TALENT

I have some mighty talented friends.
 
Thursday I saw Craig Lucas’ The Singing Forest at the Public Theater, where the ever-talented Susie Pourfar played multiple characters (including a young Olympia Dukakis), exposing her considerable acting chops (as well as her right breast!). It was lovely to see this wonderful lady again after so long.
 
Friday I caught Kenny Alston performing vocals with the group, Grooveline, at the Knitting Factory. Kenny exhibited his uncanny ability to sound surprisingly butch even when he’s rocking a bright orange belt and singing a Sade song.
 
Next up that night, we hit Alexis Garrett Stodghill’s DJ set at Gstaad. She energized a rapt crowd as her and I discussed a Gaga controlled universe between tracks.
 
And finally, the evening ended with Peter Nachtrieb and Mark Marino – talented fellows I’m sure – though our night mostly consisted of consuming fruit infused vodkas (or maybe I’m just speaking for myself). On second thought, we did engage in an Olympics inspired ratings system, passing judgement on the Hell’s Kitchen gays as they ascended the staircase(gauntlet) of the bar, Therapy. An unkind act which should certainly be punished.
 
Regardless, mad love to all my talented superstars.
 
Here’s the original Sade track in question from Kenny’s Friday nite set. 

Next to Normal Tonys

MAD props to Charlie Alterman whose show, Next to Normal, was nominated for 11 Tonys this morning — second only in the nominations tally to the Billy Elliot behemoth.
 
Normal is an amazing show and they’re lucky to have such an extraordinary musical director behind the keys. Good job, baby!
 
 

9 to 5

Caught the Dolly Parton musical last nite…..It pretty much evaporates on contact but the music sounds good, the plot chugs along, and considering it lifts the bulk of the dialogue whole-hog from the film – if you’re a fan of the flick, you’ll definitely enjoy the play.
 
My friend Charlie asked me to accompany him backstage to say hi to his friends in the cast but I declined and scurried home to watch “In Treatment.” Turns out that was a big mistake as Charlie met the one and only Dolly backstage before her post-show Q&A. Better luck next time.

Next to Normal on Broadway

My dear friend Charlie is the musical director of Next to Normal —which is opening on Broadway in April. I was lucky enough to see the show at the Arena Stage when I was in DC for the inauguration and thought it was fantastic.
 
You can see Charlie banging away at the keys in this promo clip: http://www.broadway.com/broadway_information_html/5023155
 
And for those of you who are in NYC and would like to catch it, here’s a discount code to ease the financial pressures (It’s well worth it).  http://www.broadwaybox.com/shows/next_to_normal_-_musical_nyc_tickets.aspx

Prop 8 The Musical

Bill T Jones is the Bomb

So I really don’t know much about modern dance but I’ve been intrigued by Bill T Jones since seeing his evocative/slightly “vogue”-esque choreography for Spring Awakening. Kristen and I caught Fela a couple of weeks ago, a new play about Afrobeat creator Fela Kuti, that BTJ co-wrote and directed, and then Saturday we saw his new work’at BAM, A Quarreling Pair.

 Using the fractured relationship of these two sisters, the dance piece had a loose narrative but is mostly a rumination on the relationship/connection (or lack thereof) between ‘pairs’. it didn’t all hang together but there was one piece especially- a swirl of couples dressed in white, coming together, then being torn apart – that was just beautiful. Also, the BAND was totally kicking it. Band leader George Lewis Jr led them through stunner after stunner, most with a 60-ish “stand by me” meets “unchained melody” by way of “brooklyn hipster ” vibe.  (The somewhat endless tkae of

 Here’s a clip from the show:

 And here’s George Lewis, Jr’s myspace page. “Hold Me” (I think) was the song featured from the show’s best moment.

 http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=66323832

i saw

Harry Potter naked last night.

Is this really happening?

