Batsheva Dance Company: Furo

Here are some pics from Furo, a new work by Batsheva Dance Company, the coolest dance company in the world

I've seen them four times, both in London and in their hometown, Tel Aviv and they are the edgiest, attitude-est. The work was conceived by Ohad Naharin, who I once had the pleasure of interviewing, with Tabaimo.

Another Gem From Photographer Rasha Kahil

Like Nan Goldin and Elinor Carucci, Rasha Kahil photographs those she loves, those in her life. This new photograph of her friend Maha is just one of hundreds she's taken of Maha

It's what I love about Rasha's work: this sense of following not only her journey but those connected to her journey. As the story moves forward, names repeat: so people like Maha become part of the viewer's circle, too. It's like Rasha's intimacy is everybody's.

Work Gathering Pace on Andre Balazs' Debut London Hotel

This former fire station on Chiltern Street in London's Marylebone, W1, is rumoured to be on its way to becoming a 36 room Andre Balazs hotel. As a huge fan of Balazs hotels - in particular the Chateau Marmont in Los Angeles, where my wife and I spent an insanely great night around 14 months ago - I'm seriously excited at the idea of a Balazs a short walk from my front door. There's been no word yet on when the hotel will complete and open - I'm going to ask one of the builders next time I'm passing by.

Starbucks - The Comeback Kid

Cleverly responding to the rise and trending of the independent coffee shop, Starbucks is individualising its stores: in doing so, they'll kill off the idea that it's a huge, stale, dated chain.

The Starbucks concept store in Japan is in Fukuoka and was designed by the architect Kengo Kuma.It looks more like an installation than a Starbucks: imagine working at one's laptop over a Latte in here. It's seriously wowing

There's also apparently a Starbucks concept store in Amsterdam designed by Liz Muller and it looks just as stunning

Presumably the same concept of individualizing stores will be heading to London and other European cities? If so, with design concept so far to the fore, it's going to be a complete comeback scenario for Starbucks.

Marylebone High Street Turns French

It seems like not so long ago that Marylebone High Street was this non descript vaguely Granny-ish street. Okay, so it had the Conran Shop

and it had Peter Gordon's Providores restaurant and it had Patisserie Valerie for an old world granny gateau and chintzy tea, but that was about it. It felt like one of those brown, grey, beige British high streets that are all across the country. As a result, when Waitrose came along, it was a big deal: for some it was bad news because it altered the underplayed 'refuge in Central London' feel of the high street: for others it was a cause for joy and relief because it meant Marylebone would stop being this odd oasis.
After all, Marylebone has a fundamental problem: it's slap centre in the middle of London, yet a bit of a walk to Bond Street, Baker Street, Great Portland Street and Marylebone stations: not a long walk by any means, but enough for Marylebone to feel remote when you compare it with Russell Square/ Bloomsbury or Connaught Village or Soho or Fitzrovia, all of which also share a Central London position, yet have more immediate public transport links.
A lot has happened since Waitrose came along, though and these days, Marylebone High Street has turned fashionably French. Okay, so most of London's French community is still hubbed around the French Embassy, Institut Francais, French children's library and Bute Street French delis of South Kensington, but Marylebone High Street is a serious destination de shopping for both London's French and London's Francophones.
In the past couple of years, Marylebone High Street pioneer Agnes b

has been joined by Loft by Design

Diptyque

a cheese shop called La Fromagerie, L'Occitaine, Le Creuset and Petit Bateau who have recently collaborated with blogger Garance Dore

Impeccable yet wallet hammering children's brand Bonpoint is also on the High Street these days, with ever more beautiful window displays

And if you want perfume and/ or a candle, then insanely cool brand Le Labo has a store tucked just off Marylebone High Street, on Devonshire Street

For a baguette or croissant break mid shopping, there's a Paul, though getting a table to sit down is a major headache.Their best bread is always the Campagne: get it sliced and eat straightaway that evening with dinner.
Another French brand heading to the High Street soon is The Kooples

So far Zadig et Voltaire

and A.P.C, two other French brands you'd maybe expect to head here are staying away.

A.P.C opened a second store (after their first on Dover Street) on Redchurch Street in London's East End and Zadig et Voltaire opened new stores on South Molton Street and Westbourne Grove. A.P.C have no need to open a store on Westbourne Grove, because they've long been stocked in Aime, a fantastic boutique on Ledbury Road, which these days also has Petit Aime, a children's shop, next door

Incidentally, the sisters behind Aime and Petit Aime (who don't look like this now, obviously)

are also the brains behind A.P.C opening their Dover Street and Redchurch Street stores.
Anyway, so back to Marylebone High Street and its Frenchification. Obviously, there's plenty going on that isn't French: there's a hole in the wall shop by Monocle (a once interesting magazine now read by businessmen in tandem with the FT), a bunch of quick lunch options, fancy spec shops Mallon and Taub and Roger Pope, Belgian chain Le Pain Quotidien (a lovely weekend lunch venue), old world charming book shop Daunt and a small pharmacy called Madesil, bringing us back to our French theme, which handily stocks the godly French brand Nuxe

Despite all the Frenchification, which I love, one of my favourite places in London to sit over a slow coffee is not French in the slightest, but instead working a Scandinavian theme: Nordic Bakery, tucked away behind Marylebone High Street on Westmoreland Street who now have their own cookbook

Recently Watched Movies

Sofia Coppola's The Bling Ring

People who know me know I adore Sofia Coppola's movies. I don't really have favourite filmmakers these days, but if I did, Sofia Coppola would probably be right up there. If not, at the top. First off, she made a movie of my favourite novel of all time, The Virgin Suicides, by Jeffrey Eugenides

and then she chased that with the sublime Lost In Translation, whose performances by Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson

and Kevin Shields out of reclusive retirement godly contributions to the soundtrack, stun me every time. After the lengthy wait between the fabulous Cure/ New Order scored Marie Antoinette

and the beautiful materializing polaroid of a film, Somewhere, I was somewhat thinking there would be a lengthy wait part two for a new film.
Gossip that she had acquired the film rights to Francine Prose's Goldengrove

got me excited, but then I wasn't sure about how the book would adapt.
After a short silence again, during which time all gossip about Goldengrove fizzled out, Sofia Coppola directed a new commercial for Miss Dior Cherie starring Natalie Portman

After the Dior commercial and another leg of waiting, Somewhere came out on DVD.

I appreciated Somewhere on DVD even more than I did at the cinema: it's a supreme grower: I notice different details each time I watch it. Stephen Dorff is incredible in the film: subtle incredible: the first viewing you don't get the magic of what he's doing: every viewing after that, you get it incrementally.
Thinking it was definitely now going to be a long wait until a new feature, Sofia Coppola suddenly popped up shooting the commercial and campaign stills for Marni for H&M

When the campaign broke, I loved the use of the Roxy Music track Avalon in the commercial, since Somewhere had played out to Bryan Ferry's Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, which my parents used to play endlessly on 7" when I was a child: I love such in-the-know one project to the next segues in my favourite artists' work: they're like in jokes for the fans.

At the same time as the Marni for H&M campaign broke, so did news that Coppola is gearing up to shoot her fifth feature, The Bling Ring. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film will star Emma Watson and be shot on location in Los Angeles starting this Spring.

The Hollywood Reporter also summarised the film as follows, "Based on true events that took place in Beverly Hills, the movie will tell the story of a group of fashion and fame-obsessed teens who broke into the homes of celebrities."
Sounds like the perfect theme again for Sofia Coppola: a story of characters lost at a moment in their lives. Can't wait.