What's on in London this week: 5 – 11 February 2024

Discover our pick of events in London this week: 5 – 11 February 2024.

KODO

Japanese drumming ensemble KODO brings the spirit of the taiko to the Barbican Hall for a unique performance embodying sound, resonance, and physicality. Recognised as the most prominent kumi-daiko (drumming troupe) globally, KODO has composed soundtracks for major films and inspired taiko players worldwide. Since their debut in 1981, they've given over 6,500 performances across five continents, popularising taiko drumming and forging new directions for the art form. Despite "Kodo" translating to "heartbeat" in Japanese, the group name symbolises playing drums with the simple heart of a child. Experience the soul-stirring rhythm of life firsthand with KODO.

Date: 5 - 6 February 2024.Location: Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London, EC2Y 8DS. Price: £25 - 49.50 + booking fee. Book now.

Japanese drumming ensemble KODO brings the spirit of the taiko to the Barbican Hall.

The Imagine Children's Festival

The Imagine Children's Festival, hosted by the Southbank Centre, returns this week. With over 130 events spanning eleven days, the festival offers a diverse array of activities including music, storytelling, dance, and comedy, catering to a wide audience. Over half of the festival's offerings are free, ensuring accessibility to top-notch artistic experiences. Now in its 22nd year, Imagine stands as the UK's leading arts festival for children aged 0-11 and their families, promising enriching and memorable experiences for all attendees.

Date: 7 - 17 February 2024. Click here for more.

Oksana Lyniv Conducts Dvořák

Experience the UK premiere of Victoria Vita Polevá’s Cello Concerto with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, featuring cellist Inbal Segev and conductor Oksana Lyniv. Polevá's emotionally honest compositions promise a major event not to be missed. Paired with Janáček's lively fox-tale and Dvořák’s uplifting symphony, expect music that fills you with sunshine, dance rhythms, and birdsong—a celebration of life itself. 

Date: 9 February 2024. Time: 7.30pm. Location: Royal Festival Hall. Price: £14 ⁠–⁠ £70. Book now.

An Enemy of the People

Matt Smith leads the cast in Thomas Ostermeier’s bold adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s classic play, An Enemy of the People, opening this week at the Duke of York's Theatre. Joined by a talented ensemble including Jessica Brown Findlay and Paul Hilton, Smith portrays Dr. Stockmann, whose discovery of contaminated waters sparks a battle against corruption and greed. Ostermeier's contemporary production delves into themes of truth and power, highlighting the timeless relevance of Ibsen's work.

Date: 6 February – 6 April 2024. Location: The Duke of York's Theatre, St Martin's Ln, London WC2N 4BG. Price: from £10.00 subject to a transaction fee of £3.80. Book now.

Matt Smith leads the cast in Thomas Ostermeier’s bold adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s classic play, An Enemy of the People. Photo by Wessex Grove.

Orchid After Hours

Orchids After Hours makes its much-anticipated return as part of the Kew Gardens Orchid Festival programme. This unique experience allows visitors to explore horticultural installations under the enchanting night sky. Dive into a world of special events, including lively music from the exuberant Malagasy band, the Boriza Brothers, live performances by artist and singer/songwriter Rasaonaivo Hanitrarivo, and poetry readings by illustrator Vaonarivo Brown. Additionally, indulge your taste buds with festival food featuring authentic Malagasy recipes curated by renowned chef Lilia Andrianovy of Lilia’s Kitchen.

Date: 3 February  – 3 March 2024. Location: Princes of Wales Conservatory, Kew, Richmond, London, TW9 3AE. Price: £20. Book now.

Orchid After Hours returns this week. Orchids at Kew Gardens, celebrating the remarkable biodiversity of Madagascar. © RBG Kew.

Generation Hope: Act for the Planet

Generation Hope, an annual programme addressing challenges for both people and the planet, returns with a free lineup of workshops, panels, and talks co-created with young people. Running from 7- 10 February, across the Natural History Museum, this event aims to inspire and empower the next generation to drive positive change.

