Displaying items by tag: McAninch Arts Center

“Is this what it’s like to have sisters?”

I know I personally fall into the category of Jane Austen fans who have been following adaptations and spinoffs of Pride and Prejudice for eons. What happened to the Bennett sisters after the famous events of the classic tale? Did Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy find happiness? How are Jane and Mr. Bingley finding their marriage, and did the younger sisters ever discover their own paths to true love? Playwright Lauren Gunderson provides her own take through her trilogy Christmas at Pemberly plays, and in collaboration with Margot Melcon, the third installment offers a window into how the lives of Kitty and Georgiana progress post the original story.

In Act 1, As Georgiana sinks into the couch and takes in the Bennetts with the quote above, you might find yourself smiling alongside her. If you’re like me, you may think back to Pride and Prejudice and remember how alone she once was. Now she too finds herself with the unconditional love of sisters, and for better or for worse, she is going to discover what it’s like when they meddle without a second thought.

Directed by Connie Canaday Howard, Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley takes place two years after Pride and Prejudice. We find ourselves at the Darcy residence on Christmas Eve as Georgiana Darcy (Olivia Finkelstein) prepares to welcome her suitor, Henry Gray (Peter Alfano), to the home. The catch? She isn’t alone. Not only are Mr. Darcy (Keenan Odenkirk) and Elizabeth (Paige Klopfenstein) home for the holidays, but so are each of the Bennett sisters – Lydia (Leela Watts), Jane (Charlotte Foster), Mary (Elexis Selmon), and of course, her best friend, Kitty (Ksa Curry). To top it off, Henry’s friend, Thomas O’Brien (Daniel Millhouse) is joining the festivities, and he is just as ready as the Bennetts to meddle in the couple’s affairs. As might be expected, nothing quite goes according to plan, and as much as Kitty tries to support her friend, Georgiana might just find that nothing is ever simple on the path to love.

Howard’s production is full of joy and charm. Costume Designer Aly Greaves Amidei immediately transports the audience back into 1815 through her designs. The Bennett sisters’ dresses are stunning and add bright color to the Darcy home that is fully decked out for Christmas. Scenic Designers Jacqueline and Richard Penrod, in collaboration with Original Music and Sound Designer Christopher Kriz, fully immerse the audience into the holiday story for the eyes and ears.

As to be expected with a Jane Austen adaptation, the play certainly has its plot points involving true love. Not only does Georgiana find her soul mate in Henry, but Kitty also finds her own happiness with Thomas.  Finkelstein and Alfano bring a sweet, shy energy to the courtship – creating a relationship that you are sure to find yourself rooting for and hoping will succeed. Kitty and Thomas have a different approach, but one that is just as fun to watch unfold. The couple find their way to each other through the choice to meddle on behalf of their friends, and Curry and Millhouse infuse the relationship with high-energy and a mischievous humor. If you are a Jane Austen fan who loves watching the classic relationships grow despite their obstacles, you will find that the play certainly offers that access point.

However, something that you might also find to be special about this story is that it does not solely focus on the couples. The central relationship is actually the friendship between Georgiana and Kitty – two characters who have very little development in the original Austen story.  Curry and Finkelstein bring these characters to life with such creativity and delight. Much of the story explores these two younger sisters finding their voices amongst the noise of their elder siblings, and seeing Georgiana and Kitty support each other over the course of that journey adds to the holiday spirit.

Full of charm and holiday delight, Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley is a joy from start to finish. If you are a long-time Jane Austen fan, this play certainly scratches the itch of those wanting to see the Bennett stories continue. If this is your first taste of the Austen world, there are still plenty of access points to make this a holiday story to remember.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Run Time: 2 hours and 15 minutes, with intermission

Georgiana and Kitty: Christmas at Pemberley runs through December 21, 2025 at the McAninch Arts Center – 425 Fawell Blvd. For tickets and information, see the Buffalo Theatre Ensemble website.

To say music flowed out of New Orleans is an understatement. The Mississippi River technically flows South, but in “Take Me to the River: New Orleans Live” the music poured out in all directions. There is a documentary coming out later this year to go along with this concert. The same thing was done last year with the music of Memphis as a follow up to Snoop Dog’s documentary “Take Me to the River: Memphis”. I missed that show, but I did see the film, which is a wonderful exploration of Memphis-based music. I almost thought I was going to miss this latest concert that celebrates the music of New Orleans – and I’m sure glad I made it.

