Review - Macbeth

I believe I've mentioned, more than once, that Macbeth is one of my very favorite plays and that I try to see as many productions of it as possible.  Have I ever told you why?  Well, too bad if I already have.  :)   Macbeth was the first production I did as an undergrad.  It was the first time I auditioned for a play by Shakespeare and I was so nervous.  I knew I wouldn't be cast as Lady Macbeth, as I was only a sophomore, but I thought I could have a chance at Lady Macduff or the Gentlewoman.  Before my audition, I was nervously chattering with the very kindly director and I blurted out, "I just want a costume and to be able to walk across the stage!"  Well, he took me seriously.  I was cast as an attendant, a part that doesn't really exist in the play, I just had a costume and followed Lady Macbeth and/or the Gentlewoman around.  It was great fun.  I met my first college boyfriend during that production, and I made many lifetime friends.  I have such fond memories of that entire experience and whenever I see other productions of Macbeth, I often have my friends' performances still in the back of my mind.

So, that's my Macbeth story.  Briefly.  I will also say that I adore Kenneth Branagh and would absolutely not miss seeing him onstage, in whatever he chose to star in.  The fact that he chose Macbeth as his first NY onstage outing just seemed like the happiest of accidents.  I actually became a contributor to the Park Avenue Armory, just to have the chance to secure tickets to Macbeth during the presale.  I'm so glad I did.  I also enjoyed seeing the Armory (well, what I could see of it).  Another of my perks to donating is that I can get a free guided tour - I may do that when my mother next comes to town.  I'm always looking for fun, only-in-New-York-type things to do when she's here.

Anyway, getting to the production.  SPOILERS WILL ABOUND, so if you're going to see the show and don't want to know how things happen, I'd STOP READING right about now...  I went with a chum from grad school who is also a Kenneth Branagh superfan.  We bought these tickets in December, so to say that we were ready to see this show, believe me, we mean it.  They ask you to arrive at the Armory at least a half hour before curtain.  There's a whole ritual that goes along with the show, to immerse you in an experience, rather than just see a performance of Macbeth.  When you arrive, you receive a wristband telling you what clan you're in.  I was in the Angus clan, my chum was in Caithness.  We wandered around the first floor of the Armory for a few minutes, then I checked my raincoat and umbrella because I didn't want to lug them around all night.  Then we went upstairs to meet with our respective clans.  Each clan had its own meeting room, with a map showing you where your clan originated.  We sat in there for a few minutes (and I did my social media obligations, for those of you who follow me on Instagram or Twitter), then a gong sounded.  Our clan leader had us practice what we would say when we arrived at the main door to enter. 

 

photo credit: Stephanie Berger

We were led back down the staircase and then waited in front of the main door.  We were asked by a hooded cast member (who just happened to be one of my office's former interns!) what clan we were.  We bellowed ANGUS, and he pulled a bell cord, opened the main door, and we were ushered in.  Our leader told us to walk briskly, but I admit that we all dawdled just a bit to take in the entire experience - when you walk in that door, you're immediately practically on the set.  The Drill Room at the Armory is over 55,000 square feet and they use every inch of it.  Led by another hooded cast member carrying a torch, you walk through an eerie clearing, on a stone path.  There's fog and cool mood lighting; there are stonehenge-type set pieces.  It was all very beautifully designed to put you right into the experience yourself.  We were then led behind a curtain backstage, then up to our seats from the back.  The seats are padded benches with no backs.  Ugh.  I did know that in advance, but I was determined to come anyway.  It was also very hot in there, as all the clans were slowly led into the room.  The seating was tiered platforms on two sides of an elongated playing area, with an altar-like playing space on one end, and the stonehenge-y rock formations on the other.
I tried to stand for as long as I could, knowing that sitting without a seat back for two intermissionless hours was going to be a chore, no matter how engaged I became in the play.  My seat neighbors kept looking at me, wondering why I wouldn't sit down.  Finally, when three more gongs went off and the ushers scurried away, I sat down.  And the play began (probably around 20 minutes past the scheduled start time).



photo credit: Stephanie Berger

What an experience!  This production of Macbeth is fast and furious, passionate and smart.  It speeds along for the two hours and leaves you quite breathless.  The pace just beautifully underscores the inevitability of everything.  The Weird Sisters are indeed weird, and get things off to a grand start.  Then the first battle is simply spectacular!  Rain starts to fall, so there are wonderful sword duels in the rain and mud, with some staging I hadn't seen before, and lots of opportunities to put seeds in your mind about what will happen later.  It really was masterfully done.

