SBO Luncheon 2015

Just like last year, the administration took the Student Body Officers to a special lunch at the Little America Hotel downtown yesterday afternoon.  It is a beautiful hotel and my students looked so nice all dressed up for the occasion!  I really loved listening to the students reminisce about all of the fun they've had this year.  I think my favorite memory is when we ordered a really expensive red carpet for our Hollywood-themed Homecoming Dance.  It said "some assembly required" but we assumed that meant we had to snap some pieces together.  As we were decorating for the dance, we opened the boxes and discovered that we basically had to put the entire thing together and that we required some specialized tools, including a bolt cutter.  I have never been more frustrated in my life but we somehow got it put together (it did look quite spectacular as students arrived to the dance) and we can laugh about it now.  Also, whenever I hear the song "Fancy" by Iggy Azalea, I will always think of them and their over-the-top dance routine for the Hello Assembly!  There are so many fun memories!  It has been an incredible year and I am glad I had the opportunity of working with this amazing group.  I will miss them but I know they will all go on to bigger and better things in the future!

Ed Sheeran at Energy Solutions Arena

A couple of years ago I saw Snow Patrol's Fallen Empires Tour at a club in SLC and the opening act was Ed Sheeran.  I didn't know anything about him but I was transfixed by his performance.  It was just him, a guitar, and a loop pedal and it was amazing what he was able to produce by adding layer upon layer of sound as he sang.  I became an instant fan of his and immediately bought a ticket to his show at the ESA as soon as they went on sale (in the middle of one of my classes).  Aside from the larger venue, longer set list, and sliding video panels behind him, Tuesday's concert was a lot like the previous one.  Sheeran, alone on stage, managed to turn the cavernous ESA into an intimate club.  He began with "I'm a Mess" and continued to play many selections from his brilliant album x (read as Multiply), including  "One," "Don't," "Nina," "Photograph," "Tenerife Sea," and "Runaway."  He also included "The A Team," "Drunk," and "Lego House" from the album + (read as Plus) as well as "I See Fire" from the movie The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.  Sheeran began every song quietly with a beat created by tapping his guitar.  Then he would layer in guitar riffs followed by backing vocals until the song exploded in a crescendo of sound accompanied by a frenzy of video images behind him. It was amazing!  Sheeran was very charismatic with the large crowd, commanding us to put our hands in the air and bounce when the beat dropped during "Bloodstream" and to be totally silent during "Afire Love," a beautiful ballad about his grandfather.  My favorite moment was when the entire audience sang along with "Thinking Out Loud."  It gave me goosebumps!  He ended his set with an ethereal  rendition of "Give Me Love" then came back for an encore with the lyric-spitting "You Need Me, I Don't Need You" (which, to my delight, turned into a version of "Fancy" by Iggy Azalea).  The evening ended, appropriately, with "Sing" and sing we did even after Sheeran left the stage!  It was one of the best concerts I've seen!

Note:  The opening act was Ben Kweller and, at one point, Sheeran called him to the stage and the two of them performed a fantastic rendition of "Stand By Me" by Ben E. King.  It reminded me of when Gary Lightbody of Snow Patrol called Sheeran to the stage for an incredible performance of "New York."

Far From the Madding Crowd

When I was in college I grew weary of Thomas Hardy.  I studied most of his major works (Tess of the D'Urbervilles, Jude the Obscure, The Return of the Native, and The Mayor of Casterbridge) and it seems to me that fate controls all of Hardy's protagonists and that love always leads to tragedy.  Tess, especially, is a helpless victim to a cruel and indifferent destiny and I actually cried at the end of her story.  I decided that Hardy was too depressing and returned to reading the novels of Jane Austen, where happy endings abound.  A few years ago I found a copy of Far From the Madding Crowd in a used bookstore and, surprised that I hadn't read it before, decided to give Hardy another try.  This novel redeemed him in my eyes because, while Bathsheba chooses poorly and this choice leads to misery and ruin, at least she has a choice!  She, unlike Hardy's other heroines, is also able to change her circumstances and find love at the end of the novel.  A happy ending from Thomas Hardy!  Since it is my favorite of his novels, I have long been looking forward to the sumptuous new film adaptation by Thomas Vinterberg and I was able to see it on Sunday night.  It is an absolutely beautiful film.  Bathsheba Everdene (Carey Mulligan) is a headstrong and independent woman with her own farm in Victorian England.  She has three very different suitors vying for her affections:  a lowly shepherd in her employ (Matthias Schoenaerts), a wealthy middle-aged landowner (Michael Sheen), and a dashing regimental officer in a scarlet tunic (Tom Sturridge). The cast is excellent but I was particularly struck by Mulligan's performance.  Her understated portrayal of Bathseba during the first half of the movie is in sharp contrast to the passion she displays during her scenes with the cad, Sgt. Troy, and I found this characterization to be most effective. The scene where Troy displays his swordsmanship to her is highly charged, to say the least!  The screenplay is much more concise than the novel and I was a little bit disappointed that the role of Fanny Robin is so reduced because Juno Temple is absolutely luminous as the ill-fated serving girl (Hardy doesn't entirely abandon the notion of fate). However, I liked the adaptation, overall.  The film was shot primarily in Dorset, England and the scenery is incredibly beautiful.  The movie is worth viewing for the cinematography alone!  I really enjoyed Far From the Madding Crowd and I would recommend it to fans of period dramas.

