kate is in nyc!

Kate Winslet looking fabulous on the set of her new film REVOLUTIONARY ROAD filming in NYC!

photo credit: www.discoverkate.com

theatre as it should be

On Friday night, the parents, godmother, and I headed out to see the most-awarded show of the season, SPRING AWAKENING. The show was phenomenal. With an unbelievably talented cast, SPRING AWAKENING tells the story of kids growing up in a very conservative time. With hormones running wild, they start asking questions, and aren't always satisfied with the answers. The kids in this show are unbelievably talented. (I think the oldest is something like 23 or 24.) What a break for them....little bastards. Jonathan Groff and John Gallagher, Jr. both shine. Lea Michele is also fabulous. I mean, they all are. Now, this is a very thematically-mature show. Dealing with things like sexual abuse, pregnancy, abortion, masturbation, physical violence - this isn't a kid-friendly show. However, it handles these themes with respect, and often humor. One detail that really struck me is that all of the adult roles (teachers, parents) were played by one female and one male actor. I loved the idea that the restrictions and denial were handled by one person....all of the authority figures melted into one. It was very powerful, and I think really strengthened the show. The music is rock all the way, and features some fab ones including "Totally F*cked", "The B*tch of Living", "The Dark I Know Well", and "The Word of Your Body". Based on a book that was written in 1891, the stage, costumes, and spoken word reflect this. However, when the music breaks through, cast members grab their hand mikes, and truly rock out.

This show is like nothing else on Broadway today. It challenges you. It makes you a little bit uncomfortable. (Show me one person who wouldn't feel slightly uncomfortable sitting next to their preacher father as a boy masturbates to the time of the music....just saying.) It makes you laugh. It makes you cry. And, it makes you think about the fact that teenagers today pretty much feel the same way.

Final thoughts: An unbelievable theatrical experience. A must-see that *should* take home the Tony for Best Musical.

photo credit: www.playbill.com

good, old-fashioned fun

I heart David Hyde Pierce. He is a wonderful actor, and in his current Broadway offering, CURTAINS, he hits his stride as a police investigator obsessed with show business. The final project of Kander & Ebb, CURTAINS is a backstage murder mystery taking place in an out-of-town tryout for a Broadway-bound show in Boston. Moments after taking a bow opening night, the leading lady drops dead of poison. Who did it? Why did they do it? Enter David Hyde Pierce to investigate. Everyone is a suspect including the wife of the producer (the fabulous Debra Monk), the obnoxious director (Edward Hibbert), the lyricist (Karen Ziemba), the understudy (Jill Paice), and everyone in the ensemble. The theatre is put on lock down during the investigation, and the producers decide to use this forced time together to fix the show. This show is not ground-breaking or life-changing. However, it is a lot of fun, and a great show to take the parents to. Special kudos to the incredible ensemble who dance up a storm. It was exhausting just watching them. Will I see it again? Probably not, but it sure was fun to watch.

Final thoughts: With a fantastic cast, good music, and amazing dancing, this is a fun night out at the theatre.

photo credit: www.playbill.com

the green girl

On Sunday afternoon, the Slack clan completed their orgy of Broadway by attending WICKED. My parents and Godmother had never seen it, so off we went. The performance was fine. I think perhaps having seen this show twice before, I have gotten out of the show everything that I could. The cast was fine, not spectacular, but fine, the staging was good, the moment Elphaba flies was still well done, and there were lots of funny parts. The thing that I mostly took out of the show is how annoying it is that theatres now allow people to bring snacks into the theatre. Behind us sat three teenagers who ate their way through the entire second act. At a certain point, we all just had to laugh about it because it was so annoying. Seriously, they ate potato chips, candy, drank soda...it was like being it a movie, except that our tickets were ten times more expensive. Call me a cheap Midwesterner, but having spent $450 on four tickets, I would prefer to listen to the performers without the sound of Pringles in the background.

