Utah Opera's Rigoletto

I was so excited to see Utah Opera's production of Rigoletto last night because it is one of my favorite operas and it certainly didn't disappoint!  The hunchback Rigoletto (Scott Hendricks) is a jester in the court of the licentious Duke of Mantua (Matthew White).  He amuses the Duke by mocking the husbands and fathers of the women the Duke has seduced but this often earns their anger, especially Count Monterone (Christopher Clayton) who places a curse on Rigoletto in retaliation.  Rigoletto returns home to his beloved daughter Gilda (Jasmine Habersham) and, even though he is fiercely protective of her, she manages to meet and fall in love with a man she sees at church.  This mystery man, who is none other than the Duke, contrives to meet her that night and professes his undying love to her.  The courtiers, who want to teach Rigoletto a lesson, kidnap Gilda and bring her to the Duke.  Rigoletto is distraught and arranges for an assassin named Sparafucile (Kevin Thompson) to help him get revenge.  However, the plan goes horribly wrong leading Rigoletto to despair because Monterone's curse has come to pass.  The music in this opera is incredibly beautiful and I especially loved "Caro nome," in which Gilda declares her love for the Duke (who she thinks is a penniless student), because it uses coloraturas to mimic the themes played by two flutes, "La donna e mobile," in which the Duke accuses women of being fickle, because even though it is light and charming it is really an indictment of the Duke's behavior, and "Cortigiani, vil razza dannata," in which Rigoletto tearfully begs the courtiers to release his daughter, because it is so affecting.  I also really loved the themes played by a solo cello, a solo bass, and the woodwinds when Rigoletto first meets the assassin Sparafucile because it is so sinister.  The entire cast is outstanding (I was particularly struck by the ensemble in the number "Scorrendo uniti," in which the courtiers tell the Duke that they have kidnapped Rigoletto's daughter, because the staging is so humorous) but the three leads are absolutely phenomenal.  I loved White's voice but the choice to have such a young, charismatic, and handsome actor play the villain was very effective because it made his behavior seem even more reprehensible.  Habersham was absolutely luminous and her rendition of "Caro nome" just about brought the house down.  Hendricks has tremendous stage presence and he was brilliant at portraying both the foolish jester and the devoted father willing to do anything to protect his daughter (he made me laugh multiple times and brought a tear to my eye).  The period sets and costumes reflected the both opulence of the Duke's court (lots of luxurious red and gold fabrics) and the simplicity of Rigoletto's house and Sparafucile's workshop.  This production is heartbreaking but powerful and I enjoyed everything about it!  There are two more performances and I highly recommend getting a ticket (go here) to one of them!

Tuck Everlasting at the Terrace Plaza Playhouse

Last night I went to see Tuck Everlasting, a musical adaptation of the beloved novel by Natalie Babbitt, at the Terrace Plaza Playhouse and I really enjoyed it. Winnie Foster (Jenna Francis) feels trapped in a house where her mother Betsy (Tracie Davies) and her Nana (Juliene Snyder) are in mourning for her dead father and she longs for adventure. One day she sneaks into the woods and meets Jesse Tuck (Jace Fawcett) near a stream. He stops her from taking a drink from the stream and inadvertently reveals that the water has made his family immortal. Jesse is happy to have made a friend but the rest of the Tuck family, including Mae (Hailey Jasper), Angus (Sheldon Cheshire), and Miles (Max Fawcett), worry that their secret will be revealed. Little do they know that the Man in the Yellow Suit (David Hales) has overheard Jesse and has evil plans for the water. Eventually Jesse asks Winnie to drink the water when she turns seventeen but his family warns that being immortal is not as enchanting as it appears. Francis and Fawcett are incredibly endearing as Winnie and Jesse, respectively, and I especially enjoyed their renditions of "Top of the World" and "Seventeen." Some of the performances from the rest of the main cast are definitely better than others but they are all filled with tremendous heart. Throughout most of the show I was really confused as to why there were so many seemingly extraneous people on stage because they often pulled focus from the action. However, this staging made a lot more sense at the end of the show during "The Wheel," where Angus tells Winnie that she doesn't need to live forever she just needs to live, and "The Story of Winnie Foster," which shows the joys and sorrows as Winnie lives out the remainder of her mortal life, because these extra characters are actually revealed to be the people in Winnie's future life who have been shadowing her as she makes the decision of whether to drink the water or not. This is an interesting, but ultimately very effective, choice because it led to several major a-ha moments for me! I also really enjoyed the choreography, especially in "Partner in Crime" where Winnie and Jesse sneak away and go to the fair, the set, which includes a large tree with a stream in front of it in the middle of the stage, and the costumes, particularly the iconic yellow suit. This production is so charming and heartwarming that I couldn't help but love it and I highly recommend it, especially to families!  It runs through April 8 and tickets may be purchased here.

