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.
KC Events this week and beyond
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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.
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- Click on Submit an Event or Manage Your Events.
- Listings will be approved with 48 hours if it fits the KCMetropolis.org criteria.
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.
Classical,
"The Wise Women" cometh
The Civic Opera Theater of Kansas City is reprising Conrad Susa's contemporary holiday opera The Wise Women next weekend.
The Civic Opera previously performed it for eight years running from 1995 through 2003 and often drew capacity crowds. The opera tells the story of the Christ child's birth and the travels of the Three Wise Men, but from the perspective of important women in their lives.
Conrad Susa (not to be confused with the 19th century March king John Phillip Sousa) is one of today's best known composers, and this opera is among his most popular compositions. The libretto is by Phillip Littell, whose also wrote the words from two later and very popular operas, Susa's Dangerous Liaisons and A Streetcar Named Desire by Andre Previn.
As the opera opens, the Three Wise Men, accompanied by their women, rest at an oasis. The men feel that they are traveling to find an adult king, while the women are certain that the monarch will be a baby. Impatient, the men abandon the women behind and journey on, but the women, remaining behind, are visited by a vision of the Holy Mother and her divine child.
The men, approaching Bethlehem, are addressed by a host of angels in the "Gloria,"
a beautiful choral passage telling of the angels' message. Shepherds spread the message of the baby's birth, and the Holy Family is transported to the oasis so that the Wise Women, despite being abandoned, can witness the miracle.
The Wise Men are confused by what has happened, but the Wise Women help them understand that the best gift for the King is not a material possession, but love, the kind that recognizes the divinity in every child.
The Civic Opera Theater has not performed The Wise Women for six years, but new producing artistic director, David Adams, felt that the work is an important part of the company's history and should be reintroduced to Kansas City audiences.
The Wise Women, Adams says, is "one of the works that made Civic Opera Theater of Kansas City a landmark arts institution. It is a piece that is fun for the whole family."
"For those of you who have seen this performed in the past," says Adams, "you may recognize some familiar faces. I guarantee that you will not only be thrilled by their return, but also by the sparkling new talent that will be featured. This piece is a treat not only to the ears and eyes, but truly speaks to the heart of the holiday season."
PREVIEW
Civic Opera Theater of Kansas City
The Wise Women by Conrad Susa
Friday, December 4 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, December 5 at 2:00 p.m. and at 7:30 p.m.
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
40th and Main Streets, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-235-1000 or visit www.kccivicopera.org for more information
Top Photo: Conrad Sousa
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
Theatre , Classical,
Ghosts of Christmas Carols past
Spirits haunt every aspect of Nathan Granner's one man production of Dicken's Christmas Carol adapted by Greg Oliver Bodine.
This fresh interpretation of the traditional favorite is akin to the Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Winters, Orson Wells, radio drama variety with songs and carols setting the mood and forwarding the action. There are no big budget sets, props or costumes. The minimalist approach and the exciting new gallery venue have inspired an installation-like, performance art setting. "Focus is more subconscious, than a literal description of past reality" says Granner.
An operatic tenor well known for his work as one of Sony's American Tenors, Granner is possessed by ghosts of Christmas Carol's past. Having been in numerous productions of the Kansas City Repertory Theatre's version, the actors he worked alongside sometimes haunt his new characterizations. His "Scrooge" is inspired by actor and friend Gary Neill Johnsons' famous scratchy voiced version. Granner humbly inhabits other personal theatrical heroes audiences may recognize.
Ghosts take center stage at the Hemmingway Gallery, a new performing arts space at 132 W 19th Street. The big yellow building in the Crossroads district is a perfect home for the spirit world. "It used to be an old jail and two ghosts have been haunting it for years."
Using a voice modulation pedal, Granner is able to replicate the ghost of Christmas Past in all of its singsong glory. Neither male or female, young or old, the voice switches genders and ages amid Scrooges confusion, joy and fear. The Ghost of Christmas Present is more like Nathan in his full bore "opera man" persona and the Ghost of Christmas Future is eerily silent.
