Seussical at HCT

It is no secret that I do not like the musical Seussical.  In fact, when I saw the Broadway touring production a few years ago I thought it was the most ridiculous thing I had ever seen and, if I hadn't been with a friend who drove, I would have left at intermission.  I wasn't very happy when HCT announced this show as part of the 2019 season because I vowed to never see it again.  The only reason I decided to see it last night is because I really loved what Dave Tinney, the director, was able to do with Matilda and Cinderella, two other shows that are not my favorite.  He turned the dark and dreary Matilda into something fun and whimsical and he made me giggle out loud at the magic of Cinderella so I had high hopes for his version of Seussical.  Jojo (Parker Burnham) is a young and imaginative boy who sometimes gets in trouble for the thinks that he thinks so the Cat in the Hat (Ryan Simmons), acting as a Master of Ceremonies, takes him on an adventure where he meets Horton the Elephant (Travis Anderson), Gertrude McFuzz (Kelly Coombs), the Amayzing Mayzie (Bailee Morris) and her Bird Girls (Kennedy Johnson, April Kerr, and Tianna Maxwell), the Sour Kangaroo (Mack) and the Wickersham Brothers (Abrin Tinney, Jason Buonforte, Ben Butters, Sam Cooper, Patch Wendel, and Josh Lee), the Mayor of Who-ville (Cameron Garner) and his wife (Morgan Western), and General Genghis Khan Schmitz (Zac Zumbrunnen).  Jojo ultimately learns that anything is possible and that he can go anywhere he wants just by thinking his thinks.  I don't think I will ever really like this show because the story is nonsensical, convoluted, and loses focus in the second half but I was really impressed with what Tinney was able to do with it.  The staging and choreography are incredibly imaginative and visually spectacular, particularly the aerialists (Jessica Bird, Olivia Lee, Jessica Kehl, and Jane Jackson) in "It's Possible" and "Alone in the Universe" because there was always something to draw my eye everywhere I looked (I loved the fish).  I also really enjoyed the Wickersham Brothers in "Monkey Around," the circus performers in "Circus McGurkus," and the cadets in "A Message From the Front."  The costumes are bold, colorful, and fun and I especially loved the fanciful feathered costumes worn by Mayzie, Gertrude, and the Bird Girls and I thought it was really clever that the Wickersham Brothers were dressed like an adolescent street gang.  The puppets used by the Whos are absolutely ingenious and I really enjoyed them in "Here on Who."  The sets come straight out of a Dr. Seuss book and are incredibly whimsical.  The entire cast is very strong but I was most impressed with Coombs as Gertrude because she is so endearing and Anderson as Horton because he is quite sympathetic.  Simmons is absolutely hilarious as the Cat in the Hat, particularly when he spontaneously interacts with the audience (I loved the Les Miserables reference).  I didn't love this show but I enjoyed it and I definitely recommend it for families this holiday season (the children in my audience were riveted).  It runs on the HCT Main Stage until January 18 (go here for tickets).

Thanksgiving 2019

Yesterday my family celebrated Thanksgiving and it was such a fun day!  My Mom, Marilyn, Tashena (she is home from college for the weekend and it is so good to see her), and I went out in the snow to see Frozen II in the afternoon and I loved it even more the second time!  They really liked it, too!

After the movie we had the traditional Thanksgiving dinner including both turkey and ham, cheesy potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, pomegranate salad, rolls, and a relish tray.  Everything tasted so good!  Here are the usual awkward photos that I get every year because my family won't cooperate.  You're welcome!

After dinner we all took a little nap and then played our favorite card game, Shanghai rummy!  Tashena won (but I came in second place).  After cards we had pie and then Marilyn, Tashena, and I went to see Frozen II yet again (because we are crazy).  It is so much fun going to movies late at night and we were quite giddy by the time we got home!  I really enjoyed spending time with my family yesterday and I am so glad that they are all as crazy as I am!  I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends doing the things you love!

