Nathan Pacheco Christmas Concert

I first heard Nathan Pacheco sing when he was a guest vocalist for one of Kurt Bestor's Christmas concerts.  His rendition of "O Holy Night" at that concert is one of the best I've heard so, when I found out that he would be performing a Christmas concert at Abravanel Hall, I bought a ticket hoping that I would get to hear it again. The show was last night and I was not disappointed! He was backed by the Lyceum Philharmonic, which is led by Kayson Brown and features talented high school students from the American Heritage School, as well as his music director and pianist Leo Z and cellist Nicole Pinnell. They began with "O Come, All Ye Faithful" and "Carol of the Bells" and then Pacheco came to the stage singing one of his original songs, "Don't Cry." The concert was an eclectic mix of Christmas songs, original songs, covers, and songs from the classical repertoire and one of my favorite moments came next when he sang "Nessun Dorma" from the opera Turandot (it gave me goosebumps when he hit all of the high notes). He continued with "Silver Bells" and "Winter Wonderland" and then said that he had never performed the next song in front of a crowd before and brought Clara Hurtado Lee and a children's choir to the stage to sing "Adiemus" which was incredibly beautiful! He performed a really cool cover of "Take on Me" by a-ha and then "From Now On" from the movie The Greatest Showman. He told the audience that he had just written an original musical called Beloved and then gave us a sneak peak by singing "What You Become" from it. Emma Nissen joined him on stage for a lovely version of "The Prayer" and then he continued with the Christmas songs "Gaudete" (I loved this), "O Come, O Come Emmanuel," "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing," and "Silent Night." He performed an acoustic cover of Simon and Garfunkel's "Star Carol" (accompanying himself on guitar) and then a powerful version of his song "Forever." He concluded his main set by singing "O Holy Night."  I had been waiting all night for him to sing this and it was definitely worth the wait because he just about blew the roof off Abravanel Hall! For the encore, he brought his sister to the stage to sing the duet "Time to Say Goodbye" which was another favorite moment for me! I don't know if this was spontaneous or not because all of the musicians were prepared to play it but she seemed really hesitant to come up to the stage! He concluded with "God Bless Us Everyone" from the movie A Christmas Carol. This was an amazing show and Pacheco was incredibly charming and continually expressed his genuine gratitude to the crowd for supporting him. He said that he hoped to be back for another Christmas concert at Abravanel Hall next year and, if he is, I will be there, too!

Note:  My sister also had tickets to this show with her friend so we ended up going together!

Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir 2023

Whenever I am unable to get a ticket to the Christmas with the Tabernacle Choir concert, I go to the Music and the Spoken Word broadcast the following Sunday because it usually features the guest artists and a portion of the program.  It is actually quite nice because the parking situation is a bit easier on an early Sunday morning than it is in the evening with so many other events going on.  The guest artists this year were Michael Maliakel, who is currently starring as the title role in Aladdin on Broadway, and Lesley Nicol, who is best known for playing Mrs. Patmore on Downton Abbey.  The concert began with choir members in a procession down the aisles to "Sing We Now of Christmas" with the Orchestra at Temple Square and the Gabriel Trumpet Ensemble.  It was beautiful and incredibly dramatic!  Michael Maliakel joined the choir for "Joy to the World" and I really loved his voice and his rendition of this song.  I wasn't very familiar with him but now I will pay attention because he is extremely talented and charismatic!  Next, the choir sang "To The Cradle Run," which I was unfamiliar with but definitely enjoyed, and then Richard Elliott performed "Bring a Torch, Jeanette, Isabella" on the organ with fanfares played by the Gabriel Trumpet Ensemble (this gave me goosebumps because I love this song).  The choir performed another song I was unfamiliar with called "O Little One Sweet" and then Lesley Nicol read the Christmas story from the Bible.  The program concluded with a stirring version of "Angels from the Realms of Glory" by Michael Maliakel and this also gave me goosebumps.  After the broadcast concluded, the audience got to hear another portion of the concert when a story about Victor Hugo's Christmas fetes for the children on the island of Guernsey was told by Lesley Nicol.  A replica of Hautville House, Hugo's home on Guernsey, was featured with performers acting out the story while Nicol narrated (she was delightful).  It was so inspiring and I especially loved the use of Hugo's quote, "To love is to act."  It was a lovely concert and I'm glad I made the effort to get up early (and put on a skirt) to attend!

A Kurt Bestor Christmas at the Eccles 2023

I really love hearing Christmas music performed live, especially Kurt Bestor's arrangements, so I always try to attend his annual Christmas concert.  The show was last night (along with tons of other Christmas events downtown which made driving and parking a lot of fun) and, as always, I thoroughly enjoyed it.  He began with "Suite de Noel," "Il Le Ne Le Divin Enfant," and "Good King Wenceslaus" before telling a funny story about performing "What Child Is This?" (many songs were prefaced with amusing anecdotes).  Next he played "Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella," which I loved because it is one of my favorites, and then "I'll Be Home for Christmas," which he dedicated to all veterans in the audience.  Then he featured his insanely talented band on a calypso-inspired version of "O Tannenbaum" with extended solos from Michael Dowdle on guitar, Carlitos del Puerto on bass, and Eric Valentine on drums.  It was very cool!  Next came a beautiful rendition of "Carol of the Bells" dedicated to the people of Ukraine and then his special guest for the evening, David Archuleta, came to the stage to perform a breathtaking version of "Prayer of the Children" (Kurt Bestor's best known song which is celebrating its 30th Anniversary) that brought the audience to its feet!  After the intermission, Bestor performed "Coventry Carol," another favorite of mine, and then a fun arrangement of "Christmas Time Is Here" complete with a Charlie Brown Christmas tree!  Next, he dedicated a lovely version of "All Through the Night" to one of his close friends who recently died.  David Archuleta returned to the stage for an incredible performance of "Pat-A-Pan" that gave me goosebumps and then gave a very heartfelt rendition of "Grown Up Christmas List" after telling the audience that his list included kindness and understanding for those who are different (he received thunderous applause for this).  Then he performed Bestor's arrangement of "I Wonder as I Wander" (at Bestor's request) and the audience leapt to their feet once again!  Bestor lamented that it would be impossible to follow such an amazing performance but his version of "O Holy Night" was definitely a highlight for me (it was the second time that I have heard my favorite Christmas song this season).  As is tradition, he chose someone from the audience to narrate "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" while he performed his amusing arrangement of songs to go with it.  He concluded the concert with "Joy to the World" and a lovely audience sing-along to "Silent Night" led by David Archuleta.  I always love this concert every year but I think this one might be my favorite!

