National Theatre Live: The Motive and the Cue

I was so excited to have the opportunity to see The Motive and the Cue, a play about the rehearsal process for the 1964 Broadway production of Hamlet directed by Sir John Gielgud and starring Richard Burton, which was filmed live on stage by National Theatre Live during its limited run at the Noel Coward Theatre in London's West End.  This screening was presented by the Tanner Humanities Center and Salt Lake Film Society yesterday and I loved it!  Sir John Gielgud (Mark Gatiss) has been hand selected by Richard Burton (Johnny Flynn) to direct a Broadway production of Hamlet in which he will star.  Gielgud once portrayed the character himself to great acclaim at the Old Vic but he is feeling like the best days of his career are over and took the job out of desperation rather than faith in Burton's ability to do the part justice.  Burton, who has recently married Elizabeth Taylor (Tuppence Middleton), is feeling tremendous pressure to live up to the challenge despite his bravura during rehearsal.  The two of them inevitably clash as Burton struggles to find his way into the character and Gielgud struggles to find a way to help his tempestuous star.  The rest of the cast, including an amusing Hume Cronyn (Allan Corduner) who plays Polonius, complicate matters because they revere Gielgud as a legend in the theatre but are also star-struck by Burton's fame (and by the access he provides to the glamorous Taylor).  With just days before opening night they hash it out in private and find an interpretation they can both be proud of.  Gatiss and Flynn give absolutely brilliant performances (their impersonations of two very well-known actors are perfect) and their scenes together are explosive and poignant by turns.  Gatiss is extraordinary in a scene in which Gielgud tries, unsuccessfully, to coach Burton through the "Speak the speech, I pray you" monologue and then performs it himself after Burton storms out (there are so many instances where lines from Hamlet inform the action and I loved the irony of having Gielgud give the speech where Hamlet instructs his actors).  Flynn, however, gave me chills with his performance of Hamlet's soliloquy after Burton finds his motivation.  I was less impressed with Middleton because she doesn't quite have Taylor's charisma but the rest of the cast, much like the cast of Hamlet, are great as background players in the central drama.  The set design, featuring a large rehearsal room, and period costumes from the 1960s are outstanding.  This play is such an ode to the importance of theatre as an art form and I really enjoyed it!  I am so glad that these National Theatre Live screenings are available near me!

Note:  Even though I loved this show, I think Andrew Scott should have won the Olivier Award for Best Actor instead of Gatiss because his performance in Vanya is remarkable.

Evita at the Empress Theatre

I was really excited to see a production of Evita at the Empress Theatre last night because, even though it is one of my favorite musicals, I hadn't seen it in a really long time. Featuring music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice, the story follows Eva Peron (Sophia Morrilla Mancilla) on her journey from impoverished teenager, to ambitious actress in Buenos Aires, to wife of military leader Juan Peron (Ben Tutor), to first lady of Argentina, and, finally, to sainthood as told by the fictional character of Che (Armando Serrano Huerta) who serves as both the narrator and a representative of the working class who provides commentary on Eva's character and actions. I really enjoyed Mancilla's performance because, not only does she have a beautiful voice, but her characterization of Eva is multi-layered. She brilliantly portrays the young girl desperate to escape her circumstances in "Buenos Aires," the scheming actress willing to manipulate her way to the top in "Goodnight and Thank You," the seductress in "I'd Be Surprisingly Good for You," the power-hungry mastermind in "A New Argentina," the passionate leader seeking adulation in "Don't Cry for Me Argentina," the superstar in "Rainbow High," the defiant survivor in "Waltz for Eva and Che," and the emotional invalid trying to come to terms with her imminent death and legacy in "You Must Love Me" and "Eva's Final Broadcast" with subtle gestures and facial expressions and I could definitely tell that this role meant a lot to her. Huerta is incredibly charismatic and energetic as Che and his interactions with Mancilla are a highlight. I also liked that he is costumed as a descamisado rather than a military leader. Tutor showcases both Peron's gravitas and vulnerability and I especially loved his rendition of "She Is a Diamond."  The ensemble is also very strong in this production. It is an intimate theater with a small cast so I could really hear individual voices and I was blown away by the talent! The choreography is really fun to watch, particularly the tango in "On This Night of a Thousand Stars" and I loved the clever use of a card game in the staging of "The Art of the Possible" and the dramatic marching in formation during "Peron’s Latest Flame."  The stage is dominated by the facade of the Casa Rosada, complete with an imposing balcony that is put to good use in "Don’t Cry for Me Argentina," with minimal pieces brought on and off stage by the ensemble and the period costumes are very effective in evoking a specific time and place.  Finally, I loved the use of the red ceibo flower as a recurring motif symbolizing strength.  I highly recommend this stirring production which runs through May 25 (go here for tickets).

