PIFOF: Mrs. Krishnan, Gab Squad, Blind Cinema

Previous editions of Pittsburgh International Festival of Firsts provided a mystical maze that delved into the latest developments in global performance — all decidedly adult. This year there was a deliberate effort to include children’s and family entertainment, perhaps to lure a wider audience to some of the best artists In the world. Like:

Mrs. Krishnan’s Party (New Zealand). Perhaps the title was misleading. And James, who escorted us to our seats had an undeniable New Zealand accent. Mrs. Krishnan herself was pure Indian, sometimes over-the-top, but a New Zealander as well. No matter. This was an Indian story at its big heart, filled with traditions, history and, yes, food. In fact actors Kalyani Nagarajan and Justin Rogers really cook up a meal, ostensibly for the partygoers (us), but members of the audience frequently did the cooking, set the table and more. And the children — too delightful, you couldn’t have asked for better — passed out balloons and laughed contagiously. This was about as immersive as you can get with a live performance. In fact, when James asked an audience member to reveal a secret, she hesitated because she had become so involved. It doesn’t get any better than that.

Gab Squad. Gab Bonesso, local comedien and, as it turned out, bullying expert, came up with this program, an extension of her school talk. So Gab was a veteran, capable of dealing with middle/high school, such a tricky age for the arts. She began with a monologue, her audience mostly neutral or, in some cases, resistant. And when she started interacting — there’s that trending word — she settled on one girl who had an interest in Harry Potter. The connection was made. But when Gab began to encourage the students to dance, there was some awkward hesitation. Suddenly the Harry Potter fan jumped up, face bright, the awkwardness disappearing as she began dancing. One by one the students joined in, moving and grooving on the drums as well. It was heart-warming and, I’m sure, transformative. And that’s what the arts are all about.

Blind Cinema. I went to the movies. Just don’t ask me the title. Because I went to the Blind Cinema. Yes, I was blindfolded. Just suffice it to say that it was a magical experience, children whispering what they were seeing in little megaphones, like fairy dust on the ear. It’s funny how your other senses take up the slack, a way of brief understanding about some people who do that every day.

Dance Beat: New Security Regulations

FYI Arts Lovers: The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust will be instituting new security measures in the near future. Below are the details from the Trust:

 After a thorough benchmarking and vetting process against numerous performing arts venues across the country, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is launching enhanced guest entry practices for the Byham Theater, the August Wilson Center, and Benedum Center for the Performing Arts. These practices are designed with the convenience of our guests in mind to ensure a safe environment in which outstanding performances in the arts can be enjoyed by all.

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust always seeks to meet national best practices regarding the safety of our guests. These new protection measures will now require persons entering or reentering our largest performing arts venues to be screened by our onsite security personnel. Our staff will utilize equipment and practices similar to those in place at airports, concerts or sporting events. The new screening process will include a walk through metal detectors and bag inspections. Not only are more and more performing arts venues switching to similar practices, but venue third-party users and renters are also now requiring theater operators to implement these new security measures to better protect their audiences.

These practices will begin to roll out separately at each theater:

• Byham Theater: October 13^th, 2018 during Deborah Colker Dance: Cão sem Plumas
• August Wilson Center: October 20^th, 2018 during Soul Sessions Faith Evans
• Benedum Center for the Performing Arts: November 16^th, 2018 during Billy Gardell

“We’re always excited about providing amazing experiences and performances in the arts, while at the same time, increasing our ability to reassure our guests they are well protected while with us,” Kevin C. Wilkes, Chief Security Officer of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust stated. “We’ve made sure our new systems utilize the most current and effective screening technology without interfering with the arts experience.”

While these new procedures were designed with audience convenience in mind, it is highly recommended that guests arrive to these venues up to 45 minutes earlier than they have in the past, to ensure a timely entry into the venue for the start of the performance. To entice guests to take advantage of this early entry into the theater, the affected venues will offer discounted drinks and concessions during a “Happy Half Hour” prior to each show.

 

On Stage: Waltzing “Matilda”? No Way!

 

 

Matilda the Musical might be based on Roald Dahl’s classic children’s book, but its transformation to the stage, a co-presentation of the Pittsburgh CLO summer series and the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh, is just as smart as the title character. Woven with darkly-drawn character critters like school headmistress Miss Trunchbull and Matilda’s parents, it nonetheless is balanced by a sharp, biting sense of humor that really defines this Tony Award-winning production.