Note:  I saw this show on Broadway a few years ago and it closed two days later!

Emma at Parker Theatre

My friend Karen recommended the play Emma at Parker Theatre so, because I trust her and because I am a huge fan of Jane Austen, I decided to check it out last night. I am glad that I did because I was incredibly impressed with both the production and the theatre and I will definitely be back! After Emma Woodhouse (Ariana Bagley, a wealthy young woman who has no desire to get married herself, is successful in matching her former governess Miss Taylor (Eden Benson) with Mr. Weston (Michael Hohl), she decides to take Harriet Smith (Taylor McKay Barnes), a young woman of unknown parentage, under her wing. She encourages Harriet to reject the proposal of Robert Martin (Sam Schmuhl) because he is a farmer and not worthy of her and sets her sights on the vicar Mr. Elton (Seth Larson) as a suitor instead.  However, he mistakes Emma's interest in him and declares his love to her. Then she selects Frank Churchill (Ren Cottam), whom everyone tries to match with her, but he is secretly engaged to someone else. Finally Harriet falls in love with Mr. Knightley (John Hayes Nielsen), a Woodhouse family friend, but chaos ensues when Emma realizes that she has loved Mr. Knightley all along! There are some other delightfully eccentric characters in the village of Highbury, such as her hypochondriac father Mr. Woodhouse (David Glaittli), a chatty old maid named Miss Bates (Abbie Webb), the long-suffering Jane Fairfax (Liz Nielsen), and Mr. Elton's snotty wife Augusta (Madeline Thatcher), and I absolutely loved the amusing projections that introduce and describe the dramatis personae! This adaptation, much like the one I recently saw of Pride and Prejudice at HCTO, does not include everything but it captures the essence of the novel in a way that feels fresh without sacrificing any of my favorite lines ("If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more."). I am normally a purist when it comes to changing the source material but I really liked having Robert Martin propose to Harriet first before Knightley declares his feelings to Emma because this allows the play to end with a touching moment between the two main characters. Bagley is wonderful in the title role, especially when she breaks the fourth wall to address the audience because it seems like we are all in on her schemes, and so is Barnes as Harriet because she is so physically awkward (I loved a scene where she is described as graceful while she slaps a bug on her arm and then wipes the guts off her sleeve). I also enjoyed Glaittli as Mr. Woodhouse, because he is hilariously overwrought, and Cottam as Frank Churchill, because he is such a foppish rake. However, there isn't a lot of romantic chemistry between Bagley and Nielsen (I think there should be a spark between them from the beginning and not just at the end) but that is my only criticism of the performances. The impressive set features an elegant drawing room at Hartfield that moves forward when needed, a backdrop with board and batten paneling that, with the addition of a few Regency furniture pieces, is used for the other houses in Highbury, and arches that come in from the wings to represent outdoor locations. The period costumes are a lot of fun but, strangely, I preferred the ones for the men over the ones for the women because they are more embellished. I loved this thoroughly entertaining show and I highly recommend getting a ticket for one of the three remaining performances (go here).