What do you get when you combine The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, George Porter Jr. and a couple Neville Brothers? One amazing ninety minutes of musical bliss is what you get. This was a lesson that stems from the roots of American Music.

New Orleans is known as the birthplace of Jazz. It is actually a mini cultural melting pot, musically speaking. A lot of influences are woven into the sounds that NOLA has given birth to. Jazz improvisation was conceived on the streets, emerging from funeral parades. Being below sea level, there are no burial grounds. So, people spent a lot of money on their post life. When people passed on, their friends and family often had parades to the place of final resting. Horn players along the way would jump in with the band…you had to have a band, right? Some of these players didn’t even know the songs being played, so they winged it. The result is what we now call improvisation.

Well, enough of the history lesson, let’s talk about the present. I am actually writing this only about an hour after seeing the show. This review is as fresh as the tomatoes you just picked out of your Momma’s garden. The music was like plate of Jambalaya with a bowl of Filet Gumbo on the side, very tasty. The grooves deep enough to get seriously stuck in.

One of the highlights of the evening for me was The 79rs Gang. This musical outfit was all vocals and rhythm complete with two members dressed in Native American costumes. I guess I am not done with the history lesson. There actually is a considerable Native American influence on the music of New Orleans. If you have ever heard about Congo Square, you know what I am talking about. That was a place to gather. The rhythmic part of NOLA started there. Most of us will acknowledge the African American contribution to the rhythm of Jazz. The people who gathered in Congo Square were basically anyone in town that were not purely Caucasian. This combination of ethnicities helped shape the music in the early development stages.

When I saw Big Chief Monk Bordeaux walk out to join The 79rs, it was just amazing. That gave everyone visual evidence of how these influences united essentially in their own repression. Often, bad things like racism brings forth amazing results. Jazz, R&B and other forms of music in America are testimony to that sad fact in our nation’s history. The redemption is musical forms that are purely and utterly American.

The room was full of people that will probably never know this, but, still, they did have a grand time. I am not saying I don’t appreciate the fact that those who might not know all the history supported tonight’s production. I’m thrilled – and we all have to learn sometime. Maybe a few went home to read up on the music of New Orleans. I think anyone who supports the arts is my friend. I just wonder if they got the same thing out of it that I did.

The McAninch Arts Center hits another homerun for bringing in such a unique, fun-filled musical experience that will be remembered for a long, long time.

The Buffalo Theatre Ensemble presented John Patrick Shanley’s “Outside Mullingar” at The MAC this past weekend. BTE has put together some very nice plays at College of DuPage and their latest falls into that same category once again. A relatively light-hearted romantic comedy, the play is set in rural Ireland and though the timeline is not really specified, the story has a timeless quality anyway.

Its small cast consists of four players, each important to flow of the story and adding the perfect touch of humor, which was very well received by the audience.

Robert Jordan Bailey plays Anthony. His character has the strongest connection to the rest of the cast in many ways. Bailey plays the part very well, which he must since Anthony is not your stereotype Irish farmer. With more than his fair share of issues and a lot of the jokes are on him. Playing Rosemary to perfection is Kelli Walker. Rosemary is a tough, young Irish woman who Anthony is interested in…or is he? The two show strong chemistry through the play, both very believable in their roles.

Rounding out the cast is Norm Woodel who plays Anthony’s father Tony and Milley Hurley who plays Aoife, a neighbor. They make up a durable support system to Bailey and Walker. Both are vital in the first set, as the second set focuses primarily on Anthony and Rosemary. The story is a simple but entertaining. The humor is what makes it a great play and it does not invoke heavy thinking or have the audience scrambling to search for hidden meanings. Theatre goers will, however, get a good laugh in. That is important these days or any day, I suppose.

“Outside Mullingar” is finely production directed by Steve Scott. The sets and sounds are excellent, which is par for the course in BTE plays. If you are in the mood for a good laugh, give it a go. Those seeking well-produced theatre experiences do not always need to go into the city to see a quality play. For us suburbians, this one is right in our backyard and the ticket price seems quite reasonable.

