The Lion King at the Eccles

Even though I have seen The Lion King many times (I saw it on Broadway less than a year ago), I don't think that I will ever get tired of it because it is absolutely magical!  I don't think I've ever made it through "Circle of Life" without getting a tear in my eye.  That baby elephant coming up the aisle gets me every time!  I saw the touring company production last night and it ranks right up there with productions I've seen on Broadway and in London.  I enjoyed every minute of it (tears and all).   The stage musical tells the well-known story of how a lion cub learns how to be a king and it includes many of the songs from the animated classic as well as some new ones.  I absolutely love the puppets and prosthetics used to represent the animals.  After a while you don't even see the actors manipulating the puppets.  My favorites are the giraffes and elephants.  The staging is incredible and I especially love the traditional music used as Mufasa and Simba frolic on the grasslands, when Sarabi and the lionesses hunt an antelope, and the wildebeest stampede in the gorge.  I was very impressed with the lead actors in this production and I had goosebumps when Mufasa (Gerald Ramsey) sang "They Live in You" and when Simba (Dashaun Young) sang "Endless Night."  Nia Holloway (as Nala) sang my favorite song, "Shadowland," better than I've ever heard it before.  I also really liked Rafiki (Buyi Zama) and her rendition of "He Lives in You (Reprise)."   My favorite part of seeing The Lion King, as ever, is watching the wonder on the faces of the children as they see all of the animals and this production made me feel like I did the first time I saw it.  It is just so magical!  It will run at the Eccles Theatre until April 16 (go here for tickets) and I highly recommend that you bring the children!

Note:  I think I enjoyed this production more than the one on Broadway because the sound was better.  I could actually hear Scar and the hyenas.  I did, however, miss eating cheesecake at Junior's after the show!

Pink Martini

Pink Martini has been to Salt Lake City several times to perform with the Utah Symphony but I have always had a conflict whenever they have been in town.  When I saw that they were included in the 2016-2017 lineup, I made sure to get a ticket and have eagerly been anticipating last night's concert for months.  I enjoyed every minute of it.  In fact, it was probably more fun than should be allowed in SLC on a Tuesday!  Pink Martini is a self-described "little orchestra" with 12 members, plus the incredible China Forbes on vocals, created by Thomas Lauderdale, a classically trained pianist with political aspirations, who was dismayed by the bland Muzak he heard at political functions and thought he could improve upon what he heard.  The group he put together is anything but bland!  Their repertoire includes classical, Latin, jazz, pop, and world music and their eclectic mixture was a hit!  They began with "Amado Mio," with a performance by Forbes which gave me goosebumps, and they ended with "Brasil," which featured the American Fork High School marching band and basically turned Abravanel Hall into Carnival in Rio!  In between, they played songs in Spanish, German, Turkish, Armenian, and Japanese along with several in French and, at one point, had the audience singing along in French!  Before each number, Lauderdale, an enthusiastic master of ceremonies, would ask for members in the audience who spoke the language of the song to come to the stage to sing back-up.  The Armenian group even gave an impromptu performance of another folk song.  The highlight of the concert, for me, was when Forbes sang "Song to the Moon" from the opera Rusalka.  This just about blew my mind because it was so beautiful!  Even though I did not know the words to this aria, I had tears in my eyes!  Rusalka just went to the top of my list of operas that I want to see!  Another favorite moment came when Forbes did the traditional introduction of the band members after which they literally introduced every member of the Utah Symphony!  I thought that was hilarious.  I had so much fun at this concert and I will definitely make sure I get a ticket every time Pink Martini comes to town.

