I chose Peppermint Star as today's fractal cookie mainly because the show I'll be reviewing is a stellar effort and a sweet experience for all concerned. (But, then again, y'all pretty much had to guess that from the title of the review--right?)
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Frankly, I was dreading Performance Riverside's production of The Sound of Music. The day was cold and an early rain was dripping out of a leaden sky. Worse--the first two shows I'd seen them do had their share of problems. Still, we had the tickets so I was going to use them. Still, a Rogers and Hammerstein show is hard to screw up so I hoped for the best.
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And, really, The Sound of Music has it all--memorable (yet very singable) songs, a sweet, brave story (suitable for the entire family) a passle of cute kiddies and an easy-to-follow plot. What more could you ask from a show? Yes, you have to have skilled singers on stage and a good pit orchestra to send the show to the stratosphere (but luckily this show has that in spades). From start to finish your ears are in for a real treat.
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Cassandra Murphy as Maria brings back fond memories of Julie Andrews in the same role. She's a pretty girl with a big smile and has the strong voice and winsome charm that couldn't fail to entrance even the hardest-hearted old curmudgeon. John LaLonde as Baron von Trapp has a fine tenor voice but I found his characterizatiosn maybe a bit too extreme. (Still the script requires him to go from grump to mushy love in a matter of pages and he carries it off.) As the Mother Abbess, Renee Jensen brings a kiler soprano and a gentle sternness to her role. She leads a "nun chorus" of 20 (not counting the three Sisters with speaking roles). The chorus (which shows up several times in the show) gives a performance that is nothing short of spectacular. (Six part classical music perfectly sung acapella--in the aisles no less! is a truly wonderous sight to behold.) The remaineder of the cast serves their roles adequately to very well.
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As for the children, Kristina Brown (as Liesel) is a delightful inginue although I found Michael Milligan's Rolf rather less than believeable. (Still, he's far and away the best dancer in the cast and he gets a brief chance to shine in one number.) As Friedrich, Jordan Gomez seems a bit old for the part but he sings well enough in the ensemble. Berlynn Milliken brings the right mix of pluck and sweetness to the part of Brigitta but Taylor Snow (Marta) and Tayler Lynch (Louisa) get a bit lost in the crowd. Young Tyler Jenkins forgot his words in one solo but he kept right on going in character and never let it phase him or the audience. (God job, boyo!) Last, but certainly not least, youngest child Gretl (Rena M. Madura) is cute as a bug.
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Yes, there are a few problems with this production: some accents are frankly less than perfect (and one or two actors don't even bother trying for an accent). The pacing of the show is fine but scenes are a bit jerky (the fault of the script not the production). Several minutes (and at least one song reprise) have been cut from the original script (to bring it more in line with the movie version) but I didn't find it at all troubling. The sets were minimal but not minimalist and of a much higher quality than what I've seen in past shows here. Still, considering the problems with sound mixing (among other issues) this show has really raised the quality-bar for Performance Riverside. Robyn and I thoroughly enjoyed the show but our friend Mary Lou Andrews had more problems with the production than we did. (Still, you'll have to find a review she wrote to see what she thoughtt.) As for me, (like I said in the title) this is pretty close to a perfect musical for the entire family. GO SEE IT!
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FINAL GRADE: A
Almost any Christianity-related post gets a "Stained Glass" fractal so it should be no surprise that something related to Islam should get an "Arabesque" fractal cookie. I chose Arabesque 56 for this rant mainly because I don't think I've used this before. ANYway--enjoy the post (unless you have other plans) and here's hoping I don't get in trouble with the Concerned American Citizens group.
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Recently a proposed Mosque in the lovely city of Temecula got my attention when a group calling itself Concerned American Citizens raised opposition to the building. Why? First, you go with the obvious (adding traffic to a residential area, parking problems, flooding) then then they add in concerns for "public safety"--whatever that may be. I get that there just MIGHT be some validity to the claim (having attended a church in a residential area I get that neighbors might have some legitimate concerns about parking). Still, where I start taking objection is the issue of public safety.
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What got me was a comment by one unidentified woman saying the Mosque's leadership "refused to disavow Hammas". (The leadership of the Mosque says it's not ABOUT Hammas--it's about whether or not the city has a legal right to prevent construction.) About all they could really bring to the table was that some Islamic Centers support "insurrection and jihad". (Mind you--there's NO INDICATION that the Mosque in Temecula supported this other than the leadership being unwilling to engage in a political debate). We know that Timothy McVeigh (who was responsible for the Oklahoma City bombing) was a Christian Fundamentalist: does that mean all Christian Churches should be restricted? Obviously not: the same goes for Mosques or any other form of worship center--for ANY denomination!
