California Dreamin'

The trees are not brown and the skies are not grey (in fact Utah has had one of the mildest winters I can remember) but I am still dreaming of California!  Spring break starts for me tomorrow (I am taking a few extra days off) and I will be on my way to California in the wee hours of the morning!  I get to spend three days at Disneyland, a day at the Santa Monica Pier, and I get to see the musical Newsies at the Pantages Theatre in L.A. on Friday night.  I am so excited!  In the meantime, here are some of my favorite adventures in California.

Sea World

San Diego Padres game

San Diego Zoo

Wicked

Tour of the U.S.S. Midway

The beach

Beethoven & Wagner

Last night, after an absence of over a month, I was very happy to be sitting in Abravanel Hall listening to the Utah Symphony!  This concert was much needed (my student body officers just finished sponsoring spirit week at school) and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of the performance.  The orchestra began with Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 2.  This piece was very light, airy, and pretty.  It reminded me a great deal of Mozart so imagine my delight when I read in the program at intermission that Beethoven was very much influenced by Mozart during his early period.  I think I am slowly getting more knowledgeable and sophisticated in my appreciation of classical music!  I sat in the third tier so I really enjoyed watching pianist Ingrid Fliter's fingers literally fly up and down the keyboard.  She was amazing!  After the intermission, we heard the Orchestral Suite from The Ring by Wagner.  It was incredibly stirring and dramatic!  The Ring cycle is actually a series of four operas (Das Rheingold, Die Walkure, Siegfried, and Gotterdammerung) which follow various Norse and Germanic mythological characters in their quest for a ring which gives dominion over the world.  The suite is a musical summary of these four works and, based on the sampling I heard last night, I would really like to see the entire cycle (which usually takes four nights to complete) because I absolutely loved it!  Guest conductor Jun Markl was just as dramatic as the music and I enjoyed watching all of his wild gestures.  At one point I thought he was going to leap off of the podium!  What a spectacular evening of music!

Note:  Remember when I said I was getting more sophisticated in my appreciation of classical music?  During "Ride of the Valkyries" from Die Walkure, all I could think of was "Kill the wabbit.  Kill the wabbit."  Clearly I have a long way to go!

I Hate Hamlet at PTC

Last night I saw I Hate Hamlet at PTC.  It is absolutely hilarious!  Andrew Rally (Ben Rosenbaum), an actor whose popular TV show has just been canceled, moves to New York when he's inexplicably offered the role of Hamlet in a Shakespeare in the Park production.  As it happens, his new apartment was once owned by John Barrymore, an actor known for his legendary performance as Hamlet.  When Andrew realizes that he doesn't have the acting ability to play such a complex character, the ghost of Barrymore (J. Paul Boehmer) returns to coach him through it.  I laughed and laughed at Boehmer's antics as the over-the-top Barrymore, particularly when he challenges Andrew to a sword fight and when he teaches him how to bow.  Add a real estate broker who holds a séance to summon Barrymore, a ditsy girlfriend who thinks she is in love with the character of Hamlet, a talent agent who once had a fling with Barrymore, and a Hollywood producer trying to lure Andrew back to television and you get a really fun evening of theatre.  Juxtaposed with all of the comedy is a fascinating discussion about art vs. entertainment and selling out for fame rather than earning glory.  I must admit that the snob in me enjoyed all of the jabs at television.  "When you watch TV, you can eat.  You can talk.  You don't really have to pay attention."  However, I also enjoyed the funny comments about Shakespeare:  "It's like algebra on stage."  I'm sure many of my seniors would agree with that sentiment after reading Hamlet last semester.  All of the actors do a great job, especially Boehmer, the costumes are a lot of fun, especially the codpieces, and the set of John Barrymore's New York apartment is fantastic.  I highly recommend this production!  It runs at PTC until April 4 and you can purchase tickets here.

Summer Concerts

There are so many great concerts coming to SLC this summer.  It seems like a new concert is announced every week and I keep buying tickets!  It looks like 2015 might be the Summer of Concerts and I am so excited!  It all started with Taylor Swift.  By the way, I read somewhere that life is too short to pretend that you don't like Taylor Swift so I will admit right now that I am a huge fan!  I debated and debated about getting a ticket but I decided to go for it (I had to use an alternate ticketing source because the SLC show sold out in minutes) because I really regret not seeing the Red tour.  Then I bought tickets to Rush!  I actually bought these tickets as soon as they went on sale which was in the middle of one of my classes.  I am the consummate professional!  I also have tickets to Ed Sheeran, Imagine Dragons, Sam Smith, and Shania Twain!  Then last week U2 announced that they were adding a show in Denver to their schedule!  Squeal!  I have loved U2 since I was in eighth grade and I have seen them in concert every time they've come to SLC (SLC is currently not on their schedule).  I was toying with the idea of getting a ticket to one of the Chicago shows but it will be so much easier for me to get to Denver!  I was able to get a ticket and I am beyond excited!  The show is on the first day of summer vacation and I can't wait!

Here are some of my favorite summer concerts from years past.

