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BRAVO! EW'S GUIDE TO THE WINTER/SPRING 2004 PERFORMING ARTS SEASON
A
Musical Renewal Here are some highlights of winter and spring shows, but as most clubs and venues don't list performances until a few days or weeks before the show, keep checking EW's Calendar and music columns throughout the season for updated and additional listings. For now, see Bravo listings to ponder the full season's lineups. EUGENE SYMPHONY Cities several times our size would love to have a symphony season this progressive, as well as a music director this impressive. Giancarlo Guerrero, already a smashing success on every level in his tenure here, must believe that Eugene audiences have adventurous ears, and we're lucky that he chooses so adeptly. The ESO's Jan. 15 concert bravely offers fascinating contemporary concertos by one of today's hottest composers, Jennifer Higdon, and the 20th century titan Witold Lutoslawski. The April 22 concert — maybe the season's highlight — is another of Guerrero's artful mixes of new and old, with music of and an appearance by one of the great living composers, John Corigliano. His scores for Altered States and The Red Violin are some of the finest ever composed for film. In addition, perhaps the greatest symphony ever written, Beethoven's mighty seventh, will be performed. The two-year Beethoven cycle concludes with the first and last symphonies on May 20, while classical music's brightest star, Yo-Yo Ma, comes to town a week earlier.
OREGON MOZART PLAYERS Most towns are happy to have one extraordinary young classical music conductor. Eugene has two — Guerrero and OMP's Glen Cortese, who also composes. Cortese's "Mannahatta," based on texts by Walt Whitman, opens the Jan. 10-11 concerts, along with flute music by Mozart. Former Eugene Opera conductor Frank Graffeo returns for his annual Candlelight Concert on Feb. 27-28, and the OMP. The Mozart Players tread on territory staked out by OFAM (Copland's Appalachian Spring in January) and the Eugene Symphony (Beethoven's Symphony #3 in May) — but that only seems fair, considering each of them is doing Mozart chamber orchestra music (the overplayed Eine Kleine Nachtmusik in OFAM's January concert and the great Piano Concerto #24 in the symphony's March 18 show).
OFAM/THE SHEDD
Get out your calendar and cancel all nighttime appointments for the week of April 12, because music lovers will want to be at the Shedd. On the 13th, one of jazz's finest contemporary pianists and composers, Brad Mehldau, performs, followed the very next night by one of the greatest jazz figures of the 20th century, tenor saxophonist and composer Wayne Shorter. And on Friday the 16th, the world's greatest bass player, Edgar Meyer (first call in Nashville sessions as well as with classical ensembles), plays a solo concert there. (That same night, another great bassist, jazzer David Friesen, plays Luna, and on the 15th, the Ethos Percussion Quartet plays with Indian musicians at the Hult Center. What a week!) OFAM also offers jazz's single most visible figure, trumpeter/composer/bandleader Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra at the Hult in March, the astonishingly innovative trumpeter/composer Dave Douglas with his quintet in May, preeminent jazz chanteuses Diane Reeves and Cassandra Wilson in February and March, respectively, folk legend Joan Baez in March, a classical concert at the end of January and a Latin American Baroque concert (hosted by Eugene fave Maria Jette) in April, and much more.
EUGENE CONCERT CHOIR & VOCAL ARTS ENSEMBLE The city's premier vocal institutions offer overviews of big band music (in February), world music (in April — my top recommendation for this group's season) and — to prove that last year's massive Berlioz Requiem was no fluke success — another megamasterpiece, Verdi's Requiem to close the season in May.
