Going out: Cinema
Kanaval: A People’s History of Haiti in Six Chapters
Out now
A documentary evolution of Leah Gordon’s black-and-white photography series capturing carnival performers in beautiful and sometimes eerie masks and costumes. Here Gordon joins forces with co-director Eddie Hutton-Mills to blend striking imagery (above) with an impressionistic look at the history and legacy of colonialism in Haiti.
Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
Out now
The Marvel machine rumbles on, serving up another lengthy slice of superheroic high jinks, as the leaders of Wakanda fight to save their nation from sundry threats. Letitia Wright, Winston Duke and Angela Bassett all return. Ryan Coogler directs.
No Bears
Out now
From one of Iran’s most influential film‑makers, Jafar Panâhi (who, at time of writing is imprisoned by the government in Iran on charges of “propaganda against the regime”), comes this timely metafiction, shot secretly, which probes the changes that a camera can and cannot bring about.
The Draughtsman’s Contract
Out now
A remaster of Peter Greenaway’s classic, which turns 40 this year, this was the director’s first (relatively) conventional film, full of sexual intrigue and double dealing. It’s set in a large country house whose owner is away, giving his wife (Janet Suzman) ample opportunity to realise a scheme involving a handsome young painter (Anthony Higgins). Catherine Bray
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Going out: Gigs
Florence + the Machine
16 to 30 November; tour starts Cardiff
Florence Welch (above) makes most sense when her voice ricochets around cavernous arenas, all dramatic swoops and lung-busting crescendos. So there should be plenty to enjoy on this tour in support of May’s typically dramatic Dance Fever album, which added King and Free to her canon of epic singalongs. Michael Cragg
Grace Ives
YES, Manchester, 14 November; The Lower Third, London, 16 November
The New York singer-songwriter brings a playful sensibility to tactile, lo-fi pop: this year’s excellent Janky Star album, for example, was preceded by a collection of ringtones and an EP of nursery rhyme covers. She may favour brevity – most of her songs clock in but there’s plenty to unpack. MC
London jazz festival
Various venues, London, to 20 November
A star-packed EFG London jazz festival week includes Snarky Puppy composer-pianist Bill Laurance and avant-garde greats Henry Threadgill and Anthony Braxton (both 13 November); vocal star Dianne Reeves (12 & 13 November); unique big-band composer Mike Gibbs (14 & 15 November); cutting-edge saxists Matana Roberts (17 November) and Makaya McCraven (18 November); plus dozens more. John Fordham
Vers le Silence
City Halls, Glasgow, 17 November; Usher Hall, Edinburgh, 20 November
Ryan Wigglesworth and the BBC Scottish Symphony bring Hans Abrahamsen’s first original work for orchestra for 40 years to the UK for the first time. Its four magically scored movements move from an elemental world of fire, earth, wind and water to final, transfiguring silence. Andrew Clements
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Going out: Art
Making Modernism
Royal Academy of Arts, London, to 12 February
When teenager Tracey Emin was learning about expressionism from David Bowie albums and library books in punk-era Margate, one of the artists she discovered was Käthe Kollwitz. This German expressionist and socialist is celebrated here alongside Paula Modersohn-Becker, Gabriele Münter, Marianne Werefkin (work pictured, above) and more female heroes of central European modernism.
Lucie Rie
MIMA, Middlesbrough, to 12 February
Born in 1902 to a Viennese Jewish family, the modernist potter Lucy Rie emigrated to Britain in 1938, as Nazi antisemitism took over Austria. She had to start her career again but in the 1950s and 60s became known for her pure, clear ceramic designs that echo prehistoric and ancient art.
Paint Like the Swallow Sings Calypso
Kettle’s Yard, Cambridge, to 19 February
Veteran artists Errol Lloyd, John Lyons and Paul Dash, first-generation Caribbean diaspora painters, create an exhibition that mixes their own depictions of modern carnival with examples of the carnivalesque in older European art from Cambridge’s Fitzwilliam Museum. An exhibition that celebrates the urge to celebrate.
