Brahms' Symphony No. 4

Last night, for the second weekend in a row, I found myself at Abravanel Hall eagerly anticipating another Utah Symphony concert.  In my opinion, you can't go wrong when you start the weekend with the Utah Symphony.  Last night's concert began with Introduction, Theme and Variations by Johann Nepomuk Hummel.  I was not at all familiar with this composer (to me, Hummels are the figurines that my Aunt June collected) but I absolutely loved this piece because it reminded me a lot of Mozart.  It featured an oboe and the soloist, Francois Leleux, was incredible.  He played with so much passion and exuberance and it looked like he was having so much fun.  It was certainly a lot of fun for the audience to watch his dramatic expressions and gestures.  Who knew that the oboe was so cool?  Next, Leleux joined the orchestra once again for the U.S. premiere of Aquateinte by Michael Jarrell, a piece commissioned by the Utah Symphony.  It is brilliant and I really liked that it featured so many instruments.  I was particularly fascinated by the myriad of percussion instruments (played by just two musicians).  After the intermission, the orchestra played Symphony No. 4 by Johannes Brahms.  I actually recognized much of this piece (maybe it has been programmed by the Utah Symphony before?) and I liked it because, even though it is quite lively,  it is a bit melancholy.  It was another lovely evening at Abravanel Hall and I highly recommend spending part of your weekend there, too.  This program will be performed again tonight (go here for tickets).

Matilda at the Eccles

To be honest, I didn't have a lot of interest in seeing Matilda, the Broadway musical based on the book by Roald Dahl.  However, I saw it last night and, as is so often the case, I enjoyed it much more than I expected.  It was quite entertaining with outstanding performances by a cast of adorable children.  Matilda Wormwood (the incredibly talented Jenna Weir), a precocious five year old with a penchant for reading and telling stories, is neglected by her mother (Darcy Stewart), an amateur Latin ballroom dancer, and her father (Matt Harrington), an unscrupulous used car salesman, and is terrorized by Miss Trunchbull (Dan Chameroy), the tyrannical headmistress of her school.  The story is quite dark but Matilda triumphs in the end because sometimes you have to be a little naughty and stand up for what is right.  As I mentioned, the children are absolutely adorable and I particularly enjoyed the song "When I Grow Up" (I may or may not have had a tear in my eye during this song).  Miss Trunchbull is hilarious (think of Miss Hannigan crossed with an East German Olympic athlete) but I think my very favorite character is Rudolpho (Eric Craig), Mrs. Wormwood's ballroom dance partner.  His over-the-top performance in the number "Loud" had me (and everyone around me) laughing out loud.  All of the song and dance numbers, especially "Revolting Children," are a lot of fun but I often had difficulty hearing the lyrics which was a little bit disappointing.  The set is very clever and I particularly loved the use of typography throughout (the dancing on the alphabet blocks during "School Song" is amazing).  This is definitely not my favorite musical but I did enjoy it.  The Eccles Theatre was filled with children (some quite young) which really surprised me because I think the story is very dark and most of the humor seemed to go right over their heads (at least the ones sitting near me).  I recommend leaving the kiddos at home for the remaining three performances (go here for tickets).

Note:  Broadway at the Eccles will be announcing the 2017-2018 season on March 8 and I can't wait!  I am beyond excited that I will get to see Hamilton again!

