foxy

On the last leg of it's tour. I just got my ticket. Friends who've seen it say it's incredible.

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/david-bowie-is-exhibit-in-brooklyn-rob-sheffield-review-w517284

https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/davidbowieis

Saw this one man show yesterday starring the very attractive and immensely talented Billy Crudup. He plays 19 different characters and switches accents in the blink of an eye. It's very funny. In limited run at the Minetta Lane Theater. Definitely recommended.

Here he is talking with Kelly and her hot husband.

I thought this was a very well written and thoughtful review. And I actually agree with it and I’m trying to ponder why this production left me cold. I’m certainly not saying there’s anything bad about this show. It just didn’t click with me for some reason. I hope everyone who goes loves the show (despite the $$$).

I went to an all boy Catholic high school. Every year we put on a play. Girls were imported from a Catholic all girls school. I was involved in painting sets. We put on some great shows.

One year we did Annie Get Your Gun and the next The King and I.

Since both of these productions involved the boys showing lots of skin the brother who was directing the shows thought the boys should not have any body hair.

He had them come down to the gym locker room where he would shave them from the neck down while they stood there in their underwear. No one, including the parents of the boys thought anything was wrong with this. How creepy is that?

Yesterday I saw parts 1 & 2 of Harry Potter at the cavernous and opulent Lyric Theater. My impression is that it will settle in for a long run. There’s no shortage of Potter swag that can be yours if you want to do some shopping.

The theater was filled with an enthusiastic crowd of fans who were determined to love every minute of this production.

There’s a lot going on with the large cast rushing about in swirling black cloaks and a great deal of stage magic leaving you wondering how they did that. There are some spectacular moments.

I’ve read all the books and have seen all the movies. I was expecting to have a great time. But for some reason I didn’t.

I expect I will be in the minority. I found myself a little bored with the story at times and was sort of exhausted when the 5 hours ended.

I’m sure it will do extremely well at the box office. It’s already setting records.

Recently I had the pleasure of seeing Lauren Ambrose in the revival of My Fair Lady. I was happily surprised at how beautifully she sings. I was sitting in the first row of the orchestra so was quite close to her at times. I thought how very young she looks for 40 years old.

Curious I started rewatching Six Feet Under just to see how she’s changed. She hasn’t. She was 23 when she did that show. She looks exactly the same.

In 2014 I saw Michael C. Hall in the revival of Hedwig and the Angry Inch. I was surprised that Hall could take on such a difficult singing role. I thought he was as good or even better than Neil Patrick Harris who I had seen a few months before as Hedwig.

So what started as curiosity about the stars of Six Feet Under has turned into binge watching the entire series over again. I think it’s possibky the best series ever created by HBO. It’s so well written. I find myself laughing so hard and then a few minutes later my eyes are so filled with tears I have to stop watching to pull myself together. A truly brilliant show.

Whenever I'm about to spend too much money on something, I think of something more expensive and the first option doesn't seem so bad.

Yesterday I priced tickets for Harry Potter and choked a little when the ticket agent started rattling off prices. I told myself it was cheaper than a plane ticket to London and handed over my credit card.

Next week will be my 5 hours in the theater so if I divide 5 into the price of the ticket(s) ......

Hope to post a good review.

https://www.theatermania.com/broadway/news/harry-potter-and-the-cursed-child-makes-history_84735.html/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=12apr2018

Chris Evans has a gay brother. While this has nothing to do with the play I think its very important because his brother is hot. Is there a better reason?

http://www.newnownext.com/chris-evans-scott-evans/11/2016/

Nathan Lane is 62. Not ancient certainly but also no spring chicken. While I’m not usually a big fan as I’ve stated, he was pretty incredible in this performance. There was a lot more than delivering his lines. There was a great deal of physical stuff he did that must take an enormous amount of strength. In retrospect I think he had the most difficult role in the play. I can’t begin to imagine how he does it night after night. I get exhausted just thinking about it. They should hang an Olympic gold medal on the Tony he will surely receive.

I saw part 2 at today’s matinee. Last Sunday I saw part 1. There’s been a lot written about the show already and reviews are all good and I’d agree. It’s a wonderful production. I did see the original but it was almost like seeing the play for the first time these two Sundays. I’d forgotten how funny it is.

I’m not a big Nathan Lane fan but I’d happily hand him a Tony for his performance.

Everyone was terrific in this production. I’m amazed they can find the energy especially when they do both parts in one day.

Lee Pace does do an extended nude scene if that’s important to you.

Today’s performance which clocks in at 4 hours (with two intermissions) sped by. Perhaps seeing the whole show in one day might be exhausting. I had no trouble seeing it over two days.

