Movies, Movies, Movies

Finally, some movies worth seeing have been released! The CB's are busy getting ready for the Academy Awards season . . .

Doubt--Surprisingly, this is our favorite of the movies we've seen the last couple of weeks. We had seen the play with Cherry Jones, who won a Tony Award for her role, but we both agree that the movie was a much more powerful experience. The four main actors are equally at the top of their game and turn in amazing performances. Meryl Streep plays Sister Aloysius, principal of the parish school circa 1960's, who faces off against Philip Seymour Hoffman's Father Flynn. Sister Aloysius is an ambitious nun resentful not just of Father Flynn's "modern" ideas, but of his rank and the general sexism within the church. Her suspicions about Father Flynn and his relationship with one of the young male students provide the backbone of the plot. The tension between these two is palpable and is not diminished in any way by the presence of a young, naive nun who is drawn into their conflict (played by the excellent Amy Adams). Viola Davis takes a small role and makes it unforgettable--she captures beautifully the quiet strength and steely determination of a mother trying to do the best by her son in the face of racism, sexism, and an abusive husband. Definitely a must see.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button--The CB's disagree a bit on this one. Ann thought it dragged in parts, and that the emphasis on the physical aspects of Benjamin's reverse aging left her wanting more insight into his emotional and psychological condition throughout. She also felt that the chemistry between Benjamin (Brad Pitt) and Daisy (Cate Blanchett) wasn't very strong, and that Pitt underplayed the role. While I agree that the relationship between Benjamin and Daisy didn't always seem as powerful as it should have been, I thought the slow pace of the film appropriately mirrored the leisurely tempo of Southern story-telling. I also found Pitt's performance to be subtle and heart-breaking. He made me fell Benjamin’s sadness as he becomes more familiar with death and the reality of each person’s mortality, as he deals with the pain of trying to keep his condition a secret, and as he regrets missed opportunities. Pitt also captures the thrill and excitement of living, his pure joy at being in love and the eagerness with which he sets out to see the world. We both agreed that the performance by Taraji Henson, who plays Benjamin's adoptive mother, is the stand-out role of the movie. We also agree that it was a touching, bittersweet movie that tells an intriguing story using outstanding special effects.

Australia--Predictable, light entertainment . . . the plot is one that you've seen many times (haughty, tightly-wound woman + sexy, rough-around-the-edges man + adventure that binds them together = true love) and uses every cliche in the book. It's also way too long. What did stand out was the choice to narrate the story through the eyes of the young half-caste boy, Nullah, who becomes a surrogate son to the childless Lady Ashley and the free-spirited Drover. Nullah lives in fear of being taken by the government from his real mother to be "re-educated" (i.e., turned white) in a mission school. This meshing of social outrage and romantic adventure does make the movie more interesting. Also, the film is pretty to look at, and the scenes of the outback are certainly beautiful (although there are only so many expansive shots of scenery you can take in two and a half hours). The best scenery in the movie (we have to admit) is Hugh Jackman . . .

Slumdog Millionaire--More to come on this, as I saw it in Burlington with my daughter and her girlfriend, and Ann has yet to see it . . .

A Hit and a Miss

A Hit--We took the boyz (Casey and Ben) to see Forbidden Broadway Goes to Rehab on a chilly Saturday afternoon in the city. We saw this spoof of Broadway musicals last year and found it a hilarious send up of all the shows we had seen. This year's production is just as funny and clever--we had a great time laughing at all the numbers. When one of the two talented women in the cast did Liza Minelli, we just about died. She was perfectly awful, as only Liza can be. We also especially loved the Gypsy number with another spot-on imitation of Patti Lupone (as we always say, there's nothing subtle about Patti). This will be the last Forbidden Broadway show after 15 years of productions which is very sad . . .

A Miss--My sister, Lisa, and her husband were in town and the four of us went to see Pal Joey at the Roundabout on Saturday night after all of us had a yummy dinner at Pigalli's. We had really been looking forward to seeing the revival of this classic musical with such a beautiful score. I couldn't wait to see Christian Hoff again in the lead role--I couldn't keep my eyes off him when I saw Jersey Boys.

The first disappointment upon sitting down was the dreaded paper falling out of the Playbill announcing that the understudy would be filling in for Christian Hoff. (We learned later that we saw the first full performance that Matthew Risch, the understudy, had done--the Saturday afternoon matinee was actually cancelled so he could do a run-through.) Our disappointment increased as the production got underway. Although the understudy was good, he was no Christian Hoff; although Stockard Channing looked great and did pretty well in the role of the aging "cougar" falling for a younger man, she can't sing (she actually committed the sin of talking her way through the wonderful "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered"); Martha Plimpton gave it the old college try in her first musical role, but she was miscast. To top it all off, the set was uninspiring and relied too heavily on a circular staircase--the comings and goings were just annoying after awhile--and the choreography was rather lackluster.

Matthew Risch has permanently replaced Christian Hoff, who injured his foot in rehearsal. The CBs don't predict that this show will be even close to a hit and we wouldn't recommend it. Lisa and Chuck agree . . . By the way, they also saw All My Sons and Billy Elliot and loved both!

Black Watch in NYC

On our last trip to NYC, we saw the excellent play, Black Watch at St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn. The production was brought to New York last year from Scotland's National Theatre, and it has returned for a second run. The show is based on interviews with former soldiers who served in Iraq as part of the legendary Black Watch regement. Viewed through the eyes of a select group of soldiers, the play explores the male comradery and bravado implicit in being part of such a regiment, what it means to be part of the war on terror, and what it means to make the journey home again.

It's hard to describe the uniqueness of this soldier's-eye-view of the Iraq war. Using this large warehouse space, the action moves seamlessly between interview scenes in a pub and real-time scenes in Iraq employing an incredibly creative mix of multimedia effects, choreographed movement, regimental folk songs, military processions, and live bagpipe music. The young men who play the soldiers are exceptional in their physicality and also in portraying the soldiers' emotional vulnerability underneath all their swearing and bragging.

This production is a really compelling theater piece, and we recommend it highly. It is both a testament to all the brave young men who have been at war, and a condemnation of the questionable politics that sends them to war. I only wish that Bush would be forced to sit through several performances . . .

