Richard Strauss' Don Quixote & Zarathustra

Last week I went to a Utah Symphony concert with my friend Angela and this week I persuaded my sister to come along.  I usually really enjoy doing things by myself but I have to admit that it has been kind of nice being social lately!  I invited my sister along because she plays the cello and last night's concert featured Rainer Eudeikis, the Principal Cello.  The entire program highlighted the music of Richard Strauss and it was absolutely epic!  The concert began with Serenade in E-flat Major which is a lovely piece featuring the woodwinds and the horns.  Since I played the clarinet in school I enjoyed this very much.  Next, the orchestra played Don Quixote, with the aforementioned Rainer Eudikis on cello and Brant Bayless on viola.  This amazing piece is, of course, based on the novel by Miguel Cervantes and if you are at all familiar with the story it is uncanny how the various instruments mimic the action!  The cello represents Don Quixote, a old man who thinks that he is a knight is pursuit of an adventure, and the viola represents Sancho Panza, his loyal sidekick.  There are ten variations which tell the story and my favorites are when Don Quixote mistakes a bunch of sheep for an army because the brass sound just like the bleating of sheep, when he mistakes a group of pilgrims as kidnappers because the brass, once again, mimic the singing of liturgical chants, and the death of Don Quixote because I always think of the cello as a mournful sounding instrument and the final note depicting the old knight's last gasp is heartbreaking!  After the intermission, the orchestra played Also sprach Zarathustra which I found to be absolutely exhilarating!  I have never heard this piece performed live before but it is instantly recognizable if you have seen the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey.  In fact, I can never hear the opening fanfare without thinking of the movie!  This piece is simply spectacular and I loved hearing it live!  I suggest you get a ticket for this epic evening of music (go here).

Note:  One of the perks of having a companion for the symphony is being able to go out to dinner!  Last week it was the Cheesecake Factory and this week it was the Garden Restaurant!

A Chilly Bees Game

Marilyn was offered some free tickets to yesterday's Bees game at work.   The seats were right behind the dugout so we were pretty excited.  It was 80 degrees over the weekend but you just never know with the weather in Utah.  At one point it was actually snowing yesterday and I thought the game might be postponed.  But then it cleared up in the afternoon and we decided to go.  We had so much fun!  I can't begin to tell you how much I love spending time with Sean and Tashena!  We love going to Bees games and we have some silly rituals like what we get to eat (we opted for hot chocolate instead of ice cream, or at least three of us did).  We were laughing so hard I wondered if we were bothering the people around us!  The Bees played the Fresno Grizzlies and they scored three runs in the first two innings which was a lot of fun.  Then the Grizzlies scored three runs in the third inning and three more in the fourth inning which deflated the crowd a bit!  By the bottom of the sixth inning we were all really cold so we decided to leave and it might be a good thing we did because the Bees ended up losing 11-4.

It really doesn't matter what the score is because we always have so much fun and last night was a blast!  I am so grateful that I get to spend so much time with my niece and nephew.  Being an aunt is the best!

Lean on Pete

I have developed a lovely habit of seeing an independent movie at my favorite art house theater every Sunday afternoon and yesterday's selection was Lean on Pete.  Charlie Thompson (Charlie Plummer) is living a hand-to-mouth existence with an unreliable father when he finds a job at a racetrack working for an irascible trainer named Del Montgomery (Steve Buscemi).  He grows attached to an aging racehorse named Lean on Pete but, when the horse starts losing races, he is destined for slaughter.  After a tragedy involving his father, Charlie takes Lean on Pete for a cross-country journey to find his aunt.  It is a coming of age story about a boy whose situation becomes more and more perilous and it is absolutely unrelenting.  Much like Andrew Haigh's previous movie 45 Years, this movie does not have a lot of dialogue or exposition but everything that Charlie is feeling is evident and he is an entirely sympathetic character.  There were times when I had tears in my eyes and one scene made me gasp out loud but I never felt that it was manipulative.  It felt like an accurate portrayal of a segment of society living on the edge of poverty.  Plummer gives an astonishing performance, appearing in literally every scene.  The cinematography is beautiful, especially the nighttime scenes of Charlie walking with Pete through the desert with only a lantern for illumination.  I loved this movie and I highly recommend it!

Fischer Conducts Shostakovich

It has been a fun and busy week and I capped it off with a Utah Symphony concert with my friend Angela.  It is so nice to have a friend who likes classical music as much as I do and we had an absolutely wonderful evening.  After the lovely concert featuring the music of Dmitri Shostakovich we walked to the Cheesecake Factory for dessert and met with some rowdy fans who had just come from seeing the Jazz beat the Thunder to advance to the next round in the playoffs!  So much fun!  The orchestra began with Piano Concerto No. 1 featuring Boris Giltburg on piano and Travis Peterson on trumpet.  I found this piece to be a bit mercurial because at times it was very stirring but one of the themes played by the trumpet was so mournful.  Boris Giltburg joined the orchestra once more for Piano Concerto No. 2 and this was my favorite piece of the evening.  The first movement was bold and dramatic with all of the strings playing in unison.  The second movement was almost unbearably romantic and it brought spontaneous tears to my eyes.  The third movement was very playful and lively.  I really loved this and I enjoyed Giltburg's performance because he was so energetic.  After the intermission the orchestra concluded with Symphony No 10 which was incredibly moody and atmospheric.  I especially enjoyed all of the themes played by the woodwinds throughout and I loved the almost plaintive theme played by the solo horn in the third movement.  I was also very moved by the triumphant ending!  I love the Russian composers so much and, because Shostakovich is a particular favorite of mine, I enjoyed this concert immensely!  The same program is being performed again tonight and tickets may be purchased here.  I highly recommend it! 

Note:  I've been spoiled this season with so many concerts featuring Russian composers.  My final concert of the season will feature my favorite: Rachmaninoff!

Avengers: Infinity War

Last night I saw a Thursday preview of Avengers: Infinity War with a large and rowdy crowd and to say that it is epic would be an understatement!  All of the movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe have been leading up to this point and it certainly did not disappoint.  Thanos (Josh Brolin) is on a quest to assemble all of the infinity stones so that he may destroy half of the population of the universe, believing that it will preserve resources and, thereby, ultimately preserve life.  He, along with his followers, battle against various groups of Avengers, Dr. Strange, Spider-Man, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and the people of Wakanda in order to retrieve the stones.  The stakes in this movie are real with serious consequences and there are scenes of great pathos but the humor that we have all come to love and expect is there, as well.  I particularly enjoyed the interactions between Thor (Chris Hemsworth) and Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) and between Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.) and Stephen Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch).  I really liked Thanos as a villain because in many ways he is very sympathetic.  The battle sequences are incredible and the CGI is actually quite amazing.  In my screening there were cheers and applause as every character came on screen and there were audible gasps at some of the more poignant scenes.  I really have no words for my reaction to this movie except to say that it lived up to my expectations in every way and I suspect that I will need to see it again!

Note:  The ending...

