Fame or Famine

It’s only a preview, but it’s a breath of great things to come: the review of the premiere of “Another Evening: Serenade/The Proposition,” by Bill T. Jones seems to hint at a magnificent work to come. Commissioned to create a work celebrating the bicentennial of Lincoln’s birth, it’s a pretty tall order for anyone but Mr. Jones.
He assembled, along with his usual fantastically talented company, an amazing creative team: Janet Wong on video, singer Lisa Komara, score by Jerome Begin and Christopher Antonio William Lancaster, Liz Prince’s amazing costume design and a set consisting of moveable columns by …read more

Comments Off

Since I’ve mentioned some of the U.K.’s counterparts to our favorite shows like Dancing with the Stars ( Strictly Come Dancing ) I thought it might be a good idea to go and see how they do things across the pond.
Who are you, and what have you done with Simon Cowell?
The easiest place to start is Britain’s Got Talent, the equivalent of American Idol. I even saw the biting and critical Simon Cowell there in the judges chair. But what’s this? Rather than looking disgusted, he looked engaged! Interested! He was actually the friendliest of all the judges for this …read more

2 Comments

In the tradition of the Daily Show and the Colbert Report, the new David Mamet play, November, is set just a few days before a presidential election. While having the site be a pseudo-official campaign site, complete with “Vote Now!” buttons, it’s also very entertaining. You also don’t have to watch too much to be able to tell which particular president is the model for Nathan Lane’s role, but again, they do it in a lighthearted way.
I’m sure I won’t get to see it on Broadway, but I’m also sure it won’t be far from a movie, probably with the …read more

Comments Off

Just gotta gush a little here: a while back I mentioned that my girlfriend is singing lead in a lesbian musical called PULP put on by StageQ.
Well, the excellent writers over at Dane101.com have gone to the musical and have given their own review. And with apologies to my content editor, who hates it when I use block quotes (which is why, I’ll point out, I usually don’t) I’m going to include the full gush about my lady’s performance:
“Dana Pellebon’s sultry jazz numbers, as Vivian, sparkle. She literally sneaks up on you at the start of the second scene and …read more

Comments Off

Just a note of admiration: in spite of what must have been crushing news (their founder, Gus Giordano, died on Sunday) the Giordano Dance troupe got rave reviews from Hedy Weiss in the Chicago Sun-Times. It’s a tribute to the professionalism of the performers and the ethics he instilled in them that they kick off a five week tour of Hawaii with such a stellar performance. Even the one sour note in the review, Davis Robertson’s premiere of “Moanin Low” didn’t change her opinion: “…the company is in high-flying form.”
Incidentally, for those So You Think You Can Dance fans: number …read more

Comments Off

I’ve been coming across mentions of this play for the past couple of weeks here and there, always with the same gist to the comments: This is something new, something different; this ain’t your Momma’s Broadway musical. Then today I read in the Gothamist: “…an irresistible, cross-genre score, warm hearted humor, inspired staging and a brilliant ensemble.”
And that did it – I needed to find out more, not that I’ll get to actually see it any time soon. But surely I can catch glimpses of it via the web?
Stalking Passing Strange
Starting at the website of the show, I’m glad to …read more

Comments Off

I confess, I have as much trouble as anyone taking seriously someone named P Diddy – but Sean Combs seems to be the king of re-invention, going from rapper to clothing designer to yes, Broadway actor.
In 2004 he starred in the revival of Lorraine Hansberry’s classic, Raisin in the Sun, which garnered Tony awards for co-stars Phylicia Rashad and Audra McDonald. It’s a powerful play about the struggles of an inner city black family, and other great actors including Sidney Poitier, Danny Glover, and Lou Gossett Jr. have played roles in the past.
While Combs’ acting skills were deemed less than …read more

2 Comments

What would I do without loyal readers to point out to me the error of my ways (or, at least, my writing):
Danica’s not the first.
“…actually, Janet Guthrie was the first woman to compete in Indy car races, back in the 1970s. See: http://www.janetguthrie.com/biofr.htm”
Thanks, Sandy, for pointing that out. My daughter and I talked about it some more yesterday, also. “I heard Danica Patrick is not that good,” she said, kind of embarrassed.
I looked at her. “From a male, I bet.” She nodded. “Well…does she come in last?”
“No…”
“So just because she’s not the best Indy driver out there (yet) that’s …read more

Comments Off

It’s getting scary.
I was fine – excited, even – when the Lion King came out. Even though it took until last month for me to actually see it, the fact that it was directed and designed by Julie Taymor was more than enough to make me forgive Disney for taking a cartoon and using up valuable stage space – space that could have been used by the next Neil Simon or Stephen Sondheim.
Then came Beauty and the Beast. Haven’t seen it, but I hear it’s impressive. The costume of the candlestick alone was pretty cool, and I raised four daughters …read more

2 Comments

Happy President’s Day!
Tomorrow is the primary in my home state, and I’ll be honest: I hope that this post doesn’t sway anyone one way or another in terms of who they choose to vote for. I know who I’m voting for, and why, and none of the issues which sway that decision have anything to do with the Arts. Personally, I feel that there are more important things like the War in Iraq to worry about than arts funding.
That being said, looking at the arts policy papers of Obama, Clinton, and Huckabee, I do notice a few things. Ron …read more

Comments Off