Arts reporter and critic Rosemary Ponnekanti keeps you in touch with the arts and culture scene with the help of other News Tribune writers, critics and editors.
Rosemary Ponnekanti is the arts reporter at The News Tribune, and has been a classical music nerd nearly all her life. Besides spending way too much time in galleries, museums and concert halls, she occasionally brings a whistle or double bass to Celtic jam sessions, and insists on singing "Happy Birthday" in four-part harmony.
Other contributors include:
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OK...there's a catch. In order to get $25 tickets to the musical "Wicked" opening at the Paramount Theatre in Seattle on Sept. 2 you'll have to enter a lottery.
Click on "more" to read details from the press release...
"Now and Forever" and how. The Andrew Lloyd Webber musical "CATS" will be licking from Seattle's saucer of milk next month.
The longest running musical in Broadway history is having a much shorter run in Seattle April 15-19 at The Paramount Theatre and tickets go on sale Friday.
Tickets for the seven shows start at $20 and will be available at Ticketmaster outlets or BroadwayAcrossAmerica. Tickets will also be available by calling 206-292-2787 or at The Paramount Theatre Box Office (Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.).
Here's the schedule:7 p.m. Wednesday, April 15
7 p.m. Thursday, April 16
8 p.m. Friday, April 17
2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday, April 18
1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Sunday, April 19
The Oprah Winfrey produced musical version of "The Color Purple" opened in Seattle last night bringing soaring voices, powerful anthems and poignant love songs to a packed Paramount Theatre.
Borrowing from both the Alice Walker novel and the Steven Speilberg movie, the musical adds a few new elements but remains true to the story.
The musical opens with the young Celie (Jeannette Bayardelle) pregnant with her second child. She is quickly sent off to marry a man, Mister, who openly disdains her as ugly.
The show doesn't really grab hold until the entry of Sofia (Felicia P. Fields), the role Winfrey played in the movie. Fields dominates every scene she's in and turns even lemonade drinking into a larger than life experience. Fields’ rousing rendition of “Hell No!” had the audience cheering before she had finished.
The show features many ensemble numbers with great harmonizing. A trio of gossipy church ladies shows up every so often to sing their opinions. They even reincarnate as African villagers - a great comic touch.
The sets are minimally designed, too much so. But, they are effective in showcasing the performers.
Celie doesn't begin to bloom until the appearance of her husband's mistress, the glamorous and strong-willed singer Shug Avery (Angela Robinson). The contrast between the pair is never more apparent than during "Too Beautiful for Words." That song is a prelude to "What About Love," an emotional duet between Celie and Shug that took my breath away and had the audience sniffling into tissues as the first act closed.
The second act kicks in to gear with high energy choreography. It's also in the second act when Celie finds the bravery to leave Mister and Bayardelle's voice reflects her character's new found strength. Bayardelle's powerful voice shined in "I'm Here," an anthem of Celie's survival and affirmation.
"The Color Purple" runs through the 28th at the Paramount with half price tickets on December 24 and 25. Tickets ($25-$75) are available at Fred Meyer Ticketmaster outlets and by calling 206-292-2787.
Angela Robinson (left, as Shug Avery) and Jeannette Bayardelle (Celie) perform "Too Beautiful for Words" in the musical version of "The Color Purple." (PHOTO: Paul Kolnik)
Photos by Paul Kolnik
I was watching TV news on the day in 1986 when the Academy Awards nominations were announced. They had video of a woman jumping and screaming after learning she had been nominated for best supporting actress in the 1985 film “The Color Purple.” I’d never heard of this actress, a Chicago TV talk show host, and she didn’t win the award a month later.
Fast forward 20 years and now the whole world knows who Oprah Winfrey is. And once again, she’s involved with “The Color Purple.”
On Dec. 16 Oprah’s touring musical production of “The Color Purple” opens at Seattle’s Paramount Theatre. Based on both Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and the film by Steven Spielberg, the musical was nominated for 11 Tony Awards on Broadway. It features a Grammy-nominated score of gospel, jazz, pop and the blues.
While Oprah is only producing and not performing in it, the musical features a lot of talent, both on stage and behind it.
Show dates run 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday, 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Sunday. A special matinee performance will also take place on Wednesday, Dec. 24 at 1 p.m. Ticket prices range from $25 to $75 with a limited number of $150 tickets available in the Loge area.
Tickets are on sale now at Fred Meyer, Ticketmaster outlets, www.theparamount.com, www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com or by calling 206-292-2787.
Andrea Chamberlain (center) performs with other cast members in "The Drowsy Chaperone" now at The 5th Avenue Theatre.
I attended a preview of “The Drowsy Chaperone” Thursday night at The 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle. Is it possible to over laugh? My jaw was a little worn out after the show.
The five-Tony Award winning Broadway musical is as much a comedy as it is a musical and there’s plenty of both – and dancing – in the delightful show.
The premise of the story is that a 21st century down-in-the-dumps man cheers himself up by putting on an album of a beloved 1920’s musical one evening. One by one the characters appear on stage (the man’s apartment) and the musical unfolds.
The musical within the play theme works so well thanks to that “man in chair” who acts as the narrator. Jonathan Crombie turns out an outstanding performance as he guides us through the show, sometimes stopping the action to wittily deconstruct a scene or offer some juicy gossip about the actors. It’s one of those rare performances that makes it impossible to imagine anyone else in the role.
