Thursday, December 30, 2010

Bright Lights, Big City

Who: The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra
What: City Lights
Where: Powell Symphony Hall, St. Louis
When: December 29 and 30, 2010

Referring to the ambiguous final frames of Charlie Chaplin's romantic comedy City Lights (Will the Blind Girl still love The Tramp now that her sight has been restored and she can see he's not the gentleman she thought him to be?), film archivist Reg Hartt noted "roughly 20% of every audience I have ever shown the film to needs to be left alone for about fifteen minutes when the picture ends." The enthusiastic applause that followed the movie and the orchestra's flawless live performance of the score made that kind of contemplation impractical at the time, but on the drive home it was possible to reflect on just how anarchically funny and oddly touching Chaplin's masterpiece still is nearly 80 years after its premiere.

Although talkies were already the rage by 1931, Chaplin kept City Lights voice free, convinced that The Tramp would be more of a universal character if he didn't speak. There's a soundtrack with music and synchronized sound effects—including one brilliant scene involving a swallowed whistle and a pack of dogs—but dialogue is still shown with silent film intertitles. It was a smart choice; without extraneous chat, Chaplin's brilliantly choreographed physical comedy takes center stage. The famous boxing sequence, in which Chaplin dances around Eddie Baker's hapless Referee in an effort to avoid Hank Mann's formidable Prizefighter, is just one of a sequence of comic set pieces that are so hilarious because they are so precise.

In classic auteur fashion, Chaplin produced, wrote, directed, and (for the first time) composed the music for City Lights. By contemporary standards the score is a bit lightweight, repeating a relatively small set of themes with little elaboration, but it serves the film extraordinarily well. Ever the perfectionist, Chaplin labored long and hard over very page. The finished product, in a 2004 performing edition by Timothy Brock, integrates so seamlessly with the on-screen action that, as Brock observed, spoken dialogue "would not only be repetitive but it would be counterproductive".

Performing a live score in synch with a film requires a degree of precision and attention to detail that Chaplin would have understood and which David Robertson and the St. Louis Symphony possess in abundance. The comedic moments were appropriately rambunctious, while the sentimental scenes—usually accompanied by a string quartet—were utterly charming. The whole experience was, in short, an aural and visual delight.

There's something oddly comforting in the realization that a film made so many decades ago can still enchant and entertain an audience in the Internet Age. St. Louisans have one more chance to experience that enchantment on Thursday, December 30th, at 7:30 PM. As a late holiday treat, it's hard to beat. City Lights runs just under 90 minutes and it's family friendly in the best sense of the term in that both kids and adults will find it entertaining. You can even bring your popcorn and drinks into the hall. For more information, call the box office at 314-534-1700 or visit the web site at stlsymphony.org.

Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Car Talk

Recently on the local theatre email lists there came a pause in the day’s preoccupation with the Kevin Kline Awards to inquire about a bumper sticker seen on many cars at theatrical performances.

Now I don’t have much use for bumper stickers as a tool of persuasion. Do any of you good folks really believe, for example, that the driver doing the Creepy Crawl behind you on I-64 is going to vote yes or no on Proposition Whatever based on the one-line call to action on the rear end of your vehicle? If so, I’ve got the bridge in New York I’d love to sell you, along with several shares in the Beefsteak Mines.

For this bumper sticker, however, I’ll make an exception. It broadcasts a call to action that I can really get behind. It’s the work of local actor and independent businessman Greg Johnston and it consists of four simple words: “Go see a play”.

Now I’ll grant you that, as an actor and theatre/music critic, I’m not entirely a neutral party here. But the fact is that going to see a play – any play, by any company in any theatre – produces benefits that go far beyond simply making the performers feel that all their work was not in vain.

To begin with, the vast majority of the plays (musical or non) on St. Louis stages are entirely local productions. The actors, techies, and backstage support folks are mostly your neighbors and – considering how difficult it is to make a living from acting here in Mound City – probably your co-workers as well.

