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REVIEW: ‘SPANK!’ makes sold-out Paramount audience cry with laughter

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Danielle Trzcinski is all wide-eyed innocence as virginal Tasha Woode in "SPANK! The Fifty Shades Parody," which had female fans swooning Friday night (5/10/13) at the Paramount Theatre in Cedar Rapids. (Timn Greenway photo)

CEDAR RAPIDS — A full house of (mostly) female fans yelped and screamed throughout “SPANK!” last night (5/10/13) at the Paramount Theatre.

They weren’t in pain — although some of the singing and writing was purposely painful. Instead, this “Fifty Shades of Grey” theatrical parody makes its audience writhe in laughter.

I see no Tony Awards in its future. It’s more like a two-hour “Saturday Night Live” sketch with plenty of bumping, grinding and naughty bits, punctuated by pop songs with “new” trashy lyrics. “Tainted Love” is the perfect theme song for this show — a bit of fan-fic based on the wildly popular fan-fic trilogy that swept pop culture off its feet last spring and summer.

The play follows the path of E.L. James’ books, quickly dubbed “mommy porn,” in which brainiac college virgin Anastasia Steele’s educational path deviates when she trips and falls into the arms of Christian Grey, a debonair, dominating megamogul billionaire with an appetite for S&M whips and chains.

As with many parodies, the stage version isn’t endorsed by James or her publishing company, so the names have been changed to protect the not-so-innocent. The play’s onstage writer is E.B. Janet and the characters she creates are Tasha Woode and Hugh Hanson. Same basic plot, same grey silk necktie binding the lovers in knot after naughty knot.

Anne Marie Scheffler is hilarious as author Janet, a bored housewife determined to make the most of her weekend free of her husband and kids, kicking back and cranking out a sex fantasy trilogy. What could be so hard about that? Apparently, singing and dancing. Janet isn’t good at either, but I suspect the highly trained actress with an extensive comedy resume was trying to be bad, in which case, she was good, if not great. Especially hilarious were the moments following the steamy scenes, in which she batted her eyes with wide-eye innocence and simply said, “You’re welcome.”

Gabe Bowling sets plenty of hearts afire in "SPANK!" (Mills Entertainment photo)

Gabe Bowling was a hunka hunka burning love, dressed and undressed, gyrating through Hanson’s 50 shades of shadowy grey, blurring the lines of bad-boy goodness, kindling Woode’s fire. Danielle Trzcinski is his match as Tasha, adding spunky spark to their burning fires of passion.

The dialogue is as awful as in the books, which is no easy feat. It’s hard to write badly, unless you’re a bad writer to begin with — then it’s easy. This is hard.

Anyway, back to the story. Boy opens door, girl falls into his arms, he shows up at the hardware store where she works, buys some rope and duct tape, asks her out, ties her up, binding her heart and her hands as time goes on. They navigate his jet-set lifestyle in helicopters, hovercrafts, jetpacks and hang gliders, landing time and again in his Red Room of Pain.

It ain’t Shakespeare, but the Bard was bawdy in his own right, it’s just that he really could write, right?

“SPANK!” is trashy, flashy fun — two hours of escapism embraced by a mostly young audience ready to cut loose in best bachelorette party fashion. Even my inner goddess was ready for a cigarette at intermission, and I don’t smoke. This show does.

Miss it last night or desiring more tonight? It’s playing three times this weekend in Dubuque. Laters, baby.

FAST TAKE

What: “SPANK! The Fifty Shades Parody”

When: 4 and 7 p.m. Saturday (5/11) and 2 p.m. Sunday (5/12)

Where: Mississippi Moon Bar, Diamond Jo Casino, 301 Bell St., Dubuque:

Tickets: $29.75 to $39.75, (563) 690-4758 or Diamondjo.com

Show website: Spankshow.com

 

REVIEW: Daugherty’s ‘American Gothic’ paints new pictures with thrilling sonic sweeps

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Composer, pianist, teacher and Cedar Rapids native Michael Daugherty

CEDAR RAPIDS — Orchestra Iowa took a cheering audience on a wild ride through Grant Wood country Saturday night (5/4/13) with the world premiere of Michael Daugherty’s “American Gothic.”

The 20-minute work in three movements — commissioned by the orchestra for its Paramount Theatre triumphant homecoming season — is brilliant and breathtaking in scope and virtuosity.

This Grammy-winning native son, Daugherty, now 59, is among the world’s most-often performed American classical composers. We are so very, very fortunate that he remains so grounded, so tied to his Cedar Rapids roots that he jumped at the chance to not only create a work for the orchestra, but to spend a week lecturing, conducting, performing, meeting and signing autographs with area students and audiences.