A word about tickets. Last week I got a 5th row Center mezzanine seat on tdf for $41. It wasn’t listed for today so I went to the tkts booth about noon and got a 6th row Center orchestra seat for $92. It was worth the extra $$$. More legroom but mostly it was nice to be close to the action.

It’s a pretty intense experience but definitely worth the time and money.

I almost never agree with Hilton Als. Often after reading one of his reviews I’m not sure he if liked the play or not. He’s pretty clear in this one.

I have to admit this was an unusual production. I rewatched the movie the night before. They kept to the essentials of the plot and it was performed by a talented bunch of actors who worked hard but it seemed more like a commedia dell’arte which is a form of theater I’m not crazy about. Happily it was short and the ticket cheap. Hard to say if it will find an audience.

Saw the show this afternoon. It took me a little while to get into it. It does have a very large cast and it’s constantly moving so best to not let your mind wander. You have to learn whose who.

The Charleston scene will certainly get your blood racing. Brandon Uranowitz and James Snyder ( who has a wonderful voice ) made great dance partners.

And speaking of dance partners, Guadalupe Garcia and Junior Cervila as the Countess and the Gigolo, give great hot tango throughout the show and continue even after the cast has taken their bows.

A couple of weeks ago I took myself up to the box office at Lincoln Center and bought a ticket for a Wednesday matinee performance. I paid $137 for a pretty decent seat up in the mezzanine. Come last Tuesday the snowstorm rolled into NYC. The next day, Wednesday was to be my performance. Since I commute into the city there was no way I could chance going in. I was very disappointed. I was going to miss the performance.

Friday (yesterday) I went into the city to see if I could make an exchange and happily, to my surprise, the ticket agent was willing to make an exchange. We had a quick discussion of possible dates and he volunteered that he had a seat available for Saturday’s (today’s) matinee. For an additional $40 I got a first row center orchestra seat. I was literally behind the conductor. I know that sometimes being too close can be as bad as sitting too far but I went for it. I’m so glad I did. Because of the orchestra pit I was about 10 feet from the edge of the stage. It was great.

I’ve seen past revivals of My Fair Lady but I can’t imagine a better production than this. Whatever the critics may have to say when it opens, I loved every minute of it.

Lincoln Center does an incredible job in their revivals. Everything is top notch.

The sets, costumes, orchestra, all just as good as it gets.

As to the stars.... Lauren Ambrose who many might know from Six Feet Under plays Eliza. She’s a wonderful actress I’ve seen in other plays but I had no idea she sings so beautifully. Her voice is just gorgeous.

Harry Hadden-Paton who I didn’t know is very good as Professor Higgins.

So much fun to see Diana Rigg as Mrs. Higgins. So sexy in the Avengers years ago, and of course Game of Thrones. Her movie, theater and television credits are as long as your arm.

However Norman Leo Butz as Alfred P. Doolittle almost stops the show. Just to see him perform Get Me to the Church on Time is worth the price of a ticket.

The Ascot Gavotte was also a favorite scene. There was never a dull moment in this production.

All in all I couldn’t have asked for a more delightful afternoon at the theater. I’m actually grateful to the snow storm that wound up putting me into such a great seat.

This was certainly the theater highlight for me this season. Highly recommended.

I finally got to see the play. St. Patrick’s Day might not have been the best day to be in mid-town but I survived.

Glenda Jackson was everything you could want in a brilliant performance. Laurie Metcalf was not far behind. I wasn’t familiar with Alison Pill, but I thought she was good in a less showy role.

The play is quite funny even when being quite serious.

There’s a lush set that does some theater magic with a gigantic mirror that I thought was really interesting.

I certainly recommend the show. So far it’s been at tkts quite a bit but it’s still in previews.

I had never seen a live production of Carousel so I was looking forward to seeing this show. With a great score by the legendary team of Rodgers and Hammerstein you have to fight the urge to hum along. This new production has a cast of Joshua Henry as Billy Bigelow, Jessie Mueller as Julie Jordan and Renee Fleming as Nettie Fowler. They all sing wonderfully.

There’s a large orchestra in the pit so the sound is rich and full. The music won’t disappoint.

However there were things about this production I wasn’t crazy about. Firstly the plot. Julie is in an abusive relationship with Billy. I suppose it’s the old story of a woman being drawn to the bad boy. I think we can all relate to this on some level. But the chemistry seemed lacking between Henry and Mueller and it was hard to figure out what they saw in each other. The scenes in heaven were somewhat bizarre with a writhing group of dancers that didn’t make much sense to me. And Billy returning to earth only to wind up slapping his daughter. Well, that’s the plot of the book but I kept wondering that Billy didn’t seem to learn much and become any more sympathetic after he kills himself.

