Take the Pitchers out of the Ball Game; Yankees lose to White Sox

That's right, the Bombers just coming off a 3 game sweep with Cleveland bombed out in the 9th inning.  Nova's pitching was great, going 7 & 2/3 innings, with 5 K's and giving up only 1 run .  So why did Joe take him out?  I dunno...but he certainly had little patience for every other pitcher he put in by taking em out after their 1st mistake.  Another thing I don't understand - how come the pitchers can't seem to make a simple out by throwing it to their basemen?  The game was scoreless til the 5th, mainly due to great  fielding from both teams.  De Aza who was 4 for 5 on the night,  hit a solo homerun in the 5th.  The Yanks answered back in the bottom scoring 2 runs.  Teixeira gave us an insurance run in the bottom of the 8th but it wasn't enough.  The Sox scored 3 runs in the top of the 9th.  Hope still prevailed in the bottom of the 9th with 1 man on and Jeter at bat.  Jeter hit a long, high ball back to the wall (would you believe he missed it by this much?)  My favorite summer pastime is going out to the ballpark  and rooting for the Yankees (sorry Mets fans.)  The game ball goes to Granderson who was spectacular in the outfield and at the plate.  But my heart goes to Robby, that's Cano, yah know?  Take me out to the ballgame.   Robby you can take me out anytime.   GO YANKEES!!!

Alighiero Boetti exhibit at the MOMA

The retrospective exhibt @ MOMA of Alighiero Boetti's (1940-1994) is the largest amalgamation of his varied & copious work ever to be assembled in the U.S.  Boetti is considered one of Italy's most prominent and influential artists of the 20th C.  Boetti first emerged as part of the Arte Povera movement in the 60's; a group of poor artists who used various accessible and inexpensive materials in their art.  He quickly distanced himself from this movement and established himself as a maverick artist and  intellectual.  Best known for his order vs. disorder concept and his whimsical opposing of the rational and irrational.  Boetti said, "It is a knowing of the rules of the game.  Someone who doesn't know them will never see that order reigns in things.  It's like looking at a starry sky, someone who does not know the order of the stars will see only confusion."  I am content to look at the stars and marvel at their beauty and ponder their mysteries.  Boetti's tapestries are magnficient to behold yet much of his work will  remain an enigma to me.  I want to point out his self-portraits which are xerox copies in which he is covering parts of himself and his supine body sculpture, 'Me Sunbathing in Turin in Jan.' constructed of concrete balls with a yellow butterfly .  "Time is the only thing that is magical," Boetti.  Again, I disagree, I describe this exhibit as mystifying and intend to revisit perhaps to find order from chaos.

Terence Blanchard @ the Jazz Standard

Finally the heat wave in NYC broke Saturday and I celebrated listening to some cool jazz performed by Terence Blanchard at the Jazz Standard. Blanchard, best known for his film scoring is also an established Broadway composer.  In the Jazz World he is heralded for his trenchant trumpet playing.  His quintet was comprised of gifted musicians and composers:  Brice Winston on sax, Kendrick Scott on drums and Cuban jazz pianist Fabian Almazan; a jazz virtuoso.  Bass player, Joshua Crumbly's soulful bass playing was mesmerizing.  Crumbly, is 20 and a student at Julliard under the tutelage of Ron Carter.  I've already sung high praise for the jazz students @ Julliard, our next generation of great jazz performers.  The music was cool, mellow and sexy.  The Jazz Standard is connected to Danny Meyer's Blue Smoke restaurant so the audience can order from their full menu.  My big complaint was the 45 min wait to be seated.  The doors open @ 8:45PM for the 9:30PM set.  I have as much tolerance for standing in line as a princess sleeping on a pea.  However, this parsimonious princess was pleasantly surprised that the $35 coverage does not require any other drink/food minimum.  Once the gig got under way I  was mellowed to nirvana by the fabulous jazz played in a comfortable and intimate setting.  Blanchard thanked the audience by bowing his head, hands in prayer, "namaste."