U2 at Rice-Eccles Stadium - May 2011

The Eagles at Rio Tinto Stadium - May 2009

Paul McCartney at Rio Tinto Stadium - July 2010

Crosby, Stills & Nash at Red Butte Garden - August 2012

The Last Five Years

Last night I went to see The Last Five Years, a film adaptation of the popular musical by Jason Robert Brown.  I haven't seen the musical but I really enjoyed this movie.  It tells the love story between Jamie Wellerstein (Jeremy Jordan), an up-and-coming writer, and Cathy Hiatt (Anna Kendrick), a struggling actress.  The narration alternates between the two of them with Cathy's story told in reverse chronological order starting at the end of their marriage ("I'm Still Hurting") and Jamie's told in chronological order starting just after they first meet ("Shiksa Goddess").  Their stories intersect in the middle with both of them singing about their wedding in the song "The Next Ten Minutes."  I thought it was a very clever device and I particularly liked the ending.  Cathy sings "Goodbye Until Tomorrow" after her first date with Jamie and Jamie simply says goodbye to her and walks away after writing the note she reads at the beginning of the movie.  I also liked the use of Cathy's jewelry as symbols of their relationship.  After reading Jamie's note, Cathy removes a watch, a bracelet, and her wedding ring and throughout the rest of the movie we see Jamie give them to her.  The lighting is also used very effectively to convey the status of their relationship: very bright and saturated in happier times and dark and somber as things deteriorate.  All of the songs are memorable and both Kendrick and Jordan give incredible performances.  I loved Kendrick's singing and dancing in "A Summer In Ohio" and Jordan gives a passionate rendition of "If I Didn't Believe in You."  I recommend this movie to all fans of musical theatre.  If you live in the SLC area, it is currently playing at the Broadway Centre Cinemas.  Go here for information and tickets.

Insurgent

Thursday night I went to the first screening of Insurgent with my cousin Emily and we had such a great time!  I loved this movie and I loved seeing it with my cousin.  Tris, Four, and their small band of rebels take refuge, first with Amity, and with the Factionless, and finally with Candor.  However, Jeanine needs a Divergent to open a box containing a message from the city's founders so Tris eventually surrenders in order to stop the needless killing of the rebels.  Tris undergoes a series of simulations, one for each faction, to discover the message which changes everyone's perceptions of the Divergents.  It is very rare that I like the movie adaptation better than the book, but in this instance I think the movie is much more cohesive.  I lost the thread of the story in the book and the differences (and there are a lot of them) in the movie helped me tie everything together.  Shailene Woodley has a much more emotionally complex role as Tris in this installment as she struggles with the consequences of her actions and she does an outstanding job, particularly in the scene where she confronts herself in one of the simulations.  I also loved Kate Winslet as the evil Jeanine and I really enjoyed her Eva Peron-like propaganda pieces projected on the buildings and vehicles in the city.  However, I thought the casting of Naomi Watts as Evelyn was odd because she doesn't seem old enough to be Four's mother.  Also, all of the other actors in the movie seem like window dressing (with the exception of Miles Teller as Peter who has a few amusing scene-stealing moments) because the narrative focuses so much on Tris and her guilt.  The action sequences and special effects, especially during the simulations, are incredible.  Devotees of the novels by Veronica Roth may be upset by all of the changes (dare we hope that there might be significant changes in Allegiant?) but they worked for me and I recommend the movie for what it is:  an escapist action adventure!

Note:  This week I spent time with three of my cousins!  I love that!

Utah Opera's Cosi Fan Tutte

Monday night I went to the opera Cosi fan Tutte by my favorite composer, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, at the Capitol Theatre.  Two soldiers, Ferrando and Guglielmo, are betrothed to a pair of sisters, Dorabella and Fiordiligi, respectively.  When they brag about the fidelity of their fiancees, Don Alfonso scoffs and devises a plan to test their loyalty.  He tells the women that the men have been called to war and then has the men, posing as Albanians (with elaborate mustaches which are, of course, the true symbol of manhood), try to woo them.  Don Alfonso enlists the help of Dorabella and Fiordiligi's maid, Despina, to aid the Albanians in their pursuit and thus ensues some hilarious physical comedy.  Even though the women eventually succumb to the Albanians' charms, Ferrando and Guglielmo decide to marry them anyway, because "women are like that."  The entire cast is outstanding, particularly Aaron Blake as Ferrando.  Some of his comedic elements were a bit over the top but his aria, "A Loving Breath," was the highlight of the production for me.  I thought the sparse set was very effective and I loved the beautiful costumes.  Susan Memmott-Allred dressed the cast in clothing from the 1920s and I especially loved the spats worn by the men.  This production is exceptionally well done but I definitely prefer the tragedies over the comedies.  I want a grand passion with desperation and betrayal, not mere flirtation, and I need someone to die in the arms of their lover!  However, the assembled audience at the Capitol Theatre seemed to enjoy this opera immensely (hoots of laughter greeted many of the antics on stage) so I suspect you will, too!  There are performances tonight and Friday night at 8:00 pm and a matinee on Sunday at 2:00 pm.  Go here for more information and to purchase tickets.

Note:  Hockey one night and opera the next!

A Weekend of Hockey in Denver

I absolutely love watching the Colorado Avalanche play at the Pepsi Center!  My dad and I try to go to at least one game every year (last year I went to three; two with my Dad and one with my cousins).  A couple of weeks ago we chose to go the game against the Calgary Flames (we try to pick a Canadian team so we can hear "O Canada" at the beginning of the game) on Saturday night and we invited my cousin Blaine, who lives in Denver, to go with us.  I counted down the days because I was so excited.  We drove to Denver (about an eight hour drive) and met my cousin Blaine downtown for dinner.  He picked a great place called My Brother's Bar and I ate one of the best burgers I have ever had!  Then we went straight to the Pepsi Center.  I like to get there early because I like to smell the ice (Blaine thought I was weird at first but then he said that you actually could smell the ice) and watch the practice skate.  That gets me really amped up for the game!

