Our Kino has now reached a decade, but it hasn’t declined in our affections one bit. It is still at the heart of Rye physically and often emotionally. Its inception was a major Rye town initiative led by Mike Eve and his wonderful team, and what a triumph it has been!
In addition to showing current films, there is the stunning streaming of artistic events from around the world of opera, ballet and plays, together with illustrated biopics on famous painters of the past such as Caravaggio this November, with Turner and Constable early next year.
Speaking personally, before this streaming started, about once a year we would struggle into uncomfortable and moderately smart clothes topped off (or bottomed off) with high heels, drive to a station and cast ourselves onto the bosom of public transport and an afternoon train. So far so good, then we’d clip down to the underground station for a train to Covent Garden. Having achieved the Opera House at last and slid into our seats, hopefully not too hungry or thirsty for curtain up, we’d enjoy the performance in the sure and certain knowledge that we’d have to repeat the journey in reverse at the end of the show.
I don’t want to labour this point about effort and inconvenience, because when you’re young, fit and keen, of course it’s a wonderful night out never to be forgotten. However as you get older and less energetic, consider the utter bliss of arriving into the warm welcome of our very local Kino, ordering the drink of your choice plus a small tub of delicious nuts to take to your seat, along with your sweet anticipation. Nothing beats it, absolutely nothing. And for this, we have to thank Matt Breckon, managing director of Kino Digital, and his team, who are all so helpful and polite.
The films are carefully and well chosen, and the live streaming of opera and ballet from The Royal Opera House is one of the most amazing initiatives of our age: civilised, cosy, comfortable captivating and … whisper the word … cheap!
Last week I went to see the life-enhancing ballet La Fille mal Gardee, (nicely full) and a couple of weeks earlier the opera La Sonnambula (Bellini) from The Met. It was outstanding. The auditorium was not really full, so the good burghers of the area missed a real treat. The secret for us all is to keep an eye on what is coming up, choose our poison, and make the effort to go and prove to ourselves how lucky we are to have the Kino in our midst.
As a postscript to the above, we have the ballet Cinderella and The Nutcracker coming up before Christmas, and La Traviata in January. Not to mention two National Theatre productions, The Fifth Step and Hamlet. We are truly spoiled!
Image Credits: Col Everitt .