Theatre Experiences by the Kings

God of Carnage

2011-04-17T19:58:00.000-07:00

First, it was a beeyootiful day. We love going into L.A. to attend a theatre event. It is always fun to watch tourists and fellow theatre-goers as we picnic near the Peace on Earth fountain. Domestic and international tourists are drawn to the nearby Walt Disney Concert Hall and even though we’ve seen it dozens of times, it is always a wonder to see. It was a warm day and I discovered that if I stand in a certain place in front of the Disney Concert Hall, I could feel significant heat radiating off the stainless steel exterior.

When I first heard the title of the play was “God of Carnage”, I cringed and thought, “Oh great, a play about war or violence”. Instead, this is a sophisticated laugh out loud comedy starring James Gandolfini, Marcia Gay Harden, Jeff Daniels and Hope Davis. On the Ahmanson web site, there is a video of the actors being interviewed. So check it out.

Even when I saw the interviews online, I was hoping it would not be a modern day “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolfe?” play. Too be honest, I didn’t like the classic even though I am a fan of Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. It was too visceral, raw and hateful.

The play is advertised as “A comedy of manners…without the manners”. In the opening scene, two well-to-do couples are calmly discussing a statement that will be submitted to the courts about a fight between their 11-12 year old sons at a local park. They all agree on the carefully worded statement because of course, they are sophisticated and civilized, avoiding the ugly litigation scene.

But everyone has their foibles and Jeff Daniels pushes his wife to the brink as he interrupts the conversations with his incessant business cell phone calls. People, don’t you just hate that? Suddenly, his wife portrayed by Hope Davis isn’t feeling well. Then shockingly she literally hurls as she splashes the rug, coffee table and the precious art books on it. That scene was simply hilarious as everyone is horrified being splashed with puke and rushes around to clean up. I cracked up when James Gandolfini gently tries to hold her hair out of the puke bucket as he turns red and gags.

As Marcia and James take a hair dryer to the damaged art book, Max and I looked at each other knowingly. Max treasures his art books, one of which is on our coffee table. He said if anyone hurls on his art books, the culprit will be hurled out of the house…well he shudders to even think about it.

That scene is the “civility ice breaker” as each person attacks or is attacked by others. Behind the façade of manners and civility, they all bemoan the human frailties of their partners and the troubles around the world.

Now the tone of this play is so opposite of “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolfe”, so when I say “attack”, it isn’t done in the same manner as the classic. The audience was entertained and the play was funny. The writing is good, but the actors made it even more successful through the nuances of their delivery. Marcia won the Tony Award for Best Actress for her part in this play. James Gandolfini was so funny with his comedic timing and reminds us of Ken, a dear friend of ours because of his expressions. But at the same time, James is the type of person you do not want to piss off as he verbally fights back, aka Tony Soprano style.

What did I get out of it? Well, in my real life, people will continue to be civilized or if someone gets out of hand, I will walk away. That is nowadays, whereas a few years ago, I would be nose to nose with an a**hole. What this play does is bring to light what people would like to say out loud, short of coming to blows.

I would say this would be a play we would see again, but I don’t know if it would have the same affect of being laugh out loud shocked during the hurling scene. But there were so many other funny dialogs and memorable scenes such as Hope dunking her husband’s cell phone in a flower vase or in a fit, throws all the flower lilies across the stage. At the end of the play, we gave them our standing ovation. Yes, yes, yes….we would see it again.

Next to Normal

2011-01-02T21:22:00.000-08:00

This is a hard rock musical hitting raw emotions, so different from the light-hearted and feel good Sound of Music type of musical. The staging included a framed, 2 story quadrant so that all four major characters could sing their frustrations in their own rooms, yet to the audience, sang together as a chorus.

It takes place in modern times and Alice Ripley plays Diana, a mother who is having a nervous breakdown. It starts as she gets her family ready for the start of the day. Her favorite child, her teenage son Gabe, is lighthearted, playful and loving. Her teenage daughter, Natalie, is focused on her musical studies in almost a geeky way and she sees herself as the “invisible girl” because no one pays attention to her. As the morning progresses, Diana begins to flip out as the stress of the morning begins to overcome her. She tries to make sandwiches out of a whole loaf of bread, laying them on the table, on the chairs and across the floor. Her husband and children look on, horrified.

Her husband Dan is such a sad character because he loves his wife so much and watches helplessly as she progresses further into a nervous breakdown. He stands by her, but he has to make the difficult decision on her treatments, which includes shock therapy. After months of psychotherapy and shock treatments, she resumes her life to near normalcy, but she is still fighting her demons. Pills are also part of her treatment, which deaden her feelings. She sings, “I miss the mountains, I miss my life, I even miss the pain because I feel nothing” or “You don’t know when you die when living like this”.

It isn’t until later in the play that we discover Gabe is actually the demon she is trying to overcome. He died as a baby and she has never overcome that loss. She sees him as he grows up, but to become normal again, she has to convince herself that what she sees is not real. After taking her medication regularly, she does not see her son or if she does, she can tell that he is not real. But because she hates how she feels when she takes the pills, she stops. Then she begins to see her son more vividly than ever. She tries to send her son away so that she can recover and Gabe pleads with her not to let him go. That was a heart-wrenching scene. Yikes…tears. But she remains strong and reluctantly, sends him away.

Eventually, she leaves her husband and daughter so that she can concentrate on getting better. Life goes on and they seem to get better, accepting the situation. Maybe later when the time is right, they will be all together again. In the last scene, Dan sees Gabe and apparently he has always seen his dead son. They sing a painful duet as Gabe pleads to stay and Dan reluctantly acquiesces. He knows it isn’t right, but he doesn’t want to send him away.

I love performances that can pull emotions from the audience as they empathize with the characters. The mother who struggles to regain her sanity, a daughter who seeks validation wanting to mean something to someone else, a father who wants to bear the pain for those he loves and even the dead son who doesn’t want to be forgotten. My gosh, I was tapping my toes while brushing aside a tear. For me, this heart-wrenching, hard rocking musical passed our test of, Yes, we would see this again. For me, I’ve learned that everyone has difficulties, but over time troubles end and life goes on. Yes, other troubles can be on the horizon, but we’ve been made stronger by those experiences.

Rigoletto

2010-12-11T20:51:00.000-08:00

Rigoletto is an opera that takes human frailty to theextreme. Perhaps that is the basisfor Opera anyway. Arias and duetsare sung with great emotion as the characters are swept up in the drama ofrage, jealousy, despair, deceit and frivolity.