There’s also a significant economic “ripple effect”, as anyone who has ever tried to get a table at Cyrano’s after a Repertory Theater of St. Louis performance can attest. Restaurants and bars near a theatre almost always see a spike in attendance before and after the show. Add in the other stuff a theatre company has to buy locally – props, costumes, set building materials, office supplies and the like – and the impact can be significant.

Money matters aside, though, the best reason you should go see a play is that there’s nothing quite as compelling as seeing and hearing real, live, non-virtual people on stage. When it’s live and in person, comedy is more hilarious, drama is more gripping, and musical theatre has a visceral impact that the best multi-channel sound system can’t quite deliver. It’s in 3D and you don’t need special glasses.

It won’t cost you an arm, leg, or other bodily appendage, either. While a prime seat for the latest Broadway hit at the Fox might set you back a pretty (or even homely) penny, the prices at the vast majority of local live theatres are closer to those at the local googleplex cinema, and the sound is a heck of a lot better.

Of course, you don’t have to take my word for this. You can check it out yourself. Take a look at my St. Louis Theatre Calendar at calendar.stageleft.org or on this here blog to see what I mean. Or check out the Regional Arts Commission’s searchable calendar at artszipper.com. “Life upon the wicked stage” (to quote Mr. Kern’s Showboat) is alive and well in St. Louis.

So turn off your TV, shut down your PC, and go out and see a play. You’ll have a great time. And you might even be able to get one of those cool bumper stickers.

Sunday, December 26, 2010

St. Louis theatre calendar for the week of December 27, 2010

[Updated Thursday, December 30, 2010]

[Looking for auditions and other artistic opportunities? Check out the St. Louis Auditions site.]

I'm now adding my own purely personal comments to events about which I think I have anything worthwhile to say. Because that's what bloggers do.

Everydaycircus Inc. performs shows hourly from 11 AM to 4 PM each weekend at City Museum, 701 N. 15th St. Shows are FREE with regular museum admission. (645-4445 or 231-CITY).

First Night, Grand Center's annual New Year's Eve celebration of the performing and visual arts, starts at 6 PM on Friday, December 31. In keeping with this year's theme, Fasta-sea, Grand Boulevard will be illuminated and animated in a colorful display of blue and green "aquarium" lights and projections. More than 150 performing and visual artists will participate, including magician Justin Kredible, storyteller Bobby Norfolk, and performers from The Imaginary Theatre Company, The Improv Trick, Upstream Theater, as well as cabaret artists Joe Dreyer and Rosemary Watts. The evening concludes with a fireworks display at midnight.  For more information, visit www.grandcenter.org/firstnight/

David Robertson
The St. Louis Symphony, conducted by David Robertson presents a New Year's Eve Concert on Friday, December 31, at 7:30 PM at Powell Symphony Hall, 718 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, call 314-534-1700.  This is usually a very festive event which, according to the SLSO web site, will be "full of musical surprises".   One item you won't want to be surprised by: Grand will be closed from Lindell  to Delmar for First Night  (see above). The Veterans Administration parking lot across Delmar and the lot accessible from Samuel Shepard Drive are reserved for SLSO concertgoers at $10 per vehicle.  You'll need to present your concert tickets for admission into the lot.  You might want to arrive early and check out some First Night events before and/or after the concert.

Friday, December 24, 2010

Deck Us All

'Tis the season for joy and foolishness.  In that spirit, here are all the known verses of Walt Kelly's famous holiday carol, "Deck Us All With Boston Charlie", as published at pogopossum.com. Merry cripsness to all!

The cover of
Deck Us All With Boston Charlie
Simon and Schuster, 1963
First verse:

Deck us all with Boston Charlie,
Walla Walla, Wash., an' Kalamazoo!
Nora's freezin' on the trolley,
Swaller dollar cauliflower alley-garoo!

Don't we know archaic barrel,
Lullaby Lilla boy, Louisville Lou?
Trolley Molly don't love Harold,
Boola boola Pensacoola hullabaloo!


Second verse:

Bark us all bow-wows of folly,
Polly wolly cracker n' too-da-loo!
Hunky Dory's pop is lolly gaggin' on the wagon,
Willy, folly go through!