There were many moments that I saw/heard anew, as if for the first time.  For the first time, I felt Lady Macbeth's pain over having lost a child; I cried during the Malcolm/Macduff scene, which can be the deadliest scene in the English-speaking theater if not done well - this was the best I have ever seen it acted and staged.  I was sobbing at Macduff's 'but I must also feel it as a man.'  The sleepwalking scene was spectacular (it helped that it was done practically right on top of me) and the killing of the Macduffs was horrifyingly theatrical and wonderful.  The funeral procession of Duncan that turned into Macbeth's coronation was gorgeous.  The marshy space outside the playing area that I mentioned before, where we all entered, became Birnham Wood, so when all the soldiers entered with torches and pieces of wood, it really was as if the forest was marching towards us.  Really, the stagecraft throughout was just magical and illuminated the text beautifully.

photo credit: Stephanie Berger

As did the acting.  Kenneth Branagh did not disappoint me in the least.  He was an amazing Macbeth - a virile soldier through and through, who barreled through his soliloquies as if they were orders.  He speaks with such clarity and purpose, yet with musicality and passion.  He was thrilling.  It all worked together so well, and then, when he did take a breath and a pause to realize all that he had done, during the 'tomorrow, tomorrow and tomorrow' speech, it was chilling.  Alex Kingston was also fantastic as Lady M, sexual and passionate.  When she drew a circle around herself to give the 'unsex me here' passages, it was so right I wonder why I never thought of it before.  You knew once she stepped out of that circle, it was an inevitable descent.   Their scenes together were charged and real, especially the scene after killing Duncan - which was done is full view, another wonderful and heartbreaking choice.  The way Macbeth handed over the bloody knives to his wife - seriously. Chills.  

I could just go on forever, but this post is already way too long - all of the acting was wonderful, the sets/costumes/lights were fantastic and the musical score, composed by Patrick Doyle, never overly called attention to itself but was a wonderful accent to everything.  I was breathless, with a racing heart throughout.  OK, so my back hurt a little at the end of the evening.  So what.  Really, if you can, and if you enjoy Shakespeare done in an earthy, visceral way, hie thee to the Park Avenue Armory and see this Macbeth.  One can only hope that Branagh decides he needs to be on New York stages regularly.  I, for one, am crossing my fingers and hope that he does...

ABT 2014 - Cinderella

 

I can't believe ballet season is more than half over already!  Time just goes too quickly, gosh darn it.  But I'm determined to savor each evening as completely as I can.  Last night's delight, Frederick Ashton's Cinderella, was certainly worth savoring. 

I've not seen a ballet of Cinderella before (at least I don't think I have) and ABT hasn't done Ashton's version before.  So this is a premiere of sorts, although the ballet has been around since 1948.  I don't know why I had it in my head that it had music by Tchaikovsky, but as soon as I heard the overture I thought, wait, that sounds like Prokofiev!  I guess I've been going to ballet long enough to tell the difference.  :)

My favorite ballerina, Julie Kent, danced Cinderella, and she was partnered by Mr. Perfection, Marcelo Gomes.  I'm telling you, in the dictionary, next to Prince Charming, is a photo of Marcelo Gomes.  He is just the epitome of class, grace and wonderful partnering rapport.  These two dancers did not disappoint. 

Julie begins as the sad girl by the fire, completely overshadowed by her stepsisters (this version of the story does not have a wicked stepmother).  As is tradition, the stepsisters are played by men - I had never seen either of these two gents before, Kenneth Easter and Thomas Forster, but I thought they were terrific.  They caught the humor beautifully, yet they also persuaded as women, instead of men pretending to be women.  Each of them brought a unique personality to their character and they danced with a lot of brio.

Stella Abrera was a gorgeous Fairy Godmother, very crystalline in her footwork.  The four fairies - Sarah Lane, Isabella Boylston, Misty Copeland and especially April Giangeruso - were also lovely, gliding across the floor with their variations.  Tangientally, I never noticed how deep the stage at the Met is before!  Each fairy was behind a scrim, which rose to present them.  Each scrim was behind the other, so four scrims seemed like a lot of territory to cover!  Anyway, moving on... 

