ABSOLUTELY ARTS & CULTURE
MAY RHS CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW
MARCH THE HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH FILM FESTIVAL
You know that spring has officially sprung when the Chelsea Flower Show comes round again. Glorious gardens abound.
A festival dedicated to engendering discussion and inciting action as well as telling the stories of those who are too often overlooked. Thought-provoking and often deeply moving. 20 – 29 Mar; Alternating between: The Barbican, Silk Street, EC2; The Ritzy Picturehouse, Coldharbour Lane, SW2; The Curzon, 99 Shaftesbury Avenue, W1; ff.hrw.org
20 - 24 May; Royal Hospital Gardens, Royal Hospital Road, SW3; rhs.org.uk
CITY SOCIAL
Dining Room, part of the newly opened (and very swanky) Rosewood London, for some guaranteed glamour.
252 High Holborn, WC1; rosewoodhotels.com
PANCAKE DAY
The best thing about Lent? The stuffing your face bit before. Absolutely’s three favourite pancake joints…
La Petite Bretagne 5-7 Beadon Road, W6; lapetitebretagne.co.uk
8 Feb – 9 Mar; Princess of Wales Conservatory, Kew Gardens, TW9; kew.org
MARCH FATAL ATTRACTION
We’ll be snapping up tickets to this gripping thriller, adapted for the stage by James Dearden (who also wrote the original 1987 film) if only to find out whether in this version, the bunny makes it. 8 Mar – 21 Jun; Theatre Royal Haymarket, 18 Suffolk Street, SW1; trh.co.uk
A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE
Expect an avant garde production of Arthur Miller’s great American tragedy from Belgian director Ivo van Hove. Book soon, tickets will sell fast.
ORCHIDS AT KEW: A PLANT-HUNTER’S PARADISE
It seems as if summer is still light years away, except at Kew Gardens, where the sun’s always shining (kind of). Take in some beautiful blooms and feel refreshed.
APRIL
The Blues Kitchen, 111 Camden High Street, NW1; theblueskitchen.com
4 Apr – 24 May; The Young Vic, 66 The Cut, SE1; youngvic.org
Date TBC. No address released yet, but word on the street is that it’ll be housed in Tower 42, 25 Old Broad St, EC2
MUSEUMS AT NIGHT
THE GLAMOUR OF ITALIAN FASHION 1945 - 2014
Tracing the rise of Italy as a world fashion centre. Beautiful gowns and photography help to illustrate this truly iconic story.
5 Apr - 27 Jul 2014, The V&A, Cromwell Road, SW7; vam.ac.uk
EASTER
The Breakfast Club 2-4 Rufus Street, N1; thebreakfastclubcafes.com
Pollen Street Social made fine dining fun; now Jason Atherton is expanding the Social circle to include an outpost in the City. We’re really rather excited. Go for the kind of food you’d sell your Nan for.
Treat your loved ones (or yourself) to some truly outstanding chocolates this Easter. Our pick would be one of the gloriously decadent boxes from Artisan du Chocolat (hint hint).
20 Apr; artisanduchocolat.com
Visit galleries and museums after hours and get a different perspective on your favourite London spaces. The exhibits probably won’t come to life, but we can hope... 15 May - 17 May; for full programme and venue info see culture24.org.uk
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