Reviews by María Ordovás-Montañés
Love and Information
María Ordovás-Montañés
When I told a friend I was going to see Love and Information, she commented how it was modern and unusual. Would there be a dystopian plot twist? Would a character die after spending too much time on ...
5 years ago
Love and Information
The Tempest
María Ordovás-Montañés
The first performance I saw at Pegasus Theatre was Ventoux in 2016, which depicted the careers of cyclists Lance Armstrong and Marco Pantani. 2Magpies staged this production that featured two road ...
5 years ago
The Tempest
Kendal Mountain Festival
María Ordovás-Montañés
Following on from the climbing film premieres of the recent months, including Reel Rock 13, Dawn Wall, and Free Solo, I was eager to continue experiencing captivating narratives and ...
6 years ago
Kendal Mountain Festival
Stand-up Literature
María Ordovás-Montañés
Friday night brought together books, beers, bookworms, and bards (well, stand-up comedians). The second installment of Stand-Up Literature was kicked off by Conor McReynolds, an amusing host who ...
6 years ago
Stand-up Literature
Oxford Literary Festival 2019
María Ordovás-Montañés
What could be worrisome about the world population getting healthier? Thomas Bollyky, who is well-placed, working across global health, economics, and development, tackles this question in his new ...
6 years ago
Oxford Literary Festival 2019
I'm an Improviser: Get Me Out Here!
María Ordovás-Montañés
I’m An Improviser - Get Me Out Of Here! is The House of Improv’s latest work, which plays out six weeks of an unscripted reality TV show in a little over an hour: from the audition tapes, through ...
6 years ago
I'm an Improviser: Get Me Out Here!
Jericho Comedy Presents Ahir Shah
María Ordovás-Montañés
Ahir Shah took command of the stage in his Jericho Tavern “Duffer” show on Tuesday night. Through childhood stories, we soon learn that the show is eponymous: ‘duffer’ comes from the Hindi ...
6 years ago
Jericho Comedy Presents Ahir Shah
Comedy Killed the Video Star
María Ordovás-Montañés
Tuesday 2nd October 2018 Matthew Chadourne, the founder of QED Comedy Labs, played host for an evening of mocking music videos. His expertise is derived from growing up with MTV in the 80s, and he ...
6 years ago
Comedy Killed the Video Star
Sonia Aste: Made in Spain
María Ordovás-Montañés
Sonia Aste ‘warmed up’ the crowd by joking about the summer heat. Her Made in Spain show fittingly took place on a hot evening in The Jam Factory’s ‘Boiler Room’ Gallery as one of ...
6 years ago
Sonia Aste: Made in Spain
The House of Bernarda Alba
María Ordovás-Montañés
My first encounter with this Federico García Lorca play was in a Spanish literature class, reading La Casa de Bernarda Alba. I was curious to see how the work would be reinterpreted in the English ...
7 years ago
The House of Bernarda Alba
No Exit
María Ordovás-Montañés
Imagine
being in a room with three couches where there are no windows or
mirrors, the sole door is locked, and you cannot sleep nor cry. Sound
like hell? This drawing room backdrop is where ...
7 years ago
No Exit
Dinner With Aurora
María Ordovás-Montañés
On a recent episode of the On Point podcast about screen time in the home, experts offered advice such as putting phones on airplane mode during dinner to facilitate family interaction. This play ...
7 years ago
Dinner With Aurora
Beer Brewed With Bread: in Conversation With Chief Toaster Rob Wilson
María Ordovás-Montañés
“To change the world you have to throw a better
party than the people destroying it. We brew our award-winning beer using
unsold loaves from bakeries and unused crusts from sandwich makers. With ...
7 years ago
Beer Brewed With Bread: in Conversation With Chief Toaster Rob Wilson
Gelato Tasting
María Ordovás-Montañés
He's the alchemist of the Covered Market. Graham MacDonald transforms Guernsey milk and other locally-sourced ingredients into smooth gelati; fruit, sugar, and water into creamy sorbets. His tools? A ...
7 years ago
Gelato Tasting
Austentatious
María Ordovás-Montañés
I was first made aware that it has been 200 years since Jane Austen’s death upon visiting the British Library in February. Since then, I’ve seen posters for performances of Emma, a commemorative ...
7 years ago
Austentatious
Tea Tasting
María Ordovás-Montañés
The Oxford Festival of the Arts brought Bluebird Tea Company representatives out of their 'nest' in Brighton to host a tea tasting event in the Magdalen College School. Saturday's blue skies were ...
8 years ago
Tea Tasting
Dr. Zeiffal, Dr. Zeigal And The Hippo That Can Never Be Caught!
María Ordovás-Montañés
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Jon Mooallem's "
American Hippopotamus" long-form piece for The Atavist Magazine this week, but was left wanting more after experiencing its "hippopotamuslessness." ...
8 years ago
Dr. Zeiffal, Dr. Zeigal And The Hippo That Can Never Be Caught!
Midsummer Science Cabaret - With Oxfordshire Science Festival
María Ordovás-Montañés
This year's Midsummer Science Cabaret took place on the longest (and hottest?) day of the year, as part of the Oxfordshire Science Festival. For those of you still wondering, although yesterday was ...
8 years ago
Midsummer Science Cabaret - With Oxfordshire Science Festival
Jericho Comedy
María Ordovás-Montañés
Little did I know that the basement of the Jericho Café where I ate Easter brunch with my coursemates would be repurposed into a sold-out underground comedy venue a few weeks later. Subtract the ...
8 years ago
Jericho Comedy
1001 Stories: Stories and Mythology
María Ordovás-Montañés
What stories have been passed down for generations in your family? Are they fables, myths, or fairy tales? Do you recite them from memory at dinner or have they been written down? What do they say ...
8 years ago
1001 Stories: Stories and Mythology
Live Stand-Up Comedy at the Glee Club
María Ordovás-Montañés
For me, the most enjoyable element of a live stand-up comedy show, besides the humour, is that the interactions between the host, comedians, and the audience can most likely never be recreated again; ...
8 years ago
Live Stand-Up Comedy at the Glee Club
Ex Libris Live!
María Ordovás-Montañés
Balderdash is to words as Ex Libris is to book titles and plot summaries. While the Balderdash game works best for obscure vocabulary, Ex Libris is satisfyingly humorous over a range of well-known ...
8 years ago
Ex Libris Live!
John Osborne: 3 Stories From Radio 4
María Ordovás-Montañés
A modest white wooden chair with a stack of magazines, and a microphone on a stand: the 'set' for Three Stories from Radio Four is as simple and un-convoluted as the motifs and descriptions in writer ...
8 years ago
John Osborne: 3 Stories From Radio 4
Letters To Myself
María Ordovás-Montañés
What would you write to your past, present, or future self? This question is the scaffolding for Letters to Myself, a show that is built on the dreams, regrets, introspections, and belated advice of ...
8 years ago
Letters To Myself