Right off the bat, the cast launches into a gigantic birthday celebration for children-at-large, fostered by overbearing parents and led by a terrific battalion of kids who belt out Miracle around a large movable table. “My mummy says I’m a miracle.” Soon after: “My daddy says I’m his special little soldier…has my daddy told you, one day when I’m older, I can be a soldier, and shoot you in face?”

It sets the tone for the uncanny wit that that merrily oozes itself into every pore of this production. The cast’s delicious playground is Bob Howell’s set, a gaggle of assorted-sized, Scrabble-like tiles that are given ever-changing splashes of Hugh Vanstone’s lighting, mostly in Crayola’s palette of primary colors. Tim Minchin’s score is angular and pointed for the most part, the kind of music that you get when you watch bird documentaries, full of darting movement.

Which brings us to the dance, particularly important in Matilda because, unless you already know the lyrics beforehand, you will have trouble understanding the words. Peter Darling’s choreography and Matthew Warchus’ staging punctuate this visual feast in so many ways.

Who knows where direction ends and choreography begins? The students reveal hidden horrors in School Song while they cleverly insert building blocks into the giant gate. And the swing number is simply soaring. As for the Hammer Song, filled with eye-popping gymnastic tricks, well…

But getting back to the basics of Matilda, centered on a little genius who won’t be cowered by clueless parents who prefer television over reading — mom so ballroom-obsessed (Darcy Stewart) and dad a cheap used car salesman (Brandon McGibbon) —  and a towering Miss Trunchbull, played by David Abeles and bolstered by a tight topknot bun and ample bosom. All were excellent.

But the whole cast is, from the adults who can also don a mean school uniform to the children themselves, who shoulder most of the production, even to moving set pieces and particularly Bruce, the cake eater with a great voice (Ryan Christopher Dever).

You had to love this production as it joins a growing list of musicals that center on girls’ empowerment. Hmm, I’d like to see Matilda go toe-to-toe with Annie and Elphaba.

On Stage: Cabaret — Perfectly Marvelous

The advertising reads “Willkommen Back” and Cabaret, one of Broadway’s legendary shows, is definitely back in a big way.

New York City has been peppered with revivals over the years, resulting in a Tony category in and of itself in 1994. But a revival of a revival of a revival? Which is what the current production of Cabaret is, currently in the nascent stages of its latest national tour, actually a 50th anniversary celebration of the famed Roundabout Theatre Company in New York and one that arrived in Pittsburgh at the Benedum Center Tuesday.

A few of us may have seen the original Hal Prince production with Ron Fields’ choreography in 1966. And many still recall Liza Minnelli’s 1972 tour de force performance in Bob Fosse’s Oscar-winning film. Moreover, it illustrates, perhaps more than any other show, how changing tastes and values can alter a production.

It’s as if Cabaret has been aging like a fine wine, or should we say, a fine Weill. John Kander and Fred Ebb’s original score was, of course, inspired by the famed German composer and U.S. transplant, Kurt Weill, whose career spanned two world wars. Based on Christopher Isherwood’s semi-autobiographical novel, Goodbye to Berlin, the play itself centers around the Kit Kat Klub in the 1930’s during pre-Nazi Germany.

Where the original Cabaret is probably remembered for its scintillating production numbers, though, co-directors Sam Mendes and Rob Marshall saw a darker, richer, edgier approach for a play with music. Their first Broadway revival came about in 1998 and, in a rare move, they decided to revisit it again in 2014, to even greater effect, it appears, and yet another Tony-award winner for the resilient Roundabout.

Judging from assorted performances over the years, the national tour best conveys the balance of those turbulent ’30’s, when Berlin was a like a carousel, spinning faster and faster out of control. The audience entered to find the cast, aka  the Kit Kat Klub Boys and Girls, seductively warming up onstage, a barometer of things to come.

The set was minimal, surrounded by a giant band of dressing room lights that periodically highlighted the story and song. Three doors, set on the lower level, served as exits and entrances for various scenes, with a few basic props added. The orchestra, mostly made up of the Kit Kat ensemble, was in full view on the second level.

They were representative of the current trend in musical theater, not only a triple threat (singer, actor, dancer), but a quadruple threat. They all played instruments (and very well), along with doing various parts, giving a cohesive feel to the play itself.

