Culture Crawl

By Hazel Last edited 208 months ago
Culture Crawl
CultureCrawl-17.11.06.jpg

It's a kid-friendly crawl this weekend, by which we mean there's lots of stuff to see and do that would please children and the perpetually nostalgic. Get your scarf, woolly hat and mittens and go out to play.

Until 3 December

Toys@Oxo 2006 is the annual show from the British Toymakers Guild and everything on display is also for sale. The automata, dolls, teddy bears, puzzles and games, glove puppets, hobby horses, wooden toys and whatever else the toymakers have created have turned the Oxo Tower into a traditional toy shop full of enticing amusements and rosy references to Santa's grotto (minus the elves). Considering the mass-marketed, sickly, plastic, heavily branded "toys" that are peddled like crack at this time of year, the original, handcrafted, unique items available to purchase are extremely exciting Christmas alternatives. Collectors and kids will love it. Toys@Oxo at the Oxo Tower, 11.00am to 6.00pm daily, until 3 December, entry is free. For more information, go to the Toys@Oxo website here.

From Saturday 18 until 26 November

After shopping for toys, take in a film as part of the London Children's Film Festival at the Barbican Centre and selected cinemas across London. This week of children's cinema is packed with films, workshops and lots of fun: the Woolly Wolf Game looks particulary good. The London Children's Film Festival, 18 to 26 November, Barbican Centre and participating London cinemas. For the full programme go to the festival website here.

Sunday 19 November

As part of the London Jazz Festival, international arts outfit Kinetika will bring their band of drummers who are mainly young people from Southwark and Lambeth to perform as Kinetika Bloco at the Queen Elizabeth Hall on South Bank. There will be one hundred and twenty young musicians and dancers filling the space with Haitian voodoo drumming, Brazilian candomble and music from New Orleans and the American deep south - all performed South London-style. Kinetika at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Sunday 19 November, 1.30pm, free. For more information, go to the website here.

Until 25 November

Firsts at The Linbury Studios is the chance for dance fans to have a mega-value night out at the Royal Opera House; lots of new artists and new pieces to see for a extremely good price at an unbelievably plush venue. This is the fourth time the season runs at the Royal Opera House and is as much a showcase of what the Opera House is trying to do with its small, intimate Linbury Studio space as it is a showcase of new talent. Aerial performance, puppetry, live animation and lots of dance are promised in the main programme and various acts have been booked to provide pre- and post-show entertainment, all for the flat fee of £5.00. Firsts at Linbury Studios, 17 to 25 November, Royal Opera House. For more information and to book tickets, go to the Firsts website here.

Last Updated 17 November 2006