"Battle of the Sexes" Nets a Grand Slam Win for Women's Equality with Emma Stone and Steve Carrell

The long overdue accolades owed to Billie Jean King (BJK) and top female tennis players in the '1970s' who were groundbreaking advocates for equal pay & opportunities for women in sports has finally arrived on the big screen is a crowning achievement.  As entertaining as this movie is from start to finish, it represents an iconic tennis match between BJK and Bobby Riggs that turned the tides in tsunami fashion, paving the way for women athletes from young girls, to college & prof. athletes to have equal opportunities, resources & financial compensation as male competitors.  The film is directed by the filmmaking couple, Johnathan Dayton & Valerie Faris ("Little Miss Sunshine").  BJK (Acad Award winner Emma Stone) has been frustrated with the disproportional tournament prize money and recognition allotted to women athlete as compared to the men on the prof. tennis circuit.  The 3 ring circus of a match brought on by taunts from Bobby Riggs (Steve Carrell "The Office") a former top world tennis player, now deep in debt due to a gambling.  There is much more at stake here than the cash prize for the event, it's the future positioning of female athletes.  Knowing the outcome of the match does not dim the drama.  The backstory of BJK's life is a fascinating, fast paced portrait of a heroic warrior whose battles broke barriers for the benefit of other women while struggling with her own sexual awakenings.  The entire ensemble cast is award winning.  Special mention is owed to Sarah Silverman and Alan Cummings whose small roles add color and spark to a multi-layered, biopic pic.  Life is a gamble & talk is cheap but this movie is a sure bet to win plenty of nominations come awards season.   This is movie is an ace, served up with plenty of love & grace.    

MoMA ITEMS: Is Fashion Modern? This Mess Isn't Worth a Mention or a Moment of Your Time

The less said, the less to dread about this show of fabrics & threads of time.  It's a cheap smorgasbord  of fashion that is trying to fashion itself after the MET's Costume Institute.  However, it's not clever in the least.  It's not worth a spool of your time or mine.  "Driven first and foremost by objects, not designers, the exhibition considers the many relationships between fashion & functionality, culture, aesthetics, politics, labor, identity, economy & technology."  In its ambitious but poorly curated cross section of every stitch in design & time there is no clear or compelling purpose.  Is this fashion exhibit at MoMA meant to be an attendance motivator for making money?  My guess is yes and my advice is not to spend a moment on this shameful dispense of space.  Any social, political commentary referenced with pret-a-porter is a cheap rip-off.  In fact, juxtaposes items of clothing that have garnered social significance are tattered by being tossed into this majority meaningless mess.  Do go see the Louise Bourgeois exhibit on floors 2 & 3.  Should you go to ITEMS don't blame me.

British Playwright JB Priestly's TIME and the CONWAYS with Elizabeth McGovern-Timeless in Many Ways

J.B. Priestly (b UK 1894-1994) was a playwright & prolific crime novelist.  He wrote more than 100 novels & mainly noted for The GOOD COMPANION (1945).  An INSPECTOR CALLS is one of his most renowned plays in addition to TIME and the CONWAYS (1937) now being revived on B'wy. Priestly's writings in the crime genre also served to espouse his strong political & philosophical views.  He is credited with originating a time warp contrivance: moving the plot along fluid time lines  that are not chronological.  This gimmick is seen in the TV show THIS is US where storylines lead you to wonder what were precursors to events.  The future is revealed.  The mystery arouses curiosity for the revelations to outcomes.  TIME and the CONWAYS is craftily constructed.  The play set in Britain with captivating characters and a carpe diem mentality.  It also proffers staunch class divides and a socialism stance.  The Conways are a well to do, aristocratic family.  The widowed matriarch, Mrs. Conway (an excellent Elizabeth McGovern "Downton Abbey") is entertaining guests at her estate with a costumed charade on the 18th birthday of her daughter, Kay.  The year is 1919 & Britain is rebounding from the pangs of WWI, eager to celebrate.  The motley mix of siblings consist of Alan the oldest benign brother and Robin, the prodigal son & dashing veteran.  The sisters include Kay, an aspiring writer, Hazel a great beauty (Anna Camp "Pitch Perfect" series), Madge a staunch socialist and the youngest, cherished sibling, Carol (Anna Baryshnikov-Mikhail's talented daughter).  The pastiche of players are joined by friends of the family Gerald & Joan.  Gerald brings along an uninvited guest, Ernest (Steven Boyer B'wy Hand to God).  Hazel has noticed Ernest eyeing her. He fesses to his infatuation at the party.  Ernest is rebuffed & humiliated by the family as déclassé' but for Alan & Carol.  After the guests departed, the narcissistic & insensitive Mrs. Conway pronounces predictions for her progenies.  In Scene 2, Act I now 1937, the original set from 1919 recedes upstage behind a diaphanous screen where an omnipresent Carol remains.   The clan is gathering to galvanize over present financial constraints.  Oh how times have changed.  Unfortunately for the Conways, time has not proved kind.  The enticing enigmas of how & why circumstances have changed are answered in Act II.  Priestly hosted a radio show '1940s, to bolster morale during the Battle of Britain but his leftists view got his fired but worked towards forming a Welfare State in the UK.  He turned down the offer of  a Lordship and remained an advocate for the working class.  "I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start with perhaps a bit of magic working somewhere behind the morning."  TIME and the CONWAYS is timeless, magical & miraculous.  Man was made for joy & woe.  And when this we rightly know Thro the world we safely go.  Joy & Woe are woven fine.  A clothing for the soul divine.  (William Blake)

Julliard School Recital Winners of the 2017 Piano Competition-Two Immensely Talented Artists