Final thoughts: WICKED'S theatre has the most comfortable seats of any B'way house I know of. If you hate children, don't go to this show - they're everywhere with their sticky fingers and endless questions. Everyone should probably see this show once. It's a nice girl-power show, and your mother will probably cry on the taxi-cab ride to the hotel thinking about the song "For Good".

photo credit: www.wickedthemusical.com

big, long and unwieldy

Last night, I headed back to the theatre district to see THE PIRATE QUEEN, the latest offering of the minds behind LES MIS and MISS SAIGON. Truth be told, this show has not received great reviews, and I had purchased an orchestra seat for $35. So, I went to the show hoping for the best....and somewhat prepared for the worst. Um....well....it wasn't great. The thing is, there are some great moments, and some incredibly talented performers, but the show never seems to gel together. Stephanie J. Block and Hadley Fraser star as the lovers, and are the strongest in the cast. Both excellent singers, they seem so comfortable with one another, and with the material, they both rise high above this somewhat mediocre material. Queen Elizabeth, played by Linda Balgord has some wonderful, humorous moments, but overall, I felt that her parts of the show just didn't work. On paper, how they show was developed worked. When in Ireland, the music was very lush and earthy, and some of the singers sang in the Celtic tradition, or sang in the "normal" belty musical theatre style. When the action switched to England, and the Queen's court, the music was suddenly Baroque, and the singing was done very classically. (Now, I am a classical singer, so in many ways this made me super happy!) The idea, I think, was to show the two styles battling it out. Instead, they just seemed to clash with one another, and the classical parts just interrupted the lushness of the belting. (I can't believe I just said that.) At any rate, the show never came together, and I found myself growing bored and restless. Now, a couple of the Producers had previously produced Riverdance, so, there was lots of Irish dancing which was fun.

Final thoughts: Who can go wrong with a Broadway show for $35? I can only hope that the right material will come along for Stephanie J. Block, and she can star in a project where she doesn't have to battle just okay material.

photo credit: www.playbill.com

slacks are everywhere!

Hey all. Things are hot in the city, and I am in the midst of a frontal attack from my parents and Godmother. Things are fun. We have done three Broadway shows, and eaten so many amazing meals, I don't even know where to start. Reviews are coming...but for the time being, sleep is the word. I hope that you are having a wonderful holiday weekend, and look for more later this week!

fun and sadness

Tomorrow, Richard and I are going to try and take in SHREK 3. That should be fun.

Sadly, I am counting down the last hour until the VERONICA MARS season (series) finale. I love this show, and it looks like it is not going to be renewed. I used to think that TV was having a bit of a hey-day right now, but a look at next years schedule is not as exciting as I hoped it might be. Why won't reality TV die? Seriously? I can't believe that VERONICA MARS is not going to make it, but we will have another season of ARE YOU SMARTER THAN A 5TH GRADER. That is just too depressing.

Oh, one more fun thing is that my parents and godmother arrive on Thursday for a fun weekend in the city. Lots of theatre will be seen, and many nice meals will be eaten. I might even get me some steak!

photo credit: http://www.michaelmuhney.com/

recovery

I am sitting at home on this Tuesday night in recovery. My brother, his wife, and their one-year-old son came and took Manhattan this weekend. It was such fun to see them, and the baby was, of course, as cute as always. If this weekend did nothing else, it taught me how NOT ready I am to have a baby. I am exhausted. We did such fun things as visiting the Manhattan Children's Museum, visiting Times Square, seeing Central Park, and eating take-out from many different cultures. I honestly don't know how my sister-in-law does it. Kudos to her and my brother for raising kids.

I can't help but think that my parents raised two kids, and my grandparents (on my mother's side) raised four kids. Are they insane? I just can't imagine. I mean, sometimes, I find the cat a little overly needy. I guess that just means that I truly am not ready.

At any rate, it was so good to have them here. Oh, and we had an incredible bonus. While channel-surfing on Saturday morning, my brother and I came across American Gladiators. I can't even tell you how much fun we had making up commentary. Yes, it's true, dorkiness is hereditary.

photo credit: www.tv.com

flawless

A couple of Thursdays ago, my roomie and I went and took in 110 IN THE SHADE starring the flawless Audra McDonald. She was unbelievable. Ms. McDonald is the kind of performer that can change your life. I remember when I applied to attend AMDA, we had to write about a performer who inspired us, and I chose her. Her Lizzie is tragic and hilarious. Based on Nash's play, THE RAINMAKER, 110 IN THE SHADE follows an "old maid" who lives with her brothers and father, and whose town is in the midst of a major drought. Along comes Starbuck, a rainmaker, who helps her discover that maybe she is a woman after all. The show itself feels really dated, even though it is a period piece....it is kind of bizarre actually. The Sheriff, her local love interest, is super-sexy. (See hot picture above. Who knew musical theatre could be so sexy!) The Starbuck is okay...didn't blow me away, but does a fine job. I mean, the play is all about Audra, and she gives a compelling performance. In fact, it was so compelling that we are going to go and see the show again on June 2nd, from the first row. (They were discounted tickets - since it is in the wet zone!)