UNIVERSITY OF OREGON If The Shedd will be my second home this spring, the UO's Beall Hall will be my third. Far too many worthy shows are happening there to cover here, but the brightest of the highlights include violinist Diane Monroe playing a jazz show on Jan. 16 and a classical show on the 22nd, the legendary Juilliard Quartet in February, productions of Sondheim's A Little Night Music and Orff's ever-popular Carmina Burana in February, visits from new music performers New Century Saxophone Quartet and Ethos Percussion Quartet (twice! including once with Indian musicians) in March, classical music of South India on Feb. 27, and much, much more – often free or for a pittance. As always, there'll be plenty of fine shows at clubs all over town (the best being Sam Bond's, Luna, and Café Paradiso), as well as venues from the Hult Center, WOW Hall and McDonald Theatre to the new Downtown Institute for the Visual Arts and the Atrium (which offers free concerts on many Saturday afternoons), and newer spaces like Cozmic Pizza, Indigo and more. Look for an excellent Celtic festival in March at several venues, and keep checking EW's calendar and columns for music coverage.
Dramatic
Nights The ebbing of winter's darkest days becomes apparent as the new theater season lights up playhouses around town. Like rich, thick stews that warm to the bone, several companies offer compelling dramas that audience members can sink their teeth into. Only a few are noted here, but please check EW weekly for updates and reviews. Eugene is truly blessed to have so many theater companies, each with its own niche and offerings. Please support them. An exciting note sounds as Willamette Repertory Theatre offers a Eugene O'Neill work that personifies Artistic Director Kirk Boyd's dream of offering high quality American works. A Moon for the Misgotten is O'Neill's final, comic-tragic play, written in 1943, not long after Long Day's Journey Into Night, as a eulogy to his brother James. "O'Neill had just finished Long Day's Journey into Night and felt he hadn't given Jamie just due in how much he loved his mother," says Boyd. O'Neill created a meaty woman's role in the character of Josie, and he also called the work The Moon Bore Twins because of Josie's story. Set in early September 1923, the plot revolves around Josie Hogan, a big, strong farm girl — O'Neill called for her to be about 5'11" and 180 lbs. He created her as a spitfire Irish woman with an Irish pig-farmer father who's a shrewd character. But it's the relationship between Josie and James Tyrone, their alcoholic landlord, that is the center of the story. In this production, Tony DeBruno (last seen in WRT's Art) is James Tyrone Jr., Dennis Robertson is the contentious Phil Hogan, Michelle Morain is Josie, and Jeff Pierce doubles as Mike Hogan and T. Stedman Harder. Although Morain's Josie is not the overpowering Earth Goddess O'Neill described, Boyd interprets O'Neill's size requirements to mean Josie should be a woman of character — not an ingenue. Boyd calls the lyricism of O'Neill's writing "pure American poetry." But it's not all wine and roses. Although the play begins on a light note and has a healthy dose of comedy, it still hangs heavy in the end. "The agony of this play is in those moments where Josie and James come so close to connecting," he says. "If they could just talk to each other and just do it, but they're both so wounded they can't." In this play where nothing is as it seems, where the romanticism of a moon hangs over the action, two souls fail to love. Therein lies the tragedy. The lesson is, "Be brave," says Boyd. As in the play, there is an element of pathos within the mounting of this production, but a note of magic resides in it as well. Before he founded WRT, when he was with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Boyd had met Jose Cantero, the foremost interpreter of O'Neill. "He could get rights to what no one else could, even though he wasn't American, but Panamanian," says Boyd. Something about Cantero and his connection with O'Neill impressed O'Neill's widow, Carlotta, however, and she gave him rights. "We became good friends; we just clicked," says Boyd. And when Boyd came to Eugene and formed WRT, Cantero was slated to direct the opening production. Not Moon, "because he was loyal to another actress who'd played Josie," Boyd says, but another chosen work. Sadly, Cantero passed away before that promise was realized. And Moon, to which Boyd had already procured rights, was revived on Broadway, thereby freezing those rights. To be directing and producing Moon this season, says Boyd, puts him into an "emotional place." But here comes the magic.
The script of Moon is long, too long by most conventional theater standards, yet editing O'Neill's writing is difficult. "He repeats things, but always in a different context," says Boyd. He tried to make edits, yet found it nearly impossible. Knowing Cantero had been a master of working with O'Neill's words, Boyd took a leap of faith. He wrote to Nick Tsacrios, Cantero's surviving partner, asking if there existed a script with Cantero's cuts. What Boyd received back from Tsacrios was not only a finely edited script, but also notes with blocking and light cues, all neatly typed. "It was such a score," says Boyd, not intending any pun. The lyrical Moon opens Jan. 28 and runs through Feb. 15.