With the initial emphasis on choreography in previous productions, it was easy to be disappointed at first, since the choreography was constructed to convey the time period and atmosphere in Berlin. But these were people caught in a world about to explode and every detail of this Cabaret contributed to that. It wasn’t just seductive — it was lascivious. It was no-holds-barred. It was already tattered, falling apart.

The first act also seemed long, put it paid off in the end.

Even though Randy Harrison’s emcee toiled in the shadow of Alan Cumming’s landmark performances on Broadway in 1998 and 2014, he had a large onstage personality, enough to consume the vast expanse of the Benedum and invite the large opening night audience into his world.

However, Andrea Goss, a tiny waif of a Sally Bowles, was the surprise of the evening. The Bowles role presents some difficulty because she is not Liza Minnelli. She is a singer who just doesn’t have the vocal goods and that can become an issue when the primary emphasis of a Broadway show is entertainment.

It was obvious that Goss did have the goods, though. Despite her pint-sized frame, she grew into the role as the evening progressed. And when she emerged at the end, dressed in a plain black gown, to sing the title song, she seemed like a broken bird, not sure of her decision to remain in Berlin. There was some quavering and maybe a touch of raspiness. But it was brilliantly constructed dramatically, with just enough power to be the highlight of the show.

With the spare setting, it was up to the cast to created its own rich landscape. Lee Aaron Rosen (Clifford Bradshaw) was a great foil for Bowles, a bisexual who was swept up into a doomed love affair. And Mark Nelson (Herr Schultz), who was Jewish, and Shannon Cochran (Fraulein Schneider), who was not, spotlighted the issue of religious discrimination.

Cabaret can be so many things. It can be razzamatazz entertainment. It can be a star turn. Or it can be a tautly crafted look into a vortex of uncertainty.

This time it’s a real winner.

See Listings.

 

 

On Stage: Going Solo With Aakash

Photo by Chris Nash

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s India in Focus festival continues tonight with Aakash Odedra. Read about it in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Dance Beat: Dirty Ball, Indian Festival, Dancing

Top Ten

Years. When The Dirty Ball first began, we didn’t know what to expect as we headed to one city apartment where the Attackers danced in the bathroom and a raw shell of another where we told our dirty secrets and drank dirty martinis. After a decade we know what to expect and Attack Theatre delivers. This time it was on the South Side in a warehouse of epic proportions. The Donor Party, where Queen of the Ball, Michele de la Reza, entered on a “throne” (two ladders, of course, transformed) and, with her “entourage,” presented an intimate thank you from the company. Everyone who had attended all ten took a group picture, whereupon the “curtains” were drawn to reveal what was probably the most breathtaking of all the locations over the years. The epic theme was carried out in Richard Parsakian’s must-see VIP Velvet Lounge, home of his collection of Elvis dolls (in original packaging) and the largest space he has expertly designed. Now for the trio of dances: it all began with a sherbet orange number that showed off the company’s seamless partnering style, with Ashley Williams looking utterly sun-kissed. That was followed by the Epic Production that traveled back and forward in time, which meant that King Peter Kope gathered just about anything — the Robot, Cleopatra, “Risky Business” (an over-the-top and very-welcome-return from Jeff Davis all evening long) and “Cher” (was that really Dane Toney?). And of course, there was the trademark finale from Dirty Dancing. Apparently everyone had the time of their lives…again.

Tripping. We’ve been to Australia, Quebec, Netherlands and around the world three times (International Festival of Firsts) when the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is in a festival mode — often thrilling, always probing.  Now the Trust is taking the city to India. Two key dance performances will play a part. Nrityagram Dance Ensemble, last here in 2003, and Askash Odedra Company, making its premiere will also be a part of the Pittsburgh Dance Council season. Also on tap we’ll see a street party with DJ Rekha at the September Gallery Crawl, music of the highest order (Zakir Hussein with SF Jazz & Dave Holland), theater (Why Not Theatre, Tram Theatre and Indian Ink Theatre Company), exhibits (Hetain Patel, Nandini Valli Muthish, Plus One, Birth Series and Sarika Goulatia) and Mystic India, fusing dance, theater and spectacular special effects. Love the logo! (Click on India for more information.)

Time of My Life? The finale song for Dirty Dancing popped up everywhere this past week. Tuesday: The touring production of “Dirty Dancing.” Wednesday: “Dirty Dancing” leads teach Kristine Sorensen and Jon Burnett a few moves on KDKA’s Pittsburgh Today Live. Friday: Finale for Pitt Dance Ensemble. Saturday: Finale for the Dirty Ball. Everyday (it seemed): The commercial for UnitedHealthcare where the signature flying leap comes crashing onto a table.

