Recently in theatre Category

This past weekend, San Jose held its second annual Grand Prix. The streets of downtown were closed to let eighteen professional champ car drivers zip through the heart of the city. On race day (Sunday), I could hear the roar of engines all the way from south San Jose.

Competing against zippy racecars was the annual Gilroy Garlic Festival. Although I didn't attend, I could smell the "festivities" from Highway 101. Thankfully, I couldn't hear the singing from Garlic Idol, a new contest they held this year.

Because I dislike the crowds, noise and odor they generate, I usually avoid both events and have actually discovered that it's better to experience them from a distance, usually a distance measured in miles. It's what I like to call remote enjoyment.

So, this past weekend, we stayed away from San Jose and Gilroy and visited Carmel instead. We chose Carmel because we heard celebrities were attending Rupert Murdoch's conference in neighboring Pebble Beach and we thought there might be a chance of catching a glimpse of Bono or Arnold Schwarzenegger or Nicole Kidman or the Clintons around town, if they happened to tire of mingling on the links and decided to escape to Carmel's art galleries instead.

Okay, not really. We were actually there to attend Carmel's Bach Festival. Although, I must admit that it tickled my brain to think I might cross paths with Tony Blair or Al Gore if they happened to like classical music.

Anyway, it was foggy and muggy all day Saturday. There was so much moisture in the air that if I had a bottle of shampoo on me, I could have washed and rinsed my hair in the time it took to walk from the car to the cafe. As it was, I had to wipe down my glasses twice just to see where I was going.

We luckily found seating under an awning at the cafe to shield us from the mist and keep our books from growing damp. After finishing a salad, sandwich and cafe au lait, we wandered around a little before settling down in another cafe (across the street from the first one) for more coffee. The previous sentence covers about three hours of real time, just in case I gave anybody the impression that I was chugging coffee non-stop.

For dinner, we tried a restaurant called Sushi Heaven, which is located on Dolores, between 7th and 8th Streets. The sashimi was mouth-watering, the service was swift (even with a full house) and the prices were cheap by Carmel standards (or moderate by "real world" standards).

Afterwards, we walked a block over to the Sunset Center to listen to some music. Before every main concert, the festival offers a free twenty-minute concert, known as Tower Music, which showcases a brass sextet performing in the outdoor courtyard. Because of the misty conditions, the festival organizers moved the concert inside for the evening.

With the festival being called the Bach Festival, one would think most of the music performed (if not all of it) would be from J.S. Bach's vast body of work, but that wasn't the case. In fact, only two of the seven weekly concerts featured his music and even then, he had to share top billing with Mozart and Handel. It's almost as though the planners were intentionally trying to diss Bach at his own festival. Even the music played during the free concert wasn't written or inspired by Bach. Instead, we heard pieces by Ottorino Respighi.

Afterwards, we purchased tickets for Tuesday night's concert called Encountering Mozart - The "Aha!" Concert (aha!, not a-ha), which highlighted Mozart's music to honor his 250th birthday.

Jumping ahead to Tuesday evening, we drove to Carmel after work and dined at La Dolce Vita, a small Italian restaurant less than a block away from the Sunset Center. The food was so-so, the service was slow (they seemed to forget about us after serving the main course) and the prices were moderate by Carmel standards.

We arrived at the theatre about fifteen minutes before the concert began. I bought a souvenir program for five dollars and then we took our seats in the balcony, which isn't very far from the stage because the hall is cozy (read "not very big, but in a good way").

The program was a combination of arias (from Idomeneo, The Marriage of Figaro and Don Giovanni) and symphonies (No. 36, 40 and 41). In between pieces, a narrator read selected letters Mozart wrote to his father and friends. The orchestra was small (roughly thirty members), but filled the hall with spirited music. The singers were also amazing. The standouts didn't shy away from letting their personality and humor show through, which added a sense of joy to their performance.

Carmel's Bach Festival is a three-week event that began July 15 and ends August 5 (this Saturday). So, if you're interested in listening to wonderful classical music by composers other than Bach, you still have two days to do so. As for me, I can't wait for the festival to return next year.

