Semele
Music by George Frideric Handel, Libretto by William Congreve, Performed by Elizabeth Futral. I went to go see Semele tonight at the NYC Opera. It was interesting to say the least. This being my first English written opera to go see, it became clear to me for the remaining need of the sur-title board just before it lost all meaning to me again. That is, I still couldn't hardly follow along with the words since they were sung with such inflection but then the lyrics were a bit overly simplistic. Every arrangement had about the same two lines repeated over and over to it. Still, the music was lovely and the singing was amazing, plenty of humor, the story was interesting and there were so many old people there waiting for God to come by in the second act to take them to opera heaven.
I think the people to my right and in front were family of someone on stage because when the arrangements were over, you couldn't time the reaction to the clapping obsessively. It was just that fanatic.
Anyway, the story of Semele was modernized to a story between Jackie Kennedy-Onassis and Marilyn Monroe with a greek tragedy twist. Hard to get into it at first but became more interesting after it got going. Not a bad performance overall.
Missy Higgins
Missy Higgins is cleaning house tonight with five out of seven wins on the Arias (Australian Record Industry Association) with award after another and looking hot as hell doing so. Which makes me all that more excited since going to see her on Monday in concert here in Melbourne! There was also a tribute to the drummer of Crowded House who died this year with the song "Better be home Soon" and Jimmy Barnes (seen via Perth 2003) was inducted into the rock and roll hall of fame where he ended the night with "Working Class Man" .
Wicked
Last night I met up with Jim who was in town with a few of his students from Oklahoma and we took in a show at the Gershwin theatre called Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz. I have to say without really any expectations, I was amazed by the stage settings, the scenery, the intricate story, but most of all the very powerful performance by the two lead actresses playing the good and bad witch. My favorite song has to be Defying Gravity (via iTunes) It was a great add on to the Wizard of Oz story that made me want to watch the movie again just to see if it really fit together that well. Many subtle and not so subtle references to the movie are all through the show. Wicked is one of the best Broadway shows I have seen and I would defiantly recommend catching it if you are in town.
Update: I have added a new category called Theatre to keep track of the shows, musicals, concerts, and operas I have been to.
The Producers
So everyone arrives at the apartment and we have wine, snacks and make conversation with plenty of time before the show starts, eventually leaving confidently to go to the theatre to see The Producers. Nick said he bought all the tickets in April so I assume it’s hard to get tickets unless it’s well in advance for the show. At least four of the people in the group were from London and felt confident that we needed to get off at Piccadilly Circus to walk down to the theatre on Drury Lane. After a short crowded ride on the underground, we get to Piccadilly only to discover that the theatre we are looking for is about a mile down and time is starting to cut close. With traffic too busy for a Taxi, we ran the mile across London only to make it with seconds to spare, As soon as we sat down, the show started.
While I am sitting there in my seat hearing my Asthma wheeze inside my lungs like a broken squeeze toy, I am trying my best to cover it up and not disturb others until the cardiac arrest clears off and I can breath normal again. I am dripping with sweat as I was wearing a ski jacket while running in the cold and the theatre was incredibly well heated. The lady next to me seemed put off by something and kept leaning in to say something to her husband, Eventually she leans my way and says “I noticed you forgot your handkerchief, might I offer one of mine?” in a posh English accent. I accepted and smiled with a polite thank you. I needed to clear my nose but I thought at first I would wipe my forehead. As I proceeded to do so, she leans over again and says in the same posh tone but a bit more snotty this time; “it’s for your nose”. ….?
The show was absolutely funny. I was amazed at how much I laughed all the way through. At one point Lee Evans messed up his line just after a pitfall gag and the three actors on stage kept cracking themselves up trying to move on. The man is obviously made out of rubber. I recognized a few other actors in the show but I couldn’t tell you where from. If you ever wanted to see a play about a play about a gay Hitler and the producers who tried to make it as bad as possible, this one is for you. I recommend it highly. There were lines used throughout the show to pay tribute to Mel Brooks who wrote the play and stared in the same movie with Gene Wilder in the late 70’s. I noticed a few from Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles, and History of the World Part I.