Saturday’s 1,000+ Paramount audience crackled with excitement in the lobby, in a packed Insight discussion before the concert and in the spontaneous eruption of cheers, applause and an immediate standing ovation following the final notes. In a break with tradition, the audience also applauded between movements of the work. It was that outstanding.

In a very smart and much-appreciated move, Daugherty, a professor of composition at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, came onstage before the piece to give us a slide show and explanation of the music we’d be hearing. He took us on a pictorial journey through his childhood, as the eldest of five brothers who are all now professional musicians scattered across the country, then moved into the Grant Wood paintings and lithographs that inspired his “American Gothic.”

We knew that when the snare drum rolled at the start of the piece, we were hearing a tribute to Daugherty’s late father, Willis, a dance band drummer of regional renown who also led a decade of tours at 5 Turner Alley, the Cedar Rapids studio where Wood painted “American Gothic.” When the three trombones and tuba united near the end of that movement, we knew it was in homage to Iowa’s barbershop quartet heritage, captured in Wood’s 1939 lithograph, “Shrine Quartet,” and that Wood, himself, sang in a Shrine quartet.

All the details Daugherty shared with us sprang to life as the music unfolded.

“On a Roll” took us on a roller coaster ride through the hills and valleys of Wood’s Eastern Iowa homeland. “Winter Dreams” painted a haunting, stirring picture of Depression-era desolation amid whipping winter winds and snowdrifts. “Pitchfork” — as sharp and witty as the iconic centerpiece of Wood’s “American Gothic” — gave us a rousing hoedown finale leading to a thunderous audience ovation.

Like Wood’s art, Daugherty’s work is complex, layered, evocative and laced with humor. The Paramount’s retooled acoustics let all the solo voices shine, from piccolo and alto flute to rapid-fire tuba. Oboe, French horn, clarinet, percussion, strings, trumpet — all had their moments of glory.

Grant Wood's stark 1940-41 lithograph, "January," was the inspiration for the "Winter Dreams" movement in Michael Daugherty's "American Gothic," a three-part work commissioned and premiered May 4, 2013, by Orchestra Iowa at the Paramount Theatre in Cedar Rapids. (Cleveland Museum of Art)

A special shout out, however, goes to the guest concertmaster, Julliard student Luke Witchger of Omaha. Not only does he handle all the demanding classical and avant-garde violin demands with grace and impeccable style, he rips through some darned good orchestral bluegrass like an Appalachian pro. That summer he spent at fiddle camp — which he admits to with a shake of his head — really paid off.

That was the sheer joy of the final movement. Orchestral bluegrass. How many times do you see that in a sentence? Or the final crash of the harp on “Winter Dreams” or the opening mallets on everyday glass bottles from the farm on “American Gothic.” That’s typical Daugherty — full of surprises when you least suspect them. Listeners never know what to expect from him, but it’s always magnificent and a joy to behold.

The concert opened with “The Rock,” a lesser-known work by Sergei Rachmaninoff, and closed with Antonin Dvorak’s Symphony No. 7 in D minor. Both pieces tell stormy tales — the first of a blizzard, the latter punctuated by aural thunder and lightning — making them perfect pairings for Daugherty’s environmental theme.

With all the wildness crashing around, each composer gives us gorgeous, shimmering passages that just make you say, “ahhhh.” And Maestro Timothy Hankewich, always so focused and in command, especially during Daugherty’s demanding artistry, got to relax and dance in his signature style through the Dvorak, making this final work as fun to see as it was glorious to hear.

This triumphant concert repeats at 2:30 p.m. Sunday (5/5/13) at West High School in Iowa City and May 12 at Ottumwa’s Bridge View Center. Orchestra Iowa will record “American Gothic” next week, and CEO Robert Massey says it will air on Iowa Public Radio later this year.

Related: Orchestra Iowa premieres ‘American Gothic’

REVIEW: ‘Cinderella’ is enchanted pairing of Orchestra Iowa, Ballet Quad Cities

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The clock strikes midnight for Cinderella and her handsome Prince in "Cinderella," blending the artistry of Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities, onstage April 13 and 14, 2013, in Cedar Rapids and April 20, 2013, in Davenport. (Joe Maciejko photo)

CEDAR RAPIDS — Cinderella charmed her handsome prince and enchanted young and old alike at the Paramount Theatre on Saturday night. (4/13/13) It repeats at 2:30 p.m. today (4/14/13).

Before the show even started, a sweet little girl behind me couldn’t contain her giddiness and declared to her parents: “I can’t wait to see Cinderella.” As the audience was exiting 90 minutes later, a distinguished gentleman turned and said to his friends: “Aren’t we glad the ballet came to town.”

My sentiments exactly. This new pairing of Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities is magical indeed.