Utah Opera's Lucia di Lammermoor

Last night I went to see Utah Opera's production of Lucia di Lammermoor.  The libretto is based on The Bride of Lammermoor by Sir Walter Scott and the incredible music is composed by Gaetano Donizetti.  I loved it!  In fact, I loved it so much that I wondered why I had never seen it before!  In seventeenth century Scotland, Enrico (James Westman) is in financial ruin and the only way to save his honor is to have is sister Lucia (Abigail Rethwisch) marry Arturo (Tyson Miller).  However, Lucia is in love with Edgardo (Mackenzie Whitney), a man who is her brother's mortal enemy.  During a secret rendezvous, Edgardo tells Lucia that he must leave for France but they make solemn vows to each other and he gives her a ring.  They end this touching scene with Edgardo promising to write.  Enrico discovers this relationship and intercepts all of Edgardo's letters.  In his desperation he begs to Lucia to marry Arturo for the good of the family and she finally consents, thinking that Edgardo has forsaken her.  As she signs the marriage contract, Edgardo returns and, in a rage, violently removes the ring from Lucia's finger.  As guests celebrate at the wedding, it is discovered that Lucia has killed Arturo and has descended into madness.  As she lays dying, Enrico is filled with remorse and pity.  When Edgardo learns of Lucia's death, he stabs himself in order to be reunited with her in Heaven.  What could be better than murder, betrayal, insanity, and death?  I really loved every single number, especially Lucia's aria before meeting Edgardo (there is a ghost!), the beautiful duet between Lucia and Edgardo where they declare their vows to each other, and Edgardo's emotional final aria.  However, nothing compares to the famous "mad scene" where Lucia, wearing a white nightgown covered in Arturo's blood, sings of her love for Edgardo while her horrified wedding guests look on.  This aria is in the Bel Canto style and is filled with a dazzling vocal display.  Rethwisch's performance is absolutely visceral and her collapse at the end of it was met with thunderous applause!   I could hardly breathe!  The entire cast is amazing and, in addition to Rethwisch, I was also particularly impressed with Derrick Parker (who recently performed Mozart's Requiem with the Utah Symphony) as a cleric who tries to defend Lucia.  The production is visually stunning with a set that includes a Gothic castle, a haunted fountain, and a snow-filled graveyard as well as beautiful period costumes.  I loved everything about this opera and I highly recommend getting a ticket (go here) to a remaining performance.

Note:  Lucia di Lammermoor would be perfect for those who have never been to an opera before.  It is easy to follow and my attention never wavered once during the three-hour run time.

Chess at PTC

A few years ago PTC created a series featuring rarely performed musicals in concert format.  The actors use scripts and there are minimal costumes, sets, and props in order to let the music take center stage.  They began with The Rocky Horror Show (which was so popular that PTC presented it two years in a row) and this year they continued with Chess, the musical that Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus of Abba wrote before Mamma Mia.  Even though I only knew one song from the show, the wildly popular radio hit "One Night in Bangkok" by Murray Head (Freddie from the original West End production), I have always wanted to see it.  I am so glad I had the chance last night because it pretty much blew me away.  Against the backdrop of an international chess tournament between the United States and the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold War, a member of the U.S. delegation and the Soviet champion fall in love but become pawns (pun intended) in the political intrigue of their respective governments.  This tension makes for a fantastic rock opera filled with anthemic (I couldn't resist) pop songs which I absolutely loved, especially the aforementioned "One Night in Bangkok," "Where I Want to Be," "Someone Else's Story," "Nobody's Side," "Anthem," "Heaven Help My Heart," and "I Know Him so Well."   The three main leads, Matthew Hydzik as Freddie, Coleen Sexton as Florence, and Michael Halling as Anatoly, are absolutely incredible!  I was particularly blown away by Hydzik because he has the type of voice that I find to be very appealing, what I like to call a powerful rock and roll tenor.  In fact, he reminded me so much of Adam Pascal (I bet Hydzik would be phenomenal as Roger in Rent or Radames in Aida) who, incidentally once played Freddie in a concert version of Chess at the Royal Albert Hall in 2008, but I digress.  My favorite moment of the show was Hydzik's rendition of "Pity the Child."  All I can say is, "Wow!"  I highly recommend this concert but there are only two more performances so get your tickets quickly (go here).

Note:  Next year's concert musical was announced last night and it will be In the Heights.  I will get to see two Lin-Manuel Miranda musicals in 2018!