Stay Home from "To Rome with Love," Woody Allen's latest film

I fell in love last year with "Midnight in Paris," one of Woody Allen's witty comedies and ode to the beauty of Paris.  In fact, Allen is as famous for his humor as he is for paying homage to some of the greatest cities in the world, THE BIG APPLE, London, Paris - so how did he drop the ball with all the charm and romance of Rome? He has too many ridiculous story lines going on; the perfidity of fame with Roberto Benigni (Academy Award Winner for Life is Beautiful,) the staging of an opera where the tenor can only perform while singing onstage in the shower. And not least,  Alec Baldwin giving sage advice to his younger personna, Jesse Eisenberg, with the gimmick of being in the scene where he doesn't belong.  The scenes where Allen resorts to his neurotic self are still hilarious, especially when played off his screen wife, Judy Davis.  Is Baldwin entertaining? Si.  Is Davis blithely cynical and adept at putting Allen in his place?  Si.  Does Academy Award Winning Actress, Penelope Cruz make it impossible to divert your eyes off her when on screen?  Si, molto bella.  But, if you like this movie you are an IMBECILE!

The Woman in the Fifth, a French/British/Polish Suspense Movie

This is an intriguing "artsy/fartsy," movie if you will, but one that works on all burners: suspense, drama, intrigue and angst.  Plus, you have Kristin Scott Thomas who plays the mysterious Margit opposite the much younger, rumpled professor, Tom, (Ethan Hawke) who is in Paris trying make amends with his estranged wife and daughter.  The Film is by the BAFTA award winning film maker Pawel Pawlikowski based on the novel by NYT best selling author, Douglas Kennedy (The Big Picture.)  I was drawn into the dark underworld of Paris and into the forlorn lost soul of Tom.  Is Tom a victim, a vicious murderer or a man whose sanity is in question?  This question is one of many, for example, do we buy a torrid love affair between Hawke and Thomas? Or, who would have forseen the cherubic baby face Hawke from Dead Poet's Society, would mature into a scraggly looking actor who holds his own against Thomas and made this rather French/British/Polish Noir film into the art house movie you will want to talk about and debate long after seeing this gem.

NY Philharmonic with Emanuel Ax & Alan Gilbert conducting

The end of the New York Philharmonic season is this Saturday and they've saved the best for last.  Alan Gilbert conducted Mozart's Piano Concerto #22 with soloist Emanuel Ax and Mozart's Mass in C minor.  I chose the open rehearsal for only $18 which starts @ 10AM.  Emanuel Ax was the draw for me.  Grammy winner Ax,  was Yo Yo Ma's accompanist for years & their collobration earned them Grammy awards.  If you don't know of world reknown cellist Ma, then you remind me of the dad in Hi-Fidelity who wanted to buy his daughter the song, "I Just called to Say I Love You," and I'm Jack Black kicking you out of here.  If you have been wondering why I haven't written about opera or masses, it's not because I don't like opera, it's just the singing gets in the way of the beautiful music. I had hoped that Mozart's piano concerto would be performed 1st as on the program, but the open rehearsal is subject to change and periodic stops from the conductor.  However, the Mass was performed first and I stayed for Ax's playing of Mozart's Piano Concerto #22.  I even stayed during the intermission when most of the audience departed and I was rewarded by Ax's playing solo on stage.  I was enraptured with the music and encourage you to enjoy the performance before the NY Philharmonic ends for the season, Saturday.

