One of the most awesome and easily enjoyable operas of the latter 20th century, John Adams’ “Nixon in China,” will be presented at the Roxy Theatre in Missoula this Saturday as part of the Metropolitan Opera’s Live in HD Series. For anyone who (understandably) still labors under the misperception that contemporary classical music and opera are difficult and unpleasant, this is simply a must-see. [Read More...]
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Years ago, as a teenager, I attended a meeting of my church youth-group led by a guest minister. I still remember how he arrayed our group in a circle, and without any explanation, whispered something in the ear of one of our group members. She laughed, turned, and whispered in the ear of the person next to her, who then passed the message along around the circuit. The secret eventually got around to me. Now, 20-plus years later, I don’t remember much of it, but it had something to do with a bicycle, a list of items from the store, and some places and names. “Pass it on,” I was told. Eventually, the circle was completed. The minister asked the last person in line to say what he had heard out loud. Then, the minister read from a piece of paper the original message he had whispered in the first girl’s ear. Neither a single fact nor even the basic gist of the story had made it all the way around the circle. [Read More...] Advertisement Montana Actors’ Theatre has put out an audition call for its upcoming production of “Arsenic & Old Lace.” Alas for you football-loving thespians, the auditions take place this Sunday, aka Super Bowl Sunday. Not to worry though; if you just can’t miss the game, they’ll find a way to hear your audition. Here’s the full call direct from the source: [Read More...] Curt Olds, director of MCT Community Theatre’s recent production of “The Mikado” and the man responsible for writing a controversial lyric about Sarah Palin, has responded to critics with a letter clarifying the background of his decision to employ the lyric. Here’s the letter, in full. [Read More...] On Sunday night, MCT Community Theatre wrapped up its two-week run of Gilbert & Sullivan’s satirical operetta, “The Mikado,” with a frolicking performance at its home theatre on East Broadway in Missoula. On Monday morning, MCT executive director Michael McGill set about the hard business of mending all that had gone awry over the weekend, when word spread across the Internet that MCT’s production advocated the beheading of former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. What began with a single letter to the editor, published in last Friday’s Missoulian, quickly erupted into a nationwide controversy after dozens of political bloggers picked up the thread and ran with it – some adding their own colorful amendments to the story. [Read More...] Late in Larke Schuldberg’s play, “Sound of Planes,” 24-year-old Margaret stands on a plain, gray platform and intones a monologue that begins in passive voice. “Now I am breathing in. Now I am breathing out. Now I am breathing in. I see the men. Men in uniform. Men coming up the steps. I take a breath.” The men come silently in the door. “Guten tag,” she says, her greeting echoed in ragged unison by her 20-year-old and 16-year-old self, both of whom stand nearby. It’s a scene that breaks that most basic maxim of conventional theatrical wisdom: Show, don’t tell. With its mash-up of German and English phrases and its mix-up of three different personifications of the same person, it’s also a scene that could only happen in the unreal space of the theatre. Yet, as the glint of tears on the cheeks of more than one audience member attested, it was a scene that nonetheless punched hard to the gut in Wednesday’s performance of the play’s world-premiere production, at the Crystal Theatre. [Read More...] Few people outside theatrical circles today remember the name William Inge. Half a century ago, the Kansas-born playwright was considered one of America’s great living voices of the theatre, on equal stature with the likes of Tennessee Williams (who helped foster Inge’s career). His best-known plays – “Picnic,” “The Dark at the Top of the Stairs,” and most of all “Bus Stop” – were celebrated by critics and widely performed in their time. Yet something happened on the road to legend: Where Williams’ reputation only grew, Inge faded even before his death, by suicide, in 1973. Looking back through the lens of Montana Repertory Theatre’s new production of “Bus Stop,” which continues through next week at the Montana Theatre before embarking on a far-reaching national tour, it’s at once easy and confounding to comprehend the fate of Inge and his erstwhile Broadway hit. [Read More...]
Rarely does one find a plot so easy to summarize as that of Larke Schuldberg’s play, “Sound of Planes,” which opens at the Crystal Theatre next week. Yet, according to those involved in Montana Actors’ Theatre’s world premiere production, the plot hardly tells the whole story of Schuldberg’s script. “I’ve been looking forward to this production all year,” said Rebecca Sporman, the set designer for MAT’s production and a member of the Havre-based company’s artistic council, which selected the play as one of ten shows in the company’s current Missoula season. “It’s my favorite script we’ve chosen.” “Larke’s plays deal on a very deep character level,” added Kaet Morris, director of the production. “None of the people you see in her plays are stock characters. She’s extremely talented and rigorous with herself about what she chooses to leave in there; so it’s a distilled essence of these people. “That’s the beauty of this play: It’s about people that are real enough that they could be you or me or any other person.” [Read More...] The Blue Mountain Clinic has issued a call for submissions for its upcoming Off the Rack fashion show. Here’s the release direct from them. [Read More...] It’s that time of year again, when every self-appointed critic and self-respecting media outlet looks back and ponders the best (and worst) of the year. We’re no different around here at the Missoulian. On Christmas Day, the Missoulian will publish an issue of the Entertainer devoted largely to the year in music, film, [...] |
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