In which I am satisfied and then unsatisfied

After a wonderfully long night of sleep and a rather heavy lunch, I spent quite some time in the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square.  I visited with some old friends, such as Van Gogh's autobiographical Chair, which never fails to speak to me,

Click an image to see a larger version.  

and Monet's stunning The Water-Lily Pond, which is so much more magnificent than my awkward photo can convey.

By the way, the odd angles in many of these photos come from having to fight the crowds for a moment in which I could take the pictures.

I also finally got to see the museum's two Da Vinci pieces, The Virgin of the Rocks 

and the drawing (also known as a "cartoon"), The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and Saint John the Baptist,

which was incredible, detailed, and moving.

On the way to the Da Vinci's, I was privileged to be able to enjoy two Durer pieces that were on two sides of a board.  This one, A Heavenly Body, is quite possibly about the end of the world, which made me like the irony of the way my face and hands appear in this photo.

Sorry, though for obscuring your view of the painting.

After admiring and studying quite a few lovely pieces by one of my favorites, Botticelli, the museum was nearing closing time and my eyes were nearing the melting point, so I headed outside.  From the entrance balcony at first and from ground level later, I enjoyed a street show.

The performers showed a bunch of dance and gymnastic moves, as well as sculpted bodies, to the admiring crowd.  With good patter and a charming presence, they kept everyone entertained and, I hope, made enough money to make the show worth doing.

Evening took me to The Old Vic for one of the season's hot shows, Girl from the North Country.

Conor McPherson wrote and directed the play, which centered on a boarding house of intriguing characters in Duluth, Minnesota in 1934 and which featured nearly two dozen Bob Dylan songs.

I entered the theatre with high expectations and left it unsatisfied.  The songs were good, of course, and they worked well with the story.  The actors delivered impeccable performances one and all, each inhabiting their role fully.  The story painted a vivid picture of a desperate America dealing with both extreme poverty and racial strife.  Every element I expected from the play was there...except that all it did was show the darkness and suffering, it did not illuminate it or add any new insights or, to its detriment, offer more than the smallest shred of hope.  Mind you, I don't need every piece of art to offer hope, but if a play is to wallow in human darkness, I'd like it to show me that darkness in a new way, or perhaps point a path out of the darkness--even if it never walks that path.  Maybe we need more art that forces us to confront the dire situations of those less privileged; I am inclined to believe we do.  I just wish this play had done more than show all that pain.

The three highlights of a wonderful London day

Touring a lot of the Impressionist section of the National Gallery and getting to see half a dozen Van Gogh works, including the remarkable Sunflowers.

Watching raptly The Old Vic's production of Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead, in which the entire cast, notably stars Daniel Radcliffe, Joshua McGuire, and David Haig, were superb.  This time around, I found the ending particularly touching.

Eating and enjoying a world-class dinner at The Ledbury, a restaurant that deserves every accolade it's received.

Wow, what a day.

On the road again: London, day 3

Roughly twenty years ago, while on a trip here, I bought a pair of bespoke shoes from John Lobb, one of the best and most storied shoemakers in the world.  I was unable to return for the first fitting, so I had them send the shoes to me.  As is common the shoes did not fit entirely perfectly--John Lobb assumes an adjustment or two, and the purchase price covers it--but I never found the time to go back to London (or to them on their visits to New York City, Washington D.C., or Atlanta), and so the shoes sat in my closet.

I brought them with me this trip and returned today to John Lobb to get the good folks there to redo the parts of the shoes I found uncomfortable.  Within roughly a month, I should have the shoes back.  I am quite happy at the prospect of finally being able to wear them.

I made rather a late start of it today, because exhaustion finally beat me into a very long night's sleep indeed.  So, I had a hasty lunch at a nearby Pret a Manger, which Gina had recommended as having decent quick food and free Wi-Fi.

From there, the next stop was the Victoria and Albert Museum, one of those wondrous London museums that is simply too huge for anyone to see in its entirety in a single visit. 

Click on an image to see a larger version.

I had a great time wandering exhibits on topics as varied as Japan, costuming, England in the 1500s, and Raphael.  I particularly liked this stairwell, which was all that remains of a large timber house from about 1530 in Brittany. 

Here you can see all of its floors.

Ancient timber houses fascinate me in part because it is so hard to find examples that have survived the combination of renovation and fires that consumed almost all of them. 

Another fine specimen was this section of the facade of Sir Paul Pinder's house from about 1600. 

In a large hall devoted to casts, these casts of Trajan's column in Rome were particularly impressive.

So much to see, so little time.

Tonight's main attraction was a trip to this historic theater

where I had the honor and pleasure of getting to see this play

from the third row, slightly to stage left, with stars Vanessa Redgrave and James Earl Jones.  What a marvelous time it was.  When these two legends got rolling, you forgot their age, forgot everything except the characters they were playing so wonderfully. 

If I could, I would bring every friend I have here just to see this show.  

"...man is a giddy thing," Shakespeare wrote and James Earl Jones said earlier tonight from maybe fifteen feet away from me, "and this is my conclusion."  I was giddy indeed tonight.