It was an incredible game!  The Avalanche are still in the hunt for a playoff spot so they started the game very aggressively!  They got a lot of shots on goal and it was so fun to watch!  At the end of the first period, the Flames really tightened things up and started shooting more.  During the second period, the Avalanche went on a power play and Alex Tanguay got a nice goal.  Just a few minutes later Ryan O'Reilly got a goal which electrified the Pepsi Center.  In the third period, the Flames scored two goals but John Mitchell (with an assist from my favorite player, Matt Duchene) got one of the prettiest goals I've ever seen and, luckily, the play that led to the goal happened right in front of us.  My dad always gets the good seats!  The last five minutes of the game were really tense but Semyon Varlamov (who stopped 29 shots) had an amazing save which got the crowd chanting, "Varly, Varly, Varly!"  I loved it!  The Avalanche won the game 3-2, which was thrilling for me because they lost the last two games I attended.  I loved every minute of this weekend!

Colorado Avalanche road trips are the best!

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2013

2012

2009

Mamma Mia

Friday night I had the opportunity to see the Broadway touring company perform Mamma Mia at Kingsbury Hall.  It was just as good as the first time I saw it in London twelve years ago!  Sophie Sheridan is getting married and wants her father to walk her down the aisle but she has a problem:  she doesn't know who he is and there are three possibilities!  She invites all three candidates to her wedding without her mother's knowledge and chaos ensues!  Add the music of Abba and you have more fun than should be allowed in a theatre!  I really loved the entire cast of this production, especially Georgia Kate Haege as Donna, Jeff Drushal as Sam, and Chelsea Williams as Sophie.  The highlights of the evening for me were Haege's rendition of "The Winner Takes It All" and Drushal's performance of "Knowing Me, Knowing You."  Both of them gave me goosebumps!  I also really enjoyed "Dancing Queen" performed by Donna and the Dynamos (Haege, Bailey Purvis as Tanya and Sarah Smith as Rosie).  It is hilarious when they try performing some of their old dance moves and hurt themselves.  All of the choreography is really fun, particularly in "Voulez Vous," "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!," "Under Attack," and "Lay All Your Love On Me" (I loved the fins).  However, the best part of the show just may be the encore after the bows.  The cast comes out in spandex jumpsuits and platform boots to sing "Mamma Mia," "Dancing Queen," and "Waterloo."  The audience usually sings along and dances in the aisles and it is so much fun!  This is definitely a show that I can see over and over and still enjoy!  I highly recommend getting a ticket if you have the opportunity.  It closes tonight at Kingsbury Hall but you can still get tickets here.

Cinderella

Last night was Girls Night Out with my mom and sister for the first screening of Cinderella.  Kenneth Branagh's lovely film is a live action version of the classic fairy tale and it is very much informed by the 1950 Disney animated version.  If you are at all offended by the someday-my-prince-will-come notion that a girl needs to be rescued from an unpleasant situation by a man, then this might not be the movie for you.  But if you are open to it, this film is absolutely enchanting and there is such a great message about having courage and being kind.  I loved everything about it:  the performances, the costumes, the set and art direction, the special effects, and even the choreography in the ball scenes.  Lily James (from Downton Abbey) and Richard Madden (from Game of Thrones) are perfect as Cinderella and Prince Charming and I especially love the fact that he falls in love with her when he first sees her as she really is (a common farm girl) rather than at the ball.  I also really enjoyed all of James' interactions with the mice (including Gus-Gus).   Cate Blanchett is delightfully wicked as the stepmother.  She is, without question, a villain but I liked Blanchett's vulnerability in the role.  The audience certainly understands her motivation for treating Cinderella so badly. My favorite performance was definitely Helena Bonham Carter as the Fairy Godmother.  This role was tailor-made for the quirky Bonham Carter and I may or may not have giggled out loud when she said, "Bibbity-Bobbity-Boo."  The costumes are beautiful, especially Cinderella's dress at the ball, and those glass slippers (made of Swarovski crystal) are spectacular!  I also loved all of the over-the-top dresses worn by the stepmother and the stepsisters.  Branagh's aesthetic in this movie is so beautiful.  Cinderella's house, the surrounding forests, and the palace all conspire to transport the audience to a magical time and place while the ball is everything that a young girl could ever dream of and more.  The special effects are incredible.  Again, I was literally giggling (so was my mom) when the Fairy Godmother turned a pumpkin into a coach and the mice into horses.  It is just as impressive, if not more so, when the spell is broken at midnight and the coach is turned back into a pumpkin.  I would recommend this movie for the first dance at the ball alone!  I was spellbound by the choreography and the camera angles when Cinderella and the prince dance together.  It looks like James is floating on a cloud of blue silk and organza.  It is so incredibly romantic and it almost makes you believe in magic!  The whole time I was watching this movie, I felt like I did when I was a little girl watching the animated version.  Cinderella is so much fun and I especially enjoyed watching it with my mom and sister.

Note:  Stay through the credits so you can hear Helena Bonham Carter sing "Bibbity-Bobbity-Boo."  It is worth it! 

