Utah Shakespeare Festival 2015

This season is the final one in which the Adams Memorial Theatre will be used for the Utah Shakespeare Festival.  It has been in operation since 1977 and the first play I saw there, Shakespeare's The Tempest, was in 1989 while on a college trip.  I have returned almost every year since and have many wonderful memories of the amazing performances I've seen, including Patrick Page in Richard III and Brian Vaughn in Hamlet.  Sam Ashdown's portrayal of Prince Hal in last year's Henry IV Part One is also among one of my favorites so it is especially fitting that my final performance "within this Wooden O" was to see him reprise his role in Henry IV Part Two.

I also bought a ticket to see Amadeus and made the drive to Cedar City Monday morning in time to see the matinee performance.  The movie adaptation of the stage play is one of my favorites and I actually credit it with turning me into a fan of classical music (it was the first movie I ever owned) so I was looking forward to seeing it.  The movie is quite different from the stage play (Peter Shaffer wrote the play before the screenplay) but I eventually stopped comparing the two because this version is so powerful and I was completely drawn into the story of rival composers Antonio Salieri and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.  David Ivers, one of my favorite actors/directors of the festival, gives an incredibly intense and passionate performance as Salieri.  He transforms from the stooped and wheelchair-bound older Salieri into the composer in his prime right before our eyes by merely substituting his coat, wig, and facial expression.  I have never seen anything like it before and it is repeated several times.  His agony is palpable when Salieri rails against God for giving such an unworthy man the talent he covets.  Tasso Feldman does a wonderful job as Mozart (he even has a great laugh) but Ivers dominates every scene, even when he is just eavesdropping on Mozart from behind a tall chair.  The supporting cast is excellent and I particularly enjoyed John Pribyl as Emperor Joseph II and Brandon Burk and Anthony Simone as the Vinticelli (Little winds).  The costumes are magnificent and I was struck by the opulence of Mozart's frock coats at the beginning of the play in contrast to the muted colors he wears as he sinks further and further into penury.  I loved the addition of Mozart's music, especially the operas, into many of the scenes.  This production of Amadeus rocked me (I couldn't resist) and I highly recommend it.

It rained all day so I was really disappointed that Henry IV Part Two might be moved from the Adams to the indoor stage.  I desperately wanted to see it outside to have one final memory in that magical theatre.  Luckily, the rain stopped just in time for the Greenshow (pictured above) and I enjoyed it very much while eating a tart (I ran into my friend Joe and he bought me another one).

Henry IV Part Two is not as exciting as the first one (It is rarely performed) because it is dealing with the aftermath of what has happened but I found it to be just as engrossing because of the resolution of these events, particularly the transformation of a wayward prince into a noble king and the reconciliation between father and son.  There are some hilarious moments with Falstaff (John Ahlin), the prince's unsuitable friend.  Ahlin is a master of physical comedy and I, along with everyone in the theatre, laughed out loud when he tries to get up off the floor and when he recruits men to go to battle with him.  However, I waited the entire play for the final scene between Prince Hal and King Henry IV (Both Sam Ashdown and Larry Bull are reprising the roles from Henry IV Part One) and it is powerful.  The King is on his deathbed and Hal, thinking that he is dead, picks up the crown.  The King accuses Hal of wishing for his death and berates him for all of his previous wanton behavior.  Hal responds with genuine grief and concern for ruling the country and the King finally shows him some tenderness and gives him advice.  Ashdown and Bull are incredible in this scene and I had goosebumps!  Another scene that is quite moving is when Henry V is crowned and paraded through London with much pomp and circumstance.  When he sees Falstaff, he turns his back on his old friend and banishes him.  Ahlin's performance in that moment brought me to tears!  I am now eagerly awaiting Ashdown's performance in Henry V next summer (It was a brilliant idea to cast the same actor in the role for all three plays, in my opinion) in the new Engelstad Theatre!

Note:  I keep inadvertently running into friends.  First it was Scott at a movie, then I saw my friend Marta in the lobby before Amadeus, and finally, as I mentioned, I found my friend Joe at the Greenshow before Henry IV Part Two.  The theatre wasn't full so after the intermission we moved to seats closer to the stage so we could sit together.  It was great!  Maybe I should actually plan something with my friends...

