Ballet West's Swan Lake

Last night I got to see a glorious production of my very favorite ballet, Swan Lake, and I got to see my favorite dancer with Ballet West, Christopher Ruud, perform for the final time on the Capitol Theatre stage as Prince Siegfried.  Needless to say it was a lovely evening!  The ballet begins when Princess Odette (Katherine Lawrence) and her handmaidens are transformed into swans by the Baron von Rothbart, an evil sorcerer.  Many years later Prince Siegfried (Ruud) is celebrating his 21st birthday with friends.  His mother, the Queen, presents him with a crossbow and reminds him that he must soon take a bride which fills him with dismay.  He decides to go hunting with his friends and follows a flock of swans to a lake where he captures one of them.  The swan struggles and then transforms into a beautiful woman.  It is the Princess Odette and she begs Siegfried to spare the other swans.  She is a swan by day but becomes a human in the moonlight and only the true love of a human man can break the spell she is under.  Siegfried is captivated by her and they dance the most beautiful pas de deux, which is filled with such longing and emotion, as they fall in love.  Before Siegfried can declare his love, the dawn comes and Odette is transformed back into a swan.  At Siegfried's birthday ball he is introduced to princesses from around the world but he is not interested until the Baron von Rothbart appears with his daughter Odile, who has been enchanted to look exactly like Odette.  Thinking that she is Odette, Siegfried dances a pas de deux with Odile, which mimics many of the same movements with his pas de deux with Odette but is more powerful and seductive, and he declares his love to her.  Rothbart then reveals his treachery.  Siegfried returns to the lake in despair and begs Odette for forgiveness, which she grants, before they hurl themselves onto the rocks breaking the spell.  Tchaikovsky's magnificent score was performed brilliantly and there were moments when the music was so heart-wrenching that it brought tears to my eyes.  The choreography is exquisite and the artists of Ballet West performed so passionately.  Ruud gave one of the best performances I've ever seen in the iconic role.  Lawrence was alternatively demure as Odette and provocative as Odile and I loved many of the swan-like mannerisms that were incorporated into her portrayal.  The opulent sets and lavish costumes transport the audience into another world and I was absolutely riveted throughout the whole performance.  My very favorite moment came when all of the swans emerged one by one from the mist.  It was magical!  I'm so glad that I was able to see my favorite dancer end an incredible career in such a beautiful production and I highly recommend getting a ticket to his final performance tonight (go here).

An American in Paris at HCT

If you need a little joie de vivre in your life (and who doesn't in the middle of winter) then might I suggest attending An American in Paris at Hale Centre Theatre. It is a song and dance extravaganza set in Paris after World War II featuring the music of George and Ira Gershwin. 'S wonderful! 'S marvelous! Jerry Mulligan (Wesley Valdez) is an American soldier who decides to stay in Paris after the war to pursue his dream of becoming a painter. He sees Lise (Juliet Doherty), a Parisian shopgirl with aspirations of becoming a ballerina, on the street and begins to pursue her. They meet every afternoon along the Seine and inevitably fall in love but complications arise. Lise feels a duty to the Baurel family for hiding her from the Nazis and accepts a proposal of marriage from their son Henri (Taylor Morris). Jerry is indebted to his patron Milo Davenport (Ashley Gardner Carlson), a rich American heiress who promotes his art and falls in love with him. It takes several more dazzling dance sequences for Jerry and Lise to realize that they belong together! The choreography, which is used to tell the story, is simply amazing! I especially loved the big production numbers "I've Got Rhythm" in the middle of a Parisian cafe, "I've Got Beginner's Luck" in the Galleries Lafayette where Lise works, "Rhapsody Ballet" at a costume ball, and "Stairway to Paradise" at a Parisian nightclub. I loved how the choreography incorporates props such as umbrellas, benches, lampposts, and perfume counters into the numbers. The cast features incredibly talented dancers, especially the two leads. Doherty (who is single-cast) performs the demanding choreography, much of it on pointe, effortlessly and with so much passion while Valdez is charismatic and captivating to watch. I was so impressed with their performance in the final ballet because it requires a lot of stamina coming at the end of the show. I also really enjoyed Carlson's characterization of Milo as a formidable, yet vulnerable, woman and she provides quite a bit of comic relief with her delivery. The costumes are fantastic, especially Milo's elaborate gowns, the dramatic black and red costumes at the ball, and the sparkly showgirl costumes in "Stairway to Paradise."  The set is very clever and incorporates inventive choreography as pieces are moved on and off the stage. Who could ask for anything more? This production is a beautiful love letter to the City of Lights (my favorite city) and I highly recommend it. An American in Paris runs at HCT on the Main Stage through April 6 (go here for tickets).