Free & Fun Happenings in Central Park on Monday Nights

 Hey New Yorkers - "What use is sitting alone in your room - come to..." Central Park on a lark.  Last evening was perfect for a stroll in the park & checking out what's going on along with runners, bikers, horsedrawn carriages, etc.  There were groups in organized self-defense classes (I'm going to look into signing up for that group.)  Those women were really kicking  (literally) at the men holding up blocking pads.  There were two groups of men doing martial arts which was  beautifully choreographed.  Fashionable croquette players in white (cricket like) attire were out knocking the balls through their hoops.  But wait, the coup de grace was lawn bowling.  That's right, LAWN BOWLING, where free lessons in rolling 3-5 lb. balls in various sizes (to fit various hand sizes) were given to the delight of players and spectators alike.  The instructors were fun and encouraging and brought together New York neighbors who would never have met had they not let their curiousity lead them to join in on the fun.  Free lessons for lawn bowling are Mon 6-8PM.  This Badger, who lettered in bowling proved to be a ringer - but don't let that stop you from getting in on the action.  Monday I'm going to try my boxing hands & kicking legs in the women's defense group.  There's no use sitting alone in your room, or excuse!

NICE WORK if YOU CAN GET IT - Rhapsody in Rapture

I like a Gershwin tune, how about you?  The Broadway Musical NICE WORK if YOU CAN GET IT at the Imperial Theatre has the music/lyrics by America's most beloved Broadway brothers, George & Ira Gershwin. Together they have won Pulitzer Prizes & Academy Awards for their work.  George is the musical genius and Ira, is a world reknown lyricist. Porgy & Bess which is currently playing on Broadway was from their collaborative work before George's untimely death at age 39.  There are so many wonderful songs in this musical:  "Let's Call the Whole Thing Off," S'Wonderful, and "Blah, Blah, Blah" to name a few.  The choreography by Tony Award winner Kathleen Marshall is wonderful.  All the leads, are the best of Broadway, Tony winners Kelli O'Hara (South Pacific,) Judy Kaye (The Phantom of the Opera) and Academy Award winner, Estelle Parsons are all too marvelous for words.  The Great White Way, home to the best of the best & the trifecta of musical theatre, great acting, dancing & singing; so why cast Matthew Broderick? Broderick who won the Tony for his comedic roles in Neil Simon's plays is captivatingingly funny and displays some talent as a hoofer, but as a singer; bad, bad, bad. I'd say he's better than Pierce Bronson in MAMA MIA & Richard Gere in CHICAGO but that's the trifecta of big mistakes.

YOUR SISTER'S SISTER - a film by Lynn Shelton

There is a running joke between my sisters when referring to our mother with each another; did you hear what your sister's mother did now?  The brilliant and entertaining comedy/drama, YOUR SISTER'S SISTER hits every right note about what it means to have and love your siblings.  Of course, there are definite do's & dont's that come with having a sibling:  never sleep with your sister's boyfriend, big NO NO and no matter what, you need to love and forgive each other; siblings are our life's partners.  The film is about 2 sisters, the always phenomenal Emily Blunt and Rosemarie DeWitt (Rachel Getting Married) and Blunt's best friend played by Mark Duplass (Safety Not Guaranteed.)  Duplass' brother was Blunt's boyfriend for a time before he died.  DeWitt just ended a 7 yr. lesbian relationship and has a 1 night fling with Duplass before knowing that best friends Blunt and Duplass truly love each other.  This movie will make you laugh and make you cry and make you forgive your sib for all the crap they pull & will continue to pull.  Trust me, if Blunt, DeWitt, Duplass & Shelton all don't receive Oscar nominations, it would be unforgiveable.  The movie should also get nominated for best cinematography and entice you to take a bike trip around the scenic San Juan Islands near Shelton's home in Seattle.

