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Black Girl on the Front Row!

Tag: HOTEL

Brunch at “The Devonshire Club” is style and sustenance, Square-d!!

… So, it was 11:30p.m on Saturday night…

I was ‘laptop-DJ’ing’, (or, ‘digging for soul’, as I like to call it!) and ‘settling’ on Donny Hathaway’s ‘This Christmas’, as repeat tune of choice…

… The fact that, the following day,  it was this very same song that greeted me on entering the comfort of “The Devonshire Club”, in anticipation of a beautiful brunch, simply confirmed that this afternoon was wrapped in, somewhat of, the ‘enchanted’…

The scenario was cosy and sparkly, with cocoons of Christmas-red leather seating, curved around one side of the space, whilst banquet-style set-ups were situated alongside the length of the garden window/ patio doors and adjacent to the most decadent buffet bar… Family tables were central demarcations of a refined room design, which maximised on its chic, boutique nature.

I chose the corner cove, noticing gleefully that I had, unknowingly, ‘happened‘ to accessorise, in a co-ordinating quilted, leather Jaeger bag! Taking a moment to decompress, with trusted Crombie coat removed, I began to indulge in repose and absorb the atmosphere… as much by osmosis, of a sublime selection of Motown Christmas classics, as by inhalation of the amazing epicurean delights being cooked à la minute, behind the brunch bar!

The menu was laden with delectable starters, mains and desserts, not to mention an impressively comprehensive wine and bubbles list. My eyes, flitting to-and-fro between tempting Colchester oysters, superior smoked salmon and sweetest sticky toffee pudding, pin-balled back, to rest upon my undoubted winner… truffled mac-and-(four, yea, four different types of) cheese! To say it was, nigh-on, indescribable would probably be the best way to explain the total taste sensation brought by every mouth-watering morsel… In this case, however, ‘moreish‘ completely fit the bill, particularly when an unlimited buffet was on offer for the entire four hours! Needless to say I was over-excited that this was to be my ‘office’ for an unforgettable oyster-filled, pre-Christmas Day, Sunday afternoon treat!

Yet, more-ish became, definitively, so much more

In addition to the rib-tickling bouts of laughter which often erupted, to a man and woman, The Devonshire Club team were beyond accommodating and the height of hospitality, in the most understated of ways… As for dress, all were super-elegantly-attired… in fact, the next James Bond could have been cast from any of the suited-and-booted male contingent!

Time passed without my noticing….

…until, of course, the moment of departure…but happily-filled and fuelled from my sapid spread, I was ready to express my gratitude to those whose camaraderie had truly made my gastronomic escapade.

Only until I was en route home and re-arranging my bag, did I actually notice the name of the lipstick which I had hastily-snatched and applied that morning, to be “Private Members Club”! On reflection, the perfect choice for the most perfect dining experience and most definitely a Club worth joining, not only for the fun, fine food and fizz to be had, but for the unfeigned friendships to be made!

~

©A_F_R_O_W2018-2019. All Rights Reserved.

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The Devonshire Club

5 Devonshire Square, London, EC2M 4YD

(T) 020 3750 4545 ~ (E) info@devonshire.club 

(Twitter) @Devonshire_Club ~ (Facebook) @Devonshire.Members.Club ~ (Instagram) @devonshire_club

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Sincere @A_F_R_O_W-appreciation, once again, to all at ‘The Devonshire Club’, with special mention to Krystle Osafo Jones, as well as Team @Bubblz_Gigglz, for organising this wonderful afternoon!

~

 

 

SPOTLIGHT ON: ‘THE 24 HOUR PLAYS CELEBRITY GALA’… A SENTIMENTAL RETROSPECTIVE!

Dearest Afrow-Family, as I compose this, my newest post, somewhere, there is ensuing, a hive-of-activity, a buzz-of-excitement, a thrill-of-the-theatrical-chase! The location for the epicentre of this explosion-of-anticipation, is one of the cornerstone venues of the UK, if not global, Theatrical Arts arena, namely, our beloved Old Vic!

Yes, this weekend, will see well-known faces of stage and screen, join artistic forces and flex creative muscles with a tantalisingly team of writers and directors, themselves amongst the industry’s finest emerging and established talent, to produce ‘The 24-Hour Plays’, one of the most exhilerating, multi-discplinary rollercoaster-rides upon the Cultural/Creative Arts mustsee list!

Past years have seen a plethora of stars, old-guard and new, showcasing the best of edge-of-your-seat collaborations, somewhat metamorphosing into a combined vanguard, for the elemental nature of stagecraft. Such names as Josh Hartnett, he of the melifluously Robeson-esque tones, Sally Phillips, she of the razor-sharp witticims and Mackenzie Crook, he, the rascal of genuis comedy-timing, have deigned to take the bull that is the ’24 Hour Plays’ event, by the horns and subdue it over an evening of live performances, so palpably immediate, as to be ignited by raw flint!