The two entities brought Sergei Prokofiev’s 1945 ballet to its toes and a large audience to its feet with an evening that kept even the tiniest princesses enthralled. I heard no fussing, saw no squirming, but did notice plenty of souvenir tiaras bobbing through the lobby afterward. The little girl behind me was hoping to snag a magic wand during intermission. She happily settled for a candy bar.

The orchestra, as always, was magnificent, weaving through music that’s no fairytale to play. This is a demanding score that perfectly captures the flavor of every moment and propels every twirl of Ballet Quad Cities’ immense artistry.

The overture conjures up an ominous, foreboding atmosphere before the curtain rises on a lone girl sitting at a table, sewing a lovely shoulder drape. She is dressed in a simple blue, floral frock — not rags — but a broom leaning against a bench lets us know she is regarded as little more than a scullery maid in her own home.

Emily Kate Long is the picture of innocence, strength and hope as she endures the taunts of her mean Stepmother (Marie Buser) and bratty Stepsisters (Kelsee Green and Margaret Huling). The terrible trio is hilarious at every turn — Buser strutting with her nose in the air and Green and Huling galumphing through their awkward, comical movements. I suspect it takes just as much talent to dance without grace as it does to execute the perfect pirouette.

Especially hilarious is the scene after the young ladies are issued their invitation to the palace ball. An uppity dance master (Calvin Rowe) in engaged to try to teach the girls the steps necessary to walk their two left feet right into the prince’s heart. They fail miserably, while Cinderella takes it all in from the shadows and shines.

Also in the dark is Cinderella’s father (Cedar Rapids actor and radio personality Scott Schulte), a piece of milquetoast so soggy he can’t find his footing in his own dysfunctional household. He seems to have a bewildered fondness for his daughter, but the horrid women rule the roost under his roof. Luckily, Cinderella has enough pluck to rise above it all, even if it’s only in her daydreams.

This rags-to-riches tale has been told in many ways through the ages, but we see the main elements we’ve come to expect, with a few twists. We don’t see a pumpkin transform into a glittering coach, but we do see another magical transformation.

Shortly after the Stepsisters snatch Cinderella’s lovely dresses, leaving her nothing to wear to the ball, a breath of crystalline loveliness floats into her life, waving a brightly glowing wand.

The elegant Fairy Godmother (Jill Schwartz) transports Cinderella from her dreary, stone kitchen to an enchanted forest where she encounters a comical toad and bug, along with a legion of fluttering fireflies, dragonflies, tiny bugs, pixies and fairies. Their task is easy — to dress Cinderella’s beautiful spirit in a beautiful gown and send her to the ball. This is a most delightful scene, capturing the fancy of all ages in the audience.

After intermission comes the moment we’ve all been waiting for — the ball. Majesty abounds as all the young women hope for their turn dancing with the handsome Prince (Jacob Lyon). The Stepsisters’ choreography could easily steal the scene, were it not for the love-at-first-sight chemistry between Lyon and Long. They are in their own enchanted world during several pas de deux passages full of regal lifts and spins just dripping in romance and supreme artistry. His power and her grace are sheer poetry in motion.

The clock strikes 12 with such visual and aural majesty that I didn’t even see Cinderella disappear. But soon the dreary kitchen reappears, with the Stepmother and sisters in their camisoles, slips and pettipants, greeting the prince and his friends who are conducting a frantic search for the foot that fits the sparkling toe-shoe slipper Cinderella lost in her hasty retreat from the palace.

The fun we expect ensues as the girls try to cram their feet into the petite shoe. Nothing can compare, however, with the cougar seduction attempt by the Stepmother, as Buser throws her foot high above her head, exposing the Prince to her physical charms. She is hilarious throughout the show, but especially in this blatant disregard for decorum.

Just then, Cinderella steps from the shadows to produce the matching slipper. Sparks fly between the Prince and Cinderella’s outstretched hands, bringing the happily-ever-after ending that can melt even the most cynical heart.

Everything about this production is magical, from Courtney Lyon’s beautiful choreography perfectly in synch with the powerful music under Maestro Timothy Hankewich’s baton, to the elegance and humor of the dancers and the simply lovely costumes, backdrops and lighting.

Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities is a match made in heaven.