Oh, and of course, she just got the Tony nomination!

Final thoughts: If you can, run - do not walk! - to Studio 54 and see this!

photo credit: www.playbill.com

flawed fun

It is hard to write about SPIDER-MAN 3 after writing about the flawless THE LIVES OF OTHERS. However, Richard and I made our way to the IMAX screen on Monday night, and had a grand time watching the not so flawless movie. There is a dance number. You might think I am kidding, but I'm not. There is a dance number, and bangs, and eye-liner, and Peter with a bad attitude. There is a lot going on. Not only do you have Harry (Green Goblin, Jr.), but you now have a man made of sand, and Venom (created with intergalactic black ooze). Plus, there is another girl, and Peter and MJ aren't communicating. What we have here is a big old web of mess. (he he....I said web!)

I didn't hate this movie. The thing is, it seemed to lose the heart of the first two films. It kind of feels like the first two were small independent films, and suddenly, the third one was taken over by a major studio. I guess it's hard to explain.

I really enjoyed Topher Grace, I am a big fan of his, and he does a lot with a relatively thin character. Tobey does his best, but seriously, does he need to cry in every other scene? (A new drinking game proposed by my roommate: drink every time Peter Parker cries. You will be drunk in fifteen minutes.) Thomas Haden Church is barely in the movie, and James Franco seems a little "special" after hitting his head.

Now, the movie is a lot of fun. It just doesn't match the earnest integrity of the first two films.

Final thoughts: It is a fun popcorn, summer movie. Go, but don't expect to be moved....just enjoy the ride, and the dance number.

photo credit: www.movieweb.com

the lives of others

Sometimes you are lucky enough to find a movie that is so moving, so powerful, that it seems to really profoundly affect you, even though it is just a movie. THE LIVES OF OTHERS was a German film that seemed to steal the Foreign Language Oscar from PAN'S LABYRINTH. I went to see this movie on the very strong recommendation of one of my favorite people in the whole wide world, Ellen. This movie is an interesting look at artistic censorship. Set in Germany in the early 80's, a Stasi policeman starts surveillance on a playwright and his actress girlfriend. He is listening in hopes of catching them doing something or saying something against Socialism. As he sits and listens, the policeman finds himself drawn into their lives. He begins to ask himself questions, and suddenly the issues are no longer just black and white. This film is beautiful. It moved me, and I haven't been moved like that in a very long time. I hope that every artist will go and see this, and notice the impact of a suspicious government on artists, and their creativity.

Final thoughts: Please go and see this film. It is beautiful, powerful, and at this time, a story that every artist should see.

photo credit: www.movieweb.com

cinco de mayo!

Richard and I spent a lovely Cinco de Mayo hanging out at home. Well, after a quick field trip to Target, we made my mother's famous Mexican dip and watched SPIDERMAN 1 & 2 in preparation for our Monday night trip to see part 3. The evening was a lot of fun...and it was great to revisit two fabulous movies on my gorgeous HDTV (the greatest purchase I ever made). The night only got better when ABC Family showed the 1990 live-action TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES 1 &2. I DVR'd both, and have happily revisited them the last couple of days. I think I actually saw both of these in the theatre with my brother. Bonus points to Sam Rockwell who appeared as the lead thug in part one. I am so not kidding.

I guess the point is....it was a lovely night. Oh, and the best, best part is my roomie and I made a funfetti cake. Cowabunga, dude!

photo credit: www.movieweb.com

waitress

On Friday night, I walked down towards 68th street (enjoying the fabulous spring weather) to take in the new film WAITRESS. Starring Keri Russell, this darling film follows a woman in an unhappy marriage who suddenly finds herself pregnant and stuck. Directed by Adrienne Shelly, this quirky romantic comedy/drama hits all the right notes, and is filled with pie. Yes people, I said pie. Ms. Russell's character works at a small diner that features pie, and she is a great pie-maker. She works through her issues by creating new pies, that are often hilarious. For instance, "I'm pregnant, miserable and alone" pie. Her gorgeous new OB/GYN is played by the yummy Nathan Fillion.