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Here is the commentary from Concerned American Citizens on the Temecula issue. http://concernedamericancitizens.wordpress.com/
It's both interesting and frightening: check out the first reply. (I love how things get bent and featured disproportionally.) Here's their companion site that comments on the entire religion of Islam. http://actforamerica.wordpress.com/ . On one level--I completely get it but then I realize the guy is talking about a VERY extreme version of Islam. We SHOULD be concerned about folks like this (and a foreign policy that encourage Islamic Extremists). But we shouldn't be any more concerned about them than we should be about Christian Extremists. American citizens--you DO have a right to be concerned! Maybe you're just not concerned about the right things...
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Think about it.
I chose Queen Bee as today's fractal cookie mainly because Sarah Palin is the uncroowned Queen of the Mamma Grizzlies. This post concerns her (at least tangentially) and, really, there just isn't a better fractal image to choose. So--on with the rant!
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What can I say sabout the Saturday (January 8) shooting that severely wounded Representative Gabrielle Giffords and killed six others--including a Federal Judge, a nine year-old girl and two senior citizens? Really--nothing that hasn't already been said other places (and probably better). Still, a wrinkle in the story has got my back up a bit and inspired me to write. Several month ago Sarah Palin put up an image on her Facebook page showing nine congressional districts (including Giffords') covered with crosshairs. Palin is also famous for her repeated comment "don't retreat--re-load!"
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In fariness to Sarah Palin--she wasn't the only one to use this imagery and she quickly took the "offending" image down after scathing criticism (even from staunch Republicans). Now the only question that remains--did these images have anything to do with fueling the insanity of Jared Lee Loughner? I haven't heard one way or another but media speculation is running rampant. I do know the Palin camp was quick to announce that the images were in no way intended to inspire violence. So far there has been no indication whether this factored into the decision to shoot the Congresswoman.
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I do know this thugh: blaming Sarah Palin (for the facts are in) is just plain WRONG! True, she's not one of my favorite Politicians but I have to give her the benefit of the doubt on this one. That being said--providing fuel to crazies (however unintentionally) is NEVER a good idea. There's no beating crazy but, really, there's no benefit in giving them fuel for their crazy fire. Ads featuring violent imagery do nothing to foster civility, reasoned debate and respectful disagreement in our society--qualities that are in short supply these days.
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Yes, I hear the arguement--most people know the difference between violent images and real violence. Believe me--I get it: I watched my share of Bugs Bunny and Roadrunner cartoons back in the day and I don't feel the knew to hand my enemies an exploding carrot or drop an anvil on their head. I KNOW the difference between fantasy and reality. But we're not talking about the reasonable, intelligent folk (like the good people who read my blog) we're talking about nutbags. Don't you think it's better to err on the side of caution? I know I certainly do...
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Think about it.
I chose Waterdeep as today's fractal cookie mainly because the movie because it takes place mostly at sea. What is today's review? Why, Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, of course. (As if you couldn't tell from the title of tthis poost!) So--on with the review!
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The "Narnia" franchise has run a twisty course: after a spectacular first movie (The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe), the second outing (Prince Caspian) was a critical and Box Office disaster. Disney dropped the franchise after taaking a major bath with the movie but 20th Centruy Fox (for reasons unknown and perhaps unknowable) took up the franchise. What they produced was a pretty good "quest" movie although purists won't care for it much: this "Voyage" often veers away from the C.S. Lewis story.
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Peter and Susan (the two older children from the first two movies) have gone off to America with their parents leaving Edmund and Lucy (the younger kids--now well into their teens) in the care of cousins. For this trip to Narnia they are joined by cousin Eustace (played to priggish perfection by Will Poulter). Like Edmund before him, Eustace is transfromed by his visit to Narnia (literally and figuratively) and he comes out better for it. Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes) is back and Liam Neeson gives voice to Aslan the animated lion. Even Tilda Swinton's White Witch shows up briefly. Simon Pegg gives voice to Reepicheep, the impossibly brave and ceaselessly cheerful mouse (and he actually turns the little guy into an admirable character you want to root for).
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Plot-wise, this is a standard "quest" movie. You can't fail to know how everything is going to turn out even before the movie starts. There are several "huh?" moments (where elements are introduced in a major way--then completely dropped). The costuming and sets are suitaly fantastic and the FX are first rate. I do have one major quibble however: Robyn and I saw this in 3D (paying $4.00 a piece extra for the "privelage"). 3D adds NOTHING (but a lot of extra expense) to this movie! In fact, the effects are rarely even noticeable--but maybe that's just me. Still, I found the extra expense rather hampered my enjoyment of the movie.
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Purists are sure to be annoyed by the serious working-over the writers gave the plot but IMHO this was a good thing. (The book was awfuly "talky" and didn't have a lot of action to hold my interest.) Don't bother with the extra expense of a 3D showing unless you are seriously rich or seriously into 3D. Otherwise go and enjoy the movie.
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FINAL GRADE: B
