Insider's Viewpoint: February 2018

Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Just 45 Minutes From Broadway

I stumbled upon this simple little film on Amazon Prime today and I was pleasantly surprised. Despite a wonderful supporting performance by Judd Nelson (Breakfast Club), the rest of the ensemble of this film is unknown but fantastic! This is a true tribute to the theater and a love letter to actors everywhere! It's about our families, particularly the lucky ones among us that have our family's love and support of our passion for our art.

This is a strange film but I fell in love with it and it's characters pretty quickly. It had a touch of Noel Coward in it but at it's heart, it's about a family of artists. It's about separating art from real life and how sometimes that line is blurred. This was based on a play by the same name and written and directed by the playwright himself.

It's a touching tribute to family and sometimes the wounds that happen when life doesn't pan out the way we think it should. I highly recommend this film to everyone, particularly to my fellow theater artists.

Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her

This is a very subtle but heartwarming look at people, in this case, women. Can you really know someone by just looking at them? This film explores this subject with gentleness and a universal look at humanity in all of its subtleties. Five interweaving stories of women just trying to get through life and their challenges. Glen Close stars as a physician whose role of sole caregiver of her elderly mother begins to take its tole. Cameron Diaz and Amy Brenneman star as sisters, one blind the other a police detective looking for love and their own place in the world. Calista Flockhart as a medium whose spouse is dying of cancer. Holly Hunter as a bank manager who's life is suddenly turned head over heals in the wake of an important decision that must be made. And, finally, Kathy Baker, a single mother who finds a chance at new love in the strangest of circumstances.

This film interweaves these stories cleverly and subtlety. I stumbled upon this little know gem on Amazon Prime. I highly recommend this simple yet touching story of humanity.

Monday, February 26, 2018

Boynton Beach Club

This is a wonderful romantic comedy from 2004 that I recently discovered on Amazon Prime streaming service.

This film boasts an all star cast including Diane Cannon, Brenda Vaccaro, Joseph Bologna, Sally Kellerman, Len Cariou and Micheal Nouri. It was so much fun to watch these actors come together to tell a wonderfully funny and touching look into love after 60.

Brenda Vaccaro plays a recent widow who reluctantly joins a nearby senior beach club's Bereavement group and ends up becoming fast friends with one of the local members, Dyan Cannon. Things spread like wildfire from there and we get a delightfully funny and heartwarming look at the romance game amongst seniors.

I loved each and every moment of this wonderful film and I highly recommend it.

Sunday, February 25, 2018

Angels In America: Millennium Approaches

I have to say one thing before I begin. I am so grateful that I am part of the theatrical community. I get to be surrounded by such gifted and talented individuals and sometimes get the honor of sitting in an audience and experience those gifts and talents for myself. I am very proud of Taylor Jack Nelson and Kacey Spadafora for creating An Other Theatre Company in Provo, Utah. The work they are doing is groundbreaking and brave. They have already added to the Utah County theatrical landscape such honesty, beauty and great variety to that landscape and they haven't been open even an entire year. I look forward to the months and years to come to see what this little theater company will bring to this landscape!

Angels In America: Millennium Approaches is an extremely brave move on their part, particularly in Utah County and I am so grateful they took the risk and produced this beautiful, heartwarming and inspiring, Pulitzer Prize winning play to this particular community. It is so needed!

Kacey Spadafora's brilliant direction of this complex story was amazing to watch. It was simple and theatrical. It allowed us, the audience, to focus on the characters themselves and made me remember why I love live theater so much! Kacey's interpretation of Tony Kushner's masterpiece was truly original and kept the pacing of this 3 hours and 20 minutes play going rapidly and it never felt like 3 hours and 20 minutes. The ensemble cast worked well together and brought to their individual performances such grace, depth, and emotional honesty. I particularly loved the conclusion of the performance. I loved the originality of it and how it brought all of the stories together beautifully and made me excited to experience the second part.

Although the HBO mini-series event adaptation of Kushner's work was brilliantly done with an all-star cast of superb actors, it was nice to see this work done simply and in a wonderfully intimate theatrical manner.

Congratulations to the design team as well for a simple design concept that served the production well!

Trevor William Newsome (Prior), Noah Kershisnik (Louis), Bryce Lloyd Gueston (Joe), Haley Nebeker (Harper), Joel Applegate (Roy), Kim Abunuwara (Hannah), Michael Fletcher (Belize) and Caitlin Laurie Bell (Angel) all played multiple characters quite well and all brought honesty and depth to their performances. These are complex and difficult characters and everyone of these talented individuals did outstanding jobs and I felt for each and every character.

The rest of the run is sold out, but I highly suggest you get yourself on the waiting list and try to get a seat to this production! You won't regret it! Your life and perspective will be changed forever!