Dance Beat: A New Season at the Dance Council

More and more people are declaring the Pittsburgh Dance Council series the best in Pittsburgh, both for its challenging and entertaining repertoire, gleaned from around the world. But that just puts more responsibility on Paul Organisak’s shoulders…and he feels the weight, especially after this year’s terrific line-up. So when we met for our annual talk about the state of dance here and abroad — always a treat — he was anxious about unveiling the 2014-15 season.

With the PDC comes a certain element of trust, because many of the companies are new to Pittsburgh. Organisak travels the world in search of the best, immersing himself in everything that comes to the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. But the Dance Council occupies a special place in his heart. “This is my one-and-only first-born,” he says. (Aren’t we lucky?)

Two of the companies have already set foot in the city. Aspen/Santa Fe Ballet came here in 2010 with a program featuring ballet icon William Forsythe and Nicolo Fonte and Jorma Elo, who have since carved out important international careers. This time they bring back Fonte, who will unveil his newest work, Heart(s)pace. The new names include Norbert De La Cruz III, who has worked with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Alvin Ailey, and Cayetano Soto, who has Ballet Hispanico, Stuttgart Ballet and Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal on his resume. Both are already in demand. As Organisak puts it, “I love how they are committed to working with emerging choreographers.”

The other company is somewhat of a favorite here, Ronald K Brown/Evidence. This time though, there is a twist. Brown will have a week-long residency in Pittsburgh, where he will select a group of multi-generational dancers from the community to participate in On Earth Together, set to music by Stevie Wonder. The company will also perform The Subtle One, with music by jazz musicians Jason Moran and Tarus Mateen.

 

Company debuts will come from France, England, Sweden and Scotland, but will stretch the ways we think of those European countries. “Union Tanguera is not your mother’s tango show,” Organisak says. “It pushes boundaries, is highly theatricalized and has a live quartet.” He calls it a French mash-up with Argentina.

 

From England comes Michael Clark. “I don’t know why we haven’t brought him here before,” Organizak admits. “He has been the bad boy of modern dance.” But it was on a different path from witty raconteur Mark Morris or attitude-rich Rasta Thomas, who have tagged with that same label. The Royal Ballet-trained Clark descended into a widely-publicized hell of drugs and hedonism, but did not self-destruct. He emerged better than ever…with an undeniable dark edge. During his 30-year career, Clark has collaborated with numerous artists in the arts world. His signature work, which will come here, has a Pittsburgh connection…sort of. Called come, been and gone and set to the music of David Bowie, among others, it also touches on some of his influences, including Andy Warhol’s house band, the Velvet Underground. In fact, the individuality of his works have been compared to a Warhol print. We also get Swamp, bathed in the experimental punk music of the Wire and Bruce Gilbert and lighting by Charles Atlas, which completes the program. Be prepared to rock on.

http://www.lidberg.se/pontus/works/snow.html

Pontus Lidberg is a “new discovery,” as evidenced by this poetic clip on Vimeo. The Swedish artist has transferred his talents to New York City and will bring Snow, a new version of Rite of Spring. (Think about it — snow in spring.) “It doesn’t follow the score verbatim,” says Organisak. He calls Lidberg’s style “exquisite.” Four dancers, including Lidberg himself, will take the stage in a never-ending snowfall along with a Bunraku puppet.

 

The season ends with what might be termed an exclamation point when the Scottish Ballet brings its own version of A Streetcar Named Desire by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa in conjunction with award-winning theater/film director Nancy Meckler. We’ve seen Ochoa’s work before with Ballets Jazz de Montreal (Zip Zap Zoom) and Ballet Hispanico (Mad-moiselle). Organisak has “high expectations” for its impact.

The production comes virtually on the heels of Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre’s version by John Neumeier in 2012. It will be interesting to gauge audience comparisons…hm-m-m.

All performances are at the Byham Theater. The full schedule is: Aspen/Santa Fe Ballet (Oct. 11); Michael Clark Company (Nov. 1); Ronald K Brown/Evidence (Feb. 7); Union Tanguera (Mar. 28); Pontus Lidberg Dance (Apr. 18); Scottish Ballet Presents A Streetcar Named Desire (May 19).  Click on Trust.

