Classical,
Lessons and Carols from No Man's Land
Christmas is the time of 'Lessons and Carols' - lessons coming from the Biblical tradition and carols first intoduced by St. Francis of Assisi in the 13th century, becoming popular throughout Europe in the 15th century. The male vocal ensemble, Cantus joined with Theater LatteDa of Minneapolis Friday night at Yardley Hall to teach a lesson of a different sort with carols from all over Europe.
The program was divided into two parts. The opening, Carols for Male Voices, was arranged by, then WWI soldier, Ralph Vaughn Williams. They are a popular set among men's choruses and gave the singers a chance to introduce their gorgeous sound, blend and individuality through solos to the audience.
The second part, All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914, was like a radio drama where the voices of actors spoke powerful first person accounts of the experience while the voices of Cantus provided a musical context. Researched and written by Peter Rothstein, 29 different people were cited for the text. Their letters and diary entries provided the compelling narrative. From Winston Churchill to Private W.T. Colyer of the Artists' Rifles Brigade, a broad perspective of the truce was told.
The actors were remarkable. John Catron's ability to affect the regional accents of soldiers from Ireland, Scotland, Wales and even the different London dialects, from cockney to hackney, was spot on. Alan Sorensen played the pompous, self-important generals and commanders to perfection and David Roberts presented fathers, sons, brothers and friends with a heartfelt poignancy.
The men of Cantus had their role to play as well. Caroling in the trenches of both the German and the British was common. According to the play, they engaged in loud singing to annoy the enemy. Cantus sang with the gusto of a raucous fraternity. It is doubtful, though, that the blokes in the trenches sounded as good.
Intoning a single bagpipe-like drone, the basses and baritones laid a solid foundation for tenor, Shahzore Shah to sing the lilting melody of Will Ye Go to Flanders? A quintet of voices then joined in with a horn-pipe chord, ascending and descending in time in this innovative arrangement by Erick Lichte. Mr. Lichte along with Timothe C. Takatch arranged roughly 28 different carols that functioned like an extended medley for the program.
The entire performance was memorized, so no annoying books were being bobbled around, allowing the singers and actors to communicate completely with the audience. It is rare to hear professional vocal ensembles "off of their music" these days and this reviewer was thrilled.
The section called Christmas set up a quiet, lonely, starry night. The men were allowed a little rum, they missed their loved ones, and singing ensued. Then one German soldier crawled out of the trench and sang, Stille Nacht, alone, in No Man's Land. No one shot or sniped. An Englishman joined him and then both sides put down their weapons and sang together in a dramatic act of peace and Christian love.
They exchanged tokens, shared whisky and rum, signed to each other, laughed, buried each other's dead and even played soccer. Then, they were ordered back to the trench, and the killing resumed. A war they all thought would be over by Christmas senselessly lasted another four years.
The soldiers had all been materially changed by that night and hearing Cantus, along with Catron, Sorensen and Roberts, retell the legendary tale, we were all transformed. Traditional Lessons and Carols teach us about peace through the Christmas story. Cantus' All is Calm, taught us about the courage to have peace, if only for a night, through the historical accounts of soldiers in World War I. My hope is that Cantus will return next year, at the World War I Memorial auditorium so that audiences can see the artifacts after hearing their program.
If you missed this performance, KPR FM 90.5 will rebroadcast it on Wednesday December 16th at 7:00 p.m. In addition, The World War I Museum will be offering a free showing of the movie Joyeux Noel (2005) about the Christmas Truce of 1914 on December 26 at 1 p.m. in the J.C. Nichols Auditorium. For more information go to their website at www.theworldwar.org.
REVIEW:
Cantus
All is Calm: The Christmas Truce of 1914
Friday December 11, 2009
Yardley Hall at Carlsen Center
12345 College Blvd., Overland Park, KS
www.jccc.edu/TheSeries
Cover photo by Rick Spaulding
KC Events this week and beyond
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KC Events this week and beyond
Check out all the events on the KC Events performing arts calendar.
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As an arts organziation or musician, you now have the ability to add and edit your own events.
KCMetropolis.org's mission is to promote traditional and independent classical music, dance, theatre and independent film. We are very sorry, but we do not cover pop, rock, Christian or country music; we do not cover the visual arts or non-performing arts community events. If you would like to send a press release about an upcoming performing arts event, please send to press@KCMetropolis.org.
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Film,
"Red Cliff" has all the bravery of "Braveheart," but not the heart
Director John Woo set out on a path paved with good intentions. His plan was to create an epic film which would depict a famous battle from the pages of ancient China history. There is no doubt that Red Cliff contains a copious amount of blood and mesmerizing, well-orchestrated battle sequences. And while it has the sheer ferocity of Braveheart and the ballet-like sword play of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, its abundance of underdeveloped central characters, odd plot developments and poor thespianism help create a sense of emptiness to it all.
It's the year 208 and the ruthless Prime Minister Cao Cao (Fengyi Zhang) has pressured his young, Eastern Han Dynasty emperor into letting him wage war against what he deems as two rebellious warlords in the south - Liu Bei (Yong Yu) and Sun Quan (Chen Chang). Cao Cao has already conquered the north and now hopes to eliminate all who could oppose him.
With an army he boasts is over 800,000 (but more likely around 220,000), Cao Cao attacks Liu Bei who must fend off his aggressor in order to save thousands of peasants. (Cao Cao is presented as being relentless ,yet he lets a beleagured, much smaller army hampered by civilians escape to safety?) Chief Advisor Zhuge Liang (Takeshi Kaneshiro) soon forms an alliance between Liu Bei and Sun Quan, and the former takes up a defensive position with Grand Viceroy Zhou Yu (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) at Red Cliff.
Cao Cao, who vastly outnumbers them, sails the Yangtze River with 10,000 ships and makes camp across from Red Cliff. Because of his arrogant miscalculations; information gathered covertly in his camp by Zhou Yu's daring sister, Sun Shangxiang (Wei Zhao); and an intimate knowledge of local weather patterns by Zhuge Liang, the ensuing Battle of Red Cliff does not unfold well for Cao Cao.
Woo, whose resume in America includes hits and misses like Mission Impossible 2, Broken Arrow, and Windtalkers, should be commended for creating some of the most brilliant, complex battle sequences ever captured. Even though Woo tried to keep a sense of historical accuracy in his script, he seemingly couldn't help but have central characters accomplish feats on the battlefield that only a mythical god could achieve. As such, the film sometimes devolves into a B-movie Kung Fu flick.
Kaneshiro delivers a quiet, understated performance that helps give Red Cliff a sense of stability when it sometimes tries to come unhinged, as when Woo includes a scene that's reminiscent of the dueling banjo scene from Deliverance. Chiu Wai is also solid and shares some nice chemistry with Kaneshiro. However, the rest of the cast portray nothing more than silly caricatures, especially Zhang as Cao Cao. This is supposed to be THE villain and yet he seems more suited for a Godzilla flick.
On a letter grade scale from A being excellent to F for failing, Red Cliff receives a C.
Spoken in Mandarin Chinese with English subtitles, Red Cliff is rated R and has a running time of 148 minutes.
Now showing through December 24 @
Tivoli Cinemas
Westport Manor Square, 4050 Pennsylvania, KCMO
Visit www.tivolikc.com or call 913-383-7756 for showtimes.