Note:  Don't forget about the hilarious A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder which is currently being performed on the HCT Jewel Box Stage through March 16.

My Fair Lady

After seeing the stage musical My Fair Lady performed as a concert with the Utah Symphony on Saturday night, I spent Sunday afternoon watching the Academy Award-winning film adaptation as part of the TCM Big Screen Classics series and I loved it so much!  This is one of my favorite movies from my childhood (I have vivid memories of watching it and other movie musicals at my Grandma Anderson's house) and it was incredible seeing it on the big screen!  Audrey Hepburn is absolutely luminous as Eliza Doolittle, a Covent Garden flower girl, and Rex Harrison is charmingly irascible as Professor Henry Higgins, the arrogant phonetics professor who sets about turning her into a lady.  I love every single scene in this film but I wait with bated breath for the Ascot race with all of those beautiful black and white gowns, especially Eliza's, and the Embassy Ball when Eliza makes her grand entrance in a glittering gown and is mistaken for royalty.  I love all of the instantly recognizable songs but my favorites are "On the Street Where You Live" sung by a lovesick Freddy Eynsford-Hill (Jeremy Brett), "The Rain in Spain" sung by Eliza, Higgins, and Colonel Pickering (Wilfrid Hyde-White) when Eliza finally makes some progress, and "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face" when Higgins suddenly realizes that he loves Eliza.  I love the production design for this film and I always swoon over Higgins' library!  This film is simply loverly and I had a huge smile on my face while watching it.  I highly recommend seeing it on the big screen and you have one more opportunity to do so on Wednesday (go here for more information).

My Fair Lady with the Utah Symphony

Last night the Utah Symphony performed a concert version of the stage musical My Fair Lady.  They were joined by Broadway stars Peter Scolari as Professor Henry Higgins (I saw him as the Wizard in Wicked on Broadway), Susan Derry as Eliza Doolittle, Jeff Mattsey as Alfred P. Doolittle, Charlie Tingen as Freddy Eynsford-Hill, and Michelle McConnell and Cree Carrico as the female ensemble.  In a concert setting there is minimal dialogue, limited choreography, and only a few costume changes so the music is allowed to shine.  The orchestra and the performers did an amazing job of bringing the story to life with their interpretation of the score.  Derry has a beautiful voice and I especially enjoyed her renditions of "Just You Wait" and "I Could Have Danced All Night." I also really liked her performance of "The Rain in Spain" with Scolari and I was very moved by his heartfelt version of "I've Grown Accustomed to Her Face."  Finally, I loved Tingen's performance of "On the Street Where You Live" which is my favorite song in the show because I think it is so romantic.  The entire evening was just loverly!

Note:  I've heard a rumor that the Utah Symphony will be performing the musical Singin' in the Rain in concert next season!

Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real at the Commonwealth Room

I became a fan of Promise of the Real when I saw them perform with Neil Young on tour.  I thought they had a really great rock-country sound.  Then I found out that Lukas Nelson co-wrote some of the songs for the movie A Star is Born with Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga and that Promise of the Real performs in the movie as Jackson Maine's band.  I loved these songs and I bought the movie soundtrack and listened to it over and over.  Then I discovered Promise of the Real's latest self-titled album which I also love.  When I found out that they were coming to SLC I bought a ticket as soon as they went on sale (which was a good thing because the show sold out very quickly) and I've been looking forward to it for so long!  I had never been to the Commonwealth Room before last night and now I think it is a great venue because it is so intimate.  I ended up right in front of the stage which was fantastic because Lukas Nelson is pretty easy on the eyes.  The older woman standing next to me said that if she was my age she would be chasing after him!  Not only is he good looking but he is very talented and charismatic and he and his band certainly know how to put on a good show!  They played their songs "Find Yourself" (which is my favorite), "Fool Me Once," "Just Outside of Austin," "Carolina," "Four Letter Word," "Little Girl," "Start to Go," "Forget About Georgia," "Turn Off the News," and "Something Real."  They also played a few songs off their forthcoming album, including "Save a Little Heartache" and "Where Does Love Go When It Dies" which I really liked.  I loved hearing all of these songs live because Lukas sounds so much like his Dad (who just happens to be Willie Nelson).  They also performed a few covers including a super sultry version of Tom Petty's "Breakdown," "Sympathy for the Devil" by the Rolling Stones, and "L.A. Woman" by the Doors.  The highlight for me came during the encore when they played an amazing version of "Shallow" from A Star is Born.  It was incredibly powerful and it gave me goosebumps (even though it didn't include Lady Gaga).  This was my first concert of 2019 and it was definitely a good one!