Chilly Four Day Weekend in NYC

It was very cold and windy in New York City this weekend but the CultureBuddies bundled up and trekked all around exploring new neighborhoods and new theater venues. We even got to explore two more boroughs--Brooklyn and Queens! We spent Thursday and Friday nights with Casey, Ben, Melissa and Kara in the Astoria section of Queens. They were wonderfully gracious to us, and we enjoyed every moment we spent with these great kids. The CB’s send a big, hug-filled SHOUT OUT to our Astoria pals!

Two of the plays we saw are Off-Broadway plays in small theaters. Friday night we saw Farragut North at the Atlantic Theater Company in Chelsea. We were initially interested in this play because it stars John Gallagher Jr. (who won a Tony for his fabulous performance in Spring Awakening) and the TV star Chris Noth. In this new play by 31-year-old playwright, Beau Willimon, Gallagher plays a tough minded, very ambitious press secretary to a presidential candidate during the Iowa Primary. Noth plays the part of the campaign manager for the same candidate. As veterans of many NH Primary campaigns, we found this drama to be compelling and true to life. Gallagher proves himself to be a wonderful actor in this well chosen dramatic role (he is on stage for virtually the entire play). Little did we know that Chris Noth, who is well known for his TV roles, also has a long history in theater and is a graduate of Yale’s School of Drama.

Sunday afternoon we saw another alumnus of Spring Awakening, Jonathan Groff, starring in a new play, Prayer for My Enemy, at the Playwrights Horizon. Written by Craig Lucas (Prelude to a Kiss), this play is the story of a family with a depressed, angry alcoholic father who has wrecked havoc on the lives of his son (well played by Jonathan) and his sister (equally well acted by Cassie Beck). The play starts with a chance meeting between two old friends from high school, one of whom is leaving for Iraq. When Groff's character invites his old friend to his family's going away party, his friend becomes entwined in the family permanently. Along with the story of this family, there is a seemingly unconnected story of an angry middle aged woman (played by Tony winner Victoria Clark) caring for her elderly mother. The two stories end up intersecting in a surprising and thought-provoking way. One interesting device the author uses is giving voice to his character’s inner thoughts. It was a little confusing at first, but soon you realize that the characters are speaking what they are thinking inside as well as their dialogue with other characters.

The playwright, the director, and the theater manager held a talk-back after the play, and (of course) the CultureBuddies were active participants (and asked the most intelligent questions). The conversation had some very tense moments when two people began yelling at the director about his view on the war, and he got equally fired up and began shouting back at them that his job is to get people fired up. It was cool to be part of this "members only" event (which didn't stop Ann from charming her way into two tickets!). The CBs found that the play provoked lots of interesting conversation for the bus ride home, and we agreed that we might like to see again if the run is extended.

We are always impressed when a young actors like John Gallagher and Jonathan Groff choose to hone their craft in a less mainstream plays after they have made a big splash on Broadway. We were proud of both our boys! More to follow about the other three shows we saw…

Movie Update

The CBs decided to check out an independent theatre that opened about a year ago in Concord, NH, Red River Theatre, on Sunday. It's a great small theatre (with a parking garage attached that's free on the weekends) right off of South Main Street. They have two small theatres and a screening room that seats about 50. We started with a viewing of A Man Named Pearl in the screening room. It was a great documentary about Pearl Fryar, a 68-year old former share cropper's son from small town Bishopville, South Carolina who has turned his lawn into an unbelievable topiary extravaganza. He works tirelessly to create and maintain abstract works of art out of previously discarded bushes from the town nursery and the existing trees on his property. Without any formal training in the art of topiary, it's absolutely amazing what he has created. He is also a completely charming man, and you will fall in love with him (and his wife) by the end of the film. It's also a great snapshot of a small town that is trying to revitalize itself in an economy that has mechanized their major industry of growing cotton. Go see it if you can.

We scooted across to one of the other theatres to see The Duchess, starring Keira Knightley. Based on a true story, the movie traces the late-18th-century life of Georgiana Spencer, the Duchess of Devonshire, one of those gilded-cage aristocrats who appears to have been groomed to be a pampered wife and produce heirs. It's a big costume film with amazing costumes, toweing wigs, big production scenes, and lots of "bodice-ripping" drama. Kierra Knightley is actually very good in the lead role, and she subtly captures her character's growth from a rather shallow, albeit incredibly beautiful, young lady to a tough as nails public figure who sacrifices more than anyone should ever be expected to as a result of her marriage to the Duke of Devonshire. Played by Ralph Fienes, the Duke is a cold, calculating man who is relentless in his quest for a male heir. Quite a contrast from the small documentary, A Man Named Pearl, (the only connection was lavish topiary gardens), but worth seeing.

Octoberfest Ends!

On Sunday we saw the new production of David Mamet’s Speed the Plow. It is the 20th anniversary of this show which is a tour de force of quick, witty repartee said at such a fast pace that it leaves the audience breathless. The story is about two power brokers in the movie business (played by Jeremy Piven from Entourage and Raul Esparza from the Broadway show Company) who have scored a big star to play in a tacky prison break movie. They are scheming and plotting their strategy for a presentation to the Studio Head when a temporary secretary (played by Elisabeth Moss) comes onto the scene playing a role somewhat similar to her role in Mad Men. To say she upsets the apple cart is an understatement. The show is three quick acts and is over in about 90 minutes. The acting is great and it’s a whirlwind of a show.

Before the show we had a drink at Trattoria Trecolori on 47th Street where we met a most intriguing bartender named Bill . Bill told us a most amazing story about his Mongolian father who was imprisoned in the 1940’s for studying English which was considered a treasonous act. I have no idea how we got on the topic of his father but he is an amazing guy, so if you are in the neighborhood of 47th between Broadway and 8th, stop in and tell Bill that the CultureBuddies sent you!