On the whole, the ballet is quite lovely and gentle, with some beautiful pas de deux for Cinderella and her handsome prince, plus some idiosyncratic choreography for the dancers in the corps de ballet.  The ladies dancing in the Stars variations were especially terrific and really tackled that movement that produces such odd and compelling shapes.  Julie was amazing in her entrance into the ballroom - I've read this entrance is very famous because she goes down two staircases en pointe while gazing straight ahead.  It was quite beautifully stiking, not only in that beautiful footwork, but also her glow at being at the ball, and the gorgeous cape she was costumed in.  It was a marvelous effect.  As always, Julie was just elegance personified, so smooth and non-showy.  And she and Marcelo have a beautiful rapport; I think Julie had a bit of a bobble in the final pas de deux (I was using my binoculars for a moment) and she just looked into Marcelo's eyes and he ever so gently moved his hands to get her back on the right track.  Even if the steps were a bobble, the moment was lovely.  At least in my opinion.  I'm tearing up a little thinking of it now.  Such trust and beauty is to be commended.  And then at the end, their walking into the stars and falling glitter--it was magical.  I actually got a relatively good photo for once, since the curtain went back up on that final pose for us.  You know, sometimes, Julie and Marcelo's acting was so good, I forgot to watch the other dancing going on.  That just makes a repeat visit more likely.

I would love to see Cinderella again; I just found it sweet and charming and a nice respite from the anguishy, goopy, wonderfully sadly romantic other ballets coming up - I mean, I have Giselle and Swan Lake coming up.  Sob city.  I will be a watery mess, so it was nice to just mist a little.  Your mileage, of course, may vary.  The three ladies next to me left before the end (their loss) and I couldn't get any good second curtain call shots because the people in front of me just stood up to leave but wouldn't move.  Ugh.  But I wouldn't let them yuck my yum, dagnabbit.  I'll just hold on to my happy ballet feelings throughout the rest of the season, but oh if it would only go on for a longer time...

Thoughts on the Tonys (awards and broadcast)

As Tony time fades, of course I have opinions about the broadcast and who won the awards.  Hello, I always have opinions.  I should warn you that I'm currently listening to the cast album of The Bridges of Madison County because my pique at its treatment hasn't gone away.  That may infect some of this post...  oh, and as always, I borrowed photos from the Tony website.  I will remove them if requested.

Regarding the broadcast, it wasn't as fun as last year, darn it.  I can't assign all the blame to Hugh Jackman, who is still all that, but he was working maybe a little too hard.  It seemed he was looser and was having more fun in the backstage glances we got at each commercial break.  I know a lot of people were confused about the opening number where Hugh hopped through Radio City, but I found it charming.  I know and love the film (and musical number) it was paying homage to, so it made me smile.  I can certainly understand if you don't know that movie, Small Town Girl, or the number, "Take Me to Broadway," or even the late great Bobby Van, it would seem very obscure.  I liked it.  Shoot me.  I just think Hugh KNEW he couldn't top last year's super-colossal-amazing opening number, so he went completely the other way.  It probably didn't help that the camera people kept putting a camera in Neil Patrick Harris' face all night.

This year, I was on Twitter throughout most of the broadcast, so I could find out who won the 'technical' awards that aren't presented on camera.  The fact that these awards aren't presented on camera ticks me off every.single.year.  The Tony Awards are supposedly honoring the excellence of Broadway theater.  Well, if you're excluding the actual CREATORS of that excellence, your broadcast isn't doing a very good job.  I know, I know, CBS has to create an entertaining show that people will want to watch.  Look, seriously, the people who watch it every year are the same people who watch it every year.  We WANT to see that stuff!  People who watch NCIS aren't going to turn into the Tonys because LL Cool J is rapping.  (ugh, really?)  The fact that I couldn't see Jason Robert Brown accept his very deserving Best Score and Best Orchestration Tonys is just so depressing.  The little snippet of one of his acceptance speeches, as grand as that snippet was, didn't satisfy.  I missed all of the other creators we didn't get to see - the designers, the choreographers.  If you missed them as much as I did, you can find their acceptance speeces on the Tony Award website.

