Big Apple Bound!

I’m New Jersey/New York bound today, and couldn’t be more excited.

Among the highlights I’m looking forward to are a huge New Years Eve party in Newark (Masquerade! Fire-eaters! Zebras? That’s what the press says!), seeing Ragtime the day before it closes on Broadway, setting foot inside The Strand (18 miles of books?!), and seeing friends – Jolene will be our hostess, and we’re trying hard to make plans with Whitney and Jason.

Who knows what else will happen? It’s NYC, people!

I heart New York.  (I’ve never been to New Jersey before, but I probably love it too!)

Broadway Bound! :)

If asked, I would have a hard time coming up with a musical I think is as soundly-structured and plainly perfect as Ragtime. So, the fact that my wonderful fiancee (a man who clearly pays attention) got us tickets to see the acclaimed new revival on Broadway when we’re in NYC next weekend excites me greatly.

Oh, the wonder….

I am over the moon. For realz.

(Update: Ragtime will be closing on Broadway on 1/3, the day after we see it. Sad news, but I’m glad I’ll get to see it nonetheless.)

Cirque du Soliel’s Banana Shpeel….

Banana Shpeel is bad.

My Cirque-adoring heart aches as I type that, but it is.

For a show that started with so much promise – Broadway Stars Michael Longoria and Annaleigh Ashford in a new Broadway-bound Modern-Vaudeville musical created by Cirque du Soliel! – The final result is really confusing, weak and disappointing.

It all began when, shortly after a (solid) performance on ”America’s Got Talent,” it was briskly announced that Longoria and Ashford, along with their romantic plot line, was being cut from the show because there was too much plot going on.

Let me say this:  

Having seen the show, I would have appreciated some plot. 

There are only fragments of what I assume at one point was a plot, which leaves a disjointed series of acts, strung together under the guise of auditions for Schmelky’s Spectacular.

Though, while acts are auditioning, the show is actually happening (I think? I mean, dancers in sparkly costumes were performing production numbers?) so.. yeah, I’m not really sure what was going on.

When Dan saw the show, he said “Less Shpeel, More Cirque,” and I couldn’t agree more.

The clown scenes (of which there seemed to be hundreds, all of which were unfortunate) dragged on endlessly, and weren’t that funny.  This isn’t  all the fault of the performers, who are obviously talented and doing the best they can, particularly the two main clowns.  Being dragged down by lame material, including a painfully unfunny dinner scene, isn’t their fault.  Who knows? Maybe they’re as confused as I was as to what’s going on?

There’s a chorus of ten dancers who show up a few times to do big routines in clever costumes.  Though they’re all obviously talented dancers, the choreography is sloppy at times.  More than once I noticed a dancer or two completely not in synch with the other dancers, and overall the dancing doesn’t look polished. Again, maybe the poor dancers are just trying to figure out what song is next?

The only things that got serious applause from the audience were four acts I would describe as typically Cirque.  The first is a young man who juggles hats, and he’s a blast to watch.  The second is a couple.  He throws her around in the air.  It’s very impressive – though they took a tumble during our performance.  The third is a flexible young woman who twirls things on her hands and feet. (They might be placemats? I’m not sure.) And the fourth, and most impressive, is a beautiful young man who contorts himself while swinging around and holding himself on a spinning pole. These three acts are undoubtedly the highlights of the evening, and the only remnants of anything Cirque.

[Note: I'd even like to be able to call some of these hard-working performers by name, but the audience is not given programs. If you want to find out who's in the show, you can pay $10 for a souvenier program that features photos of actors who are no longer in the show - Michael Longoria and Annaleigh Ashford - in scenes that don't exist in the show.]

The show has gone through many changes – and is apparently still changing.  Bob saw the show a few weeks ago and said what we saw last night was way different ( including songs in new places and new acts.) 

For example, the first act ends really strangely.  It’s a big “Magic” routine, with disappearing girls, and the entire cast swarms the stage suddenly, and for some reason one of the clowns is in a tiger suit, and there’s a big song that keeps saying something like “Schmelky, You can’t do it alone.” 

In the back of my head, I was thinking “What can’t he do alone? I don’t understand. This is like a finale.”

Then Bob leaned over and said “This used to be the finale.”