Date: 7 - 10 February 2024. Click here to discover event taking place.

Macbeth

Macbeth arrives in London this week—a tale of unchecked ambition and its devastating consequences. Ralph Fiennes and Indira Varma lead this gripping portrayal of greed, murder, and superstition in William Shakespeare's iconic play. Directed by Simon Godwin and featuring set and costume design by Frankie Bradshaw, this brand-new production promises a fresh perspective on the timeless classic.

Date: 10 February - 30 March 2024. Location: DOCK X LONDON, DOCK X, Canada Water Retail park, Surrey Quays, SE16 2XU. Price: from £15. Book now.

Dennis Severs' House 18 Folgate Street. Photo by Lucinda Douglas Menzies.

Dennis Severs’ House

This week offers an excellent chance to explore Dennis Severs’ House, a unique attraction in Spitalfields. Conceived by Californian Dennis Severs in 1980, the house is a vivid depiction of a fictional Huguenot silk merchant family from 1724. Despite Severs' passing in 1999, the house remains a museum, featuring silent tours, detailed interiors, and engaging historical narratives, preserving his remarkable legacy. 

Location: Dennis Severs' House,18 Folgate St, London E1 6BX. Website: dennissevershouse.co.uk.

National Pizza Day

This Friday marks National Pizza Day, and whether you subscribe to these ‘national days’ or not, we'll take any excuse to indulge in London's fantastic pizza scene. Click here to discover our selection of the tastiest pizzas in London and support a local pizza restaurant this National Pizza Day!

National Pizza Day. Photo by Mirali Mirhashemian.

Arts & Culture

Opening this week

Frank Auerbach: The Charcoal Heads

The Courtauld Gallery will host an exhibition by Frank Auerbach titled The Charcoal Heads, featuring his hauntingly beautiful charcoal portrait heads from the 1950s and 1960s in post-war London. The showcase includes seventeen major charcoal drawings and six paintings, exploring the interplay between Auerbach's painted and charcoal portraits. Drawn from public and private collections, the exhibition reflects Auerbach's enduring fascination with capturing the essence of the human form.

Date: 9 February – 27 May 2024. Location: The Courtauld Gallery, Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 0RN. Price: from £14. Concessions available. Book now.

Frank Auerbach (b.1931), Self-Portrait, 1958, Charcoal and chalk on paper. Private Collection © the artist, courtesy of Frankie Rossi Art Projects, London.

When Forms Come Alive

When Forms Come Alive: Sixty Years of Restless Sculpture opening at the Hayward Gallery this week, explores artists' fascination with movement and organic growth. Spanning 50 years of contemporary art, the exhibition showcases dynamic sculptural forms that evoke fluid experiences and challenge digitalisation. Nineteen international artists present works that emphasise spontaneity, gravity, and evolving sensations. The sculptures reject rigidity, encouraging interaction with ambiguous forms.

Date: 7 February - 6 May 2024. Location:Hayward Gallery, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Rd, London SE1 8XX. Price: £18. Concessions available. Book now.

Tara Donovan, Untitled (Mylar), 2011- 2018. Mylar and hot glue. Dimensions Variable. Installation view, MCA Denver. Photo by Christopher Burke. Courtesy the artist and Pace Gallery.

#FLOFavourites: Art this week

Hackney Dave X Love Bomb

South Place Hotel presents a new collaboration with acclaimed print artist Dave Buonaguidi, known as 'Real Hackney Dave’. The exhibition, running until February 2025, will be showcased in the hotel's lobby and entrance hall, accessible to both guests and the public. Visitors can anticipate encountering the iconic Love Bomb sculpture and limited print editions, including unique pieces printed on various materials such as old advertising signs or ordinance survey maps. Additionally, the collection will feature original one-off pieces crafted from vintage found ephemera, each with its own unique history.

Date: 1 February 2024 – February 2025. Location: South Place Hotel, 3 South Pl, London EC2M 2AF.