They even had to cut the In Memoriam video for the television broadcast because the show ran long.  To their credit, the Tony Award website posted it Monday afternoon, but still.  That should've been on the air, instead of rapping, or yet another clip from Wicked, or two numbers from shows that haven't even opened on Broadway yet (one of which may never open on Broadway).  It's the eternal frustration.  I guess I wish PBS would pick up that first hour again, so we could see all the awards and show our appreciation of the winners CBS doesn't deem worthy of the 'official' broadcast.

Regarding the musical excerpts, honestly, I completely understand why the producers of Rocky chose the production number they chose - they think that's the way to sell the show.  But that musical has an original score and we heard NONE OF IT, just themes from the movie.  Why would people go to see the Broadway musical Rocky when they could just rent the movie?  They'd go see it to hear the score!  At least that's what I think.  Ugh.  So there's that.  I didn't think the Aladdin number or the Les Miserables number came off very well (at least they didn't make me want to buy a ticket); the camera work on the After Midnight was weird and couldn't capture the joy of that dancing cast; A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder was delightful and just made it ever so clear that it HAD to win Best Musical (thank heavens it did!); Beautiful was nice, and Carole King coming out to sing along was terrific; Bullets Over Broadway, although featuring tap dancing, was dull; and the number from Hedwig and the Angry Inch made me even sadder that I'm not going to be able to see the show - Neil Patrick Harris was fantastic and the whole production number just exuded fun and excitement.  Too bad all the numbers couldn't come close to that.

As for the winners, I predicted a few correctly, but most of my hopes didn't turn out very well.  I was so happy about Jason Robert Brown, as I said before, but hello: Kelli O'Hara!  Not only did she not win, but her non-win was telegraphed at the start of the show when we saw she was sitting practically in the balcony!  All the other nominees were towards the front, but she was at least ten rows behind them all.  Stupid, rude, bad planning and not right.  I was very happy that Mark Rylance won for his Olivia, the most enchanting creature I saw on stage last season.  His acceptance speech was also quite lovely.  Most of the speeches were lovely, I will admit.  So many people thanked family and friends and teachers, and several mentioned the importance of arts in education.  That was good to hear.  It was great to see all of the nominated playwrights introduce their own plays, though the clips of the plays themselves weren't terrifically edited.

All in all, it wasn't the most engaging of Tony Award broadcasts I've ever seen.  Maybe because my attention was split due to social media.  But I don't think so.  When something got me, I put my tablet down.  It just didn't happen very often.  So last season went out with rather a whimper.  But there are a lot of things I'm looking forwad to next season - I'm probably the most eager for the revival of Albee's A Delicate Balance.  I hope to see that one several times.  I saw the last revival at least five times, and when we did a production of it in grad school, I watched every performance.  I just love that play.  I'm also looking forward to Donald Margulies' new play, The Country House, and I'm seriously excited about Lin-Manuel Miranda's Hamilton.  I'm crossing my fingers that Jason Robert Brown's Honeymoon in Vegas comes in this season.  I just hope I can wrestle my budget into submission and see all I want to see. 

(As I type this, the final song from Bridges is playing.  Yes, Kelli O'Hara and Jason Robert Brown, love IS always better.  So please let me remember that as this next season gets under way.  I love this art form, this business, this tribe.  May we all be inspired and excited in the months to come...)

My Tony Predictions - 2014

As always, when I posted my Tony nomination predictions, I was way WAY off.  I can't believe the complete shut-out for Roundabout's The Winslow Boy, and the too-close-to-shut-out Bridges of Madison County.  Seriously.  The fact that it wasn't nominated for Best Musical just ticks me off to no end.  No one is saying it's perfect, but it was a good production with good quality that deserved to at least be considered among the season's best.  But...what do I know?  I would've nominated Daniel Radcliffe all three times he's been on Broadway...

So, here are my predictions and, if they're not the same, my hopes for who wins.  Though the work is the reward.  Or so I'm told.  I won't cover all the categories if I haven't seen any of the nominees.  And at the bottom of this post, I will also include a photo of me with a past Tony nominee (and who I hope will be in the mix for next season), since I don't have any photos with current nominees.  Note to self: work on that for next year.