Note:  I became a fan of this musical when I saw Elaine Paige, who originated the role of Eva Peron in the West End production of Evita, perform "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" in concert with the Utah Symphony many years ago!

Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes

My sister and I are big fans of the Planet of the Apes trilogy so we were really excited to see the latest installment, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, last night.  We both found it to be incredibly thought-provoking with amazing visual effects.  Many generations after the rule of Caesar, Noa (Owen Teague) is a young chimpanzee in an isolated clan that raises eagles and other birds of prey.  Wanting to impress his father Koro (Neil Sandilands), the master of the birds, Noa goes on a reckless journey to find an eagle egg and inadvertently leads a violent clan ruled by the brutal Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand) to his village.  Noa is injured, his father is killed, and the rest of the clan is taken.  Noa begins searching for his family and notices that a human is following him from a distance.  He also meets an orangutan named Raka (Peter Macon), a member of the Order of Caesar who follows the teachings of the former leader, and he informs Noa that humans and apes once lived peacefully together and that he should trust the human.  Noa and the human, who eventually tells him that her name is Mae (Freya Allan), are captured by Proximus and taken to his settlement.  Proximus reveals that he rules in Caesar's name and that all apes should join together to keep the humans subjugated no matter the cost.  Noa must decide who to trust if he is to save his clan.  The story is so thematically dense that my sister and I couldn't stop talking about it afterwards (and the more we talked about it the more ideas we discovered) but my main takeaway is that history and mythology are often distorted to manipulate the uninformed and that knowledge is the true power.  This does take a little while to get going but everything eventually comes together in the end (I loved the significance of the eagles) and the tension-filled action sequences in third act had me on the edge of my seat.  The images on the screen are simply spectacular with unbelievably realistic motion-capture performances and visual effects combined with shots on location.  Noa is a compelling character and is easy to root for, particularly as he struggles to make sense of events that happened in the past, and Proximus is a great villain (my sister thought he was terrifying).  This is a worthy successor to the original trilogy and sets the stage for further installments.  I highly recommend it!

Note:  It was so fun to see this with my sister!  She doesn't see very many movies in the theater but she has a list for the ones she wants to see this summer.