Also, there’s a whole elaborate set-up to a scene from “Romeo and Juliet” even though the set piece says “Hamlet” that is a whole lot of lead-up so an old man clown can walk out and say “A whore, a whore.. My kingdom for a whore..s.”

Yep. That’s the entire joke.

And there’s also an audience volunteer, who might be a plant? She’s in the press photos, and Bob says she’s the same girl he saw get pulled onstage last time.  If it’s true, it doesn’t make sense why it can’t be an audience volunteer – as she just gets led around for a while. Odd.

If the producers of this show want it to not bomb on Broadway, serious revisions need to be done. Perhaps stopping for a moment to figure out what the point of the show is would be a good start. Is it a musical? Is it a Cirque variety show? If it’s a musical, it needs a ton of work. If it’s a Cirque variety show, it needs more than four acts.

Banana Shpeel is, in a word, a disaster.

It’ll be interesting to see if it even makes it to Broadway. And, if it does, what the heck show it is by then.

Save your money.

Or, for the price of one ticket to this show, you could see about 5 storefront shows in Chicago. 

Go See Redtwist’s The Pillowman instead.  While there are no musical numbers, it’s a heck of a lot more engaging.

Rudolph Ramble 8k 2009

Yes we did run an 8k on the morning of Eric’s birthday.

…and Yes it was a Christmas-themed one.

The Rudolph Ramble was a blast, despite some icy patches on the roads (I saw more than one runner bite it, and almost went down myself as I turned the final corner) The race officials diverted us around the worst patches of ice as best they could. (Cheers to Capri Events for yet another well-organized race.)

Fortunately for December, the weather was mild.  No fifteen layer outfits necessary. 

My goal was to finish in under an hour, and I just squeaked by.  I’m pretty sure my time will be around 58 minutes when official times come in.

We finished the race by watching the 4-5 year olds compete in a 50 yard dash. One little boy who began the race busting his butt eventually wore himself out and was passed by a kid who clearly knew the concept of pace. Runners, let that be a lesson.

Ah, running.

We really ran the race as an excuse to indulge in Eric’s official birthday dinner at Texas de Brazil. Let’s not lie.

My first trip to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra

I’m pretty good with surprises. Though, by the time surprise time actually rolls around, I’m usually more excited about the surprise than the person who the surprise is for.

THAT SAID, I surprised Eric with a trip to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for his birthday.  Saturday evening, we got all dressed up and headed downtown.

Eric is a big fan of classical music, particuarly Mozart, and the Symphony has long been one of those things on our grand list of “Things we still need to do in Chicago.”  Without tooting my own horn (music joke, get it?) I have to say he was delighted with his surprise outing.

The program was conducted by Nicholas Kraemer, and consisted of four pieces -

1. Mozart – Selections from Divertimento in D Major.

2. Haydn – Symphony No. 88 in G Major.

3. Telemann – Selections from Tafelmusik II

4. Strauss – Metamorphosen

Though I enjoyed all the pieces, I have to say the Haydn Symphony was probably my favorite. I’ve been exposed to so much classical music in my life (Hello, I’m a two-summer Interlochen brat, which equates to probably over 20 concerts per summer) and have always found myself enjoying Haydn’s pieces tremendously. Maybe he’s my favorite composer, who knows?

The Strauss piece that concluded the evening was for twenty three solo strings, and was intense. For twenty-six minutes, the string players performed their hearts out and the music was stirring. Did it seem out of place with the other three pieces performed that evening? Yes. Was it emotionally stirring? Absolutely.

If you live in Chicago, and haven’t yet been to the Symphony, I think it’s something you should try. It’s not particularly expensive (at least as far as downtown entertainment goes – I got two second-row seats for less than one Orchestra seat at Jersey Boys) and it’s a pleasure to be surrounded by audience members who get it. These kind people took to heart the whole “turn off your cell phones and don’t talk during the performance” thing, and I have to say I appreciated it. Orchestra Hall is also simply beautiful, and I doubt there’s a bad seat in the house.

And – interesting tidbit – there are free cough drops available all over the lobby for those patrons who feel a cough coming on. Who knew?

It’s a classy way to spend an evening. I’d love to go back. (And since they’re doing some free concerts in the spring as well as  a Beethoven fest in June, I likely will.)