Beirut

My Dad and I are both big fans of espionage movies so I took him to see Beirut last night.  This movie is the type of old fashioned political thriller that Hollywood doesn't seem to make any more and we both loved it!  It is 1972 and Beirut is the Paris of the Middle East.  Mason Skiles (Jon Hamm) is a U.S. diplomat living the high life in Beirut when an incident with his friend Cal Riley (Mark Pellegrino), a CIA agent, leads to a personal tragedy.  Ten years later Skiles is an alcoholic working as a labor dispute negotiator in the U.S. when he is asked by the CIA to return to Beirut, now engulfed in a civil war, to negotiate the release of Riley who has been taken hostage.  There is much unfinished business between the two men as well as uncertain loyalties within the state department set against the backdrop of unrest in the Middle East which makes this movie incredibly intense and suspenseful.  One of the reasons I love espionage movies that are done well is that you have to pay attention to the subtle clues and it is so satisfying when you figure something out.  At one point, my Dad leaned into me and asked, "You know where this is going, right?"  I answered him and then we gave each other knowing looks when my prediction proved accurate!  I still didn't know how the events would ultimately be resolved so I found it to be very compelling until the final scene.  Hamm gives a great performance, one of his best to date, as a man who is forced to confront his past and Rosamund Pike does a nice job as a CIA officer who decides to trust him.  This movie doesn't do anything new for the genre but I found it to be very entertaining and it made for a fun night out with my Dad (we discussed it the whole drive home).

The Music Man at HCT

Last night I went to Hale Theatre's production of The Music Man and I had a huge smile on my face during the entire show because it is just so delightful! There is something so comforting about the old favorites and I eagerly anticipated every familiar song: "Ya Got Trouble, " "Goodnight My Someone," "Seventy-Six Trombones," "Marian, the Librarian," "The Wells Fargo Wagon," "Gary, Indiana," and "'Till There Was You." I tried very hard not to sing along but the adorable older gentleman sitting next to me told me he didn't mind if I did! Hale does a fantastic job of staging this show to make it interesting and fresh. I especially loved the choreography in "Seventy-Six Trombones," "Marian, the Librarian," and "Shipoopi."  This new stage may be bigger and more technologically advanced than the old one in West Valley but it still impresses me what the choreographers can do with such a large cast in a relatively small space. The sets are absolutely amazing! The train in "Rock Island," the multi-level library with wrought iron spiral staircases in "Marian, the Librarian," and the foot bridge in "'Till There Was You" were my favorites. Addison Welch is incredibly charismatic as Professor Harold Hill and Rachel Woodward Hansen has a beautiful voice as Marian Paroo. There are a lot of funny characters in this show and I thought they were very well cast especially Janae Gibbs Cottam as Mrs. Paroo, Brandon Suisse as Mayor Shinn ("Not one poop out of you madame!"),  and Sharon Lynn Kennison as Eulalie MacKecknie Shinn ("One Grecian Urn.").  Ryder Mason and Christine Bernards are adorable as Winthrop and Amaryllis, respectively.  Finally, the barbershop quartet (Luke Shepherd, Juston Lebaron, Jason Baldwin, and Ricky Parkinson) is fantastic! If you are a fan of the classic musicals, then this will definitely put a smile on your face like it did me.  It runs at the Mountain America Performing Arts Centre until June 9 (tickets may be purchased here).

You Were Never Really Here

You Were Never Really Here was the very first film that I saw at Sundance this year and it has haunted me ever since.  I knew that I would need to see it again. Luckily it is being screened by the Salt Lake Film Society and I got to see it yesterday afternoon.  Joe (Joaquin Phoenix) is a brutal and ruthless hit man, whose weapon of choice is a hammer.  He is clearly tormented, attempting suicide multiple times, and through flashbacks we learn that he is suffering from PTSD from a violent childhood at the hands of an abusive father, from combat duty in Iraq, and as a former FBI agent.  He is hired to rescue the daughter of a New York State Senator who has become the victim of a sex trafficking ring.  The operation to rescue the girl goes wrong and everyone involved in her rescue, except Joe who manages to escape, is brutally murdered which prompts him to seek revenge.  What I loved about this film is that a tragically flawed character is ultimately redeemed by the very person he sets out to save.  This is a theme that really resonated with me because, while this film is dark and gritty, it does end on a optimistic note.  Joaquin Phoenix gives a brilliant central performance.  There is not a lot of exposition or dialogue but you can instantly feel Joe's pain and desperation.  One scene, in particular, is incredibly powerful when he realizes that the girl he has been hoping to save will now be as damaged as he is and I was almost in tears as she attempts to comfort him.  Jonny Greenwood's pulse-pounding score adds to the almost unbearable tension and Lynne Ramsay's script is a powerful exploration of suffering.  It is beautiful in its brutality.  It is profound in its simplicity.  It is a masterpiece!

Prom 2018

Last night Tashena went to Bountiful High School's Prom with her date Noah, her best friend Channing, and their group.  I love how her group always seems to coordinate the color of their dresses!

I really loved Tashena's dress this year.  She always picks something really classic!

Tashena with her date Noah.  He was adorable!

The other couples.

The guys.

The girls.

The whole group!

Grieg's Piano Concerto with Alexandra Dariescu

I have to admit that I bought a ticket to last night's Utah Symphony concert because I am a huge fan of Sibelius but I ended up loving all three of the pieces performed and enjoyed myself immensely!  The orchestra began with Carl Nielsen's Helios Overture and I loved it!  It began with a beautiful and contemplative theme, representing the sun rising above the sea, and then became very powerful with a soaring melody played by the horns followed by a triumphant fanfare by the trumpets.  The piece ended just as mysteriously as it began as the sun set and I found it to be quite breathtaking!  Then the orchestra was joined by Alexandra Dariescu for Edvard Grieg's spectacular Piano Concerto.  Dariescu may have been wearing a sparkly gold dress but it was her playing that dazzled the audience as her fingers flew up and down the keyboard.  From the instantly recognizable opening notes to the dramatic conclusion, I absolutely loved it!  After the intermission came the piece that I had been waiting for: Symphony No. 2 by Jean Sibelius!  In my opinion, Sibelius is every bit as passionate and emotional as the Russian composers but he is a bit more stately and restrained.  Symphony No. 2 is incredibly dramatic and I especially enjoyed the theme played by the cellos in the first movement because it is very atmospheric.  I found the second movement to be filled with tension and I loved the energy in the third movement.  There was a full house at Abravanel Hall last night with good reason!  This concert is not to be missed and, luckily, it will be repeated tonight (go here for tickets).

Note:  When I bought this ticket I thought that I was unfamiliar with Grieg but I immediately recognized the Piano Concerto as soon as I heard the opening notes!

Throwing Things

On Thursday I went to one of Tashena's track meets at Viewmont High School.  I didn't get to go to very many of her meets last year so I was really excited to see her in action.  She was entered in discus, shot put, and javelin but it was so cold and windy that the javelin event was canceled.  The wind makes the throwing events really difficult so I thought Tashena did a great job under the circumstances but she was disappointed.  She ended up winning the discus event with a distance of 109.1 and she took second place in the shot put with a distance of 30.1.  I was so proud of her!

I'm looking forward to going to more of her meets since I don't have as many commitments at school this year!

Hamilton at the Eccles

Last night I got to see Hamilton for the fourth time in two years and this musical has definitely not lost its magic for me.  In fact, the more I see it the more powerful it becomes!  I can honestly say that I was just as excited as I was when I stood outside the Richard Rodgers Theatre!  I am so glad that I got to see this production because it is fantastic!  This cast is actually tied with the original Broadway cast as my favorite!  Joseph Morales is absolutely phenomenal in the title role.  He reminded me so much of Lin-Manuel Miranda (he played Usnavi in the touring company of In the Heights) but I think he is a stronger singer, especially in "Dear Theodosia" and "Hurricane."  He did quite a few things to make the role his own but I think my favorite bit of business is when he wipes away his tears in "It's Quiet Uptown."  Nik Walker is so powerful as Aaron Burr and I think his is my favorite performance of "Wait For It."  Ta'rea Campbell is an incredible Angelica because she not only raises the roof of the Eccles Theatre during "Satisfied" but she also gives such an emotional rendition of "It's Quiet Uptown."  Marcus Choi is very different from the other actors I've seen play George Washington and his interpretations of "History Has Its Eyes on You" and "One Last Time" are also quite different but I really liked what he did with the role.  Jon Patrick Walker is absolutely hysterical as King George and his performance is so completely over the top.  He totally hams it up and I almost died laughing when he stomps his foot in "What Comes Next?"  I've not seen this character portrayed at such a pitch before but it was hilarious!  Shoba Narayan, as Eliza, has an unbelievably emotional response to Philip's death which made me start crying then instead of during "It's Quiet Uptown" like I usually do.  Finally, every Jefferson I've seen has has done something completely different in "What'd I Miss" and Kyle Scatliffe dances a little jig, which Hamilton imitates during "Cabinet Battle #1"  I also loved Jefferson's expression at the end of "The Election of 1800." I really loved every aspect of this production but what made it so much fun is that I have been hyping this show up to  the couple who sits in front of me, with whom I have become very good friends, all season long and, after the bows, they told me that it was everything I said it was!  The hype is real!  If you were not able to get tickets for the show during its run in SLC, you can enter the lottery daily for the chance to buy up to two $10 tickets!

Twelfth Night at PTC

You might think that after a day spent teaching A Midsummer Night's Dream to sophomores I wouldn't want to spend the evening attending yet another Shakespeare play.  If the play in question is PTC's production of the hilarious comedy Twelfth Night you would be wrong because that is exactly what I did last night and I loved it!  Sebastian (Zach Fifer) and his twin sister Viola (Grace Morrison) are shipwrecked in a terrible storm and each thinks that the other is dead.  Viola disguises herself as a man called Cesario and offers her services to the Duke Orsino (A.K. Murtadha) with whom she immediately falls in love.  Orsino is desperately in love with the Countess Olivia (Kelsey Rainwater), who is in mourning for her brother, and sends Cesario to make overtures on his behalf to her but she, in turn, falls in love with Cesario.  Meanwhile, Sebastian is wandering around and is, of course, mistaken for Cesario.  Chaos ensues!   There is a secondary story, which is the source of much amusement, involving Malvolio (David Andrew Macdonald), a priggish steward in Olivia's household.  He makes life difficult for the other members of Olivia's household, most notably Sir Toby Belch (Kenajuan Bentley), Sir Andrew Aguecheek (Conner Marx), and Olivia's gentlewoman Maria (Susanna Florence).  To get their revenge they have Maria mimic Olivia's handwriting and send a letter to Malvolio from Olivia professing her love for him, requesting that he wear yellow stockings with cross garters.  These scenes involve a lot of physical comedy and they are so funny!  I was laughing out loud along with everyone else in the audience.  I usually don't like it when the setting is changed in a Shakespeare play (I'm a purist) but I thought that having the action take place in New Orleans after a hurricane during Mardi Gras was incredibly effective and I loved the set design and costumes.  This allowed the character of Feste (Richard E. Waits) to become a sort of Greek chorus singing old spirituals (which Waits composed for this production).  Sometimes you have to suspend your disbelief a little bit with this play but Fifer and Morrison look so much alike that it is easy to see why they would be mistaken for each other.  All of the actors give spirited performances and I really enjoyed myself.  I highly recommend this show but the production closes on Saturday so get tickets (go here) quickly!

Note:  Last night's audience was a bit more appreciative of Shakespeare than my sophomores!

Sunday Ritual

Now that spring has finally come to Utah all I want to do is be is outside!  One of my very favorite things to do this time of year is go to my parents' house every Sunday evening to sit by their fire pit.  My sister makes a fire and members of my family come and go and sit around talking, sometimes well into the night, until the fire dies or we get too cold.  We have done this for years and it is such a wonderful ritual.  We have already had two fires this season, including one last Sunday, and I am really looking forward to many more this spring and summer.

Grease

I was nine years old when Grease was released and my Dad went to see it with my aunt and uncle without me.  This was absolutely devastating to me and the only thing that could console me was getting a giant lipsmacker (I chose watermelon).  I have, of course, seen it dozens of times since then but never on the big screen which is why I was so excited to see it yesterday as part of the TCM Big Screen Classics series.  It was so much fun!  People in my screening sang along (out loud) to every song and some people were even doing the actions to "Greased Lightnin'" and "Born to Hand Jive."  This movie is the quintessential high school musical featuring a love story between Danny Zuko (John Travolta), the leader of the T-Birds, and Sandy Olsson (Olivia Newton-John), a good girl who has recently transferred to Rydell High from Australia.  With a little help from the rest of the T-Birds (Jeff Conaway, Barry Pearl, Michael Tucci, and Kelly Ward) and the Pink Ladies (Stockard Channing, Didi Conn, Jamie Donnelly, and Dinah Manoff) they might just get back together by graduation.  This movie is such a nostalgic look back at the 1950s with leather jackets, letterman sweaters, poodle skirts, sock hops, malt shops, drive-in movies, and fantastic cars.  It was fun to see all of the cameos by people who were popular stars in the 1950s such as Sid Caesar, Eve Arden, Alice Ghostley, and Joan Blondell.  I love all of the songs especially "Grease" during the opening and closing credits, "Summer Nights," "Hopelessly Devoted to You," "Sandy," and "You're the One That I Want."  All of the musical numbers have a lot of fun choreography and they really stand the test of the time.  The only number that is really cheesy is "Beauty School Dropout" sung by Frankie Avalon but it is so cheesy that it is good.  I had so much fun watching this movie!  In fact, I'm thinking of seeing it again on Wednesday (my sister is bitter that I saw it without her).

Tchaikovsky's "Little Russian" & Prokofiev with Conrad Tao

It was certainly an incredibly dramatic evening at Abravanel Hall last night.  The Utah Symphony performed a concert featuring works by Sergei Prokofiev and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky under the baton of an exciting guest conductor, Karina Canellakis.  I really love the Russian composers so I thoroughly enjoyed this concert (my final two concerts this season feature Shostakovitch and Rachmaninoff so I am looking forward to them, as well).  The orchestra began with Le Chasseur maudit (The Accursed Huntsman) by Cesar Franck.  Although I was unfamiliar with this piece it was very easy to picture the events depicted.  A count disregards the Sabbath by hunting and, as he chases his prey, he is also pursued by demons who wish to damn his soul.  I loved the opening fanfare by the horns, representing the hunt, followed by the chimes, signifying church bells.  It was very dark and atmospheric.  Next the orchestra was joined by the brilliant Conrad Tao for Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 2.  Tao is a very popular soloist and I always try to see him when he joins the Utah Symphony (I missed his performance in February because I had the flu) because he is so much fun to watch.  His fingers literally flew up and down the keyboard, especially in the wild and tumultuous first movement.  After the intermission the orchestra played Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 2 "Little Russian." This piece incorporates many Russian folk songs and I found it to be both stirring and whimsical, especially the final movement with themes played by the woodwinds.  I enjoyed this thrilling concert so much and I recommend getting a ticket for tonight's performance featuring the same program (go here).