Rigoletto the main character, is a Duke’sjester. He entertains the Duke,but does so at the expense of other courtiers. As a result, he makes enemies who wait to take revenge. TheDuke is a philanderer who is accused by Count Monterone that he has shamed hisdaughter. Rigoletto insults theCount and in turn, the Count curses Rigoletto. Rigoletto is concerned because he also has a daughter who hehas kept sheltered over the years. The duets between Rigoletto and his daughter Gilda, are absolutelybeautiful.

Gilda adores her father and obeys him by stayinghome, leaving only to go to church. But at church, the Duke spots her and tries to win her heart. Of course she falls hopelessly in lovewith him.

In the meantime, the courtiers spy on Rigolettoand see him with Gilda. They thinkGilda is his lover and they kidnap her, taking her to the Duke. Rigoletto discovers what they have doneand he rushes back to the palace. Gildaflings herself on her father, confessing her shame by the kidnapping andliaison with the Duke.

Rigoletto takes Gilda home to dress her in men’sclothes so that she can escape the shame of Mantua. He then hires an assassin to kill the Duke for shaming hisdaughter. During a dark and stormynight at an inn, Gilda overhears the assassin’s plot. To save her love, she pretends to be the Duke and is killedinstead. When Rigoletto returns tothe inn, he is overwhelmed with grief when he discovers the body of hisdaughter. In the background hehears the dang Duke singing. Thecurse!

I thought the singing and the bright costumes werebeautiful. But I couldn’t identifywith the characters to become emotional. Rigoletto was mean to others and a bit twisted that he control hisdaughter’s life so much that she didn’t know any better and fell for the Dukewho didn’t deserve her sacrifice.

Would we see it again? Of course, of course. It is a Verdi classic and the music transcends the characters’frailties.

George Gagnidze plays Rigoletto, Sarah Coburnplays Gilda and Gianluca Terranova plays the Duke. All well done.

Lohengrin

2010-12-04T23:08:00.000-08:00

The first Wagner Opera we attended was Siegfried. It was okay. Partial to Italian or French operas, we wanted to expand our horizons so to speak and attend another Wagner opera.

First, let me give you a brief synopsis on the opera, then recap what we actually saw. Lohengrin is a fantasy, fairy tale story about romance and miracles. King Henry arrives in Brabent to expel Hungarians from his realm, but also judge accusations about the disappearance of the young Duke Gottfried. Count Telramund is the Duke’s guardian and accuses the Duke’s sister, Elsa of murdering her brother. Elsa proclaims her innocence and trusts in God to send her a knight to champion her innocence. On the river, a knight in shining armour appears on a boat drawn by a swan, to accept the challenge. One thing he asks is that she never asks him his name. He challenges Count Telramund and defeats him. The knight then asks Elsa to marry him, but again, she is not to ask him ever, for his name.

Ortrud is a witch and companion to Count Telramund who are both exiled while wedding preparations for the knight and Elsa are underway. Ortrud casts suspicions in Elsa’s mind about the knight’s secretive manner. During their wedding night, Elsa is begging for the knight’s name, when Telramund and 4 henchmen try to assassinate the knight. During the fight, Telramund is killed. Saddened by the events, the knight decides to reveal himself to Elsa and the King. He is Lohengrin the Knight of the Holy Grail. He has to return to his duties but wanted to stay long enough to marry Elsa.

Ortrud then appears saying that she cursed young Duke Gottfried, turning him into a swan. Lohengrin prays and the swan turns back into the Duke. A dove leads Lohengrin back to his castle. As he departs, Elsa is so distraught, she collapses and dies.

So how does this compare to what we saw? Instead of taking place in the time of knights and castles, the opera is set during World War I. The set is a bombed out building used as a field hospital. In a tent, we can see backlit shadows of a doctor sawing the leg from a wounded soldier who eventually dies. The scene progresses and Elsa is asking for a champion to help proclaim her innocence. The dead soldier from behind the tent, raises from the dead. He comes out and in place of his amputated leg is a prosthetic, shaped like a knight’s armour. At the end of the opera when he supposed to float back to his castle, he instead walks back to the tent, lays down and dies. Elsa still dies too.

I preferred the romantic, fairy tale version. It best fits the original intent of the opera with fantasy and magic. The version we saw was doubly tragic. It was long, but we did find the opera to be more enjoyable than Siegfried. We also discovered surprisingly, the most well known aria from this opera is the Bridal Chorus, most commonly played at today’s weddings.

Harps and Angels

2010-11-14T21:33:00.000-08:00

We were looking forward to a whimsical, memories from the past musical experience. For those of you who have been around for a while, songs such as “A Fool in Love”, “I love L.A”, and “Sail Away” may bring back memories from the 70s and 80s. “Short People” is as outrageously prejudiced today as it was back when it was first released…and just as funny.

We’ve seen Smokey Joe’s Café and so we were looking forward to a similar rendition of Randy Newman’s best songs by a musical cast of 6 singers, no dialog. Included in the musical cast is Michael McKean who some of you old-timers might remember as Squiggy from the sitcom, Laverne and Shirley.

The experience fell short. The cast of singers was good, but not great. The saving grace was the great music of Randy Newman, which is entertaining today as it was years ago. He does have recent recordings, but I am not familiar with them. No, we would not see this one again, but we did enjoy the show.

Leap of Faith

2010-10-24T17:14:00.000-07:00

This musical stars Raul Esparanza and Brook Shields. Who knew that Brooke could sing? I was doubtful, but I was pleasantly surprised. We’ve all seen this type of plot before. A handsome scoundrel con man comes into town, sweeps a single mother off her feet, struggles with his life’s direction, finds love and settles down.

Raul plays Jonas Nightingale who leads a troupe of entertainers across the Midwest to hold the tent revivals where they whip the audience into religious frenzy when he proclaims their private weaknesses and prays to redeem them. The con is that members of the troupe discretely overhears audience conversations or investigates people, especially the wealthier population. They then relay the information to Jonas who proclaims that he obtained this information through divine intervention.

Another attraction is the miraculous healing. For example, as she walks into the revival tent, a poor old lady is pushed into a wheelchair. She sits in bewilderment as Jonas lays his hands on her forehead crying out, begging her to walk. Of course she can walk…but no one else in the town knows because she is a visitor from another town. In the meantime, the gospel singers are banging tambourines, waving their uplifted hands, singing “Allelelujah”! The singing throughout the show is so absolutely uplifting, the audience wants to jump up and wave their hands too.

The problem the town faces is that they have little money because most of what they earn goes into drilling for water because of the drought conditions they are facing. So the struggle Jonas faces is the fact that he is fleecing money from a town with little money, struggling to survive.

Brooke plays Marva, a single mother of a young boy named Boyd. She is a street smart waitress in the only café in the small town. Marva falls in love reluctantly with a man who arouses her suspicions.