Brahms' Symphony No. 4

Last night, for the second weekend in a row, I found myself at Abravanel Hall eagerly anticipating another Utah Symphony concert.  In my opinion, you can't go wrong when you start the weekend with the Utah Symphony.  Last night's concert began with Introduction, Theme and Variations by Johann Nepomuk Hummel.  I was not at all familiar with this composer (to me, Hummels are the figurines that my Aunt June collected) but I absolutely loved this piece because it reminded me a lot of Mozart.  It featured an oboe and the soloist, Francois Leleux, was incredible.  He played with so much passion and exuberance and it looked like he was having so much fun.  It was certainly a lot of fun for the audience to watch his dramatic expressions and gestures.  Who knew that the oboe was so cool?  Next, Leleux joined the orchestra once again for the U.S. premiere of Aquateinte by Michael Jarrell, a piece commissioned by the Utah Symphony.  It is brilliant and I really liked that it featured so many instruments.  I was particularly fascinated by the myriad of percussion instruments (played by just two musicians).  After the intermission, the orchestra played Symphony No. 4 by Johannes Brahms.  I actually recognized much of this piece (maybe it has been programmed by the Utah Symphony before?) and I liked it because, even though it is quite lively,  it is a bit melancholy.  It was another lovely evening at Abravanel Hall and I highly recommend spending part of your weekend there, too.  This program will be performed again tonight (go here for tickets).

Matilda at the Eccles

To be honest, I didn't have a lot of interest in seeing Matilda, the Broadway musical based on the book by Roald Dahl.  However, I saw it last night and, as is so often the case, I enjoyed it much more than I expected.  It was quite entertaining with outstanding performances by a cast of adorable children.  Matilda Wormwood (the incredibly talented Jenna Weir), a precocious five year old with a penchant for reading and telling stories, is neglected by her mother (Darcy Stewart), an amateur Latin ballroom dancer, and her father (Matt Harrington), an unscrupulous used car salesman, and is terrorized by Miss Trunchbull (Dan Chameroy), the tyrannical headmistress of her school.  The story is quite dark but Matilda triumphs in the end because sometimes you have to be a little naughty and stand up for what is right.  As I mentioned, the children are absolutely adorable and I particularly enjoyed the song "When I Grow Up" (I may or may not have had a tear in my eye during this song).  Miss Trunchbull is hilarious (think of Miss Hannigan crossed with an East German Olympic athlete) but I think my very favorite character is Rudolpho (Eric Craig), Mrs. Wormwood's ballroom dance partner.  His over-the-top performance in the number "Loud" had me (and everyone around me) laughing out loud.  All of the song and dance numbers, especially "Revolting Children," are a lot of fun but I often had difficulty hearing the lyrics which was a little bit disappointing.  The set is very clever and I particularly loved the use of typography throughout (the dancing on the alphabet blocks during "School Song" is amazing).  This is definitely not my favorite musical but I did enjoy it.  The Eccles Theatre was filled with children (some quite young) which really surprised me because I think the story is very dark and most of the humor seemed to go right over their heads (at least the ones sitting near me).  I recommend leaving the kiddos at home for the remaining three performances (go here for tickets).

Note:  Broadway at the Eccles will be announcing the 2017-2018 season on March 8 and I can't wait!  I am beyond excited that I will get to see Hamilton again!

Women in Jeopardy at PTC

Yesterday was a dark and dreary day filled with intermittent rain and snow showers.  I was definitely in need of something to raise my spirits and I found it at Pioneer Theatre in the form of a new play by Wendy MacLeod called Women in Jeopardy.  It is a hilarious farce set in present-day Salt Lake City involving three divorced middle-aged women who get caught up in an intrigue and I laughed out loud more times than I can count.  Mary (Anne Tolpegin) and Jo (Rosalyn Coleman) are concerned when their friend Liz (Elizabeth Meadows Rouse) becomes involved with Jackson Scull (Joe Gately), a man whom they rather fancifully suspect is a serial killer.  In their minds, their suspicions are confirmed when Jackson wants to take Liz's dimwitted daughter, Amanda (Betsy Helmer), on a camping trip in a remote area of Southern Utah.  They share their concerns with Sgt. Kirk Sponsullar (Joe Gately), who looks remarkably like Jackson, but to no avail.  In desperation, Mary recruits Trenner (CJ Strong), Amanda's ex-boyfriend, to try to convince her not to go on the trip but he interprets this to mean that Mary is interested in him.  Chaos ensues when they all meet up at a campsite in the middle of the night.  This production is filled with amusing situations, lots of physical comedy (I laughed so hard that I couldn't breathe at Trenner's ill-fated attempt to seduce Mary), and fast-paced dialogue filled with lots of fun local humor (a line about Democrats had the entire theatre in hysterics).  All of the actors have great comedic timing and I was particularly impressed with all of the quick costume changes.  I highly recommend this fun comedy which runs at PTC through Saturday (go here for tickets).  It is the perfect antidote for the winter blues!

