan of different dance forms.
I only discovered The Forge last year and was [...]

Tango al fresco at Regents Park
 
You don't have to be a tango dancer to appreciate this sensual and elegant dance, and I am talking about Argentinian tango, not the dramatic ballroom or 'Strictly come dancing' style. A lot of people get confused with the two as they still have this idea of [...]