Elf The Musical at HCT

Last night I saw HCT's production of Elf The Musical and I got a big dose of Christmas cheer! Santa Claus (Josh Richardson) tells the story of Buddy (David Paul Smith), a human who mistakenly believes that he is an elf because he crawled into his bag as a baby and was raised at the North Pole. After discovering who he really is, Buddy decides to find his dad, Walter Hobbs (Douglas Irey), and ends up bringing Christmas cheer to his new family, his girlfriend Jovie (Kelly Coombs), and everyone in New York City. The staging of the musical numbers is so much fun with exciting choreography and energetic performances. I especially loved the use of tricycles ridden by the elves in "Happy All the Time," the taxi cabs and police cars in "World's Greatest Dad," the tinsel used as jump ropes in "Sparklejollytwinklejingly," the confetti made of shredded paper in "Just Like Him," the real ice skates and a spectacular ice rink (with some cool technology that allows the actors to actually skate on it) in "A Christmas Song," the bags of toys in "Nobody Cares About Santa," and, of course, Santa's flying sleigh in the reprise of "A Christmas Song." The dazzling set pieces rise from the pit, descend from the rafters, and come in from the wings and my favorites were the snow globes used to designate the Empire State Building, Macy's Department Store, Rockefeller Plaza, and Central Park. I also loved the giant snowflakes with disco balls inside them hanging throughout the theatre. The costumes for Santa, Buddy, the elves at the North Pole, and the employees at Macy's are colorful and whimsical and I even liked the contemporary costumes worn by the employees at Greenway Publishing because they coordinated in shades of blue, gray, and green. Smith, who has appeared in many shows at HCT and is one of my favorites, is perfect as Buddy because his physicality and facial expressions are hilarious and his interactions with Coombs, as Jovie, are really sweet (they appeared together in HCT's production of Daddy Long Legs). I also really enjoyed Michelle Blake as Emily Hobbs and Cole Young as Michael Hobbs because their voices blend very well in the songs "I'll Belive In You" and "There Is a Santa Claus." However, Joanna Johnson, as Deb, steals every scene she is in because she is a hoot! I had a smile on my face from beginning to end and you would have to be a cotton-headed ninny-muggins to miss this show! I highly recommend it, especially to families during the holiday season (the little boy sitting near me was absolutely enthralled). It runs on the Young Living Centre Stage through January 6 (go here for tickets).

Dream Scenario

I was really intrigued by the trailer for Dream Scenario so I went back to the Broadway (my second home) last night to see it.  I found it to be hilarious and thought-provoking.  Paul Matthews (Nicolas Cage) is a mild-mannered evolutionary biology professor who inexplicably begins appearing as a benign presence in other people's dreams.  When a former girlfriend writes an article about the phenomenon that goes viral he becomes an overnight sensation.  He basks in all of the attention he receives from his daughters (Lily Bird and Jessica Clement) and his students and, even though his wife (Julianne Nicholson) warns that there will be negative consequences, he appears on television and tries to parlay his new-found fame into a book deal by signing with an agent (Michael Cera).  Suddenly his presence in everyone's dreams becomes malevolent which causes him to be feared and then vilified.  He loses his job and his family and finds it impossible to appear in public without being attacked.  Eventually, people stop dreaming about him but he tries to hold on to his notoriety by writing a trashy tell-all book and appearing at third-rate events.  This is an incredibly clever social satire about the fickle nature of fame and how someone or something can quickly catch the attention of the collective unconscious and then, just as quickly, disappear.  The commentary about the devastating effects of cancel culture is particularly fascinating and the scene where Matthews films a tear-filled apology, which seems to be de rigueur for any celebrity embroiled in a scandal, is quite amusing.  I also really enjoyed the scene where his prospective agent tries to get him to take a deal endorsing Sprite, because it perfectly embodies influencer culture, and all of the dream sequences, because they blur the line between the real and the surreal.  Cage, with a balding head, large glasses, graying beard, and over-sized parka, gives one of his best performances as an ordinary man caught up in a situation that he doesn't understand and can't control because his sputtering reactions to what is happening to him (both good and bad) are so funny.  There is a sub-plot in the third act about a device inspired by Matthews that allows people to visit other people's dreams that didn't really work for me but most of this had me laughing out loud.  I definitely recommend it.