The office has been hectic this week. I took Monday off and that's the only thing preventing me from making a break for the sunshine. All I have to do is survive until Captain Saturday comes to the rescue. But before he and his sidekick, Sunday Boy, arrive in the Weekendmobile, I thought I'd quickly review last weekend's highlights.

Last Saturday evening, I attended a South Valley Symphony concert. They perform primarily in Gilroy, at Gavilan College, but for one night, they played at the Advent Lutheran Church in Morgan Hill. The orchestra is about thirty instruments strong and all of the musicians are volunteers, which is neat. It isn't the same experience as seeing the San Francisco Symphony perform at Davies Symphony Hall, but it has its own charm.

1. Concert Waltz #1 by Glazunov
2. Violin Concerto by Sibelius
3. Symphony #4 "The Tragic" by Schubert

Admittedly, I wasn't familiar with any of the pieces and the only composer I recognized was Schubert. Despite the lack of name recognition, I liked the first two pieces more than the third. The waltz was lively and drew the audience in for the violin concerto, which was dark, tragic and featured Dale King, the solo violinist, who was brilliant. Because of the small venue, he stood no more than twenty feet away from us. Actually, all of the musicians were so close that it felt like we were in the orchestra pit with them.

During intermission, instead of paying eight dollars for a glass of wine, like we would in San Francisco, we paid two dollars for bottled water and Reese's Pieces. Thinking about it makes me laugh. I enjoyed the small-town symphony experience.

On Sunday, after dim sum (which I refuse to give up no matter what they say), I took my dad to see Sahara. It was the second half of his birthday gift. The first half was the book the movie was based on. I gave that to him back in February, much closer to his birthday. Clive Cussler is one his favorite authors and I thought he'd get a kick out of seeing Dirk Pitt on the big screen.

The film itself was entertaining. It made no sense whatsoever, but was action-packed, dumb and funny. It's one of those movies where the hero just happens to be wherever he needs to be just in the nick of time or manages to escape certain death at the very last second, multiple times. What's hilarious about Dirk is that in his attempt to save the girl and the world, the girl ends up saving him and his trusty sidekick saves the world.

Steve Zahn, who played the sidekick, Al Giordino, cracked me up. He greeted everybody with a "Hi, how ya doin'?" Of course, he was usually greeting bad guys, so he'd follow that up with punch to the noggin.

On Monday, we drove down to Fresno. Did you know that Fresno State has a farm and a rodeo? That was news to me. The campus is huge, but most of its acreage is lawns and parking lots. When we arrived, we stopped at Uncle Harry's New York Bagelry and Coffeehouse. I had espresso and a chocolate-chocolate chip bagel, which was delicious. Before we left, we dropped in again for toasted sandwiches. With Yosemite and Kings Canyon National Parks so close, we were tempted to make a run for the woods, but the voice of reason and responsibility prevailed and we made our way home.

That was about it. This weekend will be shorter, but I hope to cram as much excitement and relaxation into it as possible without things oozing out the sides. Okay Captain Saturday, anytime you want to rescue me...

Now would be good.

Or now...

Please?

Ah, the beauty of simply rambling. I wanted to set goals for this entry. Be original. Be funny. Be well thought out. Be articulate. I was about to lay down the law, but had the sudden realization that journal entries, like children, see rules as a challenge, something to defy. They would rebel against everything I told them. I'd set a four-hundred-word curfew and they would break it and try to sneak in a few extra sentences. They would grow up to be multi-paragraphed scribblings that resented their author. So now, I'm just sitting here, letting the entry write itself. The only way it's going to learn is if I allow it to make its own mistakes. The best I can do is to be here to support it. It's called the laissez-faire approach to writing.