Theatre ,
The reincarnation blues
The finest social satirists from Voltaire and Jonathan Swift, to Lenny Bruce and Larry David, have found their own mediums to properly carry their messages of social inappropriateness. For Christopher Durang, the neurotically-charged playwright of the Catholic screed Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All to You and the meshuggeneh family reunion The Marriage of Bette and Boo, the stage is a second home; his comedies put his (sometimes semi-autobiographical) characters in situations as absurd and frightening as an hour at a psychoanalyst's couch set up in a confessional. He knows his way around a stage, not as subtly or cynically as Wallace Shawn or as vituperatively or flamboyantly as David Mamet, but somewhere in the uncomfortable middle.
Durang's 2005 Miss Witherspoon at the Unicorn Theatre (co-directed by Cynthia Levin and Steven Eubank) is a minor play, but as an expression of futility mixed with humanity it rings full-throttle. A woman named Veronica (Jan Rogge) is first seen at home on the phone, talking to an anonymous someone about her depression; she is advised on pill-taking and listens with an edge of irritation, as though one too many talk-show hosts and best-selling experts have stuffed themselves into the closet of her mind. As she begins to make out a grocery list, a fuzzy spiked ball suddenly drops from the ceiling; then another and another, as a large Chicken Little bursts through the set claiming the sky is falling, as it turns out, indeed, it is: Veronica faces the audience to explain about Skylab (which when launched in 1973 was soon announced that it would be abandoned and eventually fall to earth on reentry). Her fear was that one large chunk would kill her, out of the blue: a Durang special. Yet, she reveals she killed herself sometime later (now, that is the real Durang punch-line). Why? Why not?
And so this middle-aged woman, lonely in life, learns how lonely the afterlife can be, or would be, if she could only get a moment's peace. The plot, already as scattered as a Scrabble board, goes for broke as Miss Witherspoon (as she is now called, from a poem her father speaks in one flashback: "You know that nursery rhyme, whither the spoon goes, whither the fork") undergoes one reincarnation sequence after another, led in some undeclared middle world by an Indian in a sari named Maryamma (Amy Urbina): why? Why not?
The various reincarnations - childhood, adolescence (where her mother abuses her), even a scene as a dog - pass too quickly and sketchily to amount to an epiphanic ending, like Proust at the winding-down of A la Recherche du Temps Perdu. Along the way, we learn Miss Witherspoon is actually resistant to all of Maryamma's overtures: neither religious relief nor personal second chances at happiness are considered by Miss Witherspoon. In one scene, as a baby, she wants the family dog to kill her.
This reversal of sorts on A Christmas Carol, with the Ghost of the Past and the Ghost of the Future colliding (when all Miss Witherspoon cares about was her present, when she was her own ghost), makes for gleeful, if fitful, theatre. Durang's many jokes and asides clear the stage like field goals: after having requested an audience with Saint Peter (who appears looking like Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings films), Miss Witherspoon tells Maryamma, "Look, I was thinking. I don't want Saint Peter. I want to go to the Jewish heaven which is like general anesthesia."
Durang's notion of anti-bliss (Miss Witherspoon says how grateful she killed herself before 9/11: how to deal with that on top of ordinary misery?) has a slick patina of jus'-kidding that negates all the negativeness we are supposed to rally around. Here, Durang makes Beckett seem like Oprah; yet, in Beckett's oeuvre the comedy rises with bleak certitude. Durang's idea about rejecting spiritual help needs to be more sharply drawn, like the Sixties film Bedazzled with Peter Cook as the Devil and Dudley Moore as Stanley, a short-order cook whose three wishes keep being nixed on some technicality. At the end, Stanley is back where he began and not necessarily the happier, though enough to defeat the Devil. Durang's play tosses off aphorisms just as if Camus and Sartre were comedy writers making existentialist one-liners, rather than exposing themselves to real pain.
As the unhappy dead woman, Jan Rogge, a veteran of area productions, shows the proper confusion and disillusionment. Amy Urbina makes a cheery ethereal figure, and Matthew Rapport, Helen Gonzalez, and Dina Kirschenbaum fill out the rest of the characters with enthusiasm. The star of the play, though, is Christopher Durang, a sometime actor. It is hard not to visualize him in the role of Miss Witherspoon; he knows kvetching when he sees it. Apparently, death is no end when it comes to complaining.
REVIEW
Unicorn Theatre
Miss Witherspoon
Co-directed by Cynthia Levin and Steven Eubank
Runs December 4-January 3, 2010 (Reviewed Sunday, December 6, 2009)
Unicorn Theatre
3828 Main St., Kansas City, Mo. 64111
For tickets call 816-531-PLAY or online at www.UnicornTheatre.org
Top photo: Cast members Miss Witherspoon (Jan Rogge) and Maryamma (Amy Urbina). Photo by Cynthia Levin.
Theatre ,
A few honest moments of Christmas
There are few shows in the area that accurately capture the spirit of Christmas. Some are too commercial. Some too somber. In this day and age, it's difficult to find entertainment that truly touches the heart. A Spectacular Christmas presented by Musical Theatre Heritage at the Off Center Theatre may just be one of those rare gems. Don't be misled by the name. This show contained neither spectacle nor grand display. There are no glittering ten foot tall Santas or rows of smiling chorus people. But what it lacked in spectacle, it made up for in authenticity.
Sure, I may be biased. I think MHT's founder and executive director George Harter has impeccable taste in music. I've been a fan of his radio program "A Night on the Town" since the sixth grade. He chose some great songs for the show, some great songs that are shamefully underplayed on the Christmas radio stations. Great songs with a decided bent towards film and show tunes, incidentally what Harter does best.
The actors used their own names, and the first act took place entirely in Harter's "home." Apart from some slight exaggeration for the stage, the performers played themselves. The set held a piano, a couch, a worn rug and a few lamps and chairs. Harter spent much of the act decorating the Christmas tree as everyone showed up at his house for a pre-show party.
In this act, Izzie Baldwin, a very talented singer and performer out of Stephens College, sings about Taylor the Latte Boy, who gave her extra foam in her coffee. Mandy Morris bursts into the room with gusto and sings about being Rich, Famous and Powerful. James Wright, prolific local performer with a new CD flying off the shelves, tells a story about his daughter at Christmas. The cast did some caroling amongst the audience, where Adam Branson, another talent from Stephens College, did a warming rendition of O Holy Night. Even MHT's marketing director Chad Gerit appeared and sang a number. All the while, Harter was quizzing the performers and sharing factoids about the songs.
Act two was "the show" the cast had prepared for in the first act, presented in the format of a radio variety show, with songs, stories and surprise performers. Decidedly more formal than the first act, it provided a nice contrast to keep the audience engaged. Piano player Jeremy Watson dazzled the audience with Linus and Lucy and James Wright did a killer Bing Crosby impression. The high point of the entire show was Harter's story about the angel ornaments he had as a kid. This story was told without ceremony, but was more beautifully honest than any performance piece could have given.
Let me try to sum up what I took away. To me, Christmas is not the dancing Santas, the decorations or singing the same holiday songs over and over again. Christmas is in the stories we all share, and the memories we have from when we were younger. It's in realizing that the few moments of genuine Christmas that we share with family and friends are worth all the commercialism and hype. This show made me feel that. And that's all I can ask.