Mr. Holmes

I have always really liked the stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (I even decided to pull out the classic The Hound of the Baskervilles for my seniors at the end of the year).  Sherlock Holmes is such a wonderfully complicated and idiosyncratic character so, when I saw the previews for Mr. Holmes, I was intrigued by the premise of an older and more fallible man in retirement.  It has been on my list and I got the chance to see it last night.   A 93 year old Sherlock Holmes (Ian McKellen) has been retired and living in a remote cottage in Sussex for over 30 years,  He is unhappy with how John Watson portrayed his final case and wants to write a true account before he dies (in some funny scenes he is also unhappy about his portrayal with a calabash pipe and deerstalker cap in the illustrations of the stories).  His memory is failing him but his housekeeper's son Roger (Milo Parker) wants to know the story and helps him piece together the clues.  The case, involving a man wanting to know why his young wife is so distraught, is presented in bits and pieces as flashbacks.  Holmes went about the case logically and uncovered the facts but he couldn't prevent a tragedy from occurring.  As a man facing mortality all alone, he finally realizes that he should have shown the young woman some compassion and this changes his relationship with his housekeeper (Laura Linney) and Roger.  McKellen is simply marvelous as both the celebrated detective in his prime in Baker Street and the curmudgeonly old man waiting for death by the sea, giving an incredible performance.  I was also impressed with Parker and the relationship between Holmes and Roger is beautiful to watch as it develops.  The plot moves slowly; it is not a typical detective story (although there are some really clever moments where Sherlock displays his genius) but, rather, it is an exploration of a man facing his legacy with regrets and I found it to be very moving.  In fact, my only complaint about this movie is Laura Linney's inconsistent accent, although she does an excellent job with some powerful scenes at the end of the film.  I loved it and I recommend it highly.

Note:  I think my favorite actor to portray the detective is still Benedict Cumberbatch.  I absolutely love the PBS series, Sherlock, which is set in present-day.

Classical Mystery Tour

The summer is just not complete unless I see a Utah Symphony performance at Deer Valley and this year I picked a great concert featuring a Beatles tribute band called Classical Mystery Tour.  Just in case you didn't know this, the music of the Beatles sounds absolutely incredible backed by an orchestra, especially the Utah Symphony!  Jim Owen (John Lennon), Tony Kishman (Paul McCartney), David John (George Harrison), and Chris Camilleri (Ringo Starr) look and sound a lot like the Beatles and they even keep up the witty banter that the lads were known for.  They came out wearing the iconic black suits and Cuban heeled boots and sang a few early hits and a beautiful version of "Yesterday."  Then they quickly changed into the Sgt. Pepper's uniforms, which were fabulous, and sang "All You Need Is Love," "Penny Lane," "Here Comes the Sun," "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," "With a Little Help From My Friends," and "Eleanor Rigby."  They ended their first set with "A Day in the Life" which sounded absolutely amazing with the orchestra.  That song has always been one of my favorites!  After the intermission, they came out dressed like hippies (I especially loved George Harrison's leather vest with fringe).  They sang "Magical Mystery Tour," "I am the Walrus," "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da," "Yellow Submarine," and "Come Together."  One of my very favorite moments was when they sang "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" because David John (George) was absolutely incredible on the guitar solos.  They played "Live and Let Die" and "Imagine" which are technically not Beatles songs but they were awesome.  They finished the second set with "Let It Be" and a great rendition of "Golden Slumbers/ Carry That Weight/ The End."  When they left the stage, I started yelling "Hey Jude" and everyone around me cheered.  Of course, they came back and sang it for me and the crowd went a little crazy with the chorus as they often do.  They ended with "Twist and Shout" which got everybody up dancing!  I loved every single minute of this concert and I think I sang every word of every song!  Seeing the Utah Symphony at Deer Valley is so much fun!  Go here to see the rest of the concerts at the Deer Valley Music Festival this summer and then pack a picnic, bring a blanket, and sit under the stars listening to fabulous music!