Donkey Bonny brays a carol,
Antelope Cantaloup, 'lope with you!
Chollie's collie barks at Barrow,
Harum scarum five alarum bung-a-loo!


Third verse:

Duck us all in bowls of barley,
Hinky dinky dink an' Polly Voo!
Chilly Filly's name is Chollie,
Chollie Filly's jolly chilly view halloo!

Bark us all bow-wows of folly,
Double-bubble, toyland trouble! Woof, Woof, Woof!
Tizzy seas on melon collie!
Dibble-dabble, scribble-scrabble! Goof, Goof, Goof!


Third and on-half verse:

Tickle salty boss anchovie
Wash a wash a wall Anna Kangaroo
Ducky allus bows to Polly,
Prolly Wally would but har'ly do!

Dock us all a bowsprit, Solly --
Golly, Solly's cold and so's ol' Lou!

A Major Award

[Amidst the brouhaha over the Kevin Kline Awards discussed in my last post, some welcome jocularity from A Major Player in the local cabaret scene.  Tim Schall originally posted this to some local theatre email lists.  I'm publishing it here with his permission.]
New St. Louis Awards for Cabaret Performers Announced
A Major Award
St. Louis Area Cabaret Awards, a.k.a. “The SLACAs” (please don’t pronounce it “the slackers” - we will be offended), light up the St. Louis arts scene. New eligibility criteria for 2011:
  • A performer must do at least one public performance of a minimum of 45 minutes in length, and not to exceed 2.5 hours. If performance exceeds 2.5 hours, for god sake, include an intermission so people can pee.
  • Total audience attendance must be a minimum of 5 paying customers (not to include the comps you gave to your family, friends and some recent trick you picked up)
  • Performer must sing at least 2 songs by Cole Porter, one of which must include the “lost lyrics” recently discovered in a trunk in a warehouse in Secaucus, New Jersey.
  • You must say witty, enlightening facts about songs, composers and famous performers and make it look like you didn’t just lift them from a Michael Feinstein DVD.
  • You must pay your light/sound person at least 4 times what you make in profit
  • Eligible venues include The Kranzberg, The Bistro and any church basement that doesn’t smell too musty.
  • Your “thank yous” at the end of the show, must be at least as long as your first two numbers and include the maintenance staff and ladies in the kitchen (if applicable).
Tim Schall, often accused of jump-starting the local cabaret movement, says, “I have been a SLACA all my life and maybe, just maybe, now I can be publicly recognized for the consummate (or is that ‘consummated?’) SLACA that I truly am! A great day has come to St. Louis!”

Dates for the first SLACA ceremony to be announced in 2011.

Please note: None of the above is true...well, mostly not true.

Monday, December 20, 2010

De-Kline and Fall

http://www.cafepress.com/dd/18488257

Those of you active in the St. Louis theatre scene are probably aware of a recent dustup with the Professional Theatre Award Council (PTAC), a local non-profit formed in 2004 “to promote and celebrate excellence in St. Louis professional theatre”. It has done this primarily by mounting a local theatre awards show, The Kevin Kline Awards, a fact reflected in the domain name of the PTAC web site, kevinklineawards.org.

The dustup is the result of new changes in PTAC membership requirements. You can find the details in what strikes me as a very fair-minded article on the subject at the St. Louis Post Dispatch web site, but the essence of the new requirements is that companies are expected to pay more - in some cases quite a bit more - to actors, designers, and (especially) directors if they wish to remain members.

The dollar amounts aren't large on an absolute scale, but for many small groups operating on shoestring budgets and without well-heeled board members and/or the institutional connections that bring large corps of volunteers and interns, they're prohibitive.

To me, the biggest problem with PTAC is that there appears to be a disconnect between its mission statement (as quoted above) and the actual administration of the organization. Over the years, the awards ceremony and the associated infrastructure of judging and voting have become the nearly exclusive focus of the group. Direct promotion of local theatre has rather fallen by the wayside.

This isn't unique to them, of course. Many non-profits, in my experience, tend to experience a kind of reverse mission creep (call it "mission drift", if you will) in which the organization slowly loses touch with its original goals.