Also in January, Lord Leebrick Theatre Company opens Far Away. Caryl Churchill's (Top Girls, Cloud 9) 50-minute one act work explores the topic of ethnic cleansing and questions humankind's relationship to the planet. Directed by John Schmor (Ship of Fools for UT, Romeo and Juliet for LLTC), Far Away stars Elena Stylos as Young Joan, Barbara Embree as Harper, Bruce McArthur as Todd, and Kim Bates as Older Joan to create an exhilarating journey that takes the audience through a tale woven with metaphor. "The title works on many levels" says LLTC Artistic Director Craig Willis. Is it long ago and far away that such things occurred? Or is it so far away geographically we don't need to worry about it? Willis says the show speaks not just to the eradication of ethnic groups, but explores any hate, whether it's toward the Axis of Evil or from those opposed to gay marriage. The play doesn't raise the issue of hate murder directly, but is composed of parable and allegory. "What theater can do beautifully," says Willis, "is prompt discussion, thought and question." Schmor had proposed the play last year to LLTC AD Corey Pearlstein, who had previously directed Cloud 9 at the space. He gave it the go ahead. Willis says it's one of the best chosen works of the season. Unlike Churchill's Top Girls, which was nicely produced by UT several years ago, but whose second act is much weaker than the first, and Cloud 9, whose production has its challenges, Far Away is a "tightly woven script with a more developed plot," he says, despite its 50-minute duration. Far Away opens Jan. 7 and continues through Jan 24. UO professor Linda Kintz will moderate a talk-back after the Sunday, Jan. 11 matinee.
Also on the not-so-distant horizon is a tremendous undertaking: Actors Cabaret collaborates with LCC in presenting The Laramie Project by Moises Kaufman, directed by Joe Zingo. Running just one weekend, Feb. 27-29 at LCC's main campus, the production will include up to 40 area actors. The play chronicles the 1998 Wyoming murder of 21-year-old Matthew Shephard, a gay man who was kidnapped, severely beaten and left to die in the middle of the prairie outside Laramie, Wyo. His body was discovered the next day, and he died several days later. Playwright Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project made six trips to Laramie over the course of a year and a half in the aftermath of the beating and during the trial of the two young men accused of killing Shepard. They conducted more than 200 interviews with the people of the town; some of whom were directly connected to the case. Kaufman and Tectonic Theater members have constructed a deeply moving theatrical experience from these interviews and their own experiences. Time magazine called The Laramie Project "One of the 10 best plays of 2000"; and it was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Unique Theatrical Experience. ACE founders Jim Roberts and Joe Zingo say, "It is our goal with The Laramie Project to involve more than 40 of the best actors in the Eugene/Springfield area to commit to the concept that what happened in Laramie, Wyo., will never happen here."