Women in Jeopardy at PTC

Yesterday was a dark and dreary day filled with intermittent rain and snow showers.  I was definitely in need of something to raise my spirits and I found it at Pioneer Theatre in the form of a new play by Wendy MacLeod called Women in Jeopardy.  It is a hilarious farce set in present-day Salt Lake City involving three divorced middle-aged women who get caught up in an intrigue and I laughed out loud more times than I can count.  Mary (Anne Tolpegin) and Jo (Rosalyn Coleman) are concerned when their friend Liz (Elizabeth Meadows Rouse) becomes involved with Jackson Scull (Joe Gately), a man whom they rather fancifully suspect is a serial killer.  In their minds, their suspicions are confirmed when Jackson wants to take Liz's dimwitted daughter, Amanda (Betsy Helmer), on a camping trip in a remote area of Southern Utah.  They share their concerns with Sgt. Kirk Sponsullar (Joe Gately), who looks remarkably like Jackson, but to no avail.  In desperation, Mary recruits Trenner (CJ Strong), Amanda's ex-boyfriend, to try to convince her not to go on the trip but he interprets this to mean that Mary is interested in him.  Chaos ensues when they all meet up at a campsite in the middle of the night.  This production is filled with amusing situations, lots of physical comedy (I laughed so hard that I couldn't breathe at Trenner's ill-fated attempt to seduce Mary), and fast-paced dialogue filled with lots of fun local humor (a line about Democrats had the entire theatre in hysterics).  All of the actors have great comedic timing and I was particularly impressed with all of the quick costume changes.  I highly recommend this fun comedy which runs at PTC through Saturday (go here for tickets).  It is the perfect antidote for the winter blues!

Hell or High Water

Every year it is a goal of mine to see all of the Academy Award nominees for Best Picture.  Now I can officially say that I have seen them all!  Megaplex Theaters are screening all of the nominees this week and yesterday I saw Hell or High Water, the only film I hadn't seen yet (you can read my commentaries on Arrival, Manchester by the Sea, La La Land, Lion, Moonlight, Hacksaw Ridge, Fences, and Hidden Figures).  My friend enthusiastically recommended this film to me last summer and now I know why.  Toby Howard (Chris Pine) and his reckless and impetuous brother, Tanner (Ben Foster), rob a series of branches of the Texas Midlands Bank.  They take the proceeds of these robberies to a casino on an Indian reservation to be laundered and, in an ironic twist, have the check made out to the Texas Midlands Bank.  It turns out that they need the money to pay a reverse mortgage held by the Texas Midlands Bank which is due within the week.  A Texas Ranger on the verge of retirement, Marcus Hamilton (Jeff Bridges), and his partner are hot on their trail and just miss catching them as one of their robberies goes awry.  Tanner leads the Rangers into the hills, allowing Toby to escape, and is eventually killed by Hamilton in a dramatic shoot-out.  Toby pays the mortgage and puts the ranch, on which oil has been discovered, in trust for his sons, thereby breaking the cycle of poverty in his family.  I am not normally a fan of Westerns (although I really enjoyed this movie) but I think this film is a brilliant indictment of the economic depression felt by much of small town America.  What I liked best about this film, other than the outstanding performances of both Bridges and Pine, was the pacing of the narrative.  Information is revealed little by little to explain the motivation of both the brothers and the Rangers. I also really enjoyed the resolution which, for some reason, was incredibly satisfying to me!  I highly recommend this film, especially to fans of the genre.

Newsies on the Big Screen

Yesterday I saw the musical Newsies on the big screen and it was simply amazing.  The touring company was joined by many of the original Broadway cast, including Kara Lindsay as Katherine, Andrew Keenan-Bolger as Crutchie, and Jeremy Jordan (squeal) as Jack Kelly, and the production was filmed live on stage at the Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles (where I saw it for the first time) for release in movie theaters.  I love this musical so much!  I love the story of how a group of "newsies," with the help of a fledgling reporter, defy Joseph Pulitzer's attempt to raise the price of newspapers with a city-wide strike.  I love all of the powerful songs, especially  "Carrying the Banner," "The World Will Know," "Seize the Day," "King of New York,"  and "Once and for All."  I love the dazzling choreography, particularly all of the high-energy leaps and spins in unison.  I absolutely loved this film version!  I loved being able to see the incredibly passionate performance of Jeremy Jordan, who is the best Jack Kelly I have seen.  I loved all of the different camera angles which made watching this film like having a front-row seat at the Pantages Theatre (for a lot less money!).  Just like the first time I saw it, I had goosebumps throughout the whole performance and I highly recommend that you seize the day and get a ticket to the final screening on February 22 (go here).

Note:  I loved seeing all of the groups of theatre nerds wearing their newsboy caps!  I also loved seeing every single seat filled!  Theatre nerds rock!