FAST TAKE

What: “Cinderella,” by Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities

Where: Paramount Theatre, 123 Third Ave. SE, Cedar Rapids

When:  2:30 p.m. Sunday (4/14/13)

Tickets: $20 to $50, Paramount Ticket Office, (319) 366-8203 or Orchestraiowa.org

Also: 1 and 7:30 p.m. April 20, 2013, Adler Theatre, Davenport; $12 to $35, Balletquadcities.com

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REVIEW: ‘The Broken Chord’ resonates with honesty, simplicity, beauty

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Mother (Saffron Henke, from left), son (Tim Budd) and daughter (Kristy Hartsgrove Mooers) embrace and dance during a March 27 rehearsal for "The Broken Chord," at the Englert Theatre in Iowa City. The play focuses on Alzheimer's disease and dementia, and uses emotion and body movement to illustrate ideas. The show opened April 12 and continues through April 14 at the Englert. (Kaitlyn Bernauer/The Gazette-KCRG9)

IOWA CITY — At intermission, the woman next to me said what I was about to say to her: “This is my life.”

Afterwards, she was in tears and I was fighting back mine. A mutual friend introduced us Friday night, and who knows when or if we’ll see each other again. But for two hours, we were united in the shared experiences of “The Broken Chord,” onstage through Sunday (4/14) at the Englert Theatre.

This is another brilliant Hancher commission by Working Group Theatre, a small professional troupe of the highest achievement. Time and again, founders Sean Christopher Lewis, Jennifer Fawcett and Martin Andrews have gathered their colleagues to cast light on the shadows swirling around us all.

Theater originated to educate audiences through artistic expression — to present complex issues in a way the masses could understand. That is exactly what the Working Group cast and crew have done with the world of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.

To call them “actors” seems inadequate. Their specialty is illumination through immersion in some of the most difficult situations facing society today, from Michigan’s crumbling auto industry in “Rust” to race relations in last year’s Hancher commission, “Mayberry.”

They spent a year researching Alzheimer’s disease through the eyes of patients, their families, medical professionals and caregivers. Several of the actors trained as hospice workers, to provide bedside comfort through patients’ final days.

They met with panels of health care professionals, shared their project with students across a wide variety of disciplines at the University of Iowa, conducted storytelling workshops with patients and presented mountains of material to playwright Fawcett.

Their deep, deep delving now sings with the utmost beauty onstage — a poetic ballet of heartbreaking humanity that brought the opening night audience to laughter, tears, gasps, silence and a most deserved standing ovation.

Every aspect of this show is elegant, with director Lewis seamlessly weaving theatrical devices into a rich tapestry that flutters and envelops the audience into the action.

Objects and poles and sails fly in and out, creating scenery real and unreal, sometimes stopping overhead, other times engulfing the characters. Gorgeous music captures the very essence of every mood, from harrowing to humorous, anxious to exhilarating. And the lighting. So stark one moment, so perfect in another, as delicate tubes and twinkle lights take us into the fragile realm of sweet memories.

The main story involves two adult children tearing themselves apart trying to join forces in caring for their stricken mother. This new mission reopens old wounds and their frustration is palpable.

On the periphery is a Greek chorus of actors who present other common scenarios — the husband of a wife with early-onset Alzheimer’s, a chaplain reaching out to physically and spiritually touch the afflicted, an older wife clinging to a lifetime of memories, and adult children on very different, yet similar paths.

All of the performances are stellar, but Saffron Henke is utterly magnificent as the mother, Helen, a Ph.D. archivist — a preserver of memories who cannot stop her own from slipping away. We see and feel her transformation, her anguish and her frailty every step of the way. Tim Budd and Kristy Hartsgrove Mooers sweep us into their journey through sibling anger, resentment, frustration, unity,  resignation and acceptance.

Dancer Elizabeth June Bergman brings fluidity to the churning emotions, like a delicate music box dancer embracing an invisible partner, cradling a child or cradling memories, savoring their touch. The other actors follow her lead, in moments charming and sweet.

This is an experience not to be missed. It will stay with you long after the lights dim and the memories fade.

ARTS EXTRA

What: Hancher presents “The Broken Chord,” by Working Group Theatre

Where: Englert Theatre, 221 E. Washington St., Iowa City

When: 7:30 p.m. April 13; 2 p.m. April 14, 2o13

Tickets: $10 to $35 at the door or Hancher.uiowa.edu

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Morgan shocks and satisfies during Englert performance

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Tracy Morgan

Tracy Morgan doesn’t know what year it is. That’s the feeling he gave audiences during his March 16 performance at The Englert Theatre in Iowa City.

The comic, fresh off the finale of the relatively little-seen but much-praised and oft-awarded NBC comedy “30 Rock,” showed little restraint, a satisfying but somewhat surprising choice given the 2011 outcry over homophobic content in his act. Many of his best quips are unprintable here and felt like phrases never-before uttered on The Englert’s stage, yet Morgan’s references were unexpectedly dated.

He might think it’s 2009, the year in which Michael Jackson died, because Morgan included a bit where he memorialized the King of Pop, recalling the molestation charges that plagued the music legend, and even sang part of his 1995 hit “You Are Not Alone.”

