Theatre Buff

In the last week, I’ve had the privilege to see two Broadway plays: “Waitress” and “Hadestown.” I’ve been curious about both for some time. In 2017 on a NYC vacation, my husband and I should have seen “Waitress.” Katharine McPhee, from the TV show “Scorpion” that we both liked, was in the lead role. I probably would have added it to our itinerary; however, hubby hasn’t been bitten by the theatre bug quite as much as me.

It was in the Twin Cities at the Ordway Center for Performing Arts, where I hadn’t yet been. Thanks to COVID, until this week I hadn’t yet been to any of the area’s theatres. The theatre is lovely, and the play was good, I thought. Dark aspects of the storyline surprised me, and a few “adult” scenes caught me offguard. I liked the play, and the cast was talented with good music and a couple numbers I especially liked.

To be fair, “Hamilton” has significantly raised the bar from my perspective. If a play isn’t at that level, and they all cannot be, I tend to feel a little bit let down.

Last night at the Orpheum Theatre, “Hadestown” met the bar, in my opinion. It is a many-layered story, like Hamilton. The inspiration for this playwright, Anaïs Mitchell, was Greek mythology (and Ron Chernow’s book, “Alexander Hamilton” was for Lin-Manuel Miranda). Mitchell wrote the music, lyrics and book that is “Hadestown.” The level of talent and creativity necessary to do all that is what inspires me about both her and Miranda, and these two plays.

The Hennepin Theatre Trust website describe the play as:

Intertwining two mythic tales — that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone — Hadestown  is a haunting and hopeful theatrical experience that grabs you and never lets go.

A short description of the book called it a “folk opera,” which seems right. From the opening second last night at the Orpheum, I was hooked. I realize I neglected to look at the list of who performed last night, so I’m going to assume my playbill is current. (My apologies to all if that’s incorrect.)

The entire cast and the musicians are on stage nearly the entire time. The cast we saw was so talented, with many great singers. Morgan Siobhan Green who plays Eurydice may have been the strongest singer.

The narrator, Hermes (Levi Kreis), charmed and delighted the audience. His role felt like part huckster, part revival preacher. His website says his church primarily influenced his work, and it seems that made him perfect for this role. In fact, much of the music to me felt a little bit gospel and a little bit jazz. Its energy, especially in Act I, was powerful.

I also enjoyed listening to Hades sing. Kevyn Morrow’s rich baritone is almost hypnotic. I’ve long-loved “Jesus Christ Superstar,” which I initially saw in film, many years before I got to see it on stage. If I remember right, it was Caiaphas (played by Bob Bingham) who was a similar baritone. As I listened to Morrow, I could imagine him playing Caiaphas.

The story is powerful. It is about love, what the depths of love—and greed—can drive us to do. Parallels of winter and spring to the underground (hell) and earth (heaven); love and devotion against greed; supremacy and oppression; the haves and have nots. I didn’t necessarily expect political undertones, but I understand them, and perhaps it is the lens of 2020 that opened my eyes more to them. She wrote the play in 2006 and of course these issues existed then too. I know I wasn’t paying the same kind of attention then.

I would be remiss if I did not applaud the lighting, designed by Bradley King. Powerful. The lighting in “Hadestown” was so instrumental in telling the story, as it was in “Hamilton.” I’m in jaw-dropped awe of that talent. It’s nowhere in my realm of anything. There were a few scenes where the bright light hits the audience, so be prepared for that, mostly in Act II.

The play runs two hours and 30 minutes, which flew by for me. I caught my husband looking at his watch once or twice. He was less amazed by “Hadestown” than me, which is OK since we all have different likes and dislikes. I truly think its creativity and talent of all involved is on par with “Hamilton.” I would absolutely see “Hadestown” again and again.

