Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

I was really happy to have the chance see Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings at a Thursday preview last night because it is so good!  Over a thousand years ago a man named Xu Wenwu (Tony Leung) discovers ten rings, which grant the wearer immortality and the ability to wield incredible power, and he uses them to form a secret society of deadly assassins called the Ten Rings.  Many years later he learns of a village called Ta Lo, filled with magical creatures and inhabitants who practice a mystical form of martial arts, which he wants to control.  When he finds the entrance to the village he is beaten by Ying Li (Fala Chen), one of the guardians, and is stopped from entering.  They eventually fall in love so Wenwu gives up his power and Li leaves her village so they can marry.  They are happy with their two children, Xu Shang-Chi and Xu Xialing, for a time but eventually Wenwu's past catches up to him and a rival gang kills Li.  Wenwu returns to the Ten Rings and trains the young Shang-Chi to become an assassin to avenge his mother's death.  Shang-Chi becomes disillusioned and flees to the United States where he attempts to hide his identity.  In the present day, Shang-Chi (Simu Liu), now known as Shaun, is working as a parking valet with his best friend Katy (Awkwafina) when he is attacked by members of the Ten Rings who are looking for a pendant given to him by his mother.  He fears for his estranged sister Xialing (Meng'er Zhang), now living in Macau, because she also has a pendant so he travels there to warn her with Katy.  The two siblings eventually reunite with Wenwu, who wants the pendants to locate Ta Lo once again.  Shang-Chi, Xialing, and Katy escape (with the help of a character from the MCU that is simply too good to spoil here) and learn the secret of Ta Lo from Li's sister Ying Nan (Michelle Yeoh).  Nan shows Shang-Chi that he must embrace the traits given to him by both parents in order to save the village in an epic showdown.  I loved this movie so much and I think it is one of the best in the MCU.  I am not a martial arts expert, by any stretch of the imagination, but I think the action sequences are absolutely exhilarating, particularly the fights on a bus and on a bamboo scaffolding, and I could definitely see the two very distinct types of fighting employed by Wenwu and the Ten Rings and by Li and the rest of the villagers, respectively.  I loved the message about the importance of family and knowing who you are and I also loved the meaningful character arcs for not only Shang-Chi but also for Xialing and Katy.  It has a lot more heart than I was expecting with an incredibly powerful scene in the third act (Leung is absolutely fantastic).  I enjoyed the chemistry between Liu and Awkwafina and all of the back and forth banter between their characters (I laughed out loud so many times, especially in a mid-credits scene) because they have such a fun relationship.  Marvel did so many things right with this movie and I think it is one that most people will enjoy.

The Secret Garden at HCT

I am not a big fan of the musical The Secret Garden but Director/Choreographer Dave Tinney made me love HCT's productions of Matilda and Cinderella (shows I don't usually enjoy) and I didn't hate their version of Seussical (a show I almost walked out of when the Broadway touring production came to town and then vowed to never see again) so I was hopeful when I walked into Hale Centre Theatre last night because he is also at the helm of this show. As predicted Tinney worked his magic once again because I absolutely loved it! Mary Lennox (Olivia Dietlein) is orphaned by a cholera outbreak in India and sent to live with her uncle Archibald Craven (Quinn Dietlein) at Misselthwaite Manor in Yorkshire. He has been grieving the death of his wife Lily (Lisa Zimmerman), who died in childbirth, for the past ten years and has closed off his heart, his house, and Lily's garden. Mary receives a cold welcome from the housekeeper Mrs. Medlock (Linda Jean Stephenson) and an indifferent one from her uncle. She is lonely and unhappy but is encouraged by a maid named Martha (McKelle Shaw) and her brother Dickon (Ben Butters) to play outside and she soon discovers Lily's abandoned garden. She also discovers her cousin Colin (Toby Worland) who has been kept an invalid by Archibald's brother Neville (Alex DeBirk). As Mary brings the garden back to life, she also brings Colin and Archibald back to life.  I always love the interactions between Mary, Colin, Dickon, and Martha but my biggest problem with this show is the emphasis on the adults because I find them, especially the ghosts of characters who have died, to be almost superfluous to the story (this is the biggest change from the novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett). In this production, however, I really loved how the choreography involves the ghosts in almost every scene, particularly when Mary wanders the corridors of Misselthwaite Manor at night (with characters holding windows for her to run between), when Archibald remembers waltzing with Lily in the ballroom (with characters dancing between candelabras shrouded in dust cloths), when Mary and Dickon bring Colin to the garden for the first time (with characters summoning spirits to heal Colin), and when Archibald despairs at his loneliness without Lily (with characters holding mirrors to reflect the ghosts all around him). I don't remember seeing these characters so intimately involved in the action before and their inclusion made so much more sense to me. There are even ghosts behind windows at each entrance to the theatre which creates an eerie atmosphere. The set design, as is usually the case with HCT, is absolutely brilliant. I loved all of the dark and ponderous pieces of furniture because they emphasize how gloomy Misselthwaite Manor has become but each piece features painted flowers and vines to show that Lily's garden also haunts the inhabitants. Speaking of the garden, I loved it both when it is in its dormant state and when it is in bloom (the wisteria hanging down from the rafters was my favorite). Butters performs "Winter's on the Wing" and "Wick" (my favorite songs in the show) beautifully but I was absolutely enchanted by the animal puppets (including a dog, the all important robin who leads Mary to the garden, rabbits, a fox, and geese) used in these numbers and I may have even giggled out loud the first time the dog appeared. I also really enjoyed the songs "Come Spirit, Come Charm" by the children and the ghosts and a powerful rendition of "Hold On" by Shaw. I loved everything about this production, which I was not expecting, so I definitely recommend getting a ticket (go here). It runs on the Young Living Centre Stage through October 23.

