On Broadway, Bring it On: The Musical,
libretto by Jeff Whitty, music by Tom Kitt and
Lin-Manuel Miranda, lyrics by Amanda Green and Miranda, will
please cheerleaders and high school students. The silly story in this
energetic musical is about a white cheerleader (Taylor Louderman),
who is redistricted to an inner-city school of minority students and
tries to assimilate. The choreography by Andy Blankenbueler
includes young girls tossed high in the air and the boys performing
somersaults. For adults, it is an enervating experience.
Off-Broadway, Richard III, by
Shakespeare, is a shortened, 100 minute production by the Mobile
Shakespeare Unit, which has toured jails, senior citizen centers, and is
now at the Public Theater until August 25. It is performed by nine
actors in multiple roles in street clothes, without a set, and will be
remembered for the performance of Ron Cephas Jones in the
title role.
Soul Doctor, music and lyrics by Shlomo
Carlebach, book libretto by Daniel S. Wise, lyrics by
David Schechter, is a musical about a rabbi (Eric Anderson),
who became a rock star, and a friend to Nina Simone (Erica Ash).
The two leads are very good, and the overlong show is entertaining.
Harrison, TX, by Horton Foote, are
three well acted one act plays, that take place in the town of the
title. Two, one funny and one sinister, are in the year 1928, and the
third, and longest, is in 1952. They are worth a visit. The opening
night party was held at The Volstead, and guests included Linda Lavin,
Alison Fraser and Dick Cavett.
Mostly Mozart continued with a wonderful
program under the baton of Osmo Vanska. The concert began with
the brief Symphony No. 32 in G major, K. 318, by Mozart,
and continued with a brilliant performance by Rudolf Buchbinder
of the Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, by Beethoven.
The Symphony in C major ("Great"), by Shubert, closed a
delightful evening of superb music of three of the world's greatest
composers.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is presenting an exhibition
of Chinese Gardens: Pavilions, Studios, Retreats August 18-January 6. It
is a glorious view of a 1000 years of Chinese Art, with more than 60 paintings,
ceramics textiles, and contemporary photographs in eight galleries surrounding
the enchanting Astor Court, a Chinese garden modeled on a 17th-century scholars'
courtyard in the Garden of the Master of the Fishing Nets in Suzhou. Your spirit
will be well rewarded with a visit.
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The Summer Shorts 6th Annual Reception took place at Museum Tower with many of the cast members attending, including Edward Hibbert, Stephanie D'Abruzzo and Arthur French. It was a delightful event on the 8th floor terrace.
The Mexican superstar Bianca Marroquin is the newest Roxie Hart in Chicago, and she was welcomed back by the cast and former cast members like Brenda Braxton at a party at the Ember Room, where cocktails flowed like water.
A colleague invited me to see live on HD Norma, by Bellini, from the Teatro Antico Taorima, Italy at Big Cinemas Manhattan Theater, 239 East 59th St. For some unexplained reason, we saw Norma from the Teatro Comunali di Bologna, recorded in 2008, which proved to be a fine substitute, as the cast was outstanding. It featured Daniela Dessi as Norma, Kate Aldrich as Adalgisa and Fabio Armiliato as Pollione. all three in splendid voice. The orchestra under the baton of Evelino Pido, played the melodious score magnificently. According to the program handed to the audience, six more operas and seven ballets will be presented at the theater by Emerging Pictures. I advise all opera and ballet fans to check the schedule and attend.
MoMA is presenting A View from the Vaults, 2012: Recent Acquisitions, August 1-19. I attended two screenings. Frisco Jenny, by William A. Wellman, 1932, USA, is an excellent film, beginning with the San Francisco earthquake (filmed brilliantly) and continuing up to 1932. It is a tale about a young mother (a sympathetic Ruth Chatterton) who works in illegal ways to survive. while offering her son up for adoption. It is a realistic look at the dirty politics of the city, bootlegging during prohibition and prostitution. It is a powerful film.
Black Swan, by Darren Aronofsky, USA, 2010, is about a ballet dancer, who is chosen to star in Swan Lake. Natalie Portman won the Academy Award as best actress for her performance, and she deserved it. She is in every frame of the film, and we see her gradual deterioration, as she becomes obsessed with the role, trying to achieve perfection. Although the film is somewhat melodramatic and there are scenes which defy belief, ballet lovers will enjoy it tremendously. It is certainly one of the best films about ballet.
MoMA is presenting a series of exciting French films Gaumont Thrillers: From Fantomas to a Gang Story August 15-September 4. Pieges, by Robert Siodmak, 1939, is a delightful film with an excellent cast. Women answer newspaper advertisements and disappear. A beautiful, charming Maria Dea is recruited by the police to try to capture the unknown criminal. Maurice Chevalier and Erich von Stroheim are among the suspects, and both are superb, with Chevalier singing two songs. It is an entertaining film, with a group of fine French actors. Le rideau rouge, by Andre Baracq, 1952, is written by Jean Anouilh. It is an intelligent backstage murder of a director/leading actor during a performance of Macbeth and is full of inside theatre jokes. Again, it includes a magnificent cast of first rate actors, headed by Michel Simon and Pierre Brasseur. It is another delightful, entertaining film, which no one should miss.
08-14-12
Cast
members
(L-R)
Connor
Buckley.
Arthur
French.
J.
J.
Kandel
at
the
Summer
Shorts
6th
Annual
Reception
at
Museum
Tower.
15
West
53rd
St.
Monday
night
08-13-12 |