More evidence Morgan might be trapped in 2009? His discussion of the Tiger Woods infidelity scandal and how Woods rejected his black heritage, only for the media to play it up once the drama broke.

Morgan completed the time travel trifecta with a sizable run in which he veered close to blaming Rihanna for being assaulted by boyfriend Chris Brown, an event which also happened four years ago. While Morgan essentially walked the line, arguing that men and women shouldn’t hit each other, his criticism of the Bajan singer and the country for “letting women off the (expletive) hook” for their perceived promiscuity was the only time the audience audibly turned on the comic in the form of scattered boos.

“This PC (expletive) is killing this world,” he intoned at one point, launching yet another missile in comedians’ longstanding battle against political correctness.

Morgan’s archaic attitudes extended past gender – even though much of his material centered on men, women and sex – to people with special needs. Being trapped in a time warp would be the only appropriate explanation for his repeated use of the word “retarded” and his crude imitations of people with autism and the mentally disabled.

Between references to O.J. Simpson’s white Ford Bronco and mentions of Joe Cocker, Calgon and NBC’s sensational hidden camera show “To Catch a Predator,” it was hard for the audience to be sure if the outrageous comic had any idea what decade in which he was performing. Were it not for bits about Olympian and accused murderer Oscar Pistorius and the selection of the new Pope – the latter of which felt tired because one of Morgan’s openers, Mark Theobald, offered a more inventive take on the topic earlier in the evening – audience members might’ve felt like they’d exited the present once they entered the theater.

The evening’s freshest moment was Morgan’s response to a heckler. The deft comic showed flashes of innovation and imagination as he cut down the vocal fan for “acting like he at The Apollo,” Harlem’s famous black theater known for its unsolicited audience participation.

“This ain’t TV, I can hear you,” Morgan fired back at the uninvited collaborator, to loud cheers.

The comedian was right. Anyone expecting Tracy Jordan, the primetime friendly man child Morgan played on “30 Rock,” was simply out of luck on this eve of St. Patrick’s Day. The tour’s title is “Excuse My French” and it’s a fitting moniker; Morgan’s language was a mélange of sexually explicit slang and gender stereotypes peppered with a few racial slurs for good measure. His material was certainly not scripted by “30 Rock” star and creator Tina Fey.

Morgan alternated between standing and sitting during the performance and actually left the stage during a short coughing fit, which host and opener Ardie Fuqua said was the result of Morgan’s asthma, but the headliner managed to keep the crowd’s energy high and they rewarded him with standing ovations at the beginning and end of his performance. Morgan has jokes, but he’s also crafted a distinct and captivating stage persona that helped lift many of the punchlines that would be downright unsavory in less-skilled hands.

Morgan may have relied on shock value and silliness but the strategy worked largely because of clear humor behind it. At one point, he referred to his sexual prowess as being “technique over talent.” When it comes to his comedy, Morgan’s performance demonstrated that it’s the other way around.

REVIEW: Tracy Grammer brings folk sounds, life lessons to CSPS concert

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Tracy Grammer

CEDAR RAPIDS — Tracy Grammer has been a frequent visitor to CSPS over the years, and has gathered a loyal following.

Her latest CD, “Little Blue Egg,” is doing well. Grammer has a strong alto voice and terrific way with a steel guitar. She is also a very generous performer, offering a 2 1/2 hour, 17-song concert Thursday night (3/14/13).

Her performance is abundantly full of stories of her life and the songs that have resulted from her relationship with singer-songwriter Dave Carter, who died in 2002.

Grammer describes her work as “post-modern, straight-ahead folk music.” And contemporary it is. In “Ordinary Town,” a Carter song from 2001, he writes of “common cool, he was a proud young fool in a kick-ass Wal-Mart tie/rippin down the main drag, tripping on the headlights rollin by.” Good stuff that at times is reminiscent of Bob Dylan.

Grammer describes Carter’s trip to Nashville to make it as a songwriter. He was admired by record producers but rejected for having “too many words,” some of them “polysyllabic.” Carter’s vision of the idyllic life — living in a double-wide trailer in the desert with a long driveway and a big mail box, to which the royalty checks would come every day — was dashed. But he kept on writing, developing his densely textured songs, and remains an acute observer of the American scene.

Tracy Grammer makes you want to listen to every word of every song, with her clear, strong, committed voice, and the intelligence which she brings to each song. There is a sense of integrity and caring about her work, not only with her late partner, but with those with whom she has worked, including Mary Chapen Carpenter and Joan Baez.

The audience’s attention was complete, aided by the attractive acoustics and the familial intimacy of the CSPS Hall. It had a nightclub feel to it, with tables and chairs down front, bottles of beer and glasses of red wine.

