This Is The Place Heritage Park

Yesterday Sean and I had one of our Friday outings to This Is The Place Heritage Park at the mouth of Emigration Canyon.  It was on my list of places to visit because I had never been there before!

The monument is named in honor of Brigham Young's famous statement that the Salt Lake Valley was where the Mormon pioneers should settle after trekking west.  It commemorates the Mormon pioneers as well as the settlers and explorers of the American West.  I liked reading about all of the people depicted on the monument and the views of the Salt Lake Valley were spectacular!

After wandering around the monument we visited the Heritage Village which is a living history museum featuring restorations or replicas of actual buildings from Utah's history.  It was a lot of fun to tour these buildings (it was a beautiful fall day with blue skies and cool temperatures) but some of the interactive pioneer exhibits, such as pony rides and the blacksmith demonstration, were not going on because of Covid-19.

Because some of the activities are limited right now, there is a special price for admission.  Tickets are $7.95 per person to tour the Heritage Village and they must be purchased online (go here).  The Heritage Village is open Monday-Saturday 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.  In addition to the Village, there is a Visitors Center and Gift Shop, a Restaurant, a Candy Store, and an Ice Cream Store.  Sean and I had a lot of fun visiting!

Utah Opera's The Human Voice and Gentleman's Island

The Utah Opera 2020-2021 season was meant to begin with Wagner's The Flying Dutchman but, since it is a large and complicated production, it was replaced by a more intimate double bill of The Human Voice by Francois Poulenc and Gentleman's Island by Joseph Horovitz in order to comply with Covid-19 guidelines.  I usually prefer the classic tragedies sung in German or Italian but I was very intrigued by the premise of both of these operas because they both explore the theme of isolation which is very appropriate for these times.  The evening began with The Human Voice which is based on the play La voix humaine by Jean Cocteau but updated to feature modern technology to emphasize the isolation between two people.  The audience overhears Elle's (Wendy Bryn Harmer) side of a phone conversation with her lover of five years who has called her to inform her that he is getting married to someone else the next day.  She goes back and forth between many different emotions as she professes her love for him, expresses remorse for hurting him, threatens suicide to manipulate him, rages against his betrayal, and then succumbs to sorrow as he hangs up.  Harmer conveys these emotions brilliantly with subtle variations in her voice and it is surprisingly very compelling.  The set consists of a bedroom in an apartment with a city skyline projected on a screen behind it.  At various points in their conversation, images from her iPad are also projected on the screen as she reminisces about their life together and one of the most poignant moments occurs when she deletes pictures of him.  The score, which features just the piano, is sometimes incredibly beautiful and sometimes strident depending upon Elle's mood.  After a brief pause to change the set (there is not an intermission to avoid gathering in the lobby) the evening continued with Gentleman's Island which is very different in tone but also explores the isolation that happens when social conventions are taken too far.  Mr. Gray (Brian Stucki), a tea taster, and Mr. Somers (Christopher Clayton), an indigo importer, are the only survivors of a shipwreck and land on a deserted island.  Since they have not been formally introduced, etiquette forbids them from talking to each other.  They each claim a portion of the beach, one where there is an abundance of oysters and one where there is an abundance of turtles, but they each prefer the other's food supply and cannot abide their own.  Rather than risk a social faux pas, they each resign themselves to starving to death.  Stucki and Clayton give incredibly playful performances as proper Victorian Englishmen and the music is quite light and airy.  The set is very minimal with the seashore projected on a screen with the musicians behind it instead of in the pit.  It was a delightful performance after the heightened drama of The Human Voice.  I was so happy to be back at Capitol Theatre and I was very impressed with the precautions taken to keep the audience safe (socially distant seating, contactless ticketing, mandatory masks, and digital programs).  I highly recommend this production which continues through October 18 (go here for tickets).

Psycho

I am a huge fan of Alfred Hitchcock and I have seen Psycho many times but never on the big screen.  Last night I finally had the opportunity and it was amazing (the crowd cheered when the opening credits started rolling).  It is the perfect movie to watch in October because it is considered by many critics to be the original (and best) slasher horror film.  Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) laments the fact that she must conduct a clandestine relationship with her boyfriend Sam Loomis (John Gavin) because he can't afford to marry her.  She sees an opportunity for them to be together when her boss asks her to deposit $40,000.  She impulsively embezzles the money and goes on the run to meet up with Loomis.  On the road she decides to stop for the night at the secluded Bates Motel during a rainstorm.  When the lonely proprietor, Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), invites her to dinner, his mother objects which leads to tragedy (and one of the most famous scenes in cinematic history).  The narrative then shifts to the investigation of Marion's disappearance, conducted by Loomis, Marion's sister Lila (Vera Miles), and a private investigator (Martin Balsam) hired to locate the money, and the discovery that Norman Bates may not be who he seems.  There are so many aspects of this movie that I think are brilliant!  The first time I saw it, I was surprised when Marion was murdered so soon into the runtime because Hitchcock takes great pains to establish her as the sympathetic main protagonist.  Then, all of the audience's sympathy is transferred to Norman as he frantically cleans up the murder scene and disposes of Marion's body to cover for his mother.  Finally, the revelations about Norman are so shocking because of the dramatic build up about Mrs. Bates!  Hitchcock is the master of manipulation!  Even though I have now seen it many times, I still think it is incredibly suspenseful and I discover something new every time!  The shower scene is absolutely terrifying for what you don't see rather than for what you do (the cutting of this scene is ingenious) and the iconic score featuring the screeching strings adds to the intensity.  I love the use of light and dark to foreshadow danger and the symbolism of the stuffed birds.  Both Perkins and Leigh give superb performances, especially in the scene where the two of them talk about being trapped by the circumstances of life.  It was so exciting to watch one of the best psychological thrillers ever made last night and I highly recommend seeing it as it was meant to be seen.  There is one more opportunity (go here for tickets).

