• “Samba Triste,” performed by a young Baden Powell.
• Karen Russell’s “Vampires In The Lemon Grove“: Originally appeared in Zoetrope and is included in Best American Short Stories 2008, edited by Salman Rushdie. Worth searching out.
• Two nonfiction books: Rebecca Solnit’s history of walking, Wanderlust, and Sarah Hrdy’s Mother Nature: Maternal Instincts and How They Shape the Human Species, the latter recommended by Steph. Neither are about topics I’d have thought I’d find interesting — and yet they’re both fascinating. Both definitely of the fox, not hedgehog school.
• Summer Will Show, of course.
• Werner Herzog: My new thing is to watch a Herzog double feature on the weekends, Werner Herzog Sundays!, a ritual I plan to keep up for at least a few more weeks. The first weekend was My Best Fiend: Klaus Kinski and Grizzly Man, which worked well back to back as character studies. Next were the Les Blank-directed documentaries about Herzog: Burden of Dreams and Werner Herzog Eats His Shoe. I’ll be away this weekend, but the one after will be Fitzcarraldo and I don’t know what. Maybe filling out an application for Herzog’s Rogue Film School.
Archives for October 1, 2009
THE GREATER OF TWO LOESSERS
“Frank Loesser’s standing as a giant of American popular song would be secure even if he had written nothing but Guys and Dolls, one of a handful of postwar musicals to have received three Broadway revivals, the second of which ran almost as long as the original production. It is the quintessential Broadway show, a vade mecum of theatrical craft–and the long road that led Loesser to its opening night is in some ways as interesting as the show itself…”
TT: So you want to see a show?
Here’s my list of recommended Broadway, off-Broadway, and out-of-town shows, updated weekly. In all cases, I gave these shows favorable reviews (if sometimes qualifiedly so) in The Wall Street Journal when they opened. For more information, click on the title.
Warning: Broadway shows marked with an asterisk were sold out, or nearly so, last week.
BROADWAY:
• Alfred Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps (comedy, G, suitable for bright children, closes Jan. 10, reviewed here)
• God of Carnage * (serious comedy, PG-13, adult subject matter, closes Jan. 3, reviewed here)
• South Pacific (musical, G/PG-13, some sexual content, brilliantly staged but unsuitable for viewers acutely allergic to preachiness, reviewed here)
OFF BROADWAY:
• The Fantasticks (musical, G, suitable for children capable of enjoying a love story, reviewed here)
• Our Town (drama, G, suitable for mature children, reviewed here)
IN ASHLAND, OREGON:
• The Music Man (musical, G, very child-friendly, closes Nov. 1, reviewed here)
IN STRATFORD, ONTARIO:
• The Importance of Being Earnest (comedy, G, closes Oct. 30, reviewed here)
CLOSING SOON IN CHICAGO:
• The History Boys (drama, PG-13/R, adult subject matter, too intellectually complex for most adolescents, closes Oct. 18, reviewed here)
CLOSING SOON IN SPRING GREEN, WIS:
• Long Day’s Journey into Night (drama, PG-13, adult subject matter, too long and demanding for some adolescents, closes Oct. 18, reviewed here)
CLOSING NEXT WEEK IN PROVIDENCE, R.I..:
• Cabaret (musical, PG-13, closes Oct. 11, reviewed here)
CLOSING FRIDAY IN SPRING GREEN, WIS.:
• Henry V (Shakespeare, G, reviewed here)
CLOSING SATURDAY IN STRATFORD, ONTARIO:
• Three Sisters (drama, PG-13, reviewed here)
CLOSING SUNDAY IN ARLINGTON, VA.:
• Dirty Blonde (serious comedy, PG-13, adult subject matter, reviewed here)
CLOSING SUNDAY IN ST. LOUIS, MO.:
• Amadeus (drama, PG-13, reviewed here)
TT: Almanac
“When I hear music, I fear no danger. I am invulnerable. I see no foe. I am related to the earliest times, and to the latest.”
Henry David Thoreau, journal entry, Jan. 13, 1857