NBSO opens its Centenary Season

100 and counting! The New Bedford Symphony Orchestra kicked off its centennial season with a pre-concert party and free birthday cake in the street before the concert. Indoors was an even better feast. The lead-off was Berlioz’s Le Corsair overture, a Pops favorite with rousing melody and a crashing brass finale. Then came the Sibelius Violin Concerto, the only such work composed by the Finnish national hero. Unlike many violin concertos, the Sibelius clearly separates violin from orchestra, with each operating sequentially for most of the piece rather than together. This requires a strong soloist, and Martin Chalifour fulfilled the role admirably. As is typical for the NBSO, Mr. Chalifour is not a “rock star” soloist, but a first tier player with numerous appearances with major orchestras. He received a well-deserved standing ovation. After intermission we heard perhaps the best known and recognized symphony not called Beethoven’s Fifth: Antonin Dvorak’s 9th Symphony “From the New World.” This was perfectly played and reflected the maturation of the NBSO to a truly first class orchestra. A fine kick-off to the season. Join the NBSO for the rest.

Broken Glass at the New Rep

The year is 1938, and in Brooklyn, Sylvia Gellburg, has become paralyzed from the waist down for no reason, to her husband’s dismay. He has consulted the dashing, handsome Dr. Harry Hyman to treat Sylvia. Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, Kristallnacht has occurred: that night in 1938 when Nazis went on a rampage, shattering the windows of Jewish shopkeepers and burning synagogues. Sylvia is obsessed by a news photo of two elderly Jews forced to clean the sidewalk with toothbrushes while a mob taunts them. Dr. Hyman has become convinced that Sylvia’s paralysis is psychosomatic, brought on by some unknown stress, and spends a good part of the play trying to tease out the root cause. In the mean time, Phillip Gellburg, a Jew who wants desperately to assimilate, gets into trouble with his Wasp boss at the Brooklyn bank where Phillip is the only Jew. During the course of the play we learn more and more about the Gellburg’s failed marriage, and the denouement is fairly predictable. The cast is strong, with particular kudos to Anne Gottlieb as Sylvia. Jeremiah Kissel’s Phillip is well-played, but his lines were often swallowed. Benjamin Evett, who has played many roles at the New Rep, is a very credible dashing ladies’ man. The other parts: Eve Passeltiner as Harry’s wife Margaret, Christine Hamel as Sylvia’s younger sister, and Michael Kaye as the rich Wasp boss, are less demanding but well-done. The action shifts seamlessly from Dr. Hyman’s office to the Gellburg bedroom to the bank with a revolving stage. Coming from Arthur Miller, you expect unhappiness, and Phillip Gellburg carries unmistakable overtones of Willy Loman, insecure in himself. Do not go to the New Rep to be “entertained” but do go to experience powerful acting.

Kinky Boots- a Message with Pizzazz

If you are at all a fan of Harvey Fierstein (Hairspray, Cage aux Folles), you must see Kinky Boots. The story line of this musical smash is simple. Charlie Price does not want to take over the family shoe factory but is forced into it by his father’s sudden death. He soon finds that cheap imports have ruined the business and is on the verge of having to shut the factory. He is inspired by an adoring employee to find a niche instead of giving in, and runs across Lola, an exuberant transvestite, who in turn convinces him to design glamorous boots sturdy enough for the heavier frames of male cross dressers. Lola shows a flare for design and joins the firm, to the disgruntlement of the macho male employees. In the end everyone learns to accept people as who they are and they take the Milan shoe show by storm. The music, by Cyndi Lauper, is in turns heartwarming and over the top and the dance numbers by Lola’s “Angels” and the rest of the cast are show stoppers. The touring cast was uniformly excellent in voice and stage presence. The band, perhaps a bit too loud at times, was excellent otherwise. The audience got quickly caught up in the action and gave the cast a standing O. An enjoyable evening in the theatre.

