Sunday mornings and Royal Conservatoire Coffee Concerts are a match made in heaven. What an…read moreinspired idea, and at just £10 for coffee, cake and a concert (£7.50 concessions) an absolute bargain! I was lucky enough to make the very first Coffee Concert of the season and it was a useful introduction to the venue and what it might offer to the general public. Coffee and cake was served in the cafe post-concert where the performers and organisers mingled and chatted with an enthusiastic audience. Nice touch. Aside from an varied programme of concerts and performing arts staged by students past and present and visiting world-class talents, the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (previously known as RSAMD) has a Box Office and large cafe at its main entrance up those imposing steps. The corridor between the cafe and the Stevenson Hall (where the coffee concert was held) is lined with photos of the college's alumni - a veritable who's who of the arts, music and theatrical world. I was absolutely blown away by the acoustics at the Stephenson Hall which really did justice to the singers and musicians who provided us with a terrific show. The seats in the auditorium were very comfortable with ample leg room but then I'm a bit shorter than the average person! Tip #1: If you need more leg room in the Stevenson Hall then select an end of aisle seat (at the stairway) in one of the blocks of stalls either side of the main block of seating. Hope that makes sense? Tip #2: If you are looking for somewhere very inexpensive to eat, drink and/or meet up in town the cafe here may be just the ticket. Geared mainly for students but also open to the public the daily specials included vegetarian and vegan dishes (hurrah). A generous cup of tea cost 80p and a Dear Green Coffee cost £1.40 (in a lidded cup so you can take it away if you want). Tip #3: Ample sockets available for charging phones and laptops (and possibly free wifi but don't quote me) Pop in and check it out for yourself if you haven't already done so and keep an eye out for their events programme.

Today I had the privilege, along with my fellow rock choir members of singing in the Stevenson…read moreHall, what an experience. We were accompanied by the Scottish Opera Orchastra, wow!! I can honestly say this awesome experience will stay with me for a long time. As for the Conservatoire it's a lovely building. It had a box office, shop and cafe on the main floor.the staff I encountered today were fab.

I had been here before for a fan dance class, possibly the beginning of last year and it was a…read moregreat airy space to allow us to swing the ol' fans about. When I headed back on Saturday it was still a great white airy space but it seemed different somehow but I overheard that it was recently done up. It's still a clean space with two good sized studios. The studio is easy to get to, either by bus or train. I jumped on the train and alighted at Bridgeton with only a 5 minute walk to the Templeton on the Green building. The White Studios is situated at the back of the Templeton building, passing by the security office and Elvis the cat if he's floating about. Our mission was to learn and rehearse a dance routine for an exciting flash mob appearance on Buchanan Street that very day. There was going to be lots of us participating. I'm not sure how many were involved in the end, possibly 50, but we sure did fill up that studio. It was a great day with an excellent studio space to rehearse in. Our choreography Susan was brilliant, clear with her instructions, especially with having to teach so many. The flash mob was a great success and I do hope they do another one soon. Dance HQ runs evening classes with various types of dancing and they also have their own dance troupe Blaze out entertaining the people of Glasgow. They also run classes to help with school education i.e. highers etc. I wish there was dance highers in my day. I've yet to try an evening class but hopefully I'll get the time to sign up for one soon.

I joined UK Theatre School way back when they were in their infancy and thought it was one of the…read moremore laid back but professional drama groups I've ever attended. Over the years, they have gone from strength to strength, to the point where they've expanded and now occupy their own space rather than borrowing halls off the RSAMD. The school is geared towards "young talent", aiming from between 5-19 year olds. There are loads of different courses for the youngsters to get involved in, from intensive dance tuition to play and musical opportunities. My only complaint would be that in terms of adult classes, they don't have as much choice. But this is taken from the grumbling perspective of an adult, and for kids this place seems to be professional with a minimal amount of the melodrama which usually surrounds schools like this. With talent moving forward such as X Factor finalist Rikki, not to mention the talent from London's west end that this school are affiliated with, founder Lizanne has certainly achieved her goal over the years of founding a prestigious theatre school for children.

