Club Night: The Rite of Spring – The Grand Masquerade (Coronet Theatre, London, SE1)

Club night review: The Rite of Spring – The Grand Masquerade Ball
Hosted by: A Curious Invitation
Date of event: Saturday 24 May 2014
Coronet Theatre, 28 New Kent Road, London SE1 6TJ
Coronet Theatre – map
Review by: Alexa Williamson
Rating: **** (out of 5)

A Curious Invitation is an interesting thing (part society/party organiser/literary criticism/more) created by a woman named Suzette Fielding. This event was a grand cabaret/burlesque party. About 400 people attended and there were numerous performances, dancing, a band, hot tubs, art classes, many rooms, floors and more. People were required to wear masks and dress stylishly – whether it was 1920s-50s styles or Midsummer Night’s Dream fairy costumes. This was a grand night at a reasonable cost (£20 for an individual ticket) and was worth the effort to come and experience it. The lighting was deep reds, blues, purples romantic and the venue was generally fab. The venue is a little beaten up, but has a large dancefloor that makes up for that and that also the bar is just average and not that exciting. I had a great night and will long remember it and glad that I came here. There have been better but not many. This was shabby chic vintage creative.

Further information:
A Curious Invitation (official site)

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Snooker and pool club review: Mile End American Pool and Snooker (Stepney Green, London, E1)

Snooker and pool club review: Mile End American Pool and Snooker
229 Mile End Road, London, E1 4AA
Mile End American Pool and Snooker – map
Phone: 020 7265 8506
Review by: Alexa Williamson
Rating: **** (out of 5)

If you are in the East End of London this is a chilled out and reasonably priced place to come and play snooker or American Pool – and it is open 24 hours. They have three snooker tables and six American pool tables.You need to be a member to play here, but you can purchase a ‘day’ membership if you want.

I think a lot of locals come here to play. As the saying goes, “it ain’t the ritz” and the people who come here kept themselves to themselves (in some clubs the regulars will help newcomers to set stuff up if they don’t know snooker or pool that well), but it is a clean and reasonably lit place to come and play as many games as you want of pool or snooker. They have music videos on, but you’ll still be able to concentrate. There is also a bar and some fruit machines. A basic but clean place to come if you want to play snooker or pool.

Sometimes the club gets fairly busy and the three snooker tables were taken, but there were still some pool tables available.

Further information:
Mile End American Pool and Snooker (official site)

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Sports Club/snooker club review: The Grafton Club (New Malden, Surrey, England)

Sports club/snooker club review: The Grafton Club
Telephone: 0208 288 0971
36 Grafton Road, New Malden, Surrey KT3 3AA
The Grafton Club – map
Review by: Alexa Williamson
Rating: *****

Granted, this is a members’ only club and you may have to pay the membership fee to come here, but if you live around New Malden or the South West of London area, it is a nice chilled out place to go and do a variety of sports-related things. Several rooms of a detached house, they have a bar with televisions, fruit machines and a dart board and in the back of the club they have four snooker tables in a quiet, dark and windowless but well-ventilated room.

This is a good place to come and play snooker/pool or use the dartboard. You will have to play pool on a snooker table. But if you really want to play it’s, as the saying goes, ‘better than nothing’. The members and the staff here are nice, normal, friendly, polite and unassuming people. Highly recommended to come and play snooker at if you are in the area. You will have a relaxed time and be able to focus well on your game.

 

 

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Club night review: The Candlelight Club (various “secret” venues, London)

Club night review: The Candlelight Club (various “secret” venues, London)
Telephone: 07768 628788
Email: whowantstoknow@thecandlelightclub.com
Club night reviewed: The Candlelight Club at Porchester Hall, Porchester Road, London W2 5HS
Date of night reviewed: Saturday 10 May 2014
Review by: Alexa Williamson
Rating: ***** (out of 5)

Review: Just like the name implies, this is an exquisite and lively delving into an intimate, candlelit atmosphere… from an era gone by!

The Candlelight Club describes itself as: “A clandestine pop-up cocktail bar in a secret London venue, a stunning, tucked-away den with a 1920s speakeasy flavour, completely lit by candles. Each party offers a one-off cocktail menu, with special themes, plus dancing to live 1920s jazz bands and vintage DJing.”

The night in review was amazing and indeed earned its 5 stars as you were indeed transported back to an utterly fine, creative, vibrant and first-class 1920s extravaganza. To begin with, Porchester Hall is an elegant old building with many early 1900s features such as high ceilings, wood panelling, chandeliers, thick curtains around the doors, interesting light fixtures and more. The main room for the venue, which had numerous tables set up that were all candlelit, was an excellent choice as it was large and airy with an area for dancing right in front of a main stage where the 1920s band played. There was also a stage in the centre of the room for the cabaret dancers to perform on.

The night really did feel like you were stepping back to the “Roaring Twenties”. The Candlelight Club should first be commended for picking an excellent venue that was spacious enough for the 400 people who turned up tonight. Next, the ambiance with all the candlelighting and beautiful chandeliers was amazing. The menu on offer was also unique and of high quality. For example, you could order a bottle of champagne in an ice bucket, oysters on the half shell, a one-time exclusive cocktails menu, steaks, french pastries, wonderful side dishes such as asparagus, and on and on. The table-based waiter-service was also excellent – the staff were helpful, friendly, polite, knowledgeable and speedy – I was very impressed as they had to deal with 400 people!

The entertainment included a 1920s DJ, a live band – Alex Mendham and his orchestra, cabaret dancers in lovely silver, sparkling costumes, and a cross-dressing gay MC that looked like he could have belonged in a Paris cabaret or in the Rocky Horror Picture show. The evening flowed well and the crowd was well-dressed in their 1920s attire – which included sequined, low waist flapper dresses and diamante for the women and tuxedos for the men. The event lasted from 7pm to 12pm and ticket price was £25 (plus small ticket booking fee). This was excellent value for money and a delightful night out for socialising, show-watching, dancing and dining. Highly recommended!

Further information:
The Candlelight Club (official site)

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