My favorite Carter song is is “Gun Metal Eyes,” which describes the fight for the land of a Seminole/Cherokee man: “man, there was some kind of righteous in his gun metal eyes.” The chorus really works: ” Run with the wolf/fly like the dove. Mother below/father above. Weep with the earth/sing to the sky. In the steel of your gun metal eyes.” Powerful, direct, melodic. Folkie Grammer could be a country or rock singer — she certainly has the voice for it.

The evening ended with “The Verdant Mile,” written by Grammer and her current musical partner, Jim Henry. It describes the “bliss of grief,” and how she been able to live with the absence of Dave Carter, as well as other loved ones: “I miss you like I love the sound of blackbirds in the trees … and so I walk this verdant mile of memory with you/the gentle arms of Eden and the mountain get me through.”

The connection with the earth and the honoring of its inhabitants, is all-pervasive for both Grammer and Carter. No wonder they are so celebrated in the folk music world.

 

REVIEW: April Verch Band brings melting pot of rhythms and styles to CSPS concert

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April Verch Band

CEDAR RAPIDS — Married as I am to a gifted rhythm tapper — a “hoofer” in the art form’s parlance — I fancy myself reasonably knowledgeable about the audible dance arts.

But when April Verch started dancing in the middle of the first number her band performed Wednesday night (3/13/13) at CSPS Hall, I found myself having trouble categorizing what she was up to. It wasn’t quite step dancing or clogging or tapping, but it had elements of all of those things. And it was appealing to see and to hear.

During the second set, Verch clued the mid-sized crowd into the origins of her dance style. She hails from Canada’s Ottawa Valley, a place where the musicians and dancers have, in her words, “stolen a little bit from a lot of people.” The hybrid dancing I was struggling to label arose from this melting pot of cultures and traditions.

“Hybrid” is a good description of her music, as well. It’s a blend of many different influences and styles, sourced from the trio’s own traditions, travels, education and research. It is deeply respectful of a whole range of musical idioms while still sounding fresh and forward-looking. Most of all, like Verch’s dancing — it is as appealing as can be.

Joined by longtime collaborator Cody Walters on bass and banjo and recent addition Hayes Griffin on guitar, Verch fiddled and sang and danced, charming the audience with her performance and her patter (and her vintage personal style).

Her fiddling is top-notch whether she’s tearing it up or stretching it out. Her voice, reedy and sweet, caresses lyrics (whether her own, her father’s or those of other writers) invitingly. Her dancing is energetic, textured and musical.

Walters and Griffin are splendid musicians themselves, and seem perfectly matched with Verch. The trio has a comfortable, casual onstage rapport that extends to the audience, giving a sense that we’re all in a big living room enjoying some conspicuously high-quality music-making together.

The concert featured quite a bit of music from the band’s forthcoming record, “Bright Like Gold,” including a wonderful original titled “Sorry” (the pronunciation of which is something the men rib their Canadian leader about). The song called to mind Patsy Cline, although Verch said she channeled her inner Loretta Lynn for the classic country number.

Other highlights included the atmospheric “The Raven in the Hemlock,” composed by Walters and complete with a musical nod to the popular television series “The Walking Dead,” and “Foolish Heart,” a western swing number written and sung by Hayes. The band also performed a song Verch’s father wrote to woo her mother. “No Other Would Do,” which is also on the new record, is a lovely song and it was easy to understand how it might underpin a marriage that has lasted nearly five decades.

During the encore, Verch danced and fiddled simultaneously. It’s an impressive bit and it was perfect for the encore. Verch is savvy to save it for the end. She doesn’t need any gimmicks at all to win over an audience.

 

REVIEW: Hankewich conducts triumphant conclusion of Brahms symphony cycle

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CEDAR RAPIDS — The committed passion of conductor Timothy Hankewich to the orchestral works of Johannes Brahms bridged the leap of time from 1883 to 2013, from Vienna to Cedar Rapids. Saturday evening’s performance (3/9/13) of Brahms Third Symphony by Orchestra Iowa was a triumph — the finest music-making of this year’s Homecoming Season at the Paramount Theatre.

The event began 45 minutes prior to curtain, with an “Insight” session in the Opus Concert Cafe, which was quite full. Hankewich introducted the auditioning concertmaster, Holly Mulcahy, and euphonium soloist Roger Oyster. The talk was bright and insightful, as the audience got to know the musicians, as well as the “Enigma Variations” of Edward Elgar. These sessions, held before most concerts, break down the formal barriers of an orchestral concert. They are a friendly, inviting introduction to the actual work of an orchestra, and are reccomended for all levels of sophistication.