This film has in many ways been overshadowed by the tragic murder of it's director Ms. Shelly. She was murdered by a construction worker in her building after complaining about the noise, and left behind a husband and young daughter. This is truly a sad situation. She has a wonderfully unique and quirky voice that shines in this film. She also appears as another waitress in the film, and is quite sweet.

Final thoughts: A lovely film. It is very sweet and funny, but also has a bite to it as well. You don't have to see it on the big screen, but you should definitely see it.

photo credit: www.movieweb.com

something to ponder

I saw a nun (not the one in the picture) jaywalk today. It made me ponder. Is it worse when she does it (we passed one another both jaywalking) because she really should know better?

photo credit: www.vinland.org

he he

Seen on a t-shirt:

Come to the dark side. We have cookies.

Love it!

only in new york

I saw this ad on the upper west side. Only in NYC would a storage facility advertise with something like this.

legally blonde

After work last night, I made my way to midtown to check out the new Broadway show, LEGALLY BLONDE. First, I want to congratulate fellow Columbus native, Lindsay Chambers, for being cast as one of the swings of the show. (If you don't know what a swing is, go here.) LEGALLY BLONDE is a fun show. It captures the feel of the film, and has some incredibly funny moments. The show is well cast, and the dancing is insane. I thought that Orfeh was particularly funny as Paulette (the beautician) that Elle befriends, and her romance with the UPS guy (and real-life husband Andy Karl) is both sweet and hilarious. There were several great numbers including "Bend and Snap", and my particular favorite, "Gay or European?" The voices in this show are HUGE! The music is light and fluffy, and works for this production, but are not particularly memorable. In fact, I can only remember the melody of one song, and I think that is only because my roommate has been singing it non-stop for the last week-and-a-half...since he saw the show. As I mentioned before, the dancing/choreography in this show are crazy. Jerry Mitchell does a great job creating fabulous moments. Mr. Mitchell also directed the show, his first one. Overall, I thought it worked, however, there were some moments with an empty stage that I felt didn't work. I almost wish that this show could have been in a smaller theatre, as it sometimes seemed to be lost/overwhelmed by the huge Palace Theatre.

Ben Brantley of the New York Times said, "This high-energy, empty-calories and expensive-looking hymn to the glories of girlishness, based on the 2001 film of the same title, approximates the experience of eating a jumbo box of Gummi Bears in one sitting. This may be common fare for the show’s apparent target audience — female ’tweens and teenagers who still believe in Barbie. But unless you’re used to such a diet, you wind up feeling jittery, glazed and determined to swear off sweets for at least a month. " Truth is, I kind of understand what he's saying here. But honestly, who hasn't enjoyed on occasion sitting and eating the Gummi Bears?

photo credit: www.playbill.com

the next notebook

When I saw the fabulous French film THE VALET, they showed a preview for an upcoming summer film called EVENING. This looks like the next THE NOTEBOOK to me. "A dying woman reflects on the time in her youth when she met the love of her life, as her two daughters wrestle with their mother's impending death and their own personal issues." Starring Claire Danes, Toni Collette, Meryl Streep, and Vanessa Redgrave, this looks very sweet. If you want to check out the trailer, go here.

photo credit: www. movieweb.com

um....weird

Because Time Warner is grateful that I transferred their service when I moved, they were kind enough to give me three months of free Showtime. This has turned into a DVR orgy. Now, Showtime is not so much about current movies, but seems to have a lot of older movies. Hence, I DVR'd and watched DONNIE DARKO. This movie is brilliant. Weird, but brilliant. The film is about a young guy (the fabulous Jake Gyllenhaal) who has emotional problems. He acquires a new invisible friend, Frank, who is a giant rabbit. The rabbit tells him to do things, and Donnie does them whilst studying about time travel. In his journey, we meet his family, his friends, a possible girlfriend, and a couple of teachers. I don't even know what to say about this movie...it is just bizarre. Dark, compelling, painful, funny, awkward, and sad. Something that I found rather interesting is Drew Barrymore produced the film with her company, Flower Films. This was a nice change of pace from her other projects like NEVER BEEN KISSED.

Final thoughts: If you haven't seen this movie, go and rent it immediately. If you have, watch it again, and see what nuances you pick up the second time around.

photo credit: www.movieweb.com

spring has sprung

As I was walking back from lunch yesterday, I couldn't help but notice how beautiful the campus where I work is. I snapped a quick photo...and can honestly say that I am so happy that spring is here. I ordered birkenstocks yesterday. It's official. Sandals=arrival of spring. Happy spring!