Day Four - A Day of Contrasts

Saturday afternoon the CB's saw Chekhov's The Seagull. It was an afternoon of three hours of great play writing, wonderful direction, and breathtaking performances. This is a definite must see for any serious theatre lover. It is a new translation of the famous play and a very riveting production. The play begins with a bleak, sparse stage, and, once again, no curtain--just a few birch trees and some tree stumps which become the stage for the son's production of his first attempt at play writing. In this one scene we see the family dynamics in all their cruelty. Kristen Scott Thomas plays the aging actress, Arkadina, who is the mother from hell--unable to provide the love, support and attention that her son desperately needs--but instead makes herself the constant center of attention. She is just wonderful as this selfish, narcisistic woman. But the standout performance for the CBs was the young actress Carey Mulligan's portrayal of Nina, the son's true love who starts as an innocent, fresh young girl and ends up as a broken women who has been rejected by her lover (who is also Arkadina's love) and banned from her family home. We recognized her from Bleak House and other PBS productions, and she is a wonder to watch on stage.

Later we saw the opposite extreme of the Broadway spectrum- Billy Elliot. What a show! It is as over the top as Elton John's persona is!! The choreography was some of the best we have ever seen. The numbers with the Union workers and the young ballet dancers are magical and so creative. The young boy who played Billy- David Alvarez- is an amazing talent. We left the theatre feeling exhausted from this over the top experience only to find that my beloved Red Sox were ahead 4-2 and going to play Game 7 of the ALCS tonight! Today we are seeing the matinee of David Mamet's Speed the Plow and then taking the bus home. We are tired but happy CB's.

Brushes with Masterpiece Theatre

A small theme seems to be emerging on this trip, and it centers on Masterpiece Theatre, a show I've watched for as long as I remember. My mom is a big fan, and we spent many hours watching all the series while I was growing up: Upstairs, Downstairs, Poldark, The Six Wives of Henry VIII, Poldark, Brideshead Revisited, Jewel in the Crown, The Forsyte Saga, etc. I still faithfully watch the show. Last night at All My Sons, Dereck Jacobi (I, Claudius, Cadfael, Hamlet) was in the audience, and he looks great. As we were chatting with our seat neighbors about him, the man told us that he had a great Masterpiece Theatre story. Long story short--he introduced his wife to Robin Ellis (the hunky guy who played the role of Poldark in the 70's) at a PBS fundraising dinner, and she ended up marrying him after they were divorced! She's still married to him and living in London. Then today at The Seagull (more on this later), who should be in the cast but two Masterpiece Theatre veterans--Art Malik (Jewel in the Crown, Far Pavillions) and Carey Mulligan (Northanger Abbey, Bleak House, The Amazing Mrs. Pritchard). Both were terrific in this perfectly cast Chekhov classic. Who knows, maybe this theme will continue!

Day Three - The Best Yet

Sometimes you think you have had the best day of your life only to find that the next day is even better. I fell asleep Thursday night astounded by the great day we had and how much fun we had at Tale of Two Cities only to wake up and have another over the top day.

Let me begin by telling you about an encounter I witnessed early Friday between CB Leslie and a couple of people from Florida. In the hotel computer room, we ran into a couple who were interested in seeing a show Friday night and had just been quoted (by the hotel concierge) a price of $169 per ticket to see Avenue Q. Leslie told them that there was no need to pay that price, she gave them a little tutorial on getting cheaper tickets and they ended up paying $65 each for third row center seats to Avenue Q for that night! They practically fell on their knees in worship of the skills of this talented CB. She saved this couple $200 and got them better seats than the concierge had offered them. While I watched Leslie in action I thought- I am witnessing exactly what this CB was meant to do for her life's work!!

We had tickets for All My Sons Friday night and were excited to see the revival of this play with a star-studded cast which includes John Lithgow as the father, Joe, Diane Wiest as the grieving mother, Patrick Wilson as the surviving son, and Katie Holmes as the girl next door. Before the show, I was doing one of my favorite things- chatting up the ushers and theatre employees - and the woman selling the t-shirts and magnets told me all about the previous night when the show officially opened and then she whispered to me that "a big, big female star will be at tonight's show". Hmmmmmmmm.... She wouldn't tell me the name, so I was thinking maybe it would be Meryl or Julia but in fact it was Oprah!! She came in right before the show began with Tom Cruise and an entourage which included a huge, fierce body guard. The theatre was abuzz! Oprah's buddy Gail came in LATE- sorry to tell you, Gail BUT coming in late is in very bad form. Very bad form indeed. The entire entourage came back late from intermission causing an unnecessary hubbub. Another instance of bad theatre manners.

The show was absolutely riveting. Directed by Simon McBurney, there was an amazingly feeling that the story was an epic tale, not just the tale of one family. There is no curtain and the cast is all on stage before the lights go down and John Lithgow actually tells everyone to turn off their cellphones. The acting is superb--we were mesmerized for every second of the show. I loved the images cast on the screen behind the actors and the use of the other cast members as a sort of Greek chorus makes the play even more relevant to our time. Lithgow and Wiest are truly stage royalty, and Patrick Wilson is wonderful as the second son who is forced to deal with the unraveling of his family. Katie Holmes has my eternal admiration for choosing this role for her Broadway debut. Stars who come to Broadway and do eight shows a week when they have huge movie careers display a love for the art and the stage that I admire. Broadway is grueling, and she did just fine as the former girl next door. It's a wonderful production, and the CB's highly recommend it. The director, Simon McBurney, gives us a very innovative take on a American classic and is someone that the CBs will keep their eyes on.

After the show, we met our two favorite boys- Casey and Ben- and had a laugh filled late evening. We adore these two wonderful boys. They are both finishing up their senior years at Marymount/Manhattan and are doing fascinating internships. Ben at Vogue and Casey at an amazing ad agency. Their parents should be very proud of these wonderful boys who the CBs just love to pieces.

Today .... The Seagull, Billy Elliot and the Red Sox game 6.... life is good!

A Great Night!

The CB's saw a new musical based on A Tale of Two Cities last night and thoroughly enjoyed a great night of theatre, the likes of which you can only see on Broadway--a big cast, great costumes, clever set, terrific talent, full orchestra, and music that soars. The pace of the story line is brisk, and there is a good amount of lightness added to the serious themes of class struggle, revolution, sacrifice, and redemption. The most enjoyable aspect of the production is the talent that has been assembled for this large cast. The voices, down to the most minor character, are crystal clear and lovely to listen to. When the lead, James Barbour, opens his mouth to sing, you know you will be in good hands for the night (it's hard not to swoon, to be truthful).