Weekend Camping Trip

The mild winter we have been having in Utah has given me a serious case of spring fever!  I have been itching to go camping so Marilyn and I planned this little weekend getaway to our favorite KOA in Fillmore (ironically we had the biggest snowstorm of the year last week).

We left in the afternoon on Friday but we hit some massive traffic on the way out of town so we didn't arrive until late in the evening (Fillmore is about 150 miles south of SLC).  The wonderful people who run this KOA know us personally because we camp here so often!  They told us they were getting worried about us!  They asked us why we weren't in the motor home, if our parents were with us, and if we brought the dogs!  I guess we do camp here a lot!

We love staying in the KOA cabins!  They are so comfortable with heating, air conditioning, and mini refrigerators.  They have nice beds (you bring your own linens or sleeping bags), a desk, and some chairs.  They don't have their own bathroom but there is a communal one nearby with really nice showers.  Friday night felt like a sleepover because we watched movies and ate treats all night!

Some views of our cute cabin. I especially love the porch because it is really relaxing to sit out there and read.  The weather was a little bit chilly but I still sat out there for quite some time!

Saturday was absolutely perfect because we literally did nothing but relax!  We read and sat around the firepit for most of the day.  Sunday was basically a repeat of Saturday. There was nothing that I had to do and that felt so good (especially after a few stressful weeks at school).  Camping (even in a cabin) definitely recharges my batteries and I hope I get to do a lot more of it this spring and summer!

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2012

Leviathan

Last night I went to see the Russian film Leviathan which won Best Screenplay at the Cannes Film Festival, Best Foreign Film at the Golden Globe Awards, and was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the Academy Awards.  I thought it was absolutely brilliant!  I am fascinated by Russia; I've been there twice and I am obsessed with Russian music and literature.  There is something so uncompromisingly beautiful and yet, at the same time, so harsh and forbidding about the landscape, people, and history that holds me enthralled.  Several weeks ago I began seeing previews of Leviathan at my favorite art house theatre and I have been wanting to see it ever since because of the beautiful cinematography and the quintessentially Russian story.  The setting is the northern coastal town of Pribrezhny where a corrupt mayor tries to illegally repossess the property of an out-of-work mechanic using his self-serving police force and an unscrupulous judicial system.  He also seeks the advice of a Russian Orthodox priest who ambiguously sanctions his use of force to acquire the property.  Events unravel tragically for the mechanic and his family until his house is ultimately bulldozed and a major plot twist is revealed in the final scenes.  It is an incredible narrative about the dark side of human nature and the powerful instinct of self-preservation in an inhospitable environment.  It is also a scathing critique of Russian corruption, in politics and religion, juxtaposed with the stark beauty of Russia itself.  The tension builds slowly, very slowly, but eventually reaches a climax that I didn't see coming.  It is a haunting film that I recommend if you have the opportunity to see it!

Ghost at HCT

I am not a fan of the current trend on Broadway of turning popular movies into stage musicals; however, Hale Centre Theatre seems very fond of producing them (9 to 5,  Catch Me If You Can, Big, The Wedding Singer, and Footloose are a few that come to mind).  I almost always attend these shows because I am a fan of the original movie but, with the exception of Catch Me If You Can, I am usually disappointed.  That is definitely the case with HCT's latest offering, Ghost, which I saw last night.  It tells the well-known love story of Sam Wheat (Derek Smith), who is murdered in a robbery gone wrong, and Molly Jensen (Bre Welch), the woman he loves and watches over.  Both of these lead actors are incredibly talented, but I feel that they were miscast.  The songs have a pop feel to them and their voices were much too controlled and their enunciation was too perfect for that style of singing.  I kept wanting them to let loose and sing the blues. Then again, maybe their lackluster performances should be blamed on the material.  In my opinion, none of the songs are even remotely memorable.  It is as if full pages of dialogue from the screenplay were simply put to the accompaniment of music.   So contrived.  The only song I enjoyed was "Unchained Melody" but I thought it was completely overused. There wasn't much chemistry between the two leads (this could be due to the fact that, like the last show I saw, the actors were a mix of the MWF and THS casts).   In the famous pottery wheel scene, Welch seemed more focused on making the perfect pot rather than responding to the caresses of her lover.  All of my attention was focused on the pot, as well, because there wasn't much else going on, especially when compared to that particular scene in the movie.  I did enjoy McKenna K. Jensen's performance as Oda Mae Brown and I thought the special effects were incredible, especially the scenes on the subway. However, the set design was a rare miss for Kacey Udy.  Much of the action takes place on a large platform above the stage, which is cool, but I couldn't really see anything from where I was sitting and that was definitely irritating. There was a piano, cello, and violin trio playing on other platforms which were lowered from the ceiling at various times but I didn't really understand the significance. Again, it was cool, but it didn't contribute to the story in any way.  Bottom line: give this one a miss. Find your old VHS copy of the movie and watch it instead.

