3 Kinds of Exile, by
John Guare, are thee
short plays about Polish exiles. The first is a
monologue about a man with a rash. The second is a story
told by two men at lecterns about a famous Polish
actress, who is condemned to a miserable life in New
York. The third is nonsensical, about a Polish
playwright in Argentina. All three have little dramatic
interest, although the second talks about a more
interesting real life character.
Reasons to Be Happy, by Neil LaBute, is a
sequel about four four aimless characters, that we met
in the playwright's Broadway's more successful play.
These small town unhappy couples fight, scream, yell at
each other with a stream of profanity for two hours, and
are unlikeable at the end of the play as they are in the
first scenes.
A Picture of Autumn, by N. C. Hunter, is a
beautifully acted, well constructed play abut three
elderly English aristocrats, living in their ancestral
mansion, and unable to take care of their home and
property. Their son wants them to sell the home. It is a
fine production of a sweet, sentimental play.
The Silver Cord, by
Sidney Howard, is a another
old-fashioned drama about an extremely possessive mother and
her two sons, one married and the other engaged. Over one
weekend, we see her interference in their lives. It is a
fine production and well acted.
American Ballet Theatre (ABT) presented a new version of
Le Corsaire. The costumes and scenic design were not an
improvement over the the previous production, and the
staging seemed much the same. The dancing was fine.
Gillian Murphy was a brilliant Medora and Misty
Copeland was a magnificent Gulnare. The two slave girls
won well deserved applause. Among the male dancers,
Marcelo Gomes was superb as Ali, and Steven McCrae
impressed as Lankendem. The rest of the cast was quite good,
and the Jardin Anime was the most beautiful scene of
the evening. The orchestra played well, under the baton of
Charles Barker.
The Hall of Fame 2013 Fellowships were presented at
the 10th Anniversary Luncheon at the New York Friars Club to
Raymond J. Lee by Joel Grey and to Evan
Cabnet by Andre Bishop. James M. Nederlander
was also honored. Among the guests were Estelle Parsons
who was the host, Tommy Tune, Lois Smith, William Ivey
Long and Pia Lindstrom among many others. It was
a joyous occasion.
Actors' Equity presented the Clarence Derwent Awards
to Michael Urie and Annaleigh Ashford and the
Richard Seff Awards to Kristine Nielsen and
Lewis J. Stadlen. It was a delightful ceremony, and the
four excellent actors deserved their awards for their
marvelous performances this season.
There was a book party for Strippers, Showgirls, and Sharks,
by Peter Filichia, at the New York Friars Club. I am
eagerly awaiting to read it.
The 25th Anniversary Gala of the Irish Repertory Theatre
began with a performance Something Wonderful, The Songs
of Rodgers & Hammerstein, hosted by Tom Hanks.
Shirley Jones and Patrick Cassidy were special
guests, and among the many performers were Christine
Andreas, Howard McGillin, Brian Stokes Mitchell and
Paulo Szot. It was a splendid concert, directed by
Charlotte Moore, with a festive dinner afterwards at
Sardi's, with guests Swoosie Kurtz, Tina Chen and
John McMartin, among many others.
MoMA presented Paris Belongs to Us, by Jacques
Rivette, France, 1961, a slow moving film about a group
of actors rehearsing a play by Shakespeare. At the same
time, it is a look at disillusioned, world weary bohemians,
with paranoid views of their life, leading to tragedy for
some of them.
MoMA is presenting Allan Dwan and the Rise and Decline of
the Hollywood Studios June 5-July 8. While Paris
Sleeps, by Dwan, USA, 1932, is a typical
melodrama about an escaped convict searching for his
daughter among the criminal elements in a sleazy
neighborhood in Paris. Although farfetched, it holds the
viewer's interest.
Opera in Cinema from Emerging Pictures presented a
film version of The Magic Flute, by Mozart.
directed by Kenneth Branagh, France & U.K. 2006. It
was well sung, with an excellent cast, headed by Rene
Pape (Sarastro), Lyubov Petrova (Queen of the
Night), Joseph Kaiser (Tamino), Amy Carson (Pamina)
and Ben Davis (Papageno), with James Conlon
conducting the Chamber Orchestra of Europe. It was updated
to World War I, filmed with battle scenes in trenches and
with the cast as soldiers and war affected civilians.