Real Hackney Dave. Photo by Amber Rose Photos 

James Ward Presents: Seven Americans

James Ward Presents: Seven Americans is currently on display at JC Gallery in Mayfair, showcasing a unique selection of rarely seen works by pioneering artists who shaped the American Modernism movement. For the first time in Europe, this exhibition brings together paintings and watercolours by Oscar Bluemner, Arthur B. Carles, Charles Demuth, Arthur Dove, John Marin, and Joseph Stella, along with a feature on Alfred Stieglitz. These vibrant and daring artworks provide a poetic glimpse into a changing world, offering audiences a chance to explore the evolution of American art history.

Date: until 27 April 2024. Location: JC Gallery, 14A Hay Hill, London W1J 8NZ. Price: Free.

DOUGLAS GORDON All I need is a little bit of everything, 2024, installation view. Artwork © Studio lost but found:VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn, Germany 2024. Photo: Lucy Dawkins. Courtesy Gagosian.

Douglas Gordon: All I Need is a Little Bit of Everything

Gagosian is currently hosting an exhibition highlighting the works of Douglas Gordon titled 'All I Need is a Little Bit of Everything.' The exhibition celebrates Gordon's commissioned artwork for the Elizabeth Line Underground station at Tottenham Court Road, Dean Street. Featured in the exhibition is Gordon's 'Pretty Much Every Film and Video Work from About 1992 Until Now…,' presenting over a hundred screens including conventional televisions, monitors, and iPads. This installation offers a condensed retrospective of Gordon's prolific career.

Date: until 16 March  2024. Location: Gagosian, 20 Grosvenor Hill, London W1K 3QD. Price: Free.

Last chance

REBEL: 30 Years of London Fashion Excellence

In its final week, the Design Museum's latest exhibition, in collaboration with the British Fashion Council (BFC), commemorates the 30th anniversary of the BFC's NEWGEN programmme. REBEL: 30 Years of London Fashion, the exhibition showcases nearly 100 innovative fashion looks from debut and early collections that have left a lasting impact on pop culture and launched global design careers. Notable pieces include Björk's iconic swan dress from the 2001 Oscars, as well as items worn by Rihanna, Kate Moss and Harry Styles.

 Date: until 11 February 2024. Location: 224-238 Kensington High Street, Kensington, London W8 6AG. Price: from £18. Book now.

REBEL: 30 Years of London Fashion Excellence at the Design Museum.

Cinema

American Fiction

Winner of the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, Jeffrey Wright stars in this hilarious comedy drama from director Cord Jefferson. Thelonious 'Monk' Ellison (Wright) navigates the frustrating world of publishing as a struggling Black novelist, challenging reductive views of Blackness by writing a parody novel. With nominations for Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, Best Score, and acting nods for both Wright and Sterling K. Brown, this film promises to leave you laughing and reflecting on the complexities of identity.

Date: 2—8 February 2024.Location: Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London, EC2Y 8DS. Price: £13 + £1.50 booking fee. Book now.

Winner of the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, Jeffrey Wright stars in this hilarious comedy drama, American Fiction by director Cord Jefferson.

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme

The Japan Foundation Touring Film Programme (JFTFP24) returns to London with its largest showcase yet! From 2 February, experience Japan through cinema with Japanese films exploring the theme of memories. Don't miss guest appearances by directors MAEDA Tetsu and CHIHARA Tetsuya, and actress Serena Motola for unforgettable cinematic experiences.

Date: 2 February to 31 March 2024. Click here for line up of films this season.

Chinese New Year at the BFI Southbank

The BFI Southbank celebrates Chinese New Year with a cinematic showcase featuring three films that highlight Chinese and Hong Kong culture. At NFT3, viewers can enjoy Stanley Kwan's 1986 romance-murder mystery Love Unto Waste, the UK premiere of Ann Hui's documentary Elegies, which explores poetry in Hong Kong, and Father, Dong Wei's touching documentary portraying the relationship between a father and son. Click here to discover dates for each preview.

