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The 2017 Tony Award Nominations were
announced at the New York Public Library for the
Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. Jane
Krakowski and Christopher
Jackson read
the nominations. There were no surprises. Most of
the OCC and Drama Desk Nominations for Broadway were
included. I imagine Kevin
Kline and Laurie
Metcalf, and Andy
Karl and Bette
Midler will win the Tonys for Best Actor/Actress
in a play and musical, and Hello,
Dolly! best
revival of a musical.
We had a Meet the 2017
Tony Awards Nominees at
Sofitel New York Hotel. Most of those nominated
appeared, and it was a joy to photograph talented
actresses and members of the creative teams like Cynthia
Nixon and Laura
Linney (photo
below). I look forward to the Awards on Sunday June
11.
A revival of Pacific Overtures,
book by John
Weidman, music and lyrics by Stephen
Sondheim, at the Classic Stage Company, is a
splendid version of a fine musical re-imagined in 90
minutes, with an excellent cast, directed and
designed by John
Doyle. The ten member cast, headed by George
Takei, sing and act wonderfully, telling us the
clash between Japan and the United States, when
Commodore Perry arrived in the mid-nineteenth
century to open up Japan for trade.
Marry Harry,
book by Jennifer
Robbins,
music by Dan Martin,
lyrics by Michael
Bello,
is a York Theatre Company production at the Theater
at Saint Peter's, 629 Lexington Avenue. It is a
charming, delightful 80-minute musical. The
excellent seven member cast, is directed expertly
by Bill
Castellino.
The two leads, David
Spadora
and Morgan
Cowling,
sing beautifully, and the music is pleasant, the
lyrics intelligent and the book contains many pearls
of wisdom about two young lovers and romance. The
opening night party was a joyous occasion at a
wonderful Italian restaurant, Luna
Piena,
243 East 53rd Street, where they served us a
multitude of hors d'oeuvres, pasta and fine wines
and beer.
New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players
presented Patience or, Bunthorne's Bride, at
the Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College. Thank goodness
New York City has Artistic Director Albert
Bergeret for
keeping William
S. Gilbert and Sir
Arthur Sullivan alive
in New York. Their operettas are delightful. They
are melodious, funny and extremely clever. The two
poets, James
Mills and David
Macaluso, stole the show. They were hilarious.
The highlight of the performance was So
go to him, and say to him, sung by Caitlin
Burke and
Mills. The tumultuous applause brought them back for
two encores. A pretty Sarah
Caldwell Smith played
the title role, and sang beautifully. The orchestra
played the sparkling music, under the baton of the
magnificent Albert Bergeret.
The New York Pops 34th Birthday
Gala honored Kelli
O'Hara and Bartlett
Sher. (photo
below).
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They presented a marvelous program at Carnegie Hall,
with a multitude of Broadway and Opera stars, like Matthew
Broderick, Danny Burstein, Rebecca Luker, Marin
Mazzie, Steven Pasquale and Isabel
Leonard from
the Met. A dinner dance followed at the Mandarin
Oriental where I photographed the honorees and their
proud families. It was a magnificent event.
Film Society at Lincoln Center
presented the 24th
New York African Film Festival on Wednesday May
3 at the Walter Reade Theater and will continue to
May 9. I photographed the arrivals, including the
director Akin
Omotoso of
the opening night filmVaya and
many of the other directors, actors and celebrities.
I then reviewed the film and chatted with many of
the guests at the reception afterwards in the Frieda
and Roy Furman Gallery. Vaya, by Akim Omotoso South
Africa, 2016, is a powerful film, about three naive,
innocent young people who travel to Johannesburg
from small towns, and, unfortunately, are mistreated
in the the large city. One young man finds his
cousin is a gangster, and is forced to kill another
mobster. Another young man comes to take his dead
father back home for burial, only to find his late
father had another family in the city, and they had
already claimed the body. The third person is a girl
taking a young cousin to be reunited with her
mother, who is now living with another gangster. The
acting is superb, and the photography is wonderful,
but it is a grim tale. It is also full of violence,
without any humor whatsoever. It is based on true
stories.
We had a Meet and Greet for Michael
Moore at
Sardi's. He will appear on Broadway at the Belasco
Theatre in July in a one man show The
Terms of My Surrender, directed by Michael
Mayer. I eagerly await opening night in Augus
Another Meet and Greet was held at
Ripley-Grier for Building
the Wall, by Robert
Schenkkan, directed by Ari
Edelson, and starring Tamara
Tunie and James
Badge Dale. It opens on May 21 at New World
Stages. I eagerly await opening night.
Metropolitan Magazine and 25A
Magazine celebrated
the April Cover Star of Author & Philanthropist Jean
Shafiroff at
Selena Rosa Restaurant, 1712 2nd Avenue. It was a
delightful event with margaritas and delicious
Mexican food. Among the guests were former Miss
America, the lovely Suzette
Charles.
Heterosexuals, gay men and lesbians
having been filling the screen lately. It is now
only fair to include trans. 3 Generations,
directed and co-written by Gaby
Dellal, which stars Elle
Fanning as
a girl who wants to be a boy, Naomi
Watts as
her confused mother, and Susan
Sarandon as
her lesbian grandmother, who live together on the
top floor of a townhouse. Mounting that staircase
each day is a wonderful exercise to keep all
three slim. To go through the operation, Naomi has
to seek permission from Elle's father, Tate
Donovan.
He abandoned the family, when Naomi slept with his
brother, Sam
Trammell.
She obviously is confused, because in another
scene, we see her in bed with a black man also. This
is a very dysfunctional family. I forgot to include Linda
Edmond, Susan's
lover, who also lives with Elle and Naomi. I think
you can understand this is a very convoluted plot.
By the way, trans,
by Rogers
Brubaker,
2016, is a book you should read to understand about Gender
and Race in an Age of Unsettled Identities. The
acting by the three leading actresses is superb. |