Do I actually see with my own very eyes, a man who's not heard of a Jellicle cat?

The award-winning musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber is with more than 65 million viewers one of the most popular musicals world wide.  Since May 15th you have been able to see the musical at the "Messegelände Graz", which is just next to the "Grazer Stadthalle".

The story is a little bit confusing, but basically it is about the "Jellicles" (a tribe of cats) and the "Jellicle Choice", which means that one cat will be chosen to be reborn.

I saw it yesterday night and although the story line is not as good as in other musicals I had seen before (such as "Lion King" or "Wicked") I absolutely loved it. It was just astonishing how the performers sang and especially danced - at some point I was not sure if I was in a musical, a circus or a dance competition - it was amazing.

Just have a look at this video and I'm sure you will know what I mean:



(Yeah, I know that the trailer is German - I'm sorry for that. But I decided to upload the German one for two reasons:
Firstly because I saw the musical in German and secondly because I couldn't find a good English version which shows as many different scenes as the German one does.)

There are still some tickets left (http://www.ticket.at/de/ticket/12036/cats-theaterzelt-graz) if you want to see it and they have a great student discount as well (about 10€ off!). But better be fast, the last show is going to be on June 16th.

"Daylight

I must wait for the sunrise

I must think of a new life

And I musn't give in

When the dawn comes

Tonight will be a memory too

And a new day will begin"

Curfew 2am - get the party ended..

Hey guys,

since it's all over Facebook you have probably already read about it - this weekend three of the "Grazer Univiertel" clubs ("Three Monkeys", "Gecco" and "Kottulinsky") had to close at 2am. Why? Because some residents filed a complaint last year due to noise pollution and the mayor decided that he has to do something about it. His solution: Close the clubs at 2am.

Now let me get one thing straight. I'm not in favor of drunk people screaming around in the middle of the night. I do understand that it must be exhausting to live right above one of the night clubs in Graz (although I have to say that nobody forces anybody to live in or around the Univiertel!!!). But even so, creating a curfew will definitely not help to get rid of the problem. And here is why:

1. Where is the sense behind giving only three clubs a closing time? There are so many other clubs and bars around the ones mentioned above - even if Gecco, Three Monkeys and Kottusinky close at 2am there will still be people in all the other bars making noise when they leave.

2. From my own experiences I know: Nobody goes to the clubs before midnight. When I go out with friends we usually don't arrive at Kottulinksy before 12am. Why? Because before we go dancing we like to sit together in one of our apartments or in a nice bar to have some nice conversations and catch up. But let's be honest - who goes dancing for only two hours??

3. Since I don't live in Graz I always have to plan how I get home. There are three options. Number one: Going home by cab which costs about 30€ - therefore it's not an option for me. Number two: I drive. I actually drive by car a lot but that also has the downside that I can't drink any alcoholic beverages. So here comes option number three: I go home by train. But since my first train in the morning doesn't depart before 5am this option has now been taken from me (and many others, who don't live in Graz). When my favorite clubs close at 2am - what am I going to do between two and five in the morning? Sit in front of the closed train station? Definitely not!

4. Here comes (in my opinion) one of the biggest nonsense: What does the dear mayor think all the people will do after 2am? Does he really think a few hundred people will leave the clubs without making any noise?  I'd prefer people leaving the clubs in small groups throughout the night when they actually want to go home than hundreds of people leaving at the same time not ready to go home. You can see the proof on Facebook: There are pictures where you can see tons of people on the street who continue their party outside:

5. Another thing: Everybody is complaining that Graz (as many other cities) "is dying" and that people go shopping at the mall in Seiersberg instead of the city center or party at the club "Fledermaus" instead of the inner city - these regulations will definitely not help to whet people's appetite to stay in the city.

All in all I just can't see how the 2am curfew helps anybody and I really hope that also Mr. Nagl and his supporters will realize that it's not the solution.

But that's only my personal opinion - what do you think??

♪ ♫ Dancing through life ♬ ♩

“Sing like no one is listening. Love like you’ll never be hurt. Dance like no one is watching!”

I’m pretty sure all of you have heard of the club “Kottulinsky”, but just to be on the safe side: It’s a club which is located pretty close to the University of Graz (Beethovenstraße 9), which is open on Wednesdays and Thursdays, and of course on the weekend.

But what most of you probably don’t know: Its doors also open on Tuesdays! But if you go there on a Tuesday you won’t find techno music or remixes, which are typical for most of the clubs in Graz – Tuesday is Salsa Night!

The doors open at 8pm and “A Taste of Latin Moves” starts at 8:30 and lasts an hour. There you can learn some basic dance steps with the help of a dance instructor. Afterwards the Salsa beats will continue and you can dance till dawn.

It really is a lot of fun and I’ve seen some amazing dancers while being there the last time! But you don’t have to be a professional dancer to go there – I only knew the basic steps and still had a lot of fun!

Great news for those of you who are under 21: On Tuesdays the age limit is 18 and the entrance is free for all guests!

Here is their Facebook page, where you can find out about special events (from time to time they have special themes, like for Halloween, Christmas and so on): http://www.facebook.com/SalsaLatinKottulinsky

Just give it a try, it really is a lot of fun and never forget:

“Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance!”