For composers to have songs that are more recognized than their own names is a rare phenomenon — yet, at the same time, a definition of success. But to have a slate of recognizable hits over 50 years while staying comparatively under the radar involves rare air breathed by few other than 68-year-old vocalist, pianist and Oklahoma native Jimmy Webb. At his forthcoming solo … [Read more...]
FGO takes on Menotti’s ‘Consul’ to close season
Victoria Livengood first discovered the power of Gian-Carlo Menotti’s opera The Consul as an 18-year-old student at the University of North Carolina. Having received a full vocal scholarship after auditioning for the choir to fill an hour elective in what was supposed to be a pre-law curriculum, she came home to Thomasville one weekend to show her parents the first song she’d … [Read more...]
Postcard From Broadway, No. 1: A stopover in D.C. for ‘The Originalist’
Like Neil Simon's alter ego, Eugene Morris Jerome, I am Broadway-bound, with 11 shows lined up to see in nine days. I arrive today and will soon be in a theater, seeing the musical adaptation of Boris Pasternak's great Dr. Zhivago. (Fill in your own punch line.) But before New York, I spent a week in my hometown of Washington, D.C. While there, I went to Arena Stage, the … [Read more...]
For James Grippando, the ideas keep coming
James Grippando, the Miami lawyer-turned-bestselling crime writer, used to be able to produce books faster than publishers could publish them. That’s no longer true, thanks to digital technology. But that doesn’t mean he’s slowed the pace. “It’s been more than a book a year for a while now,” says Grippando, who has two novels scheduled for the first half of this year, and an … [Read more...]
Flagler series saves best for last with Auryn Quartet
After three decades of performing together in the world’s best venues, the Auryn Quartet was chosen to close the Flagler Museum Music Series on March 3. Intentional or not, John Blades, executive director of the Flagler, left the best to last. Perhaps I ought to say the very best to last, as this was a blue-ribbon performance from beginning to end. The Auryn, consisting of … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: Feb. 20-22
Opera: All eyes will be on the Kravis Center tonight as a new American opera makes its official debut, a milestone in South Florida arts history. Ben Moore’s Enemies, A Love Story, based on a novel by Isaac Bashevis Singer, features a young cast and a score rich with the melodic power that has made Moore’s music a favorite recital item for singers such as Deborah Voigt. Set in … [Read more...]
FGO’s Così: Strong singing, smart direction sell tricky story
For as many problems of interpretation that Mozart’s Così fan Tutte presents to its observers, there are at least as many options that this singular opera gives to its presenters. Given that its specific locale of Naples isn’t underlined in Lorenzo Da Ponte’s libretto, directors have felt free to reorient it everywhere else and every other time, and it rarely detracts from the … [Read more...]
PBO’s ‘La Bohème,’ Cast 2: Subtle approach makes ‘Bohème’ memorable
I heard the second cast of Palm Beach Opera’s very fine production of Puccini’s La Bohème on Saturday. The Kravis Center was packed to capacity for this, the first opera of the season. It was good to hear from the government last week that the arts in America now account for 4.3% of our gross domestic product. Palm Beach County’s lively arts programming surely contributes … [Read more...]
PBO’s ‘La Bohème,’ Cast 1: A ‘Bohème’ to cherish
Because of its uninterrupted 119-year streak of popularity, Giacomo Puccini’s La Bohème can come dangerously close to paint-by-numbers opera: Fill in the blanks with some colorful voices, and the work performs itself. Happily for local audiences, the creative staff of Palm Beach Opera’s just-passed revival of the opera were interested in approaching it with fresh eyes, and the … [Read more...]
Seraphic Fire and chant: The music of faith, hypnotically sung
In its concert Saturday night of Gregorian chant and music associated with it, Seraphic Fire decked out Fort Lauderdale’s All Saints Episcopal Church with all the candlepower typical of a Catholic high Mass. That was entirely appropriate, because if you’re going to sing the music of Ritual, you might as well include the scenic ambience. And in this beautifully sung concert, it … [Read more...]