Voicing the entire cast of characters is a challenge that seems to invigorate the multi-talented Granner. Giving each character a distinctive laugh, Granner moves from the oily rich laugh of Fezziwig to the cackling old maid with ease.
Spirits of another sort will enliven the event. Alcoholic and non-alcoholic libations will be available for purchase. Audience members can also feel good about contributing to the creation of a new opera. A Christmas Carol is a fundraiser for The Gospel of Judas, an opera by Jeffery Rukaman currently in pre-production.
PREVIEW:
A Christmas Carol
December 4, 2009 at 7:00 pm and 9:30 pm
December 10th and 11th at 7:00 pm
Pre-performance reception at 6:30 pm all nights
Hemmingway Gallery
132 W 9th Street, Kansas City, MO
Tickets available at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/89211
For more information call 816-914-4822 or online at www.nathangranner.com
Classical,
"Messiah" in all of its glory
The Messiah by Handel can be an oratorio warhorse of epic proportions. An annual favorite, orchestras and choruses all over the world join together to recount the life of Christ from cradle to crucifixion. The Independence Messiah Singers joined by the Kansas City Symphony and Chorus under the baton of Steven Jarvi "sang" in the holiday season last Saturday night at the Community of Christ auditorium.
There is enough musical meat on the Baroque bones of this composition to keep singers and players engaged year after year in uncovering its nuances and holy meaning. But it is the economic viability of launching this colossal piece that keeps it alive. The sheer numbers of volunteer singers on stage ensures seats full of family and friends willing to sit through Armageddon for grandmas, aunties, brothers and sons.
The Independence Messiah Choir began singing Messiah 93 years ago and some of its singers are in their 30th year of the tradition. Holding handsomely bound scores with gilded edges, autographs of former conductors grace the inside covers. Sticky notes with seating assignments are carefully arranged on the fly leaves. These are the yearbooks, the proud mementoes of a community of close friends.
The Kansas City Symphony Chorus, however, is a community of intimate strangers. Rehearsing once a week at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral downtown, many of the singers revolve, and new voices join each year. What does unite is the dedication to creating beautiful sounds with other dedicated and talented people. Monday rehearsal nights have been described as sonic therapy by some thankful chorus members.
Joining together with the Kansas City Symphony for this special holiday performance builds the ranks to an overwhelming number of solid voices. This year over 250 black clad singers took the stage below the grand organ in the Community of Christ's Auditorium. And 2009 is the third year of this very valuable collaboration. 
Choral conductor Charles Bruffy brings a fresh perspective to the chorus' this year. Bruffy shines the national choral spotlight on Kansas City through his Grammy award winning work with the Kansas City Chorale. As the new conductor and director of the Kansas City Symphony Chorus, he brings a radical approach to singing with an orchestra. His technique of intoning consonant endings is controversial, but highly effective when creating a unified sound with massive choirs.
Saturday night's performance included the voices of some of the country's best and brightest talent. Bass, Jason Hardy will be returning to the New York City Opera this year to play Leporello in a new production of Don Giovanni. Described as a baritone in the program, his voice had strong bottom notes reminiscent of a young Samuel Ramey. Tenor Gregory Warren is singing in Germany and the Netherlands this season in addition to Kansas City. Unfortunately there aren't more Tenor solos in this piece, his voice was smooth and passion-filled. Alto Janet Carlsen Campbell is best known for her solo work with the Phoenix Bach Choral (conducted and directed by Maetro Bruffy) and the Texas choral ensemble, Conspirare. 
But it was the stellar young Soprano Kiera Duffy who stole the show. Effortlessly intoning every note of the lightning fast passages in "Rejoice Greatly" and easily popping off stratospherically high pitches in her elegant cadenza's, Ms Duffy is destined to be a world-class talent.
With nearly every seat in the massive Community of Christ Auditorium filled, Messiah is a winner. It is a gateway piece to the wonderful world of Baroque orchestral music as well as the holiday season.