Tanglewood: heavenly music; traffic from Hell

My visiting sister-in-law wanted to go to Tanglewood, and we had not been there in decades, so we planned a weekend trip: drive out early Sunday, check in to our hotel, have a picnic lunch on the grounds, see a 2:30 concert, have a nice dinner in Lenox and then an 8:30 concert. The estimated travel time was 3 hours, so a 9 AM start would offer lots of leeway. WRONG. The unplanned: an accident on 495 that meant the hour up to the Turnpike turned into 2 hours. Very heavy traffic on the Turnpike west for no obvious reason, and then bumper-to-bumper the last 5 miles in Lenox. With no chance to stop at the hotel, we got to the parking ground at 2 PM, 5 hours after leaving. Parking was several hundreds yards from the gate, up a steep hill. That left us time for a hurried lunch and just enough time to find our seats. We were warned that traffic out after the afternoon concert and in for the evening concert would be equally bad, so cancelled our dinner reservations and settled for the mediocre cafeteria on the grounds for supper. Ah, the music, that almost made us forget the logistics. The afternoon sandwiched violinist Joshua Bell between two colorful orchestral pieces: Moussorsky’s Night on Bald Mountain and Ravel’s Symphonie Fantastique. Both had rich orchestration with full tympany and showcased the talented BSO performers admirably. Joshua Bell demonstrated why he is such a sought after soloist with his mastery of the instrument and stage presence. The evening performance was another tour-de-force, this time featuring cellist Yo-Yo Ma and pianist Emmanuel Ax performing all five of Beethoven’s sonatas for cello and piano. Talk about three all-stars! Mr. Ma was his usual flamboyant self, and Mr. Ax showed why he is a multi-Grammy winner. Doing the sonatas in sequence allowed us to follow the composer’s growth, with particular change between the 2nd and 3rd, written 11 years apart. The increased complexity was apparent. Should you go, and the music is sublime, I would advise getting there the day ahead to allow for much more relaxed experience, and staying as close to the grounds as possible.

There's no fool like an old fool: Lear on the Common

This year was the 20th presentation of free summer Shakespeare on the Boston Common by the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company. The play ran July 22 to August 9 at 8 PM except for an earlier start on Sundays. Reserved seating up front was available for donors, and there were many requests for donations at the show, but basically you could show up with your lawn chairs or blanket and enjoy an evening of professional theatre at no charge. The logistics were well-handled, and easy parking was available at the underground garage. The acoustics were excellent, and the actors could be heard everywhere. The play is well-known: the aging King Lear decides to turn over his kingdom to his three daughters equally, but at the last moment asks them to profess their love. The two older daughters fawn over him, while the youngest expresses her love plainly. The enraged king disowns her on the spot and divides his kingdom in two instead, and Cordelia leaves with the king of France, who appreciates her honesty. Lear soon finds that his loving daughters are not so loving when he has no power or wealth, and is driven mad. The climax of the first half is his encounter with Mad Tom in a raging storm, with water pouring down and giant fans blowing. There are, as in all Shakespeare, sub-plots aplenty, and the play ends with the stage littered with bodies. All of the cast were excellent, with Will Lyman’s Lear a tragic figure for the ages and Brandon Whitehead’s Fool getting many of the best lines and applause. My only issue was the late start. For a long play, an earlier start would make it much easier for working folk to enjoy.

Mississippi comes to New Bedford

Wepeckett Island Records sponsors a “salon series” of concerts held at the Wamsutta Club the first Saturday of the month. These are in the folk/blues genre and feature performers you may not have heard of but should have. While these are usually evening concerts with table seating and the chance to buy food and drink, the August concert is the exception. It is billed as the Annual Blues and Barbecue Bash and is held outdoors, weather permitting, headlining Sherman Lee Dillon from Mississippi. This month’s Bash had perfect weather, almost Mississippi-like, but with a breeze and the shade of the big oaks. The barbecue came first, and was inside in the air-conditioned Wamsutta bar, featuring all-you-can-eat burgers, chicken wings, salads and watermelon and cookies. We then were invited outside to be serenaded by Sherman Lee backed up by Wepeckett’s own Jack Radcliffe on keyboard (and occasional fiddle) and Don Barry on the bass. Don also ably handled the sound system and sang a couple of songs. One of these was a very touching original song about an elderly couple that surely brought some tears to the eyes of many. Sherman Lee is a perennial Wepeckett favorite. He mixes blues singing with stories about growing up in rural Mississippi, accompanying himself on steel guitar and harmonica, with the occasional banjo thrown in. The bass and keyboard back-up was seamless, and when Sherman Lee needed a breather, Jack filled in with his usual flawless keyboard. Coming up in the rest of 2015 are concerts on Sept 5, Oct 3, Nov 7 and Dec 5. The prices are reasonable, the evening fun and the atmosphere homey. Do yourself a favor and check these out!

Back to the 60's and 70's with fun

Most of my posts are about classical music, but our tastes are eclectic. As long as it is good, we enjoy all kinds of genres. Last night we happened upon a talented and fun group that do the songs of our youth. The City of Newton puts on free concerts during the summer, and most of the groups performing are enthusiastic but not that talented. We were having a bite to eat in Newton Center and saw a group setting up, so decided to grab our blankets and at least listen to the first few numbers. The group was The Reminisants, and they were GOOD. They did a mix of songs originally done by all the greats of the 60's and 70's (Roy Orbison, Elvis, The Moody Blues, etc) and if you closed your eyes, you could believe you were hearing the originals. The keyboard and guitars were first rate, and their stage presence made it even more enjoyable. The group performs frequently all over eastern Massachusetts, and I would encourage you to check their schedule and give them a listen. (www.reminisants.com)