It's Just Sex, by Jeff
Gould, takes place in a typical suburban home at a gathering of three
couples, which explores married life seriously. It is well acted by an
attractive cast. As the liquor flows, the problems and frustrations surface.
It is an intelligent, engrossing play.
The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin,
by Steven
Levenson, is a depressing play about a father, who returns home after
five years in jail, and attempts to reunite with his family. The ex-wife and
children have created new lives for themselves, and do not welcome his
return. It is well acted.
A Meet & Greet was held for the upcoming
Broadway musical Soul Doctor.
I saw it in an Off-Broadway production, and I am looking forward to its
return. It is the story of a "Rock Star Rabbi" and his friendship with Nina
Simone.
American Ballet Theatre (ABT) presented Swan
Lake, by Tchaikovsky,
which is one of the sure crowd pleasers in its repertoire. A superb Paloma
Herrera was the Odette-Odile,
and she won tremendous applause for her performance, ably supported by Cory
Steans as her ardent Prince
Siegfried. The entire cast, especially the Corps de Ballet as swans in the
second act, danced on a high level, and Ivan
Vasiliev was outstanding in
Act III as the evil von Rothbart. David
LeMarche led the orchestra in
a rousing performance of the melodious score.
Daniel Mate (lyricist)
and Alan
Gordon (libretto) received
the 2013 Kleban Prizes at
a reception and presentation at ASCAP. Among the guests were Sheldon
Harnick, Henry Krieger and Maury
Yesto
Film Society of Lincoln Center presented press
screenings for Latinbeat 2013
July 12-21. La Paz, by Santiago
Loza, Argentina, 2012, is about a young man released from a mental
hospital, who lives with a caring middle class family, and his gradual
growth to being able to take care of his own life without their support. It
is a quiet, interesting film, beautifully acted by the entire cast. Two
films byMatias PineiroThe Stolen
Man (El Hombre Robado), Argentina, 2007 and They
All Lie (Todos Mienten), Argentina, 2009, feature many of the same cast
of unattractive, unlikeable young people in two boring, pretentious films.
In the first B & W film, the leading character steals for no discernible
reason and her actions are just plainly annoying. Unfortunately, she appears
in the second color film, where she is equally irritating. There are
constant references to Sarmiento, Rosas and
other historical figures, which will be of little interest to non
Argentinians. Impenetrable (El
impenetrable), byDaniele Incalaterra and Fausta
Quattrini, Argentina/France, 2012, is a documentary about an
unattractive, overweight filmmaker, who visits Paraguay to sell property his
father had bought years ago in the Gran Chaco. We watch him smoking
cigarettes constantly, while driving on unpaved roads through uninteresting
landscapes. Although it details the lack of justice and obvious corruption
in the country in his particular case, one wonders why anyone would enjoy
seeing this film.
MoMA is presenting Allan Dwan
and the Rise and Decline of the Hollywood Studios June 5-July 8. Rendezvous With
Annie, by Dwan, USA, 1946, is a comedy about a soldier (Eddie
Albert) stationed in England during WWII, who manages to return home
secretly to New Jersey on a three day pass. When he's discharged as the war
ends nine months later, his wife gives birth to a baby boy. To prove he is
the father, gives way to hilarious complications. It is a very entertaining
film. Brewster's Millions,
by Dwan, USA, 1945, is a madcap comedy, which has Dennis
O'Keefeforced by a will to spend one million dollars within two months
in order to receive an additional seven million. He must not tell anyone
about why he is doing this. To his fiancee and friends, he seems to have
gone mad. Again, it is a very funny and entertaining film. The
Inside Story, by Dwan, USA, 1948, is clever story about the depression
concerning hard economic times in a small town in Vermont. The way one
thousand dollars is passed around, and saves the lives of the people
involved is quite amusing and provocative. It is a most enjoyable film. Suez,
by Dwan, USA, 1938, is a film about the construction of the Suez Canal by Ferdinand
de Lesseps (played by Tyrone
Power). It is a fictional historical costume drama with a good cast, and
pleasantly entertaining. Driftwood,
by Dwan, USA, 1937, is another small town gem. It features a remarkable
performance by a very young Natalie
Wood as an orphan, being
aided by an unmarried doctor with a happy ending. The
River's Edge, by Dwan, USA, 1957, is in color in Cinemascope, and three
fine actors, Ray
Milland, Anthony Quinn and a
pretty Debra
Paget star in a rather
vicious story of a man hiring a guide to help him cross the border into
Mexico with lots of illegal cash. Murder and mayhem follow. MoMA also
presented Pickpocket, by Robert
Bresson, France, 1959, a gloomy, slow moving film about a French young
man, who makes a living stealing wallets and watches from unsuspecting
victims in the subway, train stations and at racetracks. It's an unpleasant
film.
Opera in Cinema from Emerging Films presented Don
Giovanni, by Mozart,
by Teatro alla Scala in a live performance from the opening night of the La
Scala's 2012 season, filmed December 7, 2011. They could not have found a
better cast. Each singer was excellent. Peter
Mattei was Don Giovanni, with Bryn
Terfel as Leporello, Anna
Neterbko (Donna Anna),Barbara
Frittoli (Donna Elvira), Anna
Prohaska (Zerlina), Giuseppe
Filanoti (Don Ottavio) and Stefan
Kocan (Masetto),
with Daniel
Barenboim leading the
orchestra. As usual these days, it was an updated version, with minimal sets
in modern clothes, except when the sopranos spent much of the opera in
slips, and Elvira's maid (usually not seen) made an appearance in the nude.
Fortunately, the cast was so magnificent, that whatever nonsense transpired
on stage made little difference to the viewer's enjoyment.