(Megan Browne Helm is a membr of the Kansas City Symphony Chorus and sang in this performance.)
EVENT REVIEW:
Messiah by G.F. Handel
The Independence Messiah Chorus with
The Kansas City Symphony and Chorus
Saturday November 28, 2009
Community of Christ Auditorium
Independence MO
For more information www.kcsymphony.org
Top photo: Steven Jarvi
Film,
Military drama one of the year’s best
To receive news that a loved one has died in military combat would be a painful and tragic experience. The impact it has on a pair of soldiers who have to relay such news on a near-daily basis is depicted with unwavering brilliance in the military drama The Messenger, one of 2009's best films.
Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery (Ben Foster) has recently returned to active duty after sufficiently recovering from wounds he received from an IED explosion in Iraq. With a few months left on his enlistment, Montgomery is assigned to hard-nosed Captain Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson). As a two-man detail, their mission is to inform next of kin that their loved one has been killed in combat.
Initially, Montgomery, whom the Army calls a hero, is bitter about his assignment. Stone doesn't want to hear it and continually reminds him that it's their solemn duty to contact next of kin before anyone else. Eventually, Montgomery and Stone, who both have drinking problems and insomnia, clash over not showing emotion and avoiding physical contact during missions.
When they inform Olivia Pitterson (Samantha Morton) that her husband is dead, they are struck by her concern for them. Still pained by the rejection of a longtime girlfriend (Jena Malone), Montgomery becomes attracted to Pitterson. Both are wounded souls, but as she puts it, people will think he's a low life who's taking advantage of a widow and that she is a slut for letting it happen.
Director/co-writer Oren Moverman smartly avoided using just a pair of perfunctory scenes to establish what the two soldiers do. While the story branches out to explore what war has done to them, their sometimes turbulent relationship, and Montgomery's attraction for a new widow, The Messenger keeps reminding us of their heavy burden. Each riveting scene is uniquely different, although the same terrible sense of loss is present throughout. (One notable scene involves Steve Buscemi as a father who spits in Montgomery's face and accuses him of being a coward.)
This is truly a breakout performance for Foster whose career has included roles on TV's Six Feet Under and The Dead Zone, and small movie roles in 3:10 to Yuma and X-Men: The Last Stand. His character undergoes a transformational journey that Foster captures with all the deftness of a multiple Oscar winner. He also shares wonderful chemistry with two-time Academy Award nominee Morton (Sweet and Low Down, In America) whose soft spoken approach to her character is deeply moving.
Lastly, there is Harrelson. His powerful, emotional performance is reminiscent of the unexpected magnificence of Mickey Rourke in 2008's The Wrestler. Harrelson gives his character grit but also brings out a sense of how truly pained he is and how he feels almost cheated that he didn't receive his own baptism by fire. Much like John Wayne's Ethan Edwards character in The Searchers, you are left wondering if he can ever go home again. It's the best work of Harrelson's career.
On a letter grade scale from A being excellent to F for failing, The Messenger receives an A+.
The Messenger is rated R and has a running time of 112 minutes.
Now showing through December 10 @
Tivoli Cinemas
Westport Manor Square, 4050 Pennsylvania, KCMO
Visit www.tivolikc.com or call 913-383-7756 for showtimes
Theatre ,
Of all the gin joints in all the towns
This past Friday was the Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre's (MET) opening night performance of William Saroyan's Pulitzer Prize-winning play The Time of Your Life, directed by Karen Paisley, with costume design by Atif Rome, lighting design by Kyle Shelley and sound design by Donna Miller.
Among the things that make the MET a unique experience for the theatre-goer is how they set the mood from the moment you walk into the lobby. There is always background music befitting the theme, in this instance period music from the 1930s. I also like the dexterity of the theatre space. The design for Saroyan's work features stadium seating that flanks the barroom set that - especially for those in the front rows - blur the lines between audience and bar "patrons." I was half tempted to step up and order a drink myself.
