Monday, November 5, 2012

OperaDelaware Opens Cavalleria Rusticana and I Pagliacci

Ruggiero Leoncavallo
Pietro Mascagni
Brendan Cooke has every right to be proud of his first production with OperaDelaware. Making your debut after a hurricane pummels through the neighborhood, disrupting practice and work is a challenge, but Cooke and his team did a great job. The set seemed just like a small Sicilian village and worked quite well visually, but how people walked on that slant and set up chairs on it is a mystery.

The set worked beautifully for the opening of Cavalleria Rusticana (Pietro Mascgani), with Lola and Turiddu ending their tryst upstage not seeing Santuzza downstage taking in the whole affair. Kara Shay Thomson as Santuzza has a very strong and expressive soprano voice. Her duets with both Turridu (John Pickle) and Alfio (José Sacin) showed the strength of all three singers who were easily able to be heard above the full orchestra. The flute, harp and horn accompaniments were delicate and beautifully executed.

As I Pagliacci begins, the four actors are on the apron while behind them, the inhabitants of the town freeze in position and are absolutely stock still while Tonio tells them about the show they will see in the evening. Not a hair moved and several players froze with legs in mid-swing and hands raised.

John Pickle was able to be a gentle and fickle lover in Cavalleria and changed to a violently jealous husband in I Pagliacci. His extremely dramatic and strong Pagliaccio non sono was where he gave his most compelling and gripping performance. And perhaps because of the complex texture of the Leoncavallo score to I Pagliacci the orchestra seemed to be more dramatic as well. Mark Ward played several soaring cello solos – especially for Pagliaccio’s forget all else. And the bassoon solos were smooth and haunting.

Susan Nelson as Nedda had the kind of voice and acting that had you glued to her. Her ability to sing the high notes and phrase beautifully were matched by her ability to sing no matter whether she was fighting, jumping or sprawled in her lover’s lap.

The orchestra played such a moving entreacte in I Pagliacci that the audience sighed when the curtain re-opened. But as the play within the play began, the trumpet (Frank Ferraro) solo was just terrific. Rong Tan played harp throughout each opera with intensely melodic phrasing and subtle shading.

This is a great production and well worth seeing. The next performances are Friday, November 9 and Saturday, November 10.

See www.operade.org


Thursday, November 1, 2012

Visit "The Boys Next Door" at the Wilmington Drama League


Pictured: Alan Harbaugh, Shawn Kline, and Tom Hartzell
The second production of the Wilmington Drama League’s (WDL) 2012 – 13 season is Tom Griffin’s The Boys Next Door. The play, set in the late 1980s, perfectly captures the treatment of people living with a mental challenge and/or living with a mental illness. Deb Johnson successfully directs this piece that could easily offend, or be considered un-PC. She does a great job handling a delicate topic, making sure her cast gives full respect to their characters, never letting them become caricatures.

The play, primarily set in a group home where four men (Arnold, Lucien and Norman, who are mentally challenged and Barry, who is living in recovery with mental illness) reside. Each man is contending with a crisis: Arnold (Eric Merlino), the nervous do-gooder is being taken advantage of by his co-workers at the local movie theater; Norman (Shawn Kline), the happy-go-lucky donut shop worker who has been gaining weight since he developed an insatiable craving for the circular cakes and is also sorting through his developing feelings for Sheila (Tina M. Sheing), who is also mentally challenged; Lucien (Alan Harbaugh), the sweetheart of the group is preparing to go before a government panel to defend his need for social security benefits; and Barry (Edward Stein), the most competent one of the group is anticipating his abusive father’s (Robert Touhey) visit. Assisting these men is a social worker, Jack (Tom Hartzell), who is contemplating a job change.

The play is like watching a week in the life of these characters. A chance to see how individuals who are living with mental challenges and mental illnesses have a longing to connect with others and be part of the community, just like everyone else.

Each actor gives a compelling performance. Mr. Kline and Ms. Sheing’s scenes together are touching. It’s sweet to watch these two actors interact and convey the feelings of falling in love. The scene between Mr. Stein and Mr. Touhey is gritty and raw. Effortlessly, the actors create an intense scene between an ill son and a father who resorts to abuse because he is unable to relate to his own son.

Mr. Harbaugh’s performance as Lucien is a standout. His tone and movement are flawless. He was so convincing that at times I forgot he was an actor playing a part; I wanted to help him along his journey.

Although the play tackles serious topics, for the most part it does it with humor and warmth. It moves like a TV sitcom - a series of vignettes shifting from one character’s situation to another.

See The Boys Next Door now through November 4, at WDL. For tickets, visit wilmingtondramaleague.org or call 302.764.1172.

Friday, October 26, 2012

100 Artists for 100 Years


Mediation 38-Healing Energy (detail)
Kentmere Parkway was abuzz last Friday night, lined with cars and people heading toward the glow of the Delaware Art Museum.  Once hubby & I were inside, we were impressed not only by the large-scale installation greeting us on the entryway wall (part of the exhibition), but also the timeline running along the hallway to the Copeland Gallery.  The dual timeline denoted highlights in the century-long history of the Museum as well as pop culture points of interest, such as the moon landing, the first test-tube baby, the death of Andy Warhol, divided by decade “lumps”.  Patrons were encouraged to post their own memories on the wall with sticky notes.  There were plenty of interesting observations, “love notes,” even intricate doodles, provided from art lovers from every age.

The Centennial Juried Exhibition features a variety of media—drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, video, and installation—and includes artists living either in Delaware or within 100 miles of the Museum.  The exhibition was guest-juried by John B. Ravenal, the Sydney and Frances Lewis Family Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, and it is available for viewing now through January 2013.

Cauda Equina (detail)
In January 2012, the Museum launched a call for artist entries and received nearly 450 applications of nearly 1,300 artworks by the March 2012 deadline. Twenty Delaware artists, including Michael Kaklmbach, Kevin Bielicki and Ken Mabrey, were in the mix along with artists from Maryland, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.  All totaled, 96 works were selected for mounting from close to 100 artists.  Many of the artists were on hand during the evening, and patrons were eagerly chatting each of them up and taking photos with them and their work.

Some of my favorite pieces, in no particular order:
• Meditation 38-Healing Energy, 2009 — Donna Usher
• Political Climates: Delaware, 2011 — Michael Kalmbach
• Venation (Rubber), 2011 — Wendy Ellen Wilkinson Gordon
• Cauda Equina, 2007 — Keith W. Bentley
• Into the Fold, 2011 — Delainey Barclay

It’s an amazing exhibit that shows us precisely what kinds of talent surrounds us in our 100-mile radius and throughout the 100-year history of one of Delaware’s greatest treasures.

See www.delart.org.