BEST PLAY

My prediction: All the Way, Robert Schenkkan
My hope: Act One, James Lapine
(I didn't see All the Way, I'm hoping to catch it before it closes, but I was touched by the joy of the theater expressed in Act One.  I'm glad it's going to be broadcast on Live at Lincoln Center - I'm looking forward to seeing it again? I also loved Outside Mullingar, but it closed so long ago, I can't even imagine it having a ghost of a chance)

BEST MUSICAL

My prediction (and hope): A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder
(I had a good time at the show and it has an original book and score.  Reason enough to get my vote)

BEST SCORE

My prediction (and hugest hope): The Bridges of Madison County, Jason Robert Brown
(Seriously.  In my mind, there's no other choice.  I hope there's no other choice in the rest of the voters' minds)

BEST REVIVAL OF A PLAY

My prediction: Twelfth Night
My hope: The Glass Menagerie
(Actually, I would be fine if any of these fine productions won.  I'd prefer it not be Raisin, only because I haven't seen it, but it's always worthy)

BEST REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL

My prediction: Hedwig and the Angry Inch
My hope: Violet
(So I can see Jeanine Tesori on that stage)

BEST ACTOR IN A PLAY

My prediction: Bryan Cranston, All the Way
My hope: Samuel Barnett, Twelfth Night
(Samuel Barnett was so enchanting, I can still hear some of his line readings in my head)

BEST ACTRESS IN A PLAY

My prediction (and second hugest hope): Cherry Jones, The Glass Menagerie
(I can't bring myself to type that someone else might win.  I just can't)

BEST FEATURED ACTOR IN A PLAY

My prediction (and hope): Mark Rylance, Twelfth Night
(Is there anything he can't do?  I don't think so)

BEST FEATURED ACTRESS IN A PLAY

My prediction: Mare Winningham, Casa Valentina
My hope: Celia Keenan-Bolger, The Glass Menagerie
(I don't know why I think Winningham will win, I just do.  But I'd rather Celia did)

BEST ACTOR IN A MUSICAL

My prediction: Neil Patrick Harris, Hedwig and the Angry Inch
My hope: Jefferson Mays, A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder
(I love NPH and will be happy if he wins, but I didn't see his show.  I did see Mays and found him terrifically brilliant)

BEST ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL

My prediction (and third hugest hope):  Kelli O'Hara, The Bridges of Madison County
(I know, no one else thinks she's going to win.  But I do.  She's enormously popular, the show does have its champions among the voters [if not the nominators] and she's been nominated five times before.  She must win sometime)

BEST FEATURED ACTOR IN A MUSICAL

My prediction: James Monroe Iglehart, Aladdin
My hope: Joshua Henry, Violet
(All I've heard all Tony season is how Iglehart is going to win.  OK.  But I loved Joshua Henry in Scottsboro Boys, Porgy & Bess and now Violet.  I'm rooting for him)

BEST FEATURED ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL

My prediction: Lena Hall, Hedwig and the Angry Inch
My hope: Lauren Worsham, A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder
(I thought Lauren took the old-fashioned musical theater ingenue and turned her into a quirky, fun new creation.  I look forward to watching her career)

Of the other awards, I hope Jason Robert Brown also gets acknowledged for his gorgeous orchestrations, and I have a fondness for the set and lights for Cripple of Inishmaan.  Other than that, I have no dogs in the race.  I'm looking forward to the broadcast - Hugh Jackman is all that and a bag of chips, and Sting will be doing a number from his new musical (I saw the PBS special and I found a lot of that music to be gorgeous).  I'm bummed there won't be a number from Bridges, but I hope the other stuff comes off well.  Last year's opening number was SOOOOOOOOOO fantastic, there's a hugely high standard to reach.  Here's hoping they do...

next year, Albee's Delicate Balance had better win Tonys!!

ABT 2014 - Manon X 2

The ballets I've been looking forward to the most this season are the Cinderella that's coming up next week (I don't think I've ever seen a live Cinderella ballet before) and Manon, which I'd never seen before.  I was lucky enough to see it twice this week.  My normal subscription ticket featured the divine Diana Vishneva and Marcelo Gomes, but I also picked up a single ticket for last night's performance with my favorite ballerina, Julie Kent, and the also-divine Roberto Bolle.  Both performances met and exceeded my expectations...