REVIEW
Musical Theater Heritage
A Spectacular Christmas
Runs December 3-20, 2009 (Reviewed December 4, 2009)
Off Center Theatre, Crown Center
2405 Grand Boulevard, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-842-9999 or online at www.mthkc.com
Theatre ,
"A Christmas Story" has Broadway on its wish list
Opening night of the Kansas City Repertory's A Christmas Story. The Musical! was abuzz with anticipation for the show that, while still in previews, reportedly had "surpassed revenue for the entire run of last year's production of A Christmas Carol." Being a loyal, annual fan of the 1983 movie on which the musical is based, I had been looking forward to the show, going so far as to scream "a Red Ryder BB gun with a compass in the stock!" every time my kids asked me last week what I wanted for Christmas. I guess I find it reassuring to know that there are still new things that can bring out the kid in all of us.
Newness is generally a good thing, and on the topics of success and failure Bill Cosby reportedly once said, "I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is to try to please everyone." James Russell Lowell contributed that "low aim, not failure, is a crime." So after 29 years performing A Christmas Carol, Eric Rosen, in only his 2nd full season as the Rep's artistic director, deserves a theatric medal of valor for breaking with three decades of tradition to stage this new musical.
Now, ignoring my objective responsibilities for a moment and reporting on the performance based solely on audience reaction, this was a resounding success with countless "YEAHs!" and "BRAVOs!" and standing ovations. But returning to critical reality, it pains me to report that the production fell short in a number of important areas. Given that there is plenty of solid material to work from in the iconic 1983 movie source, I'm confident that the shortcomings can be addressed successfully with modest re-workings. But 'as is,' I felt that it was far from being Broadway-ready.
But 'low aim' and attempting to 'please everyone' could have kept Les Miserables, The Phantom of the Opera or Spring Awakening from making it off their storyboards. To that point, a one billionth interpretation of A Christmas Carol was unlikely to shed any new light on the dog-eared classic. My esteem for Mr. Rosen therefore rises only higher - regardless of my feelings for this show. Bravo, Eric, for aiming; bravo for not pleasing everyone. This kind of energetic adventurism is just what the arts community needs.
Unfortunately, the show opened with a proof of the axiom "there is no second chance to make a good first impression." It might have faired better had it been quickly followed by something musically redeeming. But it was not. Through the first five numbers the music was disappointingly bland. To be clear, I am not talking about the performance of that music - the actors pulled it off quite well. Compositionally, however, it left much to be desired.
It wasn't until Take That! - the scene where Ralphie (Zachary Carter Sayle) imagines saving the world from (literally) lions and tigers and bears (and pirates and gangsters) - that any recognizable degree of musical energy emerged. It was a very upbeat number with multiple characters on stage, and as a microcosm it was an entertaining production in itself. A forgettable Secret Decorder Pin Jingle interjected, but was followed by one of the two best songs and performances of the show. A Major Award, sung by John Bolton (Ralphie's father, "The Old Man"), was a whimsical number with a catchy tune and an excellent delivery by Bolton (who, as the play continued to progress, grew on me more and more). I' 'Uck! followed with Aaron Dwight Conley singing the lyrics ('I'm Stuck') with his tongue staying in touch with the flag pole prop. It was a remarkable feat that he was able to deliver the song with legible diction. Act One closed with Oops, I Forgot and Oh, Fudge! For me, 'Fudge' lost some of its impact with its treatment by the entire ensemble. I think a more subdued staging would have had a better effect to bring the Act to a less bombastic close before intermission.
Act Two was the fortunate recipient of what little momentum carried through from Act One, but the music (again, compositionally) didn't fare much better. After the Entracte and two reprises, four more mediocre songs followed before arriving at Calm Down, which was the gem of the evening. Here, Ralphie's "Mother" (Anne L. Nathan) sings to him after a scene where Ralphie loses it and beats the stuffing out of "Scut Farkus" (Troy Doherty). It is a gentle, lullaby-like serenade with a strongly composed melody and a touching delivery by Nathan. It was reassuring to hear the level of compositional quality of which Richards was capable, and this made me optimistic that some reworking and rewriting will result in a much more solid, Broadway-ready production. Space makes it difficult to discuss the rest of Act Two in any significant detail, and, frankly, the return to mediocre compositions in the final six numbers makes it unnecessary.
I liked that the musical preserved the storytelling structure of the movie. Narrated by the solid 'radio show' pipes of James Judy, at the opening curtain "Jean Shepherd" (Judy) is reflecting back, from a 1966 radio show booth, on the infamously frigid winter of 1939 and the escapades of one Ralphie Parker. Jean Parker Shepherd, in reality, was the co-author of the original movie, which was, in turn, based on his book In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash. It is Shepherd's voice that narrated the 1983 movie.
John Bolton's portrayal of Ralphie's Father ("The Old Man") is a masterful creation, thanks in part to his Buster Keaton-like command of facial expressions. He nails the pervasively pessimistic, daily-grind melancholia of the character while also allowing a glimpse beneath the surface at a guy who is really a sentimental softie when it comes to his family. His daily battles with the furnace and the neighbors' dogs are well-preserved and funny. Anne L. Nathan, as Ralphie's "Mother," portrays a confident yet dutiful 1930s housewife and she shines, in particular (as mentioned previously), in her delivery of Calm Down.
I sensed that the role of Ralphie could have been better cast, but Zachary Carter Sayle nevertheless delivered a believable performance, and in the scenes where he is wearing his winter hat, he was a dead ringer for Peter Billingsley's Ralphie from the original movie. Personally, I thought that Jake Bennett Siegfried quietly stole the spotlight as Ralphie's brother, "Randy." Rounding out the children's kudos, Alexiya Lourdes Mendez was a real stunner as "Mary Beth." Other whimsical stage ploys added visual and comic fodder, including the bevy of miscreants and woodland creatures in Take That! and the on-stage dog-barking talents of ensemble members. Lighting and set design were creative and visually engaging, although the latter was occasionally a bit overwhelming (in the aforementioned "Oh Fudge," for example).
A Christmas Story may not be perfection at this point, but didn't shoot its own eye out, either. It likely has already 'succeeded' at the box office, given its preview ticket sales, but beyond that I am certain that a little 'back to the drawing board' review will be a necessity to take it to Broadway.
REVIEW:
Kansas City Repertory Theatre
A Christmas Story - The Musical!
Directed by Eric Rosen
Runs November 28 - January 3, 2010 (Reviewed Saturday, November 28, 2009)
UMKC's Spencer Theatre
3939 Cherry Street
Kansas City, MO 64110
For tickets call 816-235-2700 or online at www.kcrep.org
Cover photo:
Katie Kalahurka (Elf), Orville Mendoza (Elf), Patrick DuLaney (Santa), Zachary Carter Sayle (Ralphie). Photo by Don Ipock.
Theatre ,
Giving thanks for small blessings
How crazy would a man have to be to settle with his wife, baby and two daughters under the age of 11 in Indian Territory with only their old dog Jack and a rifle for protection?
In the Coterie Theatre's new production of Little House on the Prairie, big questions are asked. Is it right for the white settlers to claim Indian land? What are the Indian's rights in a new America where white men make the laws? What is it to be civilized? How do we learn to get along?
Director, Rick Averill and his real wife Jeanne step into the roles of Pa and Ma Ingalls and into the past. Averill has been a writer, producer, composer and actor for numerous children's' productions. He has a talent for making great theater out of very little and as the artistic director of the Seems to be Players in Lawrence; he has delighted generations of eastern Kansans. In this production, Averill brings his down home, bluegrass brand of heartwarming Americana to Pamela Sterling's adaptation of the novel. Complete with fiddles and an acoustic guitar strolling through the audience the production has a flap-jack wholesomeness that belies it's more serious undertones.