We had several classic CB moments after the performance. Somehow I sensed that a woman who came down to talk with some people sitting in front of us might be Jill Santoriellio, who wrote the book, music, and lyrics. I touched her on her shoulder and asked her if she happened to be the one responsible for the show. She said she was, and I told her how much we loved it despite the sometimes cranky NY critics who gave the show a bad review. She immeditately gave me a big hug and was very sweet to us. I told her I had listened to her extended interview on Playbill Radio.com and admired her fortitude in getting the play produced. We even gave her a CultureBuddy card! Very cool moment.

We went to the stage door afterwards and hung around for awhile, decided to leave, then at the corner, Ann convinced me to turn around and we went back to wait for the more major stars to come out. Broadway regular, Greg Edelman, who plays Dr. Manette couldn't have been nicer, and the young lady who is making her Broadway debut in the lead female role (Brandi Burkhardt) is really beautiful and very gracious. Of course, we were waiting for James Barbour, and by the time he came out there were three people waiting at the stage door--a cute young girl and the two CBs. What losers! Anyways, we chatted with him, got his autograph on the program (and on his CD that I bought), took the picture here, and Ann and he had the following exchange: Ann: I wish you would sing to me all night. James: I just did for 2 1/2 hours, Honey. Ann: But you made me swoon! At this point, I grabbed her and we made a hasty retreat . . .

We met Ann's son and his girlfriend, Sara, at The House of Brews nearby after all this excitement and were able to see the Red Sox come back to win Game 5 of the ALCS--the biggest post-season comeback in 79 years! The perfect end to a great day . . .

Update--New York City

The CB's arrived in NYC yesterday afternoon after a pleasant bus ride on Megabus from Boston. Nice new bus line, good prices, and we left and arrived right on schedule. After a slight readjustment period, we had a nice dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Pigalli, and were joined for a drink by our buddy Casey who filled us in on the theatre world from his perspective as an intern for a PR firm that manages many of the big theatre groups in the city.

Then we headed over a few blocks to see Equus, starring Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) and Richard Griffiths. We were not bowled over--mostly because the play itself is rather dated, and the "phychiatrist heal thyself" theme feels a bit cliche. Radcliffe was good in his role (we were surprised by how small he is--5' 5") and you certainly live through his emotional turmoil. The scenes between him and his psychiatrist were the strongest part of the play. I also found the set and staging to be powerful, although Ann didn't agree with me. Lots of young girls mobbed the back stage door, and Radcliffe was very generous about signing autographs and people taking pictures.

We called it an early night--we were planning on watching the rerun of the Project Runway finale in our room, but we didn't get the Bravo channel on our TV. Bummer!

Today, we decided to head in different directions. I walked up to the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) and enjoyed the Van Gogh exhibit and a special installation called Dreamland: Architectural Experiments since the 1970s that was really terrific. From there I went to the Morgan Museum to see an exhibit called Drawing Babar. The Morgan recently acquired the working drafts and printer-ready watercolors for Histoire de Babar (1931), the first book by Jean de Brunhoff, and Babar et ce Coquin d'Arthur (1946), the first book by his son, Laurent de Brunhoff (b. 1925). As a long time Babar fan, I really enjoyed seeing the exhibit and all the first edition Babar books in their collection.

Ann headed up towards Lincoln Center to check out the new Museum of Art and Design. More about that from her later!

Movie Recommendation

The CB's went to see Rachel Gets Married yesterday, and we both highly recommend it. It's difficult to watch at times as the family dynamics are pretty raw, but it's also incredibly honest, moving, and even humorous at times. Anne Hathaway disappears into her role as Kym, the younger sister who has just been released from a nine-month stint in rehab only to be thrown into the midst of her sister's wedding weekend. Kym finds her family home buzzing with strangers and wedding activities, meets her sister's fiance for the first time, discovers that she is not her sister's maid-of-honor, and feels smothered by her father who just keeps trying to feed her. The film slowly reveals the depth of the emotional dynamics within the family and the tragedy that causes Kym to keep going in and out of rehab. The great thing about the characters is that you sympathize with each of them, even though they are often pitted against each other. There has been a lot of Oscar buzz for Hathaway, and it's easy to see why. All the other roles are perfectly cast as well, and Rosemarie DeWitt is wonderful in the role of Rachel.

CB Update

Nothing makes the CB's feel more cutting edge than waking up to a front page Art Section review in the NYT about a play we have tickets for! This morning it was The Seagull which Ben Brantley dubbed "the finest and most fully involving production of Chekhov that I have ever known." Not bad! Last week it was a review of Equuis which was a bit mixed, but, in it, Brantley praised "Mr. Radcliffe’s compact, centered presence (which he retains even stark, raving naked). . . . it’s the look of someone who sees and feels more deeply than ordinary folk" (yes, we are going to see Harry Potter naked--as my daughter says, "Shocking!"). We can't wait until October 15th when we finally get back to NYC.

What else have we been doing? We went to a movie theatre in Lowell with another buddy last weekend to catch a showing of Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway, a film of the live show which closed on Broadway last month after 12 years. This film is so much more than just the taping of one performance. Cameras were allowed into the theater to record two special performances (one at the end of August and the final night), and the result is an up-close and personal experience that is quite amazing. When it is eventually (hopefully) released on DVD, this is a must have for any fan of the theatre!

Our first Sunday Key Cinema Club (West Newton, MA) viewing a couple weeks ago was Humbolt County, a so-so movie about a commune-like community of marajuanna growers in CA who are trying to live peacefully outside of the law and grow just enough pot to sustain their lifestyle (and provide for their recreational use). When an uptight medical student is dropped into the mix, you can imagine what transpires . . . The good points were the filming of the beautiful, untouched landscape and some strong performances by the blissed out older hippie couple that the central character ends up staying with, and their seven year old grandaughter (an amazing performance by this young girl). Overall--a good movie to put on your Netflix list when it is released.