I’m disappointed, and somewhat frustrated, that I have not heard the gushing praise for Mitchell that we’ve all heard for Miranda. (I may have missed it.) He deserves it, no question. So does she. And is it the she in that sentence that has reduced the attention and lavish praise for her work? In our still-sexist society, oppressive as it is (which both plays speak to), we know that women still do not get the recognition in their careers that men do. In my opinion, Anaïs Mitchell deserves every bit as much attention as Miranda has gotten (and I adore Lin-Manual Miranda).

Side note from the Playbill: The Orpheum Theatre gets its name from Orpheus, and this is the theatre’s centennial year.

Glorious music

Sometimes artists’ names for their works guide me. Others, leave me lost. Zosha di Castri’s piece for a large orchestra, entitled, “Lineage,” worked for me. Florida’s New World Symphony and the San Francisco Symphony co-commissioned her in 2013 to write it. Her grandmother had just died and in “Lineage” she pays homage to her grandmother’s stories. As I listened to the Minnesota Orchestra perform it on Valentine’s Day, my own family experience connected with the music.

I found this to be quite contemporary, which was a surprise. Much of my experience as a symphony patron has been with Bach, Mozart, Tchaikovsky and the like. The classics. I enjoy it all, I learned on Valentine’s Day. Often, more than the music, I enjoy watching the musicians and the maestro – melodic athletes – perform.

Throughout “Lineage,” I heard dissonance and cacophony. In music, it can be a beautiful and intriguing thing. In family, at least in my experience, it can be stressful, joyful or somewhere in between.

Next on the program was Maurice Ravel’s Concerto in G Major for Piano and Orchestra. I learned he was 54 before he wrote any concertos. A reminder that it’s never too late to go for your dream. The concerto, for me, had a Broadway musical vibe. For some reason, perhaps because it’s in the 2020-21 Broadway Across America season package I just bought, “Oklahoma” came to mind a time or two. It had a light, lively energy that contrasted with and balanced the almost harsh feel of “Lineage.”

After the intermission, the orchestra performed Bela Bartok’s Concerto for Orchestra. Especially here, I saw Maestro Karina Canellakis bring to life her conductor’s dance. At every orchestra concert I’ve attended, the conductor’s joy leaps into the orchestra and the crowd. My only regret is that we, the audience, do not see the conductor’s face.

Bartok’s concerto calls upon every section of the orchestra. It highlights instruments I seldom hear, like a tuba and two harps. The percussion section, to which I’m partial, has a strong lead, and timpani abounds.

Maestro Canellakis seemed humble as she acknowledged our applause. On her first return to the state, she made a point to recognize every individual with a solo as well as every section of the orchestra. Delightful to see such leadership.

My first trip to the Minnesota Orchestra was as great as I expected. All for just a mere $20 per ticket (thanks to a special, I believe). I love a good deal, but I’ll be back on a regular priced ticket soon.

I would encourage them to offer open rehearsals, even for a small fee, if they don’t already. It was a favorite way for me to get to the Tallahassee (Florida) Symphony. While Tallahassee was not my favorite place to live, it also has a superb symphony and Maestro Darko Butorac is as entertaining to watch as Maestro Canellakis.

Love. Dance. Be kind.

Love. Dance. Be kind. That sums up, for me, Ellen DeGeneres. Years ago, I loved her sitcom. Maybe it was my age then, late 20s, that made me not pick up on the big deal her coming out was. I was young, sheltered and naïve. I also was young with a ‘live and let live’ philosophy. I realized later how much that cost her in her career, yet still it didn’t have a direct impact on my personally.

We are close to the same age. I’m two years younger, so we grew up in the same era. But in vastly different places – she in Louisiana, I in North Dakota – and with distinct experiences.

Fifteen years or so ago, she launched her talk show. I freelanced then so in my home office, I could turn on my TV at 4 p.m. and close out my work day with Ellen entertainment in the background.

She is funny! I mean ROFLMAO-funny! In the silliest of ways. That is what I loved most right away. I’m not naturally funny, which is in part why it attracts me when I see it in others. I have one friend who I think is as funny as Ellen. Interestingly, their birthdays are one day apart (he is five years older than her).