I use to go to classes here for a very long time. Taught by the great Paul Fontana…read more This place has different levels of classes and is a great place to send your kids to learn, acting, singing and dancing. There are so many acting schools that are way below par. This one is a leader.

I've lived in Glasgow for 14 years now and I'm ashamed to admit I've never paid much attention to…read morethe Mackintosh connections that exist in Glasgow. I didn't even know where the GSA was situated until recently. Yesterday I decided to remedy this with a little day of Mackintosh culture. I opted for the Mackintosh at the GSA walking tour, costing £10 and lasting for an hour. The tour starts at the gift shop in the Reid building with a little bit of background regarding he GSA and its how it became located where it is. We learned about Mackintosh's involvement and the different inspiration that lead to the design of the building. We then went outside to view some of the finer details of his artwork. Obviously the building is undergoing renovation due to the fire, so there were fences and scaffolding up but that didn't take away from the beauty of the building at all. The guide took us to the east facade, and with references from Mackintosh's work could point out the different architectural inspiration that was used in this building. We also stood at the north facade and observed the fantastic ironwork that adored the windows and doors. After this, we went inside the Reid building properly and made our way to the first floor, to the Mackintosh furniture exhibit. This was furniture that has been donated from private collectors or found in old buildings or collected from Mackintosh's own home. It was an informative and interesting 60 minutes and I'd be tempted to do one of the other tours on offer to learn more.

Rennie Mackintosh's art has undergone a resurgence in popularity the last decade or two, and this…read morebuilding -- designed in multiple stages by him for the GSA -- is a practical extension of his art and design work. The building tour gives a top-to-bottom (with a lot of stairs) review of the building and its history. Our guide was a recent student who had her own engaging perspective on things and clear love for the place. It was a lot of fun, and an enjoyable hour; knowing the fee goes straight to the maintenance of the art school is helpful, as is the quite good gift shop the tour starts and ends at. The one down side I'll note is that photography inside the building is forbidden. Which is a darned shame, and a bit difficult to understand. I can't speak for the dance/party/clubbing aspect of the site (not what I was there for or when I was there), but it's definitely worth a visit when in Glasgow if you've any interest in Mackintosh. Not spectacular, but solid.

The Old Fruitmarket is, without a doubt, in my top 5 favourite music venues…read more You'll find it hidden away within the City Halls venue, where it's been restored over the years to show the space in its original glory. Above the bar, wrought iron supports hold up an awesome balcony where you get a super view of the main stage. I've been to many gigs in here - it's the perfect intimate venue where there's also enough space to dance (not me obv!). There's always some great Celtic Connections events held here. Great place! Can't wait for my next gig here!

The Old Fruitmarket is a gorgeous venue in the heart of Merchant City, that you may not yet have…read morediscovered. I went here for a jazz concert, and the combination of the musical talent and the atmospheric surroundings was quite amazing. There were round tables scattered across the floor, in a jazz cafe style, which created a lovely ambiance that complemented the musical backdrop. The lighting was low and the walls were decorated with fairy lights, which was a charming touch to this beautiful big building. With its original wooden beams and cobbles, this place reeks of history and is a truly amazing venue for any occasion.

This is a cute little pole fitness studio. They have about 5 poles and a suspended hoop (I don't…read moreknow what it's for but I'm very curious to find out) plus a matted area for floor work. It's hidden away upstairs on the third floor above a Chinese restaurant and when I first visited I had a bit of trouble finding it. Once there though, it's pretty great. The instructors are very careful, making sure you're healthy enough to exercise and that you understand the safety procedures before agreeing to let you into the class. They always use mats. Classes are one hour long and include a warm up at the start and a stretching session midway through. Everyone works at their own pace to improve but there's plenty of structure, with the instructors always making sure that you have at least four different things to be working on. I think four is a good number; it's enough to stop you from getting bored but it's not so many that you forget what moves you're supposed to be learning or improving. Instructors move between each person, giving pointers and suggestions. They really push you to go outside your current comfort zone without ever making you feel unsafe. At the end of the class you'll be asked to perform your favourite move and your least favourite move. Following that you'll be given a small sequence to link together a few moves that are approximately at your level. It's a nice way to round off the class. On Thursday's they also now run a "pole areofit class" that's super intensive - I always ache like crazy afterwards for the next couple of days. It's great though - pole is fantastic for strength and flexibility but it's easy to forget to include much cardio in your workout. Pole areofit definitely fixes this problem. Those classes tend to run over by about 10 minutes though, so don't arrange to do anything immediately afterwards. I really like Pole Princess. I kind of wish their classes were a bit longer - I go to a different school which does 90 minute classes for a similar price - but I think you get plenty out of them. If I had a bit more money I'd be tempted by their unlimited offer, which allows you to attend as many sessions as you like for a fixed price per month. For now I'll have to stick to the blocks of four, but I reckon if you have the money it would definitely be worth it.