That's not necessarily bad as long as the mission statement and the actual behavior are brought into congruence. Maybe PTAC just needs to rewrite that statement to redefine itself as an organization for the advancement of professional theatre as defined by pay scales and/or Equity membership.  Should they continue to exist the KK awards might then, with some tinkering, become a way to acknowledge the work of local union actors and designers.

None of that would raise awareness of theatre in St. Louis or attract audiences who aren't already regulars at local theatres, but maybe another organization could be formed (or an existing one expanded) to accomplish that. That organization could concentrate on ways to expand the audience for live theatre (Equity or otherwise) with media buys, community outreach programs, and the like. Companies could pool their expertise and look for ways to help each other and theatre in general.

It's worth a try, I would think.  Pretty much every live theatre company in town wants to put more butts in seats, and I think we stand a better chance of accomplishing that if we all work together.  This is one of those cases where a rising tide really would lift all boats.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

The St. Louis theatre calendar for the week of December 20, 2010

[Updated Thursday, December 23, 2010]

[Looking for auditions and other artistic opportunities? Check out the St. Louis Auditions site.]

I'm now adding my own purely personal comments to events about which I think I have anything worthwhile to say. Because that's what bloggers do.

Holidaze
The Fox Theatre presents Cirque Dreams Holidaze, a circus-based holiday musical, December 21 through 29. The Fox is at 527 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, call 314-534-1678. Don't be misled by the title, by the way. Florida-based franchise Cirque Dreams has no connection with Cirque de Soleil. Reviewing their Jungle Fantasy show last year, I described it as (to paraphrase J. Michael Straczynski) little more than Cirque du Soleil with the serial numbers filed off. Your mileage may vary.

Everydaycircus Inc. performs shows hourly from 11 AM to 4 PM each weekend at City Museum, 701 N. 15th St. Shows are FREE with regular museum admission. (645-4445 or 231-CITY).

"Last of the Red Hot Mamas";
photo by John Lamb
New Jewish Theatre presents The Last Of The Red Hot Mamas, based on the life of Sophie Tucker, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 PM, Saturdays at 8 PM, and Sundays at 2 and 7:30 PM through December 26. Performances take place at the Marvin and Harlene Wool Studio Theatre at the JCCA, 2 Millstone Campus Drive. For more information, call 314-442-3283. I just got back from seeing this and all I can say is: wow. Just wow. OK, I can also say congratulations to Christy Simmons for a spectacular performance in an incredibly demanding role as Sophie and also to every other member of this terrific cast. And what great songs! I thought I knew this period well but there were numbers here that were new to me. I love it when that happens.

"Over the Tavern"
© Photo by Jerry Naunheim Jr.
The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents the comedy Over the Tavern Tuesdays through Sundays through December 26. Performances take place at the Loretto-Hlton Center, 130 Edgar Road in Webster Groves, MO. For more information, call 314-968-4925. The show boats a terriffic cast. The script's darker corners reminded me of why the Catholic Church and I parted company decades ago, but given the excessive doses of sugar in most staged holiday treats, I find the twist of lemon in Dudzick's script to be welcome.

Ghost Writer

Say what you will about Facebook, there are times when it’s extraordinarily useful. If it weren’t for Mark Zuckerberg’s mammoth marketing machine, for example, I might never have found out about a recent Vanity Fair article by Teller (of Penn and…) about the late Harry Houdini. The piece made me sigh and wish that Harry Houdini had not died so young.

During his brief life – he died on Halloween, 1926, at the age of 52 – Houdini was many things: magician, historian, aviator and even (according to a recent biography by William Kalush and Larry Sloman), spy. Uncritical reports of hauntings, however, inevitably call to my mind the role that consumed most of his final decade: debunker of phony Spiritualist mediums.

An ostensibly Christian religious movement whose practitioners claimed the ability to communicate with the deceased and to act as living bridges between this world and The Other Side (usually for a price), Spiritualism included, by the 1920s, many of the rich and famous in its ranks. Séances, it was said, were even taking place in the Coolidge White House.

Against such formidable enemies, Houdini brought his legendary pugnacity, a fortune of his own, and an encyclopedic knowledge of all forms of illusion and deception. Try as they might, mediums generally discovered that when Houdini was in charge of the séance, the spirit voices, tapping tables, and ectoplasm were suddenly in short supply. Houdini relentlessly exposed their tricks on stage and, finally, in hearings before the US Congress.

Alas, it was a losing battle. The drain on his finances and health eventually became too much. Following assaults backstage at the Princess Theatre and again later in his hotel lobby by men who may or may not have been Spiritualist agents, Houdini suffered a ruptured appendix and died.

Today, Spiritualism is almost as dead as Houdini, but many its hustles and frauds have been picked up by mainstream culture. From the Psychic Friends Network to SciFi Channel’s Ghost Hunters to James Van Praagh and his fellow “ghost whisperers”, popular media seem chockablock with the same purveyors of the preternatural against whom Houdini fought so valiantly. The words may change, but the melody – or is that malady? – remains the same.

Really, you’d think we’d know better by now. It’s not like we don’t have contemporary hoax busters – the aforementioned Penn and Teller come immediately to mind, as does James Randi. Maybe the problem is that they’re just not as charismatic as Houdini was. Maybe we’re just not paying that much attention because having conversations with the loquacious deceased is no longer the idiocy of choice amongst the Rich and Infamous, its place having been taken by making pornographic videos or starting wars, as the case may be.

Or maybe our scientific illiteracy has reached the point where we can no longer tell fact from fiction or understand the difference between that which is strongly believed vs. that which can be empirically verified. If so, it does not bode well for our survival as a species. Many challenges await us, and we’ll need all the reason and real world knowledge we can summon to meet them.

Where’s Houdini when we really need him?

Sunday, December 12, 2010

The St. Louis theatre calendar for the week of December 13, 2010

Updated Wednesday, December 15, 2010

[Looking for auditions and other artistic opportunities? Check out the St. Louis Auditions site.]

I'm now adding my own purely personal comments to events about which I think I have anything worthwhile to say. Because that's what bloggers do.

"As Bees in Honey Drown";
photo by Johh Lamb
Stray Dog Theatre presents the satirical As Bees In Honey Drown Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 PM through December 18. There will be a matinee on the closing Saturday at 2 PM in addition to the evening show. Performances take place at The Tower Grove Abbey, 2336 Tennessee. For more information, call 314-865-1995.

Echo Theatre Company presents the St. Louis premiere of the comedy Crumble (Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake) Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 7 PM, through December 19. Performances take place in Theatre 134 in the ArtSpace at Crestwood Court, 134 Crestwood Plaza. For more information, call 314-225-4329.

Bobby Norfolk
Beverly Brennan
Jim Dolan and Beverly Brennan present A Double Header, a program of two one-person shows, on Sunday, December 19, at 3 PM. The shows are Shadowball: The Negro Baseball Leagues, starring Bobby Norfolk and St. Louie Woman, starring singer and pianist Beverly Brennan. The performances take place at The Kranzberg Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, call 314-968-2606 or 314-614-9880.  Beverly is a veteran of the theatre and cabaret scene locally, and as the daughter of famed baseball announcer Jack Buck I would think she has a natural affinity for the stories Mr. Norfolk will be telling.  Jim Dolan, as most of you will know, is the man behind The Presenters Dolan and a major force in the exploding cabaret scene here in St. Louis.

Everydaycircus Inc. performs shows hourly from 11 AM to 4 PM each weekend at City Museum, 701 N. 15th St. Shows are FREE with regular museum admission. (645-4445 or 231-CITY).

The Improv Trick presents A Festivus Carol: O Come All Ye Playful Friday and Saturday at 7:30 and 10 PM, December 17 and 18. Performances take place at the Ivory Theatre, 7620 Michigan. For more information, call 314-631-8330.

Black Cat Theatre presents A Holiday Cabaret Thursday through Sunday, December 16 through 19. Performers include The Dave Venn Quartet, Nancy Kranzberg, and Joe Dreyer and Rosemary Watts. For more information, visit blackcattheatre.org.

"Last of the Red Hot Mamas";
photo by John Lamb
New Jewish Theatre presents The Last Of The Red Hot Mamas, based on the life of Sophie Tucker, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 PM, Saturdays at 8 PM, and Sundays at 2 and 7:30 PM through December 26. Performances take place at the Marvin and Harlene Wool Studio Theatre at the JCCA, 2 Millstone Campus Drive. For more information, call 314-442-3283. I haven't seen the show yet (I have tickets for the final week - everything earlier is sold out), but this is right up my alley musically. Besides, I've done shows with both Christy Simmons and Johanna Elkana-Hale (who play two of the three incarnations of Tucker in the show) and I know they're darned talented ladies.

"The Nutcracker"
© Photo by Eric Woolsey

The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis's Imaginary Theatre Company presents a new musical adaptation of The Nutcracker Saturday, Monday and Tuesday at 11 AM and 2 PM, December 18, 20, and 21. The show features music and lyrics by Neal Richardson of the Webster Conservatory faculty. Performances take place in the Heagney Theatre at_ Nerinx Hall High School, just behind the Rep in Webster Groves. For more information, call 314-968-4925. ITC has been a purveyor of quality children's theatre in St. Louis for many years and Neal's musical talent is protean.

The Young People's Theatre of St. Charles Community College presents The Nutcracker Friday at 7 PM, Saturday at 2 and 7 PM, and Sunday at 6:30 PM, December 17 through 19. Performances take place in the Donald D. Shook Fine Arts Building theater on the campus at 4601 Mid Rivers Mall Drive in Cottleville, MO. For more information, call 636-922-8233, or visit www.stchas.edu/calendar.


"Over the Tavern"
© Photo by Jerry Naunheim Jr.
The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents the comedy Over the Tavern Tuesdays through Sundays through December 26. Performances take place at the Loretto-Hlton Center, 130 Edgar Road in Webster Groves, MO. For more information, call 314-968-4925. The show boats a terriffic cast. The script's darker corners reminded me of why the Catholic Church and I parted company decades ago, but given the excessive doses of sugar in most staged holiday treats, I find the twist of lemon in Dudzick's script to be welcome.

Upstream Theatre presents a staged reading of Coleridge's The Rime Of The Ancient Mariner Saturday at 8 PM and Sunday at 2 PM, December 18 and 19. Performances take place at 305 South Skinker. For more information call 314-863-4999. Admission is free.

"Slasher"
HotCity Theatre presents the satirical comedy Slasher Thursdays and Fridays at 8 PM, Saturdays at 3 and 8 PM and Sundays at 7 PM through December 18. Performances take place at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, call 314.289.4060 or visit hotcitytheatre.org.

"The Sunshine Boys"
The St. Louis Actors' Studio presents the Neil Simon's The Sunshine Boys through December 19 at the Gaslight Theatre, 358 North Boyle. For more information, call 314-458-2978 or visit stlas.org. I haven't seen the show, but it's got to be a delight to see a couple of old pros like Whit Richert and Joneal Joplin doing a surefire Simon script.

"This Wonderful Life"
Dramatic License Productions presents This Wonderful Life, the one-man show based on the classic film It's a Wonderful Life, starring Alan Knoll. Performances take place Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 2 PM through December 19. For more information, call 636-220-7012.

Sunday, December 05, 2010

The St. Louis area theatre calendar for the week of December 6, 2010

Updated Monday, December 6, 2010

[Looking for auditions and other artistic opportunities? Check out the St. Louis Auditions site.]

The Conservatory of Theatre Arts at Webster University presents the musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee Wednesdays through Saturdays at 7:30 PM and Sundays at 2 PM through December 12. Performances take place in the Stage III Auditorium on the Webster University campus. Fore more information, call 314-968-7128.

Union Avenue Opera presents Menotti's Amahl And The Night Visitors Friday at 8 PM, Saturday at 5 PM, and Sunday at 3 PM, December 10 through 12. Performances take place at the Union Avenue Christian Church, 733 Union at Enright in the Central West End. For more information, call 314-361-2881.

