"CURTAIN CALLS"
By Pat Launer
04/07/05
When you make your theater choices,
Think about these women’s voices:
The icons of jazz in ‘Raisin’ the Rent’
And ‘Boccanegra’s’ soprano mellifluent.
Take
a seat at a small, candlelit table, order a drink, have a little dinner. Then
settle back for All That Jazz. Pretty soon, you’ll be clappin’, tappin’, stompin’
your feet and shaking your head in wonder and joy. You’re in Ernestine
Anderson’s Night Club now. It’s 1953, and the landlord is hounding poor
Ernestine, a Big Band era vocalist who’s still recording today. So, she does
what many club-owners did in the early days of jazz. They held Rent Parties, or
Skiffles, which featured informal music-making for particular fund-generating
purposes. “Raisin’ the Rent” is just
that kind of party. And you’re invited. Ernestine has also gathered a few of
her friends to have some fun, raise some funds and jam; her buddies, you’ll be
interested to know, are Lena Horne, Billie Holiday, Etta James, Nancy Wilson
and Ella Fitzgerald. Six local song stylists, each with a style of her own,
bend their beautiful, versatile voices around the signature songs of these
blues/jazz icons. Each tells a little story of her hardscrabble life, and then
goes on to knock your sox off with some marvelous, magical music. The solos are
better than the group numbers, which seem a lot less ‘directed’ and ‘staged’;
though there isn’t much staging overall; each woman is introduced, comes up on
the tiny stage in the attractive Caesar’s Café in downtown, and sings her heart
out. Michael Sanders, the musical director, has helped these divas give a sense
of their namesakes, not an imitation. And that works wonderfully.
The
piece was created by Calvin Manson, founder/artistic director of Ira Aldridge
Players, the county’s only black dinner theater. His projects generally feature
singing performances more than narrative structure or directorial finesse, but
there’s always an impressive array of talent, frequently culled from local
church choirs. This is the finale of the company’s three-year African American
Women in Music series. Last year’s presentation was “An Evenin’ with Billie,”
starring the amazing Anasa Johnson, who gets to reprise that role and sing some
of Billie’s best: “Good Mornin’ Heartache,” “Fine and Mellow,” and “God Bless
the Child.” Two of the other galvanic performers are the livewire Arnessa
Rickett as Etta James and the dynamo Ayanna Hobson, a scat-phenom with a 4 ½
octave range, as Ella Fitzgerald. The cast is rounded out by Michelle Allen as
a statuesque and classy
There
were a couple of minor problems, like the temperamental mikes, and the fact
that some used hand-mikes and some wore lavaliers (one singer, I think, had
both). The feedback and on again/off again amplification was annoying at times.
But these pros never skipped a beat. Then there was the issue of the bowl of
bucks. Was that just a prop, or were real-live patrons actually supposed to put
money in to help ‘raise rent’? The performers certainly asked enough times, but
it didn’t seem clear to the patrons whether that was real or
theatrical/historical begging. There was the odd anachronism, too, like talking
about Etta’s increasing age and decreasing vocal power (in 1953, when she’s
still at it, almost as powerful as ever, today). Some of the life-stories
didn’t quite go anywhere (like ‘Billie’s’ comment that “no one’s meaner than
white folks,” after which she proceeds to tell of tale of being taken by a
‘colored’ guy). A few times, the engaging, smiling stage presence belied the
aching lyrics. But mostly, the tenor and tone were superb. When all the gals
get together for “I Got the Right to Sing the Blues,” you believe them. And
when they end with the amusing “Someone Else is Steppin’ In, While You are Steppin’
Out,” you feel you’ve experienced a full range of emotion, talent and vocal
style. ‘Raisin’ the Rent’ is raisin’ the musical bar.
At
Caesar Café, downtown
NOT-SO-SIMPLE SIMON
The
story may be complex and convoluted, but the music is stirring and emotive.
Nonetheless, Verdi’s “Simon Boccanegra” isn’t
the most popular or most performed of the great composer’s works. It took two
tries to get it right. The 1857 premiere was less than a success, though with
many changes to the libretto, the 1881 revision fared better. Even so, the San
Diego Opera felt compelled to add projected summaries before each act, in
addition to the Synopsis in the program – just to help audiences keep on top of
who’s doing what to whom, and where. The text is rife with disguises and new
identities, class warfare and political machinations. But the basic story, of
the 14th century Doge of Genoa and his long-lost illegitimate
daughter, Amelia, is touching, and at the end, tragic. Conflicts of the heart
arise when Amelia learns that the sworn enemy of her beloved is her father. The
relations, of course, are revealed too late. But on the way to the finale,
there are some marvelous musical moments, notably the Act I duet between Amelia
and Simon and later in the act, the sextet, with all the principals and chorus
(huge number of supernumeraries in this production) expressing opinions about
the complicated political situation.
