Wednesday 31 October 2012

The rule of thirds

In fine art there is a theory that informs us that we humans are satisfied when a picture is in three distinct parts: the rule of thirds. Today has subscribed to this theory and been extremely rewarding.

The morning started with our reason for coming to Cardiff: the Doctor Who Experience. I know a lot of adults who don't watch Doctor Who and who think it's a naff kid's programme. That's fair enough, but I would hope I am pretty well read and there are times when the writing on the modern DW is so philosophical, so profound, so funny, so true, that it can stand alongside most of the classics on my bookshelves. The Doctor Who Experience gives you an opportunity to live through an adventure - and I'm going to leave it there as I don't want to ruin it for you. These photos are from the exhibition afterwards and I don't think they count as spoilers, sweetie.





















For the middle third of our day we went to Techniquest which is a science museum for kids. It's packed with interactive displays teaching about parabolas, vision, Archimedes' screw, static electricity, resonance... All sorts. There's also a Planetarium and an excellent science lecture for kids involving dry ice and explosions.
















Afterwards my son was desperate to come back as there were loads of exhibits he hadn't seen.

But we had to leave for our third part of the day: watching the Birmingham Royal Ballet at the Millennium Centre. This was a surprise for my son, I hadn't told him we were going. Now, if you ask what 9 year old boys enjoy Doctor Who and science might well be on the list, but ballet? Really? Well, yes. When I think about my ethos for parenthood it would be not to limit him or his outlook. Why must boys just watch football and blow imaginary aliens up? The ballet was in three parts: the first was the traditional A Midsummer Night's Dream with fairies and tutus and woodland. The second piece was a contemporary ballet based on the Olympics with fencers, swimmers and runners. The final piece was a character based ballet called 'Promenade' and set on a 1920s cruise ship. It was hilarious. And my son loved them all.











We had a box!



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