"As Bees in Honey Drown";
photo by Johh Lamb
Stray Dog Theatre presents the satirical As Bees In Honey Drown Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 PM through December 18. There will be a matinee on the closing Saturday at 2 PM in addition to the evening show. Performances take place at The Tower Grove Abbey, 2336 Tennessee. For more information, call 314-865-1995.

Bistro Cabaret presents Ben Norstrom's solo cabaret show, with Neal Richardson as pianist and music director, December 9, at 8 PM. The performance takes place at The Bistro at Grand Center. For more information, call 314-954-7257 or visit bistrocabaret.com.

Carol Schmidt
The Garden of Life Spiritual Center presents A Christmas Cabaret featuring vocalists Deborah Sharn, Tim Schall and Robert Breig, on Sunday, December 12, at 4 PM. Carol Schmidt is pianist and music director for the show, which also features Ric Vice on bass. The Garden of Life Spiritual Center is at 9525 Eddie and Park Road. For more information, call 636-489-8472.

The Fox Theatre presents The Nebraska Theatre Caravan's musical adaptation of A Christmas Carol Thursday and Friday at 7:30 PM, Saturday at 2 and 7:30 PM, and Sunday at 1 and 6 PM, December 9 through 12. The Fox is at 527 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, call 314-534-1111.

Echo Theatre Company presents the St. Louis premiere of the comedy Crumble (Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake) Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 7 PM, through December 19. Performances take place in Theatre 134 in the ArtSpace at Crestwood Court, 134 Crestwood Plaza. For more information, call 314-225-4329.

Everydaycircus Inc. performs shows hourly from 11 AM to 4 PM each weekend at City Museum, 701 N. 15th St. Shows are FREE with regular museum admission. (645-4445 or 231-CITY).

The Brass Rail Players present the holiday comedy Inspecting Carol. Performances take place through December 12 at the Lindenwood University Premier Center For The Arts In Belleville, Il. For more information, visit brassrailplayers.org.

"Last of the Red Hot Mamas";
photo by John Lamb
New Jewish Theatre presents The Last Of The Red Hot Mamas, based on the life of Sophie Tucker, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30 PM, Saturdays at 8 PM, and Sundays at 2 and 7:30 PM through December 26. Performances take place at the Marvin and Harlene Wool Studio Theatre at the JCCA, 2 Millstone Campus Drive. For more information, call 314-442-3283.

The COCA Family Theatre Seriespresents the Ballet Eclectica production of The Little Dancer: An American Tour Friday at 7 PM, Saturday at 2 and 5 PM, and Sunday at 1:30 PM, December 10 through 12. COCA, The Center of Creative Arts, is at 524 Trinity in University City. For more information, call 314-725-6555.

Lindenwood University's J. Scheidegger Center for the Arts presents the The Nick of Time Players Improv Show on Tuesday, December 7 at 7:30 PM, in the Emerson Black Box Theater. The Scheidegger Center is on the Lindenwood campus in St Charles MO. For more information, visit lindenwoodcenter.com.

"Over the Tavern"
© Photo by Jerry Naunheim Jr.
The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents the comedy Over the Tavern Tuesdays through Sundays through December 26. Performances take place at the Loretto-Hlton Center, 130 Edgar Road in Webster Groves, MO. For more information, call 314-968-4925.

The Washington Avenue Players Project and Black Cat Theatre present David Lindasy-Abaire's drama Rabbit Hole Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 PM through December 11. Performances take place at the Black Cat Theatre, 2810 Sutton in Maplewood. For more information call 314-781-8300.

The NonProphet Theater Company presents Reckless by Craig Lucas Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 5 PM through December 12. Performances take place at the Regional Arts Commission, 6128 Delmar. For more information, call 636-236-4831 or email nonprophetshows at yahoo.com.
"Slasher"

HotCity Theatre presents the satirical comedy Slasher Thursdays and Fridays at 8 PM, Saturdays at 3 and 8 PM and Sundays at 7 PM through December 18. Performances take place at the Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, call 314.289.4060 or visit hotcitytheatre.org.

"The Sunshine Boys"
The St. Louis Actors' Studio presents the Neil Simon's The Sunshine Boys through December 19 at the Gaslight Theatre, 358 North Boyle. For more information, call 314-458-2978 or visit stlas.org.

