Seth Rudetsky and James
Wesley hosted Concert
for America: Your Kids, Our Kids in
the Great Hall, Cooper Union. Among the singers
were Idina
Menzel, Audra McDonald, Chita Rivera (photo
below with Mitchell and his wife) and her
daughter Lisa Mordente, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Patrick
Wilson.
Among the speakers were Tina
Fey, Andrea Martin,
and from organizations that support helping
reunite children with their parents who were
separated at the southern border for crossing
illegally into the United States. I photographed
some of the entertainers backstage in the Green
Room after the concert.
Vitaly: An evening of Wonders, created and
starring Vitaly
Beckman, at the Westside Theatre, is a
delightful program of magic tricks, performed by
a charming, pleasant young man, who makes
objects move, sketches on a large pad and makes
his drawings move, does card tricks and is fun
company. After the performance, he poses for
photos with the happy children that attend his
show. We met him at his opening night party at
The Palm, 250 West 50th St. His proud parents
came from Israel to congratulate him. We had a
lovely time.
Whipped Cream, choreography by Alexei
Ratmansky, music and libretto by Richard
Strauss, a production of American Ballet
Theatre (ABT) at the Metropolitan Opera House is
a present for children of all ages. The set and
costume design by Mark Ryden is a joy for
all fans who love fairy tales. It is about a Boy
(Jeffrey Cirio) who, at a confectioner's
shop, overdoses on whipped cream and becomes
ill. He is placed in a hospital, and escapes
with the help of Princess Praline (Misty
Copland). It is a colorful ballet with
brilliant dancing by the entire cast. The two
leads along with Hee Seo as Princess Tea
Flower and Cory Stearns as Prince Coffee
are outstanding, The orchestra, under the baton
of Charles Barker, played the score
wonderfully. It closed the eight week season on
a triumphal note.
Cause Celebre:
Musical Brunch Series is
a program created by Susan Charlotte at Chez
Josephine, 414 West 42nd St. It is always a
delightful afternoon with wonderful food, lovely
drinks and fine performances. Sketches and
Songs were performed by Larry Pine and Carole
Shelley, with Michael Citriniti, and
performed at the piano by Eric Yves Garcia and Jon
Weber. Susan invited some of her guests to
her penthouse after the brunch to enjoy a
spectacular view of the city from her terrace.
Mary Page Marlowe, by Tracy
Letts,
at 2ndstage, is a 90-minute intermission-less
play, about the woman named in the title. In a
series of brief scenes, six actresses play the
woman at various stages in her life. It is a
convoluted story switching back and forth in
time. Her life is a mess. She is an alcoholic, a
sex maniac, a jailbird, marries frequently, and
her two children are unhappy. The acting by
a large company by Off-Broadway standards,
directed by Lila
Neugebauer, is
quite good. The play is not.
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Steven Minichiello presented
a magnificent memorial for Liliane
Montevecchi at
Gotham Hall. The coffin was surrounded by glorious
bouquets of flowers and exquisite candles. Six
musicians played various selections. Four ballet
dancers performed and two tango dancers appeared in
three dances. Two beautiful models appeared in Follies
Bergere outfits
a la Liliane. Film clips of Liliane performing were
screened and photos of her were displayed throughout
the large hall. Steven introduced many of her
dearest friends, who told humorous anecdotes about
the talented actress. Among them were Arlene
Dahl, Marc Rosen, David Staller, Maury Yeston, Donna
McKechnie,
who also sang, and Tommy Tune who
directed Liliane in her Tony Winning performance in Nine in
1982. He also directed her in her Tony Nominated
performance in Grand
Hotel.
The final speaker was Claudio Soprani, her
companion in her last 30 years. It was a wonderful
memorial, closing with a champagne reception, where
I chatted with Karen Akers, Lee Roy Reams and Jamie
de Roy among many others. Steven is to be
congratulated for a marvelous afternoon, that
Liliane would have enjoyed.
Get the Boat,
written and starring Eavan
Brennan and Sioban
Donnellan at
Soho Playhouse, is about two young women, who meet
on a boat from Ireland to England, where they will
get an abortion. In those days, it was illegal in
Ireland. The two fine actresses, directed by Ruth
Smith, tell
each other their tragic stories. In a talk-back
afterwards, they explain why they wrote the play and
why they became activists for women's rights in
Ireland, which recently passed a referendum allowing
abortion. The second short play is Innit,
written, starring and directed by Colette
Forde,
about a young high school girl in Manchester,
England. (My home town). In a thick accent, which
borders on unintelligible, she relates her miserable
life, while wanting to grow up to be a pop singer.
She is uneducated, vulgar and cannot utter one
sentence without using profanity. She is an
unpleasant character.
The Saintliness of Margery Kempe, by John
Wulp, at The Duke on 42nd Street, is
about the life of the of the 14th century English
mystic. The nine member cast, headed by a
remarkable Andrus
Nichols (photo belowwith O'Connell) as
the title character, is directed expertly by Austin
Pendleton. The story reveals that Kempe left her
husband (Jason
O'Connell) and six children to live her own
life. It is a fascinating story, and in this
production it is very funny. At the opening night
party at Sardis, we congratulated the playwright,
director and the splendid actors.
Resident Magazine held a reception for Ryan
Serhant, who is featured on the July cover. It
took place in an elegant townhouse, 253 West 18th
Street, with delicious hors d'oeuvres served from La
Pulperia with fine Spanish Rioja wines. It was a
most enjoyable evening.
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