Speaking of Netflix, Ann passed her copy of Starting Out in the Evening to me a couple weeks ago, and I finally got around to watching it yesterday. Frank Langella gives an incredibly nuanced performance as Leonard Schiller, a retired teacher and all-but-forgotten novelist. His four completed novels are long out of print, and, in his 70s, he is toiling away at a fifth.
His routine is interrupted by an ambitious young graduate student, played by the amazing Lauren Ambrose, who wants to write a master’s thesis on Leonard and reintroduce him to the reading public. He is both flattered and a little befuddled by the attention — which is more than simply scholarly. Lili Taylor has a great role as Leonard's daughter; I always find her a compelling actor to watch on screen. Overall, definately worth watching.

That's it for now . . .

Vicky Cristina Barcelona

The CB's went to see Woody Allen's new movie, Vicky Cristina Barcelona this week and loved it! It's about the adventures of two young, beautiful American women who spend a summer in Barcelona. One (Rebecca Hall) is very buttoned up and engaged to be married when she returns to the States. The other (Scarlett Johansonn) is a highly sexually-charged free spirit. They both become entangled with a smooth-talking, sexy artist (Javier Bardem) and his over-the-top and slightly insane ex-wife (Penelope Cruz), and the movie takes off from there. The movie is well made, the performances are outstanding (especially Bardem and Johansonn's), and the filming of Barcelona is so beautiful, it makes you want to get on a plane and go . . . not a bad idea at all!

Update From Leslie

It's been a month now since my surgery, and I'm starting to feel human again. I'll be running around NYC in no time! We added tickets to Equus this morning for our October trip. This is the first production of the play on Broadway for 30 years, and it follows a very successful run in London last year. Daniel Radcliffe (the young actor who plays Harry Potter) is the lead, and Richard Griffiths, who won a Tony Award last year for a CB favorite drama, History Boys, plays the second lead. Should be a happening in the theatre world, so of course, the CB's must experience it!

I'm looking forward to getting out and about. While I've been home, I've been watching the first season of Mad Men -- a great series set in 1960's New York that follows the lives of the rather decadent men and women at the start of Madison Avenue advertising. The writing is smart, the characters are flawed, but compelling, and the costumes and production values are outstanding for a television series. It's amazing to think that this was only 40 years ago--everyone smokes everywhere (even a gynocologist who examines one of the characters), sexual harrassment in the workplace is accepted (and expected), and the psychologist who counsels the lead's wife calls the husband after each session to report in about everything she said!

I've managed to read a couple of books (now that I've cleared the Percocet haze). The best one was The Lace Reader by Brunonia Barry. This novel has been getting lots of press, and seems to be the new word-of-mouth "buzz" book. Although I was not blown away by it, I did enjoy it very much. The basic plot is that, after 15 years away, a Towner Whitney returns to Salem, MA from California after the drowning death of her great aunt Eva. We slowly learn why she has been avoiding this trip--she has had a traumatic upbringing and is considered unstable by the community. As the story unfolds, Barry overlaps supernatural and psychological themes, and she paints an interesting historical picture of Salem as a prosperous shipping town, the site of the infamous witch trials, and a modern-day tourist attraction. In addition, Barry weaves in a surprising plot twist at the end that will throw you for a loop. Worth reading.

That's it for now--more later!

October in the City

CB Leslie is definitely on the mend and we are planning our next trip to the city. So far we have tickets to Tale of Two Cities, The Seagull, Billy Elliot, All My Sons and Speed the Plow. I am thrilled to say that ever resourceful CB Leslie got us bargain or specially priced tickets to every show. That girl is good!!

CultureBuddy on the DL

So CB Leslie is sporting a brand new knee. She was operated on Tuesday, August 5th and is working hard on her recovery. Our next trip to Broadway is scheduled for the middle of October so by then she should be racing all around Times Square- like usual. In the meantime, we are watching lots of NetFlix and catching up on our reading. Two shows I recommend on video are The Wire - all 5 seasons are great- and Season One of Damages. Leslie is immersed in Army Wives and a ton of shows she has saved on her TIVO. The CBs are enthusiastic followers of Project Runway and we loved last week's show where the assignment was to design an outfit for the women athletes to wear in the Olympics' Opening Ceremony. Some of the designers were amazingly clueless. One designer actually made a bonnet like Laura Ingalls Wilder wore and another designed a cocktail dress. For the Opening Ceremony. Huh??
It won't be long before CB Leslie is out and about again and we can report on culture beyond the inside of our houses.

CultureBuddies in the News

Today our hometown newspaper ran a story about the CBs with a huge photo. The photo takes up half the page in the print version and is a little embarrassing. The story is mostly right with the facts but there are a few minor errors, for example, the Life Is Beautiful anecdote happened over 10 years ago and was the start of our traveling to see movies out of the area, not the start of our Broadway obsession. We DO in fact go to regional theater in this area, but the blog is mostly about the shows we travel to NYC to see.

New York City- July 2008

We only had enough time for a quick two night stay in New York this time, so we left very early Thursday morning. We got to the city at about 1:30 and headed straight to Pigalli's for lunch. While there, we had our first celebrity sighting of the weekend--Laura Bell Bundy (the original Elle in Legally Blonde) was dining a couple of tables away from us. Of course, wonderful Jose- the sweetest waiter in the world- greeted the girls like old friends and we had a delicious lunch. For this trip, we used our Hilton points(35,000 points a night) to stay at the Hampton Inn on 51st and 8th- this is a very nice hotel and a good place to stay for a theater trip because it's so perfectly situated.

Thursday night we saw Damn Yankees at New York's City Center. It was part of their Encore Series where A-List performers do a short run (3 weeks) in a well known play. It is a sort of summer playhouse for the best of Broadway. This production was just so much fun. The story is the Faustian tale of an aging man's dream of being a baseball star. The devil was played by the wonderful Sean Hayes of Will and Grace fame, and he was hilarious. It was his first time being on the stage in New York, and he delighted the crowd. I hope he comes back for a longer run on Broadway soon. The temptress Lola was played by Broadway and TV star Jane Krakowski, and she was great to see on stage. She is beautiful and has a smile that could light up all of 42nd Street. The show used the original choreography which Bob Fosse created for Gwen Verdon - the original Lola. Not all the dance routines worked as well for the shorter Jane. Fosse used a stylized kind of shoulder rolling that is supposed to be sexy, but just didn't seem to work for her. Using the original choreography was a very brave move for the director and was well executed by the cast especially the young ballplayers. The show stopper for the CBs was the wonderful Cheyenne Jackson from Zanadu. He played the young baseball player, and he is so charming and relaxed on stage--on top of that he is incredibly handsome and has a wonderful voice. The CBs really enjoyed this classic show from the 1950's, and it was great to see Sean, Jane and Cheyenne perform together.