Broadway Villains in Concert at CPT

Last night I spent a wonderful evening back at Centerpoint Theatre for a show called Broadway Villains in Concert. Like many theatres around the country, CPT has been dramatically affected by Covid-19 but I think they have done a marvelous job with creatively adapting so that they can still provide entertainment for their patrons while keeping everyone safe. Over the summer they held concerts in the parking lot which were so much fun and this month they are presenting another concert on the Barlow Main Stage featuring songs from the best villains in popular Broadway shows. They have many safety protocols in place, including contactless ticketing, socially distant seating, and mandatory masks. The show was a little over an hour without an intermission. The entire company performed "No One Mourns The Wicked" from Wicked, "The Mob Scene" from Beauty and the Beast, "Masquerade" from The Phantom of the Opera, and "Facade" from Jekyll & Hyde which featured dramatic black costumes, innovative choreography to keep the actors physically distant, and a minimal set comprised of different levels. My favorite performance of the evening was from my favorite musical Hamilton. Christian Johnston, a former student of mine, performed "You'll Be Back" as King George III.  I think he did such a great job, even rivaling some of the Georges I've see in Broadway productions! The concert also featured "No Good Deed" from Wicked with Sydney Stephan as Elphaba, "A Little Priest" from Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street with Tyler Hanson as Sweeney Todd and Brittany Bullen as Mrs. Lovett, "Dentist!" from Little Shop of Horrors with Craig Williams as Orin Scrivello, DDS, "Poison in my Pocket" from A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder with Colton Ward as Monty Navarro, "Stepsisters' Lament" from Cinderella with Kacee Neff and Sydney Stephan as Wicked Stepsisters, "Stars" from Les Miserables with Ricky Parkinson as Javert, "Alive" from Jekyll & Hyde with Ben Lowell as Hyde, "World Burn" from Mean Girls with Karina Gillette as Regina George, "Little Girls" and "Easy Street" from Annie with Camille Crawley as Miss Hannigan, Christian Johnston as Rooster, and Janessa Zech as Lily St. Regis, "The Hammer" from Matilda with Brittany Bullen as Miss Trunchbull, and "Stay with Me" from Into the Woods with Kimberly Holden as the Witch. As I mentioned, all of the actors are wearing black costumes but they each added a little flourish to represent their characters.  I especially loved King George's ermine cape, Elphaba's green eye shadow, and Regina's pink shoes. This show is extremely well done with incredibly talented performers and I really enjoyed it! It runs at CPT on Mondays, Fridays, and Saturdays until October 24.  Tickets are only $12.00 for the balcony and $15.00 for the main floor which makes it a great deal (go here for tickets). I highly recommend this show for the whole family (there were a lot of kids in the audience last night and they were cheering enthusiastically).

Note:  After watching Gillette perform "World Burn," I am so excited to see Mean Girls which is, fingers crossed, coming to the Eccles Theatre next year!

Yellow Rose

I'm not a huge fan of country music but I thought the trailer for Yellow Rose looked good so I saw it last night.  I ended up really liking it!  Rose Garcia (Eva Noblezada) is a seventeen-year-old Filipino girl who is an aspiring singer-songwriter.  She lives in a motel in a small Texas town where her mother Priscilla (Princess Punzalen) works as a maid.  They are both undocumented but Rose does not know the true extent of their immigration troubles.  Knowing her love of country music, her friend Elliott (Liam Booth) invites her to a Western bar called the Broken Spoke in Austin.  When she returns home, she sees her mother arrested by ICE in the middle of the night but she is able to get away.  She spends the next few months trying help her mother while bouncing between her aunt Gail (Lea Salonga) who doesn't want her intruding into her life, the kindhearted owner of the Broken Spoke (Libby Villari) who takes pity on her, and country singer Dale Watson (himself) who sees her talent and wants to mentor her.  Ultimately, she must make peace with her mother's decisions, learn to survive on her own, and channel all of her heartache into her music.  Rose's story is incredibly affecting (there were a few moments where I had tears in my eyes) and Noblezada gives an outstanding performance.  I was especially impressed with her singing and guitar playing and I actually really enjoyed all of the original songs.  I know that immigration is a really sensitive subject with no easy answers but I was quite upset about Priscilla's inhumane treatment while in custody and I think this portrayal is an appropriate indictment of current policies.  My only complaint about this movie is the ambiguous ending.  While I did love the triumphant scene featuring Rose playing a gig of her own songs, I was left wondering about her fate because nothing about her immigration situation has changed.  After such an emotional journey with Rose I wanted her to be more settled.  It is, however, a very poignant coming-of-age of age story and I highly recommend it.

Note:  This movie reminded me of Wild Rose.  We just need one more story about an aspiring country singer with rose in the title to complete the trilogy!