Pitch Perfect 2

For the past few months Tashena has had a paper chain in her bedroom counting down the days until Pitch Perfect 2 opened.  Of course Marilyn and I had to take her to see it on Saturday night because, after all, we are seriously cool aunts!  (Tashena actually forced me to watch showed me the DVD of the first movie over Christmas break so I was looking forward to the sequel, too.)  The antics of the Barden Bellas continue after they are suspended from collegiate competition for an unfortunate incident during a performance for the President at the Kennedy Center.  Let's just say it involved Fat Amy (Rebel Wilson) and the song "Wrecking Ball" and leave it at that!  To be reinstated, they must win the A Capella World Championships.  However, no American team has ever won and their biggest competition is Das Sound Machine, a formidable team from Germany.  The Bellas lose their sound trying to add flashy gimmicks and have to go back to basics if they hope to win.  Some of the big song and dance routines are quite random (a performance at a car show and a riff-off at a creepy and eccentric millionaire's house) but it doesn't matter because they are so much fun to watch.  A lot of the humor is a bit crude and ethnic stereotypes abound but I have to admit that I found it to be absolutely hilarious.  I loved the thick German accents of Das Sound Machine (my favorite line was, "Your team is like a heated mess.  A mess where heat is applied to it so what once was a little messy is now even messier.") and I especially loved that the female leader of the group was named Kommissar (If you grew up in the 80s, you will understand the reference.  If not, search iTunes for "Der Kommissar" by After the Fire.  Good stuff!)  I think Anna Kendrick can do no wrong (reprising her role as Becca) and I liked the addition of Hailee Steinfeld as Emily, a new legacy member of the Bellas.  Don't think about this movie too much.  Just take a group of friends and have a fun night out!  Marilyn and I had a blast with Tashena (mostly because we loved watching her reaction to everything) and we even bought tickets to see it again immediately after we walked out of the theater!  As I said, we are the coolest aunts ever!

Note:  I also really loved that the uber popular a capella group Pentatonix played Team Canada at the World Championships!  Where can I get one of those maple leaf vests?

Mad Max: Fury Road

I am a huge fan of the Mad Max franchise, especially The Road Warrior which I watched over and over on cable when I was in Jr. High because I had a major crush on the young Mel Gibson, so I was very intrigued about this new installment.  When my mom mentioned that she wanted to see it, I eagerly bought tickets for Saturday afternoon (my mom is so cool).  Mad Max: Fury Road is an adrenaline rush that never lets up from the opening credits to the final scene and let me tell you now that it is intense!  I loved it and so did my mom who kept saying, "Wow!"   Like its predecessors, the movie is set in a post-apocalyptic future in Australia where resources are scarce and small communities run by overlords exist throughout.  Max Rockatansky (Tom Hardy replaces Mel Gibson in the title role) is captured by the War Boys who serve Immortan Joe (Hugh Keays-Byrne).  Max is designated as a universal blood donor and is needed by the dying War Boy Nux (Nicholas Hoult).  Furiosa (Charlize Theron), who drives a War Rig to other communities to barter for gas, veers off course while on a routine run and Joe soon discovers that his five wives, selected for breeding purposes, are missing.  Assuming, correctly, that his wives are with Furiosa, Joe sends his War Boys after her.  Lux, needing his blood, brings Max along on the high speed chase.  After an incredible battle in a sand storm, Max escapes and tries to steal the War Rig; however, Furiosa created a kill switch which means it is inoperable without her so Max reluctantly joins forces with her.  They then battle other gangs who are loyal to Joe in some of the best action sequences I have ever seen (of which, the vast majority were practical effects rather than CGI and many of the stunts were performed by members of Cirque de Soleil) as they search for the "Green Space" Furiosa remembers from her childhood.  While the action sequences are incredible (there were times when I couldn't catch my breath), the story of hope and redemption is compelling and the performances of Hardy and Theron are fantastic!  The bar has been set very high for the rest of the summer blockbusters! 

