Because of the weekend blizzard,
I was forced to cancel a program of the New York
City Ballet, a film of The Bolshoi Ballet and an
Off-Broadway opening. However, I was able to see
the following.
I
attended the premiere of Maria
Stuarda, by Gaetano
Donizetti, at
the Metropolitan Opera, Friday night, January
29. It was glorious night at the opera. The
singers were splendid. Sondra
Radvanovsky in
the title role as Mary Stuart, Queen of the
Scots, excelled with a powerful voice, in all
the registers, and dominated the orchestra and
chorus in crowd scenes. She reached the dazzling
high notes with ease, and was a delight to
listen to. Her acting was superb. A standing
ovation at the opera's conclusion was well
deserved.Elza
van den Heever was
a marvelous Queen Elizabeth. Her voice was
powerful also, a perfect blending with her
nemesis in their confrontation in the second
scene of the first act. Celso
Albelo as
Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, made an
impressive debut, with plangent tones, and
lovely, clean high notes. He will be a fine
addition to the company. Among the other
soloists, Kwanchul
Youn, with his deep baritone voice, was
outstanding, especially in his duet with Albelo
in the first act. The chorus, under Donald
Palumbo, contributed to the success of the
production, and the music, played exquisitely by
the orchestra, under the baton of Riccardo
Frizza, a specialist of bel canto, was a
delight to the ears. Even with a minimalist
scenic design and dark lighting, it was joy to
see.
Off-Broadway, A
Dream of Red Pavilions, by Jeremy
Tiang, adapted from the novel by Cao
Xueqin, is a gorgeous production by the Pan
Asian Repertory Theatre, directed by Tisa
Chang and Lu
Yu. It is a classic tale of a tragic other
worldly love between two cousins in 18th century
China. The costumes by Hyun
Sook Kim are
spectacular, and the entire cast is delightful
to watch. We congratulated the talented cast at
an opening night reception in the second floor
lounge at Theatre Row.
MoMA is
presenting All
That Jack (Cole), Jan 20-Feb 4, an
eighteen film series, featuring the choreography and
staging of Jack
Cole, influential on screen during the 1950s. Designing
Woman, by Vincente
Minnelli, USA, 1957, stars Gregory
Peck and Lauren
Bacall as
a mismatched pair of lovers, who marry after meeting
for a few days. He is a sportswriter for a newspaper
and she is a fashion designer. Although there are
many misunderstandings, the fairy tale ends happily
ever after. What is interesting is that Jack Cole
appears in the film as a Broadway choreographer, and
in a couple of scenes he performs energetically. Dolores
Gray has
a couple of unexceptional song and dance numbers as
the star of the Broadway show in which she is
performing. Although the plot is ridiculous, I quite
enjoyed the film thanks to the talented actors.
ALL THAT JACK was
a lecture about the life of Jack Cole and his
accomplishments by dance critic and co-curator Debra
Levine. Two
guests, dancers who worked for Cole in film and
television, Carmen
de Lavallade and Grover
Dale, also
spoke on stage. Film clips and photographs were
shown. It was an interesting and illuminating
program. |
The I Don't Care Girl, by Lloyd
Bacon, USA, 1953, apparently did not please
the producers, and Jack Cole was hired to
choreograph and stage three additional song and
dance numbers when the film was re-released. Mitzi Gaynor was
the star and danced brilliantly as Eva
Tanguay, a star of the Ziegfeld Follies. The
story was trite, but the singing and dancing was
a joy to see and hear. David
Wayne and Oscar
Levant were
her co-stars.
There's No Business Like Show Business, by Walter
Lang, USA, 1954, was an all star production
with Marilyn Monroe,
Ethel Merman, Mitzi Gaynor, Dan Dailey, Donald
O'Connor and Johnnie
Ray. The music and lyrics were by Irving
Berlin, and the film was filled with
glorious dance numbers, some for Monroe by Jack
Cole. The plot is banal about a family over the
years in vaudeville, but the singing and dancing
is wonderful, and I enjoyed every minute of it.
Meet Me After the Show, by Richard
Sale, USA, 1951, stars Betty
Grable, and is is just wonderful as a
Broadway star. married to the producer of the
show. When she sees a beautiful investor
kissiing him passionately, she files for
divorce. The complications are resolved like all
Hollywood films, which have happy endings.
Grable has never sung or danced better than she
does in this film following the choreography and
staging of Jack Cole. His biographer Glenn
Loney was
interviewed by Debra Levine before the
screening, and proved to be a charming, witty
and intelligent guest. It was a pleasure to
listen to him, and Levine admitted that she
relied on his biography for much of her
knowledge about Cole.
Three for the Show, by H.C.
Potter, USA, 1955, is, probably, one of the
best films of the series, starring Betty Grable, Jack
Lemmon, Marge and Gower
Champion. For once, the plot could
happen.The script is witty, the dialogue
stimulating and the song and dance numbers are
imaginative and delightful. A Broadway star (Grable) finds
herself married to two men, when she is advised
that her husband (Lemmon) has died in the Korean
War, and she remarried (Gower Champion). When
Lemmon returns years later (he was stranded on a
desert island), she has to resolve the problem.
I have enjoyed this series immensely, but this
film is one of the highlights.
Film Society of Lincoln Center
held press screenings for Dance
on Camera. I saw Our
Last Tango, by German Kral, Germany/Argentina,
2015, a documentary about the famous Argentine
tango dancers, Maria
Nieves Rego and Juan
Carlos Copes. Now Maria alone at 81-year-old
and Juan married with children at 84-year-old
recall their past years together as the supreme
tango dancers in their native country and
touring around the world, including Broadway in
the sensational Tango
Argentino in
1985. Their devotion to the tango revived a lost
art, and has been the determining factor in
their lives. It is a fascinating film, in which
they tell their history together frankly and
honestly, and also sadly.
I attended another soiree at Alice
Kandell's elegant penthouse. The charming
hostess served hors d'oeuvres and a delicious
supper, with exquisite desserts and fine wine.
An entertainment of popular music by
composer/pianist Jimmy
Roberts (with
a couple of classical solos added) and baritone Lawrence
Craig completed
a delightful evening, plus there were
interesting guests to converse with. Who could
ask for anything more?
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