Bunty Berman Presents..., book, lyrics and music by Ayub Khan Din, music also by Paul Bogaev, is a spoof of Bollywood musical films with an appealing fourteen member cast. The story is silly, about a bankrupt Indian film studio, but the music is pleasant, the dance numbers are lively, and the cast works hard to entertain. The opening night party took place at KITCH at OUT NYC

Nikolai and the Others, by Richard Nelson, is a play about a fictitious weekend spent in Connecticut by a group of famous Russian immigrants in 1948. They include George Balanchine and Igor Stravinsky. They talk, eat, drink, and watch the choreographer and composer rehearse his ballet Orpheus. The eighteen member cast, directed by David Cromer, are fine, but the play itself drags, and one has to be deeply interested in these people to really care about them.

 

The 2013 Drama Desk Nominees reception took place at Essex House and many nominees were present, like Nathan Lane, Tom Hanks, Bertie Carvel and many others too numerous to mention. It was a festive occasion.

 

Career Transition for Dancers Annual Between-Shows-Get-Together was held at Sardi's with Caitlin Carter, Mercedes Ellington, Chet Walker and many of the dancers from the current Broadway shows. It is always an informative and interesting gathering. And the food is delicious.

 

The New York Women's Foundation (NYWF) 26th Anniversary Women's Breakfast honored Rachel Lloyd, Tina Brown and Leymah Gbowee at the Marriott Marquis. It is a fascinating breakfast with speakers, who have achieved so much for women's rights. A magnificent nine women Mariachi Flor de Tolache played and sang two songs to begin the program, and they were superb.

 

Three Meet & Greets in one day. Reasons to be Pretty, by Neil LaBute, The Unavoidable Disappearance of Tom Durnin, by Steven Levenson  and The Two Character Play, by Tennessee Williams. All three plays have wonderful casts. I can hardly wait to see them.

 

MoMA presented two marvelous films in the closing days of The Weimar Touch. Some Like It Hot, by Billy Wilder, USA, 1959, is a very funny comedy about two musicians, Jack Lemmon and Tony Curtis, who pose as women to join an all girls band in order to escape from mobsters. Marilyn Monroe is the singer with the band and she never looked or acted better. It is one of the finest comedies on film. The Night of the Hunter, by Charles Laughton, USA, 1955, is a scary thriller about a serial killer of widows (a superb Robert Mitchum), whose last victim is Shelley Winters, a widow with two young children. Her dead husband has hidden a stash of money that he robbed from a bank, that Mitchum is determined to get. The film keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. Also MoMA presented Il Grido, by Michelangelo  Antonioni, Italy, 1957, a grim, depressing tale of a man, who leaves his girlfriend, and wanders aimlessly with their young daughter through the bleak Italian countryside. He meets various frustrated women, who, unbelievably, are attracted to this sullen person. He meets a tragic end.

 

Ballet in Cinema from Emerging Pictures presented Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, choreography by Christopher Wheeldon, music by Joby Talbot, by the Royal Ballet, filmed live on March 28, 2013. It is a sumptuous production in scenic and costume design. The ballet is pleasant with lots of humor, mainly provided by The Queen of Hearts, a hilarious Zenaida Yanowsky. Her performance of a jam-tart adagio received a tremendous, well deserved ovation. She is a wonderful clown. Sarah Lamb, in the title role, gives a dazzling performance, and is truly an outstanding ballerina. She is a joy to watch. Her technique is superb, and is on stage throughout the ballet. The waltz scene that ends the second act is the highlight of the ballet. The dancers are splendid, and the music, played magnificently by the orchestra, under the baton of David Briskin, is charming.