Kickin'
It Eugene is always an excellent place to find exciting dance performances, from local favorites to exotic imports. It is doubtful that many people following the city's performing arts scene in the past few years have been disappointed. Each season has had its own flavor, and the coming months should prove to be no exception. We will see several big-name productions pass through, sprinkled with an equally appealing smattering of smaller scale shows — all sure to get our hearts pounding and our blood pumping. Let's take a look at what's in store. The Hult Center, always one of Eugene's best places to see dance, will kick off 2004 when it hosts the musical Fame on Jan.16 and Jan. 17. The production tells the story of young hopefuls at New York's famous High School for the Performing Arts. Though the musical is not strictly a dance performance, Fame is a must-see for dancers, aspiring dancers and dance fans. The show boasts stellar dancers, awe-inspiring moves and an inspirational story. February will usher in this season's most exciting dance highlight when the worldly, immensely talented Dance Theatre of Harlem visits Eugene. The company, founded in 1969 and predicted by The New York Times to be "one of ballet's most exciting undertakings," has grown into an internationally acclaimed cultural institution and powerhouse neoclassical ballet company, deriving its works from Balanchine to the African Diaspora. The company has appeared all over the world and set box office records everywhere. Mark your calendars, because Feb. 4 will be Eugene's only chance to see these bold, decadent dancers, and it's an event not to be missed! Also on the Hult Center's February agenda, local youth performance group The Edge will celebrate its 10th anniversary with a high-energy performance encompassing a wide variety of dance styles, including tumbling and break dancing. Catch this show Feb. 20. Next, Eugene Ballet Company will add the perfect finishing touch to an already dance-packed month with its staging of Cinderella on Feb. 28-29. Artistic Director Toni Pimble and company are adept at concocting the perfect mixture of modern and classic, and Cinderella will include Pimble's original signature choreography paired with the timeless Prokoviev score. In addition, the company will treat us to its lively Jitterbug, Jive & Jazz — a break from classical ballet, focusing instead on swing dance, with music from OFAM's Emerald City Jazz Kings. Lindy Hop to the Hult Center April 17-18 to see and hear this lively show. For tickets and information on these events, call the Hult Center Box Office at 685-5000. The UO and LCC dance departments will also offer up a satisfying smattering of dance opportunities in the next few months. The UO dance department's all-student produced Winter Student Dance Concert is scheduled for Feb. 12 through Feb. 14. Year after year, this proves to be an innovative evening, filled with fresh works by students, featuring their fellow students. On March 6, Dance Africa will present its African Community Night in the Dougherty Dance Theatre. Student dancers from the company will perform, along with Zimbabwean guest artist Lucky Moyo, brought to the UO with the help of the Kutsinhira Cultural Arts Center. This performance will be a definite stand-out for the season, providing a night of both entertainment and education.
Paul Taylor 2, an offshoot of the renowned Paul Taylor modern dance group, will visit the UO April 26 and April 27, providing Eugene audiences with yet another opportunity to see world-class talent without leaving home. The UO dance department also has its annual Faculty Dance Concert, the MFA Project Concert, Dance Quarterly, Loft Series and Open Showing planned for later. Contact the department at 346-5678 for ticket information and a full schedule. LCC also offers its own student dance concert, "The Works," April 22 to April 24. The dance department will celebrate National Dance Week May 20-May 22 with a cornucopia of events, including workshops, demonstrations and performance. For more information on LCC dance happenings, call 463-5202. Lastly, dance students from various studios will also perform around Eugene this season. One stand-out show will be Musical Feet's 26th Annual student concert, "Hats Off: A Tribute to Gregory Hines." The tap dancers will appear at the Hult Center in June. The date for this performance hasn't been set, so call 485-2938 for details. The space here is too small to detail or even mention every notable upcoming dance event, so check EW each week for additional coverage. I'll do my best to keep you updated on what's shaping up to be a great season.
SEASON
AT-A-GLANCE MUSIC Eugene Concert Choir/Vocal Arts Ensemble Peformances in the Hult. 682-5000. Feb. 28-29 Eugene Concert Choir "The Big Bands Era." Soreng April 17-18 Eugene Vocal Arts Ensemble "A World of Song." Soreng May 8 ECC, EVAE, and OMP Verdi Requiem. Silva
Eugene Opera Performances in Silva Hall, Hult. 682-5000. March 12 and 14 HMS Pinafore
Eugene Symphonic Band 485-5772. Jan. 20 Winter Concert. Beall Hall.