I love it here! I love Dionne and the girls, and the totally different teaching and curriculum…read morestyle from my previous studio. Feeling so much more profession that I'll actually be performing in the showcase in May!

Oh no I didn't! Oh yes I did! Yup it was that time of year again, panto time!! Yaaaay!…read more To be honest I haven't been to a panto in a long time well the last one I actually starred in as a good fairy back in 2006 in Blantyre. It was a last minute thing when my friend text to say they had some spare tickets to see Snow White. Now this wasn't just going with friends, oh no, this was going with half the brownies and guides from High Blantyre. Yelp! So when heading down to Blantyre train station it had been taken over by lots of little girls in yellow hats. What a sight?! So we made it to Glasgow, alighting at Anderston station, which therefore makes it only a 10min walk up to The Kings. So with a bunch of excited girls, I think I may have reached their level by now. Our seats were in the Gods, the Gallery if you want to be technical. Eep! Not my favourite part of the theatre but it's the cheap seats of the theatre. So the entrance is at the side of the building. After several flights of what felt like never ending stairs we made it to the top. We then headed down the aisle steps to our seats at a 45 degree angle to keep yourself upright, as it's soooooo steep. The Kings is a beautiful theatre that's many many years old. I always enjoy going but I normally pay a little bit more to get a better seat, normally Upper or Grand Circle, sometimes Stalls depending on the prices. One day I'll be I'll in the box seats. The stage is large and the sets were amazing. The costumes were stunning, so much detail from the principles characters right down to the chorus and dancers. The actors did a fine job and I did have a wee sigh of how much I do miss performing in the ol' pantoland. I think sitting in with the kids made it even more fun. I didn't realise though that Darius was in it though. Meh! Not a fan and could they mention Pop Idol, Colourblind, or Pop Star to Opera Star anymore times?! Shoooosh! Gavin Mitchell did a great job, he tastefully mentioned Gerald Kelly in the show and they dedicated the show at then end and had a minute clapping. The toilets were a bit of a nightmare though, as it's an old building it doesn't have as many toilets. The gents toilets were out of order at first so they had made the ladies a temporary gents. Then out of the two ladies toilets one was broken. So little girls being little girls, (whiny voice) "I need the toilet.", one goes they all go. So the queue went up the stairwell backing up to the entrance to the Gods. So a poor member of staff had to keep filling up the cistern with a bucket of water to get the other toilet working. At least the staff tried. Over all it was a great day out and The Kings always guarentees to have great shows on. I'm just waiting for Wicked to come to Glasgow. Hurry up London, fly up that Wicked Witch of West to us.

Panto is impressive here It's an old and traditional theatre…read more Seats could be a little more comfortable and could do with a little more space

I have some really good memories of SYT, I went to their weekly classes for many years and met some…read morereally great friends there. In fact, a few of my best friends are the friends I met at SYT. As well as a great opportunity for socialising, the classes were also great fun and every week was something different. Improvising, working with scripts, devising your own piece of theatre and physical performance were just some of the things that we did. I stopped going when we got a new teacher who just talked about how much he loved himself instead of actually teaching us anything. He used to bang on and on about he got into Knightswood Theatre School but turned it down, obviously. After a couple of weeks this guys head got so big I'm surprised he could even get it through the door. I wasn't paying £180 for a term to listen to this sad case talk about how great he was, when he clearly had never had a girlfriend and his highlight in life was bigging himself up to a class of 14-18 year olds. My bad experience aside, I think that SYT is a great opportunity for young people to get involved with theatre and turn their hobby into something more meaningful. The reasonably new building is perfect for inspiration and has everything a theatre company would ever need.

