LETTERS
Tron tantrum
Glasgow‘s dear old Tron theatre/bar, ofwhich I‘m a member and will remain so, needs to be rescued from the trendies who have, in my view. taken it over and virtually killed offits lively atmosphere.
Improvements have been made to the theatre. and a ramp has been built to allow disabled access. These I welcome. but the new bar is horrendous. Many old friends have left or been removed. in my view, for I guess they didn‘t fit in with the new yuppie ideals or image. We used to have various acts, groups and gong nights, but that‘s all gone as it‘s too ordinary.
The bar and theatre staff are friendly, but yuppies go take a hike and get your kicks somewhere else. Barry Dubber Grampian Street Sandyhills Glasgow.
Norman normal
Thank you very much for the review. (See List 128 — the £6 admission price for Norman Lovett's show was described as ‘a shocker. ’) The reason I am writing is to make it clear that I have absolutely no say in determining the price of admission.
After the promoter and venue management etc take their split, the amount the performer(s) receives is considerably less than people might think.
Let‘s face it, ifl was in this business just for the money I’d stick to TV voice-overs. ‘You‘ll go monster mad for the money.‘
Norman Lovett Viewforth Gardens Edinburgh.
Insatiable
Many thanks for the absolutely brilliant Jose Cuervo tequila T-shirt which, along with my equally brilliant ‘Glaschu. Cathair Chultuir Na Heorpa 1990‘ T-shirt, will grace the sunstroked sands of Lido Di Jesolo at the end of August; but enough of my holiday digressions, my sunstroke will come soon enough. I write with a much more important mission in mind- the true revelations of the real David M. Bennie.
1. Needing to feed his insatiable fortnightly craving for fame and adoration. not to mention a possible overdraft for postage stamps, our intrepid correspondent treads fearlessly through the dark streets of Old Embra Toon. Not as David M. Bennie, I hasten to add, but none other than Adam Lyal (deceased). Telling tales from days ofold. when knights were bold and ‘gardez loo' was all the rage; but that was then and this is now as he props up the Letters page.
2. In a far-off suburban railway kiosk in sunny Milan. where travellers
The best letter next issue will win a bottle of Jose , Cuervo tequila. Letters, which may be edited for publication, should be sent to The List, Old Athenaeum Theatre, 179 Buchanan Street, Glasgow G1 2JZ, or 14 High Street, Edinburgh EH1 lTE.
('9
MOIRA NICOL
await the pleasure of Italian train drivers to actually arrive on time, while listening to a haunting melody courtesy of Fat Lucy, only to be rudely dragged back to reality when the vendorman screams ‘Potrebbe darmi della moneta spicciola, cretino!’ Nothing unusual about that . . . However the vendorman is none other than David M. Bennato, who charges a mere £3 per copy of The List.
3. The List, with far-sightedness, has already given Bennie the accolade he deserves: to be exposed on the front cover ofthe magazine (issue 120, May 1990), in the image that much of his avid readership would like to behold him.
By the way, David. if Thirty- something becomes a tad tedious, you should try Beauty and the Beast instead, and just think. you could stay up even later on a Saturday night — what more could a body ask for?
Patricia McGovern
St Vincent Terrace
Glasgow.
Virtually incomprehensible, and no substitute for the real thing.
Whtngelng Weglan Dear Embra Boys and Girls, Just a short note, as your feeble little bods suffer Festival fatigue, to remind you that you are only 44 miles from the real city ofculture, and to point out that the two most significant cultural events of August both took place in Glasgow. At the SECC, the Bolshoi Opera‘s performance, while not quite as revolutionary as the programme suggested, was a breathtaking spectacle nevertheless. And, at Ibrox, it was a delight to see the skilful dissection of a rusty-looking Rangers by Dynamo Kiev.
All the same, it was instructive to read your comments on the Festival in the magazine. ‘Britain lags way
behind most of the rest of the world
in its attitude to puppetry for adults.‘
we are told in one review. Yes. this could at last be the issue to bring down the Thatcher government. Speaking ofwhich. l was pleased to notice only one serious reference to ‘Thatcher’s Britain‘ in your Festival issues.