Yesterday was my parents' 31st anniversary. To celebrate, they saw a performance of The Producers at the Center for Performing Arts. My sister and I saw it last week (she snagged comp tickets) and we liked it so much, we decided to buy them a pair of tickets. It's Mel Brooks. It has dancing Nazis, a Swedish bombshell, a gay singing Hitler and a chorus line of old ladies with walkers. My parents are conservatives, but they got a kick out of it. It's the best musical I've seen since Les Misérables came to San Jose last year.

I heard part of the All-Star Game broadcast on the radio Tuesday night. I listened as Roger Clemens was shelled by the American Leaguers. He gave up two three-run homers and faced nine batters including Oakland's Mark Mulder, the winning pitcher. The A.L. will again have home field advantage during the World Series. I guess that means San Francisco will have to take the first two from Boston to minimize that advantage. Thursdays are good for making brash predictions.

Last night, we had dinner at Cafe Gibraltar, a Mediterranean restaurant in El Granada, a town just a few miles north of Half Moon Bay. Depending on where one sits, there's an amazing view of the ocean, which probably looks phenomenal at sunset. If you were me, there was an amazing view of the slightly disturbing paintings on the wall. The bread and soup were tasty. For the main course, I had the Gnocchi con Funghi, potato dumplings with mixed mushrooms, which sounded enticing, but was disappointingly bland.

Tonight will conclude my three-day whirlwind peninsula dining tour. Tuesday was Chevys in South San Francisco, yesterday was Cafe Gibraltar and tonight will be sushi at Fuji in the city. To provide balance, next week will probably be a five-day dine-in affair, a home stand if you will, filled with leftovers, Happy Meals, reality television and Netflix.

That last paragraph was noticeably brief, which must mean this entry is nearly tuckered out and ready for bed. After it brushes its teeth (and flosses), I'll attempt to sing it a little Gavin DeGraw, a few lines of lyric expressing how I feel, and then wish it a good night and sweet dreams.

I don't mean to be so strange
But my life just took a change
'Cause I just found someone special
And that's really something special
If you knew me

The photo has nothing to do with the past weekend or this entry. It was suffering from claustrophobia on my hard drive and needed some fresh air.

On Saturday, we saw a production of Carl Sternheim's The Underpants, as adapted by Steve Martin. My favorite character was Versati, the melodramatic poet. He seduces the lady of the house and at the very moment she gives herself to him, he retreats to his room to immortalize her and their moment of heated passion in verse. One could see Martin's comedic fingerprints all over this hundred-year-old satire in the double entendres, hilarious one-liners and over-the-top performances. The audience was able to connect with the story and characters through his humor.

I spent most of Sunday moving bricks and assembling patio furniture. When completed, there will be a gazebo and three-person swing in the backyard. According to the pictures on the instruction booklets, the furniture will be sturdy and elegant. I don't know. We'll see how accurate those pictures really are when everything is built.

For a day in December, I was a member of another family, one completely different from my own, which made it so much fun. My imagination went wild as I envisioned what my alternate life would be like.

As part of my adopted family, I would be the youngest of three sons. I would be an uncle to my oldest brother's son and daughter. My middle brother would live in San Francisco and both of my parents would be retired. Oh, and I would be Italian.

Every year, they drive to the city to see the Nutcracker performed at the War Memorial Opera House, a wonderful venue. A giant nutcracker made up of cookies and candies stood in the center of the grand lobby. Everything about the San Francisco version blew away the production I saw last year.

Before attending the show, we had dinner at Lori's Diner, a 1950s restaurant that offers a wide selection of burgers and sandwiches. With so many to choose from, I naturally ordered the chicken fettucine. After the show, we went to the Metreon for dessert. No one objected when I had a double macchiato around ten o'clock at night.

If it had been my real family, we would have dined at home, arrived just as the curtains rose and quickly escaped from the city afterwards. The night would have been much less memorable. It was good to be adopted for a day.

Last night, we saw Aida at the Center for Performing Arts. None of the songs were memorable like The Lion King, but they were eclectic. The three leads sang wonderfully and I loved the out-of-nowhere fashion show during "My Strongest Suit".

I felt sorry for the lady who sat next to me and paid good money for a two-hour nap (with snoring). I hope it was worth it.