Early in her show, she wrapped up her opening monologues in a dance with the audience. She pulls off dorky dancing to make it look cool. But unlike the popular kids back in high school (or still today), she never made me feel intimidated or untalented. To see her dance is to feel joy. To think, “Carpe Diem” – Seize the Day.

Soon, I also began to see her kindness and generosity, to both people and animals. Oh, how she loves animals. She reminds me of my daughter in that. Their love of creatures represents the depth, and the fragility, of their hearts.

They love so deeply and hurt as deeply when they see injustices. Their hearts crack whenever they feel hurt or when they see others (human or animal) hurt.

Ellen recognizes the position she eventually attained in her career that enables her to be generous to others. Her acts are heartwarming and as I watched her show, I saw on her face how genuine she is in her compassion.

Her sense of humor, I suppose, also makes her a prankster. Since I was a dork when I grew up, I’m not so keen on the pranks … but she does make them funny to watch. And I know, none of us should take ourselves too seriously.

She loves her momma. As I understand it, her momma stood by her through all her ups and downs. Loved – and liked – her for who she is, even if it’s different than momma. I try to be that momma for my daughter, and it is not the momma I have.

Love. Kindness. Laugh at yourself. Dance. Enjoy the cute babies and the funny animals. Give what you can to help others – a smile may be enough.

I think she cannot make me funny but I sure wanted to go be part of her writing team. Still do. Funny and creative beget funny and creative. I must surround myself with those kinds of influences to help myself achieve all I can and should achieve.

Thank you, Ellen. You are one of the role models America needs. I believe you try to see people from the inside out – to who they really are – which is what I also try to do.

© Linda McDonald 2018

Summer Book List

Woodpecker in a tree in my current backyard in April 2009.

For the first time in four years (because of my own volunteer-happy stupidity), I now have a bit of free time. Feels like it’s been forever! Before I take on my next venture (that will be about me), I am enjoying the summer like I used to as a kid. Reading!

I do not remember having summer reading lists like today’s students, but I always loved reading and spent much of my summer and year-round free time reading. Best spot was in a tree outside our tiny little Linton, Indiana, house. It had the perfect branch for me to sit on with my back against the trunk. I took my – retro flashback alert – wait for it! – transistor radio with me and ignored the world.

Love my modern day transistor radio, otherwise known as an iPod and I still love to read. A couple years ago I bought a Nook Color. At that time, the Kindle did not have touch screen and after having that functionality on my Smartphone for so long, I had to have it … enter the Nook Color.

Now it sounds like Nook will die a slow death thanks to Barnes and Noble. Interestingly I have not liked the eReader world as much as I thought I would or as much as I like the eMusic and ePicture world. I can’t share my eBook with a friend, unless they happen to have a Nook and the publisher happens to allow me to share it. That in itself annoys me big-time because a publisher cannot prevent me from sharing my physical copy.

Another loss with eReaders, and I believe this is important, is that others do not see the spine of books people are reading. Many times I see a book someone is reading and ask them about it, or note the title so I can look it up. Wonder how this lack of visibility impacts book sales.

eReaders sacrifice the ‘warmth’ of holding a book. Feeling the paper pages and hearing them turn creates an emotional interaction with a good book that the eReader cannot replicate in my opinion. I do love being able to look up a word right in the book from my eReader and I like the highlighting feature. Still with a dictionary and highlighter pen close by, I have the same options with my physical copy.

Given the news from B&N this week, I am glad I have not invested a lot in Nook books. On that note, anyone know how I can save them to a different platform?

Anyone reading anything good this summer? I have found that YA books are some of my favorites, e.g., The Book Thief, In Between Shades of Gray. Let me know what’s on your kids’ summer reading lists … or yours.

Happy Independence Day!

Jacksonville loves fireworks!

Happy Independence Day!