Mozart's Requiem

The very first Utah Symphony concert I attended, back in college, was a performance of Mozart's Requiem.  It is has been my very favorite piece of music ever since I heard it in the movie Amadeus and I always take every opportunity that I can to hear it performed live.  Last night I was able to hear the Utah Symphony perform it once again and it was magnificent!  I find the mythology surrounding the composition of this piece to be fascinating.  The fact that Mozart died before it was complete makes one wonder whether he knew he was dying and, therefore, writing the mass for himself.  It is almost as if Mozart was wrestling with Death itself as he wrote the music that lifts the soul up to God.  I find the music to be incredibly stirring and I especially love the "Confutatis" and the "Lacrymosa" (which I performed in college when I was in the choir.)  The orchestra was joined by the Utah Symphony Chorus and the University of Utah Chamber Choir as well as soloists Joelle Harvey, Sarah Coit, Benjamin Butterfield, and Derrick Parker and they performed this piece beautifully.  I closed my eyes many times during the performance and let the music carry me away.  I was completely overcome by the end of it!  After the intermission, the orchestra continued with Symphony No. 4 by Charles Ives and this piece was epic, to say the least.  When Ives composed this symphony, he was concerned with philosophical questions about existence and it reflects both chaos and beauty.  It was sometimes cacophonous with more performers (and instruments) on the stage than I have ever seen before playing complicated melodies with different rhythms (there were even two conductors) over top of each other.  However, underneath the turmoil was peace and I especially liked the third movement.  It was definitely a never-to-be-forgotten evening at Abravanel Hall last night and I highly recommend getting a ticket (go here) to tonight's performance of the same program.

Mamma Mia at the Eccles

Donna and the Dynamos are making a final visit to SLC in a production of Mamma Mia billed as the Farewell Tour.  When I saw that Mamma Mia was part of the Broadway at the Eccles 2016-2017 season, I debated about whether or not to get a ticket because I've seen it so many times.  I finally decided that it is such a fun show, you can see it over and over again and still be completely entertained.   How can you go wrong with platform boots and spandex jumpsuits?  Also, the music of Abba is so infectious that you simply can't help singing along and it is impossible to stay seated during the encore!  As predicted, I had so much fun last night.  Sophie Sheridan (Lizzie Markson) wants her father to walk her down the aisle but the only problem is that she doesn't know who he is!  When she invites Sam Carmichael (Shai Yammanee), Bill Austin (Marc Cornes), and Harry Bright (Andrew Tebo), the three likely possibilities, to her wedding without telling her mother (Betsy Padamonsky), chaos ensues!  I love all of the Abba songs in this show but my favorites are "Dancing Queen," "Lay All Your Love On Me," "Super Trouper," "Voulez-Vous," "Under Attack," and "Knowing Me, Knowing You,"  The choreography is so much fun and I especially love when the male ensemble dances wearing flippers.  All of the leads have amazing voices and this production is a great way to end the run of this spectacular show.  I dare anyone to stay seated when the leads come out on stage in colored spandex jumpsuits to sing "Dancing Queen" and "Waterloo" during the encore.  Mamma Mia has one more performance today at the Eccles Theatre (get tickets here).

Note:  I ran into Karen, my roommate in New York, at this show.  It was bound to happen sooner or later because we both see everything!  We tentatively planned to see Hamilton in Los Angeles over fall break!  She has season tickets to the Pantages Theatre and she is going to get me a ticket because we had so much fun in New York.  I can't wait!