Utah Opera's The Rake's Progress

I am certainly glad that I took a chance and saw the opera The Rake's Progress Friday night.  It was a bold and innovative production unlike anything I've ever seen before and the music by Stravinsky was exquisite!  In the English countryside during the 18th century Tom Rakewell (Norman Reinhardt) laments the fact that he doesn't have any money but turns down an opportunity offered by Trulove (Branch Fields), the father of his fiancee Anne (Joelle Harvey), because he doesn't want the same monotonous job for the rest of his life.  A strange figure named Nick Shadow (Mark Schnaible) appears and informs him that he is heir to his, heretofore unknown, uncle's fortune.  Nick offers his "services" to manage Tom's fortune telling him that they will have a reckoning in one year.  Tom agrees and Nick whisks him off to London where he leads him down a path of debauchery.  Nick even convinces Tom to marry Baba the Turk (Jill Grove).  Anne, worried that she hasn't heard from Tom, comes to London in search of him but is in despair when she learns of his marriage. Tom, miserable in his new life, sinks all of his fortune into a dubious business deal proposed by Nick and loses everything.  While all of Tom's possessions are being sold at auction, Baba the Turk leaves him but Anne vows to remain true.  Nick the Shadow leads Tom to a graveyard where their reckoning must be made and demands Tom's soul as payment.  As Tom begs for his life, Nick offers a wager on a game of cards.  When Tom wins, Nick curses him with madness.  The story ends with Tom in an insane asylum while Anne sings him to sleep.  During the Epilogue, the cast warns that the Devil will find work for idle hands. The staging is based on a series of original etchings by William Hogarth which were Stravinsky's inspiration for the creation of the opera.  It is incredibly stylized and dramatic, almost as if the actors are inside of a drawing.  I thought it was highly effective. The costumes, also based on Hogarth's etchings, are superb.  I particularly loved the black and white costumes during the auction scene.  All of the actors sing their roles beautifully and I especially loved Anne's aria, "No word from Tom."  The orchestral music by Stravinsky is very dramatic (I love the Russians) and this opera featured the conducting debut of Thierry Fischer, the Music Director of the Utah Symphony, and I thought he did a magnificent job.  I loved the harpsichord throughout the piece!  This opera was over three hours long but, much to my surprise, I enjoyed every second of it!  Bravo to Utah Opera for bringing such a stellar production to Capitol Theatre!

Note:  I am beyond excited for the 2015-2016 Utah Opera season!  Go here for information because you won't want to miss a single production!

Clouds of Sils Maria

I have wanted to see Clouds of Sils Maria for quite some time.  Kristen Stewart is one my favorite actresses and she has garnered quite a bit of buzz (not to mention a Cesar Award for Best Supporting Actress) so I was really excited to see her performance!  I was finally able to see it last night and I am still thinking about it (because of the ambiguous ending).  Juliette Binoche plays Maria Enders, a celebrated stage and screen actress who is approaching middle age and contemplating her legacy.  Stewart plays Valentine, Maria's personal assistant upon whom she depends for everything.  A young director approaches Maria about reviving the play which launched her career.  When she was eighteen, Maria portrayed Sigrid, a young woman who seduces and then ruthlessly abandons an older woman, driving her to suicide; now the director wants her to play Helena, the older woman.  She reluctantly agrees to the role and travels with Valentine to a remote mountain retreat in Switzerland to rehearse.  As Maria and Valentine read through the play (while hiking through the beautiful mountains of Switzerland), the lines spoken by the characters in the play also reflect the relationship between the two women.  During a particularly heated scene, which seemingly depicts the tension unfolding in their lives, Valentine reveals the script and reads the stage direction.  When the role of Sigrid is given to a young actress (Chloe Grace Moretz) known for her superhero movies and her bad behavior off camera, Maria becomes increasingly insecure.  It is an intense psychological drama exploring the themes of life imitating art, youth vs. experience, and talent vs. celebrity which reminded me a great deal of the movie Birdman.  Both Binoche and Stewart give incredible performances.  Stewart, especially, is captivating and I found it highly amusing when the two main characters do a Google search of the young actress and discover scandals which mirror Stewart's own personal life.  The expansive mountain scenery is incredibly beautiful (I love Switzerland) and forms the perfect backdrop for the almost claustrophobic tension.  I  also loved the juxtaposition of the music (Pachelbel and Handel for Maria and Primal Scream for Valentine) which reinforces the division between  Maria and Valentine.  While I loved the film, it is very slow moving and cerebral so I wouldn't recommend it for everyone.

