There are simply not enough hours in the day! After our lovely breakfast in the hotel, we had a tour of the British Museum and then got a chance to wander around the museum for a few hours on our own. Even though I prefer the Victoria and Albert Museum, I still had a great time exploring the different rooms in the British Museum.
The Rosetta Stone
My favorite parts of the tour were seeing the sculptures from the Parthenon, the Rosetta Stone, and the Enlightenment Gallery – an old-fashioned museum set up based on museums of the 18th century. After the museum we went to the Starbucks across the street (Yes, they have Starbucks in the U.K.) and relaxed with some coffee and WiFi for a bit before we saw an evening performance of Julius Caesar at the Apollo Theatre. Julius Caesar was unlike anything I’ve ever seen. It was an all female production set in a modern correctional facility. The production made wonderful use of every element and included a camera with a live video feed projected onto three TV screens. The actresses sang and played the bass and drums to add a live musical element. The actors played on the ground level of the theatre as well as two upper balconies.
Julius Caesar set
The audience surrounded the actors on three sides. There was no intermission and armed guards walked across platforms above our heads, so it felt like we were in prison with the cast. The play itself was a play within a play: the inmates were rehearsing a production of Julius Caesar, but at times the lines between the productions became blurred. Every actress gave a breathtaking and moving performance and when the play was over the audience sat in stunned silence for several moments before breaking into a thunderous applause.