Kinky Boots at the Eccles

I have wanted to see the musical Kinky Boots for so long!  Every time Broadway in Utah (now Broadway at the Eccles) sent out a survey to season ticket holders, I always voted for this show to come to SLC.  I even contemplated getting a ticket during my theatre trip to NYC but, by that time, I knew it was coming!  I finally got to see it last night and I loved it because it is such a fun musical about having the courage to be yourself and having the courage to accept others for who they are.  Charlie (Curt Hansen) wants nothing to do with Price & Son, his father's shoe factory, so he runs away to London.  When his father dies and leaves him the factory, he soon learns that it has been losing money for years and that he must close it and fire the workers he has known all of his life.  When he meets the drag queen Lola (J. Harrison Ghee), he decides to try and save the business by meeting the needs of an under served niche market: high-heeled boots for transvestites!  There are inevitable complications and Charlie and Lola must learn to accept each other in order for their boots to be successful.  I loved all of the music, written by Cyndi Lauper, and Ghee gives an incredible performance, especially in the songs "Not My Father's Son" and "Hold Me in Your Heart."  (Hansen is endearing but I didn't find his singing to be anything special; it hardly matters because Ghee steals the show).  The ensemble is a lot of fun, particularly Lauren (Rose Hemingway), one of the factory workers, and the transvestites who perform with Lola.  The choreography is clever and the audience cheered out loud when the cast danced on moving conveyor belts during the song "Everybody Say Yeah."  I had a lot of fun watching this show and I highly recommend that you get a ticket (go here) to one of the remaining performances through January 22 at the Eccles Theatre.

Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto

I interrupt my regularly scheduled commentaries on the movies I saw over winter break to tell you about the wonderful concert I saw last night at Abravanel Hall (and suggest that you go here to get a ticket to tonight's performance of the same program).  The Utah Symphony began with Symphony No. 2 by Charles Ives.  Ives is a quintessentially American composer and, just like the European composers who referenced epic myths in their works, he used the folktales and melodies of New England with which his audiences would have been very familiar.  Modern-day audiences enjoy finding all of the references (I was only able to recognize "America the Beautiful").  I really enjoyed this piece, especially the second movement which featured a beautiful theme played by a solo cello.  After the intermission, the orchestra played Variations for Orchestra by Anton Webern.  I was unfamiliar with both this piece and this composer and, on the surface it seemed very discordant, but underneath it there was a sort of beauty in the chaos.   Then came the piece I had been looking forward to all week: Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto.  I really love the Russian composers in general and Tchaikovsky in particular and this piece is brilliant.  I absolutely loved it, especially the second movement because it is so passionate and mournful with a lovely theme played by a solo clarinet.  Violinist Noah Bendix-Balgley performed it magnificently (there was thunderous applause after the first movement).  I find it ironic that the violinist for whom the piece was composed declared it "unplayable" because Bendix-Balgley made it look effortless.  He favored us with an encore by playing a piece by Bach which was lovely.  I thoroughly enjoyed myself last night, despite having a terrible cold.  Ugh!

Note:  My movie commentaries will resume tomorrow.  There are three more!

All That Jazz

Last night I took Sean and Tashena to a Utah Jazz game.  We started the tradition of seeing a Jazz game over the winter break last year and, ironically, the Jazz played the same team, the Philadelphia 76ers, as last year!  The Jazz have been playing really well lately (we are currently fifth in the Western Conference) so I have been looking forward to this game, my first this season!  Sean and Tashena are always so much fun to be around and it ended up being a great game.  The Jazz started well, leading by as many as nine in the first quarter but then they let the Sixers slowly catch up to them and went into the half down by one point.  The lead went back and forth during the third quarter but the Jazz had their way with Philadelphia in the fourth, outscoring them 30-9.  Utah won the game 83-100 and it was pretty exciting, especially when the Jazz hit five three-pointers in the last quarter!  There was a large and rowdy crowd in attendance and the three of us had so much fun!

Note:  I finished my Harry Potter marathon right before the game.  I always cry when Harry asks his parents to stay with him as he faces Voldemort in the last film.

Lights at Temple Square 2016

Friday night I decided to drive downtown a little early for a Utah Symphony performance because snow was predicted and I knew there would be a lot of traffic.  However, I ended up getting downtown really early so I decided to walk to Temple Square to see the Christmas lights.  It was extremely crowded but I have to admit that the lights are beautiful.

The lights at Temple Square will be on display until January 3.  Go here for more details.