Years before, Marva’s husband died in a car crash. Boyd was also in the crash causing paralysis from the waist down. Jonas sings, “Death is a breeze. Death is a breeze because no one has come back to complain. But Life is the really hard part.” Boyd believes Jonas is going to provide a miracle and you guessed it….Boyd walks and everyone lives happily ever after. The plot maybe old, but the excitement and top notch entertainment is worth seeing again.

As the cast took their bows to the standing ovation, Brooke asked to make an announcement. I thought, oh she is going to make a request for contributions for AIDS or some Performing Arts association. But it turns out that it was the last performance in L.A. and it was also Raul’s birthday. So 2000 members of the audience, cast and stage hands sang Happy Birthday to Raul as he stood stunned and teary eyed. It was fun.

Il Postino

2010-10-16T18:04:00.000-07:00

Ah, the first opera of the 2010/2011 season starring Placido Domingo. He plays the role of Pablo Neruda, a poet from Chile, exiled because of his politics. Pablo won a Nobel Prize for literature in 1971. He is known for reading his poems to large communist gatherings and was actually a senator for the Communist party. He returned from exile after 3 years, living in his country continuing to write his poetry until his death in 1973 at the age of 69 years old.

We normally do not like modern operas because of an experience years ago attending a modern opera called Regina, performed at the Orange County Performing Arts. We went with another couple, dear friends of ours who are always a lot of fun to be with. The opera was awful, but we were having so much fun anyway. Regina just could not compare to the classic operas. For heavens sake, the characters talked with a southern drawl and then would break out into an aria. Operas should be sung in Italian, French, Spanish or German. People around us were leaving throughout the performance, but we kept hanging in there, thinking it had to get better. It didn’t. A week later, I had t-shirts made for our friends that read, “I survived Regina” to remember the experience.

I digress. Back to Il Postino (The Postman). Pablo, exiled from Chile seeks refuge for a short while in a small Italian island of Cala di Sotto. The other main character is Mario, performed by Charles Castronovo. Mario is the young postman who delivers the mail to Pablo from many of his admirers worldwide. Mario is rather aimless because he can’t move to America like his brothers and hates fishing, so he rejects being a fisherman like his father. Over time, Mario interacts with the gracious Pablo, learning more about poetry from the master. He uses his newfound knowledge to write poetry to win his love, Beatrice. He eventually wins the hand of Beatrice and marries her. But he meets his death when he attends a Communist gathering to read his poetry and is accidentally shot when a riot breaks out.

It was a beautiful opera both visually and through its music. Scenes from around the island were superimposed in the background to provide inspiration for Mario’s poetry. The sound of the water as the surf meets the beach, the fishermen in their boats, hills and mountains overlooking the sea. Music is mixed with the love and creation of poetry. Placido is yes, past his prime, but he was excellent. He was excellent, keeping in mind that he underwent cancer surgery a few months earlier. He is an artist to be admired and we will take every opportunity to attend every opera that is performed by Placido because he is such a legend.

Our rating of "Would we see it again", is a poetic "Yes"!

The Glass Menagerie

2010-09-05T18:31:00.000-07:00

This is a play by Tennessee Williams that finally changed his life from a struggling writer to a world renowned success. It is such a classic, so Max and I were trying to remember the plot and if we saw a movie version of it played by Marlon Brando or Paul Newman years ago.

The play has four characters and a haunting fifth. Amanda is the mother who lives with her son Tom and her daughter Laura in a simple, dark apartment in New Jersey. Amanda is a fading beauty who constantly lives in her past glory as a southern belle who was so sought after, she had “…entertained 17 beaus at one time”. She loves her children dearly, but she is also very disappointed in them.

Tom, a warehouse worker also writes in the evening. Her disappointment in him is that he shows signs of taking after his father who had drank a lot and finally left them 15 years before. “He worked as a telephone man who fell in love with long distance”. The father’s picture hangs on the wall bringing them pain and arguments every time they refer to him.

Amanda, Tom, Laura

Her disappointment in her daughter Laura is that she is painfully shy, the antithesis of Amanda when she was a young girl. Laura was enrolled in business school, but during a typing test she was so agitated, she threw up and would never go back again. She has a slight limp that contributed to her shyness and low self-esteem. Her only joy is her love for her brother and her collection of glass creatures that Amanda called the Glass Menagerie.

After Amanda’s constant harping, Tom invites a fellow warehouse worker Jim O’Connor, to dinner in the hopes that they would find a suitable husband for Laura. Jim turns out to be the boy that Laura had a crush on in high school. Laura was absent for a while from school and when Jim asked where she had been, Laura replied that she had pleurisies. He thought she said Blue Roses and gave her the nickname since then. Tom is a nice person who charms Amanda and encourages Laura to be more confident. We thought great…this guy is going to save them from a hopeless existence, but sadly he already had a girlfriend.

Tom, who was terribly unhappy with his life, flees to travel the world to seek the adventure he was craving. Unfortunately, he doesn’t find happiness as he is haunted by his mother and mostly his sister who have to fend for themselves.

The play is dreary, sad, haunting yet funny at times. Judith Ivey who played the role of Amanda was excellent, excellent, excellent. We understand why this is such a classic that has continued to entertain audiences many years later. It deserved our standing ovation and it passed the test of whether we would see it again. Yes, we would!

Pageant of the Masters 2010

2010-07-24T23:27:00.000-07:00

For several years we have attended this festival that is held every summer in Laguna Beach. We’ve invited several different family members to introduce them to this art form. It started back in the early 1900’s and has increased in attraction world-wide and the sophistication on how it is presented. We normally attend on the weekends and it is a sold-out event.

Each year is a different theme and this year it was Eat, Drink and be Merry. Different art forms relating to the theme range from figurines to sculptures to paintings. Artwork is recreated using human volunteers who would hold a brief pose for the audience to study. Introducing the artwork, there is an entertaining narrator explaining the artist and the motivation for the art piece. Then while the human volunteers pose, the live orchestra plays a short musical piece.

We think the more interesting part of the presentation is when they show how a painting is created. First there is a frame and the people with makeup and costumes are moving about and put into place. Then the stage goes pitch black and when the appropriate stage lighting comes back on, there is a stunning re-creation of the painting.

We have been entertained by this annual event for many years, but it is getting to the point that we are getting bored. So we are not renewing our membership for next year. Instead we will take a hiatus for a year or so and attend in the future when the interest arises.

The Lieutenant of Inishmore

2010-07-11T21:29:00.000-07:00

Based on the title, I thought this was a play about some branch of the service and it was appropriate for Independence Day. Then a week before the play, we received a huge brochure in the mail describing the play. What raised a red flag with me was a section about violence portrayed on stage. They provided examples in the past such as Shakespeare’s Macbeth or Greek tragedies such as Agamemnon or Oedipus. So after the episode of sitting through Sophie, a love story about a goat, I told Max that if the play gets out of hand, I’m walking out and will wait for him in the lobby.

