pic: Goodbye Barclona

EastLondonLines has scoured Croydon, Hackney, Lewisham, and Tower Hamlets for the best sights and shows in the coming week. Read on for seven days of exciting events…

The No Cuts Cabaret, Lewisham, Thursday

Artists Drawing a Line: Performance Night, Freedom from Torture’s Art week, Tower Hamlets, Thursday

London Turkish Film Festival, Hackney, Friday (starts in Odeon West End on Thursday) until December 8

Kenya: A Photographic Exhibition, Hackney, Thursday until January 4

OMG Mind Rocks, Croydon, Friday

Stand Up Comedy, Lewisham, Saturday

Goodbye Barcelona, Hackney, Saturday

Canary Wharf Ice Rink, Tower Hamlets, Sunday (until February 19)

Wrong Comedy, Croydon, Sunday

Urban Matters, an Art in Mind Exhibition, Tower Hamlets, Monday until December 4

Glimpse 2011 at The BRIT School, Croydon, Tuesday

Three Plays to See Before You Die (Box, The Wishes of Harold Merkin, Harpsichord World), Lewisham, Wednesday

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 24

The No Cuts Cabaret, November 24 at 7pm, Rivoli Ballroom, 350 Brockley Road, Crofton Park.

Organised by Unite and Unison members from Lewisham NHS and Local Government Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service branches, the free cabaret will mix politics with entertainment. Ken Livingstone, Dr Louise Irvine, Rachael Maskell and Dr Lez Henry will be guest speakers at the free event that hopes to highlight key issues as well as encourage audiences to be proactive in opposing the cuts to children and youth services. Audiences will be sure to be entertained by the local youth groups providing musical performances and keeping in tune with the political cause of the event will be local comedian Steve Gribbin with political satire. For more details, contact richard.munn@unitetheunion.org.

pic: Dexter Dalwood

Artists Drawing A Line: Performance Night, part of Freedom from Torture’s Art week, November 24 at 7.30pm, Loading Bay Gallery, 91 Brick Lane, Dray Walk, E1 6QL.

With an eclectic mix of artists, Artists Drawing A Line offers a night of poetry, magic, music, drama, art and plenty more. The evening is part of a series of events for Freedom From Torture Art Week, organised by the charity, Freedom From Torture (the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture). Their aim is to provide assistance and treatment to torture survivors and these events hope to highlight key aid and international issues. For more information on this event and the rest, visit their website. For this particular event, book a place online. There is a suggested £4 donation on the door but you must book online first. To see what EastLondonLines thought about the Torture Art exhibition, read our review here.

London Turkish Film Festival, November 24 until December 8, Friday November 25 from 1.30pm onwards (last film at 8.30pm), 107 Kingsland High Street, E8 2PB.

On November 25, four Turkish films will be on show at the Dalston cinema including Do Not Forget Me Istanbul, Turkish Passport, Home and Hair for the 17th London Turkish Film Festival. The latter two films include a question and answer session with the respective directors, Muzaffer Özdemir and Tayfun Pirselimoglu. Home (Yurt) is the 2003 Cannes Best Actor award winner Özdemir’s first feature that he has written and directed. Each film has English subtitles and for more information, visit the festival’s website. To book a ticket for the above series of films, visit Rio cinema’s website.

Pic: Michael Antoniou

Kenya: A Photographic Exhibition, November 24 until January 4 at 12pm to 12am, Sunday to Thursday and 12pm to 2am, Friday and Saturday at Open the Gate, 33-35 Stoke Newington Road, Dalston, N16 8BJ.

This is Michael Antoniou’s first solo exhibition putting on show a series of photographs taken in Kenya. Visitors can see a mix of sites from the Nairobi slums. Ten percent of the sales of the photographs will go to the charity Anno’s Africa. The launch night on Thursday will start at 7pm with a drinks reception and a talk. Those coming to the exhibition on the first night will be delighted with live music from Wancee, a performance poet and urban rapper, amongst others.  Tickets cost £5 and £3 for members on the door for the live music event, though the exhibition itself is free. For more information, visit Antoniou’s blog.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 25

OMG Mind Rocks, November 25 at 7.30pm to 11pm at Scream Lounge, 20 South End, Croydon, CR0 1DN

OMG Mind Rocks is a special gig organised by Mind to raise funds for the mental health charity at Scream Lounge, a popular indie music venue. Performing for the audience will be several acts from different genres including Sara Niles, singing jazz and soul classics. Other acts include Loft Daddy performing alternative rock, 2Feathers with an electronica funky style and Clay, a folk and soul act, amongst many more. There will also be a raffle to help make money for Mind. Doors open at 7pm and tickets can be bought on the door or by calling 020 8668 2210/07923 017168. Tickets are £7/£5 concessions.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 26

Stand Up Comedy, November 26 at EDComedy at 9pm at The Hob, 7 Devonshire Road, Forest Hill, SE2S 3HE.

