Thursday==>Good morning to all of my loyal and faithful readers and followers out there in the morass known as cyberspace.
Your favorite blogger here in The Big Apple, The Greatest City In the World, is happy to report that yesterday was another pretty awesome entertainment doubleheader, coupled with some pretty good walking stats ... all despite very cold weather.
Yeah ... I wanted to shake off my cabin fever and I am happy to report that this morning it is totally gone ... so ... why don't we just get started with Billi Pod’s reports cards on his two shows ... starting with ...
INTO THE WOODS, with only 10 actors, one piano and boundless imagination, this witty and wildly theatrical re-invention is Into the Woods like you’ve never seen it before==>A
The acting from the ensemble cast is totally amazing as they play multiple characters, play musical instruments, do set changes and sing and dance at a frenetic pace. Their energy and enthusiasm flows into the audience.
I found the first act to be more involving than the second act, which kinda dragged a bit. My synopsis and grade for each is ...
Act I - It’s OK to scheme, plot, lie, steal, kill, anything that is necessary in order to escape a curse and BTW ... don’t ever go into the woods alone==>A+
Act II - If you piss off a giant you are basically fucked==>B
I found this experience to be totally enjoyable. It was also helped by the fact that I saw the show with my theater-buddy Dian Crystal aka My Lady who once again used her amazing aura/magic to secure us excellent comp. seats, orchestra, row G, on the aisle. Thank you My Lady!
She also liked the show a lot.
Billi Pod says==>you gotta see this show.
This generally well-reviewed revival of the musical classic by Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine is playing at The Laura Pels Theatre on West 46th Street, has a running time of 2:40, with intermission, and currently is selling tickets through April 11th.
After the show we split and I spent about 45 minutes in the lobby area of the Marriott Marquis, out of the elements, killing time until my second show ...
THE RIVER (starring Hugh Jackman), on a moonless evening, a man brings his new girlfriend to a remote cabin for a night of trout-fishing. But before the night is over, it becomes clear that nothing is as it seems … and as memory collides with desire, the truth becomes the most elusive catch of all==>B.
I really wanted to like this show a lot more because I am a huge Hugh Jackman fan ... but ... the story line totally confused me and when the 1:25 running time was over I had no fucking clue what message, if any, the playwright was attempting to convey.
As the press blurb said ... “nothing is as it seems” ... and, folks, that is putting it mildly.
When I got back to the apartment I went online and checked out the reviews and basically most of the reviewers had the same feeling(s) about the show.
Now ... on a positive note, and what makes the show worth seeing with a discounted ticket, is the superb acting by the 4-person cast, headed, of course by Jackman.
The staging and sets are also stellar.
Billi Pod says==>see it if you can score a discounted ticket.
This drama received mixed reviews, is playing at the Circle In The Square Theatre on West 50th Street, has a running time of 1:25, without intermission, and runs through February 8th.
So ... my loyal and faithful readers and followers ... there you have Billi Pod’s cure for cabin fever ...
Moving on to tonight’s entertainment event, a concert at Lincoln Center ...
7:30==>NEW YORK PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA @ Avery Fisher Hall - The program is:
Chopin - Piano Concerto No. 2 (performed by Emanuel Ax);
Rachmaninoff - Vocalise;
Bartok - The Miraculous Mandarin Suite; and,
Stravinsky - Firebird Suite
(concert - season subscription series)
I am a huge fan of Emanuel Ax so I am really looking forward to this concert.
Moving on ...
OK, my loyal and faithful readers and followers ... is response to several rather snarky texts and posts ... NO ... your favorite blogger IS NOT a New England Patriots fan ... come Super Bowl Sunday he and his son Bill III aka The Bill will be pulling for The Seahawks. Satisfied now? I hope so ...
In closing ... with the locations of my two shows and a bit of walking around the apartment ... yesterday was also a very good walking day, the freezing weather be damned==>5.01 miles.
STAY WARM EVERYONE IN THE TRI-STATE AREA.
Yesterday’s Pedometer mileage==>5.01 miles (or, 10,950 steps per day)
Total mileage for 2015==>115.32 miles (average 4.12 miles per day)
Billi Pod
“Don’t pick a fight with an old man. If he is too old to fight, he’ll just kill you.
No comments:
Post a Comment