Kids get to nestle right up to the low stage at the Coterie. There is an immediacy to their experience as they feel the stage shake during dancing and watch the workings of the spinning disk imbedded in the stage that the singing dog, Jack, played enthusiastically by Martin Buchanan, moves with a subtle slight of "paw". The disk moves the covered wagon 360 degrees offering the audience different perspectives of the action, from the front seats to the back of the family "van". 
Mary and Laura are just like any other kids in history, they get tired, they whine. Yet they understand their role in the survival of the family. In one of the many poignant parts, the girls are thrilled with nothing more than a tin cup, a few sweets and a penny in their Christmas stocking. Glancing at the small faces surrounding the stage, there was more than one expression of shock from the young audience. The roles are double cast and Saturday's matinee presented Chloe Wells as the spirited Laura and Katie Hall as the mild Mary. They were the perfect sweet-faced sisters.
Alex Haynes and Keenan Ramos with their shaved heads, authentic costumes and passionate intensity were 100% convincing as Osage Indians. Speaking French, Ramos' character could not have appeared more other-worldly to the simple Ingalls daughters. Also playing the African-American doctor who saves the family from a bout of malaria, Ramos demonstrated his range and actability.
Ma and Pa Ingalls were young and idealistic settlers in their 20's when they set off in search of their place in the world. In terms of casting, the young couple; Mr. and Mrs. Scott played by Nicholas Gehlfuss and Rachel Hirshorn might have instilled that wide-eyed optimism of a new family better than the seasoned veterans for this production.
Yet, Jeanne Averill does have the quiet strength that strives to civilize her daughters while cultivating the land. Her speech about not liking Indians because they are savage and then symbolizing her civility with a china figurine, brought the cultural differences between Indians and settlers into dramatic relief.
Education is one of the Coterie Theatres strongest suits. This production was no exception. If you are a teacher I strongly encourage you to check out their website for well-designed and developed lesson plans with support material for this performance. Anyone is able to access this information online. Kudos to Megahnn Henry and Nancy Marcy for their extension materials.
In this challenging season of rampant consumerism in an economic depression, a trip to the Coterie can offer children a historical perspective of what life was like, here in the Midwest, just over 100 years ago. The importance of family and friends to survival should not be overlooked even today as we give thanks for all of our small blessings.
REVIEW:
Coterie Theatre
The Little House on the Prairie
Runs November 3 - December 29, 2009 (Reviewed November 21)
The Coterie Theatre,
Crown Center, Kansas City, MO
www.coterietheatre.org
Top photo: Laura (Chloe Wells, left) meets up for the first time with Soldat du Chene (Keenan Ramos) while Ma (Jeanne Averill) holds her back in the Coterie's Little House on the Prairie.
Theatre ,
My heart finds Christmas
"This show is about light," says director J. Kent Barnhart. "And about Christmas, about all of the different meanings it has for each one of us." Last Monday evening at Quality Hill Playhouse, four talented performers presented "Christmas in Song". The cast had just finished a rousing chorus of "Let There Be Light" and Barnhart was preparing the audience for the next few numbers. Some were traditional carols, some were obscure, but all were unique and performed beautifully.
Barnhart himself played the piano (very enthusiastically), and sang along with Cary Mock, Elaine Fox and Amy Coady. He also provided short breaks between the songs to tell a story, or crack a joke. More often than not, he would let us know what songs were coming up, and maybe a story or some background on the pieces. It reminded me very much of a choral concert, with a wisecracking conductor. For example, he quipped, "A lot of people say it isn't really Christmas until they come to this show. I guess for this audience, it isn't really Thanksgiving."
Elaine Fox has a beautiful classical voice, which is no wonder since she has performed in operatic roles all over the country. Her duet with Amy Coady on the "Silent Night/O Holy Night" combination was stunning. I heard a gentleman behind me whisper, "That was beautiful," as the number was ending. Her second act song, "God Bless My Family" was tremendously powerful; there was hardly a dry eye in the house.
Cary Mock is a newcomer to Quality Hill, but well known on the KC Theatre scene. He was a good addition to this show. In the first act, he performed a rousing piano duet of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman" with Barnhart, proving that he is also a quite a good piano player. In act two, he showcased his voice with "A Place Called Home" from "A Christmas Carol".
Amy Coady, returning from New York for the Christmas season, completes the quartet. Listening to her provided this reviewer with some gratifying moments. For instance, her second act solo, "The Bells of St. Paul," was lovely. I also enjoyed her jazzy duet with Barnhart on "A Cradle in Bethlehem/When the River Meets the Sea".
The Quality Hill Playhouse's newly renovated space is cozy. The set designed by Atif Rome, was simple and elegant. A Christmas wreath, a few garlands around windowed flats and a grand piano center stage. It felt homey without overwhelming the viewer with too many decorations. The costumes were functional, but I would have liked the first act formal wear to be a bit more cohesive. The second act sweaters were suitable, and looked very well together on stage.
Lighting provided transitions between the songs, and I really appreciated the varied lighting and blocking, which made each moment different. There were a few lights that seemed brighter. For example, Barnhart's was brighter than Coady's in "When the River Meets the Sea". There were also a few strange shadows, especially on tall Cary Mock at the end of the show. But all in all the mood lighting complimented the songs well.
Before the last number, Barnhart encouraged the audience to keep Christmas in their hearts all year round, just as Charles Dickens' "Christmas Carol" teaches. "Do something in June," he jokes. Then he becomes serious again. "Some of the best theatre moments I've had, have been ones where I leave wanting to be a better person." He hopes that "Christmas in Song" inspires audiences in just the same way.
REVIEW
Quality Hill Playhouse
Christmas in Song
Runs November 19- December 27, 2009 (Reviewed November 23)
303 W. 10th St., Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-421-1700 or online www.qualityhillplayhouse.com
Top photo: Classic Christmas carols, contemporary favorites and songs from the musical version of A Christmas Carol with Elaine Fox and J. Kent Barnhart.
Theatre ,
Christmas is "On the Air" at AHT
Christmas lights and garland decorate the American Heartland Theatre lobby, leaving no doubt of the impending Holidays despite the warm November evening. Regardless of the temperature, and with cocktails in hand, expectant patrons sported quilted Christmas-themed purses, rhinestone-adorned red sweaters and tweed jackets as they made their way to the parking garage stamper beside the Christmas tree. As guests entered the theatre, they were greeted by cast members in character who invited them "into the studio" and busied themselves in readying the radio station for the evening's "broadcast" of It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play.
With its cast of entirely local actors, Frank Capra's classic tale about George Bailey was uniquely delivered through a 1946 live radio broadcast of the familiar It's a Wonderful Life - a performance within a performance. Audience members were transported through time to a small town Kansas radio station getting ready for the big Christmas Eve show. On Air/Applause signs dotted either side of the stage to which patrons excitedly responded when prompted to clap. Sarah Oliver's costume design sold the period with saddle shoes, smart hats and lots of sass.
Seasonal musical pieces performed by the company filled the theatre with warm and festive Holiday cheer. The radio performance itself was so believable that one felt a member of a radio audience, only remembering occasionally that this was a performance.
Ken Remmert's delightful and expert radio sound effects and period-appropriate props, such as a functioning box and wire glass-smasher (George and Mary throwing rocks at the old house they will eventually buy ) completed the package and entreated laughs throughout. Tim Scott (Jake Laurents the radio voice as George Bailey the character) and Natalie Weaver (Lana Sherwood) stood out from a large and extraordinarily talented cast.