Classical music, for the win!

Eric’s Birthday Weekend!

My sweet wonderful Eric is celebrating his birthday this weekend,

and our next 3 days are jam-packed with events..

We’re running an 8k, having dinner with friends at Texas de Brazil,

seeing a strange late-night show about David Bowie and Christmas (?)

and pretty much just making the most of the weekend.

…Including my birthday surprise to him,

which he remains in the dark about (Teehee) and will until Saturday evening.

I like surprises.

Hot Chocolate 5k recap…

I have run a fair amount of 5ks since I started running in summer of 2008, and I need to say right now that the Hot Chocolate 5k I ran this morning (and hauled my butt out of bed the morning after Halloween for, mind you) was the most disorganized race I’ve participated in.

It started a few weeks ago.

Bob had already signed up long before I did. When he convinced me to sign up, I went to the site and saw that the packet pick-up Bob had told me about was no longer listed on the website. They changed this key piece of info and hadn’t emailed the registered runners to let them know.

Whatever. Could have been a fluke, right?

Nope. 

First of all, we’re pretty sure they oversold the race, as the place was packed to the gills.  It took us 8 minutes from when the race began to actually cross the start line, which is not an altogether uncommon thing in a big race, but the race path was packed the entire 3.1 miles, and the course had some precarious turns, a stretch right along Montrose Harbor that could have easily ended with someone falling in the water, and I saw a guy in the last mile trying to pull his sneaker out of a hole it had gotten lodged in.

Regardless, I had a nice run – The weather was perfect and my admittedly nice race hoodie kept me the perfect temperature.

Then we finished the race, and immediately made our way to gear check.

Easily, we spent 20 minutes in the looping line for gear check before someone told us that runners with numbers of 15,000 and higher(Eric and I) could go to a new line.  So we did, and soon realized what all the hold-up was. The gear check people had essentially taken everyones bags and thrown them into a great big pile with no arrangement, so when it was time to collect the volunteers (god bless ‘em) were basically looking for a needle in a haystack. Once Eric and I got our stuff, we returned to where Bob, Gina, and Laura were still waiting to get theirs, and took it upon ourselves to inform all the new runners in line with numbers 15,000 or higher not even to bother with the line they were in.

Race times haven’t officially come in yet, but we’re nearly positive we spent more time in line at gear check than we did actually running.

(To put things in perspective, the 2009 Shamrock Shuffle has significantly more runners and we maybe spent a grand total of 3 minutes in line both checking and collecting our items pre and post race. And, you know, that was in a blizzard, so..)

While we waited in line, we heard people complaining that the free shuttles took forever to get to and from the race site, that the 5k finishers were walking in the path of the 15k runners, and that this race was WAY better organized in 2008. A girl told us that the company who put the race up this year was a brand new company, and you could tell.

So, finally, gear collected, we headed to the food tents. As this was the HOT CHOCOLATE 5K, sponsored in part by Hershey, all the press had promised TONS of chocolate. Not really. Though the chocolate fondue we recieved was great (if in small quantites) the Hot Chocolate itself was really bitter and gross. We threw it away.

UPDATE: According to this blog, they also ran out of chocolate.

(Thats another thing. 15,000 runners and there were maybe 4 trash cans on the entire site?)

Though we all ran well, and the day was lovely and it’s always nice to run with friends (Congrats Gina, on your first 5k – and doing awesome!), event organization kept it from being a really awesome experience.

I won’t be running this race again in 2010.  I’ll get on a treadmill and have a Snickers when I’m done, instead.

(Once again, I remain an ardent fan of Capri Events races..organized, accessible, easy-going, and safe courses. I’ll stick with them.)

Check out Bobs blog – chitheatreaddict.com – where he’s blogged an open letter to RAM Racing, and is recieving some interesting accounts from fellow runners.

Halloween (Cinderella’s Pumpkin Ball)

So, largely from laziness, I decided at the last minute NOT to kill Cinderella.

She attended the Halloween ball un-rotted, un-bloodied, and very much alive.

Vinyl Savants

To anyone that knows him, it’s clear that Eric collects Transformers. We’re talking an amazing collection that numbers in the thousands. I have been known, in my time, to have a few random action figures – usually (ok, always) the female of the series. (April O’Neil, Leia, Tila, Princess Peach, etc, etc, etc..)