Utah Opera's Thaïs

I have been looking forward to Utah Opera's production of Thaïs by Jules Massenet all season because it is an opera that I was not familiar with.  I finally had the chance to see it last night and I absolutely loved it!  It is a big production that is staged very dramatically with beautiful music and powerful performances that kept me captivated.  Athanaël (Troy Cook) is a devout monk who has been disturbed by dreams about Thaïs (Nicole Heaston), a courtesan and devotee of Venus who lives only for love and pleasure.  He believes the dreams are a sign from God that he should travel to Alexandria to convert her to Christianity.  Once in Alexandria he seeks out his friend Nicias (Dominick Valdes-Chenes), who is Thaïs's current lover, and is invited to a feast later that evening where Thaïs mocks him for daring to defy Venus.  However, after the feast, she laments that she will grow old and die.  When Athanaël visits her room she attempts to seduce him but he refuses her advances and promises her eternal life instead.  She agrees to enter the convent after a night of meditation but suffers greatly on the journey through the desert.  Athanaël pushes her to continue as penance for her sins but begins to take pity on her and they share an idyllic moment together at a spring.  He reluctantly places her in the care of Mother Superior Albine (Aubrey Adams-McMillan) knowing he will never see her again but, when he is haunted by dreams of her, he renounces his vows in order to return to her.  He discovers that she is dying so he declares his love for her but Thaïs chooses God's love and eternal life instead which leaves him bereft.  The music, performed by the Utah Symphony under the baton of Steven White, is incredibly beautiful (I loved the themes played by the harp).  Even though I had never seen this opera before, I immediately recognized "Méditation" from the second act.  Concertmaster Madeline Adkins gave an emotional performance of the dramatic violin solo and the staging of this scene, featuring eight dancers with Repertory Dance Theatre, is spectacular.  I heard audible gasps from the audience when a dancer emerged from behind the sleeping figure of Thaïs as if her soul was ascending to a higher plane and all of the lifts in the choreography continue this theme culminating in a final haunting pose.  I was also struck by the juxtaposition of the staging in the scenes with the monks who circle Athanaël as he prays and the revelers who circle Thaïs as she performs.  The set and costumes also emphasize this juxtaposition because the gilded panels surrounding the stage appear silver in the monastery and gold in Thaïs's palace and Athanaël and the monks wear black while Thaïs, Nicias, and the revelers appear in a riot of sumptuous gold.  The role of Thaïs is a demanding one and Heaston's performance is brilliant.  Not only does she have a beautiful and powerful voice, the aria "Dis-moi que je suis belle" is a highlight, but she is convincing as both a licentious courtesan and a newly converted supplicant.  Cook is also believable in the role of an ascetic who is corrupted and I especially loved his voice in the duet "C'est toi, mon pere" with Heaston.  Another impressive performance was that of Katrina Galka as La Charmeuse as she entertains Nicias and the revelers.  I enjoyed every aspect of this production and I highly recommend taking advantage of this opportunity to see this rarely-performed opera.  There are two more performances (go here for tickets) on Friday and Sunday.

The Time Machine at HCT

Last night I went to Hale Theatre for the world premiere of The Time Machine, an original work by local playwright Michael D. Fox inspired by the novella of the same name by H.G. Wells. The premise is an interesting one and the sets, projections, and special effects are very impressive but, unfortunately, the narrative is a mess. Fifteen-year-old Skye Mason (Mariah Grace Bowman) opens a mysterious package meant for her grandmother Helene Briggs (Lori Rees) and discovers a puzzle box containing a handwritten manuscript of The Time Machine by H.G. Wells. Helene panics when she sees the manuscript because she believes it is a desperate message across time telling her that she is in danger. She reveals that the story in the manuscript is real and that it was inspired by her travels to the future in a machine of her own invention. A young Helene (Amber Dodge) travels to the far future and returns to 1888 with a powerful source of energy stolen from a savage group known as the Morlocks. Fearing what use might be made of such a powerful object she seeks advice from her friend Gregory Whitman (Kaden Caldwell) and her fiance H.G. Wells (Dallin Suman). She ultimately decides that she should take the power source to the future and hide it and, since she cannot go back to a specific time and place more than once, she stays in 1988 and makes a life for herself. However, the message from Wells sends her and her granddaughter on a journey through time to keep the power source safe from someone with plans to abuse it. The way the original novella is integrated into a new story is clever but I found it really convoluted (lots of overly complicated exposition about time travel), hard to follow (lots of jumps between timelines and relationships between characters that are not very explicit), and inconsistent (there are a few elements that did not make sense to me). I definitely think this could have used another draft before it was performed for an audience (I usually do not have this much trouble following a plot). What really impressed me about this production, however, is the set!  I was intrigued by it the moment I took my seat because it is made up of large geometric panels that move to form concentric circles through which different set pieces (including an elaborate time machine) move on and off stage and on which various images are projected. I especially loved the clock motif that is used in many of the projections. The lighting design is very dramatic, particularly the lightning effects that happen when the time machine travels, and so is the score (which was composed by fifteen-year-old Cameron Dietlein!). Once again, Hale delivered on the style without much of the substance and I was left feeling underwhelmed.

Note:  I have only really loved one production out of the four I've seen at Hale this season.