The Lower Lights 2016

What a fun week I've been having (the essays are still not graded)!  Last night I went to my second holiday performance in as many days and, since I love hearing Christmas music performed live, I was thrilled to end the week with the Lower Lights Christmas concert at Kingsbury Hall!  Truth be told, I have been looking forward to this for weeks.  I went to my first Lower Lights Christmas concert last year and I loved it so much that I knew I had to make it a Christmas tradition.  The Lower Lights are a super-group of 21 insanely talented musicians and vocalists, many of whom are famous in their own rights (perhaps you've heard of Ryan Shupe?), who have a distinct folk-gospel sound.  The concert began with one man, one guitar, and one spotlight and a beautiful instrumental version of "O Little Town of Bethlehem."  Then for the next two and a half hours, a variety of different singers and musicians were featured performing both Christmas and gospel songs.  I was very impressed with how seamless the performances were with musicians coming and going from the stage and different singers moving to center stage to introduce songs and talk to the audience.  Some of the Christmas songs included "I'll Be Home For Christmas," "I Saw Three Ships," "Oh Come, All Ye Faithful," one of the most beautiful renditions of "Away in a Manger" I have ever heard, "White Christmas," "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing,"  "Silver Bells," "Mary's Lullaby," "The Holly and the Ivy," "A Cradle in Bethlehem," and "Mary's Boy Child."  They sang "Bring a Torch Jeanette, Isabella" which is one of my favorites because I used to sing it every Christmas when I was in the choir during college.  Another favorite from my choir days is "Still, Still, Still" which they performed so beautifully that it brought a tear to my eye.  They also sang a few songs from their latest album, Old Time Religion, including the title track and "Down to the River to Pray, encouraging the audience to sing, clap, dance, and cheer!  I will admit that we got a bit raucous!  Towards the end of the concert they invited the audience to sing along with "Go Tell It On The Mountain" and, like last year, they performed a very heart-felt version of "I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day," hoping that we could all find a little bit of peace during these very dark days we are living through.  Another favorite moment was an epic instrumental version of "What Child Is This?" with a guitar, steel guitar, mandolin, fiddle, and bass.  For the encore, they performed a fun version of "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" and a rock and roll version of "Once in Royal David's City,"  The final number, like last year, was a beautiful rendition of "Silent Night" with just a guitar for accompaniment.  I loved this concert so much and I wish that everyone reading this could attend their final concert at Kingsbury Hall tonight (go here to see if there are any tickets left).

Note:  Mitt Romney was sitting two rows in front of me.  First Sting and now Mitt Romney!  I am a magnet for celebrities!

White Christmas at the Eccles

Last night I braved all of the downtown traffic (there was a Jazz game, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert, The Nutcracker, and people seeing the lights at Temple Square, not to mention snow) to see the Broadway touring production of White Christmas.  This musical is such a holiday tradition for me!  I've seen the movie countless times and I saw the PTC production several years ago as well as productions at both Hunter High and Bountiful High but I had never seen the Broadway version before.  It was so much fun!  Broadway stars Bob Wallace (Sean Montgomery) and Phil Davis (Jeremy Benton) meet the Haynes sisters, Judy (Kelly Sheehan) and Betty (Kerry Conte), and decide to follow them to Vermont where they have a gig at the Columbia Inn.  There they meet their former commanding officer from the war, General Waverly (Conrad John Schuck), who owns the Columbia Inn and is having financial difficulties due to the lack of snow.  Wallace and Davis decide to bring their show to the Columbia Inn and invite the soldiers from their company to a performance on Christmas Eve.  Add a receptionist (Lorna Luft) and a granddaughter (Clancy Penny) who think they should be in show business, an overwrought stage manager (Aaron Galligan-Stierle), and love gone awry, and you have a delightful show full of big song and dance numbers.  I especially love the songs "Sisters" (my sisters and I sing this all of the time), "Snow," "Blue Skies," and "I Love a Piano."  The cast is superb (Lorna Luft is Judy Garland's daughter and she can certainly belt out a song) and the ensemble performs all of the high energy choreography (I loved the tap dancing) brilliantly.  The costumes are over-the-top and the sets are quite elaborate, especially the Regency Room.  The message is heart-warming and the final scene where the cast performs "White Christmas" just as it starts to snow (even in the audience) will definitely give you a big dose of Christmas cheer.  This holiday classic runs at the Eccles Theater until Dec. 11 and tickets may be purchased here.

Note:  Almost all of the people sitting around me have season tickets and, after meeting at Beautiful last month, we greeted each other like long lost friends last night!  The man in front of me called us the Thursday Night Club!