The play is a dark comedy about Northern Ireland’s IRA and their splinter groups. The opening scene shows two main characters, Donny and Davey standing over a cat lying on the kitchen table. After Davey asks if it is actually dead, Donny picks up the cat and little bloody brains fall on the table. Strike one. Both are petrified because the cat, Wee Thomas, is the love of Paddy an IRA rebel who is so crazy, the IRA doesn’t want to have anything to do with him. So the only other “bloody” scene was when Paddy was torturing a guy who was selling drugs to Catholic kids. The guy was hanging upside down with a couple of his toe nails torn out, delivering insults to Paddy as if they were drinking in a Pub. It was a funny scene and Paddy let the guy go. Then it was intermission and I thought it wasn’t that bad.

Towards the end of the second half, Paddy’s enemies (who admitted they killed Wee Thomas) were killed in a bloody shootout. Strike two. The part that tipped the whole thing over the edge was the next scene when Donny and Davey were sawing body parts and blood was dripping off the stage. I couldn’t look and Max noticed a 3-4 people who got up and walked out. The final irony after so many killings was when the real Wee Thomas came through the hole in the wall and started eating his cat food. Everyone just cracked up.

I must admit it was funny. Max said he has not seen anything like it. It is as if Woody Allen and Quentin Tarentino got together to make this. It is a toss up. I would not see it again. Max would.

South Pacific

2010-06-06T19:26:00.000-07:00

This is a reprise of an old Broadway classic. Over the years, I’ve heard the old classic tunes that originally came from this musical such as Bali Ha’I, Happy Talk, I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair and our personal favorite, Some Enchanted Evening. That particular song would be our favorite request because Max could dance to that slow, very romantic tune.

I won’t recap the story since it is a classic, but surprisingly, I’ve never seen the original musical or movie. I’ve seen short segments of certain songs being performed, but I’ve never seen the whole thing. First, my only comment about the characters would be regarding Bloody Mary. She is a special character who sells odd native artifacts as souvenirs such as shrunken heads, but she repelled me. I would imagine her teeth being sharpened to complete the picture.

What I thought was interesting was the culture or accepted norms back in the 60’s depicting the wartime era versus today. Lt. Cable lamented over his newly discovered love, Liat, Bloody Mary’s daughter. How could he possibly bring her home to meet his family and be accepted? It was a doomed relationship.

Then there was the scene when Ensign Nellie rejected Emile when she discovers that his late wife was a native. Hello…he is an older man living on the island for many years. What did she expect?? She was horrified, but later accepted the situation and lovingly cared for his children. Okay, I forgave her blind prejudice.

The story was an interesting study of that time of our history in a musical format that entertained.

Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo

2010-04-18T18:00:00.000-07:00

We knew that this play was going to stretch our imagination. Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo. Do you mean to tell me that in the midst of all the bombs, war and political upheaval, Baghdad has a zoo? The opening scene showed a disheveled man within a cage and two American soldiers guarding it. The man looked like he rolled out of a boxcar. He begins to speak and we realize he is portraying the Bengal Tiger. He laments about the lions that escaped during the bombings and as a result, they were shot. But he was the smart one. He stayed behind and within his cage. Of course, since he is a tiger, the soldiers couldn’t understand him and made comments about the Tiger’s constant growling.

The two soldiers complained about the duty as they guard the zoo. One soldier, Tom, bragged that he has not only a golden gun in his backpack, but had hidden a golden toilet seat from raiding Saddam Hussein’s palace. The other soldier Kev, a simple-minded kid from the South is dazzled by that accomplishment. Suddenly, through stupid decisions, Tom puts his arm in the cage with the tiger and loses his hand. Kev kills the Bengal Tiger. Now dead, the Tiger observes the events around him and pontificates throughout the rest of the play about life, death and because he is an atheist, he is wondering why the hell is he still hanging around? Is he seeking peace? Is there still a purpose not yet accomplished?

As the play progresses, we begin to understand that being dead apparently increases awareness, wisdom and knowledge. Other key figures in the play include a translator and a prostitute. We constantly think about our soldiers in the combat zone, but do we think about the other people in the country, who wind up being collateral damage? Musa, the translator has demons haunting him. He was a gardener who created beautiful topiary in the gardens of Saddam’s brother, Uday. He brings his little sister to see his work, but Uday spies her and winds up raping and beating her to death.

Later, Kev dies and like the Tiger, begins his wanderings around Baghdad. His observations of the living people begins to show increased wisdom and at times, profound thought. He even loses his backcountry accent. This play is unique, interesting and thought provoking. Despite the strange concept in one of the modern world’s dilemma, I really enjoyed it and would see it again.

Dreamgirls

2010-03-15T22:46:00.000-07:00

We were looking forward to this show despite the fact that we've seen the Academy Award winning movie at least 2-3 times. The first time we saw the movie was in a theatre. So we experienced on the big screen, the epic performance by Jennifer Hudson as Ellie and the beauty of Beyonce as Deena. I remember the applause in the theatre after Jennifer belted out "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going"...I got teary eyed because she was so emotional begging Curtis (Jamie Foxx) not to leave her with such a strong set of vocals. The whole cast including Jamie Foxx and Eddie Murphy made the movie an excellent musical, well deserving of the nominations and awards the movie collected back in 2006.

So okay, this is going to be interesting because the story and songs were going to be presented in a different format. Broadway and movies are different medias, so we will be open minded. We have front row season seats, so while we were waiting, I was observing the staging. I figure we were in for some great light shows because there was a whole wall of lights, floor to ceiling on either side of the stage besides the normal overhead lighting. I counted 90-100 spotlights on either side. Wow.

First, we were so disappointed with the little slip of paper inserted in our programs announcing that Ellie, one of the main characters was being played by a substitute, Patrice Covington. Oh Great.

But, wow to the show because she packed a wallop with her performance. Patrice was EXCELLENT! We don't know how the regular, Moya Angela, would sound, but how could she be any better? Her rendition of the same song Jennifer Hudson sang was absolutely wonderful. I was riveted by her performance. Remember the old commercial of this guy sitting in an armchair listening to an awesome speaker system? He sat there gripping the armchair while he was being "blown away" by the sound. Same here. We just sat there wondering, how much more wonderful can this person's voice get???

Chester Gregory played Jimmy, Eddie Murphy's role in the movie. He was excellent as the James Brown soul singer and irreverent dancer. Syesha Mercado played the role of Deena Jones and she was okay. She started her career as the second runner-up on American Idol's seventh season. But I don't remember her in particular. Chaz Shepard played the other main male role, Curtis. He was okay too, but in his bio he was on the Billboard charts 3 times in 2009 and his gospel work was nominated for a Grammy in 2009. So the quality of the cast was top notch.