So it should come as no surprise that we’ve started a wee collection of vinyl toys…

This, our pride and joy, is apparently Black Daruma, one of the rarest characters in the (we think now discontinued) Cannibal Funfair series.

This, my first vinyl, is Cloak – also of the Cannibal Funfair series.

Our other collectibles so far – Cactus Pups (now available in Borders, apparently), KidRobot, and Rolling Stock (the three animals in train cars.)

Well, if you’re into vinyl, one of the biggest names you’ll hear is Dunny. (See previous blog about rotofugi.) This very evening was the release of the 2009 Dunny series, and so we joined other vinyl-heads at rotofugi to celebrate and to get our hands on the new guys. These little guys, like many vinyls, come blindboxed so you don’t know until you open the box and the bag inside which character you’re getting.

Eric and I… got the exact same dudes. (See below) But it’s fine, because he’s adorable.

 

I also took a shot on a Dunny series 5, and got the above toy, which delighted me. As he is pink, and I like pink.

Eric initiated us into a whole new series – Heroes and Heartbreakers – with this little darling. Please note: the wheels on the skates DO move.

And, I have a brand new project – a do it yourself Munny. I’m not going to touch him until I have a really solid idea what I want to turn him into, but think of the possibilities…

It’s silly, but it’s fun. Everyone needs a hobby, right?

The Real Thing @ Saint Sebastian Players

When it comes to love – and to writing – what is real and true and worth sacrifice and struggle – and what is merely pretense?

That seems to be the central question of Tom Stoppard’s “The Real Thing” now being presented by Saint Sebastian Players through May 17, 2009.

Directed by John Oster, the delightful cast of “The Real Thing” moves through 11 scenes about relationships with lovers, spouses, children, co-stars, and the theatre at a fairly fast pace. The play is a little long – I question whether a scene involving Annie and Billy rehearsing “‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore” is necessary since we already know they’re sleeping together, and that they’re rehearsing for the piece together – but it’s full of Stoppard’s wit and charm, so it moves quickly, and the cast carries it along even in the slower parts on their capable shoulders.

Our central protgaonist is Henry, a writer obviously intended to stand in for Stoppard, played by Neal Tucker. Though obviously a little young to play the role, Tucker carries the show nobly.  It’s a challenge to be the hero of a show when one of the first things an audience learns about you is that you’re cheating on your wife, but Tucker is up to the task. Opposite him as Annie, the real love of his life, Stephanie Nelson is simply wonderful. (Margo commented as to how much like Nicole Kidman she was – and I agree.) She’s strong and more than a match for everyone she comes into contact with onstage.

Around Henry and Annie swirl the other inhabitants of the world of the play – Charlotte (played by Renae Stone), is Henry’s ex-wife and the mother of his daughter, Debbie (played by Sophie Amos).  Max (played by Eric S. Prahl), is Annie’s ex-husband and the star of Henry’s last show, House of Cards. Billy (Scott Edward Mills) is a young actor enamored of Annie, and Brodie (Andrew Strenk) is a political prisoner who has written a teleplay about his inprisonment that Henry is to fix.

Stone and Prahl have the really juicy roles – you wait for more Charlotte and Max (Max, sadly, only appears in the first three scenes – but Charlotte gets to come back later for another round with Henry.) Charlotte is the most likeable character in the show, funny and touching and flawed and human – while Max is the source of nearly all the big laughs in the first two scenes, whether performing in Henry’s play or enduring an awkward visit to Charlotte and Henry’s home.  Prahl melts down wonderfully as the moments tick by and the stress increases. You can practically hear taps playing as he leaves the scene.  Sophie Amos, a ringer for Deni Mazar, also perfectly nails her one scene as a daughter about to head out into the world on tour with her musician boyfriend (or, he plays a steam organ – whether or not thats music is debated.)

Oster’s actors are more than up to the task of tackling Stoppard, never the easiest playwright to take on. If only the technical aspects of the show were a little less raggedy, the whole thing would sparkle. As it is, the scene changes take a long time and are sporatically covered by music – or done in complete silence.

Other than technical befuddling, however, the show is funny and touching and thought-provoking. If you like Stoppard, see it.