J. H. Authors

One Woman. Three Names. Many Books.

Broadway

A CHRISTMAS CAROL solo performance

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show posterI was fortunate enough to see a one man CHRISTMAS CAROL that blew my mind. It starred Patrick Stewart. He wore a green modern dress suit and played all of the parts himself. He used a few pieces of furniture as props, and that was it. The rest was all him.

Now Dickens himself did readings of A CHRISTMAS CAROL on tour, so the conceit wasn’t new. And I have heard of other one man versions. That said, Stewart made the piece his own. That one man could capture the entire Fezziwig party may not be believable, but it happened. Each character existed onto him or herself, and together they filled the imagination. It was a moment that truly exemplified the magic of theater.

When TNT announced Patrick Stewart was playing Scrooge in a new version, I hoped it would be the one man version. Alas, it was not (though it was a fine production which I will talk about later on this month).

There is a CD of Patrick Stewart performing (for it transcends a reading) A CHRISTMAS CAROL which is well worth listening to. You won’t have the physicality of his performance, but you do have the vocal storytelling. Do yourself a favor and give it a listen.

A Little Night Music

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I have always wanted to see Angela Lansbury on stage.
Considering I have missed seeing her in Deuce (with Marian Seldes) and Blithe
Spirit recently, I knew that A Little Night Music might be my last
chance. Add that to a Sondheim show, and how could I not make the trip?

Considering how close NYC is, I am embarrassed by how seldom
I get there. Really embarrassed. I decided to take the Bolt bus, which is
inexpensive ($17 each way). Aside from the front door swinging open on the ride
down (I kid you not, the poor driver had to find a piece of rope and tie it
shut) the trip was uneventful.

I have seen a couple of productions of A Little Night
Music before, and wasn't as big a fan as so many others I knew. Maybe he ennui of the piece didn’t register,
but it did this time. “My happiest mistake, the ache of my life. . .” Who, at
midlife, doesn’t understand the lure of a crazy decision, and dread the
consequences? Fredrik, played by Alexander Hanson, is a bit of a cad. But since
the actor has that thing—you know the thing, that essence that spells troube and makes you
forgive all—his performance is charming. Actually, dreamy is the word.

Much has been said about the scaled down orchestrations for
this production—a spare 8 pieces. I can see it, but since the entire production
transported me, I didn’t mind. The set was interesting, costumes were stunning.
The lights were, at times, a little dark.

And Angela Lansbury. Well this longtime fan was not
disappointed. Her character is pushed around in a wheelchair, and I was
concerned that she was more feeble than the media had let on. Then came the
curtain call, where she bolted up and sprang to the front of the stage. An
inspiration about living with passion.

A Little Night Music was my first show of 2010. A lovely way
to start a new decade.