Spring Awakening is the big high school production at Beverly High on the new 90210. Tonite’s episode: opening night. Ohmigod, they’re doing “the Bitch of Living.” Too much for me to process…

Pterodactyls/Three Changes/Dinosaur

In college, I was in a production of a play called Pterodactyls by Nicky Silver. It was a pitch black comedy about the return of a misfit (HIV infected) son to the home of his (distant) father, (boozy, busybody) mother, (batsh*t insane) sister, and her (dippy/soon to be out of the closet) fiancee. He basically destroys the family, setting in motion a series of events that humiliates (and dispatches with) the father, has an affair with (and infects) the fiancee (causing his death), which precipitates his sister’s suicide. He is then left alone in the house with his mother, now the rightful male figurehead, where he encourages her alcoholism, leading to her eventual death. Leaving him alone (until after a time he, presumably, succumbs to his illness).Trust me, it was hilarious!
 
I still think Pterodactyls is a brilliantly caustic riff on “the prodigal son’s return” and pinter and all the theater’s dark domestic family dramas . And it was made all the better because my castmates became (and still are) some of my closest friends. [Vanessa – Mom; Amanda – Sister; Rufus – Fiancee. Fittingly, I was the nasty son — our collective lovefest was intense]. The playwright came to see the production and managed to say something nasty/bitchy to everyone in the cast over dinner. And then at a booze-filled afterparty, he looked on with a pinched face as Amanda and I danced provacatively/smarmily (to “Deeper and Deeper” perhaps) but the ribald intensity of our dance moves caused our balanced to go off kilter, until the pair of us careened over backwards right in front of him, basically landing at his feet. Clearly, our skills had impressed him once again. Good times. 
 
Vanessa and I saw his new play, Three Changes, last night. (Starring Dylan McDurmott and Maura Tierney). It’s another Freudian headtrip, most notable in how thematically similar it is to Pterodactyls (and all Nicky Silver’s other plays), while being entirely less plausible or palatable, and a lot less funny. In this one, a misfit (gay) brother invites himself into the home of his (extranged) brother and his brother’s (boozy, sad) wife, bringing along his (dippy/totally out) hustler boyfriend. The straight brother is cheating on his wife with a (desperate/insane) makeup counter girl. And eventually the misfit brother humiliates and dispatches with his (distant/uptight) brother brother, thus destroying the original (“corrupt”?) family unit and instates himself as the rightful male figurehead (in a manner similar to Pterodactyls – except somehow much more unpleasant).
 
I’m still glad I saw it…and it’s fascinating to see a playwright so obviously trying to work out the same demons…but geeesh.
 

But I digress – this has nothing to do with music I admit….so let’s get back on track. Three Changes (obviously) reminds me of Pterodactyls which makes me think of dinosaurs which makes me think of Was (Not Was) whose biggest hit was “Walk the Dinosaur” which makes me think of a totally random (and totally cheesy) Ozzy Osbourne/Kim Basinger duet the group recorded (Madonna actually laid down the guide vocals in the early 80s) that became a surprise european hit in the early 90s. But never on these shores.
 
So let’s watch this bit of retro fun to wash out last night’s experience [“Shake Your Head”]:
 

 

5th time

Spring Awakening tickets rained down from the heavens once again (thanx Sage). This was (gasp) the 5^th time I’ve seen the production since its earliest incarnation at the Atlantic downtown (I’ve only paid once – I promise I’m not a musical obsessed 15 year old girl). The production is showing a little wear now that the original cast has been entirely replaced, but the principals are all solid (I’d say they act it better than they sing it) and even if it’s not as fresh as it once was, the truly beautiful moments still shine through.

 

Perhaps it was the Tuesday at 7 curtain time or an avalanche of underage tourists but I was really surprised (and a bit unsettled) at the gasps, laughs, hollers, whoops and groans the audience unleashed at some of the most inappropriate (and intimate) moments. SA is definitely “mature material” but I don’t think it’s the shockfest their reactions seem to indicate.  

 

It’s certainly being marketed as a teenage ‘coming of age’ story with an eye on RENT size dollars (and I say more power to you for aiming for the biggest audience possible) – but it may be an uneasy fit. I wonder how the touring production is going to be received (it just opened in SanFran, let’s hope they keep it in major metropolitan areas). If a NYC audience is cackling through parental abuse and the fumbling sexuality of teenagers – it doesn’t bode well.

 

This is probably one of my favorite moments in the show. Here’s a clip, choral-style, which doesn’t do it justice but at least gives the uninitiated an idea: