M&M Awakening

I went to see "Spring Awakening" tonight. For the 13th time. I hadn't been since June, but the show is still in good shape. There were three non-original cast members in tonight (two official replacements, and one understudy). None were in particularly large roles, and while they took a while to get used to, they all did a fine job. Oh, and I spotted Michael Arden in the audience. *Start of sarcasm* Since he couldn't have just been going to see the show because he wanted to see it, I hearby start the (totally unfounded) rumor that he will take over when Jonathan Groff leaves the show. *end of sarcasm*

On my to the subway after the show, I stopped off at the Hershey store to see if they had any interesting new limited edition treats... because I love finding new candy. Nothing worth buying, so I headed over the M&M store and hit the mother load: five new limited edition flavors, unfortunately priced to put a big dent in my wallet at 1 bag for $6 or 3 for $15. So of course I bought six bags: two of the Mint Crisp (because I heart mint), then one each of the others.

In order of preference (from best to least best - because there was no "worst"), the flavors were:

MINT CRISP - Mmm... Chocolate mint with a crunch. These basically taste like those shiny, brightly colored balls of mint-chocolate you sometimes get when leaving restaurants. Except these have a delightful "crisp center" - so they have a nice added crunch. I'm not sorry I bought two bags of them.

CHERRY ALMONDINE - I'm a sucker for all things artifically cherry flavored. So these are almonds, wrapped in cherry flavored white chocolate. The almond and the cherry flavors make a slightly strange flavor combination at first, but then the artificial cherry goodness wins out on my tongue and I'm happy.

CREME D'ORANGE - Just oversized M&Ms with orange flavoring - well, technically milk chocolate surrounded by orange flavored white chocolate coating. Oh dear, these were originally in last place because when I first tasted them I thought they had a weird aftertaste. I've since changed my mind and so here they are at three. Orange M&Ms. Yum.

VANILLA CRISP - Another crispy one. Vanilla flavored milk chocolate wrapped around a crispy center. Sweet and vanilla and crunchy. The vanilla flavor seems maybe a little yogurty, in that these kind of remind me a little of yogurt covered raisins (which I admittedly haven't eaten in years because I hate raisins). Also very sweet, but easy to eat.

CAFE MOCHACCINO - Basically just coffee flavored over-sized M&Ms. I was expecting these to be sort of like chocolate espresso beans, but the coffee flavor is a bit sweet and a bit more artificial tasting. Still pretty yummy thought.

Okay, after tasting those five bags of M&Ms, I'm now sugared out for the night.

I don't know that I'd run back to buy more of these, considering the price, but if they were on sale I might consider them. I read on various candy blogs that Mars is going to be releasing the mint crisp M&Ms as a tie-in with the new Indiana Jones movie, so maybe when that happens I'll be able to buy more for less.

Now the big question is whether I keep these all to myself or I bring them to work tomorrow. I think I'm going to keep them all to myself. Bwahaha.

I just ate one last mint one to cleanse my palate after that last orange one, and that's it for the night, lest I get sick.

A Glorious Night at the Opera

I guess my clean slate from Yom Kippur must be working in my favor, because for the two days in a row afterwards, I've seen two spectacular productions in a row. Tonight was opening night at the Met - celebrated with their new production of "Lucia di Lammermoor," directed by Mary Zimmerman and starring Natalie Dessay. And every aspect of it is just absolutely brilliant. I think I saw the old Met production twice, and I don't remember really loving it either time. I mean, the Mad scene is always a showstopper, but the rest of it I think used to leave me a little cold. Well, not so in this new production that puts the THEATRE back into musical theatre. Thank goodness, this is not one of those bizarre anemic new productions that seem to en vogue nowadays. Visually at least, this is a fairly traditional looking production, with beautiful sets and gorgeous lighting. Thanks to Zimmerman's direction, there is very little of just plain old 'stand and sing' going on. I remember in the old Met production, at the end of Act II, all of the soloists would just stand at the edge of the stage and sing. Which was fine. But in this production, Zimmerman decides to make them sing while being posed for a wedding photo. A little gimmicky? Perhaps. But it's more fun to watch. I will say that the one time when Zimmerman's ADD staging may have gone a little too far was at the end of Act II, Scene I: she has the servants come on and start setting the stage for the second scene, while Lucia and Raimondo are still singing. The problem was that I was so interested in what the scene change that I forgot to pay attention to what they were singing. I was watching the servants fold some curtains, with some pretty music in the background, and then look down and see new Met titles to read. That was probably the only time it really bothered me, and the only quibble I had with the production. I'm certain purists would have many more complaints with Zimmerman's other daring departures, but I'm most certainly not a purist.
As for the performers, well Dessay was simply brilliant. Brilliant singing, brilliant acting. Just brilliant. The whole cast was really excellent, but my goodness that ovation after the Mad Scene just went on and on and on (as Lucia was slowly carried up the stairs...).
Ooh, and a special feature of this production is that the Met found someone to play a glass harmonica for the mad scene. It sounds sort of like a ghostly toy piano. Really chilling to listen to, and it added so much to the scene. I can't imagine a flute (apparently the usual substitute instrument) giving anywhere near the same effect.

Anyway, I think tickets are scarce for this production... and the reviews haven't even come out yet... so you may have to sell your second child (your first presumably already sold for a ticket to "Lear"), but it's worth it. First thing tomorrow, I'm going to figure go through and mark my calendar with dates that I can buy standing room to see this again.

What a way to start the season!

From the Ridiculous to the Sublime

As an offer of the proof that the quality of theatre is always a crapshoot: Look at the RSC's two productions currently running at BAM. Same director, same cast, two classic plays. One is misguided snooze, the other is a beg, borrow, cheat, steal, sell your first born for a ticket piece of brilliant theatre. The former is the "Seagull" that I previously talked about, the latter is the fab-fab-fab-fab-fabulous "King Lear" starring Ian McKellen. This is my fourth "King Lear" in three years or so (and if the play could take a break for a decade or two, I wouldn't complain) but it was by far the finest. There was not a weak link in the cast, and McKellen is... well, spectacular in the title role. I'm assuming "The Seagull" was an afterthought after "Lear" was cast, considering how perfect everyone was in their "Lear" roles and how imperfect most everyone was in their "Seagull" roles. Trevor Nunn does make some interesting choices that would probably bother Shakespeare purists (like a certain character receiving a hanging that may or may not be scripted, and the much publicized gratuitous(?) nudity from McKellen), but I am most certainly not a purist, and I loved every aspect of the staging. I am certainly one to take issue with shows that overstay their welcome (I recently saw "Stick Fly" at the McCarter and what might have made an enjoyable 90 minute play was stretched out to 2.5 long hours), though this ran close to four hours long, it was a pleasure to watch.
I don't know - I don't have anything critical to say here. The whole run is sold out and it looked like the cancellation line was starting early, but if you have the time to try for a ticket (I think it runs through Sept 30 at BAM, and before heading on to Minneapolis, LA and London), I think it's well worth your time.

Tomorrow is opening night at the Met. It's "Lucia" directed by Mary Zimmerman and starring Natalie Dessay. I have high hopes. Oh, and that reminds me - I'd better throw my "opera glasses" (aka binoculars) in my bag so I don't forget them tomorrow.

Dead Gull

In case you were concerned about what you were missing by not seeing one of the few performances of Ian McKellen is doing of Chekhov's "The Seagull," don't worry - you didn't miss anything. I imagine part of my disappointment was rooted in the fact that I saw that amazing (rumored to be Broadway bound) production with Kristin Scott Thomas at London's Royal Court Theatre in March, but this production was really just a snooze. It dragged on and on and ended up running close to 3 1/2 hours. McKellen and most of the supporting cast did a fine job, but the leads all seemed to just flounder. I really just didn't care at all about Konstantin and just couldn't wait for Konstantin to kill himself so the whole thing could be over - he was a bore to watch (no where near as interesting as Mackenzie Crook in that London production) and brought nothing interesting to the role.

I'm seeing McKellen's "King Lear" on Sunday. The reviews for that have been raves (as compared to the appropriately lousy reviews for "Seagull"), so I'm looking forward to it.

On a related note, is this the season of The Seagulls? We have this RSC production at BAM, then Classic Stage Co is doing a production in the Spring with Dianne Wiest, then there's the aforementioned rumored Broadway production with Kristin Scott Thomas, and the not so far away McCarter in Princeton is doing an adaptation by Emily Mann in May. How many productions of the play do we need? We may have had a plethora of high profile Lear's lately (Christopher Plummer, Alvin Epstein, Kevin Klein, Ian McKellen) but at least those were spread out over different seasons. Methinks producers need to start thinking outside of the box.

NYMF Days One and Two: I See London, I See Mullets

I will admit, "I See London, I See France (the underwear musical)" did not exactly get off to a good start. The opening number, which I assume was supposed to be funny, was met with totally blank stares from me and from what I could tell, most of the audience. I certainly didn't hear any laughter. Luckily, the show made a quick enough recovery with the very amusing "Smart Girls," and not to long after that an underwear model walked on stage... in his underwear, and all fears of a dull evening were happily giggled away. This show definitely falls solidly into the genre of mindlessly entertaining romantic musical comedy fluff. It reminded me a little of "I Love You Because," a show I had a big soft spot for and that played a far too short run off-Broadway couple of years ago. I will say that some of the book scenes did drag on for too long, but just when I was about to start deciding what I was going to buy at Whole Foods later that night, some fun song would come along and perk me right up again. Of course, because I was never bored long enough to make up a proper shopping list, I never did make it to Whole Foods, but I won't complain. I'd much rather watch an entertaining musical than go food shopping.
The musical score is pretty tuneful and fun - I was especially fond of the very amusing "Fluffy Rain" and the feel good title song that you leave the theatre humming (and also sort of makes you want to go straight to a travel agent to book your next vacation). I will say that when I listened to the four songs on the NYMF site this afternoon, I wasn't particularly impressed, but now having seen the show, I'm finding them much more enjoyable. I think I've played "I See London, I See France" at least five times already.
The cast all did a great job - with special notice going to the very talented and likeable Sandy Rustin, who played the lead role of Gina.
I could definitely see someone trying to produce this off-Broadway – probably at the cursed New World Stages. It would undoubtedly flop, as do all off-Broadway musicals nowadways. But think of the stunt casting potential for a commerical run – if porn star Ryan Idol can make his Broadway debut in “The Ritz,” whose to say other porn stars couldn’t be cast in the role of the underwear model? That should help get butts in seats...

Day Two brought “Bernice Bobs Her Mullet,” a musical probably most notable for marking the return to the stage of two very under-appreciated musical theatre actresses: Ann Morrison of the original cast of “Merrily We Roll Along” (Yes, she was just in “LoveMusik,” but I don’t think she actually had more than one or two lines in that – in this she’s a star) and Garrett Long, star of one of my favorite relatively unknown musicals “The Spitfire Grill.” The premise is cute enough - redneck mulleted hick goes to the big city to stay with her rich relatives; much bitchiness ensues - but even at only 90 minutes, the story seemed to be stretched too thin and I found myself losing interest around halfway through. I mean, there's one so much I can take of watching mean rich stuck-up white girls do their thing. I will say that I really enjoyed much of the score - there was some very catchy stuff in there, and though for some reason I left humming something from "Falsettos" (I forget exactly what song...), and I think I'll definitely keep a lookout for composer Joe Major's work in the future (his previous musical was "Poop the musical: The Life and Times of Thomas Crapper," which I seem to recall enjoying the musical clips from when they made the internet rounds a few years ago).

Fan Mail!!!

And I thought no one was ever going to read this stuff...

Well, I guess I should be checking the email address that I attached to this blog more often. Because when I checked it on a whim today, I found that a little less than a month ago, I was sent my very first piece of fan mail! What a wonder is this thing called the internet.

Well, it's not really fan mail in the traditional sense - more like a piece of hate mail. But hey, beggars can't be choosers. And so, for your reading pleasure (this assuming a second person stumbles upon this blog), the email:

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From:	Juliet Schaefer-Jeske
To:	cardamond@aol.com
Subject:	Princess Sunshine's BITTER Pill of Truth Funhouse
Date:	Tue, 21 Aug 2007 7:16 pm

So are you a member of the press? Did we give you a press pass? I don't think so. I guess you can blog all you want to as my show says, blog, blog, blog.

I think it is HYSTERICAL that you called my show BITTER when the word BITTER is in the title of the show. And yes, it is not an Avenue Q style show, why would I write something that is already out there? I am a children's performer for a living, and well that was my source of the BITTERNESS! I am also 34 years old, the humor is a little better suited to an older crowd, you might be older than me I don't know. But I am completely surprised by the people with grey hair laughing their asses off at my show. Who knew?

Seriously your quote is funny. My Bitter show is too Bitter!

We have gotten 5 amazing reviews from actual members of the press. And we have sold out every single night except for my opening! I don't even know that many people in New York, so its not my friends trust me.

offoffonline.com
nytheatre.com
lively-arts.com
edgenewyork.com
A thing called Clownlink.com
We even got a mention as a MUST see on the local NPR station

Backstage didn't really like it, but he mis-quoted my show on top of it. So if I were you instead of investing all of this time and energy into a blog, go out and produce a show! Find out how NOT easy it is. So I am terribly sorry if you don't get my humor, but plenty of other people are getting my humor, and we even have an offer to extend, although I don't know how we will deal with union. I don't want to do any scab work, so it may not happen.

As for the theatre being hot, yes it is, but there is nothing we can do about it. They added an air conditioner but if you think its hot in the audience try wearing a wig cap, wig, and hat with a wool costume, when I do Katrina Kremlin I nearly faint.

If you live in a glass house, don't throw stones. I do encourage everyone to put their own work out there, trust me it is NOT EASY!

Juliet Jeske
Princess Sunshine's BITTER Pill of Truth Funhouse!
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Margaret Garner

I went to the New York Premiere of "Margaret Garner" tonight at City Opera. They're doing a season long promotion where every Monday at 10am they sell "front orchestra" tickets for the week for $25 each. And obviously I couldn't resists. I don't know if the seats will be the same for all of the production, but they have me first row orchestra, just off center (so I wasn't blocked by the conductor). I think I would only do this for operas in English (and actually, the only other opera I was planning on seeing there is "Vanessa" which IS in English, lucky me...) because otherwise you'll probably get a stiff neck from trying to look up at the supertitles. Of course when opera singers sing in English, it's a crap shoot whether you'll actually be able to understand what they say - I found I looked at the supertitles every now and then, but I was able to get enough of the gist of the words to figure out what was going on.
Enough of that, on to the opera. I have to say this is an opera that is well suited to first row viewing. The performers all sang AND acted beautifully throughout. Sitting in the heavens, you can't really tell what sort if anyone is acting, but up close there's no hiding. As for the music, surprise surprise - it's a modern opera with accessible, melodic, tonal music. I didn't think they wrote those anymore. In fact, I could almost imagine that if they cut down on the size of the chorus, and re-cast it with Broadway instead of opera singers, it could actually work on Broadway. When "An American Tragedy" premiered at the Met, the critics all complained that it was 'too Broadway.' I think that means it's too audience friendly and isn't only accessible to those with doctorates in Music. I expect similar criticism here.
The big downfall of the opera, is its absolutely abysmal libretto by Toni Morrison. Maybe this would have worked as a novel... oh wait, it did... "Beloved." Well, actually this was the true story that inspired "Beloved," but close enough. Basically, Margaret Garner was a slave who escaped and when she was re-captured, murdered her children so they wouldn't have to go back into slavery. Then she was prosecuted for theft, instead of murder because her children were considered property and not human. Sounds like juicy tear jerking material for an opera, no? Well, maybe in more capable hands, but this libretto has just far too many scenes that are either totally unnecessary (for example, the entire first act) or just drag on for far too long. And then there are the lyrics that I guess, because they are 'poetry,' don't need to make sense. Like in the trial scenes, when Margaret sings something like "You have no authority over me. You are you and I am me." (that's not exact, but it's pretty close). Um, that makes sense, how? It's strange, but the scenes that I would have though would have been the most interesting - the murder and the trial/hanging were some of the least interesting. Totally random scenes would be so well acted and musically gorgeous that they would be riveting, and others that should have easily worked, totally flopped. And then there was the whole ended, which was totally misconceived, not just from Ms. Morrison but from the creative team as well. Margaret Garner is about to be hanged, she steps away from the gallows to sing an aria, as she's singing the noose goes down through the floor, and the after she finishes singing, up pops a dummy Margaret Garner. Oh so corny, oh so unintentionally funny, and of so ill-conceived. I mean, I understand that they wanted her ghost to be able to walk through the crowd, but hanging dummies is not just a crime dummy-kind, but a crime against the audience. And then for some bizarre reason, the whole chorus - both whites and blacks - sing about how they're sad she's dead. Um... don't the whites not really care that she died other than that she was lost money? I don't buy it. The little things do count too, you know.
So basically, I would probably pick up a copy of the recording (preferably highlights) should it every be released because I really did like the music, but as an opera it really doesn't work. Then again, if you have free time and can snag a front row seat, there is some first-class acting going on onstage, and there are some really moving moments. But I know no one ever has any free time, so there you go.