The classic theme of Clarence the second-class angel trying for his wings saving suicidal George's soul comes to life in this completely fresh and fun story-within-a-story performance. American Heartland's It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play is the perfect Holiday treat for children of all ages.
REVIEW
American Heartland Theatre
It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play
Runs November 5 - December 27, 2009 (Reviewed: November 11, 2009)
Crown Center
2450 Grand Boulevard, Kansas City MO
For tickets call 816-842-9999 or online www.ahtkc.com
Theatre ,
Taffeta for the Holidays
In old town Olathe hides one of the metropolis' hidden treasures - the Chestnut Fine Arts Center. For the holiday season, the Chestnut is presenting "A Taffeta Christmas." a musical revue that features Christmas songs and golden oldies.
Cheryl, Donna, Peggy and Kaye are the Taffeta sisters. They have returned from the big city to their hometown of Muncie, Indiana in order to perform at the "Holiday Hoedown..." And that's about as far as the plot goes - this show is ALL about the music. The sisters do take a few moments to tell us about their family traditions and to advertise for Galaxy Beauty Products, their fictitious financial sponsors. Although it didn't start with a bang, the show was cozy and welcoming. While tapping my toes to "Mele Kalikimaka" and "Jambalaya", I realized all I was missing was a mug of cider and a roaring fire.
My favorite moments were the silly ones. "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" was performed in pig Latin, complete with a pig-illustrated flipbook. The "Chipmunks Christmas Song" sounded just like Alvin and pals, triggering a round of giggles from the audience. During Act 2, the girls answered fan mail and interacted very cleverly with the audience.
Julie Shaw, Julie O'Rourke, Stasha Case and Christina Brewer played Kaye, Peggy, Donna and Cheryl, respectively. The ladies are reprising their roles from "The Taffetas", performed two years ago at the Chestnut. Their voices blended extremely well. Shaw's full, rich voice was well suited to theatre, and I would love to hear her sing a solid character role. O'Rourke has a lovely classical voice, and I giggled a bit each time she said her character's catchphrase "We hope you like it!" Case's Donna was vibrant and fun to watch, and her solid alto voice was beautiful. Brewer's voice is energetic, and she brought a youthful honesty and vitality to the show.
The set, designed by Kathleen Helming and built by Marvin Zimmerman, was all red velvet and Christmas decorations, and reminded me of a Branson holiday show. Costumes, by Serena Addington and Carolyn Robinson, were color coordinated, and meant to look hand sewn by the sisters. The first act wigs were adorable, and each pair of gloves had little flowers sewn onto them. The girls changed their cuffs, collars and wigs in the second act for a bit of interest. The only comment I will offer is that I wished the ladies had a more feminine blouse.
Annie Paglusch choreographed the show, making each number interesting and different. My favorites were "Constantinople" and "Shrimp Boats". The band consisted of percussion, bass guitar, and piano (played by director Brad Zimmerman).
I thought the show I started rather slowly, and it took me awhile to get in sync with it. It seemed like the performers' energy picked up after a "fun" song. And after that, I was laughing and toe-tapping along with the rest of the crowd. I must comment that two straight hours of music is a lot for the ears to digest, so I was grateful for the short breaks between medleys. But all said and done, it was an enjoyable evening of holiday entertainment.
REVIEW
The Chestnut Fine Arts Center
A Taffeta Christmas
Runs November 12 - December 20 (Reviewed November 13)
234 N. Chestnut, Olathe, KS 66061
For tickets call 913-764-2121 or online at www.chestnutfinearts.com
Dance, Classical,
KC artists make "Nutcracker" their own
A sell-out crowd at the City Stage Theater on Friday night was treated to an absolute feast for the ears and eyes with The Nutcracker and the Mouse King. The Owen/Cox Dance Group and the People's Liberation Big Band of Kansas City with guest Mark Southerland proudly let their freak flags fly. Peggy Noland and Peregrine Honig's striking costume design-reminiscent of Wimmer-Ferguson high-contrast baby toys- brought whimsy, sex appeal, and menace to the production.
The music by Southerland, Jeffrey Ruckman, and Brad Cox with arrangements by Cox, Pat Conway, Jeff Harshbarger, and Forest Stewart was a demented plethora of styles based on Tchaikovsky's holiday favorite The Nutcracker. There was plenty to appease those familiar with Tchaikovsky's ballet, and music and the story was taken further by adding more of E.T.A. Hoffmann's original story, namely the story-within-a-story "Tale of the Hard Nut." Jennifer Owen's choreography was also referential to the traditional structure of solo numbers, pas de deux, and ensemble pieces with shades of Isadora Duncan and hip hop.
Lauren Fitzpatrick took the role of 'Marie' from a young girl prone to spats with her brother 'Fritz' (danced with wonderful frustration by Owen) to a young woman on the verge of adulthood. The transformation was readily apparent as her dancing became more and more refined as the piece progressed.
'The Nutcracker' was danced by the insanely bendy Randolf Ward; his turns were performed with dazzling speed and crispness.
Jennifer Owen channeled her inner sex kitten and with the help of Peregrine Honig's Lady-Gaga-in-Barbie-pink costume took the wholesome 'Sugar Plum Fairy' in a completely different direction to naughty ballerina/stripper.
Gavin Stewart and Laura Jones were paired together throughout the entire production. Their chemistry was palpable as the uptight 50s-era Ward and June Cleaver-esque father and mother to the sultry, show-stopping Arabesque pas de deux.
The sarcastic, modernized narration was performed with sardonic wit by Jeffrey Ruckman, while Cox narrated the "Tale of the Hard Nut" as 'Drosselmeier.'
Musically the most successful portions were in the second act. The Chinese dance was recontextualized as an Afro-Cuban romp and the Trepak became a vodka-infused piece for solo jublag (a Gamelan instrument). The Dance of the Mirlitons was another standout. Danced by students from the Paseo Academy it was one of the longer set pieces. The music ranged from "Woodchopper's Ball" Glenn Miller swing to street hip hop. The crowd was clearly engaged in this number and the young dancers handled it magnificently.
Even with such an enjoyable production I have three small quibbles. I found the solo choreography somewhat lacking. The ensemble numbers were complexly layered and Jennifer Owen clearly excels in that arena, yet I did not find enough variety of motion within each of the solo works. In the more gritty numbers I felt the dancers were not fully completing all their moves and some body rolls should have been dirtier. Musically, especially in the first act, I found the score too heavily reliant on the aleatoric, "go crazy" instructions. But again, small quibbles for an otherwise thoroughly engaging performance.
Oh Hoffmann and Tchaikovsky, thank you for writing the basis for Owen/Cox and PLBB to work their deranged magic upon.
REVIEW:
Owen/Cox Dance Group and The People's Liberation Big Band of Kansas City
The Nutcracker and the Mouse King
Friday, December 11, 2009
Union Station: H&R Block City Stage Theater
www.owencoxdance.org and www.myspace.com/plbb
Top photo: Lauren Fitzpatrick & Laura Jones. Photo Charles Stonewall.
Classical,
Tallis Scholars soar in sacred concert
Great music looks back with affection on music's past, and forward with confidence to its future. And Kansas City got a long affectionate look at Western music's rather distant past last Thursday night with the Tallis Scholars, perhaps the best Renaissance vocal polyphony performance ensemble in the world.