With the prelude of cannons, like the bride and groom at their first wedding dance, we cheer the colorful embers dancing with the stars! Star-Spangled Banner, My Country ‘Tis of Thee mix with patriotic country ballads and Bruce Springsteen. Our bellies are full from burgers, hot dogs or fried chicken and Grandma’s potato salad, and our skin is sticky with dried sweat from a long day in the summer sun. Even though we’re just a little bit comatose from all that abundance, we stand to cheer and ahhhh at this deep-rooted tradition that is America.

This year of 2011, governments are damned if theydo, damned if they don’t. In tight budget times with high unemployment, there is a faction that will cry foul if cities go forward with their usual fireworks displays on the Fourth of July. And there are others, like me, who will decry the decision to cancel fireworks displays.

Modern America is not known for its philosophy of moderation. We are a nation of extremes, so we rarely consider the opportunity to find middle ground. In this instance, where our service men and women continue to help foreign countries fight to obtain and maintain independence, across America we owe it to them to honor and celebrate our 235 years of independence.

A lazy day of backyard cookouts with family and friends is the core of our July Fourth tradition, and as American as baseball, Mom and apple pie. A fireworks display at sunset is the enormous bow on the package of a life of freedom!

In Florida where I live it is so dry that we shouldn’t have fireworks for safety reasons. That makes me sad but I understand because safety comes first. But the budgetary excuses irritate me. Scale back, 10 percent, 15 percent or even 25 percent. Just do something that reminds your local residents to revel in the privilege of freedom we have in the USA.

Freedom is reason to celebrate!

(Photo Source: http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5532992/4th_of_july_fireworks_in_jacksonville.html?cat=8)

Only one

In today’s 24/7 information overloaded American society, it is hard to imagine having just one book or maybe two. Libraries (yes, remember them? where you can read books for free!), Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, not to mention the  few locally owned bookstores remaining around the country, hold infinite numbers of books and other publications. We can even skip the actual book part and simply download the content onto our Kindle, Nook or other reader.

Not that many years ago, in my grandparents’ lives or maybe your great-grandparents’ lives, books were scarce. I am reading one now, “The Book Thief” that I highly recommend, about a young girl growing up in Nazi Germany. She somewhat accidentally became the “book thief” and discovered a love of books and reading. Yet, she has just four books at the point where I am in the story.

When the wealthy mayor’s wife offers one to the girl from her collection, the girl declines. She recognizes she has enough and she can read them again…for the 5th, 6th or 7th time. Imagine!

Many books published today are not worthy of multiple reads. Meant for quick and easy entertainment only, our minds would dull quickly if we had to re-read these.

But some, like “The Book Thief” and “The Secret Life of Bees” and a few select others in my experience, I should read many times. These authors use our language to paint stunning images and I know I cheat myself by not committing them to memory. If I read them again and again, these pictures become etched in my memory and the flow of the words enriches my vocabulary.

Perhaps like much in America, bounty hinders us rather than helps us. Easy access to too much food has made us fat. Disposable products have made us wasteful. And a galaxy-sized library full of titles has diminished our love of literary grandeur. A shame…

Nerdling

I’m a bit of a nerd…not smart enough to be a geek-nerd; just sort of weird. Ask anyone who knows me. They’ll tell you. And they luv me anyway (I think!). I luv me, too!

As a kid my favorite thing to do in the summer was to play school. See, told you? A nerd!

Thankfully the neighborhood kids and my younger sister and brother went along with me. We often set up the classroom in Lisa Poe’s garage back in southern Indiana and I was always the teacher.

So it made sense that for as long as I could remember I planned to be a teacher when I grew up. Funny how dreams and plans change.

I never became a teacher, although even today I toy with the idea. If the state I live in didn’t keep laying them off left and right, I would do it! It really is what I should have done all those years ago.

Plus it pairs nicely with my other dream–writing! My career has always included writing but I mean the book-writing-and-selling type writer. That one I’m still working on.