This play is challenging from a viewer's perspective given its large cast (26 roles played by 23 people) and intertwining story lines. It takes a while to get all the characters straight. When considered in the context of its 1939 first performance, it is not difficult to understand the mixed critical reviews it received. In modern times we would refer to this as a "period piece," but at its original debut, the social commentary was bound to have rubbed some critics the wrong way. Still, it is an entertaining and uproariously funny social commentary with many endearing characters that are given true depth and warmth thanks to fine casting and performances.
The Time of Your Life represents a full swing of the pendulum for Karen Paisley who last directed the MET's season-opening Seascape featuring only four actors. The austerity of Seascape may have presented minimalist challenges whereas this new play challenges with a relative mob of characters, multiple entrances and exits, and complex costuming logistics for four double-characters (Streetwalker/Nick's Ma, Sailor/Cop, Lorene/Society Lady and Drunk/Cop).
The setting is as familiar as anything in modern day: it is a bar (lovingly and sarcastically referred to by its owner Nick, as a "Saloon, Restaurant and Entertainment Palace") where regulars and passers-through interact. "Nick's" may not be "Cheers" - not everybody knows your name and they definitely aren't always glad you came - but it nonetheless offers up an oasis from the stresses of everyday life on the street.
It is hard to describe the story in terms of a plot. In the end, except for a few characters, nothing much has happened and not much has changed. The play, rather, is a collection of vignettes that are interwoven in such a way as to draw unrelated characters together in a collective effect. In The Time of Your Life there are two, predominant story lines around which all characters orbit. There is, in fact, a unique "planetary" arrangement to the settings: while the activity, in general, orbits around Nick's saloon, the drama gravitates towards Joe"played spectacularly by Robert Gibby Brand and, to a much lesser degree, around Dudley, played with grand comedic timing by Doogin Brown. Around Joe orbits the budding love story between Tom, played superbly by Kyle L. Mowry, and Kitty Duval, played by Katie Gilchrist.
Joe is an enigmatic character: wealthy enough to never have to work again - although the how and why despite several other characters' attempts to discern the information, remains a mystery to the end. By the time of the play, set in the short span of "the afternoon and night of a day in October 1939," Joe is contented to spend his days at Nick's, although clearly wealthy enough to afford higher-class establishments. He uses Tom to run a variety of inane errands for him, some practical and others purely for his amusement. Enter Kitty - a maybe-one-time burlesque star and current prostitute - and Tom falls for her so hard there is a nearly audible thud.
Kyle L. Mowry delivers Tom - who is not the sharpest crayon in the tool shed - with the gentle giant grace akin to Steinbeck's Lenny, while Katie Gilchrist's Kitty brings a vulnerable innocence that instantly completes Mowry's character. Joe, seeing that Tom is a goner, spends the rest of the play manipulating (monetarily and with sage wisdom) the relationship to ensure that the two end up together. In the process, one gets the sense that Joe's "back story" is filled with distanced interactions manipulated for his own ego and amusement with the exception of Tom and Kitty, for whom he has a genuine and selfless affection.
The play -generally funny, anyway - adds pointed comic interjections from Doogin Brown's Dudley and Allan Boardman's Kit Carson, the former delivering several phone call scenes that highlight Brown's excellent comedic timing and facial expressions; and the latter having Boardman deliver splendid non sequiturs including random musings about falling in love with a 39-pound midget. The audience was invariably in stitches - and these were not polite 'theatre giggles,' but rather unrestrained belly laughs.
Space makes it difficult to cover this large a cast in as much detail as may be warranted, but the standouts include Scott Cordes' Nick, and the aforementioned roles of Brand, Brown, Gilchrist and Mowry. No one in the room, however - audience or cast-member - could resist the urge to fixate on Robert Gibby Brand's spellbinding performance as Joe, played with almost purposefully annoying aloofness that was paradoxically endearing as one came to realize what a sad, lonely, yet remarkably un-bitter character he was. Brand was simply fantastic.
In lesser roles, Michael Masterson's corrupt cop, Blick was outrageously enjoyable - the kind of guy you love to hate - and, in today's vernacular, a real badass who, in the end, gets everything he deserves. Alan Tilson's Drunk, while only onstage for a few minutes, was unforgettably hilarious especially in the 2nd half when he downs several shots and slur-toasts his way through everything from sick children to reforestation. Ari Bavel's McCarthy deserves honorable mention for solid delivery and fine comedic wit. Singularly disappointing was Ethan Miller's Harry who came across as either woefully miscast, poorly performed, or both, and despite several days of pondering I am still unable to discern which.
Performance-wise, nothing speaks better to the success of Paisley's production than an overheard comment from a patron after the show: "I really cared about these people." And in the presentation and delivery of characters in such an intimate setting , what better validation could one ask for?
Set and Lighting Design were apropos - there was a distinct 'bar' ambiance to the experience - and while some of the costuming seemed a bit mismatched (Kevin Fewell's cop character, Krupp, had his Garanimals tags in disarray) the collective effect was a very believable 1939 watering hole complete with its schizophrenic jumble of regulars and wayfarers that make such establishments, now and 70 years ago, so much fun to be around.
REVIEW:
Metropolitan Ensemble Theatre
The Time of Your Life
by William Saroyan
Directed by Karen Paisley
Runs November 19 - December 6 (Reviewed Friday, November 20, 2009)
MET Space
3614 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-569-3226 or online at http://www.metkc.org
Top photo: Scott Cordes as Nick.
Local Arts News,
Innovative electronic works for voice and bass clarinet
Charlotte Street Foundation's Urban Culture Project will continue its collaboration with the Kansas City Electronic Arts and Music Alliance (KcEMA) by presenting KcEMA Newbie Commissions, a concert of new works on Saturday, December 5, 7:30pm at UCP's la Esquina venue, 1000 West 25th Street.
Inaugurating its electronic commissioning program, KcEMA commissioned three Kansas City area composers relatively new to the electronic medium. KcEMA selected Zhou Juan, Caroline Miller, and Yaun Peiying to receive KcEMA Newbie Commissions because each had shown great compositional facility in general and promise writing music with technology. In order to support local performers KcEMA commissioned the works for Kansas City based performers Jedd Schneider, tenor voice, and Brad Baumgardner, bass clarinet. In addition to these new works, the concert includes pieces by Jorge Sosa, Scott Blasco, Tim Eshing, and international award-winning composer Jason Bolte.
The Kansas City Electronic Music and Arts Alliance (KcEMA) was founded in 2007 to encourage and develop understanding and appreciation of electronic music and to create an expansive sense of community for electronic musicians and other artists in the Kansas City Area. KcEMA organizes concerts of electronic music and collaborative projects with generative and performing artists. KcEMA provides a forum for electronic musicians and artists in other media to collaborate, exchange ideas, and grow as an interactive, supportive community.
The Newbie Commissions program features three World Premieres. Tenor, Jedd Schneider will perform Zhou Juan's That night, 195 people were killed, a response to the violence that took place on July 5th in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China, where the composer was born, and Caroline Miller's setting of John Donne's sensual Elegy XX: To His Mistress Going to Bed. Bass Clarinetist Brad Baumgardner will perform Peiying Yuan's Fractal Excursions, a piece structured around the inspiration of fractals.
KcEMA NEWBIE Commissions Concert
Saturday, December 5, 2009 at 7:30 pm
Urban Culture Project's La Esquina
1000 West 25th Street, KCMO
For more information, visit www.charlottestreet.org.
City Classics,
Music and Dance through December 9
Civic Opera Theater of Kansas City
The Wise Women
By Conrad Susa
Friday, December 4 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, December 5 at 2:00 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
40th and Main Streets, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-235-6222. For information visit www.kccivicopera.org .
For eight years running, from 1995 through 2003, the Civic Opera Theater produced an annual holiday show, Conrad Susa's The Wise Women, a modern retelling of the familiar Three Wise Men story from the perspective of the women in their lives. Featuring a friendly disagreement between the Wise Men and the Wise Women over whether the king they were seeking was a powerful adult monarch or an innocent child, the piece sparkles with an inventive score, audience participation, and lots of opportunities for stirring stagecraft and imagery.
David Adams, the new producing artistic director of the Civic Opera Theater, is bringing it back this weekend, in a new location, St. Paul's Episcopal Church, with some familiar faces in the cast but also some new singers. Only an hour long, the piece should enchant the entire family.
Kansas City Symphony
Tuba Christmas 2009
Friday, December 4 at 12:00 p.m. noon
Lyric Theatre
11th and Central, Kansas City, MO
Free admission
For more information visit www.kcsymphony.org
This annual holiday concert, consisting entirely of the booming tones of tubas, euphoniums and brass baritones, came under the sponsorship of the Kansas City Symphony last year. The ensemble is made up of enthusiastic players of both professional and amateur status, and its enthusiasm and noise will impress you.
Kansas City Symphony Chamber Players
A Tchaikovsky Holiday
Friday, December 4 at 8:00 p.m.
Visitation Church
5141 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-471-0400 or online at www.kcsymphony.org.
Symphony associate conductor Steve Jarvi conducts the Kansas City Symphony Players in a chamber music concert inspired by the holidays. The featured piece is the Meditation on the Chorale "Saint Wenceslas" by Josef Suk, an early 20th century Czech composer. Yes, he's the same Bohemian monarch who was the inspiration for the "Good King Wenceslas" carol. Other compositions on the program include Arensky's Variations on a Theme of Tchaikovsky and Tchaikovsky's own inspiring Serenade for Strings.
Musica Sacra
Christmas Concert
Friday, December 4 at 7 p.m.
St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church
52nd and Troost, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-235-6222 or online at www.rockhurst.edu/musicasacra.
Musica Sacra's director Timothy McDonald is an expert at uncovering unusual but beautiful works of bygone eras, and this year's Christmas concert by the group is no exception. McDonald's forces will lead off with a Magnificat, not by Johann Sebastian Bach but by Italian Francesco Durante of a generation later. He then turns to Arcangelo Corelli's Concerto Grosso in G Minor, which has the subtitle Fatto per la Notte de Natale ("Written for Christmas Eve").
The concert continues with Luigi Boccherini's magnificent Gloria, and then concludes with a performance of several traditional Christmas carols arranged by the recently deceased David Willcox, a longtime British chorus master.
Fine Arts Chorale
In the Company of Angels and Snowmen
Friday, December 4 at 7:30 p.m. and
Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral
415 West 13th Street, Kansas City, MO
Tuesday, December 8 at 7:30 p.m.
Southminster Presbyterian Church
6306 Roe Avenue, Prairie Village, KS
For tickets call 816-254-6222, or online at www.fineartschoralekc.org.
Director Terri Teal presents her Fine Arts Chorale to the Kansas City community in a holiday concert to be presented twice at two different locations. This concert "merges ethereal angels with earthbound snowmen," the publicity material says, "emphasizing the foretelling of great news by angels and the whimsy and fun of creating snow people in winter." Fine Arts Chorale accompanist Geoffrey Wilcken is creating arrangements of familiar carols for the occasion. The concert will also include In Terra Pax by British composer Gerald Finzi, one of this writer's favorites, and The Rune of Hospitality by Alf Houkum.
Kansas City Chorale
Holiday Concert
Saturday, December 5 at 7:30 p.m.
Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral
415 West 13th Street, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-444-7996 or online at www.kcchorale.org.
The Kansas City Chorale is offering two holiday concerts this season, one on December 5 and another on December 13 and 15, the latter to be described in next week's issue. The December 5 concert will feature honor choirs from eight area high schools, accompanied in some performances by the members of the Chorale. It's really a concert more designed for fans of high school choral music (and for the friends of relatives of the young singers) but you will get a chance to hear at least some of the Chorale members.
The Chorale-only holiday concert will be next week, so if you are looking for the true Chorale experience, mark your calendar for December 13 or 15 instead.