Bryce Canyon 2021

After I drove through Zion on Sunday I decided to stay on Highway 89, as I often do, and visit Bryce Canyon.  It adds a lot more time to the drive home but, once again, the views are worth it and the drive to the park is also very scenic.  Bryce was a bit more crowded than Zion but I was still able to park at all of the viewpoints.  Here is another overload of pictures!

I really enjoyed the drive through the park because it was much cooler than in St. George and Zion and, of course, the rock formations are pretty spectacular!

Zion 2021

Ever since I visited it for the first time when I was a little girl I have been drawn to Zion National Park.  Every time I come to St. George I have a really hard time resisting the urge to drive home through the park.  It adds quite a bit of time to the drive (it doesn't cost anything because I have an America the Beautiful pass which paid for itself the first weekend I got it) but it is so worth it because the views are incredible.  I got up early yesterday morning and drove straight there.  I basically had the park to myself (which is very unusual).  Here is an overload of pictures!

I had such a great time in the park yesterday!  There is something almost mystical about the red rocks!

Beauty and the Beast at Tuacahn Amphitheatre

I always used to see at least one show at Tuacahn Amphitheatre every year but I haven't been there in a long time.  Since I am trying to get to all of my favorite outdoor venues this summer I decided to plan a quick road trip to St. George this weekend to see Beauty and the Beast.  I have seen this show many times, including the Broadway touring production, but Tuacahn's version is absolutely magical. The transformation scene where the Prince is turned into a Beast was the first thing that took my breath away because the Enchantress flies over the audience as she casts the spell.  She also flies back to the stage from the audience when she transforms the Beast back into a Prince, with swirling rose petals all around him, and this is pretty spectacular.  During the song "Belle," Gaston rides into the town square on a real horse and I actually gasped out loud when I saw him!  The big production number "Be Our Guest" is always a lot of fun but in this show there is a flying chandelier (played by a member of the ensemble) that actually made me giggle!  I also loved "The Mob Scene" because the villagers have real torches and the shadows cast by the flames are so cool.  This show uses quite a few projections, which I sometimes dislike, but in this case they are fantastic, especially all of the antlers in the song "Gaston," the giant bottle of champagne (which shoots actual fireworks when the cork is popped) in "Be Our Guest," and the library in "Something There."  The costumes are also amazing!  I especially loved the dress worn by the Enchantress because it looks like a stained glass window, the sparkling yellow ball gown worn by Belle in "Beauty and the Beast" because people clapped and cheered when she made her entrance wearing it, and the dress worn by Belle in the finale because it is simply stunning (I loved the rose).  The cast is incredibly strong, particularly Nathaniel Hackman as the Beast and Crystal Kellogg as Belle.  I loved their renditions of "If I Can't Love Her" and "Is This Home?"  Both of these numbers elicited quite the reaction from the crowd.  I also really enjoyed Todd Dubail as Gaston and Elliot Peterson as Lefou because their interactions with each other are very entertaining.  I actually felt like I was seeing this show for the very first time and I left the amphitheatre with a huge smile on my face!  It was definitely worth the four hour drive and I highly recommend it!  In addition to Beauty and the Beast, Tuacahn is also performing School of Rock and The Count of Monte Cristo in repertory through the end of October.  Tickets may be purchased here.