All-around music impresario Peter Phillips founded the Tallis Scholars in England in 1973 and has led them in over 1,600 concerts since. The group has appeared many times in Kansas City, including two performances in the last 18 months alone.
Thursday night's performance was presented by The Friends of Chamber Music. It was an evening of music written in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary and music written to be performed in a church with high ceilings. Performed in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, the 40 foot ceiling lent the necessary reverberation intended by the composers.
Josquin du Prez' Missa de Beate Virgine, written sometime around 1500, is a kind of pastiche. The five regular choral parts of the traditional Catholic Mass - Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus and Agnus Dei - weren't written as a unified whole of a single plainsong theme, a motet or a secular song.
Instead, this Mass was written in separate movements whose common thread is a sound that du Prez' listeners would have known from everyday life. That is, this Mass is a "chant paraphrase," as the program notes put it. It's easy to imagine ordinary Catholics enjoying this music when it was new - complete with their attention diverted at times by restless children of their own.
Five hundred years later, it still sounds a little disjointed thematically, which makes the Scholars' artistry all the more impressive.
Phillips' fame rests partly on his uncanny ability to match voices to one another; and his matching is peerless. The Tallis Scholars' seamless tonal wall of sound lent a most touching unity to the sound of the Mass that its actual text does not always support.
When asked about how he goes about auditioning new members for the ensemble, Phillips said, "Basically, the singers let me know when they sing with musicians they admire in other ensembles, and then when the opportunity arises we invite them to sing a concert with us." It's another way the best of its kind honors the past. This kind of quasi-pickup performance group was a fact of life for choristers and monastics when du Prez was writing on the Continent.
In England, the Elizabethean Age had a dark side, even a violent side, and nothing brought out the worst in people more efficiently than religion. There is a distant echo of all this in the program's second half, most of which was dedicated to music written in circumstances of great personal turmoil.
John Nesbett's Magnificat was written in England, probably at Cambridge in the 1470s or 1480s. Like du Prez' Mass, Nesbett's Magnificat was written to honor the Virgin Mary. The text is taken from Mary's dialog with Saint Elizabeth in Saint Luke's Gospel.
Thursday night we also heard from Nesbett's countrymen and fellow Catholics Thomas Tallis and William Byrd. However, their music was written in quite different circumstances, and with a noticeable change in the music's power.
Thomas Tallis was born in about 1505 and died in 1585; William Byrd was 35 years younger. The two were good friends and business partners, and Tallis stood as godfather to one of Byrd's children. Perhaps it is true that Byrd was the greater composer. One can hear the new harmonies of the next 150 years struggling to be born in his music.
But Tallis was the voice of England, and England's voice was Catholic until then.
It was illegal for Catholics to practice their faith openly in England from 1538 to 1829, and both Tallis and Byrd worked as court musicians for Anglican monarchs. But despite a relatively privileged position, in effect they wrote from the catacombs. This melancholy fact gives their music an emotional power that John Nesbett's music, wonderful as it is, simply does not communicate.
Tallis' Tunes for Archbishop Parker's Psalter is a good example of this. It was written to be sung in English for the Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury, the mother see of the Church in England. Perhaps one can hear the traditional English Christianity in Tallis' music all the better when English voices sing it. That Christianity was Catholic, and Matthew Parker was not. But history is nothing if not messy, and a banquet of irony for everyone.
Neither Tallis nor William Byrd ever abandoned his faith. But Byrd's music makes it clear that he also loved his country. His Tribulationes civitatum, first published in 1589, after his death, is taken to be encouragement for England in its birth pains as a modern state. At least Queen Elizabeth may have thought so: she granted Byrd a lifetime music publishing monopoly!
At the same time, Byrd's intention in the evening's last piece, his Vigilate, may well have been to protest the legalized religious discrimination Catholics faced in his day - and to remind those in control of England that all men will someday stand at the judgment seat of Christ.
How he got away with this is anyone's guess. Yet he did, and this rousing final piece made a fitting conclusion to the Tallis Scholars' concert - by turns reverent, joyous, impassioned, and even discursive at times - illustrating once again the great emotional breadth and depth of Renaissance polyphony.
REVIEW:
The Friends of Chamber Music
The Tallis Scholars
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception
416 West 12th Street, Kansas City, MO
For more information visit www.chambermusic.org
Top photo by Albert Roosenburg
Classical,
Taking holiday spirit to a new level
Straight No Chaser bounded onto the stage of the Lied Center in Lawrence, Saturday night with the energy of a spirit squad. With fingers snapping, knees bending, and backs arching, I half expected them to make a three person high pyramid complete with basket tosses. Hearing them at the University of Kansas somehow completed the College connection.
Their music is quintessentially "a cappella". And I'm not talking about the brand of classical unaccompanied vocal music we hear in Kansas City by groups like Octarium or Musica Vocale. No, this is the Glee club variety of a cappella based on drinking songs at the fraternity mixer.
They re-arrange popular tunes to fit their voices, add high energy "choral-ography", and rapid melismatic endings to songs. It all results in a crowd pleasing, highly marketable, brand of entertainment perfect for the whole family. It is known as "a cappella" and I'm not ashamed to say...I like it. It can be cheesy, yes, but sometimes a little cheese tastes good with a dry white wine.
Collegiate a cappella is a big deal. Thousands of students all over the country meet every year in American Idol-esk competitions for top honors and bragging rights. It's like a spectator sport that's driven by high quality talent, imaginative choreography and the power of personality. Straight No Chaser is the a cappella group that carried on after graduation to critical acclaim.
Part of their success can be attributed to their social media savvy. Discovered, by chance, on YouTube by Atlantic Records, they allow the audience to freely photograph them during the performance, knowing full well the pictures will be posted and spread around the internet. They, in turn, photograph the audience so that they can "tag" themselves right from the Straight No Chaser Facebook page. The idea seemed kind of smarmy to me at first but I appreciate its genius. Not everyone will be able to adopt this idea without seeming like a copycat. SNC was one of the first.
With adoring fans packed to the rafters of the Lied center, it was evident that Straight No Chaser had a loyal following in Lawrence. Audience members from 5 to 95 packed the house for a high energy musical review. Singing everything from Bebop to hard rock and a smattering of holiday tunes, the group had something for every generation. They announce the pieces periodically throughout the show but relied heavily on the audiences' previous knowledge of the iconic pieces. Everything was familiar but sounded fresh when given the SNC treatment.
The group got its start at Indiana University in Bloomington over ten years ago. They still have their boyish charm and youthful optimism but their sound is fuller and more mature. The school of music at Indiana fields some of the finest talent in the United States, so it isn't surprising that the group has chops. Throughout the performance, their voices become drum sets, electric guitars, keyboards and basses. They wail back-up vocals that rival the Beach Boys and even the Supremes. Grinding and winding their harmonies as they modulate, the group would unexpectedly change tempo and styles with ease.
What is surprising is that they have managed to stay together and still have fun. Their comedic jabs and jokes between songs attested to their long friendships and the audience became part of their exclusive clique. A particularly entertaining portion of the show was their TV Theme Show medley. Pointing their microphones into the audience during key verses of songs we all knew by heart, they turned the piece into a retro sing-a-long. They even scolded us when we couldn't come up with a line in the Cheers theme.
With their special shaken, not stirred, mix of pop tunes and Christmas carols, Straight No Chaser is easy to swallow: smooth and full with a bass kick at the end.