Oliver at PTC

This is the time of year when I visit Charles Dickens' London.  However, instead of the usual holiday classic, A Christmas Carol, I made the journey with PTC's Oliver, the musical adaptation of another Dickens classic (I will be seeing A Christmas Carol at HCT in a few weeks). It was a really great production about the exploits of an orphan named Oliver Twist (Maxwell Rimington).  We first meet him in an orphanage, then he is sold to an undertaker, next he joins up with a gang of pick-pockets, and finally he finds his real home.  All of the big production numbers are a lot of fun with very energetic choreography and I especially enjoyed "Food, Glorious Food" with all of the orphans, "Consider Yourself" with the Artful Dodger (Christian Labertew), "You've Got to Pick a Pocket or Two" with Fagin  (Bill Nolte) and the pick-pockets, "It's A Fine Life" and "Oom-Pah-Pah" with Nancy (Natalie Hill), and "Who Will Buy?" with the vendors.  All of the actors give great performances, including all of the children in the cast, but Rimington will absolutely melt your heart as Oliver.  I actually had a tear in my eye when he sang "Where Is Love?"  I was also extremely impressed with Labertew's Artful Dodger.  I was sitting very close to the stage and I loved all of his facial expressions.  Speaking of the stage, the set was very clever with lots of different levels depicting alleys, bridges, streets, pubs, shops, and a proper Victorian mansion.   I thoroughly enjoyed this musical, as did all of the children in the audience, and I highly recommend it for the whole family as a great evening of holiday entertainment.  Oliver runs at PTC until Dec. 17 and tickets can be purchased here.

Beautiful at the Eccles

I finally got to see a show at the new Eccles Theater!  I've been looking forward to Beautiful for quite a while because several people who went on the New York City theatre trip with me saw this show and absolutely raved about it (I chose not to see it in NYC because I knew I would be seeing it in SLC).  Beautiful is a jukebox musical, a stage show which uses previously released pop songs that are either conceptualized to tell a story like Mamma Mia or used to tell the biographical story about the performer whose music is featured like Jersey Boys, describing how Carole King rose to stardom in the 1970s using the songs she wrote such as "So Far Away," "Will You Love Me Tomorrow," "Up on the Roof," "It's Too Late," "You've Got a Friend," "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman," and "I Feel The Earth Move" among others.  I had forgotten how many great songs she wrote (I saw King in concert with James Taylor several years ago and I was surprised then as well).  Act I begins with a sixteen year old King (Julia Knitel) deciding to go Manhattan to sell one of her songs to music producer Don Kirshner (Curt Bouril) and continues with her development as a hit songwriter with her husband Gerry Goffin (Liam Tobin) and the rivalry with the songwriting team of Cynthia Weil (covered by DeLaney Westfall last night) and Barry Mann (Ben Fankhauser).  Act II includes the disintegration of King's marriage to Goffin and the writing and recording of her seminal album Tapestry.  King's legendary concert at Carnegie Hall in 1971 is used as a framing device.  I think this musical is staged brilliantly.  King and Goffin or Weil and Mann would begin singing a song as they wrote it and then the artist who made it famous would continue it in a big production number including "Some Kind of Wonderful" with the Drifters, "Will You Love Me Tomorrow" with the Shirelles, "Up on the Roof" with the Drifters, "The Locomotion" with Little Eva, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling" with the Everly Brothers (my favorite), and "One Fine Day" with Janelle Wood.  Knitel does great job with the role and I especially enjoyed her rendition of "Natural Woman" and I also loved the comic relief provided by Fankhauser.  This is a fun show to watch and many people around me automatically started singing the songs.  It runs at the Eccles Theater until Nov. 20.

Note:  Jessie Mueller originated the role of Carole King on Broadway (and won a Tony).  I got to see her perform in the original cast of Waitress on Broadway and she was amazing.

