by Karen Tortora-Lee on June 9, 2009
I tend to like it best when language is used precisely … I get annoyed when I’m trying to say that something is futile and all I can think to say is hopeless. I care about nuance; futile and hopeless may live in the same neighborhood of language, but they’re blocks away from each other, in my mind. The other day I came across someone who used “alas” in place of “luckily” (“I really needed some frozen yogurt and alas! I suddenly saw a Pinkberry.” Whaaaat???). It upset me so much that I had to write to a friend and complain.
So the idea of being hit by a car and losing my power of precise speech (a condition called Aphasia) is as awful, to me, as, say … the star quarterback being told he’ll walk with a limp for the rest of his life. Unthinkable. Devastating.
Which brings us to Night Sky by Susan Yankowitz – directed by Daniella Topol and currently playing at The Rose Nagelberg Theater at Baruch Performing Arts Center.
Anna (Jordan Baker) is a busy lady … she’s an astronomy teacher who ponders the great wonders of the universe on a daily basis; she’s been recognized by her peers for her work, she’s an intellectual. Her signifiacant other, Daniel, (Jim Stanek) is a singer of opera, and her teen-aged daughter Jennifer (Lauren Ashley Carter) is … well, we’ll get to Jenny-Jen-Jennifer later.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on February 23, 2009
When it comes to the theatre, Carl Andress was practically weaned First Row, Center; he’s been writing, acting, and directing for as long as he can remember, and it’s always been his passion. He got his start years ago when … well, I’ll let him tell you all about that. His latest directorial offering The Third Story stars Kathleen Turner and Charles Busch and is currently running through March 15th at the The Lucille Lortel Theatre. Carl took some time to chat with me about the play, what it’s been like collaborating with Charles Busch over the years, and how his career in theatre began.
KT: Hi Carl, thanks so much for taking some time to talk with me. I’m really excited to be able to chat with you about The Third Story … it sounds like a wild ride – “Gangster flicks, fairy tales, and B-movie sci-fi collide in this epic comic fable from the imagination of Charles Busch“. PLUS it also stars the amazing Kathleen Turner. How did it all happen?
CA: I guess it was around 2007 when Charles Busch was commissioned to write a play for the La Jolla Playhouse (LJP). He gave it to me to read first and I fell in love with it immediately. The La Jolla Playhouse is a very successfully non-profit theatre out in San Diego … a lot of great theatre has come out of there; it’s been in existence since the 50s. More recently, shows like Big River and the revival of How to Succeed in Business …, Tommy, and Jersey Boys started there. They do a lot of new work, new plays and big musicals. And they sometimes commission works, just like they commissioned Charles.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on January 5, 2009
Pop Quiz. Becky Shaw is:
a) your old college roommate who reconnected with you on Facebook
b) your boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend – who still has her ski boots in his closet
c) your mother’s bingo partner who keeps asking if you want to be fixed up with her recently divorced son
The answer is actually: d) the play I saw recently, written by Gina Gionfriddo, directed by Peter DuBois and currently being produced at the 2econd Stage Theatre (307 West 43rd Street off Eighth Avenue).
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on December 19, 2008
I was lucky enough to snag some deeply discounted tickets to the limited engagement of The Cripple of Inishmaan (by Martin McDonaugh and directed by Garry Hynes) last week. Let’s face it, when someone offers you discount tickets that cost less than a movie ticket, as long as the plot is a shade better than Death Race you’re already ahead of the game. So excited was I by the chance to see live theatre for ten dollars, that I barely glanced at the synopsis which informed me that The Cripple of Inishmaan was set in 1934, on an island off the west coast of Ireland, and that it involved events surrounding the time filmmaker Robert Flaherty came to the area to film his movie Man of Aran. I mean, I’m not really one for blurbs. Anything loses its zing when boiled down to a few sentences. I’m more of a jump-in-with-both-feet-and-then-decided-if-I-like-it type of gal, ’specially when, as I’ve mentioned before, the tickets are ten bucks.
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by Karen Tortora-Lee on December 10, 2008
If Christmas in New York could be found on the map I think most people would agree that its address would be Rockefeller Center, filled as it is with the tree and the giant decorations, and the fabled City of Radio … where Rockettes dress up as reindeer and dance their little hearts out, doling out Christmas Miracles to the tourists one high kick at a time.
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