Dramatic License Productions presents This Wonderful Life, the one-man show based on the classic film It's a Wonderful Life, starring Alan Knoll. Performances take place Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 2 PM through December 19. For more information, call 636-220-7012

Windsor Theatre Group presents Vaudeville Christmas, featuring magic, comedy, juggling and seasonal music, Fridays at 7:30 PM, Saturdays at 2 and 7:30 PM, and Sundays at 2 PM through December 10. Performances take place in the ArtSpace at Crestwood Court. For more information, call 314-632-2114 or visit windsortheatregroup.com.

Thursday, December 02, 2010

The art of rock and roll

Who: Barb Jungr and Simon Wallace
What: The Men I Love: the New American Songbook
Where: Cabaret St. Louis at the Kranzberg Center
When: December 1 through 4, 2010

In cabaret's house (to paraphrase John 14:2) are many mansions. If the show British singer Barb Jungr and her gifted pianist and music director Simon Wallace chose for their first St. Louis appearance is any indication, one of those mansions bears a strong resemblance to Graceland. Ms. Jungr brings a classic rocker sensibility to the art of cabaret, complete with grand gestures, heart-on-the sleeve sentiment, and a sense of humor as earthy as it is genuine.

A multitalented performer and songwriter with a raft of CDs to her credit (including Elvis Presley, Bob Dylan, and Nina Simone tributes), Ms. Jungr's approach to cabaret is miles away from that of more traditional artists. It is, however, no less appealing for all that. If her presence on the stage was an indication that Cabaret St. Louis is wiling to venture outside of the tried and true, that can only be a good thing in my book.

Speaking of books, Ms. Jungr's new American songbook picks up, chronologically, about where the Great American Songbook leaves off: in the 1960s. It includes hit makers like Todd Rundgren, Bruce Springsteen, and Neil Diamond, as well as lesser lights such as Felice and Boudleaux Bryant. The subject matter ranges from mournful country ballads like Hank Williams's "Lost on the River" to "Lust for Life", Iggy Pop's raunchy celebration of sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll. And it was all arranged and performed in a way that was often unexpected and even revelatory.

Dylan's "You Ain't Goin' Nowhere", for example, was given a bluesy boogie treatment. Rundgren's pop hit "The Light in Your Eyes" was turned into a ballad—as was Diamond's Monkees monster "I'm a Believer", with a bit of soul tossed into the mix for good measure. Ms. Jungr even managed to make the David Byrne/Brian Eno hit "Once in a Lifetime" sound like it was actually about something other than clever wordplay which, in my view, is more than Talking Heads ever did.

With its pop trappings removed and tempo slowed down, Paul Simon's "My Little Town" was revealed as a bleak little memento mori. Ditto Bruce Springsteen's "The River", particularly in Ms. Jungr's painfully and appropriately direct performance. Fortunately for everyone's mental health, she followed that up with an engaging sing-along version of the Andy Williams hit "Can't Get Used to Losing You" and a raucous rendition of another Neal Diamond classic, "Red Red Wine".

Throughout the evening, Mr. Wallace was a sympathetic and smart presence at the piano. A composer in his own right with many film and TV scores to his credit (to say nothing of over 350 songs written with St. Louis's own Fran Landesman), Mr. Wallace was not so much Ms. Jungr's accompanist as her partner. A good music director is always a collaborator, of course, but the collaboration is not always as apparent as it was here.

All that being said, I did have a few reservations about the show. The evening was a bit ballad heavy, for one thing – not surprising, given Ms. Jungr's admission early on that she's known as someone who sings sad songs slowly. Her genuinely funny patter acted as a mitigating factor, though, so there was no danger that we would weep into our wine. Her big rock star stage presence also took a bit of getting used to, as did the fact that she often needed to consult her notes. Still, when all was said and done, she made it work - and that's really the bottom line.

For information on upcoming cabaret shows at the Kranzberg Center, visit the Cabaret St. Louis site at cabaretstl.org and the Presenters Dolan site at presentersdolan.com. To find out where Ms. Jungr's travels will take her next, visit barbjungr.co.uk.