Testament of Youth

The first thing you need to know about the film Testament of Youth is that it stars my boyfriend Kit Harington (you may know him better as Jon Snow from Game of Thrones).  I could listen to that boy recite poetry all day!  The second thing you need to know is that it is a coming of age story about an unconventional young woman set against the backdrop of World War I, which is a particular interest of mine.  I tell you this because you may want to take my gushing review with a grain of salt!  I literally couldn't help but love this film and love it I most certainly did!  It is 1914 and Vera Brittain (Alicia Vikander from Ex Machina) wants nothing more than to be allowed to study at Oxford like her younger brother, Edward (Taron Egerton), and his friends who are spending their break with her family.  A romance develops between Vera and Roland (Harington), one of her brother's friends, and when she is accepted to Oxford she is equally excited about the possibility of becoming a writer and about being near Roland.  When England enters the war, Edward and his friends, including Roland, enlist in high spirits longing for adventure and eager to do their duty for King and country.  When Roland comes back from France on leave, he tells Vera of the horrors of trench warfare so she decides to leave school and become a volunteer nurse.  As Roland, Edward, and all of their friends are eventually killed, Vera begins speaking out about the futility of war.  This film portrays both the dreamlike world of pre-war England with beautiful scenes in the countryside and the brutality of war with stark images of the trenches and bloody close-ups of the row upon row of wounded.  Vikander is in practically every scene and she is brilliant at portraying so many different emotions:  giddiness as she falls in love with Roland (he writes her poetry!), determination to succeed at Oxford, despair as she nurses the wounded, overwhelming grief when she learns of Roland's death, and passion as she speaks out against war.  Harington is also amazing, particularly when he tells Vera that he has lost all of the poetry inside him at the front.  There are so many scenes that stand out in my mind but one is especially poignant.  Vera learns that her brother has been brought to the field hospital but she can't find him.  She eventually locates him among the dead lying on the ground.  In her grief, she embraces him and realizes that he is still alive.  My great-grandfather was wounded and presumed dead in the battle of Ypres.  When his brother went back to the battlefield to look for his body, he discovered that he was still alive and saved him!  I cried during that scene.  On a lighter note, I laughed during a scene when Vera and Roland elude her chaperon to steal a kiss.  It is based on Vera Brittain's best-selling memoir of the same name so, not only do I want to see this film again, but I also want to read the book (I am currently reading Stefan Zweig's memoir of World War I called The World of Yesterday).

Note:  I accidentally met my dear friends Scott and Toni at this film.  Actually, I am surprised I haven't run into them before because we are all film aficionados and night owls who end up at the Broadway Theatre at least once a week!

Ant-Man

Late last night (early this morning?) I saw the movie Ant-Man.  It has been a rough week and I just wanted to do something to take my mind off things but, honestly, I really liked the movie, much more than I thought I would.  To be sure, having ant-like powers sounds like a silly premise for a superhero movie but I thought it was hilarious and I really enjoyed all of the miniaturized effects.  In 1989 Dr. Hank Pym (Michael Douglas), the original ant-man, resigns from S.H.I.E.L.D. because he doesn't want them to unleash the power to shrink organic material on the world (and he is mourning the death of his wife from this technology which he created).  In present day, Pym learns that his former protege and current CEO of Pym Technologies, Darren Cross (Corey Stoll), is on the verge of replicating his formula and intends to sell it to Hydra.  He enlists the help of his estranged daughter, Hope Van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly), who still works at Pym Technologies, to spy on Cross but he doesn't want her to wear the ant-man suit because he doesn't want to lose her like he lost her mother.  To that end, he recruits Scott Lang (Paul Rudd), who has recently been released from San Quentin for grand larceny and is trying to get his life back together despite the attempts of his former cell-mate Luis (Michael Pena) to get him to join his gang.  Wanting to be a hero to his daughter, Lang learns to use the suit and harness the power of various ants.  He eventually recruits Luis' gang (the aforementioned Pena, rapper T.I., and David Dastmalchian) to help infiltrate Pym Technologies and battle Cross, who has created his own suit called the Yellowjacket.  Instead of epic battle scenes involving the destruction of cities like other Avenger movies, these battle scenes are in miniature amidst giant items, such as life savers, cell phones, and a Thomas the Train toy.  What saves this movie from being a formulaic origin story are the scenes with Luis' gang.  Rudd, while not as endearingly snarky as Robert Downey, Jr., is a master of the funny one-liner and Pena nearly steals the show with his over-the-top portrayal of Luis.  I was laughing out loud and so was everyone in my screening.  I also really enjoyed the scenes where Lang puts the suit on for the first time and falls into a bathtub full of water and then through the floor boards to the apartment below to land on a turntable.  I'm sure the critics are going to rip this movie to shreds but I enjoyed it and it did exactly what every superhero movie should do: it provided a necessary diversion!

Note:  There is a mid-credits scene where Pym shows Hope the Wasp suit worn by her mother and there is a post-credits scene setting up the next Captain America movie so stay put!