Scottish Youth Theatre is a national organisation that both develops and promotes theatre by young…read morepeople, for young people. They provide weekly workshops and full courses for those interested in performing arts. SYT teaches its students and allows them to grow and develop, so the final productions are always the collective work of the young people, expressing their voice. I took 10-week weekend workshops on a few different occasions, and really loved it. A friend of mine also got more involved and did one of the summer production courses, which resulted in a great wee production that they performed at the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow. It's a really fun and accepting environment for all ages and abilities, with good opportunities for moving on and becoming a workshop leader or eventually a tutor if you're heavily involved and interested in their projects. It's also a fantastic place to socialise, hone your skills, and meet like-minded people. I've found this organisation to be one of the best things out there for youths in Scotland, and it always makes me happy to see that they're going strong and getting people involved in performing arts.

Theatre Royal is the oldest surviving theatre in Glasgow, the original building dating from 1867…read morewhen it opened as Bayliss' Coliseum before being renamed as Theatre Royal in 1869. Perhaps uniquely, it has been rebuilt twice by architect C J Phipps following major fires in 1880 and 1895. Although not as prolific a theatre architect as Frank Matcham, Phipps' style is splendidly represented in this building, regarded as the largest and best surviving example of his work. But don't judge the building from its bland exterior; you have to see the wonderfully ornate auditorium to really appreciate Phipps' work. The building was home to STV's studios for many years, before being sold to Scottish Opera in 1975, and it has been their home stage ever since, and is also the main home to Scottish Ballet's productions as well as being a main-scale house on the UK touring circuit. The stage is not huge by today's standards, but it's still larger than many London theatres and is the largest Glasgow can offer at the moment. The theatre is currently run and programmed by ATG (as is the Kings), so Glasgow is well served by the big touring shows. Currently the building is having a new foyer added at the corner of Hope Street and Cowcaddens in the form of a round tower, which has been a major feat of engineering to fit in with the existing architecture. As part of this refurbishment parts of the auditorium have been altered to something closer to the original design, with old entrance arches and the seating layout restored to improve audience flow and sightlines. Like any theatre, this one has a few ghosts, and like the Edinburgh Festival Theatre, there was a fire-related incident here that resulted in new legislation coming into force. In 1969, when STV moved out of the building into their new premises next door and the theatre was being restored, there was a major fire in the sub-stage area. The fire department tackled this with the then relatively new technique of pumping suppressant foam into the fire. One of the fire officers Archie McLay, working in the darkness of the stage area, fell through the stage floor into the sub-basement of the building - this extends about 20m underneath the stage floor and is carved out of solid bedrock (it was a former quarry), so it was full of foam. He was not reported as missing until the fire was under control, by which time it was too late. Resulting from this dreadful accident, the fire department introduced a 'deadman switch' device to be worn by all officers, which would radio an alarm signal if the officer was stationary for more than a few minutes. This incident is now marked by a stone plaque in the pavement of Hope Street. There have been a few reported sightings of Archie in the sub-basement, and most staff who have occasion to be down there late at night when the building is quiet will report a spooky atmosphere and a feeling like they are being watched by ghostly eyes...

I'm fairly certain I've seen things here prior to the refurb, but for the life of me I just can't…read moreremember. However, since the refurb I've been several times: some plays and operas. And i like it. Vanilla Black's has moved from Sauchiehall St, and is now the resident café for the theatre - and it's turned out to be a handy place for me to pop in for a quick work lunch. The foyer itself is open, spacious, and very welcoming - the spiral staircase is awesome, and is becoming an iconic feature of the theatre. Beyond that, it's functional and does what you expect, and you'll tend to find quite a lot of less populist productions here. The only downside is the extreme pricing at the bar. Seriously, £11 for 2 bottles of cheap lager is disgustingly extortionist.