A Quiet Place

Last night I went to a Thursday preview of A Quiet Place which was one of my most anticipated films of 2018.  It did not disappoint.  In the near future Earth has been invaded by mysterious creatures who are blind but have a highly advanced sense of hearing.  There is almost no exposition, just vivid images of a town destroyed by an apocalyptic event, and this is highly effective at conveying an atmosphere of terror.  One family has survived this invasion by living in total silence with meticulous preparation and ingenious methods of communication.  However, there are the occasional lapses, one of which has resulted in the death of a son, and situations beyond their control which lead to unrelenting tension in the final act.  John Krasinski and Emily Blunt play the parents who go to extraordinary lengths to keep their children safe and they both give powerful physical performances, conveying absolute terror and incredible pathos with just a facial expression.  Millicent Simmonds gives a highly nuanced performance as a deaf girl who grapples with feelings of guilt over the death of her younger brother and Noah Jupe is extremely affecting as a boy who must overcome his fear to survive.  Beyond the outstanding performances, what elevates this above just another evade the scary monsters movie that we have all seen before is the brilliant sound design.  The first act is conducted in almost near silence, aside from the occasional ambient noise from nature, and it is very unsettling to watch.  My attention never wavered from the screen and, like the characters on the screen, I tried extremely hard not to make even the tiniest sound.  You could literally hear a pin drop in my screening and, again, it was so unsettling!  Another highly effective choice made by Krasinski, who co-wrote the script as well as directed, is to give the audience only brief glimpses of the creatures until the devastating final act.  It adds greatly to the tension.  I am not a huge fan of the horror genre but the unique premise and the fact that the story is about a loving family doing whatever they can to protect each other makes me give it a resounding recommendation.

Note:  Just don't buy any loud snacks to consume during this movie.  Trust me on this!

Tuck Everlasting at HCT

When I went to New York a couple of years ago I had the chance to see Tuck Everlasting, the musical based on the beloved novel by Natalie Babbitt, and I really enjoyed it (I didn't review it here because the production closed a few days after I saw it). It was a big show with multiple sets and elaborate choreography so I was very eager to see what Hale Theatre would do with it. I saw it last night and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. It is a delightful and heart-warming show that the whole family will definitely enjoy. Winnie Foster (Mia Bagley) feels trapped in a house of mourning for her father and longs for adventure. One day she sneaks into the woods and meets Jesse Tuck (Kooper Campbell) near a stream. He stops her from taking a drink from the stream and inadvertently reveals a secret: the water has made his family immortal. Jesse is happy to have made a friend but Mae (Bailee Brinkerhoff Morris), Angus (David K. Martin), and Miles (Marshall R. Madsen) Tuck worry that their secret will be revealed.  Little do they know that the Man in the Yellow Suit (David W. Stensrud) has overheard Jesse and has evil plans for the water. Eventually Jesse asks Winnie to drink the water when she turns seventeen but his family warns that being immortal is not as enchanting as it appears. I loved this production! It is as good, if not better, as the one I saw on Broadway! Both Bagley and Campbell are so endearing in the lead roles and the rest of the cast is very strong. The choreography is wonderful and I am always amazed at what the choreographers are able to do on such a small stage. The final dance sequence is just lovely and brought a tear to my eye. The sets are incredible! The stage is framed by a giant lattice (the live orchestra sits at the top of the lattice) and all of the sets feature lattice-work, including the tree that the characters climb. It is incredibly clever. The costumes all feature beautiful floral patterns to go along with the lattice theme and this is very effective at portraying an enchanted world out of time. My favorite song in the show is "The Wheel" because Angus tells Winnie that she doesn't have to live forever she just has to live. I love that message so much! I highly recommend this beautiful show (go here for tickets) which runs through June 23 in the Jewel Box Theatre at the Mountain American Performing Arts Centre.

Note: A friend that I made on the New York trip is one of the dancers in this show and she was amazing!

Isle of Dogs

I absolutely love Wes Anderson.  I love all of his movies and that is not something I can say about many directors.  As you can imagine, I have been eagerly anticipating the release of his latest movie Isle of Dogs for a very long time so when my friend invited me to go with her to an advance screening last night (it opens next weekend in SLC) I jumped at the chance.  It is hard for me to be objective because of my aforementioned love for everything Wes Anderson but it is so good!  Twenty years in the future the dogs on the Japanese archipelago have been infected with a flu-like virus.  Mayor Kobayashi (Konichi Nomura) banishes all of them from Megasaki City to Trash Island, beginning with his nephew's dog Spots (Liev Schreiber).  Atari Kobayashi (Koyu Rankin) goes to Trash Island to search for Spots and is helped by a pack of dogs named Chief (Bryan Cranston), Rex (Edward Norton), King (Bob Balaban), Boss (Bill Murray), and Duke (Jeff Goldblum).  It turns out that Mayor Kobayashi has a nefarious reason for wanting to rid Megasaki City of all its dogs so, when Professor Watanabe (Akira Ito) discovers a cure for the virus, he is imprisoned and killed.  A foreign exchange student named Tracy Walker (Greta Gerwig), working for her high school newspaper, uncovers the conspiracy and sways popular opinion in favor of the dogs.  The stop-motion animation is brilliant and the attention to detail is remarkable, especially the fur on the dogs.  This movie also includes the usual Wes Anderson aesthetic (center framing, overhead shots, tracking shots, text on the screen, highly composed shots, monochromatic color palette).  The story is incredibly clever and laugh-out-loud funny but I also found it to be unexpectedly poignant.  I loved the journey that Chief takes from being a stray dog who likes to bite to learning to love the boy Atari.  The five main dogs have very distinct personalities, my favorite is the gossip loving Duke, and there are so many fun supporting characters, especially the Professor's Assistant Yoko (Yoko Ono), the Interpreter (Frances McDormand), Mayor Kobayashi's henchman Major Domo (Akira Takayama), and the show dog Nutmeg (Scarlett Johansson).  I enjoyed watching this movie so much and I'm sure that I will see it multiple times to catch all of the references.  In my opinion, Wes Anderson is a genius and, if you like his previous movies, I suspect that you will love Isle of Dogs.  Definitely go see it!

