The Teachers' Lounge

Last night I decided on a foreign film double feature at the Broadway and I began with The Teachers' Lounge.  I had an almost visceral reaction to several scenes because I am a former teacher and this is an incredibly accurate portrayal of what teaching sometimes feels like.  Carla Nowak (Leonie Benesch) is an idealistic first year teacher in a middle school that has been experiencing a series of thefts.  When one of her students (who is Muslim) is accused, she objects to the way in which her superiors abuse their power to single him out and decides to investigate the thefts herself.  She surreptitiously gathers evidence that seems to lead to an administrative assistant as the culprit but her accusation puts her at odds with the administration, her students (especially the son of the accused who is in her class), the parents, and the other teachers.  What I found fascinating is that Carla is initially very well-liked by her colleagues and is a great teacher with a lot of participation and engagement from her students but, as an unintended consequence of her well-meaning action, they all quickly turn against her and events spiral out of control.  The school becomes a microcosm of society where everyone is looking for someone else to blame and misinformation abounds.  All of the action takes place within a few areas of the school and this really heightens Carla's sense of claustrophobia when she finds no support.  The tension slowly escalates until it is almost unbearable and a scene where every student in her class refuses to comply with her directions gave me a panic attack.  Benesch gives a brilliant central performance, which is enhanced by an unnerving score, and I often found it very difficult to watch.  My only criticism is that the ending is a bit anticlimactic after all of the build-up but I highly recommend this thought-provoking film.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame at OPPA

I really love the musical The Hunchback of Notre Dame so I decided to see a production at On Pitch Performing Arts last night. This was my first show at OPPA and I was very impressed! Quasimodo (Jared Daley) has been hidden by his master Frollo (Chris Morgan) in the bell tower of Notre Dame Cathedral all of his life because of his deformity. He wonders what it would be like to leave the cathedral and decides that he will be safe on the streets of Paris during the Feast of Fools. He is eventually crowned the King of the Fools but when the crowd turns on him the gypsy Esmeralda (Megan Mariano) rescues him. She catches the eye of the captain of the cathedral guard, Phoebus de Martin (Nate Kemp), who falls in love with her but she also bewitches Frollo who becomes obsessed with possessing her. When Esmeralda rejects Frollo, he orders Phoebus to arrest her. Phoebus refuses and they both become fugitives who are aided by Quasimodo until the final confrontation in the bell tower. This is a complicated show and most productions that I have seen have had large and elaborate sets but, because OPPA's space is small and intimate, the set is very minimal. It features a runway that extends into the space from a narrow stage with a manually operated turntable at the end of it. A large LED screen is located behind the stage, with projections depicting the inside of the cathedral and the town square, and curtained doors with stairs are located on either side. The stairs are moved to either side of the runway to depict the bell tower. At first I wondered if this would detract from the storytelling, especially since the set did not include any bells, but the innovative staging and clever lighting kept me completely engaged. I was especially impressed by the staging of "God Help the Outcasts" (my favorite song from the show), because the end of the runway becomes an altar when several storytellers place candles on the edge and kneel in front of it, "Hellfire," because Frollo stands on the turntable while the storytellers manually turn him and shine handheld red spotlights on him, and "Kyrie Eleison," because Esmeralda stands on the turntable with the handheld red spotlights as Quasimodo weaves in and out of the storytellers to mimic swinging down from the tower to save her. The choreography in "Topsy Turvy," "Rhythm of the Tambourine," "Tavern Song," and "The Court of Miracles" is straightforward but fun and energetic and the ensemble, which features dancers of various abilities, does a great job executing it. The storytellers, who narrate the show, are costumed as townspeople but they are transformed, often right on stage, into gypsies, soldiers, clergy members, and gargoyles with the addition of simple pieces and props and this is incredibly effective. The stripped-down set, choreography, and costumes allow the performances, which are outstanding, to shine! All four leads have beautiful voices and their renditions of "God Help the Outcasts," "Hellfire," "Heaven's Light," and "Someday" gave me goosebumps! I especially enjoyed Daley's performance because he imbues Quasimodo with a childlike wonder in "Out There" and "Top of the World" but you can also feel his torment during "Made of Stone." I am so happy to have found OPPA (I will definitely be back) because I loved this show and I highly recommend it.  It runs through March 2 with performances on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays (go here for tickets).

Strauss' Don Juan

I attended another wonderful concert at Abravanel Hall last night during which the Utah Symphony performed pieces composed in the 18th, 19th, 20th, and 21st centuries (the latter was a world premiere).  Former Associate Conductor Conner Gray Covington was back on the podium leading the orchestra beginning with Symphony No. 88 by Franz Joseph Haydn (representing the 18th century).  I really loved all of the beautiful melodies throughout, especially a flute solo in the first movement and the use of trumpets and timpani in the second movement.  Next came Trombone Concerto "Sonorous" by Quinn Mason (representing the 21st century) and this was my favorite piece of the concert (it is always really exciting to be the first to hear new music).  It was composed in collaboration with former Utah Symphony Principal Trombonist Mark Davidson who requested a piece that allowed the trombone to sing and I believe that Mason succeeded in fulfilling that request because the sound of the trombone seemed to float above the orchestra. Mason was in attendance to introduce the piece featuring Davidson as soloist and it was absolutely amazing!  I particularly loved how the trombone interacted with the rest of the orchestra with calls and responses during the first movement and with the rest of the trombone section in unison during the second movement.  Davidson played brilliantly, most notably in the third movement when he played multiple notes incredibly fast (with a technique known as double-tonguing), and I really loved his tone (who knew the trombone could be so expressive?).  He and Mason received a well deserved standing ovation from the large crowd.  After the intermission the orchestra continued with Don Juan by Richard Strauss (representing the 19th century).  Strauss was inspired by a poem by Nikolaus Lenau in which the famous lothario languishes in solitude before his death.  I loved the spirited opening featuring the horns in unison and the romantic theme played by a solo violin.  The concert concluded with Symphony No. 1 by Samuel Barber (representing the 20th century) and I really enjoyed this piece because it is very passionate.  I especially loved the dramatic themes performed by the brass and timpani, the solo played by the oboe, and the repetition from the basses at the end.  This entire program is outstanding but I especially recommend getting a ticket for tonight's performance (go here) for the chance to hear the Trombone Concerto because it is remarkable!