We saw Les Misérables on Saturday afternoon. It is one of my favorite musicals. I remember playing songs from it on the piano and listening to the soundtrack on cassette. I must admit that it took me forever to read through Victor Hugo's novel. Exceptionally thick books with tiny fonts have a way of intimidating me.

Yesterday's performances were awe-inspiring. The role of Jean Valjean was filled by an understudy who simply captivated the audience. The performers who portrayed Eponine and Enjolras were exceptional. Songs that stood out included "Who Am I", "One Day More" and "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables".

My favorite song has to be "Red and Black". Enjolras sings it as he tries to drum up support for the student rebellion against the government. His words of war contrast with the words of love sung by Marius, who has just met Cosette, Valjean's adopted daughter.

ENJOLRAS
It is time for us all
To decide who we are
Do we fight for the right
To a night at the opera now?
Have you asked of yourselves
What's the price you might pay?
Is it simply a game
For rich young boys to play?
The color of the world
Is changing day by day...

Red - the blood of angry men!
Black - the dark of ages past!
Red - a world about to dawn!
Black - the night that ends at last!

MARIUS
Had you been there tonight
You might know how it feels
To be struck to the bone
In a moment of breathless delight!
Had you been there tonight
You might also have known
How the world may be changed
In just one burst of light!
And what was right seems wrong
And what was wrong seems right!

Red... I feel my soul on fire!
Black... My world if she's not there!
Red... The color of desire!
Black... The color of despair!

The highlight of the weekend was seeing Varekai on Saturday night. I had never seen Cirque Du Soleil before and I had been secretly looking forward to it since getting the tickets at least a month ago.

According to the program, "varekai" means "wherever" in the Romany language. I simply parrot this bit of trivia now so that I may remember it at some future date and annoy somebody with it.

It was drizzling when we arrived. My first thought when seeing the blue-and-yellow tent from the outside and then entering was, "How could over two-thousand people possibly fit in here?" I was in a state of wonder throughout the entire show. It was a night mixed with high-energy acrobatics, colorful costumes, wonderful music and humor. I reveled in the imagination that surrounded me. While all of the acts were pretty incredible, the Icarian Games and the Georgian Dance stand out as two of my favorites. There was also the clown act involving a lounge singer literally chasing the spotlight that cracked me up.

I did fall into the gift shop trap (where the only available exit is lined with merchandise) and ended up purchasing the CD with music from the show. I can't wait for another Cirque Du Soleil tour to come through. The next time I'm in Las Vegas, I'll be sure to get tickets to see O at Bellagio or Mystère at Treasure Island.

For wherever the wind carries you, you will always be home. Remember that quote and you'll be able to annoy your friends too.

By the way, I could have sworn that I saw somebody during the intermission, taking a smoke break. It was completely random, so I kept to myself and didn't say anything to him. That is all.

Last night was the opening night of The Nutcracker, presented by Ballet San Jose Silicon Valley. The orchestra sounded wonderful, better than ever before since the new acoustical shell was recently installed at the Center for the Performing Arts. I simply love Tchaikovsky's music. According to the program notes (yes, I read those), the version I saw had totally new choreography by the artistic director, Dennis Nahat. My two favorite scenes came in Act II. They were entitled "The Land of the Shifting Sands" and "The Land of the Ivory Pagoda". The San Francisco Ballet also has an annual performance of The Nutcracker, which I hope to see next year.

I just saw the American Musical Theatre of San Jose's production of Miss Saigon. It is a musical by Boublil & Schönberg, the same creative team who wrote Les Misérables. The overall production was solid and there were a couple of memorable songs ("The Wedding Ceremony", "The American Dream"). Things seemed to crawl at times, especially in the second act. Dina Lynne Morishita, who played Kim, lifted the entire production and really outshone the rest of the cast. Kevin Gray, who portrayed The Engineer, had a couple of scene-stealing moments. The audience was impressed and appreciative, giving the performers a standing ovation at the end.