“Restore” by the Borne Dance Company was a benefit show to bring awareness to eating disorders.
Restore by Borne Dance
Stravinsky and Balanchine
My favorite: “Symphony in Three Movements” opened with 16 ballerinas in white, standing in a single diagonal line across the stage, moving in unison. Five more couples in black and white joined in, before the three principal ballerinas (dressed in red) and three principal male dancers (in black) came on stage. I love the gorgeous movements by the 32 dancers and, of course, the stunning lead role performed by Tiler Peck.
We got a little distracted by the shiny sculptures by Jihan Zencirli Geronimo on display in the promenade.
Escape to Margaritaville
Preview of “Escape to Margaritaville” on Wednesday, February 21.
The sold-out crowd on the first night of preview were so engaged, that they finished the Marquis Theatre’s entire supply of margaritas and set a new bar sales records.
The crowd was a lot thinner on this second night. The mezz was about 1/3 filled. The music was good. The title song “Escape to Margaritaville” was still the most memorable and recognizable score. The plot left much to be desired though.
The Parisian Woman
“The Parisian Woman” was strange, funny, yet thrilling. Some of the plot twists were so surreal that they felt inconceivable. Then again, many current events that took place had once been considered unimaginable, too.
The play was set in contemporary Washington DC (after the 2016 US election) and centered around five characters with political connections.
On the surface, the political dance and Trump-bashing were sharp and funny, coming from both the Democrat and Republican characters in the story.
But, the plot quickly dived deep into the human psychic and relations: lies, adulteries, distortions, revenge, loyalty, trust, political favors, open relationships, and the role of women in the “older generation.”
The narrative was super clear, and dialogues well written. We knew exactly who/where/what each character stood. What we couldn’t see, however, was the hidden psychological warfare. Who’s crossing, double-crossing, triple-crossing whom? Who loves whom… pretends to love whom… loves but pretends not to love whom?
The main plot twist was thrilling. So thrilling that I actually liked it. The revelation was so surreal that it felt inconceivable. Then again, many events taking in DC today had once been considered unimaginable. In the current political climate, perhaps the turn of events could happen after all.
I thought several subplots were quite clever…
Chloe and Tom’s marriage and their “trust” in each other. Trust in quotation because I think it actually exceeds that of a normal marriage.
The portray of complex, conning, and malicious actions that people would take to achieve their ambitions.
Yet, one question remained, and I personally felt it significantly weakened the play… What is Chloe’s motive in all this?
She offered two answers: “Women in my (older) generation didn’t have a (professional) career.” and “I am a lost soul.” The former sadly reminded me of my mother’s generation. The latter felt like an excuse coming out of a teenager but not someone of her experience. In any case, neither felt satisfying or justifying.
Soledad Barrio and Noche Flamenca
Powerful movements and music tonight at the Joyce Theater by Soledad Barrio and Noche Flamenca.
My favorite moments go to the beautiful duet by Marina Scannell and Carlos Menchaca in Alegrías.
Hamilton: An American Musical
Still such an amazing story after seeing the production for the fourth time. Bravos to Lexi Garcia and the cast for a wonderful performance. Thanks Amber Tacy for joining me and getting us into the backstage.
Encores! Hey, Look Me Over!
Saw excerpts from *nine* Broadway musicals and Vanessa Williams this afternoon at “Encores! Hey, Look Me Over!” presented by the New York City Center.
Some of my favorite moments:
“Look What Happened to Mabel” and “Movies Were Movies” from the musical, Mack and Mabel. Special shoutouts to Alexandra Socha’s singing and ACTING as Mabel. She was energetic yet genuine “as if you could see through her soul” the moment she interrupted the movie scene in “Movies Were Movies”.
Bebe Neuwirth as Mimi in the musical, Sail Away. Looooved her in the closing score “Why Do the Wrong People Travel” where she sang in exasperation about: Why why why do the wrong people travel and why why why do the right the people stay home? She was funny and dramatic, and everything the song was about.
Bob Martin, as the MC of the show, was hilarious yet informative — allowing us to jump from scene to scene, from musical to musical while staying engaged in show and learning tidbits of Broadway history.
The ensemble of the musical, George M! Loved their singing and tap dancing in “Give My Regrets to Broadway”.
The ensemble of the musical, Milk and Honey. Wonderful Israeli dancing in “Independence Day Hora.”
Carolee Carmello and Britney Coleman as Wildy and Janie from the musical, Wildcat, singing “Hey, Look Me Over!” as they proudly drove their fixer-upper car into Centavo City.
Judy Kuhn and Reed Birney as Elizabeth and Fodorski from the musical, All American, singing the lovely yet sad “Once Upon a Time” and reflecting on a time very very long ago, when there was a girl with moonlight in her eyes… when they laughed, were young, and didn’t have a care… but somehow once upon a time never comes again.
Plus more scenes and music from Jamaica, Greenwillow, and Subways are for Sleeping.
Classic New York City Ballet
“Classic New York City Ballet” by New York City Ballet was amazing this afternoon!
“The Four Seasons” was absolutely gorgeous with 49 dancers (!!!) in the piece. Sterling Hyltin and Chase Finley perfectly captured Spring, but Ashley Boulder, Zachary Catazaro, and Roman Mejia stole the show with Fall. I enjoyed seeing two of my favorite ballerinas, Maria Kowroski and Tiler Peck, on stage together in “Oltremare” as well as Megan Fairchild in “Square Dance.” Also, the promenade of the Koch Theater was beautifully decorated with sculptures by Jihan Zencirli.
The Four Seasons, choreographed by Jerome Robbins with music by Giuseppi Verdi, presents a series of scenes depicting Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall. The opening scene of Winter was both elegant (dancers dressed in all white) and humorous (dancers rubbing their hands to keep themselves warm, against a backdrop of falling snowflakes). Sterling and Chase perfectly captured the exuberance of Spring with Sterling’s bright personality and Chase’s (and the boys’) leaps. They looked like young leaves sprouting and eagerly shooting into the air. Summer was hot and slow, and wonderfully conveyed by Ashley Laracey and Taylor Stanley. My favorite season goes to Fall which felt like a ginormous harvest celebration, filled with non-stop dancing, parades, and lots of impressive turns.
Oltremare explores the feeling of being an immigrant: Constantly moving, searching for a better life, yet never at home. While the central theme is all about emotions, the piece also features tons of highly technical moves. I felt Maria and Tiler, both highly expressively and also super technical, played the parts perfectly. Ashly Isaacs and Megan LeCrone were both lovely in their roles, too.
My favorite part of Square Dance goes to “square dancing” geometric group patterns with intricate ballet steps.
As a side note, I thought I was seeing doubles when the sisters, Claire and Emma Von Enck danced together in the Four Season. I had to check the program to make sure I wasn’t imagining it.
Compagnie Hervé Koubi
Waitress
Waitress starring Sara Bareilles and Jason Mraz! 😍😍😍
Sara was absolutely ahhhh-mazing singing her own music.
Jason was charismatic, and added the perfect chemistry to the story.
All the main characters were great: Christopher Fitzgerald as Ogie (Wow!!!), Dakin Matthews as Joe (so much attitude, so much life, so much fun watching him having fun on stage), NaTasha Yvette Williams as Becky, Molly Jobe as Dawn, Benny Elledge as Cal, and Joe Tippet as Earl.