I've heard about Manon for years, how it's a beautiful ballet well-suited to dancers who are also wonderful actresses.  And I love music by Massenet already, though it's interesting that the ballet Manon features none of the music from his opera Manon Lescaut.  An interesting choice, I think.  But the music in the ballet is lush, gorgeous, romantic and perfectly in keeping with Kenneth MacMillan's complex choreography for this story.

The plot is pretty simple (as most ballet plots are): a young girl, on her way to the convent, falls in love with impoverished student, but her brother wants to 'sell' her to a rich man.  She becomes the rich man's courtesan, but once she chooses love over money, lives are destroyed.  But the way the characterizations illuminate the plot is what makes Manon special.

photo credit: Gene Schiavone

Tuesday, Diana Vishneva was a wise Manon - even though she was on her way to a convent, she knew her power over men and enjoyed using it.  So her becoming a courtesan was not entirely unexpected, even given her love for Des Grieux, thrillingly (as always) played by Marcelo Gomes.  I'm guessing there are no more words available to talk about his perfection - he had many solos in this piece, so pure and lovely.  And his chemistry with Diana was palpable; they seriously dance as one.  The reckless abandon with which they share their love pas de deux is amazingly gorgeous.  His partnering is again sublime - there are many odd and tricky lifts in this piece and they were all so secure and beautiful.  Their last pas de deux was truly heartbreaking.

And then the control Diana shows when she dances with her 'patron' - stunning.  The difference in her body carriage before and after she becomes a courtesan, and the way she executed the choreography was crystal clear.  There was such gorgeousness all around, all the shapes created by the choreography and all the passion and joy and regret in the characterizations - perfect.

Everyone who danced was spectacular - Herman Cornejo, who can also do no wrong in my book, was terrific as Manon's greedy brother; Victor Barbee was oily and arrogant and wonderful as Monsieur G.M., who wants to possess Manon; and Roman Zhurbin was off-the-charts fantastic as the Jailer - the rape scene was so ugly and yet beautifully executed at the same time.  His power and virility was glorious.  I'm really such a fan of his (and I got to see him again last night in a different role!  He's a gem!).

It was a wonderful night and I worried a bit that my Julie would suffer by comparison - I needn't have worried.  Although she and Roberto have different characterizations, their symbiosis as a couple is just as compelling, and I may have loved the piece even more last night.  Though that might be because since I had just seen it two days ago, I could watch the choreography in a different way - I could see more things because I knew where to focus my attention.  I could get even more enraptured by the shapes, the steps, the lifts.  I'm not sure why...

Julie Kent starts the ballet much more innocently - you can totally see how she was on her way to a convent.  She innocently flirts with the older man, she has a wonderful love for her brother and doesn't see what he's doing at first.  As it gradually becomes clear to her what her brother is looking for (money, basically), you can see the lightbulb over Julie's head.  She has something that men are willing to pay for, hmmmm.  But after she sees Des Grieux express his honest and pure love, she chooses love.  I mean, seriously, who wouldn't, when Roberto Bolle is dancing for you.  He is spectacular, all youth and innocence and boyish beauty.  His dancing has a lightness to it, which worked beautifully for the character.

photo credit: Andrea Mohin

In the second scene's bedroom pas de deux, the dancing was so rapturous, it made my breath catch.  There wasn't quite the reckless abandon of Diana and Marcelo, but more of a joyous freedom in love.  Both interpretations were wonderful and satisfying to me as a happy viewer.  And the pas de trois between Julie as Manon, Daniil Simkin as her brother, and Roman Zhurbin (our MVP) as Monsieur G.M. was so spectacular.  It was so specific and well-acted, plus it was stunningly danced.  I wish I were more knowledgeable about ballet itself to be able to describe it.  You could literally see the moment she chose the clothes, the jewelry, the riches that she would have as a courtesan, but you also already saw the regret of her choosing money over love.

Julie's Manon was more conflicted in the party scene, and her dance with all the other gentlemen was somehow sadder last night.  I can't put my finger on why.  And the third act was devastating, in the best way.  I didn't find Alexandre Hammoudi as the Jailer to be as powerful as Zhurbin on Tuesday, but he was still quite good and that scene still packed a wallop.  And the final scene, with Bolle trying to will his Manon back to life, and Julie just too beaten down by life and men and herself to even try to live - gorgeous.  The dancing was so amazing, I was holding my breath and my heart skipped a beat or two.  Just lovely lovely.  