Saltburn

The second movie in my double feature at the Broadway yesterday was Saltburn.  I was so excited to see this and it definitely did not disappoint!  Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan) is a scholarship student at Oxford who struggles to fit in with his wealthier classmates.  He attracts the attention of the popular and aristocratic Felix Catton (Jacob Elordi) when he loans him his bicycle but gains his sympathy by describing his traumatic childhood with an alcoholic mother as well as the recent death of his father.  He is eventually invited to Saltburn, the vast estate owned by Felix's family, where he ingratiates himself to his parents Sir James (Richard E. Grant) and Lady Elspeth (Rosamund Pike) and his sister Venetia (Alison Oliver) but alienates his cousin Farleigh (Archie Madekwe) who is jealous of the attention lavished on him.  Oliver continues his machinations until the current guest, Poor Dear Pamela (Carey Mulligan), is sent packing and he enjoys a summer of excess and depravity until his obsession becomes malevolent.  This is both highly amusing (there were hoots of laughter in my screening) and provocative (there was also a lot of nervous giggling) and I loved it!  Keoghan is incredibly disturbing and you cannot look away as Oliver engages in one debauched act after another (there is an especially titillating scene involving a bathtub), Elordi is so charming and charismatic that it is easy to see why Felix would become the object of a powerful obsession, and Pike is an absolute hoot as the vacuous Elspeth.  However, Madekwe is absolutely brilliant because Farleigh is unlikable but yet strangely sympathetic as someone who is accepted but doesn't really belong and he nails this complexity with a highly nuanced performance.  I loved all of the elaborately composed shots, especially all of the reflections in ordinary objects because they show how much Oliver wants to belong to Saltburn, the opulent production design, and the killer (pun intended) soundtrack.  This features some interesting commentary on the class system but I appreciate the style with which it is presented a lot more!  There are some structural issues (I don't think the final recapitulation is necessary because the twist has been obvious all along) but this is wildly entertaining and I highly recommend it to fans of black comedies. 

Napoleon

Yesterday I went to the Broadway for a double feature (I was basically there all day) and I started with Napoleon which I really enjoyed.  This is a portrait of Napoleon Bonaparte (Joaquin Phoenix) chronicling his dramatic rise from an artillery officer during the waning days of the French Revolution to become the Emperor of France, his volatile relationship with an aristocratic widow named Josephine de Beauharnais (Vanessa Kirby), and his spectacular victories and stunning defeats in military campaigns across Europe.  The large-scale battle sequences are absolutely incredible and I was particularly impressed by the Siege of Toulon when Napoleon captures a fort in order to break the blockade of the city because it is so immersive, the Battle of Austerlitz when he bombards the Austrians and Russians as they retreat across a frozen lake because it is so visceral, and the Battle of Waterloo when his troops are decimated by the Duke of Wellington because the aerial shots of the British infantry squares (I've always been obsessed with this military tactic) are so dramatic.  These set pieces are are thrilling (Ridley Scott knows how to stage a spectacle) and they definitely compensate for the long runtime and pacing issues.  Phoenix is magnetic in the role and, while many have criticized his characterization of Napoleon and a brooding and petulant despot (in some surprisingly hilarious scenes), I think it really works because he is more noted for being a brilliant military tactician than a good ruler.  Kirby is outstanding, although I would have liked more of her character, and I also enjoyed seeing Rupert Everett as the sneering Duke of Wellington and Paul Rhys as the scheming Talleyrand.  I am a huge fan of historical dramas so I obviously loved the period costumes, numerous locations, lavish production design, and atmospheric score.  There are flaws but I would recommend this to fans of epic period pieces.

Gentri Christmas at the Eccles 2023

Last night I went to my first Christmas concert of the season and I definitely picked a good one!  The Gentlemen Trio, or Gentri as they are more commonly known, was established when Casey Elliott, Bradley Quinn Lever, and Brad Robins were cast in a production of Les Miserables at HCT (they recently reprised their roles of Jean Valjean, Enjolras, and Marius, respectively, in another HCT production) and then continued singing together after the run was over.  My sister Marilyn is a huge fan so we went to their Christmas concert last year and we loved it so much we decided to make it a tradition!  This year's show at the Eccles Theater was amazing!  They began with "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and the arrangement included snippets from "Carol of the Bells" and I really liked it.  They continued with "Little Drummer Boy," "Gesu Bambino," and an incredible arrangement of "Still Still Still" with snippets from the score of the movie The Mission (I love this song because I sang it in choir in college).  They were joined by vocalist Yaphet Bustos for "Angels We Have Heard on High" and by the Rise Up Children's Choir for "Do You Hear What I Hear?" and "What Child Is This?" (which featured the Christmas story acted by several members of the choir in costume).  The first set ended with a bluesy mashup of "Go Tell It On The Mountain" and "Joy To The World" with Brad Wheeler on harmonica.  After the intermission, they performed "We Three Kings" with another guest vocalist, Ellie Barry, and then "I Saw Three Ships."  Next they had their music director Stephen Nelson arrange a piece on the spot from a movie score and a Christmas song suggested by the audience (they did this last year as well).  Our audience picked the score from The Lord of the Rings trilogy and "Mistletoe" by Justin Bieber and, believe it or not, the result was really good!  Next they performed an original song called "Somewhere In Your Silent Night" which is very moving.  A mashup of "Coventry Carol" and "Poor Wayfaring Stranger" with dramatic themes played by a cello was definitely my favorite of the night but a close second was their arrangement of "O Holy Night," which is my favorite Christmas song, featuring the Rise Up Children's Choir.  The concert concluded with a powerful rendition of "O Come All Ye Faithful" with Bustos, Barry, and the children.  Both Marilyn and I loved this show and it was the perfect way to begin this holiday season.  There are a few tickets available for both of the shows today (go here) and I highly recommend getting one!

Note:  I always hope that I will hear "O Holy Night" performed live at least once during the holiday season and I am so happy that I got to hear it last night!