Fallen Leaves

I was very intrigued by the trailer for Fallen Leaves (it won the Jury Prize at Cannes this year) so I decided to see it at the Broadway yesterday afternoon.  It is a quirky story about how two lonely people overcome a series of obstacles to be together and I loved it!  Ansa (Alma Pöysti) lives alone in a tiny apartment in Helsinki and works a series of low-paying and monotonous jobs.  She notices Holappa (Jussi Vatanen), an alcoholic metalworker who is frequently fired for drinking on the job, at a karaoke bar (in a hilarious scene) and they have a series of random encounters as they struggle to survive in an urban hellscape.  They eventually get together for a date (they see the movie The Dead Don't Die and I laughed out loud when Adam Driver appeared on the screen because I certainly wasn't expecting that) and realize that they are attracted to each other (but don't know each other's name).  Complications ensue which keep them apart until they both decide to take a chance on each other.  Aside from the unexpected cameo by Adam Driver, I loved so many things about this movie!  The humor is incredibly subtle (I once again laughed out loud at a throwaway line about Luc Besson) and the performances are almost deadpan but hint at the sadness underneath.  There is very little dialogue but both Pöysti and Vantanen convey so much with just a glance (and a wink) and all of the needle drops (depressing lyrics with surprisingly upbeat music) are perfect.  The time period is strangely ambiguous because, even though there are references to the Russian attack of Ukraine during the endless newscasts our protagonists listen to, the production design is anachronistic (they listen to the news on the radio rather than the TV) and there is a retro color palette evoking a post-war Finland.  This is very effective at setting a tone of hopelessness despite the hopeful resolution.  I found this gem to be absolutely charming and I highly recommend it!

A Christmas Carol at HCT 2023

Last night I attended my fourth and final performance of A Christmas Carol this season at HCT. I have seen this production dozens of times (I always joke that I have seen it so many times I could probably stand in for any role if needed) but it is a sentimental favorite and it just wouldn't be Christmas without it. The portrayal of Ebenezer Scrooge's redemption after visits from the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future in this show is so familiar to me by now but it is this familiarity that makes me love it so much! I eagerly anticipate all of my favorite scenes, especially when Marley's Ghost appears to Scrooge rattling his many chains, when the Ghost of Christmas Past appears to Scrooge from behind a scrim, when the guests dance during Mr. Fezziwig's party and Fred's party, when the Ghost of Christmas Future dramatically reveals Scrooge's name on the tombstone, when an ebullient Scrooge catches Bob Cratchit coming in late the day after Christmas, and when Tiny Tim exclaims, "God bless us, every one!" Many actors return year after year in the same roles (such as Stephen Kerr as Scrooge, Chase Peterson as Fred, Matt Kohler as Marley's Ghost, and Kaden Caldwell as young Ebenezer) and I look forward to seeing them again. However, this year there were a few new actors (at least new to me because the show is double cast) and I really enjoyed seeing them make these familiar roles their own with a new interpretation, particularly Anthony LeRoy Lovato as Bob Cratchit, and Koryn Sobel as Belle. Another element of this particular production that I especially love is the inclusion of Christmas carols in the narrative by an octet (Melinda DeBirk, Jennifer Riley, Keri Vance, April Kerr, Doug Wadley, Maxx Teuscher, Nathanael Abbott, and Alex DeBirk) and a violinist (Suzanne Chapman). My favorites are "Bring a Torch, Jeanette Isabella," "Silent Night" (the entire scene with the poor wife singing this song is incredibly affecting), "Wassail, Wassail," "What Child is This?," and "Sussex Carol." I also really love the sets (this production has the most elaborate sets of any I've seen) because the attention to detail with Scrooge's Counting House, Scrooge's Bed Chamber, Fezziwig's Factory, Bob Cratchit's House (two stories!), Fred's House (the giant Christmas tree!), the Rag and Bottle Shop, and the Graveyard is amazing! I loved it last night just as much as I did the first time I saw it and I'm sure it will always be one of my Christmas traditions. It runs on the Sorenson Legacy Jewell Box Stage through December 27 (go here for tickets) but act quickly because most shows are sold out (the best availability is for matinee performances).

Note:  In light of the fact that I have now seen four different versions, some friends have asked me which was my favorite.  I can honestly say that I liked all four of them for very different reasons.  Parker Theatre's version is incredibly dramatic, Terrace Plaza Playhouse's version is fun and lighthearted, HCTO's version is the most authentic, and HCT's version is comforting and familiar.