REVIEW:
Straight No Chaser
A Vocal Celebration of the Season
Saturday, December 12, 2009
The Lied Center at KU
1600 Stewart Dr. , Lawrence, KS
For more information call 785-864-2787 or online at www.lied.ku.edu
Disclaimer: Megan Browne Helm was a Baby Jay Mascot at the University of Kansas from 1988-1989. She is also a former member of Octarium.
Classical,
KC Chamber Orchestra's evening of Vivaldi
Giant snowflakes, the Plaza lights, and Unity Temple's holiday bunting chock full of tiny white lights all provided for a lovely backdrop for the Kansas City Chamber Orchestra's performance of Vivaldi's Four Seasons last Tuesday.
Using four different violin soloists (Anne-Marie Brown, Anthony DeMarco, Tamamo Gibbs, and Dorris Dai Janssen) for each of the movements was a great idea on paper, but the inevitable comparisons between the soloists detracted somewhat from the performance.
The ensemble, under maestro Bruce Sorrell, opened with Vivaldi's Concerto for Four Violins in B Minor, Op. 3, No. 10. The blend was superb between the soloists in their concertante sections. The bare-bones accompanying ensemble of single player on viola, cello, bass, and harpsichord provided the light touch and transparency needed to keep the sixteenth notes clean and the textures unmuddled.
As soloist for the ubiquitous "Spring" Dorris Janssen had the daunting task of the performing the one Season that everyone knows by heart. She handled the responsibility admirably. She would emerge out of the homogenous textures and retreat back within showing an intimate knowledge of the score.
Tamamo Gibbs, soloist for "Summer," showcased an aggressive approach to the fiery concerto. I found some of the passages to be a played tad harsh, but her bow-control was excellent in the Adagio portion of the second movement. Her unbroken diminuendo was marvelous. The concerto began with some questionable intonation, but she soon settled into the pitch.
Similar intonation problems plagued the beginning of "Autumn" with soloist Anthony DeMarco. The Presto section of the second movement was dazzling, however, and the double stops of the caccia in the third movement were navigated with confidence belying their trickiness.
The standout of the evening (befitting the snowy evening) was Anne-Marie Brown's performance of "Winter." The piece is striking in its prominent use of controlled dissonance. Brown's playing was stellar with lyricism and technique to spare. With the use of sul ponticello and pizzicato Vivaldi's score contained all the iciness of the season.
REVIEW:
Kansas City Chamber Orchestra
Vivaldi's Four Seasons
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
Unity Temple of the Plaza, Kansas City, MO
For more information visit www.kcchamberorchestra.org
Top photo: Tony DeMarco
Local Arts News,
Mid-America Arts Alliance officially opens its 2010-11 Performing Arts Grants Cycle
Mid-America Arts Alliance has opened its grant cycle for both its Community Engagement with Touring Artists (CETA) and its Regional Touring Program (RTP).
The deadline for CETA grant applications is Feb. 1, 2010. Presenters may apply for multiple artists' appearances under the CETA program.
Applications for our Regional Touring Program (RTP) grants are also being accepted at this time, with an application deadline for the first round of applications of April 15, 2010.
The changes in the new RTP grant opportunities for 2010-2011 are:
Presenters can apply for RTP grants only for performances featuring artists from the Mid-America Artists' Registry. This is a new requirement; in the past we only required that the artist be from the six-state region, regardless of his or her affiliation with Mid-America Arts Alliance .
RTP grant requests will be considered on a first-come, first-served basis, rather than reviewed by a grantmaking panel. CETA grant requests will still receive panel review.
Presenters can receive a grant from one program category, but not both. This is not a new guideline, but it is one sometimes overlooked by presenters when submitting their grant application.
Grant guidelines and our online eGrant system for both CETA and RTP can be found on the Performing Arts Programs page of our our website, www.maaa.org. Be sure to visit our Artists' Registry often to search for artists in the region, as more artists join every month.
Questions? Contact Betty Maltbia, Performing Arts Manager, 816-421-1388, ext. 228.
Off the Vine, Jazz,
December/January Events
Jam Session: America's Jazz Ambassadors Embrace the World is an exceptional collection of photographs and documents drawn from important archives around the country that chronicles the tours of American jazz legends as they traveled the globe on behalf of the U.S. State Department. From the mid-1950s through the 1970s, Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, Dave Brubeck, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, and others served as cultural diplomats, transcending national boundaries, and making friends for our country.
Jam Session includes nearly 100 compelling images of musicians visiting 35 countries in four continents - each of which provides a unique insight into this successful diplomatic initiative. Millions of people experienced these concerts and thrilled to the many styles and variations of the remarkable American art form called jazz music. We've taken the liberty to add two additional components including non-stop screening of selected films taken from our John H. Baker Jazz Film Collection and selected artifacts from the UMKC Marr Sound Archives and American Jazz Museum Collections. These added dimensions will bring to life many of the themes and accentuate selected artists from within the exhibition. Moreover, they will provide YOU with a heightened educational experience!
To highlight the far-reaching impact of these great musicians' voyages abroad, the American Jazz Museum will host a grand opening celebration and public programs and focus tours to accentuate the exhibit during the course of its run here in Kansas City - through February 21, 2010.
Educating The Masses...Public Programs of Jam Session: America's Jazz Ambassadors Embrace the World
January 18, 2010, Atrium - American Jazz Museum
Jammin' for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: A Jazz Poetry Jams Special Event
Join host, Glenn North, student poets, spoken word artists and KC jazz musicians in action as we pay special tribute to an American legend, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. whose words of justice inspire words of hope from these talented young poets. Also enjoy light refreshments, a funs scavenger hunt and light refreshments. $5 Admission
February 4, 2010- 6:30 pm, Atrium - American Jazz Museum
Jammin' for Wellness: Jazz as an International Catalyst for Medical and Spiritual Healing
This session will feature a spirited and healthy discussion examining the power Jazz as an International Catalyst for Medical and Spiritual Healing. Join our guest panelists and NEA Jazz Master Randy Weston LIVE IN CONCERT! Program also includes hors d' oeuvres!
February 19, 2010 - 10:00 a.m., Atrium - American Jazz Museum
Satchmo Blows Up the World: A Jazz Storytelling Special Event
In this special inter-active Jazz Storytelling session, children will learn how one of the world's greatest jazz ambassadors, Louis Armstrong, trumpeted the message of jazz across the globe.
All programs are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted. A suggested $10 donation to support future programming is encouraged. For additional details and to RSVP for any of these public programs, please contact Glenn North at (816)474-8463, ext. 221 or gnorth@kcjazz.org.
For more information visit www.americanjazzmuseum.org.
City Classics,
Music and Dance through December 23
Kansas City Ballet
The Nutcracker
Wednesday December 16 through Friday, December 18 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, December 19 at 2:00 and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, December 20 at 1:00 and 5:00 p.m.
Tuesday, December 22 at 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, December 23 at 2:00 and 7:00 p.m.
(Runs through December 27)
Music Hall
13th and Broadway, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-931-2232 or online at www.kcballet.org.
Let's face it, Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker is such a perennial feature of holiday celebrations throughout the world that we all must be sick and tired of it, right? No way! One of the secrets to the enduring popularity of this piece is its charming story, one of everlasting hope and optimism, and the delightful whimsy featured in both the music and in the dancing. A better combination of music and dance is not to be found, and one of the pleasures of the Christmas season is the opportunity to hear and see it again.
The Kansas City Ballet's production, designed by the late, great Todd Bolender, longtime director of the Ballet, is a delight to behold, and features all 25 of the company's dancers, and over 200 young people from the Ballet School as well, in scenes from the timeless Christmas story based upon the fantasy tale by E.T.A. Hoffmann.