Having stayed on the west coast throughout, I cannot comment on the accuracy of your reviews. What I did notice. however, is the reverential attitude displayed towards the shows. ‘Don't miss it !', ‘see this‘. ‘should not be missed by anyone‘ were just three comments which seemed to over-estimate the importance ofa few little shows. As for the review ofJohn Dowie‘s show it ended ‘It is vital that you see this achingly beautiful monologue .' Well, David Mackenzie. it's two weeks later, I haven‘t seen the show. and I’m still alive.
As another review concluded. 'Remind me never to get into a nuclear shelter with artistic types.‘ Harriet Swain, there‘s a sweet sherry waiting for you at ()blomovs any time you like.
Joseph Spoon Otago Street Glasgow.
Well Joseph, your waggish comments certainly merit the prize for the best letter this issue — a Jose Cuervo tequila T—shirt. The catch is, you’ll have to come to the Edinburgh office to collect it. Ha ha ha.
Aesthetic fitness
The topic I’d like to address myself to this issue is the surprisingly controversial one of AES'I‘HETICS: (a) My two flatmates, Mags and Dawn, instructed me to replace the
should always retain your receipts
piece of paper sellotaped to the front door with a proper engraved name-plate. since their gentleman callers carrying Black Magic and daffodils have been expecting a social class I) or E itinerant dope fiend with a Jack Nicholson grin to answer upon ringing the bell. I selected a top—of-the-range plate in 'l‘awny'l‘uscan l’eak. with Medieval Gothic Calligraphy. gold embossed. It did not meet with their approval. however. being too ‘Aczicia-r‘xyenueish‘ for their right-on tastes. A new name-plate has been ordered. in minimalist style. In protest. l have removed my ‘George and Mildred fluorescent lamp from the hall. (b) Re the postmodernism debate which has surfaced on the letters page. who cares what it is‘.’ Anything painted afterthe lSthcenturvisn‘t worth the canvas it's splattered on. Poussin l.(‘e'/.anne It. I mean. a picture has little intrinsic value. its ‘worth‘ being a {Cilc‘elltm (ll the artist‘s reputation. For example. ifl found a painting of the Grand (.‘anal in the loft. friends and acquaintances wouldn‘t be interested in viewing it — unless it was signed by an Old Master such as 'l'itian; then they‘d pile round for fluted glasses of I .arnbrtisco to admire and comment on its ‘luminosity‘.
I had a quick look round the ‘Scotland‘s Pictures' exhibition at the RSA. where I saw someone having a fit in front of Stey en Campbell‘s A Man l’ert‘ett'ed By A Flea. but maybe ll was just a coincidence. The exclusion of Landseer is a disgrace. 'l'he Slap-it—()n-Ihiek—with-a—blindfold boys from Renlrew Street might sneer. but The lVfU/lllH h oft/1e Glen is a bloody good picture. wnh lots of ‘cognitive validity.
(c) It's good to see limbra full ofchic Europeans. The sight of female Italian or Spanish olive~toned ankles, in between moccasins and three—quarter length jeans. is both aesthetically pleasing and sexually piquant.
The Syringe eyentually made it back through 'l'hai ( ‘ustoms t the moral of his tale being that you
from Boots the (‘liemist ). but upon his return found that his new bank account had been frozen. The Bank of Kuwait was not a propitious choice. However. 'l'he Syringe is confident that Strathclyde Regional Council will make good his losses and reimburse him. as they still purport to be socialists. He wonders if there’s a special form he has to fill in.
Finally. the response to my ad for penpals was underwhelming— namely, one quasi-anonymous reply, but with two Marks and Spencer's fruit sherbets enclosed. Thanks. ‘Alison‘. . . Is the art of letter-writing completely dead'.’ David M. Bennie Haddington Place Edinburgh.
MT?
92 The List 31 August - 13 September 1990
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