By Dale King Suppose you could write a great musical with songs a couple of other guys already composed? And suppose those other guys just happened to be George and Ira Gershwin? Creating a laugh-laden production from such enviable grist would be nice work if you could get it. But some other folks already got it. As a result, a “brand-new” Gershwin musical production hit … [Read more...]
Archives for March 2018
Bell, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields splendid in familiar works
By Robert Croan England’s Academy of St. Martin in the Fields is arguably today’s No. 1 chamber orchestra, but it was likely the presence of its music director and violin soloist, Joshua Bell, that brought a sizable crowd to the Au-Rene Theater in Fort Lauderdale on March 25. This was the second of three concerts in the season’s admirable and valuable Broward Center … [Read more...]
Seraphic Fire plays it cool with Brahms, other Romantics
By Dennis D. Rooney Seraphic Fire, now in its 16th season, has performed to growing acclaim in its South Florida home. Its March 18 program, titled Liebeslieder Waltzes, was devoted to vocal music designed primarily for domestic entertainment. Accomplished amateur singers and players in the 19th century would gather to make music at a time when there were no recordings. … [Read more...]
Beautiful new ‘Figaro’ charms at Palm Beach Opera
A good production of Le Nozze di Figaro that doesn’t get in the way of its music can demonstrate to its audience this work’s surprising modernity, even rooted as it is in the late 18th century. It’s Mozart who speaks to us most clearly from his 1786 vantage point, writing a kind of operatic music that lives and breathes with its characters, a music that mirrors their manic … [Read more...]
‘Death of Stalin’ mocks, hilariously, a murderous regime
When a movie is called The Death of Stalin, spoiler alerts need not apply. The title character does, indeed, meet his ignominious end, less than a quarter of the way into this riotous satire. In March of 1953, Josef Stalin (Adrian McLoughlin), in the comfort of his office, is struck by a cerebral hemorrhage. He collapses to the carpet and loses consciousness. The members of his … [Read more...]
‘Line Becomes a River’ finds tragedy on both sides of the border
After Francisco Cantú graduated from college with honors, he decided to enlist in the U.S. Border Patrol, which detains Mexicans illegally crossing into the United States. In The Line Becomes a River, the author’s illuminating prose cites injustices and tragedy on both sides of the border. Mexicans enter the United States in the middle of the night far from … [Read more...]
In this play, Poe and Dickinson meet on the field of art
There is no evidence that reclusive Emily Dickinson and master of the macabre Edgar Allan Poe ever met. But that did not stop Joseph McDonough from introducing them to each other in his two-character play, aptly titled Edgar & Emily, receiving its world premiere at Palm Beach Dramaworks beginning Saturday, March 31. “I mean, I did my research and I think everything I talk … [Read more...]
Parsons Dance delights Duncan audience in season finale
A staunch modern dance aficionado might say that Parsons Dance was light fare, but they would also have to say that it was gourmet quality. Closing the Duncan Theatre’s 2018 dance series with winning style, Parsons Dance left the loyal modern dance audience more than satiated – they were swooning. Parsons Dance has been around a long time, performing around the world, and … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: March 24-25
Theater: Broward Stage Door Theatre, which moves from Margate to its new permanent home in Lauderhill this August, is an erratic producer of musicals. But like the girl with a curl in the middle of her forehead, when the company is good, it is very, very good. As it is with its current mainstage show, Nice Work if You Can Get It, another Gershwin jukebox musical in the style of … [Read more...]
Tired tropes, gimmicks take edge off ‘Unsane’
A young professional woman (Claire Foy), traumatized by irrational visions of a stalker from thousands of miles away, visits a therapist. She’s done everything she can do to escape his presence, yet she still sees him, suddenly, in the eyes of other men. She confesses to the counselor that she has, in the past, harbored suicidal thoughts. All of a sudden, after signing some … [Read more...]