The main difference between the movie and the theatre presentation was that there was more dancing and the lively dancing to the Detroit soul sound kept everyone mesmerized. The dazzling 90+ lights were probably causing the electric meters in downtown L.A. to spin out of control as they made the costumes sparkle. The costumes were not only glamorous, but interesting. In one scene, Ellie is singing in a casual top and slacks as she auditions for her comeback. During the same song, the scene is supposed to transition to her singing in a nightclub with a sparkling evening gown. To make this happen onstage, she is surrounded very briefly by props and people. I could see her unsnap her blouse at the shoulders and voila, it becomes an evening gown, then with an addition of a disco ball and a candelabra the new scene was complete. The same innovative way changing costumes was very evident in a scene when the Dreams was supposed to be in several fashion photo shoots. As they sang and danced amid the change of moving scenery, they threw off layers of clothing to show off different costumes.

So all in all, this is a keeper. Great show.

The Subject Was Roses

2010-02-14T22:48:00.000-08:00

I thought this would be an interesting play with a title that could be a complement to Valentine’s Day, today. The actors in this play are Martin Sheen (West Wing), Frances Conroy (Six Feet Under) and Brian Geraghty (The Hurt Locker), playing a family in the Bronx, 1946. Martin Sheen played the role of Timmy in 1964 and has returned to play John, the father.

Timmy just returned from the war, unfazed and uninjured, but in no time is caught back up in the competition and fights between his parents about him, over him or about each other. His mother is disappointed that her husband is the life of the party in public, but doesn’t know how to be close to her in private. His father had dreams to make it big, but is settling for a middle class life and extramarital affairs. Timmy loves them both and is always caught in the middle during the tension and drama that has caused him to be upset and frail as a child. Now a man, he tries to resolve the issues and is finally able to push back and stand up for himself.

There was a scene in the final act where it hit close to home. Timmy told his father that one thing he could never get over was that John never told Timmy he loved him. Standing up as a man with the knowledge of what he wanted for his future and what was the right thing to do, Timmy could tell his father that he loved him. Both men reached out to each other and hugged. This hit close to home because Max said his father finally said he loved him shortly before he died. Maybe it was the type of thing men didn’t do back then, but I’m glad that has changed today.

I think the author listed every human emotion and tried to portray them in this play. I think it was a job well done.

New Years Eve 2009/2010

2010-01-01T21:59:00.000-08:00

One day in October, while we were in L.A., we passed by the Disney Concert Hall. Max noticed that Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (BBVD) was playing New Years Eve. So we made plans for what is normally a quiet evening, off the streets away from the out of control revelers.

First, we had dinner at Ciudad which is a restaurant in downtown L.A., across the street from the Bonaventure hotel. The restaurant is owned by the radio personality duo called the Too Hot Tamales, offering recipes and other cooking advice here in L.A. The food is Mexican with a modern, haute cuisine fare. The New Year's dinner was a set 5 course menu with a couple of selections for each course. The meal started with lobster caviar with radish and pomegranate. For the appetizer, I had an Asian pear salad and saffron risotto. Well, so far it doesn't sound Mexican, but it is and perhaps it was the way the food was seasoned. I had Roasted Pasilla Chile Relleno for the main course and Max had the Sirloin Steak. He said it was ok, but it didn't compare to my pan-seared Rib Eye.

Ciudad offered a limo service to the theatre, but we opted to walk back since it was such a nice evening and we had plenty of time.

What can I say about the concert? In one word. Cool. Big Bad Voodoo Daddy is simply cool. They have been together since 1989 and play the big band music such as Minnie the Moocher or Calloway Boogie. If you look on iTunes, you can also find their music under Jazz and considered a contemporary swing band from Ventura, just north of L.A. I thought after a few songs they would sound alike, but no. The 2 hour show went by so fast and totally entertaining. They helped ring in the New Year with a lot of toe tapping, finger snapping, hand clapping cool tunes.

Avatar 3D

2009-12-30T21:04:00.000-08:00

There are certain movies that set the precedence and raise the bar for movie making. Avatar has established itself as one of those movies and is a milestone in the evolvement of movies and entertainment today. James Cameron's last achievement was the Titanic and he has added another movie to his crown of accomplishments. Did I like the movie, you think? Absolutely!

This is the type of movie that has to be seen not only on the big screen, but it has to be seen in 3D. Yes, one could say the technology and special effects made the movie, but many movies can still fall flat on their faces if it doesn't deliver beyond that. It has to be a story that connects to the hearts and minds of the audience. What do I mean by deliver? My experience is that it transported me to another world far beyond my wildest imagination. The movie took me to an amazingly beautiful world that filled me with childlike wonder with the grandeur and beauty of Pandora. The scenes of the Navi taming, bonding and flying on a Direhorse, climbing up vines to floating mountains and the horror of seeing the central spiritual tree fall were so memorable. James Cameron, the genius behind it all, shared his vision with millions of enthusiastic viewers around the world. I'm sure others who have experienced the scenic beauty of Pandora just jump-started ideas in their own minds.

Some would say that the plot was too black and white of how corporations in the name of capitalism can devastate the local natives due to greed. It is funny that the mineral the corporation is after is called "unobtanium". But I got something else out of it. The natives loved the good and bad of the nature around them and felt one with the plants, animals and other natives in their world. We are all somehow connected with one another and what we do can impact those around us.

Does this turn me into a member of a tree hugging activist organization or a member of PETA? Not exactly, but I will appreciate the gift of life God has given all of us and I will do whatever I can to respect that gift.

Kudos to Cameron's genius and I am looking forward to buying the DVD and seeing the sequel.

Mary Poppins

2009-12-14T21:13:00.000-08:00

We weren't exactly looking forward to this musical. Ho hum. How good can a musical play be compared to the movie with Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke that has become an American classic? There were children all over the place and we hoped they didn't detract from the performance. It was so cute because the theatre sold booster seats for children so that they could see the stage better and not sit so low into the seats. A mother and her daughter, about 9 or 10 years old sat next to us. The mother commented that her daughter was looking forward to the play because she has learned most of the songs at her school.

Were we ever surprised with the performance. Ashley Brown and Gavin Lee who played Mary Poppins and Bert respectively did outstanding jobs. The costumes, singing and dancing were absolutely outstanding.

There was one scene when Gavin Lee had ropes attached to a brace around his waist. I wondered what he was going to do. The next thing we knew, he started walking up the side of the stage, then at the top he was upside down. He continued walking across the top, then did a couple of jigs, then continued walking down the other side of the stage. They had to have had the ropes cinched just right so that he could dance the jigs while still upside down. Otherwise, if he lost balance or footing, he could have been hanging from those ropes above the stage, looking rather foolish.