Re:Imagining Musicals
V&A, London, to 27 November 2023
This free display brings together props, costumes and posters from contemporary musicals including Hamilton, Wicked and Six to show how this beloved West End and Broadway art form comments on politics and identity in often radical ways. Highlights include documents of Joan Littlewood’s pacifist musical Oh, What a Lovely War! Jonathan Jones
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Going out: Stage
Lara Ricote
Soho theatre, London, 17 to 19 November; then 23 January to 4 February
The latest wave of identity politics-heavy comics are more interested in silliness and self-deprecation than hectoring. A case in point is Ricote (above), whose Edinburgh newcomer award-winning show trades on her status as a partially deaf Mexican-American woman with daffy charm. Rachel Aroesti
Matthew Bourne’s Sleeping Beauty
Theatre Royal Plymouth, to 19 November; touring to 29 April
There’s a twist, as ever, in Matthew Bourne’s fairytale reboot. This time he turns Sleeping Beauty into a vampire story (because how else are you going to stay young and handsome for 100 years until the princess wakes up?). The 15-venue tour celebrates the show’s 10th anniversary. Lyndsey Winship
Alice in Wonderland
New Vic theatre, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Fri to 28 January
Theresa Heskins revives her radical adaptation of Lewis Carroll’s tale, first staged in 2011. Alice is reimagined as a young girl who cannot read and struggles to find food, in a powerful take that explores how illiteracy and poverty can upend a child’s life. Miriam Gillinson
Pinocchio
Unicorn theatre, London, to 31 December
What better story to transform into a children’s puppet show? With Eve Leigh writing and Justin Audibert directing, this should be a juicy theatrical treat for all the family. For ages seven and up. MG
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Staying in: Streaming
Tulsa King
14 November, Paramount+
Sylvester Stallone (above) stars as a washed-up capo tasked with starting a new branch of the mafia in Oklahoma in this comic crime drama with some serious behind-the-scenes talent. Showrunner Terence Winter was a writer-producer on The Sopranos and creator of Boardwalk Empire.
The People’s Piazza: A History of Covent Garden
13 November, 9pm, BBC Two & iPlayer
David Olusoga’s excellent pop-history series A House Through Time inventively and evocatively chronicled the UK’s past through focusing on a single dwelling. His fascinating new feature-length doc supersizes the conceit, examining modern Britain through the prism of one of London’s most storied districts.
Young, Black and Right-Wing
13 November, 10pm, Channel 4 & All 4
It may sport one of those tiresome provocative three-part titles, but the premise of this one-off documentary is inarguably timely. Presenter Zeze Millz investigates an increasingly headline-grabbing phenomenon, talking to black Britons who favour social conservatism, plus those who embrace traditionally Tory economic policy.
James Arthur: Out of Our Minds
13 November, 9pm, BBC Three & iPlayer
Compared to a decade ago it’s positively ubiquitous, but in many ways the conversation around mental health is only just getting started. That means any programme that candidly embraces the topic – such as this exploration of our rising dependence on antidepressants by X Factor alumnus James Arthur – is likely to end up being both fascinating and worthwhile. RA
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Staying in: Games
God of War: Ragnarök
Out now, PS4, PS5
Join reformed god-slayer Kratos and his wayward teen son Atreus as they journey through Norse mythology, searching for answers and getting into epic fights (above).
Pentiment
Out Tue, Xbox, PC
A murder mystery set in medieval Bavaria, drawn in the style of a historical manuscript. Beautiful to look at and intriguing to play. Keza MacDonald
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Staying in: Albums
Redcar – Redcar les Adorables Etoiles
Out now
While the moniker may be unfamiliar, Redcar is actually the latest musical persona from the artist formerly known as Christine and the Queens (above). Billed as “vast, hopeful and ambitious”, this mainly French-language return features the pulsating electronic mini-symphonies, Je Te Vois Enfin and Rien Dire.
Bruce Springsteen – Only the Strong Survive
Out now
The Boss returns with his album, and his first covers collection since 2006’s Grammy-winning We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions. While that album focused on folk, here Springsteen dives into R&B and soul classics from the 1960s and 70s, reimagining hits by the Supremes, the Commodores and more.
Drake and 21 Savage – Her Loss
Out now
Drake’s second album of 2022 – June’s Honestly, Nevermind was quickly trumped by Beyoncé’s similarly house-leaning Renaissance – finds him linking up with regular collaborator 21 Savage for a more rap-focused collection. Surprise-announced in October, it was delayed by a week when producer 40 contracted Covid while mixing it.
Louis Tomlinson – Faith in the Future
Out now
On his second solo album, the erstwhile One Directioner continues exploring the various shades of 00s rock. Lead single Bigger Than Me – an ode to the responsibility he feels towards his fans – channels Snow Patrol, and the pogoing Out of My System touches on the indie disco stylings of early Bloc Party. MC
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Staying in: Brain food
Gods of the Game
13 November, 8pm, Sky Arts
A football opera is a strange proposition but this spirited effort from Surrey’s Grange Park Opera (above) gives voice to a charming story about fans retaking ownership of the beautiful game and features a chorus of operatic amateurs.
Music of the Black Renaissance
Podcast
The Barbican Centre in London presents this fascinating six-part series exploring the groundbreaking music produced by Black American composers in the early 20th century. Musicologist Dr Samantha Ege charts the careers of the likes of Nora Holt and Florence Price.
@culturaltutor
Twitter
Twitter feed and weekly newsletter, the Cultural Tutor is a charming online repository of curios. Topics include an investigation into the way in which early 1900s Austrian architect Adolf Loos influenced building design at the turn of the 21st century. Ammar Kalia