Frozen II

I have taken my nephew Sean to a movie over the Thanksgiving break every year since he joined our family so it was fun to continue the tradition by seeing Frozen II together yesterday.  Both Sean and I really enjoyed it!  Several years after Elsa (Idina Menzel) is crowned as Queen of Arendelle, she is trying to enjoy a normal life with Anna (Kristen Bell), Kristoff (Jonathan Groff), Olaf (Josh Gad), and the reindeer Sven.  However, she hears a mysterious voice calling to her and decides that it is coming from the Enchanted Forest where her grandfather, King Runeard, signed a treaty with the Northuldra people to create a dam.  This resulted in a war which angered the elemental spirits of air, water, fire, and Earth, causing them to surrounded the Enchanted Forest in a mist trapping everyone inside.  Elsa and the others travel to the Enchanted Forest where she searches for answers about Arendelle’s past, what happened to her parents, and where her powers come from.  She and Anna must ultimately work together to right the wrongs between the people of Arendelle and the Northuldra.  There are two other amusing subplots involving Olaf, who is confused about growing up, and Krisfoff, who struggles to find a way to propose to Anna.  I found the story to be quite compelling with sophisticated themes about colonization, the treatment of indigenous peoples, and respect for the environment interspersed with the same themes of female empowerment and freedom to be who you are that I loved in the original.  The animation is absolutely stunning and I especially loved the Enchanted Forest with its autumn leaves shrouded in mist and the use of ice sculptures to represent past events.  I also really liked the giant Earth spirits.  Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez return with some fantastic songs including "Into the Unknown," "The Next Right Thing," and "Show Yourself."  These songs are very powerful but I have to admit that my favorite is "Lost in the Woods" sung by Kristoff in a sequence that looks like the greatest 80s music video ever!  I pretty much giggled throughout the whole thing which caused Sean to lean over and give me the "look."  I loved this movie and I would recommend it for the whole family this holiday season.

Knives Out

Along with Little Women, Knives Out is my most anticipated movie this holiday season.  I couldn't wait to see it so I did so at my earliest opportunity which was last night.  It is an absolute hoot and I laughed out loud from beginning to end.  Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer), a successful mystery writer, assembles his dysfunctional family together for his 85th birthday and is found dead the next morning.  His death is ruled as a suicide but a world-renowned detective, Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig), is anonymously hired to investigate and he immediately suspects foul play.  He, along with a local detective (Lakeith Stanfield) and a state trooper (Noah Segan), begins interviewing the family members and staff in a hilarious crosscutting scene where they all turn on each other.  We meet his daughter Linda Drysdale (Jamie Lee Curtis), her ne'er-do-well husband Richard (Don Johnson), and their playboy son Ransom (Chris Evans); his son Walter "Walt" Thrombey (Michael Shannon), his wife Donna (Riki Lindhome), and their internet troll son Jacob (Jaeden Martell); his lifestyle guru daughter-in-law Joni (Toni Collette) and her social justice warrior daughter Meg (Katherine Langford); his elderly mother Wanetta (K Callan); his housekeeper Fran (Edi Patterson); and his nurse and confidant Marta Cabrera (Ana de Armas).  They discover that everyone has a motive to kill Harlan and that everyone has an alibi but, after more twists and turns than you can keep track of, Blanc finally discovers whodunit!  It is basically a hilarious spoof of the mystery movies of the 1970s but the script is incredibly clever (with just a bit of social commentary thrown in for good measure).  It is quite suspenseful, with shocking clues that change the entire narrative, and it kept me guessing until the very end!  The ensemble cast is fantastic and everyone looks like they are having so much fun playing these over-the-top characters!  I especially loved Collette's portrayal of the flaky Joni and Evans's against type portrayal of the naughty boy Ransom.  This movie is so entertaining and I highly recommend it for a fun night out!

Note:  There is a quote from the musical Hamilton and I was the only one in the packed theater who got it because I was the only one who laughed (rather loudly!).

My Favorite Team vs. My Hometown Team

I have been watching hockey with my Dad for as long as I can remember and we always try to go to at least one Colorado Avalanche game in Denver in the fall and one in the spring.  For our annual fall trip we decided to see the Avalanche play the Toronto Maple Leafs.  Even though both of us are from Ontario, we never cheer for the Leafs (we even cheered for the Avalanche against the Leafs when we were in Toronto a few years ago).  We got up really early yesterday morning and drove to Denver in time to relax before the game.  I always like to get to the Pepsi Center early so I can watch the practice skate, see the starting lineup, and hear the national anthem.  Because the Avs played a Canadian team, we got to hear "O Canada" and both my Dad and I sang really loud!  The Avalanche started really well with a goal from Nathan MacKinnon in the first 31 seconds of the game!  They kept on the attack for the first five minutes of the game and the Leafs couldn't do anything.  Then all of a sudden Toronto scored four goals during the rest of the first period (including one by former Avalanche player Tyson Barrie).  It kind of deflated the crowd a little bit.  During the second period the Avalanche changed goalies from Grubauer to Francouz and he was able to stop the offense.  The Avalanche got a goal by Andre Burakovsky in the second period and another one by Valeri Nichushkin in the third period to get within one.  The Avalanche pulled their goalie during the last few minutes and they really tried to put the puck in the net (it was very exciting) but the Leafs ended up getting an empty net goal to win the game 5-3.  So in the battle between my favorite team and my hometown team, my hometown team won!  Even though the Avalanche lost this game it was still so much fun!  I love everything about hockey, especially watching games with my Dad!

Note:  My favorite player, Mikko Rantanen, didn't play tonight because he is still recovering from an injury (he is close to returning because he has been attending practice skates) but I finally got to see the young phenom, Cale Makar, play in person and he is amazing (he scored in his first game in the NHL which happened to be during the Stanley Cup playoffs).