I am now a huge HUGE fan of Manon and hope to see more wonderful dancers perform it in the future.  I'm glad my first two experiences with it, though, were with such beautiful and moving dancers as Vishneva, Gomes, Kent and Bolle.  Long may they reign.

Review - After Midnight

Yesterday at lunchtime, I got an unexpected invitation - a Tony voter friend (oh me of little faith, thinking no more invites would be coming my way!) e-mailed and asked if I'd like to accompany him to After Midnight!  I've heard many good things about the show, but it wasn't on my radar to buy tickets. 

When I met my friend at the theater, he picked up the tickets at the box office and inside the envelope was an invitation to have a drink with one of the stars after the show!  Woo hoo!  How exciting!  And what a fun idea.  So I already started watching the show with anticipation...

I found After Midnight to just be a ton of fun.  It isn't brain surgery, it's not even great theater, if you really think about it.  There's no story, no characterizations.  But it is a well-crafted, beautifully performed 90 minutes of song and dance that left a smile on my face.  I did think it went on overlong and I was really ready for that last number, but on the whole, the show went by quickly and was quite enjoyable. 

A revue of popular jazz music from the era of the Cotton Club, After Midnight features songs by Duke Ellington, Harold Arlen, Cab Calloway and many others.  There are over two dozen songs in the show.  A lot of the orchestral arrangements were the originals.  The orchestra, billed as The Jazz at Lincoln Center All-Stars, was amazing.  Each musician seemed to be enjoying the show as much, if not more, than the audience.  They were masterful musicians and played with verve and passion.  Fittingly, they got the last number and last bow of the night.  They were terrific.

photo credit: Matthew Murphy

The perfomers were also terrific - Dule Hill was a charming host and did a nice job with his songs.  Fantasia, who I wish I had seen in The Color Purple, is just a star.  She has command, charisma and she sang the crap out of her songs.  She sang them beautifully in the style in which they were written, yet she also made them her own.  That's not easy to do.  Tony nominee Adriane Lenox also completely rocked the house with her two songs - the audience just ate her up.  I did think some of the costuming was unfortunate, though.  These are beautiful women and their costumes didn't do them full justice, in my opinion.

photo credit: Matthew Murphy

I believe I've mentioned in the past that I love me some tap dancing.  Well, After Midnight has tap dancing and more tap dancing.  I think most of the problems of the world could be solved by tap dancing.  Warren Carlyle has choreographed some amazing numbers and there are some incredible dancers in the cast.  I was most taken by the sensational Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards and the electric Jared Grimes.  But really, all of the dancers were fantastic.  I even noticed a dancer I saw at ABT a trillion years ago, Desmond Richardson, who is a hot hot hot dancer.  They all were, but you know me when  a ballet connection comes my way...

After the show was over, my friend and I ran into another friend and we chit-chatted for a bit about the end of the season and about how much we enjoyed The Jazz at Lincoln Center All-Stars.  Their final number really sends you out on a high note and we carried that over into our conversation.  After the mutual friend departed, my friend and I went backstage with the invitation to have a drink.  We were escorted across the theater's stage (whee!  I got a selfie!  I was on a Broadway stage!) and into Dule Hill's dressing room.  He was charming and delightful - he collects bourbon, so he has quite a collection in his dressing room (mainly gifts from fans) and often invites people to join him for an after-show drink.  There were two other couples there, along with a few of the performers.  We all had a shot of a very smoky bourbon and chatted about the show.  I mentioned to Hill that I had seen him in Noise/Funk and Dutchman and was happy to see him back onstage.  We then got into a conversation about Twitter.  How the world always gets back to social media, I'll never know, but that's the wave of the future, I guess!  But a quick drink and chat with a charming actor was a nice way to end a nice evening.  Thanks for inviting me, Tony voter friend!

Were I a Tony voter myself, I still wouldn't vote for After Midnight for best musical (I'll be doing my Tony thoughts and predictions in a later post), but it was a fun evening and I'm glad I got to see it.  Especially from great seats and with a great friend!  Unless something even more unexpected drops into my lap over the weekend, I think that will close out the Broadway season for me.  Tap dancing was not a bad way to go...