After the show we met our friends, Casey and Ben, at a local beer house and finally got to meet their roommates, Kara and Melissa. They are wonderful kids and we had a ton of laughs. Eagle-eye celebrity spotter Leslie saw one of our favorite people- Jonathan Groff from Spring Awakening and Hair- in front of the bar with some friends, and I had to be subdued so I didn't run outside and say hi. Casey was egging me on but, like usual, Leslie was the voice of reason and sanity!

Friday morning we headed over to the South Street Seaport to take a look at the NYC Waterfalls Project. We took a one hour boat ride on a Zephyr to see the waterfalls and the other sights in the East River like the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. It was a beautiful, sunny day and a perfect day for a boat ride. This is the most touristy thing the CBs have ever done in all their NYC visits, but we decided that a public arts project of this size was worthy of a visit from the CultureBuddies. We were not disappointed at all. The view of the waterfall under the Brooklyn Bridge alone was worth the cost of the trip. The Zephyr was full of new Americans as well as tourists from around the world and there is something quite moving about everyone racing to one side of the boat to take photos of Lady Liberty. It's a wonderful view of our favorite city.

Around 6:00, we headed to Central Park with the fixings for a picnic with Casey and Ben before seeing the Public Theater's latest production of Hair. We had incredible seats (thank you, Casey!) and watched this 41 year old slice of history. Isn't it hard to believe that this show is 41 years old? It was lots of fun with hippie clothing, drugs, free love, and draft card burnings. We got to see our friend Jonathan Groff again in his first role since Spring Awakening. He was wearing a long crazy wig and played Claude- the hippie who is drafted and who sings some of the best songs of the show. All in all, we had a good time and loved being with our pals Casey and Ben in such a beautiful setting. The play did seem a little bit dated, and at times, it seemed like the actor/singers were playing dress-up, but the second act had more bite to it. The closing scene of the character Claude laying dead on the american flag in his Army uniform was quite powerful.

Saturday we had a first class breakfast at Pigalli's and, as I was walking over to MOMA, I ran into Jonathan Groff again coming out of the gym. How weird is that? Three times in three days the CBs see a favorite Broadway star. We chatted for a few minutes and he mentioned seeing us at Hair the night before. We chatted about his Spring Awakening costar Lea Michelle who is playing in Les Miz in the Hollywood Bowl right now. He is just such a nice person, and the CBs will see him again this fall at Playwright's Horizon. He was amazed when I told him that the CBs had made a special trip in to the city to see his final performance in SA. He said he really appreciates our support and asked that we stop by when we see his show this fall.

After hanging around and doing some major people watching Saturday afternoon, we caught the matinee of [title of the show]. It's a very funny and clever little musical with a cast of only four and one musician. The show is a musical about the process of writing the show the audience is actually seeing. It's clever and fun and the cast is very talented.

We took a late bus home and ended one of our shortest trips to the city. Three fun musicals and three sightings of Jonathan Groff. When we opened our Sunday Times, who did we see but Jonathan Groff . . . Very cool!

Mamma Mia

The CB's took in the new movie, Mamma Mia, the other night with some friends and had a blast. Okay, it's not going to be an Oscar award-winning film, but it's definitely a fun time at the movies. Meryl Streep is actually very good and certainly throws herself into the role. As her sidekicks, Christine Baranski and Julie Walters, are great, and the three lead men are adorable. Pierce Brosnan is a pretty bad singer, but he gives it all he's got and it works. The young girl who plays the lead is perfect, and her fiance (who was in the original History Boys on Broadway) is very cute. The scenery is to die for. Be sure to stay all the way through the closing credits to see them all in crazy ABBA spandex costumes!

A Short Trip

This week we are taking a short trip to the city. A very short trip by CultureBuddy standards - just two nights and three plays. Thursday night we have tickets to Damn Yankees. Friday night we plan on seeing Hair in Central Park and Saturday we will see the matinee of the new musical [title of the show]. We have a big trip planned in the fall because many shows are opening. We have already started getting tickets for our next trip. We have tickets to see Billie Elliot and All My Sons with many more to come. The fall season on Broadway looks to be a great one.

More News from Chautauqua, NY

(From Leslie) I am starting my second week here in Chautauqua, and trying to switch gears from Week 3's theme,On Writing (with really outstanding talks and readings by Billy Collins, E.L. Doctorow, Amy Tan, Joyce Carol Oates, Garry Trudeau, and Jane Pauley), to Week 4's theme, The Ethical Frontiers of Science. The lineup of speakers this week will take on the ethical debates surrounding advances in biomedical sciences and new discoveries about how the brain works, as well as the issues raised by the development of new drugs and genetic discoveries that enable us to improve our memories, moods, and cognitive abilities. This morning, Arthur Caplan, director of the Center for Bioethics at Univ. of Penn talked made an argument for funding stem cell research that will improve and extend life--he's not talking about imortality, but adding 20-40 quality years to an average life span. It was a pretty fascinating lecture, and he certainly raised lots of good discussion.

One of last week's highlights was the return visit of an amazingly talented young pianist from Russia, Alexander Gavrylyuk. He is only twenty-three and is just unbelievable . . . After his solo performance on Thursday night in the Ampitheatre, the audience didn't stop until he did four encoures! Friday, I went to a Master Class he gave to several young piano students here, and Saturday night he performed with the Chautauqua Symphony Orchestra, and, again, he brought down the house with his interpretation of Tchaikovsky's Second Concerto. Check out more information on him in the Chautauquan Daily and consider buying a CD or a DVD--it would be money well-spent.

Got to run--more culture to soak in!

