Another month gone, now to August; an ideal month for screaming, “It’s still summer!” at people you see wearing sweatshirts. 

A much-hyped debut feature
Premiering to rave reviews at Sundance, Sean Wang’s Dìdi is released in UK cinemas this weekend. The semi-autobiographical coming-of-age film is set in 2008 and follows Izaac Wang as the Taiwanese-American teenager Chris. During the last month of summer before high school begins, Chris learns what his family can’t teach him: how to skate, how to flirt, and how to love his mom.

Dìdi is out in cinemas now.

By the Seaside
For The Photographers Gallery’s Summer Print Sales Gallery exhibition, seven photographers have captured the British seaside in all its kitsch and nostalgic glory. From the heydays of the 60s and 70s to today, Martin Parr, Rob Ball, Anna Fox, John Hinde, Sirkka-Liisa Konttinen, Simon Roberts and Luke Stephenson capture the unique spirit of a great British holiday.

By the Seaside runs at The Photographers Gallery until September 8th, more info here. 

An American classic
The stage adaptation of John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath has opened at the National’s Lyttelton stage. Adapted by Frank Galati, this epic of American literature involves twenty-seven actors and transforms the stage into the American Dust Bowl of the 1930s.

Earlier this month, we profiled Natey Jones who appears in Grapes as Jim Casy, an ex-preacher who travels with the Joad family to the promised land of California. “I think it’s a tragedy that it’s still so present,” Jones said of the play which parallels many of the issues we still see in the news today.

The Grapes of Wrath runs at the National Theatre until September 14th, more info here. Read our profile of Natey Jones here. 

Notes on a Native Son
In collaboration with the London Review of Books, Bold Tendencies is hosting an evening celebrating James Baldwin. Perhaps best known for his sprawling body of fiction including Giovanni’s Room and Another Country, Bold Tendencies focuses on his enthralling collection of essays Notes of a Native Son. The collection touches on everything from 1940s Harlem to Baldwin’s experiences in Paris, ultimately capturing the complexity of Black life at the dawn of the Civil Rights Movement. A host of contemporary authors including Deborah Levy, Caleb Azumah Nelson and Ekow Eshun will also deliver readings of Baldwin’s most profound essays.

The Fire Next Time! — James Baldwin: Notes on a Native Son takes place at Bold Tendencies on Saturday 3rd August, more info here. 

Summer Dayes
Supreme instrumentalist Yussef Dayes has curated a new one-dayer to add to London’s festival calendar this summer, taking over Crystal Palace Bowl this Sunday. Live music from Dayes himself, Yasiin Bey, Masego, Greentea Peng and Sango, is accompanied by West Indian food offerings, jelly coconuts, and yoga classes in the venue’s outdoor amphitheatre.

Summer Dayes takes place at Crystal Palace Bowl on Sunday 4th August, more info here. 

One for the veggies
For the past four years, Holy Carrot has been hosting residences, events and supper clubs across the capital, and last month officially opened the doors to their new permanent home in Notting Hill. With a kitchen headed up by Acme Fire Cult co-founder Daniel Watkins, the menu focuses on veg-forward cooking, with a penchant for ‘fire and ferments’, as well as a sustainable ‘root to peel’ philosophy. Expect to see experimental dishes such as hispi cabbage dolma with vadouvan butter, grilled Trombetta with miso bagna càuda, smoked beetroot with hazlenut crema and a matcha tiramisu for dessert.

Holy Carrot is located at 156 Portobello Road, Notting Hill, W11 2EB, more info here.