Saturday’s program — which was repeated Sunday at West High School in Iowa City –  included three works from 19th century Europe, starting with Elgar’s “Enigma Variations.” First performed in 1899, it was the beginning of popularity for Elgar in the United Kingdom. The 14 variations are based on friends and family of the composer, their lives and their personalities, translated into musical terms.

The work is a sturdy opener to an orchestral evening, as one listens for the foghorn of a ship, or the self-aggrandizing finale which takes the composer as its subject.

The best known, and the most successful, variation is No. 9, “Nimrod,” devoted to hunting. With inspiration from Beethoven, the work is flowing and majestic. I also enjoyed No. 12, which featured a brief solo by cellist Carey Bostian. It is a slow, almost mournful section, dedicated to a valued friend of Elgar’s, who was a cellist.

I find Elgar’s work overly polite, perhaps overly British, for this day and time. The Finale (No. 14) becomes predictable in its resultant orchestrations. Don’t get me wrong, it was played well by the orchestra. It’s just not my favorite piece of music.

Perhaps the work has survived because of the conundrum surrounding its creation. The composer said a second theme, a familiar one, that was to be heard throughout the piece. And for 114 years, this comment has driven musical historians into hissy fits, with dissertations and opinions abounding. I listened closely last night, and have come to the conclusion that Elgar was just putting us on, slyly having fun with his “engima.” There is no second theme. So there.

The first half of the evening featured the euphonium. This instrument is exotic in an orchestral setting, and is a transcribed substitute for the clarinet, as was originally written by composer Carl Maria von Weber in 1811. The euphonium is a tenor tuba, not as large as the tuba we know and love from endless band concerts and marching bands on the football field. It has, intriguingly, a dramatic power  and a sweetness in its sound. It is not as cumbersome to play and to handle as the tuba, but looks to be challenging. It worked well as a curiousity and was delightful to hear in this 5-minute work.

The centerpiece of the evening was Brahm’s Third Symphony, beautifully conducted by Hankewich. He is deeply involved with the work and his conducting was fascinating to watch: circled arms stirring up the orchestra into a non-stop whirlwind, sensitively leading the players through the ongoing dynamics of the work. The back line of brass players performed well, and the string sections were equal to the challenge.

It is satisfying to hear and to feel the results of the Paramount’s new acoustical environment, which are by now well understood. The musicians have learned to trust the space and recognize its subtleties: the softer side of the Brahms was well celebrated.

This all-too-human achievement by Johannes Brahms is haunted by a sense of loss, by an active melancholy (“the dark side”) that agressively seeks expression. It is surprising at every turn, at every new phrase and is brilliantly realized. We are in the hands of one of the great music makers. It is a fine place to be, a great ride.

Brahm’s Third Symphony is not an orchestral work that ends with clashing cymbals and timpani, that makes you want to leap to your feet and celebrate life. Rather, the composition has a wistful ending that leaves the audience quiet, thoughtful for a while, and then builds slowly into the deserved standing ovation. Congratulations to all concerned for this superb finale.

 

 

 

 

 

REVIEW: India Jazz Suites suits combined talents, traditions and styles

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India Jazz Suites

IOWA CITY –  “India Jazz Suites” is  a fascinating comparison of two dance styles, from ancient India and contemporary America.

As performed by two masters of their traditions, classical dancer Pandit Chitresh Das and tap dancer Jason Samuels Smith, the Hancher audience at the Englert Theatre was blown away by their skill Thursday night (3/7/13).

The evening was all about percussion, all about feet and drums, and how they can work together across the divide of two cultures to make a new music.

First up was the American tap dancer, all energy and power, all hard-driving percussion. Even though there is a tap language now, with a recognizable series of moves and sounds, it has an improvisatory feel. For the most part, the dancer follows the music, adding his sounds in a playful, challenging way. There are times when the dancer leads, and then the drummer leads, the percussive equivalent of call and response.

Smith has the look of a contemporary American, and even raps at one point to the Indian drums (tabla), commenting on the evening: “take a risk, throw the disc, ” as well as the cold evening outside the theater.

American tap dance has elongated roots, as does the Indian classical dance. Certainly in English clogging styles and Irish step dancing, but way back into African cultures, as well.

As presented, the tap dance is an “entertainment” and the Indian classical dance comes from religious ritual. This particular style of Indian dance can be traced back to performances in the temples, as far back as the 4th century B.C., as a form of worship. It then moved into the courts and became more secular.

Classical dancer Das is an accomplished master of his highly refined style, Kathak. At age 68, Das is a dynamo. He conducts his musicians with precision and counted out the complex beats for us, and for drummer Biplab Bhattacharya.