Heartland Men's Chorus
Fruitcake
Friday, December 4 at 8:00 p.m.
Saturday, December 5 at 8:00 p.m.
Sunday, December 6 at 4:00 p.m.
Folly Theater
12th and Central Streets, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-931-3338 or online at www.hmckc.org.
This holiday season, according to the Heartland Men's Chorale, "you'll enjoy a confection of sugar and spice, both naughty and nice." The men's chorus is "cooking up a holiday treat that runs the gamut from sentimental to silly. You'll hear your favorite traditional carols, songs from those Christmas television specials you loved as a child and a dash of HMC's irreverent humor. This is one fruitcake you're sure to savor!"
What more could we add?
The Performing Arts Series at JCCC
New Sigmund Romberg Orchestra and Vocal Soloists
A Viennese Christmas
Saturday, December 5 at 3:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.
Yardley Hall at Carlsen Center
Johnson County Community College
12345 College Boulevard
Overland Park, KS
For tickets call 913-469-4445 or online at www.jccc.edu.
The New Sigmund Romberg Orchestra is a pops orchestra featuring strings, brass, woodwinds and percussion. For this Christmas concert it is just by four vocal soloists in performances of a range of holiday favorites. Some of the selections will be classic operetta favorites, such as the Overture to Johann Strauss, Jr.'s Die Fledermaus and selections from familiar Sigmund Romberg operettas such as The Student Prince and Babes In Toyland. In addition, the concert will feature excerpts from several Broadway musicals and popular carols of the season.
For those in an audience participation mood this holiday season, a carol sing-along will be held at 7:00 p.m. in the Yardley Hall lobby.
Philharmonia of Greater Kansas City
Holiday Concert: Christmas on the River
Saturday, December 5 at 3:00 p.m.
Graham Tyler Memorial Chapel
8700 NW River Park Drive
Park University, Parkville, MO
Free admission
The Philharmonia of Greater Kansas City, a Northland-based musical group which performs at Park University, is performing excerpts from Tchaikovsky's always popular Nutcracker ballet, complete with dance performances from the Kansas City Youth Ballet under the direction of Alecia Good.
Other holiday favorites on the program include compositions by Irving Berlin, Leroy Anderson and John Rutter. It should be a rollicking good time.
Liberty Symphony Orchestra
Masterworks 2: Holiday Classics
Saturday, December 5 at 7:30 p.m.
Liberty Performing Arts Center
1600 South Withers Road, Liberty, MO
For tickets call (816) 439-4362
The Liberty Symphony Orchestra's holiday concert will include selections from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker ballet, Ravel's Mother Goose Suite, Barber's Die Natale, and arrangements of holiday favorites by Leroy Anderson. A singalong of Christmas carols is included.
Octarium
Holidays With Octarium
Saturday, December 5 at 7:30 p.m.
St. Elizabeth Catholic Church
2 East 7th Street (75th and Main Streets)
Kansas City, MO
Tickets available at the door or online at www.octarium.org.
Another of this writer's favorite Christmas albums is Hodie, released by Octarium a couple of years ago. It contains gorgeously calibrated renditions of holiday favorites under the direction of Krista Blackwood. You are likely to hear a few of the selections on this year's holiday concert, along with other pieces that will charm your ears. This is one holiday music event not to be missed.
Octarium, by the way, recently released another recording, Modern Masters. It doesn't feature holiday music, but it would make a good holiday gift. No points for guessing whether it will be for sale in the lobby.
University of Kansas School of Music
Annual Holiday Vespers
Sunday, December 6 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Lied Center, University of Kansas
1600 Stewart Drive, Lawrence, KS
For tickets call 785-864-2787 or online at www.lied.ku.edu.
The University of Kansas School of Music's annual Holiday Vespers concert will be presented twice on Sunday. This is the 85th anniversary of the school tradition.
Mid-America Nazarene College Fine Arts Division
Handel's Messiah
Sunday, December 6 at 3:00 p.m.