This year’s participants, who will include the indefatigable, Clive Rowe, the understatedly sublime Tom Ellis, the creative powerhouse, who is Catherine Tate and a rising-star, with quite the most captivating screen-presence, Douglas Booth. The list of celebrities does not tail off and, consistent with the unpredictability of the process, will surely serve-up some of the most delightfully unusual casting combinations that the audience in-attendance might ever have the pleasure to see!

To compound the hub-bub, akin to that of a Hollywood premiere of a hotly-tipped, award-winning movie, is the fact that this year also marks the 10th Anniversary of the fundraising gala. No pressure then!

So what if, as an actor, you have to sit in a room with a prop, share it with other new faces, except that they’re not new faces, because you already know who they are, having racked-up, between them, a C.V the likes of which you couldn’t dream-up?! So what if, as a writer, you are to take that prop and reversecram a vignette, which will, hopefully, interlock seamlessly with all of the other five scenes?! What of the fact that you have to pull an all-nighter, in order to release said work-of-written-art?! Or even that there’ll barely be enough time for writer’s block?! Who cares, that it is all to be nursed-and-rehearsed, then presented infront of a kindly-donating audience of savvy theatre-going witnesses?! Oh and why should it be in-the-slightest bit bothersome that the Social Media-Readers can ride, side-saddle, with every second of progress?!

Forming, storming, norming and performing in a 24 Hour group-dynamic, for one night only?!

NO. PRESSURE. AT. ALL!!!!!

Well, having attended, myself, I know that it was pressure-filled, but that, evidently, this was the kind of pressure which caused the artists to yield control, dig deeper than ever before and share the journey towards the birth of theatre-like-no-other! I had the privelege of seeing the entire arc-of-vision, from backstage tours which allowed we band-of-happy-guests to see the performers working through scripts on their own, as well as being face-to-face with the very boards upon which so many greats had trodden, and which would soon become the home of skilfully-crafted creativity, with an intensely off-the-cuff edge!

The very year I attended, I remember walking with other guests, extremely gingerly, past an actor, himself, sat staring into the distance, as if in his own incredible world of moment-to-moment brainfreeze, interspersed with absolute recognition of his lines! It was, right then, that the realisation dawned upon me of being an honoured party to the condensed version of this ‘artist’s way’… and although, prior to the day, I had been enthusiastic about what was to burst its way into my psyche, it rapidly stepped onto my mental-plane and took subsequent flight!

My chosen outfit of a floor-length, champagne-coloured, spaghetti-strapped, ballerina dress, with draped bodice and an acreage of tulle skirt, had also flown all the way from New York City, and was accompanied by a matching pair of crystal-embellished high-heels, an iridescent, sheer pashmina, matching oyster-shell satin purse, with gold chain, a selection of pearl jewellery and a shower of Coco Chanel! My hair was gently encouraged into a delicate chignon, with a few wisps and tendrils, teased for texture… My chosen transport? A good old London Cab!

The show, itself, was…well…out-of-this-world! Filled with emotional highs, lows and turning points…and that was just the introductionEvery excited synonym, possible, sat upon the lips of the adrenaline-fuelled audience. We all knew what the rules of the ‘game’ were, but the improvisational quality of the experience meant that all of the rules had been jettisoned out of the fourth-wall window.. We all knew that too! No longer were we ‘audience members’, but, fellow participants.. Co-creative-cathodes, emitting empathetic energy! Thus, when one actress forgot her lines, looked out at us, declared, ‘Oh, I can’t do this’ and proceeded to retrieve the script and read, verbatim, through the scene, she received rapturous applause, not, as one might think, because she had been defeated, in any way, shape or form…but because she had made an absolute triumph of the moment, and enjoyed the freedom of being able to do so! In this context, it all made utter sense and gave rise to a certain bonding, such as I haven’t experienced in quite the same way since. The post-show party was an entirely relaxed, yet, highly elegant affair, with artists and guests mingling and dancing away until way into the wee, small post-24-hours hours!! I have no doubt that 10th anniversary celebration of this uniquely glitzy gala will be even more impressive, especially being held at the luxurious 5* Rosewood Hotel!

 Whilst embraced by glamour, The 24 Hour Plays model, is an ingenius medium, through which we are blessed to see expressed, what I believe to be at the foundation of all great experiences… At the root, is the courage to fly-by-the-seat-of-one’s-pants (be they of the exquisite YSL cigarette-silhouette, or a nonchalantly loose-legged, denim-flared DKNY variety), and to have faith that, not only is there potential for all of those experiences to come together for the good, but also, that these combined episodes, en-route, will contribute to an amazing ‘mosaic-of-moments’, which we, with true feeling, can all call ‘real life’.

I wholeheartedly encourage you to support The Old Vic by snapping up one of the few remaining tickets, getting your best bib ‘n’ tucker on and going… Black Cab, optional, of course!

©AFROW2013-2019  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

http://www.oldvictheatre.com/the-24-hour-plays-celebrity-gala/

www.rosewoodhotels.com