The
low notes are king here, with two powerful baritones -- the commanding
Metropolitan Opera star, Lado Antoneli, in the title role and James Westman as
the traitorous Paolo -- as well as bass-baritone John Marcus Bindel as
co-conspirator Pietro and the compelling bass, Arutjun Kotchinian, as the
(not-so-old-looking) grandfather of Amelia, Fiesco (aka “Andrea’). The tenor,
Carlo Ventre, as Amelia’s love, Gabriele, is competent but not memorable. It’s
the really high notes that remain in mind and memory, as sung by the
magnificent Anja Harteros; her voice is brilliant throughout her range --
heartfelt and hearty at the bottom and crystalline at the top. And her
consistently convincing acting carries her through the vicissitudes of joy,
love, sorrow, horror, loss and despair. She was dazzling last year in “La
Traviata;” can’t wait for her return to
Conductor
Edoardo Müller brought energy and nuance to the symphony orchestra. Lotfi Monsouri’s direction was capable, but
tended to favor front-facing lineups of the principal singers; the
multitudinous supers were an engaging and colorful addition. The costumes,
borrowed from the Santa Fe Opera, were vivid and attractive. The set, newly
constructed by the SDO (John Coyne), was majestic and versatile, beautifully
lit by Thomas Munn. In all, it was a lovely production, most memorable for the
reappearance of Harteros.
WORTH NOTING…
…
SDSU Opera Theater, presenting two
one-acts, “The Impresario” by Mozart and Leonard Bernstein’s “Trouble in
Tahiti,” April 28-May 1 in Smith Recital Hall.
…
The 22nd annual Design
Performance Jury at SDSU, Friday, April 15, from 9:00-2:30 in the
Experimental Theatre.
…
The Baldwin New Play Festival 2005, at UCSD, April 11-23 (various locations).
…The
Carlsbad Playreaders staged reading of “The
Clearing,” by Helen Edmundson, directed by Marc Overton, featuring Overton,
Jeffrey Jones, and Equity actors Natalie Sentz and John Carroll Tessmer, among
others. Set in 1650s Ireland, a time of ethnic cleansing under the tyranny of
Oliver Cromwell, the play mixes the personal and the political. Monday, April
18, in the Carlsbad Library. And coming to Carlsbad in May, Noel Coward’s “Private Lives,”, directed by Walt
Jones, starring Old Globe Associate Artists Jim Winker and Kandis Chappell (she
was pitch-perfect in the role at the Globe in 1996). Auditions for the rest of
the cast are on April 25 (www.carlsbadplayreaders.org).
…
Moira Keefe, that mistress of maternal, middle-age madness, is performing “Life Before the Crisis… Something is
Lurking,” at the Carlsbad Village Theatre on April 15. This wacky one-hour
monologue concerns “marriage, motherhood, mammograms and margaritas.” Proceeds
will benefit Moxie Theatre.
…And
speaking of Moxie, the first
fundraiser for the new theater company, helmed by that Fearsome Foursome,
Delicia Turner Sonnenberg, Jo Anne Glover, Liv Kellgren and
Jennifer Kraus, will be held Saturday afternoon, May 7th, and will
feature the first season announcement, sneak-preview performances and a silent
auction. At the Martini Ranch in Encinitas.
…
Don’t want to step on anyone’s (dance) toes, but Sushi: Take Out @ St.
Cecilia’s concludes this weekend with “Four
on the Floor,” which features Jean Isaacs’ San Diego Dance Theater, Santa
Barbara Dance Theater and LEVYdance. San Diegan Lauren Slater will be dancing
with LEVYdance (which is based in San Francisco), so expect to see her mother,
County Supervisor Pam Slater, at every performance.
NOW, FOR WHAT’S ON RIGHT
NOW – and 'NOT TO BE MISSED!'
“Raisin’ the Rent” – hand-clappin’, foot-stompin’, heartbreakin’ jazz
and blues, sung in cabaret style by six killer performers. At Caesar’s Café
downtown, through May 22.
“Doubt” – fascinating, important, thought-provoking play. Bonus: Can be seen on
this coast while it’s opening on Broadway! Time called it “The #1 show of the
year.” Sure to be a Tony contender… and it just won the Pulitzer Prize. Catch
it if you can!
At the Pasadena
Playhouse, through April 10.
“Antony and Cleopatra” – a colossal Antony and a seductive Cleo make for a
wild ride, a highly sensual (if sometimes uneven) production by those antic,
“No holds Bard” players.
Poor Players at the Academy of Performing Arts on Alvarado Ct. Rd.;
through April 10.
“The Waverly Gallery” – heart-breaking family dramedy, beautifully acted
and directed.
New Village Arts (@
Jazzercize in Carlsbad), through April 30.
“Himself and Nora” – A Joyce-ful love story. A world premiere about
James Joyce that may be light fare for literati but it’s well done, intelligent
and entertaining.
At the Old Globe
Theatre, through April 24.
“Pageant”- where the girls are guys and the competition is ferocious. Loads
of smarm and charm, and a lot of laughs.
At Cygnet Theatre, extended
through May 22.
“The Male Intellect: An Oxymoron” – a fun date night, which shows both genders a few
of their more amusing and infuriating foibles.
At the Theatre in Old
Town, ongoing.
As T.S. Eliot said, ‘April is the cruelest
month.” So take time off from the Taxman – at the theater!
©2005 Patté Productions
Inc.