Hamilton in Denver

How does a bastard, orphan, son of a whore and a Scotsman, dropped in the middle of a forgotten spot in the Caribbean make me spend so much money on tickets to see a musical about his life?  By making his life story the best thing that I have ever seen on stage!  By now I have spent almost $1,000 on tickets to Hamilton (New York, Los Angeles, Denver, and an upcoming performance in SLC) but I absolutely love it!  I know that people think I am crazy but whenever I do these crazy things I never regret it!  When I found out that the Broadway touring company production would be in Denver over my spring break and that there were tickets available, I jumped at the chance to have a fourth row seat and it was absolutely incredible to be so close!  Every production that I have seen has been so different and I really like what the actors do to make the roles their own.  In this production I really liked Nicholas Christopher in the role of Aaron Burr because he infused a lot of humor into the character, Isaiah Johnson in the role of George Washington because he had a beautiful voice, especially in "Right Hand Man" and "One Last Time," and Peter Matthew Smith as King George because his facial expressions were an absolute hoot (I sat so close I could actually see them) and I almost died of laughter when he filed his fingernails with his scepter.   However, the two who absolutely stole the show were Chris De'Sean Lee and Mathenee Treco who played Marquis de Lafayette/ Thomas Jefferson and Hercules Mulligan/ James Madison, respectively.  In both of their roles, the two of them played off each other hilariously, especially in the Cabinet Battles.  I loved Jefferson's mic drop and I loved Madison's waving handkerchief.  Once again the song "It's Quiet Uptown" brought spontaneous tears to my eyes.  I loved it when Eliza (Julia K. Harriman) gave Hamilton (Austin Scott) her hand and then he kissed it.  This scene has been very different in each production I've seen but each one has been so emotional.  I really loved having the chance to see Hamilton again and I'm looking forward to seeing it, yet again, in SLC in two weeks (I think it is the same company as this one).  If you can get a ticket, I highly recommend this brilliant musical!

Go Avs Go!

I was already going to spend part of my spring break in Denver so I spontaneously decided to drive out a day early to see the Colorado Avalanche play the Chicago Blackhawks.  I knew it would be a great game because the Avalanche are definitely in the mix for a Stanley Cup playoff position but I had no idea that it would be one of the best games ever!  I enjoy doing many things by myself but I had never been to a hockey game by myself before.  I used to go to games with my friend Tony and now I usually go with my Dad or my cousins and I wondered how fun it would be with no one to talk to.  I had nothing to fear!  I sat next to two of the rowdiest Avalanche fans in the world and they talked to me the whole night!  In fact, the obnoxious Blackhawks fan sitting behind us thought we were together which was somewhat problematic when they almost got into a fight!  It was so much fun!  With every goal, and there were five of them, we would celebrate by high-fiving and, as the game wore on, hugging each other!  The Avalanche scored a goal on all three power plays, one in each period, and then added two more for good measure in the third period to get the shut-out!  The Pepsi Center was out of control!  I am so glad I decided to go to this game!

Note:  I really missed my Dad!  Not only has he has been my hockey buddy my whole life but he springs for better seats!!

Ready Player One

Last night I had the opportunity to see a Wednesday preview of Ready Player One.  I just finished reading the book by Ernest Cline because so many of the boys in my sophomore English classes were reading it.  Reading is a hard sell to sophomore boys so I wanted to check it out to understand the appeal.  As a child of the 80s, I absolutely loved it and I, along with my students, have been eagerly anticipating the movie adaptation directed by Steven Spielberg.  If you are a fan of the book there are quite a few changes in the movie, which bothered me initially, but ultimately made for a better narrative.  In the year 2045 much of the population tries to escape from the dreariness of their daily lives by entering a virtual reality simulation known as the OASIS created by an eccentric gamer named James Halliday (Mark Rylance).  When Halliday dies, he reveals a contest to locate three keys leading to an Easter egg granting the winner sole control of both the OASIS and his vast fortune.  A rival software company called Innovative Online Industries (IOI), controlled by Nolan Sorrento (Ben Mendelsohn), compels indentured servants to search for the keys because it wants to use the OASIS in order to generate revenue through advertising.  Wade Watts (Tye Sheridan), a Gunter (egg hunter) who uses the avatar Parzival, eventually teams up with Samantha/Art3mis (Olivia Cooke) and Helen/Aech (Lena Waithe) to find the egg using clues from Halliday's personal life, such as a fondness for 80s pop culture and his relationships with Ogden (Simon Pegg) and Kira Morrow (Perdita Weeks).  Most of the differences from the book involve the tasks needed to be completed in order find the keys but these scenes are absolutely exhilarating, especially an epic street race and a sequence from The Shining.  The movie is visually stunning, as if you are actually in the middle of a video game.  I loved all of the pop culture references, especially the ones that are very subtle.  When I saw the poster for the Rush album 2112 hanging on the wall in Halliday's teenage bedroom, I may or may not have squealed out loud.  Even though the nostalgia made watching this movie a lot of fun, the message about the dangers of disengaging with reality really resonated with me.  Online you can be anyone or anything that you want but it is always better to be appreciated for who you really are.  I really liked the fact that Art3mis the avatar is incredibly sexy but Wade ultimately wants to be with the mousy Samantha.  I loved this movie and I highly recommend it!

Note:  The only difference from the book that bothered me was that many of the references to music were not used, especially in the club scene.  I really wanted to hear "Union of the Snake."

The Death of Stalin

One of the things I love best about the Sundance Film Festival is the opportunity to talk to people who are just as passionate about film as I am.  I always ask the people I meet what their favorite film of the festival has been and one of the coolest guys I met immediately mentioned The Death of Stalin, telling me that it was one of the funniest things he had ever seen.  I did wonder how Stalin's Great Purge in the Soviet Union could be viewed as a comedy but he made me promise that I would check it out.  As I was unable to get a ticket at Sundance I have been eagerly anticipating its wide release ever since.  I saw it last night and it is an absolutely hilarious political satire that had me, along with everyone else in my screening, laughing out loud!  After Stalin (Adrian McLoughlin) dies from a cerebral hemorrhage, the Members of the Central Committee plot and scheme for control.  The ineffective Gregory Malenkov (Jeffrey Tambor) assumes control of the Committee but both Nikita Khrushchev (Steve Buscemi) and Lavrentiy Beria (Simon Russell Beale) manipulate him as they fight each other for control.  The fear of Stalin is satirized as the Moscow Symphony is forced to recreate a performance because Stalin wants a recording (they bring in peasants off the street to recreate the acoustics and the applause because Stalin will know the difference), when the officers outside Stalin's door hear him collapse but are too afraid to enter for fear of provoking his anger, and when the Committee cannot find a doctor to attend to Stalin because all of the good ones have been shot.  Some of the funniest scenes are when the Committee Members try to ingratiate themselves to Stalin's daughter Svetlana (Andrea Riseborough) and his unstable son Vasily (Rupert Friend, in a hilarious performance).  There is a montage as they prepare for Stalin's elaborate funeral ("Ruched or non-ruched drapery?") that had me laughing so hard I couldn't breathe.  Jason Isaacs is completely over-the-top as Field Marshall Georgy Zhukov as he conspires with Khrushchev to stage a coup against Beria.  I had another laughing fit as his medals clanged together in slow-motion.  The ultimate resolution of this farce is quite shocking but, even so, I was laughing again when I saw Leonid Brezhnev looking over Khrushchev's shoulders.  In my opinion, director Armando Iannucci strikes the just the right balance in satirizing what were some darkest days in the history of the Soviet Union by making fun of the stereotype rather than the event itself.  As a fan of dark comedies I highly recommend this film!