All the Light We Cannot See

In February my book club chose to read All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr and I literally couldn't put it down, reading well into the night and on my lunch hour to finish it.  I loved this book so much!  I had to know how what happened but, at the same time, I was sad to finish it!  The story is set during the Nazi occupation of France and the narrative alternates between Marie-Laure LeBlanc, a blind girl living in the ancient town of St. Malo on the northern coast of France, and Werner Pfennig, an orphan who is sent to a prestigious military school in Germany because of his engineering skills.  Both of these characters are wonderfully developed and I began to care about them immediately.  Marie-Laure loves the book 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne and wants to explore the world around her despite her overprotective father.  Werner is grateful for the opportunity to leave the dreary life of a coal miner that he was destined for to join the army but questions the brutality of the Nazis (I loved the character of Werner because I don't think all Germans of this era should be described as evil in absolute terms).  What ties these two characters together are radio airwaves (described as invisible filaments of light connecting everyone).  Marie-Laure and her family use the radio to send information to help the Resistance while Werner helps develop triangulation methods to locate the radios that are illegally broadcasting. When their stories converge during the aftermath of the D-Day invasion, it is heartrendingly beautiful! I loved so many things about this book!  I spent some time in the city of St. Malo when I was younger and Doerr's incredibly descriptive language transported me back there: I could feel the wind on my face, taste the salt from the breeze on my tongue, hear the sound of the crashing waves, feel the cobblestone streets under my feet, and see the majestic city walls all around me as I read. Such an amazing setting.  Doerr also brilliantly captures the anguish Werner feels when he realizes that everything he has been taught is a lie.  Not only did I love the characters of Marie-Laure and Werner but I also enjoyed the cast of supporting characters, especially Madame Medec and her "Old Ladies Resistance Club," Jutta, Werner's sister, who is dismayed at the thought of her brother turning into a Nazi, and Etienne, so traumatized by the Great War that he cannot leave his house.  I have a particular fondness for historical fiction, especially World War II, but this novel transcends the genre.  I would highly recommend it to everyone for its compelling story, strong characterization, and beautiful prose!

Mr. Turner

Last night I saw Mr. Turner, a luminous biography of the popular British landscape painter J.M.W. Turner.  Through a series of vignettes depicting the final years of his life, we see Turner's relationships with his father, his devoted housekeeper, his two lovers, one of whom is the mother of the two children he refuses to acknowledge, his aristocratic patrons, and the other members of the Royal Academy of Arts.  This film brilliantly explores the fine line between genius and madness in scenes where Turner ties himself to the mast of a ship in a snowstorm to observe its effects, paints a red splotch on one of his paintings when he hears another painting which prominently features the color red praised, visits a brothel to sketch one of the prostitutes, and runs from his deathbed into the street to sketch a girl who has drowned.  Another scene I particularly enjoyed was when the art critic John Ruskin (hilariously played by Joshua McGuire) analyzes one of Turner's paintings on and on at length prompting Turner to ask him his opinion of steak and kidney pie.  I laughed out loud at this because I just had a conversation with a friend who told me that sometimes a flower is just a flower.  Critics (and English teachers) have a tendency to read too much into art (and literature).  The cinematography in this film is as beautiful as one of Turner's paintings.  I especially loved the dazzling play of light throughout much of the film.  The character actor Timothy Spall, known primarily for portraying Peter Pettigrew in the Harry Potter movies, gives an incredibly nuanced performance as Turner.  The growl used to show his displeasure is most effective (it certainly elicited a lot of response from the audience during my particular screening) and the look on his face when he overhears Queen Victoria criticize one of his paintings is nothing short of heartbreaking.  Dorothy Atkinson also gives a wonderful performance as Turner's much abused housekeeper.  The scene when she learns of Turner's double life is devastating.  It is a moving film about a flawed and complicated man which I enjoyed very much.

Let's Go Jazz

For the past little while Sean has been asking me to take him to a Jazz game.  I usually take him to at least one game every season so a couple of weeks ago I told him we could go to the next weekend game which happened to be last night against the Portland Trailblazers.  Unlike the last game I took him to, this one was actually really good but Sean didn't care!  Before the game started I told him that I really wanted the Jazz to win because they have been struggling.  He told me that it didn't matter because he would have a good time even if they lost.  He always has such a good attitude!  Because of the Enes Kanter trade, Rudy Gobert was a starter for the first time and there was a lot of hype about it before the game.  Sean was really excited because he got to meet Gobert with his Jr. Jazz team and he has his autographed picture on his wall.  The Trailblazers had a great start and got a quick lead but I thought the Jazz played an outstanding defensive game with lots of blocks and steals and they were able to stay with them.   The lead went back and forth during the first three quarters and then the Jazz went on a 39-10 run in the fourth quarter, including some crowd-pleasing three-pointers, to pull away from the Blazers and ultimately win  92-76.  I've been to a few games this season but this is definitely the most fun I've had!  Not only did the Jazz win against a really good team but Sean is just so entertaining.  The Jazz have a rookie named Rodney Hood but on the display board it says R. Hood.  Sean was absolutely convinced that Robin Hood played for our team!  When he made a three-pointer, Sean yelled, "Robin Hood just scored!"  Everyone looked at us and smiled!

I sure do love this kid!