SAFETY NOT GUARANTEED - A Guaranteed Good Time

This quirky and endearing film is by the producers of Little Miss Sunshine, who know how to mix the eccentric with extreme heartfelt emotion.  Jake (Jake Johnson) of the TV sitcom, The New Girl, is a reporter for a small time magazine in WA who takes two lackey interns on a quest for the story behind the person who posts classified ads for a time traveller partner.  The female intern, Darius (Aubrey Plaza) of the TV sitcom Parks & Recreations, plays the same dead pan, dry witted misfit to hilarious & endearing effect.  Darius connects with Kenneth (Mark Duplas) who is building a time machine to travel back in time.  This clever comedy takes many unexpected twists and turns taking you along for a delightful ride.  The movie is really about finding love, enjoying life and maybe getting a do over.  I could see this movie over and over.  I guarantee you will laugh out loud and fall in love with this unique and delightfully funny film.

The Australian Ballet - a Bait and Switch

The Australian Ballet performed last night @ Lincoln Center. The program consisted of Luminous, Dyad 1929 & Warumuk-in the dark night. Ballet dance is defined as a very formal, strict type of performance dance, typically performed to classical music with ballerinas in pointe shoes.  Luminous was a montage of various ballets by various choreographers including Nureyev.  The segue between dances was footage  from Austrian archives with a voice over informing us of the origins of ballet in Australia 50 years ago and how the Australians embraced the art form "as their own."  The entire video and voice artist were commical; reminiscient of newsreels from the 1940's and diminished the integrity of the performances.  To quote Nureyev, "I have no country, dance is my country."  However, Lumious was the only piece in the program that conformed to a ballet art form.  Dyad was a modern dance piece with blinding neon lights,  polka dotted back screen & costumes, all distracting from the barefooted dancers.  Warmuck-in the night in  the choreographer's notes "was to pay homage to the intgerity..." of the Aboriginal astronomy and culture.  The performers spent most the time lying down or rolling around the floor in tribal garb & barefooted with little artistic integrity or crediblity.  Mate, put one on the Bar B and put off seeing the Company from down under.

UNCLE TOM'S CABIN @ 92YTribeca

The lecture on Harriet Beecher Stowe's UNCLE TOM's CABIN (UTC) "the most influential novel ever written by an American," was given by Prof. David Reynolds of Engliah & Americ. studies @ CUNY.  Prof. Reynolds won the Bancroft Prize for his novel, WALT WHITMAN'S AMERICA.  The power of words do prove to be mightier than the sword.  Mrs. Stowe's claim's that she is not the author, "G-d wrote the Book."  Born into a family of ministers & abolistionists, Stowe believed her work was divine inspiration.  She lived in OH where many runaway slaves fled. Her family helped in the underground railroad.  UTC was published in 1852, 9 years before the Civil War, 11 years before Lincoln's signing of the Emancipation Proclamation. Stowe had a meeting with Lincoln in Nov. '82 at the White House where she advocated the abolishment of slavery.  UTC when published,  sold over 300,000 copies in the U.S. while banned in the south,  over 2,000,000 copies world wide and is translated into 80 languages.  Stowe's neighbor in OH was tried for harboring runaway slaves under the Fugitive Slave Act and found guilty by the Supreme Court which ruled a slave is not considered a man.  The 13th Amendment was only added in 1885, reminding me of signs worn during the Civil Rights Era "I AM A MAN," in the 1960's.

COCK @ the Duke Theatre

This weekend was a plethora for thespian lovers.  Thankfully I saw Fugard's play MY CHILDREN MY AFRICA before it closed on Sunday.  Sunday, was also the night of the TONY AWARDS & the night I saw the riveting play COCK by Mike Bartlett, winner of the 2010 Olivier Award.  Both plays use minimum staging & actors and both deal with the power of words.  COCK could be called COCK FIGHT. It is a love triangle between two men & a woman, W, in which both the older gay man, John, & the woman, W, vie for the affections of the younger male, M.  M had been in a 10 year gay relationship with John. The ingenious staging of the play simulates a fighting match where the audience sits on raised wooden bleachers.  The 1st round is John & M arguing about what isn't working in their relationship while circling and lunging @ each other.  A "bell" gongs & the actors retreat to opposite sides for a break & drink of water as in a boxing match.  M encounters W shortly after, they connect & have sex which is very erotic despite any nudity or contact.  The final rounds have John, M, W & F (John's F) all trying to coerce M to choose either W or John.  I'm reminded of the late Gibb's lyrics, "It's only words, and words are all I have to take your heart away."  Steal away to see this tour de force of a play.

