Even though the Giuseppe Verdi of Macbeth is not the Verdi of Don Carlo or Otello, one hears the earlier score today with a shock of understanding why this composer’s work seized the ears of his contemporaries: It is bold, fierce and unrelentingly exciting. It helps if the performance in question of the opera does it justice, of course, and fortunately, Palm Beach Opera’s … [Read more...]
Archives for January 2014
PBO’s ‘Macbeth,’ second cast: Check’s Lady is a powerhouse
Palm Beach Opera’s production of Verdi’s Macbeth, based on Shakespeare’s drama of the same name, won thunderous applause Saturday night. Hardly uplifting, with so many murders and blood everywhere, it is the music that carries it along and raises it to exultant levels of high art. Shakespeare’s view of Macbeth has little historical basis in fact. Verdi was 33 when he wrote … [Read more...]
‘Labor Day’ ludicrous but beautifully acted
Frank Chambers seems like the ideal man. He’s caring, and he loves children. He can fix a creaky stair and repair a busted engine. He cleans. Did we mention that he can cook like a chef on TV, and that he looks like Josh Brolin? Yes, Brolin’s character in Jason Reitman’s Labor Day is the total package, except for the inconvenient truth that he’s an escapee with a bum leg and a … [Read more...]
Theater roundup: ‘Parade’ at Slow Burn; ‘Pippin’ at BRTG; Renee Taylor at Plaza; ‘Chorus Line’ at Maltz
It is not just that Slow Burn Theatre Co. keeps taking risks with its dark, unconventional musical choices, but the scrappy West Boca troupe continues to deliver on its offbeat selections with high-impact, powerful productions. The case in point at the moment is Parade, the 1998 show based on the downbeat history of Leo Frank, a Brooklyn Jew who moves to Atlanta — a lox out of … [Read more...]
Music roundup 2: French Baroque beauty from Seraphic Fire; a mixed bag at Lynn Phil
The authentic-performance movement of three or so decades ago had several benefits other than just the experience of hearing familiar Baroque and Classical music in fresh guise. What it also did was open the doors to rediscovery of celebrated composers from the past whose work had been overlooked in modern times, and on Jan. 18 at All Saints Episcopal in Fort Lauderdale, … [Read more...]
Essay: Remembering six area musicians
As a musician, I've come to the conclusion that playing music in a live setting works best when it parallels, well, life. There will be some of the inherent up moments, like harmony among the vocals and the instruments, and conversations both with and without words, plus some of the downs like mistakes that you have to recover and learn from. But being a veteran musician … [Read more...]
At the Morikami: Street fashion a la Elvis, Brando and Nabokov
Japan’s street fashion knows no minimalism. Like a rainbow rhapsody, its tune says anything goes and more is always better. An ongoing exhibit wrapping up next month tells us it is all about gaining acceptance, not attention. There is no room for judgment and the main goal is having fun. These are some of the notions the Morikami Museum galleries put forward with Breaking … [Read more...]
With ‘Old Times,’ Dramaworks takes on the puzzle of Pinter
Seven years ago, director J. Barry Lewis introduced Palm Beach Dramaworks’ up-for-any-challenge audience to the enigmatic work of Harold Pinter with a production of Betrayal. While some theatergoers were taken aback by its reverse chronology, that play was relatively straightforward compared to the next Pinter shoe to drop. Opening this Friday and continuing through March 2, … [Read more...]
New western Delray theater opening with ‘Sounds of Simon’
By Dale King South Palm Beach County’s cultural arts scene is getting a new theatrical and general use venue. Gary Waldman and Jamison Troutman of Florida Theater Productions Inc. will open the Delray Square Performing Arts Center tonight with a reprise of their Sounds of Simon show, a compilation of Paul Simon songs that enjoyed a couple of runs last year at the Cultural … [Read more...]
‘Echo Spring’ probes alcohol as source of inspiration, tragedy
It is almost a cliché that famous writers and alcohol go together. In this important new book English author Olivia Laing focuses on six prominent American writers who struggled with alcoholism — F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Tennessee Williams, John Cheever, John Berryman and Raymond Carver. Laing grew up in an alcoholic family, which partly explains her intense … [Read more...]