At the end of the show, I was tempted to offer the nice lady her slightly used tissue back as we exited the theatre, either that or wear it on my head as a cap to impress her, but I refrained.
Beauty and the Beast
Beauty and the Beast was a last min idea and a good deal from the TKTS booth in Times Square. It was a pretty good performance and good stage sets. I was impressed with the stylized backdrops given to the stage. Not a bad performance but I would suggest seeing this with discounted tickets if you can.
The Lord of the Rings Symphony
Going again to the Sydney Opera House tonight to see the Lord of the Rings Symphony. The performance is sold out and Howard Shore will be there to conduct. Katie Noonan will be singing "Into the West" originally performed by Annie Lennox in the film.
"...The concert will be accompanied by the stunning imagery of John Howe and Alan Lee, the world’s foremost illustrative interpreters of Tolkien’s work and Conceptual Artists on the films. These beautiful and never-before-seen storyboards and sketches, which were the basis of the design of the films, will be projected onto a giant screen above the orchestra."
Goodbye Downunder
A last night Opera to kick off the trip; La Traviata, and without the advantage of being able to view the surtitles, I think I have a vauge idea of what was going on.
Very vauge.
Leaving Sydney this time is kind of odd in that it's not odd. I'm packed, I'm heading north on a very long flight west across Asia and Europe to the little island of England. I have an open return ticket to come back to Sydney and I feel great at what I have done here, personally, professionally, and emotionally. I met good people and made great friends. My soul grew here and I found what I was looking for. Now just to decide where to go from here.
In two weeks I am heading back to Oklahoma and we will see how that goes. Feeling a little distant from everyone there.
My friends at Puma made me happy today. Say it with me; "Puma". It's just fun to say. Thanks guys.
Here's a list of the in-flight movies I will be subjected to over the 22 hour flight to London.
That's right, 22 hours. (again with the map, give it a rest already.)
This way a lion comes.
You walk in, take your seat in the colorful theatre, you wait for the crowd to stop talking and for the show to start. The lights go out and a single large woman (Rafiki) dressed in funny rags and paint with a mighty voice starts singing the familiar opening theme...
'Nan ts'ngonya ma bakithi baba sithi hm ingonya'
In the balcony are more tribal singers who join in, then in the isles, then all around you. Animals wonder by all around you making their way up to the stage to the setting of Pride Rock as the song gets louder and more melodic as the sun rises in the back. It's the same opening scene in the 1991 movie but somehow they have taken animation and made it just as captivating to see in real life.
The Lion King Musical is, by far, the best live theatre performance I have ever seen. The stage production, the lighting, the orchestral music, the singing, the acting, everything was incredible. If you have a chance to see it, I highly recommend it.
Hakuna Matata.
madama butterfly.
Went to a performance of the famous Opera Madama Butterfly this weekend. It was interesting and different from what I expected. Luckily, they displayed subtitles above the stage so you know what they are saying. The story takes place in Imperial Japan, with an American military soldier, all singing in Italian.
Which brings a question; why are modern Operas written and performed in Italian? It's a beautiful language and it probably is just about tradition but I was always under the assumption that only the old Operas were in Italian.
I'm sure it had nothing to do with the fact that it was written by a man named "Puccini".
Good Weekend
A trip north to catch some sun in a rented convertable through the Hunter Valley wine country.
A massage and spa that helped my neck feel mucho-grande better.
A last minute trip to the Opera in the Vinyard where some of the greatest Australian (and other) performers gave an outdoor concert under the stars. Dennis O'Neill, Kirsti Harms, Jane Rutter gave performances from La Boheme, Carmen, Madama Butterfly, and more.
Oh yea, it was posh, but I wasn't. Jeans and button down. That's what I like about Australia, no flare on the formalities.