The Crucible at PTC

I have read The Crucible, Arthur Miller's brilliant play about the Salem Witch Trials, more times than I can count.  I am, after all, an English teacher.  However, until I saw PTC's wonderful production last night, I had never seen it performed on stage.  To be sure, the play is an absolute masterpiece on the page but it is always magical when you are able to see the written words come to life.  John Proctor (Fletcher McTaggart) had an affair with his serving girl Abigail Williams (Madison Micucci) while his wife Elizabeth (Claire Brownell) was ill.  Abigail was forced to leave their house when Elizabeth learned of the affair and she now lives with her uncle, the Rev. Parris (Paul Kiernan).  Parris is concerned about his daughter Betty, who is very ill, and worries that witchcraft may be involved because he saw Betty, Abigail, and other girls from the town dancing in the woods with his slave, Tituba.  To dispel rumors in the town, he calls the Rev. Hale (J. Todd Adams), a renowned witch expert, to question the girls and Abigail suddenly confesses that Tituba conjured the Devil.  She forces Tituba and the other girls to confess, as well, and they begin accusing all of the women in town of witchcraft.  Abigail becomes very powerful and accuses Elizabeth Proctor as a way to get John back.  As John tries to defend Elizabeth and the wives of his friends, he is ultimately condemned himself.  The play is a powerful indictment against mass hysteria (Miller wrote the play during the era of McCarthyism) and this production features some powerful performances.  Micucci is absolutely brilliant as the conniving and manipulative Abigail.  Her facial expressions are especially effective, whether she is "seeing spirits," seducing John, or coercing the girls to do as she commands.  The scene when she and the girls are possessed during the trial is amazing.  McTaggart gives an incredibly passionate performance as the guilt-ridden Proctor.  I was literally holding my breath when he asks Elizabeth to forgive him before going to the scaffold.  The audience gave him a rousing standing ovation and he seemed genuinely taken aback by it!  I loved the sparse set, which easily transformed into the interior of various houses, a barn, and a courtroom, but the costumes were not what I was expecting (I wanted everyone to be wearing black for some reason).  I highly recommend seeing this play but I realize that it might not be for everyone.  A teenage girl sitting behind me complained that she didn't understand what was going on (she obviously does not attend Hunter High School) and the couple sitting next to me didn't return after the intermission.  Nevertheless, if you enjoyed this play in high school, go here for tickets.  It will run until Feb. 28 at PTC.

Still Alice

Yesterday afternoon I went to see Julianne Moore in Still Alice.  She was my final Best Actress nominee (see my commentaries on Rosamund Pike, Felicity Jones, and Reese Witherspoon) and I was particularly eager to see her performance as it has generated a fair amount of Oscar buzz with Golden Globe, BAFTA, and Screen Actors Guild Award wins.  Moore plays Dr. Alice Howland, a professor of linguistics at Columbia University who is diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's disease at the age of 50.  It is an intense character study of a woman, known for her ambition, intelligence, and ability to communicate, who loses the very core of her identity and struggles to maintain relationships with her equally ambitious husband (Alec Baldwin) and her children Anna (Kate Bosworth), Tom (Hunter Parish), and Lydia (Kristen Stewart).  Moore gives a gripping tour-de-force performance.  You can literally see pieces of Alice slipping away bit by bit in each frame of the movie and this is particularly apparent when a nearly demented Alice watches a video she made after first receiving her diagnosis where she meticulously instructs her future self on how to kill herself.  The transformation is incredible, especially in light of the fact that most movies are not shot chronologically.  Moore's emotionally nuanced portrayal  draws the audience into the fear and anxiety she feels constantly.  She is most affecting when Alice gets lost jogging on the campus where she has taught for 20 years, when she visits a nursing home and the staff assumes she is looking on behalf of an elderly parent, and when she, who once traveled the country giving lectures, gives a faltering speech to an Alzheimer's symposium.  Directors Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland chose to shoot many scenes with a shallow depth of field leaving much out of focus and many conversations occur in the periphery of the scene, effectively emphasizing Alice's confusion.   While this movie is definitely a vehicle for Moore, Baldwin gives a strong performance as a man who tries to be supportive but, ultimately, doesn't want his life disrupted and Stewart shines as Alice's ne'er-do-well daughter who is the only one who really sees (and accepts) what Alice is going through.   Still Alice is very sad but I highly recommend it.

Note:  I saw Marion Cotillard, the remaining Best Actress nominee, in Two Days, One Night last week but I didn't especially like the movie so I didn't review it.

Ballet West's Swan Lake

Last night I attended Ballet West's production of Swan Lake.  I almost didn't go because I thought nothing could compare to the performance I saw of this ballet in Russia.  While seeing such a quintessentially Russian ballet performed in the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg will always be one of the most magical experiences of my life, I'm really glad I got to see Ballet West's version.  It was absolutely wonderful! Prince Siegfried goes into the woods to hunt and aims his bow at a swan who becomes a beautiful woman named Odette.  She explains that she is a swan by day and a woman at night because she is under the spell of an evil sorcerer, the Baron von Rothbert. Only true love can break the spell but, as the sun comes up, Odette reverts back to a swan and Siegfried returns home to celebrate his birthday with a grand ball.  Many princesses vie for his attention because he must marry to inherit the throne.  He ignores them, thinking only of Odette.  Suddenly, Rothbert enters the ballroom with his daughter Odile, who looks exactly like Odette.  Thinking that she is Odette, Siegfried declares his love to Odile.  When Rotherbert reveals his treachery, Siegfried rushes to Odette to beg forgiveness which she grants.  They eventually find a way to defeat Rothbert and end the spell in a very dramatic ending.  Beau Pearson, as Siegfried, and Christiana Bennett (one of my favorite Ballet West dancers), as Odette/Odile, danced their roles beautifully and I especially loved their Pas de Deux. I also really enjoyed the Swan Maidens because they were so synchronized with very elaborate formations and the Hungarian dance at Siegfried's ball because it was very dramatic. The score by Tchaikovsky is absolutely exquisite!  The music during the Pas de Deux between Odette and Siegfried is incredibly romantic (right up there with the Pas de Deux between the Sugar Plum Fairy and her Cavalier in The Nutcracker).  I think all of Tchaikovsky's music is so beautiful and emotional and the choreography of this ballet really suits this particular piece!  The costumes are gorgeous and the sets are quite spectacular, especially the ballroom (I loved the chandeliers).  It was such an amazing production (one of Ballet West's best, in my opinion) and I definitely recommend getting a ticket to one of the few remaining performances. Go here for tickets and information.

Note:  Taylor Swift used costumes from Ballet West's production of Swan Lake in the video for "Shake It Off."

Mahler's Symphony No. 3

It has been quite a while since I last saw the Utah Symphony (at least for me) so I was very happy to end a long week back at Abravanel Hall with an incredible concert featuring Symphony No. 3 by Gustav Mahler.  The Utah Symphony is performing the entire Mahler symphony cycle this season and next to commemorate their 75th anniversary and to honor the legacy of Maurice Abravanel.  I am not very familiar with Mahler but I am starting to really appreciate his work (Symphony No. 1 was amazing).  This particular piece was absolutely magnificent!  The orchestra was joined by mezzo-soprano Tamara Mumford, the women from the Utah Symphony Chorus, and the Madeleine School Choir.  I had goosebumps almost from the opening notes played by the horn section (eight of them).  The first movement was very dramatic, featuring a rousing march and a wonderful theme played by a solo trombone.  The second movement was very playful, in my opinion, with themes played by the oboes and clarinets (I love it when the woodwinds are featured).  According to Mahler, this movement represents flowers and it was probably my favorite section of the symphony.  The third movement included a solo trumpet played off stage and this was amazing!  The fourth movement featured Mumford, who gave a lovely performance.  The text is based on Friedrich Nietzsche's "Midnight Song" and I found it to be both beautiful and atmospheric.  Mumford was joined by both choirs in the fifth movement and I particularly loved when the children imitated bells.  The final movement was also incredibly dramatic.  It started very slowly and softly and then built to an incredible crescendo featuring the timpani.  This symphony is almost two hours long but the beautiful music carried me away and it seemed to last for just an instant!  I really enjoyed this concert last night and I definitely recommend getting a ticket to tonight's performance.  Go here for tickets and information.

Sundance Film Festival 2015

For ten days in January, independent filmmakers, and the occasional Hollywood celebrity, descend upon Park City to screen their movies at the Sundance Film Festival and, hopefully, find studios willing to distribute them for wide-release.  It is an absolutely magical time for film lovers (some travel from all over the world to be here) because many of the films are world premieres.  I always try to see at least one film every year but this year I decided to go for it and see as many films as my schedule (I didn't take any time off but I am thinking about it for next year) would allow.  I had the opportunity to see ten films in seven days at six venues and I loved every minute of my Sundance experience!  Monday night I saw Unexpected at the Broadway Theatre.  A high school Biology teacher (Cobie Smulders) discovers, unexpectedly, that she is pregnant and is conflicted about potentially losing her identity.  When her best student also discovers that she is pregnant, she channels all of her emotions into getting her student into college at any cost with disastrous results. I really related to this movie because I've worked with students to help them get into college and sometimes it was what I wanted rather than what they wanted.  I cried during a particularly heated scene. Tuesday night I saw Entertainment at the Broadway.  This is one of the strangest films I've ever seen.  A third rate comedian (Gregg Turkington) travels through the Mojave Desert to perform at a series of dubious gigs (one is in a prison), stay in one run-down motel after another, and take some bizarre field trips (an airplane graveyard) to pass the time.  It was a powerful character study of a man being driven to desperation which made me uncomfortable (but that was rather the point).  Wednesday night I drove all the way to Ogden (about an hour north of where I live) because I really wanted to see Brooklyn.  This is a very sweet film about an Irish girl (Saoirse Ronan) who emigrates to New York in the 1950s.  I really loved Ronan's performance and this is one of my favorites of the festival.  Thursday night I saw People, Places, Things at the Rose Wagner Theatre.  Will Henry (Jemaine Clement) is a graphic novelist who is getting over a breakup, learning how to relate to his twin daughters, and trying to date again.  This movie was absolutely hilarious with lots of quick and witty dialogue ("I'm a sassy little hobbit").  I also really liked the use of actual comic strips to tell the story.  Friday night I saw a double feature.  First was Z for Zachariah at the Grand Theatre (a really great venue).  I was so excited when I was able to score a ticket to this film at the last minute because I read the book in Jr. High and it has always stayed with me.  After a nuclear war, Ann Burden (Margot Robbie), who lives in an isolated valley protected by mountains, believes that she is the only survivor.  After a year on her own, she is visited by two other survivors who may not be all that they seem.  The movie deviated from the book quite a bit with the addition of a third character but I enjoyed it.  Next I saw Hellions at the Broadway as part of Sundance's Midnight Madness series.  A pregnant teenager (Chloe Rose) must survive Halloween when a group of demon children attack her to steal her unborn child.  This was actually a really awful movie but I had a lot of fun watching it at midnight with a fun crowd.  Saturday afternoon I saw The Diary of a Teenage Girl at the Grand.  A fifteen year old girl (Bel Powley) has a sexual awakening in 1970s San Francisco.  Powley gives an astonishing performance and is considered by many critics to be the break-out star of the festival. I really loved all of the 1970s music used throughout the film, especially Heart's "Dreamboat Annie."  (I really love that song).  Saturday I saw another Midnight Madness film, The Hallow, at the Broadway.  Adam (Joseph Mawle), along with his wife and infant son, moves from London to a remote area in Ireland to evaluate the forest for future development but he is soon warned by his superstitious neighbors that the forest is haunted by spirits.  Soon, these spirits attack and try to take his son.  It was a predictable plot but the tension leading up to the attack was almost unbearable and the creatures were quite scary.  I spent Sunday morning at the beautiful Sundance Resort for a screening of 71.  A British soldier (Jack O'Connell from Unbroken) is left behind after a riot on the streets of Belfast during "the Troubles."  As he tries to make his way back to the barracks, he his both helped and pursued by various factions and doesn't know who to trust.  It was a very powerful and suspenseful movie.  Finally, my friends Rob and Esther gave me a ticket to see the Dramatic Grand Jury Prize winner at the Eccles Theatre in Park City Sunday afternoon and it turned out to be Me and Earl and the Dying Girl.  I was excited because I really wanted to see this film but was unable to get a ticket!  Greg (Thomas Mann), an awkward teenager, and his only friend, Earl, spend most of their time making movies based on classic films (Their version of Midnight Cowboy just about killed me).  Greg's mother asks him to befriend a girl who has recently been diagnosed with leukemia and their friendship is both touching and heartbreaking.  I absolutely loved this film and I laughed and cried through the whole thing.  It is definitely my favorite film of the festival.  The films this year were really great but my favorite part of the festival was getting to have so many wonderful conversations with people from all over the country.  Sometimes I think that people find me to be a bit much when I start talking about music, books, theatre, and movies so it was great to talk to people who are just as passionate as I am.  I am already looking forward to next year!

Note:  For the past five years I have taken my students to see free screenings at Sundance.  Go here for an article in the Salt Lake Tribune.

Leaving Time

My book club chose Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult for its January selection.  Picoult can usually be relied upon for an entertaining read (my book club has also read My Sister's Keeper and House Rules) and this novel is more of the same.  Jenna Metcalf is a 13-year old girl searching for her mother Alice, a renowned elephant researcher who disappeared ten years ago in the wake of a tragic accident on the elephant sanctuary where she worked.  Jenna enlists the help of Serenity Jones, a psychic who has lost her gift, and Virgil Stanhope, the police officer who first responded to the accident and is tormented by his inability to solve the case.  The story is told from multiple perspectives, including Alice's journals detailing her research on elephants, as the three main characters search for clues about that fateful night.  There is an epic plot twist at the end, of the I-can't-believe-I-didn't-see-that-coming variety, which, if you can suspend your disbelief,  brings about a satisfying resolution.  My favorite element of the story is the juxtaposition of Jenna's experiences with that of elephants (my very favorite animal).  Much is made of Jenna's inability to remember the accident while elephants never forget.  Jenna is distraught over the fact that her mother may have willingly left her behind while elephants are devoted mothers who often refuse to leave a calf who has died.  I think the elephants are my favorite characters in the novel, although Jenna is endearing and the duo of misfits who help her are wonderfully quirky.  I did feel that the multiple perspectives were sometimes confusing (Serenity was my favorite narrator) and there were definitely some holes in the plot, but I enjoyed the compelling mother-daughter story and I loved the elephants!  If you are a fan of Jodi Picoult (and elephants), I recommend this book.

Boyhood

I am now actually able to say that I have seen all of the nominees for Best Picture (see my reviews of The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Imitation Game, The Theory of Everything, Whiplash, Birdman, Selma, and American Sniper) because Boyhood was re-released in theaters and I saw a screening Saturday night.  I had many preconceived notions about this film because I knew so much about it.  The story centers around Mason (Ellar Coltrane) and his experiences growing up from the age of six until he graduates from high school and leaves for college.  Director Richard Linklater, essentially, filmed the same group of actors for a few days each year over a span of twelve years.  While he did have the outline of the story he wanted to tell, he let the script evolve and it was informed by what Ellar Coltrane was actually going through in his own life.  I thought this movie would come across as a documentary and I thought that it had become the darling of the critics because filming for such a long period of time was an interesting gimmick.  In spite of my determination to hate it, I was completely drawn into Mason's story.  He has a very difficult life living with a single mother (played brilliantly by Patricia Arquette), who continually makes poor choices in her personal life which have devastating consequences for her children, and a ne'er-do-well father (the equally brilliant Ethan Hawke), who swoops in periodically (in a sweet GTO) with presents and demands for a meaningful relationship.  It definitely has a narrative arc and it doesn't seem like a documentary at all.  Nor does it seem like a gimmick;  rather, it feels like a masterpiece.  I am still not entirely sure why, but this movie grabbed hold of me and it hasn't let me go yet!  Maybe it is because Mason reminds me so much of my students.  Coltrane is absolutely magnetic and he portrays Mason so sympathetically, especially as he gets older and begins to question his place in the world.  There is such a great scene between Mason and his girlfriend in a coffee shop at 3:00 in the morning (I have had many epic philosophical conversations at 3:00 in the morning) where they discuss the meaning of life.  Ultimately, Mason is able to survive the mistakes of his parents and, as he is about to start college, he realizes that life is all about the moments.  I have always believed that and I highly recommend this movie