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Thursday, May 23, 2013
On Repeat: A look back at some Piccolo veterans
Re-Review
Posted by Susan Cohen on Thu, May 23, 2013 at 3:35 PM
Piccolo season is always a good time to see new plays, but it's an equally good time to catch that production you missed during the fall theater season, or even a couple of Piccolos ago. Here's our rundown of some of the productions returning (in whatever sense) to the festival this year, and what our reviewers thought about them. (Hint: All of these plays were highly praised.)
Becoming Harriet Tubman
When: Piccolo 2012
Reviewer: Duffy Lewis
Grade: A+
She called it: "An engrossing tale of a legendary historic figure."
Daise enthralls, combining Tubman's powerful words with her own artistic prose and lyrical styling.
Read the review and this year's feature.
Bunker 13
When: Piccolo 2010
Reviewer: Jason Zwiker
Grade:B
He called it: "A slice of life about a kind of life that is less commonly seen, both thought provoking and highly entertaining."
Bunker 13 is improv: each performance is wholly original. Prior to the beginning of the show, members of the audience are given the opportunity to write postcards to the troops. It is from the words on the cards that the show is crafted. The show is set in the Vietnam War, but as Christensen, who plays Sarge, notes, it provides many parallels with what our troops are experiencing today, far from home, trying to form friendships as best they can with their fellow soldiers.
Read the review and stay tuned for next week's feature.
Wanderlust
When: Piccolo 2010
Reviewer: Amy Stockwell Mercer
Grade: B+
She called it: "A subtly insightful monologue."
Dockery bares his bones, making the audience laugh at his failures, weaknesses, and fears, but what we see all along is his humanity.
Read the review.
Clybourne Park
When: May 2013
Reviewer: Elizabeth Pandolfi
Grade: N/A
She called it: "One of PURE's best productions yet."
Rogers said it best during his comments before the play began: Clybourne Park manages to be both poetic and extremely realistic at the same time, which is a rare combination. The play is also funny as hell, even though it deals with things like suicide, prejudice, and the way political correctness can slide into contempt and condescension.
Read the review and this year's feature.
Hearts Full of Blood
When: Nov. 2012
Reviewer: We didn't review this one, but we did preview it and interviewed its author.
Grade: N/A
What the author said:
James Asmus says that audiences have had a visceral reaction to the show. "The Chicago cast always reported lots of gasps, sudden horrified shouts, or even sudden sobbing," he says. "I don't think I've ever actually heard so many people crying before as I did at the end of Act I. As the writer, I felt weirdly proud and guilty at the same time."
Read last year's preview and this year's feature.
The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity
When: Sept. 2012
Reviewer: Jon Santiago
Grade:N/A
He called it: "A champ."
While we're not likely to pony up for pay-per-view wrestling any time soon just because Chad Deity won us over, we do appreciate PURE Theatre going to the mat for its audience.
Read the review and stay tuned for next week's feature.
Tell Me On a Sunday
When: Sept. 2012
Reviewer: Jon Santiago
Grade: N/A
He called it: "A starry-eyed charmer."
Fishburne handles the daunting challenge of the one-woman-show (75 minute long, no intermission) with so much energy, charm, and style that she's a slam dunk for the category "Unforgettable." Place a big talent in a small space and chances are good you'll witness some genuine theatrical magic unfold. That's what happens here.
Spoleto kicks off unofficially at the Halsey's Rebound opening
Officially unofficial
Posted by Susan Cohen on Thu, May 23, 2013 at 12:22 PM
For all intents and purposes, Spoleto starts tomorrow, May 24. But only festival amateurs really trust that date, even if it is posted on Spoleto's website and in its program and on our website so on and so forth.
Because really, Spoleto starts tonight. And we're not just talking about the preview shows for Mayday Mayday, Le Grand C, and A Midsummer's Night Dream. Instead, the festival really kicks off as soon as the Halsey opens its doors for its annual Spoleto exhibit.
The opening reception for Rebound: Dissections and Excavations in Book Art takes place tonight from 6-8 p.m. at the gallery. The five artists whose work will be featured in the show — Francesca Pastine, Long-Bin Chen, Brian Dettmer, Guy Laramée, and Doug Beube — will be in attendance. "They're all making a statement about our information age and the digital media's impact on that, and I would say that they're all interested in remixing preexisting works to create something new, transformed, and a sculptural work," Karen Ann Myers, the show's curator, told us. (Read the full story here.) And if you can get out of work a little early, they're leading a walk-through of the exhibit at 5 p.m.
And while you're on the College of Charleston campus, make sure to pop in to the Addlestone Library to see Chen's book art installation in the building's rotunda. The Halsey spent months collecting thousands of books, which Chen then carved into sculptures that mimic natural materials like wood, stone, and marble.
So even if the festival's official opening ceremony is tomorrow, the unofficial one is tonight, at the Halsey, and you should definitely be there.
Video: Matsukaze dress rehearsal
Performing at Dock Street Theatre
Posted by Erica Jackson Curran on Thu, May 23, 2013 at 4:34 AM
Matsukaze — the Japanese opera from a Chinese director sung in German — opens on Friday, but City Paper stopped in to the dress rehearsal to get a sneak peek of what's in store. Read our preview of the show here, and check back Saturday for our full review.
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Angela Hanyak will shepherd us through Spoleto's party scene
Party Girl
Posted by Angela Hanyak on Wed, May 22, 2013 at 12:00 PM
Hanyak started writing about Charleston nightlife in 2005, becoming a City Paper contributor in 2008. She wrote about food, music, and special events before leaving Charleston in 2009 to work for Columbia Pictures in Los Angeles. She traded L.A. for New York City, working in event planning and sales at Cartier for three years.
Hanyak moved back to Charleston this spring and was a natural choice for Spoletobuzz, having cut her teeth on the 2009 festival party scene. She'll take you inside roped-off South of Broad soirees and SCENE shindigs full of bright young things. Her first party is Thurs. May 23 — stay tuned for the full report.
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Chamber Music Charleston celebrates Carnegie Hall performance
New York New York
Posted by Brooks Brunson on Tue, May 21, 2013 at 3:29 PM
On May 22, some of Charleston’s own classical musicians will become New York City big shots. Chamber Music Charleston, a group of highly talented musicians dedicated to the performance of chamber music, will make their NYC debut at the prestigious Carnegie Hall.
“About two years ago we were looking towards our future goals, and we decided to look outside of Charleston,” says Sandra Nikolajevs, President and Artistic Director at Chamber Music Charleston. “I tend to think big, and I immediately thought it would be amazing to showcase them at such a renowned stage as Carnegie Hall.”
The group of artists making the trek up north includes Frances Hsieh (violin), Nonoko Okada (violin), Ben Weiss (viola), Timothy O’Malley (cello), Regina Helcher (flute), and Sandra Nikolajevs (bassoon). New York-based pianist Andrew Armstrong, who frequently plays with CMC, will also join them for the show.
CMC has chosen a program that will “show the rich musical history of Charleston,” Nikolajevs says.
They will perform an original set as well, entitled “Charleston Episodes” by Terry Vosbien. “I think the most exciting part of this opportunity is the chance to show the audiences of New York that there is exceptional quality, vibrant classical music being made in Charleston year-round,” Nikolajevs says.
To celebrate their return from the Big Apple, Chamber Music Charleston will perform a Homecoming Concert at the Cathedral of St. Luke and St. Paul on May 26 as part of Piccolo Spoleto.
For more information about Chamber Music Charleston, or to purchase tickets to the Homecoming concert, visit chambermusiccharleston.org.
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