Audra McDonald with the Utah Symphony

Last night was a celebration of musical theatre at Abravanel Hall with the incomparable Audra McDonald and the Utah Symphony.  It was an amazing concert which gave me goosebumps as she belted out showstoppers and brought tears to my eyes as she reminded us that love is the reason for everything.  Let's just say that I won't forget this night any time soon.  I had the privilege of seeing McDonald perform with the Utah Symphony in 2002 as part of the Cultural Olympiad held in conjunction with the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.  It was my first introduction to her and I was so impressed by her beautiful and powerful voice!  I knew that I definitely wanted to see her perform live again and I am so glad that I got a ticket!  Her program featured a variety of selections from musical theatre that spanned decades from Rogers and Hammerstein to Gershwin to many new composers.  My favorites included a sultry rendition of "Moonshine Lullaby" from Annie Get Your Gun, "Summertime" from Porgy and Bess, "Simple Little Things" from 110 in the Shade, "Pure Imagination" from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, "Ice Cream" from She Loves Me, "I'll Be Here" from Ordinary Days, and "I Could Have Danced All Night" from My Fair Lady.  She was so personable and charming, telling stories and interacting with the audience all evening.  She mentioned how much she loves Utah because her husband's family lives here and she spoke quite often about her children.  It felt very intimate, like she was performing in a small club rather than in Abravanel Hall.  I was sad to see the concert come to an end because it was so wonderful but McDonald gave the audience a treat by singing an incredibly passionate rendition of "Climb Ev'ry Mountain" from The Sound of Music to finish her set.  After a thunderous standing ovation, she came back to the stage to sing a lovely version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" from The Wizard of Oz.  Sometimes I am amazed at all of the opportunities we have to see Broadway stars perform right here in Salt Lake City!  I highly recommend getting a ticket to see one of the best from Broadway perform the same program tonight (go here) if there are any to be had because Abravanel Hall was packed last night!

The Party

Last night I was in the mood for a dark comedy so, of course, I took myself to the Broadway to see The Party.  Janet (Kristin Scott Thomas) is an idealistic politician who has just been promoted to Minister of Health.  She and her husband Bill (Timothy Spall) throw a party for their friends to celebrate.  The first to arrive is April (Patricia Clarkson) and her boyfriend Gottfried (Bruno Ganz) followed by Martha (Cherry Jones) and her partner Jinny (Emily Mortimer).  The last to arrive is Tom (Cillian Murphy) who informs them that his wife Marianne will not be able to join them until later.  As they toast Janet's promotion, all of the characters have their own announcements:  Bill has been diagnosed with a terminal illness, April and Gottfried are separating, and Martha and Jinny are expecting triplets.  By the way, Tom, who is clearly agitated and carrying a gun, takes every opportunity to snort cocaine in the bathroom and Janet keeps receiving texts from a lover who is clearly not Bill.  What begins as a celebration among friends rapidly descends into a tense drama filled with long dormant recriminations and culminates in another bombshell announcement.  I laughed through the entire film, as did everyone at my screening.  I don't know what it is about deeply flawed characters behaving badly but I find watching their over-the-top antics to be very cathartic.  All of the actors are fantastic, especially Clarkson (her cynical character has the best lines), and you could say that they give a master class in verbal sparring.  All of the action takes place in a London townhouse in real time so it has the feel of a one-act play (the run-time is only 71 minutes) in which all of the characters come undone right before your eyes and the black and white cinematography highlights the claustrophobia.  I really enjoyed this film but I have to say that I have been in a black mood lately so it might not be for everyone!

Vertigo

I believe I have mentioned once or twice that I absolutely love the films of Alfred Hitchcock so when TCM announced that Vertigo, arguably one of his best films, would be screened for its 60th Anniversary as part of the Big Screen Classics series I got really excited.  I have seen this psychological thriller about obsession many times but never on the big screen so it was a real treat to see it yesterday.  John Ferguson (Jimmy Stewart) is a San Francisco police officer who retires after an episode of vertigo contributes to the death of a fellow officer.  He is asked by Gavin Elster (Tom Elmore), an old friend, to follow his wife Madeleine (Kim Novak) because he believes she is acting erratically.  Her actions lead Ferguson to believe that she is possessed by an ancestor and, after he falls in love with her, he tries to protect her from her ancestor's fate of suicide.  Ultimately, he is unable to stop her from jumping from the bell tower of a Spanish mission because of his vertigo.  He is absolved of responsibility for her death but descends into a deep depression until he sees a woman named Judy (Kim Novak) who looks remarkably like Madeleine.  He begins a relationship with her but she may not be who she appears to be.  It is such a brilliant psychological thriller and the scenes where Ferguson tries to make Judy look like Madeleine are so creepy but you just can't look away.  Stewart is fantastic as a man driven mad by his obsession for a woman who doesn't exist. There is a scene, in particular, where Ferguson accuses of Judy of impersonating Madeleine for Elster as part of a murder plot and then realizes that he, too, has asked her to impersonate Madeleine for his own design.  It is incredibly powerful.  Novak is the perfect Hitchcock woman: blond, icy, and mysterious.  The score is haunting and does much to enhance the sense of unease that permeates the film.  Hitchcock's camera work (a technique now know as the dolly zoom which was invented for this movie) is also very disorienting, almost as if the audience is experiencing Ferguson's vertigo along with him.  I think this film is a masterpiece and I recommend seeing it on the big screen (go here for info).

In the Heights at PTC

Before Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote and starred in another Tony Award winning musical called In the Heights.  I have seen it a couple of times (including a full production at PTC in 2012 and the Broadway touring production) and I really love it, maybe not as much as Hamilton, because it is a very powerful story about love for a community and the family you make with those around you.  Pioneer Theatre Company is currently performing the concert version, a stripped down performance with minimal blocking and choreography (I am a huge fan of this concept and really enjoyed  the concert versions of The Rocky Horror Show and Chess).  My friend Angela and I went to see the performance last night and I was a little bit afraid of her reaction because I have a tendency to really hype the things I love and I worried that I may have overdone it.  Luckily she absolutely loved it and commented that she was really impressed with how well it was staged. The story revolves around a woman named Claudia (Jayne Luke) who acts as an abuela (grandmother) to everyone in a small community in Washington Heights.  Usnavi (Diego Klock-Perez) runs a bodega which is beset with problems, such as a refrigerator that doesn't work, and tries to keep his wayward cousin Sonny (Tomas Joaquin Matos) in line.  He dreams of returning to the cool breezes of the Dominican Republic.  Vanessa (Ariana Escalante) is hoping to escape the barrio, and an abusive mother, to move downtown but a credit check for her new apartment stands in her way.  Nina (Micki Martinez) is the pride of her parents (Enrique Acevedo and Melissa Blatherwick) and the whole neighborhood because she received a scholarship to Stanford.  But college is a lot harder than she thought it would be, especially when you have to work two jobs to make ends meet, and she is thinking of quitting.  Will all of their worries be solved when Abuela Claudia wins the lottery?  In the concert version the music takes center stage and I really enjoyed all of the songs but my favorites were "When You're Home," "Sunrise," "Alabanza," and "When the Sun Goes Down." The actors are fantastic and give incredibly passionate performances.  I was particularly impressed with Martinez’s characterization of Nina because you could really feel her pain at disappointing her community and Klock-Perez looks and sounds so much like Lin-Manuel Miranda that it is uncanny! This production is just wonderful and I highly recommend getting a ticket (go here) to the final performance tonight!

