Chuck's Choices for the weekend of May 4, 2012

As always, the choices are purely my personal opinion. Take with a grain (or a shaker) of salt.

Share on Google+:

Stray Dog Theatre’s production of Tony Kushner’s Angels in America continues this weekend with Part 2: Perestroika. Next week they’ll present Part 1: Millennium Approaches again, with the entire enterprise concluding the weekend of May 17. These are beautifully written plays and the Stray Dog production has gotten strong notices (see Andrea Braun’s reviews of Part 1 and Part 2 at the KDHX site). I’m attending the final two weekends myself. Performances take place at Tower Grove Abbey, 2336 Tennessee. For more information, call 314-865-1995.

The Gateway Men's Chorus presents Cabaret Risqué, “an evening of songs about love that lasts a lifetime... or just one night”, on Saturday, May 5 at 8 PM. Al Fischer is pianist and music director for the evening, which features performances by Al Fischer, Ken Haller, Alice Kinsella, Kay Love, Katie McGrath, Tim Schall, Deborah Sharn, and Jeffrey Wright. Proceeds from the fundraiser benefit the Gateway Men's Chorus. The GMC is a great organization and the singers in this performance are pretty much the cream of the crop of local cabaret performers. Yes, I have worked with all of them on stage and know them pretty well so I suppose I’m a bit biased, but I really think you’ll enjoy their work. The performance takes place at the Centene Center for the Arts, 3547 Olive in Grand Center. For more information, visit gatewaymenschorus.org.

The Black Rep presents August Wilson's Ma Rainey's Black Bottom through May 13. Performances take place at the Grandel Theatre, 3610 Grandel Square. Writing for us at KDHX, Connie Bollinger praised the “convincing, flawless performances” of the principals and the “finessed, punch-to–the-gut impact” of the both the play and the production. For more information, visit theblackrep.org or call 314-534-3810.

The Fox Theatre presents the musical Memphis through May 13. At a time when far too many Broadway musicals are either theme parks or retreads, "Memphis" stands out by offering an intelligent book with a message of hope and decency amid hate and fear, a solid score, and terrific performances. Inspired by the life of 1950s Memphis DJ Dewey Phillips, whose “Red, Hot, and Blue” radio show was one of the first to bring black music to the attention of white audiences, “Memphis” is the story of the struggle to integrate American music and popular culture. It’s a struggle that mirrored the parallel battle playing out in the political arena. You can see my complete review for KDHX here. The Fox Theatre is at 527 North Grand in Grand Center. For more information, call 314-534-1678.

Stephen Hough Rachs the house

The St. Louis Symphony concludes the “Rach Fest” Friday and Saturday at 8 and Sunday at 3 PM with performances of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 1 (Friday) and Piano Concerto No. 3 (Saturday and Sunday), Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, and the overture to Glinka’s Ruslan and Lyudmila. Stephen Hough is at the keyboard and the orchestra is conducted by Peter Oundjian, a frequent guest conductor with the symphony. I saw the Rach First last Friday morning concert (with Hans Graf on the podium) and was very impressed; you can see my review here. Stephen Hough has both tremendous power and a delicate touch; he’ll need both for the Rach Third, a work that requires pretty much everything a pianist has. Powell Hall is at 718 North Grand; you can get tickets at stlsymphony.org or by calling 314-534-1700.

Speaking of cheesy tech....

Magic Smoking Monkey Theatre (the bastard love child of St. Louis Shakespeare) presents Star Trek: Live! Fridays and Saturdays at 8 PM, May 4 through 19, at the Regional Arts Commission, 6128 Delmar in University City. The show is presented in cooperation with the St. Louis Science Center's Star Trek: The Experience Exhibit. Visitors to the exhibit receive a “buy one, get one free” admission to any 10:30 performance. If you’ve seen a Monkey show in the past, you know what to expect: deliberately and often hilariously cheesy tech, consciously hokey acting, and an attitude of nose-thumbing irreverence. For more information, visit stlshakespeare.org.