The musical itself is delightfully overacted with cartoonish characters. Mishaps with the record player reverberate through the cast as if a puppeteer was in control. It all works astonishingly well.
Another standout performer was Andrea Chamberlain, playing Janet Van de Graaff, the star of the musical within the play. The highlight of the show is her performance of “Show Off.” During the piece she runs through a mind boggling number of talents, costume changes, photo posing and dance moves (the photo above) all the while lamenting her life in the spotlight.
The show has a fascinating back story. It was first put on as a series of songs and scenes as a wedding gift to performers Bob Martin (who went on to become the first “man in chair”) and Janet Van de Graaff in 1998. The show grew in length (now one hour, 45 minutes) and prominence, eventually making it to Broadway in 2006.
There isn’t a weak performance in the play/musical and only one irritating minor character: the stereotypical high-pitched New Yorker starlet wannabe. This is a show that has been tried, tested and tuned by years of performance. There isn’t one superflours line, missed cue or flat joke.
“The Drowsy Chaperone’ runs Tuesdays-Sundays through Nov. 16 at The 5th Avenue Theatre. Check their website or call 206-625-1900 for times and tickets.
TNT critic Soren Andersen attended last night's world premiere of "Shrek the Musical." You can read his four-star review here.
The show is at Seattle's 5th Avenue Theatre through Sept. 21. After that you'll have to go to New York to see it.
You can get tickets by calling 206-625-1900.
Brian d'Arcy James in the title role of Shrek. (PHOTO: Joan Marcus)
The mayor was there. So were Shrek, Fiona and Donkey. Well, actually it was Brian D'Arcy James, Sutton Foster and Chester Gregory II, the actors who play the three characters from "Shrek the Musical."
They showed today at Downstairs at the 5th, the underground concourse beneath the 5th Avenue Theatre, along with Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, to tout the upcoming run of the new multimillon-dollar stage production.
As TV and newspaper photographers recorded the event, the mayor spoke of the Emerald City's growing prominence as an out-of-town launching pad for Broadway musicals based on movies. "Hairspray" got its start in Seattle. So did "Young Frankenstein." And now "Shrek."
James and Foster spoke in support of the Seattle's Climate Action Now summer transportation initiative that is intended to make people forsake their cars and use public transportation to get to the performances. It's a green initiative, you see, and the ogre is green, and so that sort of makes sense, I guess.
Gregory wrapped things up by singing one of the original tunes from the show. And then he and the other cast members went back into rehearsals, which are now in progress.
The production will be onstage at the 5th Avenue from Aug. 14 to Sept. 21. It's scheduled to open in New York City in November.
Tacoma Musical Playhouse is finishing its 14th season with "Grease" in July.
If you aren't familiar with the story (maybe you have an unexplainable fear of John Travolta) here's how TMP describes their show:
Set in fictional Rydell High School, this vibrant show celebrates a time when the word “teenager” was in the process of being coined by the Class of ‘59, bobby socks were fashionable, and beehive hairdos were cool. It’s the love story of Sandy and Danny as they make their way through a world of the Burger Palace, drive-ins, massive cars, hula hoops, Brylcreem, and milkshakes. With songs like “Greased Lightning” and “Beauty School Dropout,” Grease bursts with rocking vitality and just plain fun. Frenchy’s obsessive change of hair color, the dancing contest with the seductive Vince Fontaine, and the dangerous Cha-Cha all depict the growing pains of a bygone generation.
The show runs July 11 through Aug. 3 on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m. The production is at Narrows Theatre, 7116 Sixth Ave. Tickets are $23/adults, $21/students/seniors/military and $16/children 12 and under. For tickets or more information you can call 253-565-6867 or go to at www.tmp.org
John Travolta, as far as I know, will NOT be appearing.Sure, the Hulk is getting all the attention this week but come August another big green guy is going to be center stage. Literally.
Tickets for "Shrek the Musical" go on sale Friday at 9:30 a.m.
The 5th Avenue Theatre show is the latest Broadway bound musical to get its start in Seattle ("Hairspray" and "Young Frankenstein" went on to be huge successes).
The show runs Aug. 14 to Sept. 21 with opening night on Sept. 10. The big green ogre then leaves his Seattle swamp to take up official residence at the Broadway Theatre in New York on Dec. 14.
The large cast seems to have every Broadway hit for the last 10 years in their resumes. The principals are Tony Award nominee Brian d'Arcy James as Shrek, Tony Award winner Sutton Foster as Princess Fiona, Tony Award nominee Christopher Sieber as Lord Farquaad, Chester Gregory II as Donkey, Tony Award nominee John Tartaglia as Pinocchio and Kecia Lewis-Evans as The Dragon.
This is a completely new musical based on the story and characters from William Steig’s book "Shrek!" and the animated film "Shrek" (above, voiced by Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy.)
The show's book and lyrics are by Pulitzer Prize-winner David Lindsay-Abaire; music by Olivier Award-winner Jeanine Tesori; and is directed by Tony Award nominee Jason Moore.
Ticket prices range from $25 to $90. You can call 206-625-1900 or 888-5TH-4TIX, or www.5thavenue.org for tickets.
Is this going to be the next "Hairspray?" See it and find out.