Note:  This is the first time that I have seen In the Heights after seeing Hamilton and I was particularly struck by the similarities.  You can definitely see Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical progression from one to the next.

Tomb Raider

Last night I saw a Thursday preview of Tomb Raider and, honestly, it was so much better than I expected it to be; in fact, I had a lot of fun watching it!  Lord Richard Croft (Dominic West) has been missing for seven years until his daughter Lara (Alicia Vikander) finds a message left by him about a cursed queen called Himiko buried on an uninhabited island off the coast of Japan.  A mysterious group known as Trinity wants to locate Himiko's tomb (the reasons why are a bit murky).  Croft begs his daughter to destroy all of his research because opening the tomb will unleash a curse on the world but she uses it to try and locate him.  Despite the fact that this is most definitely an action movie, and a pretty good one at that, it has an emotional core that really resonated with me.  Lara's entire young adulthood has been influenced by her father's absence and she alternates between mourning him and being angry at him for abandoning her.  Some of the dialogue is a bit cheesy but I enjoyed the interactions between Lara and her father as she ultimately forgives him and assumes his role (which sets up a sequel nicely).  I really like Alicia Vikander as an actress and she does a nice job with this role.  Not only does she give an incredibly physical performance in some great action sequences (we see her signature move of dangling by one arm several times) but she also gives the role a lot of pathos.  She shows the fact that she is hurt and exhausted and there is one particular scene where she is devastated after killing someone who is attacking her that is really powerful.  Of course, as I previously mentioned, the action sequences are fantastic.  I especially liked a chase through the houseboats in the harbor in Hong Kong and the tomb scenes reminded me a lot of the Indiana Jones movies.  This movie is very entertaining and I recommend it for a fun night out.

Note:  This is not the first time that Dominic West has played Alicia Vikander's father (go here).

Thoroughbreds

I love a good psychological thriller and Thoroughbreds, which I had the chance to see last night at my favorite art house theater, is a darkly comedic one that I quite enjoyed.  The narrative revolves around two wealthy and privileged girls living in a Connecticut suburb.  Lily (Anya Taylor-Joy) is seemingly perfect and impeccably put together while Amanda (Olivia Cooke) is a disheveled sociopath who has been forced to leave school over an incident with a horse (thankfully only hinted at rather than shown).  They were once childhood friends but had grown apart until Amanda's mother hires Lily ostensibly to tutor Amanda but, more importantly, to once again befriend the isolated girl.  Neither girl is who she first appears to be and their early interactions are characterized by rapid-fire dialogue as the girls passively aggressively manipulate each other.  They soon bond over a plan to murder Lily's cruel stepfather, which involves coercing a down-and-out drug dealer (Anton Yelchin).  There is a twist at the end of the film which makes you reevaluate everything you think you know about each girl and I found it to be unbelievably unsettling (in the very best way).  I was fascinated by these two amoral characters and how privilege can completely skew a person's sense of right and wrong.  The script is absolutely brilliant and, while the premise may seem familiar, there are enough completely unexpected moments to make it highly original.  The camera work is masterful making this film both suspenseful and menacing, more for what you don't see rather than what you do, and the sound design does much to enhance the sense of unease (I will never hear a rowing machine in quite the same way again). Both Taylor-Joy and Cooke give fantastic performances and have tremendous chemistry but Yelchin, in my opinion, steals every scene he is in.  This may be my favorite movie of 2018 (so far) and I highly recommend it!

Utah Opera's Pagliacci & Gianni Schicchi

The full breadth of human emotion was on display at Capitol Theatre last night as Utah Opera presented the double bill of Leoncavallo's Pagliacci and Puccini's Gianni Schicchi.  The evening began with the tragedy Pagliacci which tells the story of a traveling comedy troupe who arrive at a small town to give a performance, much to the delight of the crowd.  The troupe consists of Canio (Scott Piper) who plays Pagliaccio, his wife Nedda (Marina Costa-Jackson) who plays Colombina, Tonio (Wayne Tigges) who plays Taddeo, and Beppe (Aaron Blake) who plays Arlecchino.  Canio is worried that Nedda might be having an affair but is persuaded to drink at the pub with the townspeople, leaving Nedda alone.  Tonio finds her and professes his love to her but she rebukes him mercilessly.  Nedda is actually having an affair with Silvio (Michael Adams) and, when Tonio sees them together, he tells Canio in order to punish her for her harsh treatment of him.  Canio is devastated but, singing one of the most famous arias, says that he will drown his sorrows with laughter when he plays Pagliacco on stage.  The performance echoes real life as Colombina flirts with Arlecchino while Taddeo stands guard but, when Pagliacco comes home to find the lovers, the action becomes real and he declares that he is no longer Pagliacco.  He dramatically kills both Nedda and Silvio, who is in the audience, and tells the crowd that the performance is over.  Piper gives an incredibly affecting performance, especially when he sings "Vesti la giubba" while getting into his clown costume.  I have to admit that I had a tear in my eye as he stood forlornly in the middle of the stage.  After the tears came the laughter with a rousing performance of Gianni Schicchi.  The scheming extended family of Buoso Donati attend his deathbed, hoping that his will has left them all wealthy.  All of them speak about what they want but Rinuccio (Aaron Blake) hopes that he will have enough money to marry Lauretta (Marina Costa-Jackson), the daughter of a lawyer named Gianni Schicchi (Wayne Tigges), whom the family think unsuitable.  They have heard a rumor that Buoso has left his money to a monastery and, after tearing his room apart looking for the will, are in despair when the rumor is confirmed.   Rinuccio summons Lauretta and her father and, while the family forbids them to marry, they ask Gianni Schicchi to examine the will to find a loophole.  He tells them that they should summon a notary and he will impersonate Buoso and dictate a new will but he warns them of the strict punishment for falsifying documents.  When the notary arrives, Gianni Schicchi gives Buoso's fortune to himself while the family can do nothing.  Rinuccio and Lauretta are now allowed to marry!  This opera has so much physical comedy that I was laughing out loud (so was the entire audience) but it also contains another very famous aria, "O mio babbino caro," which gave me goosebumps.  In my opinion, it was a perfect night of opera: tears, laughter, and some of the most beautiful music in the repertoire.  I highly recommend seeing a performance of Pagliacci and Gianni Schicchi, which runs at Capitol Theatre until March 18 (tickets may be purchased here).