So what’s your dream and what are you doing to pursue it? My absolutely, positively dream job(s) would be a writer on the Ellen show or a writer with Cirque du Soleil.

I don’t really see myself moving to Paris…but haven’t ruled out Europe so who knows. But L.A. doesn’t seem so outrageous!

Defy gravity

I chased it around for two years. New York City. Miami. Orlando. Finally I found it in Atlanta. The gods aligned and I was able to buy tickets one week before they were available to the general public. And when I realized in my haste I forgot to check the Atlanta Thrashers (NHL) schedule before buying tickets for Friday night, the only night the team had a home game that weekend…I was able to sell my tickets on Craigslist and buy another pair for a little more money but closer to stage on eBay.

Tickets for what? Wicked the Broadway musical. The story intrigued me from the moment I read about the three-year running play. It’s the backstory of the childhood classic, The Wizard of Oz. It’s the life of the witches, before a Kansas tornado dropped [pun intended] Dorothy and Toto in Munchkinland.

The play is a must-see. From a technical writing standpoint, it is extremely well-done. The story is complete and brings together all the loose ends. Humorous and timeless dialogue keeps it moving along, and assures it will be relevant for a long time. (Oh, if only I could write one piece half as well!)

The good witch’s, Glinda, character is reminiscent of Legally Blonde’s Elle. Very funny, very blonde. “Toss, toss” takes you right back to Elle in the salon.

Elphie, the so-called bad witch, reminded me a bit of Elaine in TV’s Seinfeld, and another character I haven’t yet pinned down. It’s hard to believe you can come to embrace a green character…who is not Kermit. Her coming-out song of sorts is about defying gravity, something we all need to regularly remind ourselves to do.

Most movies, plays, etc. I only need to see once. Quite often I think once is too much. But Wicked is right up there with Cats. I would go again (and again) in a heartbeat given the opportunity.

And now, I’m off to chase another clever, original play.

Thespian fun

Saw a great play last night at Florida State University, Picasso at the Lapin Agile. Written by Steve Martin…yes, that Steve Martin.

The ad read, “So Picasso and Einstein meet in a bar…”. You can probably imagine from that how it went. Art and science collide!

Funny, a little bit naughty (wouldn’t take kids under 17) and the FSU cast was superb! What a talented group of young thespians!

If you get a chance to see this play anywhere, I recommend it. If you’re near FSU, you have this weekend and next to check it out!

http://www.theatre.fsu.edu/

Thanks, Garth Stein

Minutes ago I finished reading “The Art of Racing in the Rain,” which when I started, I expected to be another “Marley and Me.” In that it is about a dog’s love for its people and its peoples’ love of the dog, the two books are alike. But there is a sad undertone throughout “Racing in the Rain,” that I never felt in “Marley.”

Here’s why: from the beginning we know that Enzo (the pooch!) is recalling his life story on the eve of his death. That fact struck like an arrow in my heart because only a month ago I had to put my dog to sleep. A first for me even though I’ve been around for a few decades.

I’ve had other dogs die, but never before did I have to decide. This time I had to look my poor, sick, trusting Nikki in the eyes and tell her good-bye. Others have walked that walk and know how brutally hard it is. It was the right decision because she was a senior dog with a serious illness, but no less gut-wrenching.

Enzo’s tale helped me believe that if Nikki could have talked, she would have told me it was okay. She would have said that she was ready to stop hurting and to not be sick. She might have told me she loved me, our family, and would miss us, but she needed to rest peacefully.

For any dog lovers, the book is worth reading. For those who just like to read, I recommend it, too. It’s a life story, with the ups and downs and peaks and valleys of real life, yet it ends with hope. Something I always appreciate in my pleasure reading.

Especially for me, I am thankful for a newfound peace of mind from the book. My sense of guilt in making the decision to end Nikki’s struggle eased and I believe like Enzo, she will return to life in human form and I’ll bump into her someday.