Note:  My favorite scene is when Valentine defends superhero movies to a somewhat snobbish Maria by saying that the action is just a convention to communicate a deeper truth.  As someone who can appreciate both blockbusters and independent films, I really loved that!

District Champion

Yesterday I got to see my beautiful and talented niece compete at the Jr. High Track and Field District Championship.  She qualified in three events: discus (she had a new PR of 119' 1/2" in the qualifying tournament), shot put, and long jump.

Tashena's first event was discus.  In her preliminary flight she didn't throw very far.  At one point she threw 71' which was farther than most of the other girls but it was almost ridiculous for her.  I think she was just messing with all of the other girls because they all fell apart during the final when she got serious!  Tashena's final distance was 111'6" to easily win first place!  She was quite disappointed with that distance (they were all throwing into the wind) because she wanted to set a record but no one was even close to her.  I am so proud of her!

In the shot put she had a new PR of 29'6" but she was still really disappointed to place fifth overall.  Her coach was really pleased because she improved over two feet during the season which is very unusual.  Most of the girls who placed ahead of her were ninth graders.  I am glad that the winner of the shot put was the girl from Kaysville who has been Tashena's biggest competition at the preliminary meets.  I've gotten to know her a little bit and I like her.

Tashena struggled a little bit in the long jump.  In the middle of her flight she had to compete in the final of the shot put and she had to go to the discus medal ceremony.  I think she was a bit distracted.  She made it into the final but she ended up scratching on two of her jumps.  She was disappointed but I am so proud of her!  It has been so much fun to watch her this season and I can't wait to see what she does next year because I know that she will be very determined!

A Big Win!

Last night I watched another baseball game with Sean's team, the Hot Rods.  There was a huge rainstorm right before the game but I am really glad I stayed because Sean played so well!  Sean usually gets on base with a walk or he strikes out but tonight he got a huge hit which resulted in two RBIs!  He has been feeling a little bit discouraged so this was a great moment for him!  He had another run (with a walk) and he made a great play on first base which resulted in an out!  His entire team played really well and when one player got a home run the whole team ran out to home plate to congratulate him!  I loved that!  The Hot Rods won the game 13-4.

I got another "look" for cheering too loud!

He was all smiles after the game!

Camping Season Has Started (Sort Of)

Last weekend my family took the motor home and the trailer to our very favorite KOA in Fillmore for a quick little camping trip.  I love these camping trips so much and I hope that this is the first of many more during the summer.  It was cold and rainy the whole time we were there but it really didn't matter because Marilyn and I were very cozy inside her little trailer.  We joke that it is like the tent in the movie Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part One because it looks really small on the outside but it is surprisingly roomy on the inside.  I really enjoyed listening to the sound of the rain on the roof, especially at night.  We had lots of treats and spent most of our time watching movies.  Marilyn even brought her sewing machine and worked on one of her quilts.  We couldn't BBQ or make anything in the Dutch oven so we drove into Fillmore and got dinner from Costa Vida and ate it inside the motor home.  I guess it wasn't really camping (it was actually more like a big slumber party) but it was so relaxing!

Note:  This time we brought the dogs and they provided no end of amusement for us.  Marilyn and I went to the bathroom really early in the morning (this KOA has great bathrooms) and Marilyn decided to check to see if the dogs needed to go out.  When she opened the door to the motor home they just looked at her with disdain.  Apparently it was too early and too cold for them!

Tulip Festival 2015

One of my favorite things to do in the spring is to go to the Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point.  The flowers are always incredibly beautiful and it wan't very crowded yesterday because it was a bit overcast.  Walking along the pathways was so peaceful and relaxing!

This year my favorite garden was the Creek Garden.  I stayed in this area quite a while because the sound of the moving water was so soothing!

I also really love the Secret Garden.  It is usually really crowded but it was almost empty while I was there.  I loved sitting there and listening to the birds!

I really enjoyed myself wandering through the gardens!  The Tulip Festival continues at Thanksgiving Point until Saturday, May 9.  Tickets are $15 for adults and $12 for children.  Go here for more information.