Thoughts on the Lilly Awards

Last night, I was lucky enough to be in the room with hundreds of amazing women (and men!) at Playwrights Horizons - it was the fifth annual Lilly Awards.  In 2010, Marsha Norman, Julia Jordan and Theresa Rebeck decided it was high time to honor women of distinction working in the theater after next to no women were nominated for major theatrical awards that year.  They named the awards the Lilly Awards after outspoken playwright Lillian Hellman, who once said to Marsha Norman, "You need to write like the devil and act like one when necessary."  During this Tony Award time of year, it's nice to acknowledge the women who have made a contribution to the theatrical scene, both in front of and behind the curtain.  It's no secret that, historically, women are less-represented on the Broadway stage and also during awards season.  Our founders this year mentioned that percentages were up, but still not where they should be.  Theresa Rebeck even used a visual aid - a spreadsheet-type chart, color-coding how many men and how many women were on production teams this season.  The purple squares, representing women, were too few and too far between.  Last night's awards were so inspiring, it made you forget (almost) the negative and reminded you to accentuate the positive.  And the first tear-inducing moment for me was when Theresa reminded everyone that this year's Pulitzer winner and both finalists were women.  She then asked all the female Pulitzer winners and finalists in the audience to stand up.  It was moving and so amazing.

The program officially started with a tribute to Lorraine Hansberry, whose A Raisin in the Sun is being revived again this year on Broadway.  A new award was also presented, in honor of Hansberry and her commitment to activism in the theatrical community.  The first recipient was Billie Allen, who was Ruby Dee's understudy in the original Broadway production!  Billie Allen was very surprised to receive an award, she thought she was just coming to honor Hansberry.  But she gave a beautifully touching speech, which reminded everyone again of how far we've come and how far we still have to go.

I can't remember all the wonderful things said by the presenters and the recipients.  I wish I did; there were so many words of wisdom, but I didn't want to lose a single word by stopping to write things down.  But I had tears in my eyes throughout most of the night - all of the speeches were so heartfelt and true; there was so much humility and mutual admiration, the evening was truly a lovefest.  When Kelli O'Hara acknowledged that though she's been in many productions, Bridges of Madison County was the first time she was speaking words that had been written by a woman, it was so moving.  Hearing Dominique Morriseau talk about being seen and sticking to her own voice and Winnie Holzman sharing her wisdom about giving back - it just was terrific.  Each introduction was better than the last, though I will admit to a soft spot for Lisa Kron's amazing citation to her Fun Home collaborator Jeanine Tesori - she sang it to the tune of "Don't Rain on My Parade."  It was hysterically funny and also so representative of the evening - a loving sharing of theatrical magic that can come when like-minded individuals, with no desire but to salute and appreciate, get together and make some noise.

The presenters were all terrfic and so invested in saluting their friends and honorees (they were Steven Pasquale, Lisa Kron, Tony Kushner, Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Cusi Cram, Susan Rose, Kwame Kwei-Armah, John Doyle, Neena Beber, Anne Kaufman, Sheri Wilner, Eisa Davis, Justin Levine and Mark Nelson).  I also need to list all of the award recipients - Kelli O'Hara, Jeanine Tesori, Joyce Ketay, Liesl Tommy, Johanna Day, Jen Silverman, Dominique Morriseau, Mary Mitchell Campbell, Susan Bernfield, Rebecca Naomi Jones, Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Winnie Holzman and Neena Beber - and in a huge surprise to her, Marsha Norman received the Purple Lily of Valor, for never forgetting to mentor and champion and teach the next wave of women trying to make their way in this business.  And the last delightful award of the evening was for this year's Miss Lilly - a gentleman named an 'honorary woman' for all that he does to champion the cause.  This year's recipient was Todd London, outgoing executive director at New Dramatists.  Todd was sitting right in front of me and once he realized that he was being honored, it was touching to see how moved he was.  His acceptance speech was lovely and he promised to keep fighting the good fight in Seattle. 



Me and last year's Miss Lilly!

I always come out of the Lilly Awards ceremony so inspired and energized - if I wrote plays, I certainly would write a good one after all that good will.  Instead, I'll just do my best to keep the good energy going.  My pictures are pretty horrible, but I'll share a few of them here anyway.  I have a friend who took some official (and gorgeous) shots.  Maybe he'll let me borrow some eventually...