Established comedians, Maureen Younger, Mike Wozniak, Steve Nallon and Quincy (2) will provide hilarious delight at this comedy night. As well as being a stand-up comedian, Maureen Younger is a resident MC of Laughing Cows in London, Birmingham and Berlin. This event is part of a series of different shows the comedian will perform at, including The Africa Centre in London with Shazia Mirza and David Baker the day before. Wozniak was named by Time Out as New Act of the Year in 2008, while Steve Nallon, an impressionist and comedian, was one of the founders of Spitting Image, ITV’s satirical puppet show which ran from 1984 to 1996. For tickets, call EDComedy on 0208 855 0496. Tickets are £9/£6 concessions.

pic: Goodbye Barclona

Goodbye Barcelona, November 26 at 7.30pm (continues until December 23) at the Arcola Theatre, 24 Ashwin Street, Dalston, E8 3DL.

Goodbye Barcelona is a new musical marking the 75th anniversary of the Spanish Civil War, set in 1936. It tells the story of a young man who joins the International Brigades in their fight against the fascists. But this is no normal history play; the show is a musical promising the audience passion, as it tells the story of the spread of fascism in Europe and the ordinary people who try to help others in the fight for freedom. Tickets can be bought online or by calling the box office on 020 7503 1646 and full tickets cost £17/£11 concessions. For more information on the musical, visit www.goodbyebarcelona.com.

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 27

Canary Wharf Ice Rink pic: Canary Wharf Group

Canary Wharf Ice Rink, daily until February 19, from 9.45am to 11pm at Canada Square Park, Canary Wharf, E14 5HQ. Sessions are for one hour.

To get in the Christmas mood, or even the winter mood, the Canary Wharf ice rink gives the perfect opportunity to relax and skate amongst London’s tallest buildings. There is no need to bring skates as they are available to hire. For those who want to avoid Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, which is sure to be extra busy at this time of year, Canary Wharf ice rink is the place to go. Adult tickets cost £10 on weekdays from 9.45am to 5.30pm and £12 on the weekend and on weekday evenings from 5.30pm onwards. Students with NUS cards and OAPs need only pay £9 and children under 12 cost £7.50. For more information, visit the main website.

Wrong Comedy, November 27, Black Sheep Bar, 68 High Street, CR0 1NA.

Open Comedy, proud of being ‘the events company that doesn’t take itself too seriously’, will be hosting a dark comedy night under the name Wrong Comedy. The event will take place in one of the favorite spaces of Croydon’s ‘deviant’ youth members. This could a chance for you to grab a taste of some of the currently most promising artists in the underappreciated genres of dark, surreal and blue comedy. The headliner of the night will be Tom Craine, Winner for Best Comedy & Drama in BBC National Student Awards and one of The Times Top 5 picks of Edinburgh Festival 2010. Other participants will be Toby Brown (“Everyone rightfully worshiped him’’- Channel 4 Comedy), Yasar Saleem (“My delicious little Hindu boy” – Doug Stanhope) and Bob ‘Walshy’ Walsh (warm ups for Russell Brand, written jokes for Frankie Boyle). Contact louis@opencomedy.co.uk for guestlist tickets (£3), door price £5. [Additional reporting by Anna Prokova]

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 28

Urban Matters, an Art in Mind Exhibition, November 28 (until December 4) from 1pm to 6pm daily at The Brick Lane Gallery, 196 Brick Lane, E1 6SA.

Brick Lane is an area already known for its artistic appeal and this free exhibition features several artists including Chris Holt, Alison Meek, Joana Beasain, Annette Toland amongst many more. The Brick Lane Gallery shows contemporary art and street art, and this exhibition is no different. The list and more information can be found here.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29

Glimpse 2011 at The BRIT School on November 29 at 7pm to the Obie Theatre, 60 The Crescent, Croydon, CR0 2HN.

Catch a glimpse of some of the future stars and talents at a showcase of year 13 musical theatre students at The BRIT School, which is known for its alumni including Adele, the late Amy Winehouse and Jessie J. This particular show encompasses original songs, solos, duets and contemporary dance. The students also worked on material from hit Western musicals Annie Get Your Gun and Calamity Jane as a full company, so audiences will watch a performance that will showcase the students’ ability to the fullest. Tickets are £8/£5 concessions and to order them call 0208 665 5242 or by e-mailing tickets@brit.croydon.sch.uk. For more details on future shows, see the brochure.

WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 30

Three Plays to See Before You Die (Box, The Wishes of Harold Merkin, Harpsichord World) starting on November 30 at 8pm, with two more performances on December 7 and December 14 at The Hob (upstairs), 7 Devonshire Road, Forest Hill, SE2S 3HE.

As the name of this series of plays suggests, the Brothers Kaufman promise quirky productions that are a must-see. Directed by creative director of Spontaneous Productions Jonathan Kaufman and with original music by Julian Kaufman, they are a series of fairly short plays about different characters. The Box is about an unhappy couple who receive a surprise delivery, while The Wishes of Harold Merkin focuses on a physicist whose life alters after a series of strange encounters. On the plays’ website, a sinister question is put forward, ‘what exactly is the secret of the dead body in the river?’ Finally Harpsichord World is about a man who wishes to learn a musical instrument, but it could have disastrous consequences for the world. The diverse comedies are suitable only for adults and young people and tickets cost £7/£5 concessions. To book tickets, call the box office on 0208 855 0496.