Balthazar at Plan-B Theatre

Last night I went to see Plan-B Theatre's production of Balthazar, a new play by Debora Threedy which reimagines the story of Shakespeare's play The Merchant of Venice from the perspective of Portia. Since The Merchant of Venice is one of my favorite plays (I wrote my senior thesis in college on it), I was really excited to see this and I enjoyed it very much! Portia (Lily Hye Soo Dixon), a noblewoman in Venice, consults with her cousin Bellario (Jason Bowcutt), a lawyer in Padua, after the reading of her father's will because she objects to the stipulation that she must marry the suitor who correctly chooses from three caskets, made of gold, silver, and lead, respectively. She finds it unfair and wishes to challenge the will but he argues that is it valid in the eyes of the law. This piques her interest in studying the law but Bellario refuses to teach her because she is a woman. Some time later a young man named Balthazar (Portia in disguise) visits Bellario in order to study the law with him and, even though he is angry when he realizes that it is Portia, he reluctantly agrees to teach her if she promises not to dress as a man again. However, she finds it necessary to become Balthazar to investigate the relationship between her suitor Bassanio and his close friend Antonio and then once again after her marriage to Bassanio to defend Antonio when he is unable to pay back a loan to Shylock taken out for Bassanio's benefit. After the trial, she confesses to Bellario that she has continued to appear in public as Balthazar, with the blessing of Bassanio, not just out of necessity but because she enjoys the freedom she feels as a man. She concludes that she is equally at home as both Portia and Balthazar. This is a quick 70 minutes, performed without an intermission, and I found it riveting. I especially enjoyed all of Bellario and Portia's spirited discussions about the letter of the law vs. the spirit of the law and I also loved their discussions about gender fluidity. The most powerful scene for me is when Bellario initially refuses to break the law by recommending a woman as a lawyer but realizes that Portia is the best lawyer he has ever trained and that he would be recommending a person rather than a man or woman. Both Dixon and Bowcutt give compelling performances that showcase the journey to understanding their characters take. Even though the Studio Theatre is a small and intimate space, the set featuring Bellario's study is very elaborate and striking with a black and white checkerboard floor, red velvet curtains, a wall of Renaissance paintings, candle wall sconces, and a large wooden desk with benches. I was also impressed with the beautiful costumes featuring gorgeous fabrics and lots of embellishments. This is an interesting and thought-provoking production with an important message and it is definitely worth seeing. It runs through March 3 with evening performances on Thursdays and Fridays and matinees on Saturdays and Sundays at the Studio Theatre at the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center (go here for tickets).

Madame Web

The second movie in my double feature yesterday was Madame Web and, after reading some horrible reviews, I really wanted to give it a chance but it is just so bad.  Cassandra "Cassie" Webb (Dakota Johnson) is an antisocial paramedic who gains the ability to see into the future after a near death experience.  While on a train she has a vision of an attack on three girls, Julia Cornwall (Sydney Sweeney), Anya Corazon (Isabela Merced), and Mattie Franklin (Celeste O'Connor), by a man with spider-like abilities.  She rescues them before the attack can happen and then recognizes the man as Ezekiel Sims (Tahar Rahim), an explorer who was in the Amazon with her mother when she was researching spiders right before she died (this meme-able line from the trailer is not actually in the movie).  It seems that he stole a rare spider with healing properties from Cassie's pregnant mother and he can see his death at the hands of the three aforementioned girls in the future and wants to kill them before they can do the deed.  After another attack on the girls, Cassie reluctantly takes responsibility for them, learns her backstory and why she has this strange ability, and finally faces Sims in a fiery confrontation.  Much like the Venom movies (which I disliked) and Morbius (which I didn't even bother to see), this is another attempt by Sony to create a full-fledged narrative about a side character in the Spider-Man universe and it doesn't really work on any level.  The story is often nonsensical even though there are plenty of clunky exposition dumps in the dialogue.  The action sequences are not very interesting because the writers and the director have no idea what to do with a character whose power is mental rather than physical (she tells the girls to get down a lot) and the editing is so disjointed that it is hard to even see what is going on.  The villain is not very compelling or well developed (I have so many questions) and Rahim's ADR is some of the worst I have ever seen or heard.  Johnson can be a great actress (I love her in Cha Cha Real Smooth and The Lost Daughter) but she needs good material to elevate her performance and, in this mess, she seems completely disengaged from what is happening.  Sweeney gets the most screen time out of the three girls (I have lots of questions about them and their powers, as well) but she is incredibly bland.  Ugh!  The best part of this movie, in my opinion, is Cassie's partner Ben Parker (Adam Scott) who becomes an uncle (wink wink) during the final confrontation.  Even with very low expectations I was still disappointed with this movie and I highly recommend giving this a miss.

Note:  Don't even get me started on the product placement...