Off Broadway, The Shoemaker, starring Danny Aiello, takes place on 9/11 in his shoe repair shop, where he is visited by two customers, played by Alma Cuervo and Lucy DeVito. The opening night party took place in the lounge of Theatre Row, and Congressman Peter King, Robert Klein and Louise Lasser were among the guests. All New People, is a comedy that defies credibility, although there are many laughs. The Yellow Brick Road is a musical inspired by The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, only this time with an hispanic flavor. It is pleasant family entertainment. The Banana Monologues is an amusing one man show, in which four characters are played by James R. Brennan.
Neil Patrick Harris, Jayma Mays and Hank Azaria unveiled a Smurf Village to kick off Smurfs Week NYC in Central Park. It is week of promotions for the film, which opens on July 29.
Scott Siegel has presented Broadway musical shows at The Town Hall for over a decade, and his last show All Singin' All Dancin' was terrific, with a huge cast of singers and dancers, including Carolee Carmello, Lillias White and Julia Murney, with choreography by Lorin Latarro and Mark Stuart.
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The Tents: The NY Fashion Week Documentary, by James Belzer, is a fashion lover delight. It shows the way New York became the center of the fashion industry, by creating a Fashion Week with tents in Bryant Park, and then moving to Lincoln Center. Top designers, fashion editors and journalists make talking heads comments. The models on the runway are gorgeous. We saw a sneak preview at NewFest (The LGBT Film Festival), where I also attended the reception for the film One Night Stand the next night and greeted the filmmakers Elisabeth Sperling and Trish Dalton. I could not see the film, because The Shoemaker opened at the same time.
Find Me Guilty, by Sidney Lumet, was the last film I saw in Prince of the City: Remembering Sidney Lumet July 19-25. It is, as always, a well made film, with excellent acting by a superb cast, especially Vin Diesel, as a mobster, who acts as his own lawyer in the longest running trial in U.S. history. I miss Sidney Lumet.
As these are the hot days of summer, there are fewer activities in Manhattan. Everyone must be in the Hamptons.
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