One CB's Vote for Best Summer Read

CultureBuddy Ann is on a 12 month academic contract so vacation days are hoarded and used very sparingly. Nearly all of my vacation days are spent on my two favorite pursuits: Broadway and the Boston Red Sox. A trip to Tampa for baseball is planned for September but every other day of vacation time that I have accrued for the rest of the year is already pledged to a Broadway trip. Only two weeks to go and the CB's are back in the city that they love!

In the meantime, I am doing some great reading. I think the best summer read of this year is The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski and the New York Times agrees with me. The book is over 550 pages long. I am on page 400 and reading these last 150 pages very slowly because I don't want it to end. It is the story of a mute teenager and takes place on a dog farm in Wisconsin. At face value, not much interests me less than a story about dogs or a story that takes place on a farm. But this is not your usual novel and really must be experienced. It is a beautifully written and slowly unfolding tale full of classic themes. There are even undertones of Hamlet. What an amazing first novel. I rarely buy a book in hardcover but this is one that is worth every cent.

CB On Vacation at Chautauqua, NY

(From Leslie): Believe it or not, sometimes the CB's experience cultural events without each other! I am currently in a perfectly unique place called Chautauqua, NY (near Jamestown and Buffalo). At Chautauqua Institute, you can hear a lecture about just about anything, see a ballet, go to the opera, take in an independent movie, listen to a concert, go to a play, attend a religious service, swim in the lake, go for a sail, or observe a music master class--all without leaving the grounds! This week's theme is Writers on Writing, and the morning lecture series so far (in a huge open air ampitheatre) has included Pulitzer Prize winning essayist, author, playwright and television commentator Roger Rosenblatt talking with his friends, the poet Billy Collins and the author E.L. Doctorow. It's a thrill to see such well-known literary giants, enjoy their humor, hear about their process and their thoughts on the profession of writing, and to listen to them read from their work. Coming up the rest of the week will be Joyce Carol Oates, and Amy Tan, and cartoonist Garry Trudeau. Not bad!

Speaking of writers--as I drove my parent's car from NC to NY, I listened to an unbelievably great book by Lloyd Jones--Mister Pip. It was wonderful to listen to, and I imagine just as wonderful to read. Other recent favorites: The Rope Walk by Carrie Brown, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer, and So Brave, Young and Handsome by Leif Enger (who also wrote the excellent Peace Like a River). I know that my buddy Ann is busy enjoying The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wromblewski.

More from Chautauqua coming soon!

New York City Here We Come

The Boston Globe compared all of the bus lines that make the run from Boston to New York City and back. The CultureBuddies were frequent Greyhound/Peter Pan travellers but have started to take the Bolt Bus when it's convenient. It's cheaper and the buses are brand new. Check out the Globe article.

Tony's Week--Day Six

Sunday was our last full day in NYC. We headed over to Radio City Music Hall around 11:00 to watch a little of the comings and goings at the Tony Award rehearsal. We were too hungry to last long, so we went in pursuit of a bagel and some coffee. In true CultureBuddies style, before long we found ourselves sitting on the outside patio of a nice French restaurant, Brasserie Ruhlmann, looking out at Rockefeller Plaza and drinking Cape Codders. While we were waiting for our food, the heavens opened up and it started pouring. Luckily, the patio had a cover that just barely protected us. Other customers that weren't so lucky crowded in to keep dry, and it became quite cozy and fun as we all watched the rain. The food was delicious (albeit a little pricey, but hey, you're dead a long time!) and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. So much for the bagel and coffee! By the time we were ready to leave, the sun was back out so we never even got wet.

Sunday afternoon we saw A Catered Affair, the new Harvey Fierstein musical starring Faith Prince and Tom Wolcott. It's about the conflict within a working class family when the mother decides that her daughter's plan for a simple town-hall wedding is not enough and starts planning "a catered affair." The plot was quite heart-wrenching and a little sad at times, but it was a touching family story. We were thrilled to see the legendary Faith Prince, who is back on stage after a eight year hiatus. The sets were great, and the acting and singing was spot-on, but overall the show was a little too understated. Or maybe we were hitting the wall, as it was our eighth play of the week! It's tough for a show like this to compete with the larger, more up-beat musicals currently playing, and without any significant Tony nominations to boost sales, I imagine it won't be playing too much longer.

Then it was time for the third annual Tony party in our hotel room with the boys, Casey and Ben. (They call us "The Mamas" and think we are totally insane, but they love us!) We have developed a fierce competition to predict the most winners in all the Tony categories, and (annoyingly) Casey always seems to win and loves to gloat about it. This year, Ben had really done his homework and was determined to win. Ann and I were very proud of ourselves that we had seen every play that had any nominations except for Grease and The Little Mermaid (which are a little too mainstream for us) and Thurgood (which we couldn't squeeze into our schedule). Not bad for two ladies from New Hampshire!

We enjoyed munchies, beer, pizza, and yummy cupcakes Ben brought as we watched the show and groaned and/or cheered over our predictions. We were so happy to see In The Heights win so many awards--we've felt invested in this show since we saw it Off Broadway last year and then again when it opened on Broadway. We agreed with most of the winners, although I loved Kelli O'Hara's performance so much that I voted for her even though I knew Patti LuPone would win. I got the boys laughing doing imitations of Patti singing/yelling songs from other musicals, and it was an overall silly, but fun night. It's so nice to be able to watch the show with other theatre fanatics. Unfortunately, that damn Casey won the pool again and gets to wear the huge I'm A Winner medal for another year. Poor Ben missed by two points, and Ann and I tied for third place (sounds better than losers).

Monday was going home day which is always sad, but we were pretty pooped out. Our next short trip is at the end of July to see an Encore production of Damn Yankees with Sean Hayes (Will and Grace), Jane Krakowski (30 Rock), and the hunky Broadway star, Cheyenne Jackson. We're also going to see our pal, Jonathan Groff (formerly of Spring Awakening) star in Shakespeare in the Park's production of Hair. I'm sure we'll manage to squeeze in another show before long . .

It was a really wonderful week--one for the record books!