MY CHILDREN! MY AFRICA! - the Power of Words

MY CHILDREN! MY AFRICA! Athol Fugard's play about apartheid in South Africa (SA) is playing only through tomorrow at the Pershing Square Signature Center.  Mr. Fugard was last year's recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Tony Award.  Last year he was also the inaugural Humanitas Visiting Professor of Drama at Oxford Univ.  This play is the epitome of the power of words over swords.  The 3 actor play, a black high school teacher, Mr. M.,  his male prodigee, Thami & a white female student, Isabel (from a private all white school,) takes place in SA in the mid '80's.  The play begins with a heated debate over men/women equality between the two students presided over by, Mr. M.  Both brilliant & belligerent students soon form a bond of friendship with Mr. M. coaching them as a team (very radical) for a literary competition.  Thami who has blossomed into an eloquent leader under Mr. M's tutelage grows impatient with waiting for change to apartheid & chooses to join militant comrades in violent protests.  "Words are power, that is what permits man to rule over animals," vehemently tells Thami.  It is Isabel, who ends the play by speaking of her love & admiration for Mr. M. as she felt she was one of his CHILDREN in THEIR AFRICA.  Never have words seared my soul as those spoken in this sovereign play.

Lucian Freud Drawings/John Marin Water Colors & Met rooftop

Hurry! The Lucian Freud Drawings @ the Acquavella Gallery on E. 79th ends this Saturday.  The MOMA recently did an exhibit of his figurative oil paintings. This show has mainly works in ink, pencil, chalk & some etchings.  What is so fascinating is that the works span the artist's career, from the early 30's to his very last work, Head of Jeremy King, 2011: smoked copper plate with chalk.  I was intrigued with all his self-portaits, especially since they showed him at various ages.  Hurry to the show before you miss it.  From there, head over to the MET to attend the John Marin Water Colors. Marin (1870-1953) was at the forefront of the modernist movement.  Marin's seminal works in watercolors are on display.  His watercolors seem spontaneous & peaceful, depicting beautiful palettes of landscapes.  "The true artist must perforce go from time to time to the elemental big forms - sky, sea, mountain, plain...to recharge the battery.  For these big forms have everything." (John Marin)  From here, take the elevator to the roof of the MET to view our city's landscape & see the sculpture, Cloud City, by Tomas Saraceno.  The structure reminded me of Bucky Fuller's geodesic dome.  It was fun to see people climbing through it - although the view of the landscape was more exciting and last year's bamboo structure was much more interesting

Pinchas Zuckerman, Conductor/Violin NY Philharmonic

Wednesday night, Mr. Zuckerman not only performed Bach's Violin Concerto in A minor & Mozart's Violin Concerto #5 in A major, he conducted the NY Philharmonic while doing so.  At intermission, I asked the distinguished elderly gent next to me how is it possible for him to do both?  His answer, was "practice, practice, practice."  "Oh, I thought that was how you got to Carnegie Hall" - yes, he laughed because we're both old enough to appreciate the gag, but the music was so beautiful, it is timeless and for all ages.  The usual cost for orchestra seats @ the NY Philharmonic @ Lincoln Center start at $45.  For this performance the tickets in the orchestra started @ $86 - so I asked to purchase a ticket for the morning open rehearsal for $18.  SOLD OUT!  After intermission, Zuckerman conducted, without playing: Stravinsky's Concerto in D (the most contemporary piece on the program) and Mozart's Symphony #39 in E flat major.  I did notice when walking through the Rubinstein atrium Wed. afternoon, there were reduced priced tickets for the evening's performance.  Good to know - but $86 was a bargain as far as I was concerned; the concert was sublime.  However, note to myself:  buy an open rehearsal ticket early or check out the box office in the Rubinstein auditorium.  Sublime is even greater when you're paying less.