All in all it’s still worth seeing and you can leave the theater humming as you fight the crowd leaving the theater.

If you have Amazon Prime and are interested you can watch a PBS production from Lincoln Center recorded in 2013 with Kelli O’Hara, Nathan Gunn, Stephanie Blythe and Jessie Mueller this time in the role of Carrie Pipperage.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.broadwayworld.com/amp/c.php%3furl=New-York-Premiere-Of-BABETTES-FEAST-Will-Begin-An-Open-Ended-Off-Broadway-Engagement-20180221

One of my favorite movies has been turned into a play. I'm looking forward to seeing this and how it's been transformed.

Sara Bareilles is leaving the show March 11 and being replaced by Katharine McPhee according to this article.

https://www.broadway.com/buzz/191322/waitress-sara-bareilles-on-katharine-mcphee-joining-the-show-what-a-dreamboat/

I've never seen more than 5 or 10 minutes of the actual Jerry Springer show so I surprised myself by buying a ticket to this production. Based on a friend's recommendation and this glowing review in the Times I figured I'd give it a try.

It has a large cast of 17. It's strangely disconcerting to hear highly trained voices, some of operatic quality, singing the most obscene lyrics. If you didn't listen to the words, and closed your eyes you'd think you were at a serious musical event. But it's too much fun to see with your eyes open. The cast are not just fine singers but very funny actors who seem to be having a great time onstage.

There's something to offend everyone in this show. No kinky stone is left unturned.

So "roll me in chocolate and throw me to the lesbians".

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/22/theater/jerry-springer-the-opera-review-terrence-mann.html

For a fun 50 minutes I'd recommend this lively, funny and rather sexy show.

Now playing at the historic New Victory Theater on 42nd Street.

Part of the fun going to the theater is often the theater itself and this one is certainly impressive.

Built in 1900 by Oscar Hammerstein, grandfather of the famous lyricist, it was first called the Theater Republic. In 1902 it was taken over by David Belasco who added improvements. In the 1930's it was taken over by Billy Minsky and it became Broadway's first burlesque theater. The biggest star was Gypsy Rose Lee.

In 1942 the theater was renamed The Victory in a burst of patriotism. By the 1970's it was the block's only XXX-rated theater.

In 1990 it was completely refurbished and became the family friendly theater it is today.

Bromance is a show conceived and starring three attractive, very athletic, young British guys called the Barely Methodical Troupe.

Interspersed with some amazing acrobatics the show has a theme that it's okay for guys to touch and feel affection for each other all shown in a funny kid friendly way. This adult certainly enjoyed that message.

After the show the guys sit in one of the lobbies to sign autographs or take photos with anyone interested so you can get up close and shake hands.

http://www.theatermania.com/off-broadway/reviews/bromance-at-the-new-victory-theater_84073.html

Terrence McNally has written some good plays. The Lisbon Traviata, Lips Together, Teeth Apart, Frankie and Johnny In The Clair de Lune to name just a few. Unfortunately this play is not very good. Sergei Diaghilev was considered something of an artistic genius and changed the look of modern dance, primarily by bringing the focus onto the male dancer. In this play he comes off as mean, selfish, tedious and a dirty old man who forces himself on his young male dancers. I would have liked some idea why Diaghilev became the famous impresario but got none of that from this play.

The actors were all fine. Marsha Mason in a throw away part as a servant seemed wasted. The two young actors who portrayed Vaslav Nijinsky and Léonide Massine were attractive and competent. The theater Classic Stage is small and stadium seating is on 3 sides so viewing is good. Wish I could recommend the play.

Seeing this this afternoon. some mixed reviews but this one was pretty good. Here's hoping. The actor James Cusati-Moyer who played the naked hustler in Six Degrees of Separation last year is playing Nijinsky. I guess he will be naked again which isn't such a bad thing.

http://deadline.com/2018/02/review-fire-and-air-terrence-mcnally-1202276257/

Grit your teeth and empty your wallet and do a helicopter flight. Some even land at the waterfall made famous in Jurassic Park. If you’re really brave do a flight without doors on the helicopter which makes for better photos. No reflections from the glass. It’s the only way to appreciate the dramatic scenery.

And when you finish a book you don’t have to keep or dispose of a physical copy. In the last few years I’ve had to get rid of about 1,000 hard cover books. Libraries don’t want them anymore. It seems most of the people I know don’t read actual books and don’t want them. I love holding a book in my hands and turning pages but I’ve found myself adapting out of necessity.