On the Town With Aubrey Reuben
Where All the Stars Shine Brightly!
August 10, 2013
08-06-13 (L-R) Cast members Elizabeth Masucci. Gia Crovatin.
playwright Neil LaBute at the opening reception for "Summer Shorts
2013" at the Museum Tower. 15 West 53rd St. Monday night
08-05-13
On Broadway, First
Date, book by Austin
Winsberg, music and lyrics by Alan
Zachary and Michael
Weiner, is
a musical about a blind date between a nervous, immature
young man and a tough talking, know-it-all young girl.
There are also four other cast members in multiple roles
as a kind of Greek chorus, plus a
waiter in the restaurant, where the show takes place.
The plot is flimsy and infantile, the music forgettable,
the dialogue silly and irritating, as are the characters
portrayed.
Off-Broadway, Harbor,
by Chad
Beguelin, is an absorbing, well acted play about an
irresponsible mother and her teenage daughter disrupting
the lives of a married gay couple. They show up
uninvited at the home of her brother, and are allowed to
stay for several weeks with devastating results. It is
an intelligent play, with excellent, realistic dialogue.
The opening night party took place at the Park Avenue
Armory with guests Saundra
Santiago, Jonathan Tolins and Alfred
Uhry.
Mostly Mozart continued
with an all Beethoven program,
beginning with Piano
Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, with the experienced Emanuel
Ax as
soloist, and Andrew
Manze conducting
the orchestra. It was a splendid performance by the
veteran performer, especially in the fast tempo of the
third movement. He received a well deserved, thunderous
ovation. After the intermission, the orchestra gave a
wonderful interpretation of Symphony
No. 6 in F major ("Pastoral"). All the individual
players performed brilliantly from flute to horn. It was
a short, but memorable program, and the audience left
completely satisfied.
Michael Urie had
a portrait unveiling for the Broadway
Wall of Fame at
Tony's Di Napoli. It was also his birthday, and many
friends were there to celebrate the occasion, includingVanessa
Williams, Alan Cumming, Annaleigh Ashford and Shalita
Grant.
MoMA held a press preview for America
Modern: Hopper to O'Keeffe. August 17-January 26, 2014.
It is a superb exhibition of drawings, paintings,
sculptures, prints and photographs, made between 1915 and
1950, by more than 50 artists. Over a hundred pieces are
included, with outstanding works like Andrew
Wyeth's Christina's
World. It is a splendid display of a magnificent
collection that no art lover should miss.
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MoMA presented A
View from the Vaults: Warner Bros. Today until August 14. I
saw Gran Torino,
by Clint
Eastwood, USA, 2008, with Eastwood starring as an embittered,
prejudiced, retired widower. As a veteran of the Korean war, he is
unhappy that his neighbors are Hmong refugees. Unpleasant incidents
occur, but a friendship develops between him and the family.
Eastwood gives a terrific performance in a strong, powerful film. It
is highly recommended.
MoMA presented ContemporAsian:
Focus on South Korea. I saw Azooma,
by Lee
Ji-Seong, South Korea, 2012, a very unpleasant film about child
molestation. An impatient, hysterical woman pursues her 10-year-old
daughter's molester, and gains her revenge on the criminal, with a
horrendous scene in a dentist's chair. The film also goes back and
forth, with an annoying repetition of scenes. It is hard to
recommend this film.
MoMA also is presenting An
Auteurist History of Film. I saw a short documentary Night
and Fog, by Alain
Resnais, France, 1956, about the concentration camps created by
the Nazis during World War II and the horrors suffered by the
inmates. It leaves a deep, indelible impression on the mind of the
viewer. It was shown with Hiroshima
mon amour, by Resnais, France, 1959, which again reveals the
horrors of war, with the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima
during World War II with footage of the aftermath and film of the
museum created to memorialize the devastation. A French actress,
making a film in Hiroshima, meets a Japanese architect, and they
spend many hours together making love and conversing about their
lives,which were greatly affected by the war. Again, it leaves a
deep impression on the viewer.
A lovely opening reception was held for Summer
Shorts 2013 on the
terrace of Museum Tower. All the cast members and playwrights
attended for fine wines and liquor and delicious hors d'oeuvres on a
beautiful evening. Among the guests were Tina
Howe, Neil LaBute, Michael Countryman, Caroline
Lagerfelt and the
original cast member ofNine, Camille
Saviola, who over 30 years ago I interviewed for the glossy
Italian magazine Attenzione.
It was a pleasant reunion.
Opera in Cinema from Emerging
Pictures presented Aida, by Verdi,
from Teatro alla Scala, from a live performance from December 2006.
It was a spectacular production, with staging and scenic design by Franco
Zeffirelli. This was
truly grand opera. What a relief from recent minimal sets! The cast
was excellent, with Violeta
Urmana in the title
role,Roberto Alagna as
Radames, Ildiko
Komlosi a powerful
Amneris, Carlo
Guelfi as Amonasro
and Mario
Spotti a sonorous
King. The orchestra was superb, under the baton of
Riccardo Chailly. It was wonderful to see grand back where it
belongs in opera
08-07-13 (L-R) Cast members Erin Cummings.
Paul Anthony Stewart. Randy Harrison. Alexis Molnar at the opening night
party for "Harbor" at the Park Avenue Armory. 643 Park Avenue. Tuesday night
08-06-13
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