HARVEY - No Big Bang for the Buck

The play Harvey, a revival of a 1941 Pulitzer Prize winning play, later made into a movie with James Stewart in l951, stars Emmy & Golden Globe, winner Jim Parsons of the hit TV show, "The Big Bang Theory."  Perhaps, in the midst of WWII, a light farcical play might have provided some badly needed comic relief.  Parsons plays Elwood P. Dowd, a benign, courtly gentleman who befriends all whom he meets, in addition to his constant companion, a 6'3" invisible hare called Harvey.  For those fans (myself included) of Parsons who plays a quirky misanthropic genius on The Big Bang to hilarious perfection, will find similar socially incorrect behavior in both except Elwood charms everyone rather than disdaining them.  Dowd's sister, Veta, is played by Jessica Hecht who earned a Tony nom. for her brilliant performance last year in "A View From the Bridge," is wasted in this supercilious role. Veta wants to have her brother inoculated in order to make him "normal."  Oscar nominee Carol Kane wasn't given enough to do to enliven this droll production.  Just prior to altering Elwood's mental state, the all too wise cabby says that once he's normal, he'll become mean & stingy like everyone else and Veta has a change of heart; Elwood is perfect as is. If you must see this, I suggest smoking a hookah and maybe you'll see the Pookah!

Jackson Pollock's Creativity - 92/Y Tribeca

The lecture on Pollock's creativty was given by Helen Harrison, Dir. of the Pollock-Krasner House and former NYT Art Critique.  This year marks the 100th anniversary of Pollock's birth.  I was curious to learn what led up to his emergence as the foremost Abstract Expressionist painter.  Jackson was the youngest of 5 boys, in an itinerant family which moved constantly to various rural towns in western states. Jackson was drawn to Native American Art which he incorporated into his early works.  Jackson studied art in LA @ a technical arts school where he befriended classmate, Phillip Goldman; later Guston.  In CA Jackson saw a large mural by Orozco whose large dimension made a major impact on him.  Moving to NYC to continue his art studies, he was mentored by Thomas Benton, although Jackson discarded Benton's use of story telling in paintings.  The MOMA became a teaching ground for Jackson where he admired the works of Picasso & Siqueiros.  Jackson also met & married artist Lee Krasner, who greatly helped to advance his career. Pollock died in a fatal car crash in '56 while driving with his mistress and her girlfriend who was also killed.  Pollock's sole heir Krasner, retained his entire estate.  Pollock believed, "life & work are one, and one can't be understood without the other."  

"The Hide Away" - Stay Away

While waiting for the film, "The Hide Away," to start with only 2 others in the theatre, a woman came in & asked loudly, "Is this for The Hide Away?"  Yes, I said, figuring besides being old maybe she wasn't sure with just 3 people in the theatre.  (This was an augur for poor sailing ahead.)  After the trailers, the feature film commenced without audio which lent itself a serene aura for this isolated harbor setting, but when the actors started talking with no sound, I got up to notify an usher.  A man came in shortly after to apologize & tell us they would restart the film.  "I don't want to see the trailers again!" shrieked the woman in her  obnoxious voice.  I voted her off our Island.  The stars of this quiet film are Oscar Nom. James Cromwell, Israeli Oscar Nom. Ayelet Zurer and Josh Lucas, a dead ringer for Oscar winner, Paul Newman.  The movie goes no where fast as does the dilapidated boat that Lucas spends a year repairing while grieving and atoning for the deaths of his wife, son & daughter.  The soulful tag line from the movie is, "What are the two best days of a sailor's life? The day he buys his boat and the day he sells it."  I have much better line from a much better film, "We're gonna need a bigger boat." And, you don't need to see this sinker, I mean stinker.