Overall, it was enjoyable and magical. I found myself with the rest of the children of the audience, enraptured with the sights and sounds of the musical that was a surprise treat.

Palestine, New Mexico

2009-12-07T20:49:00.000-08:00

This play is a dark comedy about an Indian soldier Private Birdsong from Palestine, New Mexico who dies in combat while stationed in Iraq. His female commanding officer, Captain Siler, has ghosts that haunt her about his death. So the play starts with her trying to see Birdsong's father, Chief Birdsong, to deliver a letter from his son that was written before his death. She doesn't know what is in it and most of the play deals with her trying to find out what really happened in Iraq and the secrets the tribe hide from even themselves.

It is interesting the way the desert in New Mexico transposes to the desert in Iraq. The water tower turns into a tower of a Muslim Mosque. The comedy relief comes from the tribe in New Mexico that struggles to maintain their Indian heritage in today's world. There is a research professor who claims to have 1/16th Indian blood in him so that he can live on the reservation for his study. He rides a bicycle around the reservation and when he dismounts his bike, he says, "Whoa Trigger!"

The secret is that years ago during the Spanish Inquisition, Jews were brought to the New World as slaves and they soon settled in the area marrying into the local native tribes. So over the years it was discovered that the Indians have Jewish heritage which may conflict with the Christian subsidies for the reservations.

There were many empty seats in the theatre just before the play started, so we thought we were going to see a lemon. But far from it. We had a good time and many of the audience members besides us, enjoyed the show immensely.

The Barber of Seville

2009-12-06T20:01:00.000-08:00

This opera is a comedy or an opera buffa. I've found this style to be my favorite. It is also considered one of the top 10 or 20 operas performed over the years around the world. Many of the arias are found in mainstay music such as in commercials or cartoons, very familiar to many.

It is a fairly simple story line and to me, a story aligned with Sweeney Todd in a wierd sort of way. Figaro is the Barber of Seville and he tries to help the Count Almaviva win the hand of Rosina. She is a ward of Doctor Bartolo who wants to keep her for himself so that he can marry her and obtain her dowry. But all prevails, no one dies and everyone is happy at the end.

In one scene, Figaro was dancing a little jig of joy, then he ends it in a Michael Jackson step with a crotch grabbing motion added to it. Everyone just burst out laughing, it was so hilarious. It is interesting that throughout most of the two acts, the costumes and scenery are in various shades of black and white. In the final part of the 2nd act, color, vibrant color begins to take over the stage and it is simply beautiful as we witness the happy ending in vivid color.

This is a definite must see opera especially if it is the first opera to be experienced to turn them into opera buffs. It is funny, arias provide a hit a minute, one after another and the set design provides a treat for the eyes. Enjoyable entertainment for all.

Tamerlano

2009-11-22T16:23:00.000-08:00

We have had the privilege of going to an opera that starred Placido Domingo. We missed having that experience with Luciano Pavarotti, but we can say we have heard Placido sing live at the L.A. Opera.

Tamerlano is actually the name of the villain in this opera and means Timur the Lame. Placido plays Bajazet, a Turkish sultan who has been defeated in war by Tamerlano. As part of his victory, Tamerlano wants to marry Bajazet's daughter Asteria. Bajazet is outraged and tries to stop the marriage. Asteria, in the meantime is in love with Andronico, Tamerlano's Greek ally. Andronico is also in love with Asteria but doesn't know how to tell Tamerlano without provoking his anger.

Interestingly enough, Andronico is sung by a woman. Tamerlano is sung by a countertenor. I didn't quite know what that meant until I heard him sing. Songs are sung very high and could have even been sung by a woman, also.

Because of Asteria's rejection, Tamerlano was going to give her to his slaves. Bajazet commits suicide, but before he dies, curses Tamerlano. That was a great scene for Placido as he dies, sings, hurls curses, sings some more, then finally dies. Shamed by Bajazet's death, Tamerlano forgives Asteria and Andronico so that they can marry.

This is against the normal story line of an opera, but the star (Placido) still dies. I wasn't tearfully grief-stricken, but it was an enjoyable opera.

Parade

2009-11-09T15:39:00.000-08:00

If the title is "Parade" and a musical, one would think it would be a happy, happy play. NOT!!

The play takes place in the early 1900's in Atlanta, George and is based on the Leo Frank case. Leo is a Jewish man from New York who has not felt comfortable living in the south even though he has married a Jewish woman. The difference is that she is able to assimilate to the life in the south, but he has not.

A young girl is murdered in the basement of the pencil factory he manages. Based on an eye-witness testimony by a black man who has a questionable reputation, Leo is found guilty in court and in the eyes of the community. But due to efforts by wealthy supporters from the North to appeal his case, it seemed as if the Civil War was being fought again. In fact, at the start of the play is the tearful farewell of a confederate soldier going off to war as his fiancee waves goodbye. The same soldier, in his old age sees the death of the young girl similar to the death of his fiancee who did not survive the Civil War. The emotions of the community raise up against Leo as a way to still fight against the Northerners. At the end, Leo is lynched and what a terrible scene to watch.

I have mixed emotions when such a terrible story is presented in a musical format. But it still worked. The main character was played by T.R. Knight, an actor who plays a resident doctor in Grey's Anatomy. Singing wasn't his strong point, but he held his own.

Good job.

Siegfried

2009-10-18T14:33:00.000-07:00

Siefried is an opera, part of the Ring series by Wagner. So far we haven't been distracted from the Italian or French romantic operas even with the expertise and explanations provided by Ron. He is a big, big Wagner Ring series fan for a number of years. Many years ago when he worked at a record store, he would educate store patrons on Wagner's operas selling more of his CDs than any other clerk at the store. But we kept an open mind and we were looking forward to it.

Ah, going to the opera in L.A. is always a treat. We just love the whole experience and other theatre-goers seem to exude sophistication. Okay, maybe I'm overdoing it, but I always feel elegant when we wander the plaza beforehand or in the lobby during intermission. Perhaps it is because everyone else is dressed to the nines, surrounded by lights and glamour. I digress. Back to Siegfried.

Siegfried, the 3rd opera of the Ring Cycle was very interesting. I enjoyed the arias myself, but I was somewhat distracted by the set and costumes. Max liked it, but still prefers Italian over German operas.