Date: 5 - 10 February 2024. Location: BFI Southbank, 0 Belvedere Rd, London SE1 8XT.

Pop-ups & Venues

Super Bowl Sunday at Hard Rock Cafe

This Sunday, the highly anticipated Super Bowl will take place as top NFL teams, Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers clash in an epic showdown. If you're not heading to Vegas for the live action, London's Hard Rock Cafes offer the perfect spot to catch all the excitement. With large screens, entertainment, competitions, and prizes, both branches promise an unforgettable Super Bowl experience.

Date: 11 February 2024. Location: Hard Rock Cafe Mayfair: 150 Old Park Ln, London W1K 1QZ. Time: 10pm - 4am. Hard Rock Cafe London Piccadilly Circus: 225, Piccadilly Criterion Building, St. James's, London W1J 9HR, Time: 10.30pm-4am.

Super Bowl Sunday will be shown at the Hard Rock Cafes in London this weekend. Photo by Robert Claypool.

#FLOFavourites: Pick of the Week

FREE EVENT OF THE WEEK  

Grant Museum of Zoology reopens

The Grant Museum of Zoology at UCL reopens on 6 February, after a £300,000 upgrade. The museum houses 68,000 specimens, including extinct and extant species. New displays highlight research using the collection, like tracking Seychelles' frogs' response to climate change and analysing sawfish DNA for conservation.

Date: from 6 February 2024. Location: Rockefeller Building, University College London, 21 University Street, WC1E 6DE. Website: ucl.ac.uk

The Grant Museum of Zoology. © UCL:James Tye.

 Art news of the Week

Together We Thrive: A Fundraising Exhibition for the Cultural Leaders Programme opens at 
Cromwell Place this month.

Culture& and Sotheby’s Institute of Art, in collaboration with Gallery OCA, present Together We Thrive, a fundraising exhibition for the Cultural Leaders Programme at Cromwell Place from 20 - 25 February. Featuring new works donated by leading and emerging artists, the exhibition aims to raise funds for the London Living Wage Bursary provided to programme scholars. Donors can enter a prize draw starting at £25.

Date: 20 -25 February 2024. Location: Cromwell Place, 4 Cromwell Pl, South Kensington, London SW7 2JE. Website: cromwellplace.com.

Culture& and Sotheby’s Institute of Art, in collaboration with Gallery OCA, will present Together We Thrive, a fundraising exhibition for the Cultural Leaders Programme from 20 - 25 February 2024.

Interview of the week

In conversation with Marie Bak Mortensen

Marie Bak Mortensen, Director of Create London.

Marie Bak Mortensen is Director of CREATE London. CREATE commissions bold, radical and socially engaged art and architecture in the public realm, collaborating with local communities to commission work that is ambitious, purposeful and useful.

Click here to read the full interview.

Food of the week

Town House and K bar at  The Kensington Hotel

The elegant K bar at The Kensington Hotel, South Kensington. Photo by MTotoe.

Nestled in the heart of South Kensington, The Kensington Hotel offers a rare blend of deep heritage and modern calm with its Town House and The K Bar. Town House at provides a tranquil space for breakfast, brunch, dinner, or indulging in a delicious Afternoon Tea, serving as a home away from home. Meanwhile, The K Bar exudes classic charm and sophistication, offering an elegant setting for enjoying artisan cocktails crafted with meticulous attention to detail. With its oak panels, brass accents, and plush velvet seating, the K Bar is an elegant hidden gem.

Location: The Kensington Hotel London, 109-113 Queens Gate Kensington, SW7 5LR. Website: doylecollection.com. Instagram: @hotelkensington.

Cause of the week

Solidarity Sports

 Solidarity Sports

Solidarity Sports is a charity focused on supporting children recovering from severe trauma in West London. They prioritise maintaining a 2:1 ratio of children to adults during school holiday projects to provide personalised care. Currently, they are seeking to expand their volunteer base. Click here to discover more about volunteering with Solidarity Sports.

Website: solidaritysports.org.