I am becoming more and more a fan of smaller productions. One of the reasons being the size of the theaters is small enough that you can see the faces of the actors – it’s intimate. You can hear the dynamics in their voices and catch the slightest facial subtleties. Buffalo Theatre Ensemble offers excellent actors that clearly enjoy what they do. It’s difficult not to respect these professionals that work so hard at their craft for somewhat small rewards. Having said that, they do need the support – and deservedly so. For little more than a meal at your favorite overpriced restaurant, you can visit The Playhouse Theatre and be thoroughly entertained. And in this particular production, not only will you save the calories, you will burn some off laughing. So, support local theatre companies. For some of you this involves getting out of the house and shutting off your phone. Both are…at times…good ideas…you can play Candy Crush when you get back home.

“Outside Mullinger” is being performed at The Playhouse Theatre inside the McAninch Arts Center through June 3rd. Visit www.atthemac.org for more info.

Cuban Jazz was the flavor at McAninch Arts Center (The MAC) this past weekend, but the band’s labeled genre might just be a bit misleading. In fact, I would describe the Cubanismo’s sound of as that more akin to Big Band first and foremost. Though high energy dance music with infectious grooves, it is heavily sprinkled with a touch of Havana and Latin Beats. Lively and catchy from beginning to end, let’s just say if audience members aren’t clapping or tapping their toes, someone in the medical profession needs to check them for a pulse.

Cubanismo founder and trumpeter, Jesus Alemany, led the ensemble through two sets of some very spicy music. Let me take a mental head count of musicians - four horns, three percussionists, three singers, bass, guitar, keys and Alemany complete the band’s line-up. That adds up to thirteen if I did the math correctly. Ricky Ricardo would have felt right at home with this combo.

They key word with music like this is rhythm. I mentioned in my review of Gipsy Kings last summer how that was a lesson in rhythm. This was a follow up to the learning I received that day. The reason why I don’t really consider this Jazz is due to the ability to dance to what was presented. I know Jazz has many sub categories. What this band really represents is the dance clubs of Pre-Castro Cuba - straight from the 1940’s – music with a serious spice to it. There also seemed to be far less emphasis on improvisation in this band’s set as opposed to the likes of Gipsy Kings. I think a good portion of the show may have been changed in slight ways from time to time, but unquestioned were its tight arrangements.

The band’s three singers took charge of their songs with serious support from the rest of the players. I wish my Spanish was better as far as understanding the lyrical content but that didn’t matter all that much, as music is the universal language. Cubanismo is all about getting their fans to move. Recently, a friend mentioned to me how there should be more room for dancing when going to see a band play. A larger dance area would have certainly helped the situation, especially when the band gave a mambo lesson on the final number. Cubanismo showed the moves while on stage and their fans followed. This was yet another reason I say it is not really Jazz per se. Nobody (particularly other musicians) was sitting around admiring the technical sophistication of the players. That being said, I am not at all saying the band members were not amazing. We just weren’t pelted with one self-indulgent solo after another in typical jazz fashion. It was truly an ensemble performance.

To give readers a brief history of the band, Alemañy was a child prodigy in Cuba before joining Sierra Maestra when he was just 16. After more than a decade of playing with that group, he moved to London to pursue his own career. There he met a fellow Cuban, pianist Alfredo Rodriguez, and the two musicians organized a jam session in Paris in 1994. It was there that record producer and head of Hannibal Records Joe Boyd heard the group play and suggested the pair organize another descarga (or improvised jazz session) in Cuba with all-star musicians from all over the country and record it. The recording was such a success that the group formed a band and toured extensively.

The band played selected tunes from their hit albums “Melembe”, “Reencarnación” and “Greetings from Havana” along with many other up-tempo, cha-cha-driven favorites.

The music of Cubanismo is straight from an era of Cuba long since gone. The tradition does live on through the music of this particular band that has received critical acclaim. Supporting this music is what keeps it alive and I hope to see more of that. Jesus Alemany should be proud of what he has assembled. If you get a chance to see them live, I am sure you will not walk away disappointed. In fact, you will not walk at all…you will dance.

www.cubanismo.org