Siegfried is portrayed as the innocent hero who overcomes the trolls to release Brunhilde from the ring of fire. He is a mighty warrior who is the only one worthy of the ex-goddess, Brunhilde. He is wearing a purplish, muscle costume and wound up looking like The Hulk. His blonde hair was spikey and that made him look like a character out of The Simpsons. Meanwhile, the background set has lines made up of neon lights. Then across the lines, black clad figures would slowly move across the stage carrying some sort of prop to illustrate the topic being sung by one of the characters. For example, the troll Fafner is reminiscing about Siegfried's childhood and when he adopted the boy. One of the black figures was carrying a purple, yellow haired baby across the stage. It was funny when I overheard a guy during intermission say, "Damn, I saw a flying purple baby! What was that all about?"

It was an experience and we were entertained. But we still love our Italian operas where "boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back but girl dies" standard fare.

August: Osage County

2009-09-21T13:08:00.000-07:00

We had not heard much about August and really not expecting much. The poster and subject matter seemed dreary and boring. Our expectations were far from the actual experience of this play. It takes place in Pawhuska, Oklahoma, 60 miles northwest of Tulsa. It is about family dynamics when the father decides to kill himself by disappearing into his favorite fishing lake. The mother is played brilliantly by Estelle Parsons and I don't think it would have been the same with any other actress. She seems helpless as she deals with her alcoholism and prescription medication but she rules the lives of her sister and children with an iron, unrelenting hand. Several times throughout the play, I wasn't quite sure if I hated her or felt sorry for her.

The play was teeming with hard-core raw emotions, visceral at times and one yearns for the family relationships some of us deal with in our own reality. Some of us have somewhat tame lives, not as heart pounding, screaming, sobbing out loud drama created for entertainment and thought-provoking experiences. Again, brilliant acting by Estelle Parsons, but the whole cast kept up with her and gave a dynamic performance.

Elixir of Love

2009-09-12T22:00:00.000-07:00

This was premier opening night of the 2009/2010 L.A. Opera Season. Glitz and glamour that could rival the Academy Awards. There was an honest to goodness red carpet that we walked on towards the entrance to the theatre. The area between the Dorothy Chandler and the fountain was set up for hors d'oeuvres and cocktails. Lights, flowers, evening gowns and tuxedos were resplendent. The Opera starts at 6pm and it may be due to the dinner event planned afterwards. As we entered the theatre, champagne was passed out to the patrons in the lobby.

At the beginning of the performance, the conductor walked in to the applause of the audience. Then they struck up the Star Spangled Banner as the lights were focused on the American flag in front of the theatre. Every one stood and sang. It was rather poignant because the day before was 9/11 which we should never forget. Our seats were in row F seats 43/44. F is close to the stage, but off to the side. We soon discovered that it was too close to see the subtitles at the top of the stage.

The performance was great, but as Max said, "It isn't La Boheme". In this opera by Mozart, no one dies. It is actually a comedy and there is a happy ending. The lady behind us commented to her companion, "Isn't that a bottle of Amaretto?" I'm assuming she is pointing to the picture of Nemorino on the program pictured to the right. He said, "No dear, that is the Elixir."

Nemorino, a village peasant, is in love with the wealthy Adina. In order to win her heart, he buys a magical elixir from Dr. Dulcamara, a shady con artist selling magical potions that will cure everything. Nemorino believes the elixir will make Adina fall in love with him. She realizes over time how devoted he is to her and she finally falls in love with him too. It was great to see main characters that fit the part in appearance. Both Nemorino and Adina are young, slim and attractive. I can't quite get into the opera if the main characters are slightly overweight or older than what the character calls for. Max said we saw the Elixir of Love in Orange County's Performance of the Arts, but this is more memorable with the main characters belting out their arias, hitting those high C's. Wonderful, and a very memorable evening to start the season.

Spamalot

2009-07-26T15:00:00.000-07:00

This was the next day, after we saw The Muse at the Pageant. I invited Lydia to this performance also because Max wasn't interested in seeing it. But Lydia wasn't interested either, so lucky Max was able to come with me.

Like Dame Edna, we weren't quite sure what to expect with Spamalot. Is it going to be very silly or so so enjoyable? First, there was a substitution for the main character, John O'Hurley. Oh no...

The performance started and it was a laugh a minute starting with the Fish Slapping Dance and the dancing Plague victims. Sounds silly and morbid, huh? Well that is Monty Python and this show was better than the movie, I thought. The laughs didn't end even when the show was over as we walked out of the theatre to the parking lot. The laughs weren't just giggles or chuckles. We went through gut-splitting, laugh out loud, tears in our eyes enjoyment. In the movie I thought it would silly to see knights and King Arthur pretending to gallop on horses while a serf followed them clapping coconuts together. But it was funny.

The French taunting was especially funny. In that one scene French guards were taunting King Arthur and his knights from atop the fortress wall. All we could see was his head moving along the outline of the ramparts as he was giving Arthur and his knights the raspberry.

King Arthur and his knights were trying to find the Holy Grail. A clue was discovered under this huge boulder. When it was uncovered, we could see the characters "D49'. It turns out that it was a seat number. The knights go out into the audience, finds the Holy Grail under that seat, then drags the reluctant member of the audience who was sitting there, onstage. They have fun with the guy who good-naturedly went along with it all and when it was all over, had his picture taken with a polaroid taken by one of the knights.

The singing and dancing were great. A hit a minute with laughs throughout. We didn't even miss John O'Hurley.

Final judgement? We would not only see it again, we would pay to see it again.

Pageant of the Masters

2009-07-25T20:00:00.000-07:00

This year the theme and title is The Muse. We were apprehensive if it was going to be good or not because we invited Damian and Chiyo to come with us. We were hoping they would enjoy their first Pageant performance. Originally, we invited Lydia and Al since they were in town, but they checked out the URL I sent them and said it wasn't something they would be interested in.

It was a nice day because we drove into Laguna Beach early to beat the Pageant traffic. There was hardly any traffic, we found a parking spot and we were able to find a table overlooking the beach at Hotel Laguna for dinner.

The reason we didn't like the previous two years' performances is because they had extraneous performances such as singing or dancing. We just want the artwork. This year it seems they have gotten the message because that is what they did. They focused on the art and there were more introductions to the artwork to show how they put it all together with the volunteers, set design and lighting. Overall it was a good show and Damian and Chiyo enjoyed themselves. So did we.

Dame Edna

2009-06-21T21:11:00.001-07:00

I don't know what I was expecting, perhaps something campy and corny. Max had sent me a YouTube of Dame Edna taken back in 2005. The clip was funny, so I was looking forward to a unique show. She has purple hair and since purple is my favorite color, I figured she/he must have something right. I would be a good sport about the show.

The show as packed and apparently she has a cult following. When we sat down, the gay couple sitting next to us included a guy wearing a copy of her infamous glasses. She sings a song about her favorite son, Kenny. Based on her song's refrain "friends of Kenny" are gay guys. The audience was full of Kenny's friends.