Brahms & Tchaikovsky

It has been a tumultuous week, to say the least.  With a surprising (and disappointing) result in the national election and a massive project with my student body officers (more about that later), by the end of the day on Friday I was physically and emotionally exhausted.  I decided that a performance of Tchaikovsky's amazing Piano Concerto No.1 by the Utah Symphony was just the thing to soothe my troubled soul.  Just like last week, I went to this concert expecting to love one of the pieces and ended up really enjoying the other pieces, as well.  The orchestra began with Symphony No. 3 (also known as The Camp Meeting) by Charles Ives.  It evokes memories of the composer's childhood spent in fields listening to preachers and singing hymns and includes snippets of nineteenth century hymns, war songs, and children's games.  I loved it, especially the chimes at the end which are meant to mimic church bells.  Next, the orchestra played Symphony No. 3 by Johannes Brahms.  To be honest, this piece seemed rather bland and my mind started wandering until I was completely blown away by the third movement.  I thought the recurring melody played by the strings was incredibly romantic and I also loved when this theme was played by the horn and then echoed by the clarinet.  All through the intermission I was eagerly anticipating Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 and I was thrilled to hear those instantly recognizable opening notes played by the brass!  It is an explosive burst of energy to begin an incredibly passionate piece!  Soloist Alexander Gavrylyuk played it brilliantly with such feeling and expression!  I absolutely loved watching his fingers fly up and down the keyboard!  He received an instantaneous standing ovation which prompted an encore featuring a rather theatrical version of Mendelssohn's Wedding March!  As I was leaving Abravanel Hall, two adorable little old ladies walking near me commented on what a wonderful evening it had been.  I wholeheartedly agree!  If you need a wonderful evening after a difficult week, go here for ticket's to tonight's performance of the same program.

Dvorak's New World Symphony

I spent a lovely evening at Abravanel Hall last night listening to the Utah Symphony.  I selected this particular concert for Dvorak's Symphony No. 9 because I really love it but, as is often the case, I also enjoyed the other selections on the program immensely.  The orchestra began with Haydn's Symphony No. 9 and I thought it was incredibly beautiful and stirring.  I especially loved the theme played by the solo oboe and I also loved the theme played by a solo violin and solo cello.  Next the orchestra played Symphony No. 1 by Charles Ives.  I was particularly struck by the opening notes, which were almost unobtrusive.  I found this piece to be very moving and there were several times when I closed my eyes and let the music wash over me.  After the intermission the orchestra played Dvorak's New World Symphony (as it is known).  There are a handful of pieces that I recognize by name and always try to see when performed (Mozart's Requiem, Pictures at an Exhibition by Mussorgsky,  Symphonie fantastique by Berlioz, and Bolero by Ravel, to name a few) and this is near the top of that list.  I have been looking forward to this performance for weeks and I was not disappointed.  There are many things that I love about this piece, but the themes played and then echoed between the various sections of the orchestra are so dramatic!  It was performed brilliantly with an enthusiastic standing ovation at its conclusion.  The same concert will be performed tonight (tickets may be purchased here) and I recommend it highly!

Note:  I have always been a fan of Thierry Fischer (especially after I saw him at a Jazz game with his two sons).  Last night I sat a little closer to the stage than I usually do and it was fun to watch him in action!

The Glass Menagerie at PTC

PTC's production of The Glass Menagerie, Tennessee Williams' classic play about nostalgia, is closing very soon and, as I have been very busy the past few weeks, I thought about skipping it.  I have read and seen this play performed countless times and, frankly, I sometimes find it to be very grim so I didn't feel any urgency.  However, I decided at the last minute to see it last night and I am very glad that I did because I was quite impressed.  The play is narrated by Tom Wingfield (Zachary Prince), a writer reminiscing about his memories of his mother and sister and their dreary existence in St. Louis during the 1930s.   He longs to escape their suffocating apartment and substitutes movies for the adventure he craves.  Amanda Wingfield (Nance Williamson) lives in the past, regaling her children with stories of the southern gentility she experienced growing up on a plantation and of her many "Gentlemen Callers."  Laura Wingfield (Hanley Smith) is crippled and is so shy that she prefers to retreat into the world of her glass animals.  None of them can face the harsh reality of their lives, which is momentarily brightened by the prospect of a "Gentleman Caller" for Laura (Logan James Hall).  This play is very character driven and a good production relies on its cast to give engaging performances.  Prince, Williamson, Smith, and Hall do that and more.  Williamson, especially, commands attention as the overbearing Amanda and I found her interpretation to be quite humorous at times (I don't remember ever laughing at any of the other productions I've seen).  I really liked the set, particularly the the portrait of Amanda's husband which dominates the space.  I also really liked the use of light, which I found to be highly effective at conveying different moods throughout the play.  I definitely recommend this production but, unfortunately, it it closing tomorrow;  however, there are still a few performances left so act quickly and go here for tickets.