Das dances barefoot, and his ability to pound out complex rhythms is astounding. At one high point, with the help of his drummer, he becomes a galloping horse. His costume is age-old India, and each foot has 5 pounds of bells on it.

The blending of the Indian and American styles creates an entertaining, joyous event. It contains an essential playfulness, a sense of mischief  at the heart of each dance style. And these two dancers love working together.

It is also an important experiment, deliberately seeking a kind of fusion, defined in the Oxford American Dictionary as a “process of joining two or more things together to form a single entity.” The progress of all culture is based on ongoing fusions, like jazz assimilating the sounds of rock and roll, or vice-versa. Or Picasso’s use of African masks. Or George Harrison’s study with Ravi Shankar. And so on and on.

This evening represents a successful experiment, one that that may very well have a future. The finest moment of the performance is in the tap dancer working with the Indian drummer, with a remarkable synthesis of sound, of call and answer, of mutual challenge that became, perhaps, a new music. Can this synthesis be a starting point for these artists? Or other artists? The possibilities are myriad.

The results confirm the power, as well as the yearning, of the human imagination. Our culture remains an open book, with an infinite number of blank pages. And the desire of artists from all over the planet to work together, to learn from each other, to take inspiration from each other is very, very strong.

From the perspective of “India Jazz Suites.” our future is awesome.

 

 

REVIEW: ‘Walking the Wire’ strikes fine balance with theatrical antics

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The 14th iteration of Riverside Theatre’s “Walking the Wire” monologue festival, enjoyed by a near-capacity crowd on Saturday evening (3/2/13), is built around the theme “Too Much Information.” I want to get the most important information out there right away: This production — by turns funny, shocking, heartwarming and more — is a fine evening of theater.

The details

  • “Walking the Wire: Too Much Information”
  • Riverside Theatre, 213 N. Gilbert St, Iowa City
  • Through March 10, 2013; 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday
  • Tickets: $15 to $28 at Riverside Theatre Box Office, (319) 338-7672 or Riversidetheatre.org
  • Details: Monologues, playwrights and performers at Riversidetheatre.markupfactory.com/WTWtmi

Each year, Riverside Theatre identifies a theme and puts out a nationwide call for entries. This year’s 11 selected monologues include four written by Iowa City residents. And those four are among the show’s strongest, which may explain why director Jody Hovland placed three of the four in anchor positions.

For example, Christopher Okiishi’s “Body Work” opens the show. Tim Budd perfectly inhabits Okiishi’s character, a nervous, physically shy man receiving his first massage. Okiishi’s text is very funny indeed, and Budd brilliantly captures the character’s twitchy discomfort.

Janet Schlapkhol of Iowa City closes the first act, performing her own piece. In “Sex Ed,” a daughter recounts her mother’s aggressively thorough approach to ensuring that her children did not grow up ignorant of the facts of life. Although “Sex Ed” may be just a smidge longer than it needs to be, Schlapkhol has excellent comic timing, and the piece ends with an epiphany that she sets up and delivers in one of the show’s brightest moments.

Iowa City’s Megan Gogerty closes the show and embraces the theme with “Intimacy,” a monologue that delves rather deeply into pregnancy-induced constipation. Gogerty, who treats her segment like an extended stand-up bit, manages to make this subject both hilarious and, oddly, charming.

Gogerty is the performer who gets the most intimate with the audience, going so far as to mention one of the publicity activities for “Walking the Wire,” and this approach helps endear her to her listeners despite the scatological details of her tale.

Ron Clark, Riverside Theatre’s resident artist and production manager, is the fourth Iowa City writer on the evening’s program, and his piece, “Moon Man,” is a touching Christmas story that manages to avoid cliche while highlighting the wonder and possibility of the holiday season.

The show features plenty of strong monologues by the non-Iowans, as well.

“Doing the Math,” a quirky and dark piece by Arthur M. Jolly of Medford, Ore., was performed to great effect by Jessica Wilson. She captured the character’s longing for the world to remain clear and understandable.

“Art Nouveau,” by Amanda Petefish-Schrag of Maryville, Mo., and performed by Ottavia De Luca, slides from funny to moving with a few deft strokes as a woman shares her hope to have a child.

“Total Disclosure,” written by Maximillian Gill of Sunnyside, N.Y.,  and performed by Carrie Houchins-Witt, invites us to consider the paralyzing impact of full disclosure about the sources of all of our food and consumer goods.

The strong writing and excellent performances are well supported by Drew Bielinski’s effective lighting and sound design. Lighting was particularly important to Schlapkohl’s piece, but Bielinski subtly set the appropriate mood for each monologue.

With any kind of luck, all of that is the perfect amount of information to encourage you to give “Walking the Wire” a try. It continues through March 10.