I had tears laughing so hard, she was so funny. Max's usual barometer is whether or not he would pay to see it again. Hands down, he would. He would not only pay to see another show, he would pay for Don, Lisa and the kids to see it. Yes, even though this is a great character actor in drag, nothing was said or joked about that kids could not see. They may not "get it", but they could see the show.

If you view the YouTube clip, you will notice that she picks on an audience member. During our show, she picks on...sorry, interviews 4 people in the audience. One lady was seated on the other side of Max. Whew! We escaped the spotlight. She interviewed and joked with them about their name, where they lived, what kind of house they lived in and what they did for a living. Then on top of that, she had them come onstage to be interviewed on a couch similar to Johnny Carson, Jay Leno or even Oprah because HBO is filming this show for a Dame Edna reality show. The lady next to Max was giggling hysterically and would not go onstage. She finally relented after good hearted urging from the audience and Dame Edna herself. It was in good fun and no one was humiliated.

A unique aspect of the show is that her favorite flower is Gladiolas. So bouquets and bouquets of gladiolas are brought out as she tosses them out into the audience and into the "ashtrays" (balconeys) above her. Then those of us with the gladiolas would wave them in tune with her last song of the show and wiggle them as we gave her a standing ovation. Good show and lots of laughs. See it and enjoy!

La Traviata

2009-06-14T18:06:00.000-07:00

We went to see La Traviata last Saturday night. We love, love going to the Opera with all the glitz and glamour. This time I decided to dress in a formal evening gown, just because I was in the mood. Prior to the Opera, we had dinner and drinks at Kendalls. Then the Opera. A nice Saturday night.

La Traviata is the normal Italian Opera scenario. Boy finds girl, boy loses girl, boy finds girl again, girl dies.

This Opera is about Violetta a Parisian courtesan who falls in love with Alfredo, an aristocrat who is obsessed with her. She leaves her previous life to make a commitment to Alfredo. She has to sell most of her possessions to maintain their life of ease, living in the country. One day, Alfredo's father meets with her to convince her to leave Alfredo because of the scandal it is causing his family. Alfredo's younger sister is planning to marry and her fiancee may leave her if the scandal continues. So Violetta leaves Alfredo to return to her previous life in Paris. In the final act, she lays dying and Alfredo and his father reunites with her.

In La Traviata there is a hit a minute. A couple of years ago we saw La Traviata and it brought tears to my eyes. In the second act there is the dance of the gypsies and a world renowned flamenco dancer. The performance of the gypsy dancers is a special favorite of Max's. This performance was good and all the singers were excellent. Maybe it was the acting, but I just didn't get the same passion as I did from the previous performance of the opera. Also, the gypsy dancers in this Opera was not as entertaining as the previous one we've seen.

Also, there were distractions in this audience. As we sat waiting for the performance to start, a large man and his girlfriend sat down in front of us. She was a small Japanese girl dressed in an authentic kimono. During the performance they were a major distraction because they kept leaning into each other, kiss on the cheek here and kiss on the lips there. I wanted to whisper to them that this is an opera, not a drive-in theatre. Get a room for goodness sake. Then there was a couple behind us who was talking. These tickets are expensive and for people to be so inconsiderate is mind-boggling.

But all in all, it was still had a thoroughly entertaining evening.

Oleanna

2009-06-14T17:18:00.001-07:00

Oleanna was a new play at the Mark Taper Theatre, added after the season tickets were printed. We saw this play on May 31 which is during the preview part of the run. Three years ago our tickets were changed to the preview shows without really letting us know or giving us an option to change. After 20+ years of being season seat subscribers, we were a bit indignant (yes, we can be a bit snotty at times). But then we realized that the tickets were half the cost of the shows that were 3 or more weeks into the run of the play. Also, after a few plays we found that we still enjoyed the performances and we did not notice any degradation in quality.

So back to Oleanna. This is a two person play starring Bill Pullman (While You Were Sleeping, Independence Day) and Julia Stiles (Bourne movies) written by David Mamet (Glengarry Glen Ross, The Postman Rings Twice, Wag the Dog, The Spanish Prisoner).

Taking place at an ivy league school, a student is meeting with her professor to discuss her potential failing grade and the frustration of just "not getting it". Even though the professor is pressed for time to meet his wife and their realtor to buy a house, he decides to stay and work with her and help build up her confidence. Through the dialog or what some people would say his pontificating, she somehow misinterprets his intentions. Or, does she?? Now at this point this could be controversial based on how people perceive the dialog between the two characters. But the dialog is wonderful, captivating and mesmerizing as the play progresses and the roles become totally reversed. There were several moments in the play where I could here audible gasps from the audience when the life of the professor is slowly destroyed.

Very good, thought provoking and enjoyable. Guys, and nowadays Ladies too...be very careful. If you are ever in a position of authority, never be in a room alone with the opposite sex unless they are your significant other.

Star Trek

2009-06-07T23:14:00.000-07:00

Saturday, 5/30/2009. Alex came to visit and so we thought we would take him to see the movie, Star Trek. I think movies like this should be seen on the biggest screen possible rather wait until it comes out on DVD.

I've seen the original Star Trek series over the years and a couple of the movies with the original cast and crew. Max has not seen any of the shows or movies. He wasn't thrilled about going, but was going along for the ride.

Alex gave it a thumbs up and Max said it was surprisingly good since he had such low expectations. Star Wars or Star Trek or any fantasy/science fiction genre is not his preference.

I thought it was thoroughly entertaining as fresh new faces take on the likeness of the cast of the original series. It was very interesting that the technology shown in the series so many years ago is still considered high tech as it is portrayed in the movie today. The movie starts at the beginning...the maiden voyage of the impressive USS Enterprise. The crew begins to build as each member is introduced starting with Captain Kirk, Spock and so on. Despite initial personality conflicts and overcoming thrilling obstacles they team up to become heroes as they battle the villainous Klingons to save the universe. It ends with the obvious conclusion that there has to be another Star Trek movie, or what is wrong with the world?!?

Ain't Misbehavin

2009-06-07T22:42:00.000-07:00

Sunday, May 10, 2009.

We were really looking forward to this musical, but it wound up being a bit disappointing.

This was a collection of songs from Fats Waller who was a jazz pianist from the 1930's. He died prematurely at 39 years of age because of his weight and excessive drinking. No plot or story. 4-5 singers singing his songs and a bit of dancing.

Max said. It is ok. I would give it a C+. I don't know if it was the quality of the singers or the songs. But I thought it was boring. I wouldn't see it again if it were free.

Gail said. I enjoyed it and each song kept me smiling and entertained. But it was just one song after another and none really turned up the bar evoking any strong emotions from me. I agree with Max. I was entertained, but I wouldn't see it again.