Tony's Week- Day Five

Saturday was a whirlwind of a day for the CultureBuddies. We saw two very different plays. The matinee was Cry Baby, the new musical based on the John Waters movie starring Johnny Depp. We went with Leslie's adorable niece, Sarah, a student at UVA who is interning at Vogue for the summer. We had great seats, 5th row orchestra, and we all had a good time. The show is in the 'bad boy meets and falls in love with the good girl' genre which has been done so many times--Hairspray, Grease, etc.--but what made this show a cut above the rest was the excellent choreography. The male dance numbers were great, especially one with the 'bad boys' who were unjustly sent to prison dancing with license plates on their shoes. Very clever and well done. The music is very good, as well. It was a fun show, but I don't expect it to have a long run.

When we came out of the theatre, it was absolutely pouring, complete with thunder and lightning. We tried to get a cab for Sarah, but that was just insane. Leslie bought her an umbrella and off she went to the subway a couple blocks away. We waited around awhile, but there were no signs it was going to stop anytime soon. We decided to make a run for it to the hotel which was only three blocks down. When we got to the hotel, we were completely soaked--even our underwear was wet! Laughing, of course, we got in the elevator. A woman looked at us and say, "You guys are all wet . . ." as if she was letting us in on something we didn't know! Of course, this made us laugh even more.

At night, we went to see a show that has gotten great reviews, Boeing Boeing. We were both a little worried that it might turn out to be a lame comedy, but we couldn't have been more wrong. It was hilarious and a nearly perfect farce. The cast was the kind that only can be seen on Broadway- absolutely four star: Brad Whitford (Josh from West Wing) as the ex-pat living in Paris juggling romances with three airline stewardesses, Mark Rylance (a first rate Shakespearean actor) as an American dropping in on his friend for the first time in 20 years, and the three stewardesses- brilliantly played by Gina Gershon, Mary McCormack and Kathryn Hahn. The cast is rounded out with Christine Baranski playing the French maid. They are all wonderfully funny with the kind of impecable timing that a farce, with all the opening and closing of doors,requires. We basically howled for two and a half hours. Mark Rylance was especially hilarious as the visitor who is in shock by the chaos in the apartment--his deadpan expression is just priceless. He won the Tony for Best Actor Sunday night, and he really deserved it. See it if you get a chance while this great cast is still in the show. I can't imagine anyone who wouldn't enjoy it.

We ended our busy day being treated to a nice meal by my son, Adam, and his date Val. Seeing Adam is a ritual for the CultureBuddies, and we always enjoy hearing about his life in the city and all of his entrepreneurial ventures. Of course, we stayed up way too late Saturday night/Sunday morning. It's tough falling asleep after seeing a show as hilarious as Boeing Boeing.

Tony's Week- Day Four

At a certain age, birthdays become just another day. But yesterday was not like that. My birthday was a total, award winning, festival of a day. CB Leslie feted me virtually nonstop. I woke up to presents, balloons, streamers, coffee, and a day long celebration. My brothers and sisters, husband, coworkers, and darling daughter called me pretty much all day, and I really and truly FELT THE LOVE!! Thanks everyone, but especially thanks to CB Leslie who made the day so memorable.

Last night we saw the revival of South Pacific at Lincoln Center. The reviews have been over the top, but I still wasn't ready for the grandeur and perfection of the production. We had great seats in the mezzanine overlooking the huge stage. There is no more perfect location for a big production than Lincoln Center. Where else can you have a 30 piece orchestra, a multilayered gorgeous set with army trucks, a combat plane, and Bali Hai in the distance? We were mesmerized from the moment the overture began, and I watched the show with a lump in my throat. My heart was really bursting! I've have never loved a show more. The performances were perfect. Kelli O'Hara and Paola Szot are a dream couple, and they are so incredibly talented. They are just divine in these roles--Kelli sings and dances like it is the most natural and effortless thing in the world. She has a wonderful stage presence and was born to play Nellie. When Paola sang "Some Enchanted Evening", it was one of those moments that can only be experienced on Broadway- so perfect that time stands still. Leslie kept saying she was swooning . . . The show is sold out for the rest of the summer but PLEASE, if you possible can, take in this show while Kelli and Paola are playing the leads. It is a revival that will join the Broadway history books, and the chance to see the great Opera star Paola Szot make his Broadway debut is one that any true musical lover shouldn't miss. Check out this video for more proof that he is amazing.

We ended the day with drinks and a lovely dessert at Pigalli's and fell asleep at 3:30 still talking about the show. It was a perfect birthday. Thank you Leslie, thank you Kelli O'Hara, and thank you Paola Szot. Who knew turning 57 could be so much fun??

Tony's Week--Day Three

Another great day in the city yesterday. Had a lazy morning, and started to head up to Bryant Park to hang out, but it was so hot that we detoured to a movie theatre (six floors, 24 movies, $12 matinee . . . only in NYC!) to see The Visitor. What a great movie . . . Pitch-perfect acting, moving storyline, heart-breaking and heart-warming scenes--if it's playing in your area, go see it! On our way down the escalator, we caught site of a huge indoor arcade, Dave&Busters, and just had to go in. We hit the "Deal or No Deal" video game first, and after some big wins, Ann headed over to play Skee Ball. Apparently, she's a Skee Ball fanatic--who knew? We blew through our $10 card in no time, and then debated how to spend our hard-earned 380 points in the tacky store. We settled on a headband with a light up spinning top on it. I'm sure it will be the hit of our Tony party on Sunday night.

Last night's show was Les Liasons Dangerous at one of the Roundabout Theatres. From the minute the curtain opened to the final bows, almost three hours later, we were mesmerized by the sexual tension and the intense struggle for power between the leads, Laura Linney (we totally understand why she is such a theatre legend) and Ben Daniels (an actor well-know in England who is making his Broadway debut and has been nominated for a Tony Award). Both were in total command of their roles, and the sets and the costumes were the quality you can only see on Broadway. We loved it! Only one minor celebrity sighting--Austin Scarlet, from Project Runway, Season 1 on Bravo sat two seats over from me.

After the play, I took Ann out for a birthday dinner at Maria Pia's, a great Italian restaurant in Hell's Kitchen (her birthday is today, but we were at the restaurant at midnight). Our yummy dinner was capped off by eight waiters singing Happy Birthday and a piece of Tiaramisu with a candle in it. As I said, another great day in the city.