Eugene Symphony Orchestra Performances in Silva Hall, Hult. 682-5000. Jan. 15 Cutting Edge Concerti: Lutoslawski's Concerto for Orchestra and Jennifer Higdon's Concerto for Orchestra. Giancarlo Guerrero conducts. Feb. 14 Valentine Special with Jubilant Sykes
Lane Community College 4000 E. 30th. 463-5202. March 4 Symphonic Band Concert with area Middle Schools Honor Band March 9 Chamber Choir & Concert Choir March 12 Jazz Band Spectrum Vocal Jazz April 29 Faculty Jazz Concert May 11 and May 13 Vocal Jazz Invitational May 27 Jazz Band Symphonic Band June 2 Chamber Choir Concert Choir Spectrum vocal jazz ensemble
Oregon Bach Festival 682-5000. June 25-July 11 Note: Because schedule is preliminary, only certain shows are listed. Please check www.oregonbachfestival.comfor full schedule and updates. June 26 Opening Ceremonies, St. Matthew Passion. Silva June 30, July 3 and July 7 Thomas Quasthoff. Silva, Beall July 8 Symphony No. 6 and Flute Concerto, composed and conducted by Krzysztof Penderecki. Silva July 11 Mendelssohn's Elijah, with Kantorei, Festival Chorus and Orchestra. Silva
Oregon Festival of American Music 682-5000. Jan 30 American Symphonia Night Music. Shedd Feb 2 Dianne Reeves. Shedd Feb 6-15 Emerald City Jazz Kings Sentimental Journey. The Music of Les Brown & His Band of Renown. Eugene, Florence & Corvallis
Mar 3 Joan Baez. Shedd Mar 5 Wynton Marsalis & The Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra. Silva Mar 11 Now Hear This Cassandra Wilson. Shedd March 12-13 Twin Rivers Folklife Festival with David Holt, Joshua Goforth, Steve James and Del Rey, Cephas & Wiggins. Shedd March 13: David Holt followed and joined by Cephas & Wiggins. Shedd April 2 American Baroque Chamber Concert. Shedd April 13 Brad Mehldau Trio. Shedd April 14 Wayne Shorter Quartet. Shedd April 16 Edgar Meyer. Shedd April 24 Tom Paxton. Shedd May 5 Dave Douglas Quintet. Shedd May 7-16, 2004 Emerald City Jazz Kings "Hooray for Hollywood!" Film Songwriters in the 1930s & '40s. Eugene, Florence & Corvallis May 22 Jay Ungar & Molly Mason. Shedd
Oregon Mozart Players 682-5000. Jan. 10-11 Mannahatta, Mozart, with a Touch of Spring. (Jan. 10 Soreng; Jan. 11 Beall) Feb. 27-28 Candlelight Concert. First Christian Church March 13 Trio Pacifica. Soreng May 1-2 Just Another Variation. Soreng
UO School of Music Performances at Beall Hall, unless otherwise noted. 682-5000 or 346-4363. Jan. 8 I Musici de Montreal Jan. 10 Jeffrey Jacobs, Piano Jan. 13 Gleb Karpushkin, Horn; Alexander Tutunov, Piano
Jan. 16 Oregon Jazz Ensemble w/ Diane Monroe, Jazz Violin Jan. 18 Richard G. Wilt, Baroque Violin Jan. 21 UO Chamber Choir, UO Ensemble Jan. 22 Oregon String Quartet with Diane Monroe, Violin Jan. 23 "No Tenors" Vocal Recital Jan. 28 Oregon Wind Ensemble Feb. 5 Juilliard String Quartet Feb. 6 The Jazz Cafe Rm. 178 Music Feb. 8 University Symphony Feb. 12 Poetry in Song Feb. 14 Oregon Percussion Ensemble Children's Concert Feb. 18 A Little Night Music, UO Opera Ensemble & UO Symphony (Feb. 18 Soreng; Feb. 21 Jacoby Auditorium, Umpqua Community College. Roseburg; Feb. 22 Soreng) Feb. 20 The Jazz Café 178 Music Feb. 22 Oregon Wind Ensemble Feb. 24 Oregon Composers Forum Feb. 25 Faculty Woodwind Octet Feb. 27 Classical Music of South India Feb. 27 Carmina Burana UO Symphony and UO Singers. (Feb. 27 Jacoby Auditorium, UCC, Roseburg; Feb. 28 Florence Performing Arts Center. Feb. 29 EMU Ballroom) March 1 Chamber Musicale March 2 100th Monkey Ensemble March 3 Oregon Wind Ensemble, UO Symphonic Band March 4 Campus Band, Campus Orchestra March 6 Suzuki Strings March 6 Future Music Oregon 198 Music March 7 University Gospel Ensembles Eugene Christian Fellowship March 8 Oregon Percussion Ensemble March 9 Oregon Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Lab Bands March 10 UO Concert Choir March 11 New Century Saxophone Quartet March 14 University Percussion Ensemble. 198 Music