Bell Cultural Arts Center
2030 E. College Way
Olathe, KS
For tickets call 913-971-3636 or online at www.mnu.edu.
Mid-America Nazarene College presents one of several performances of Georg Frideric Handel's ever-popular Messiah on Sunday afternoon. The college chorus will be accompanied by singers from the community. The featured soloists in this year's Messiah are soprano Mary Jane Wilder-Hardee, mezzo-soprano Sarah Holman, tenor Nathan Granner, and bass Raymond Feener. Any opportunity to hear Nathan Granner, in particular, is a thrill.
UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
A Season for Giving
Sunday, December 6 at 7:30 p.m.
Visitation Catholic Church
5141 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
Free admission, but donations are requested.
The Conservatory of Music and Dance choirs and trombone ensemble will pair up for this concert benefiting Harvester's, the Community Food Network. The concert will also feature the Hope Lutheran Bell Choir. The forces will perform Benjamin Britten's A Ceremony of Carols, excerpts from Handel's Messiah, Howells' A Spotless Rose, and a number of other classical and traditional holiday favorites.
UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
UMKC Fellowship Brass Quintet
Sunday, December 6 at 7:30 p.m.
White Recital Hall
4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO
Free admission.
Five outstanding brass graduate students from the UMKC Conservatory will perform a concert this evening that, for a change, is not devoted to holiday music. On tap are an excerpt from Bach's The Art of the Fugue, Arnold's Quintet for Brass and Plog's Four Sketches for Brass Quintet among other works. For lovers of brass music, this should be a treat.
UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance
UMKC Graduate Fellowship String Quartet
Monday, December 7 at 7:30 p.m.
White Recital Hall
4949 Cherry Street, Kansas City, MO
Free admission.
A quartet of excellent graduate string musicians from the UMKC Conservatory perform a free concert tonight featuring string quartet works of Beethoven, Shostakovich and Arriaga, with Christopher Janwong McKiggan at the piano.
Kansas City Brass
Kansas City Brass Holiday Concert
Tuesday, December 8 at 7:00 p.m.
Kansas City Public Library, Plaza Branch
4801 Main Street, Kansas City, MO
Free admission.
One of this listener's favorite discs of Christmas music is the one produced several years ago by the Kansas City Brass, a group of six outstanding instrumentalists drawn from the Kansas City Symphony. Their impeccable playing and unusual arrangements of favorite tunes continues to charm. This is your chance to hear them live. The members are Gary Schutza, Jr. and Brian Rood on the trumpet, Steve Multer on the horn, Wyatt Henderson playing the trombone, Steve Stewart at the tuba, and Timothy Jepson as percussionist.
Kansas City Chamber Orchestra
Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons
Tuesday, December 8, at 7:30 p.m.
Unity Temple on the Plaza
707 West 47th Street, Kansas City, MO
For tickets call 816-235-6222 or online at www.kcchamberorchestra.org.
The Kansas City Chamber Orchestra gives us a break from holiday-themed concerts for Antonio Vivaldi's magnificent The Four Seasons violin concerto, featuring no fewer than four different outstanding violin soloists. Appearing with the Chamber Orchestra will be violinists Anne-Marie Brown, Tamamo Gibbs, Tony DeMarco and Dorris Dae Janssen.
The Four Seasons is one of the great early examples of "program" music that tells a specific story, or actually a series of stories, through purely instrumental terms. Each section tells of the adventures of a day in each of the year's four seasons, using nothing more than a violin soloists and a string orchestra. Listen for barking dogs, hunting rifles, grunting pigs and drunken violinists, among other sounds. It's great fun, and the Chamber Orchestra has performed this piece on many prior memorable occasions.
Johnson County Community College Concert Band
Tuesday, December 8 at 7:30 p.m.
Polsky Theatre at Carlsen Center
Johnson County Community College
12345 College Boulevard, Overland Park, Kansas
Free admission.
The Johnson County Community College Concert Band is giving a concert of classical favorites this evening. No information about the selections for the program is available at press time for this issue.
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