A Wrinkle in Time

Last night I saw a Thursday preview of A Wrinkle in Time and, despite the fact that it is visually gorgeous with an important message about simply being yourself, I have to admit that I really did not like it.  Dr. Alex Murry (Chris Pine) has discovered a way to travel great distances through the universe using a tesseract, or a wrinkle in the fabric of time and space, and then he disappears for four years.  His daughter Meg (Storm Reid) is not handling his absence well but her younger brother Charles Wallace (Deric McCabe) introduces her to three strange beings named Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon), Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling), and Mrs. Which (Oprah Winfrey) who take the two of them along with Calvin (Levi Miller), a school friend, on a journey through the universe to find him.  Meg ultimately must battle the evil in the universe with love to free both her father and her brother.  I first read A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle when I was eleven years old and I absolutely loved it.  The problem with bringing a beloved work of fantasy to the screen is that it represents the filmmaker's vision and that may differ significantly from a reader's vision.  This is not necessarily the fault of the filmmakers but the images on the screen, while absolutely beautiful, did not in any way resemble what I saw in my mind when I read this book all of those years ago and I really couldn't get past that.  I always pictured the Mrs. Ws as being eccentric old ladies who were more like grandmotherly figures to Meg rather than outlandish beings with garish hair and makeup and gaudy costumes.  Sadly, that is not the only problem I had with this adaptation.  I thought all of the acting was terrible.  Witherspoon and Kaling ham it up at every turn with knowing looks at the camera and Winfrey gives one speech after another about self-empowerment and it gets rather tedious.  I didn't especially like what Zach Galifianakis, as the Happy Medium, and Michael Pena, as the Red Eyed Man, did with their roles and don't even get me started on the overly precocious McCabe.  Although she and Pine have an affecting moment together near the end of the movie, Reid didn't make me care about Meg as a character because she is so passive and just reacts to what other people do.  By the end of the movie I had lost whatever interest I had in the characters (I almost left the theater before the movie was over).  There are so many plot holes that it becomes a confusing mess and the audience is told, rather than shown, what is happening.  The CGI is laughably horrible and it is very obvious that the young actors are reacting to green screens.  It seems as if the only direction they were given was to flail their arms wildly as they run!  It really does pain me to say that I didn't like this movie because representation is so important but sometimes a movie with the best of intentions is still a bad movie.

Every Day

As a high school English teacher I read a lot of YA fiction because I am always on the lookout for good books to recommend to my students who are very reluctant readers.  To be honest, most of it is rubbish but I actually really loved Every Day by David Levithan because I thought it was incredibly clever and thought-provoking.  When I learned that a movie adaptation was in the works, I really hoped that it would be good.  I had the chance to see it yesterday and I liked it. A is a mysterious spirit who wakes up in a different body every day.  It is always someone the same age, although it can be someone of a different gender, race, and sexual orientation, who lives in the same geographical location.  A tries to integrate into the person's life and do as little damage as possible but everything changes when A inhabits Justin (Justice Smith).  While in Justin's body, A meets Justin's girlfriend Rhiannon (Angourie Rice) and feels an immediate connection to her.  Rhiannon also feels a connection to Justin that had never been there before as they spend a magical day at the beach together.  When A wakes up in another body (a girl named Amy) the next day, she seeks Rhiannon out and eventually tries to explain.  A continues seeking Rhiannon out even though there are consequences for those he inhabits (the story of Nathan believing he is possessed by the devil is less developed in the movie than the book).  As Rhiannon falls in love with A, she eventually realizes the difficulties with such a relationship.  In order to appreciate this movie you have to be willing to accept the concept (and ignore a few inconsistencies, such as how they are able to communicate using cell phones that belong to other people).  The reason why A inhabits different bodies every day is never explained but, in my opinion, that it not what this movie is all about.  Rather, it is about loving someone for who they are rather than their appearance and loving someone enough to let them go.  Rice gives an endearing performance and it is really easy to root for her.  I also liked how each of the different actors playing A give the character similar mannerisms.  This is definitely a movie that will appeal to the demographic for which it was meant (my screening was full of teenage girls) but I enjoyed it and recommend it for its sweet romance and powerful message.

Red Sparrow

I am a huge fan of espionage so I was really intrigued by Red Sparrow and went to see it yesterday.  Dominika Egorova (Jennifer Lawrence) is a ballerina with the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow when she suffers a career ending injury at the hands of a fellow dancer.  Worried that she will no longer be able to support her ailing mother (Joely Richardson) she is coerced by her uncle (Matthias Schoenaerts), an agent in Russian intelligence, to become a Sparrow, an agent trained to seduce her target to gain information.  After grueling training under the tutelage of the Matron (Charlotte Rampling) at State School 4, or “Sparrow School,” she is sent to Budapest to meet up with Nate Nash (Joel Edgerton), a CIA agent, to learn the identity of the double agent he is running in Moscow.  I judge all spy movies on whether or not they can keep me guessing and this is an intense and suspenseful thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat trying to unravel who was double-crossing whom.  There is not a lot of action, like you would normally see in a typical spy thriller, but the character-driven intrigue is what creates the tension.  I think Jennifer Lawrence gives a good performance and I wasn't at all bothered by her much-maligned accent.  There are some pretty graphic sex and torture scenes but, in my opinion, they are appropriate within the context of the story and not at all gratuitous.  One particularly disturbing scene where an attempted rape is recreated at the Sparrow school is used to help Dominika learn to detach herself from her body.  It is exploitative but that is the entire point of the movie.  She has been forced into this situation by men with power over her and that is what makes the final resolution so incredibly satisfying!  These scenes might bother some some sensitive viewers but I actually thought they were a lot tamer than what I was led led to believe.  I liked this movie quite a bit and I would recommend it to fans of the genre.

Note: I thought the nudity and sex in Atomic Blonde was much more gratuitous.

The Sound of Music at the Eccles

Last night I had the opportunity to see the Broadway touring company production of The Sound of Music now currently playing at the Eccles Theater.  This story about a high spirited nun who is sent to be the governess to Captain Von Trapp's seven children has long been one of my very favorite musicals but I am more familiar with the 1965 movie starring Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer than I am with the stage version.  The production that I saw last night is based on the original book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse which is quite different from the movie and I found it to be a bit jarring.  I was happily anticipating all of my favorite scenes and songs and I have to admit that I was a little bit disappointed when I was surprised by something else.  Some of the songs from the movie are omitted, such as "Confidence" which is such a fun number.  Some songs that are not in the movie are included, such as "How Can Love Survive?" and "No Way to Stop It" which are both sung by Baroness Schraeder (Melissa McKamie) and Max Detweiler (Jake Mills).  I didn't particularly care for either song because I don't really care about either of these characters.  I wanted more time with Maria (Sarah Brackett) and the Captain (Mike McLean) because their romance seems very rushed in this version.  Quite a few of the songs are performed in a different scene than they are in the movie.  For example, "My Favorite Things" is sung between Maria and the Mother Abbess (Lauren Kidwell), "Do-Re-Mi" is sung when Maria first meets the children, "The Lonely Goatherd" is sung when the children are scared of the thunderstorm, and "Eidelweiss" is not sung until the music festival near the end of the show.  After a while I decided to stop comparing it to the movie and simply enjoy the performances, which are fantastic!  Brackett, who is the understudy, is delightful as Maria.  All of the Von Trapp children are adorable, especially Sophia Massa as little Gretl, and they have beautiful voices which harmonize very well.  Kidwell just about blows the roof off the Eccles Theater with her rendition of "Climb Ev'ry Mountain," definitely a highlight of the show.  I would absolutely recommend this show because it is such a classic that everyone in the family will enjoy but if the movie is your touchstone, like it is for me, just be prepared for some differences.  It runs at the Eccles Theater until March 4.

Note:  Broadway at the Eccles announced the shows coming to SLC next season and I could not be more excited!  The lineup includes Waitress, Come From Away, Finding Neverland, Aladdin, School of Rock, and RENT!  The season add-ons are Wicked and The Book of Mormon.  My sister Kristine has never see Wicked before so my Mom, Marilyn, and I are going to take her for a fun girls night!  Broadway at the Eccles also teased us with the announcement that Dear Evan Hansen will be coming the following year!  Squeal!  Go here for more information.