The Music Man at PTC

I love all of the old classic musicals like The Sound of Music, The King and I, South Pacific, My Fair Lady, Fiddler on the Roof,  Oklahoma, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and, of course, The Music Man.  There is just something so wonderful about all of those those familiar songs and I have such fond memories of watching all of these musicals at my Grandma Anderson's house.  Last night I was able to see PTC's production of The Music Man and I loved everything about it!  What a great way to end the 2014-2015 season.  The cast is perfect!  Harold Hill (George Dvorsky) is as charming as he could possibly be and Marion the Librarian (Lizzie Klemperer) is perfectly uptight and buttoned down.  Mayor Shinn (PTC favorite Max Robinson) is the embodiment of befuddled pomposity while his wife, Eulalie Mackecknie Shinn (Anne Stewart Mark) just about steals the show with her Grecian Urn!  Zaneeta (Jessica Blair), Mayor Shinn's oldest girl, and Tommy Djilas (Garrett Hawe), a boy with reform school written all over him, are amazing dancers.  Ye Gods!  Winthrop (Wally Inkley) is adorable, lisp and all, and I loved Amaryllis (Alyssa Buckner) and her cross hand piano piece.  I knew every single word of every single song and had to stop myself from singing aloud, especially in "Ya Got Trouble," "The Wells Fargo Wagon," and "Gary, Indiana."   The choreography in the big production numbers is so much fun to watch and I especially loved all of the business with the books in "Marion the Librarian" and the baton twirling in "Seventy-Six Trombones."  As usual, the set is superb.  The library (both the interior and exterior) is perfect and the foot bridge is lovely with all of the flowers and the twinkling stars through the trees!  I, along with just about everyone in the audience, had a grin from ear to ear throughout the whole performance and I suspect you will love it, too.  The Music Man runs through May 16 (go here for tickets).

Note:  I think I laughed out loud every single time Mayor Shinn said, "You watch your phraseology!"  I don't know why that is so funny to me but it always has been!  I'll probably be saying it to my students for days!

The Age of Adaline

Saturday afternoon, after getting manicures, Marilyn and I went to see the movie The Age of Adaline and we both absolutely loved it!  Due to an accident involving frigid temperatures and a bolt of lightning, Adaline Bowman (Blake Lively) does not age past 29.  Because of her intense fear of being discovered, she changes her name, appearance, and residence every ten years.  The movie begins in the present day after Adaline has lived 107 years and, aside from a friend who is blind, her daughter Flemming (Ellen Burstyn), now a senior citizen, and a series of dogs who all eventually die, she has a very lonely existence.  She meets a handsome stranger named Ellis (Michiel Huisman) in an elevator at a New Year's Eve party and he begins to pursue her.  She once let her guard down and fell in love with a man during the 1960s but this relationship ended in heartbreak so she is wary of falling in love again.  Will Adaline finally stop running and find happiness?  I thought the exposition in this movie was incredibly clever.  Adaline works in the archives section of a library and the story of her life is told as she views old films ready to be digitized.  I also loved Adaline's wardrobe because everything she wears is absolutely timeless (all of her clothes are "vintage").  Lively and Huisman give great performances.  Huisman, especially, is quite endearing.  I'm not a big fan of beards, but wow!  Finally, I really loved that Adaline kept getting the same breed of dog year after year and that it just happened to be a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel (my family has a Cavalier named Red and he's a pill).  I would highly recommend this sweet and original love story!

Note:  Marilyn and I enjoyed this movie so much, we saw it again later that evening with our niece, Tashena.  She loved it, too.

Saint-Saens' Organ Symphony

Friday night I attended my final performance of the Utah Symphony 2014-2015 season.  It has been a fantastic year (go here, here, and here for some of my favorite concerts) and I certainly picked an amazing concert to end with!  The orchestra began with A Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky.  I have heard this piece performed many times and I always picture a coven of witches dancing around a large bonfire.  It is very atmospheric!  The concert continued with Symphony No. 5 by Alexander Glazunov.  I was completely unfamiliar with this piece but I really enjoyed it.  I thought is was very dramatic and I especially loved the themes played by the brass section.  After the intermission, the orchestra played the Organ Symphony by Camille Saint-Saens (who is becoming one of my favorite composers).  This piece featured Richard Elliott, the principal organist for the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.  Several years ago, I saw the orchestra perform this piece with the same soloist and I enjoyed it so much that this one was one of the first concerts I picked when creating my season package.  I absolutely loved it!  There is a section in the second movement where the organ plays in unison with the strings, punctuated rather dramatically by the timpani and cymbals, that is so incredibly stirring I had goosebumps!  The guest conductor for the evening, Kuzuki Yamada, was absolutely brilliant and there was a particularly touching moment when he ran over to embrace Elliott at the end of the concert.  It was a very enjoyable evening of music, as always.

Note:  The Utah Symphony still has a few concerts left in the season and they will be performing in many outdoor venues throughout the summer.  I already have tickets to a concert at Red Butte Garden and I am really excited about some of the Deer Valley concerts!  Go here for information and tickets.