Made up of a series of short vignettes, tied together through the overall story of the young girl Clara and her Christmas Eve dreams, the Nutcracker offers a company's dancers the opportunity to be both graceful and athletic in turn. The Kansas City forces have never failed to shine, and current artistic director William Whitener has done a marvelous job of preserving the essence of Bolender's stirring design while keeping a few things fresh and challenging for the company.
And as for the music? Well, Tchaikovsky himself underestimated the power of his score. He found it "detestable." Well, Mr. Tchaikovsky, we have news for you. Your "detestable" music has become among the most popular iconic pieces of Western civilization, so perhaps your judgment of your own music is not to be trusted. Many listeners have found the variety and melodic invention in the Nutcracker to be among the finest in Western music. The many and varied musical numbers, intended for dancing by various characters in Clara's dream, including live versions of the toys under her Christmas tree, are perfectly calculated. In these performances musicians from the Kansas City Symphony will perform the score live.
One of this listener's favorite stories concerns the composer's use of the celesta in the "Dance of the Sugar-Plum Fairy." The celesta was a new musical instrument which had just been created by Auguste Mustel. Tchaikovsky had discovered the instrument just before departing on a trip for the United States, and was captivated by its "divinely beautiful tone."' He arranged to have one sent to Russia secretly, because he was "afraid Rimsky-Korsakov and Glazunov may get hold of it and use the unusual effect before me." Its use in the Nutcracker was kept a secret until the opening night, and when the celesta was first heard by the opening night audience it was met with rapturous applause.
The rapture still continues.
(Note: Some of the above listed performances may be sold out.)
Westport Center for the Arts
St. Michael's Baroque Ensemble
Friday, December 18 at 12:00 noon
Westport Presbyterian Church
201 Westport Road, Kansas City, MO
Free admissions, donations accepted.
For years Westport Presbyterian Church has sponsored its free noontime concert series on occasional Friday noons, and many of the performances have been outstanding. This Friday the series is featuring the St. Michael's Baroque Ensemble with Mark Cohick and Charles Wines, woodwinds, Ken Walker, harpsichord, and Benjamin Humphrey, cello, along with Charles Everson, tenor. Grab a sack lunch, put a few dollars in the basket, and enjoy some classical music away from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season.
Harriman Jewell Series
As it Fell on a Holie Eve - Parthenia
Saturday, December 19 at 8:00 p.m.
Folly Theater
12th and Central, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-415-5025 or online at www.harriman-jewell.org.
Early music super group Parthenia teams up with soprano Julianne Baird to present a holiday concert featuring Renaissance Christmas favorites.
Parthenia, making its Harriman Jewell series debut, explores music written for viols "from Tudor England to the court of Versailles and beyond." The ensemble, which regularly performs at Corpus Christi Church in New York City, frequently collaborates with the world's foremost early music specialists and has been featured on radio and television and in many different festivals and series. The group has been hailed by the New Yorker as "one of the brightest lights in New York's early music scene."
Julianne Beard is a frequent collaborator with symphony orchestras including the New York Philharmonic and Cleveland Symphony, and specializes in the works of Bach, Handel and other early composers. With more than 100 recordings to her credit, she is currently a distinguished professor at Rutgers University.
Kansas City Young Symphony
Winter Concert
Sunday, December 20 at 8:00 p.m.
Park University Chapel
8700 N.W. Riverpark Drive, Parkville, Missouri
Free admission.
The Kansas City Youth Symphony, conducted by Steven Davis, performs its annual winter concert on Sunday evening. No information is available as to the programming for this concert.
The concert will be preceded earlier in the afternoon with a performance by the String Orchestra and Academy Orchestra at 2:00 p.m. and a Symphonette and Philharmonic Orchestra performance at 5:00 p.m., at the same location.
This year is the 50th anniversary of the Kansas City Youth Symphony.
Local Arts News,
Metropolitan Opera regional auditions
Longtime vocal music fans in Kansas City know that one of the most enjoyable days to be spent midwinter is at the Metropolitan Opera District Auditions which are held here each year. Usually over 30 singers, and sometimes as many as 40, perform a selection of opera arias in front of expert judges to determine a series of winners, three of whom advance to the regional auditions. This year the regional auditions will be held in St. Louis on February 13.
The Kansas City District is one of several dozen nationwide which eventually result in a finals concert held on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera in New York City later in the spring, this year on March 7, 2010. From these national contestants are selected a few who are given contracts to sing at the Metropolitan Opera, or who go on to prominent opera careers elsewhere.
Over the years the Metropolitan Opera audition process has uncovered a number of singers who have gone on to international stardom. Here in Kansas City such contemporary superstars as Samuel Ramey, Vinson Cole and Joyce DiDonato appeared in the district auditions in their student days.
This year's judges for the Kansas City district are Roger Pines, dramaturg from Lyric Opera of Chicago; Richard Bado, the chorus master of the Houston Grand Opera; and Patricia Wise, a soprano and professor of voice at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music.
A finer day of singing is not to be had, especially at the price, and you can match wits with the judges to see if your picks are the same ones they choose.
Metropolitan Opera Regional Auditions
Saturday, January 2, 2010 at 10:00 a.m.
White Recital Hall
4949 Cherry, Kansas City, MO
Free admission.
KCM News,
This season of giving
KCMetropolis.org - YOUR Online Journal of the Performing Arts - is a nonprofit arts service organization designed to offer critical, quality dialogue about our community's performing arts through new online technologies and social medias. We have been publishing for over a year and feature articles on traditional and independent classical music, dance, theatre, indie films and jazz. We are a true grassroots organization and have 20+ local volunteer writers on board - talented and expert voices coming from the musicologists, professional writers, etc within the community.
KCMetropolis.org publishes weekly on Wednesdays and has 600+ articles up on the site stretching back through October 2008. This has allowed us to offer more, and more easily accessible coverage of performing arts events - both small and large - than has ever been offered in one place to the Kansas City community.
In July, KCMetropolis.org debuted a new performing arts calendar - KC Events - that allows arts organizations to add and manage their own events. It is much more than just a listing - click on the link and find an entire page of information on each performance, all with easy links to share, print, send to your mobile, etc. We are partnering with other performing arts organizations, online arts purveyors and tourism-based businesses to make KC Events easily accessible in many locations.
In order to continue to offer quality performing arts information through critical dialogue to you, we depend on financial support from the readers we serve. Your donations help support operations, technology and accessible content so that our journal may promote and educate the community about this valuable cultural resource.
Our Mission:
KCMetropolis.org publishes online substantive, critical, unbiased review, preview and side-story articles on the traditional and independent performing arts to help promote, make accessible and educate the general public about Kansas City's rich, performing arts environment.
It is easy to donate to KCMetropolis.org. Follow this link http://kcmetropolis.org/Donate to donate online via Pay Pal or send your checks to KCMetropolis.org at 814 East 33rd Street, Kansas City, MO 64109. All donations are tax deductible.
Thank you for your continued support of the performing arts!
RSS ArtsJournal
Many thanks to ArtsJournal.com's editor, Douglas McLennan
~ Formerly an arts columnist and arts reporter with the Seattle
Post-Intelligencer and the Seattle Weekly. Doug writes on
the arts for a number of publications (in his abundant free time)
and is currently acting director of the National Arts Journalism
Program while it reinvents itself ~
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