DANCE Eugene Ballet Company Performances in Silva Hall, Hult. 682-5000 Feb. 28-29 Cinderella April 17-18 Jitterbug, Jive and Jazz! with OFAM's Emerald City Jazz Kings
Lane Community College 4000 E. 30th. 463-5202. April 22-24 The Works — Student dance concert May 20-22 Spring Dance Concert
Musical Feet 485-2938 Jan. 31 Showcase Performance. Agate Auditorium April 17 Showcase Performance. Agate Auditorium June (date TBA) "Hats Off: A Tribute to Gregory Hines" Student Concert. Soreng
UO Dance Department Performances in Dougherty Dance Theatre. 346-5678. Feb. 12-14 Winter Student Dance Concert March 6 African Community Night March 10 Dance Quarterly March 11 Open Showing April 16-17 UO Repertory Dance Company April 26-27 Paul Taylor 2 Residency and Performance May 13-15 Faculty Concert May 22 Sarah Ebert MFA Movement Project June 4 Dance Quarterly June 5 Open Showing June 6 The Loft
THEATER Actors Cabaret of Eugene 996 Willamette. 683-4368 Jan. 16-Feb. 21 Eugene Premiere of Pretty Faces: The Large and Lovely Musical March 19-April 24 Laughter on the 23rd Floor May 21-June 26 Mister Roberts July 9-Aug. 7 Sweeney Todd ACE Annex 39 W. 10th. 683-4368. Jan. 30-Feb. 21 Sordid Lives April 30-May 15 Octet Bridge Club June 4-July 3 Hedwig and the Angry Inch August 2004 2nd Annual New York Connection: A One-Act Festival
Corvallis Community Theatre Corvallis Majestic Theatre. (541) 738-SHOW. March 5-14 Proof May 6-23 The Fiddler on the Roof August 6-15 Last of the Red Hot Lovers
Cottage Theatre 700 Village Dr., Cottage Grove. (541) 942-8001. Jan. 23-Feb. 7 Bad Seed April 2-25 How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying June 11-26 Cahoots Aug. 6-21 Stepping Out
Lane Community College 4000 E. 30th Ave. 463-5202. Feb. 6-21 Six Degrees of Separation Feb. 27-29 The Laramie Project, in conjunction with Actors Cabaret
Lord Leebrick Theatre Company 540 Charnelton. 465-1506. Jan 7-24 Far Away Feb. 11-March 6 Spinning Into Butter March 24-April 17 The Skin of our Teeth May 5-22 The Pavilion June 2-26 Wonders of the World
Rose Children's Theatre Performances at the McDonald Theatre. 431-0444. Jan. 24-31 Humpty Dumpty is Missing!
University Theatre Robinson Theatre, UO. 346-4191. Feb. 27-March 7 Wild Nights with Emily May 14-May 23 Much Ado About Nothing
Second Season Arena Theatre, 104 Villard Hall. 346-4191. Feb. 4-14 A Thread in the Dark April 21-May 1 Fuddy Meers
Very Little Theatre 2350 Hilyard. 344-7751. Jan. 9-31 The Lion in Winter March 12-April 3 Cabaret May 28-June 19 Barefoot in the Park Aug. 6-28 Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Willamette Repertory Theatre Performances in the Soreng Theatre, Hult. 682-5000. Jan. 28-Feb. 15 A Moon for the Misbegotten March 24-April 11 Twelfth Night (or What You Will!)
Hult Center Presents 7th and Willamette. 682-5000. Jan. 28 Leahy, Celtic music and step-dance sensation. Feb. 4 Dance Theatre of Harlem March 7 Moscow State Radio Symphony Orchestra w/Yuri Rozem, pianist March 8-9 Aquila Theatre production of Othello April 15, 17 Ethos Percussion and Masters of Indian Music
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