Creed III

I finally had the opportunity to see Creed III yesterday afternoon and I absolutely loved it!  Three years after retiring from boxing, Adonis "Donnie" Creed (Michael B. Jordan) is  enjoying life with his wife Bianca (Tessa Thompson) and daughter Amara (Mila Davis-Kent), is running the Delphi Boxing Academy, and is promoting a fight between the heavyweight champion Felix "El Guerrero" Chavez (Jose Benavidez, Jr.) and Viktor Drago (Florian Munteanu).  An old friend that Donnie boxed with in his youth named Damian "Dame" Anderson (Jonathan Majors) comes back into his life after being released from prison and asks him for a chance at the title.  Donnie tells him that it is impossible but, when Drago is attacked and unable to fight, he convinces Chavez to give Anderson the same opportunity that his father gave Rocky.  Against all odds, Anderson wins the fight to become heavyweight champion but Donnie eventually learns that he manipulated him.  It seems that the two of them have unfinished business and Anderson believes that he should have the life that Donnie has.  He bullies him into coming out of retirement to fight him in an epic match, dubbed the "Battle of Los Angeles."  Donnie struggles to get in shape with "Little Duke" Evers (Wood Harris) and Draco (in a fun training montage that ends with a fantastic Rocky moment above the Hollywood sign) but once he gets in the ring, he is not only fighting Anderson, he is attempting to slay the ghosts of his past. I really enjoyed the story, especially Donnie's fear that he doesn't deserve all that he has because of his troubled past and his determination to see that his daughter doesn't have the childhood that he did (although I wish this was explored more fully).  Jordan is incredibly compelling but Majors is an absolute knock-out in a performance that is both intense and sympathetic (he is becoming one of my favorite actors).  The two of them have tremendous chemistry together and the final resolution between them brought a tear to my eye.  Finally, the fight choreography is amazing and the way that these sequences are filmed is exhilarating.  I especially liked the close-up shots of their eyes and the way the crowd disappears to focus on the intimate showdown happening between two men who used to be friends.  This is, in my opinion, one of the best entries in the franchise and it should not be missed!

Scream VI

I consider myself to be a casual fan of the Scream franchise but, since I thoroughly enjoyed the last installment, I have been eagerly anticipating Scream VI.  I had the chance to see it last night and I loved it...for the most part.  The four survivors of the recent Woodsboro killings have relocated to New York City so Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega), Mindy Meeks-Martin (Jasmin Savoy Brown), and Chad Meeks-Martin (Mason Gooding) can attend college and Sam Carpenter (Melissa Barrera), who is struggling because of an online campaign to paint Richie Kirsch (Jack Quaid) as the victim and her as the killer, can keep a close eye on her sister.  However, a new Ghostface has also appeared in New York which puts the four survivors and their friends, Quinn Bailey (Liana Liberato), Ethan Landry (Jack Champion), and Anika Koyoko (Devyn Nekoda), in danger.  Ghostface begins killing people close to the Carpenter sisters and leaves a different mask used by the previous killers with each victim, prompting survivors Kirby Reed (Hayden Panettiere), an FBI agent, and Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox), a renowned journalist, to join Detective Bailey (Dermot Mulroney), Quinn's father, in the investigation.  They eventually discover a shrine to Ghostface, filled with artifacts from every killer, where a showdown ensues.  I enjoyed so much about this movie!  It leans heavily into the mythology of Ghostface and this time the meta-commentary involves the tropes used in horror franchises where expectations are subverted (the cold open with Samara Weaving and Tony Revolori accomplishes this brilliantly) and anyone can be a victim (even legacy characters!) in service to the IP.  The kills are even more brutal with lots of blood and guts and there are some thrilling set-pieces, including a tension filled sequence on a subway train, an nerve-wracking escape between buildings across an alleyway, and a violent shoot-out in a bodega.  The performances are great with Barrera as the stand-out as Sam grapples with the trauma of what she had to do to survive.  Finally, there are lots of fun Easter eggs from the previous movies as well as other horror movies (my favorites are the red balloon from It and the twins from The Shining).  Having said that, I did find the third act reveal to be anticlimactic because it really strains credulity.  Still, it is a fun and entertaining slasher movie and I highly recommend it to fans of the genre.