Dance Beat: Wrapping up 2013 – Conclusion

LOVE STORY. That’s what it was at Point Park University’s Pittsburgh Playhouse, where the dance department paid tribute to retiring Nicolas Petrov and his production of Romeo and Juliet. It was one of his early works, as layered with Bolshoi-inspired choreography as it was with heavy-duty lifts. The most complex ballet project ever undertaken by Point Park, it was obvious that both staff and student dancers put a great deal of work into this production.

ARTS BARGAIN. It was a two for one night. The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust put on a holiday party at Sonoma, filling it with fine wine and food and great people who support the arts downtown, which has been so instrumental in transforming the area. Then it was over to the Kelly Strayhorn, where janera solomon and her super productive staff filled the lobby with fine wine and food and great people who support the arts in the East End. We need them both, demonstrating, as they do, the incredible range to be found in the arts.

 A GREAT PACKAGE. What can’t the Attack-ers do? Not only do they do original adult programming, but Attack Theatre can take a children’s production like Holiday Unwrapped and entrance everyone, from tiny tots to lofty ladies like me.

“V”. We’re like sisters – the two Ms. V’s. Tall, beautiful, talented…oh, stop! I bask in the shadow of Vie Boheme, alias Kendra Dennard. It was great to see her back in town, performing at the Dance Alloy, under the aegis of the Kelly Strayhorn. She had taken her own strong path, using artists like Josephine Baker and Nina Simone in constructing the third and final installment of Viva: Black, where she started to unfold and enrich her own considerable stage personality. Love the way Vie used those strong black women, segments that could stand on their own, to to provide a platform to launch this new one-woman show.

 

On Stage: Going Dutch

The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust opened its Decidedly Dutch Festival with a Pittsburgh Dance Council presentation of Dance Works Rotterdam, which offered a European take on pop culture. Shades of Andy Warhol!  Read about it in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Dance Beat: Dutch, Crawl, Emily, Dance Dangereuse

Photo by Chris Nash

Going Dutch. There was gouda arancini, smoked mackerel potato salad, red cabbage with smoked sausage and apples and slavinken, all signature dishes of the Netherlands and meticulously prepared by Meat & Potatoes restaurant. Yum Well, if Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s upcoming Distinctly Dutch Festival is as tasty as the food, we’re all in for a treat that will take us through the spring. I have loved the Trust’s previous festivals (Montreal, Australia, International Festival of Firsts), which gave us the opportunity to explore different cultures without leaving home. Of course we already knew that that the Pittsburgh Dance Council will be presenting Dance Works Rotterdam/Andre Gingras, which will open the festival Feb. 18, and Last Touch First, co-choreographed by Michael Schumacher and Jiri Kylian (a national and international choreographic treasure). But there will be plenty more to sample. For theater buffs, there will be Detroit Dealers, which is oddly set against the American car industry, Diespace, an interactive multimedia performance set against the Internet, and Jean Cocteau’s La voix humaine, featuring one of Holland’s foremost actresses. Halina Reijn. Music lovers can catch The News, a video/opera, or Dutch Women of Jazz. Girls ‘N’ Guns and Global Navigators will enhance the Pittsburgh art scene and Dudes and World of Rhythm will be geared to families. Accompanying it all will be workshops, wine tastings, a tulip display (of course) at the Phipps, film and more, including menu offerings at local restaurants. Hungry?  Intrigued? (I am and will attend as many events as possible.) For more information, click on Distinctly Dutch.

Crawl-ing. The Trust also sponsors the Gallery Crawl four times a year, a great (and free) way to explore the Cultural District. This go ‘round on January 27 will feature Maddy Landi’s kNOTdance transferring your own drawing of a dream into a dance. Also interact with a digital installation, Summer Sky Eternal, and see how your personal movement affects it (604 Liberty Ave.). Or interact with a partner at Arthur Murray Dance Studio, with free lessons and demos (salsa at 7:30 p.m., tango at 8 p.m., swing at 8:30 p.m.) Much, much more, from Norwegian artist HC Gilje at Wood Street to a Cell Phone Disco. A real bonus — Chatham Baroque rocks the Trust Arts Education Center with three performances. From 5:30 – 9 p.m. Click on Gallery Crawl.

Emily Kitka. The Pittsburgh dancer, who joined the corps of New York City Ballet last fall, got her first real review in The New York Times. Congrats, Emily!

Risky Business. Top Dating Sites website has posted 10 Dances You Should Only Attempt if You Are a Pro. Really? How do you actually become one? See for yourself when you click on Dangerous Dance.