Last night Julliard presented the two winners of the 2017 Gina Bachauer Piano Competition.  They performed for a packed auditorium of admiring guests.  Chaeyoung Park (b Korea) was first to perform.  She received a silver medal in the 2016 competition & a gold medal from the Nat'l YoungArts Fdtn in 2014.  In 2012, she was the youngest finalist in the Emilio Del Rosa Int'l Young Artists Piano Competition.  Her playing is sublime.  Park played Bach's Prelude in B Minor and Bartok's Out of Doors.  This was an interesting pairing.  Bach's piece demonstrated her nuanced musicality & the Bartok, a strong forte revealing an expressive, accentuated playing style.  The lovely Park wore a simple but stunning white jump suite with her hair pulled back in a long pony-tail.  I mention her shimmering appearance because if listening with your eyes closed, you would be hard pressed not to assume you're hearing a world renown recording artist.  No doubt, Ms. Park's virtuosity is limitless and her future in music, boundless.  My congratulations to Ms. Park who is staying for her BM at Julliard.  The 2nd recipient of last night's award ceremony/performance was Yun-Chin Zhou (b China). In 2013, Zhou won 1st prize at the Young Concert Artists Int'l Auditions & 1st prize in the Bachauer competition.  Zhou performed Liszt's Reminiscences de Norma, a very demanding & daunting piece. Mr. Zhou was dressed in a smart suit, tie & pocket-chief.  These two artists take their music seriously & simultaneously bring a joyous ebullience to their music.  Zhou is in the MM program at Julliard.  I compare his playing to Vladimir Horowitz.  Ms Park & Mr Zhou performed a duet of William Bolcom's (b Amer 1938) Recuerdos for two pianos (1991).  This was an interesting choice in the program.  It had a mix of ragtime and classical.  The individual pieces were both very different & the melding of the 2 melodies was astonishing.  The two artists shared a warm embrace following their duet to uproarious applause.  An Award from the McGraw Family Fdtn was presented to fellow Julliard student violinist Ariel Horowitz.  Ms Horowitz spoke of the unifying humanity wrought through music & of her summer experience bringing music lessons to young people on a Navajo Indian Reservations.  Last nights' concert was recorded for broadcast on Wed., Oct. 4th at 9 PM. I will be listening again and I encourage everyone to listen in on a special program of extremely talented & admirable young artists.  You won't have to close your eyes but don't be surprised at the level of playing you will hear from both Ms Park & Mr Zhou.  

"Loving Vincent" is a Visual Masterpiece and a Sensitive Bio of Vincent Van Gogh I LOVED the FILM

"Loving Vincent" is a stunning film of grandeur and depth.  The film's Polish born director Dorota Kobiela is an artist & filmmaker.  She's received Warsaw's "Minister of Culture scholarship" multiple times for outstanding achievements in painting & graphic design.  "Loving Vincent" is truly an outstanding work of art.  The film brings Vincent Van Gogh's (VG) magnificent paintings to life.  It also evokes empathy for this tormented genius & delves into the uncertainties surrounding his death.   There are quandaries pertaining to VG's death attributed to a self-inflicted gun wound to his stomach.  Had this been a silent film, it would be compelling for its stunning beauty that captures the people, places and perceptions as seen through the eye & works of VG, an artistic genius.  More than 100 painters were enlisted to achieve this astonishing & creative personification of VG's paintings.  The phenomenal artists behind the scene gave life to VG's paintings & to the man himself.  Postmaster Roulin whom VG has immortalized in a portrait, asks his son Armand to ensure the delivery of VG's letter to his beloved brother, Theo, posthumously to Theo's widow.  VG first began painting in his late 20's never having had any formal training.  In the 8 years VG painted, he was prolific having created more than 800 works in less than 8 years.  During his life, VG battled mental illness & the strains of poverty.  The postmaster (Chris O'Dowd) was familiar with the painter & epistolarian.  VG wrote daily letters to his beloved brother.  Theo was VG's lifeline & art dealer although he only sold 1  painting during VG's life.  While assuming the solemn task of delivering the letter to Theo's widow (Theo died 6 months later of syphilis) Armand  uncovers inconsistencies in the stories he hears from the locals.  The postmaster disbelieved VG would have taken his own life.  At the time VG appeared stable and eager to return to his art.  What could have caused such a dramatic shift in such short time?  The movie pans into an intriguing mystery.  It raises doubts as to the veracity of VG taking his own life (true he cut off his own ear).  Many of VG's iconic paintings take on a life of their own: VG's room, town's pool hall, local landscapes & portraitures of locals.  In the town where VG last lived & perished, Armand pursues a line of questioning that debunk the supposition VG shot himself.  The portrait Dorota paints of VG is both tender & troubling; lonely & misunderstood.  "One day, I'd like to show what this non-entity has in his heart".  The inhabitants VG captured on canvas are astonishingly personified.  Actors blended into the colorful palette are Acad. nominee Saoirse Ronan and Aidan Turner & Elanore Tomlinson (both starring "Poldark" on PBS).  I can't conceive of a more loving tribute to one of the greatest painters of all time than this crowning achievement.  VG signed his letters to Theo, Your Loving Vincent.  I was starry eyed with every frame.

"Stronger" Jake Gyllenhal Stars as a Boston Marathon Bombing Survivor It's a Hell Hole of Propaganda

"Stronger" is weak dramatization of the fallout from the Boston Marathon bombing in April of 2013. This terrorist act by 2 deranged brothers killed 3 people, injured hundreds; 16 people lost limbs.  Jeff Bauman, waiting near the finish line for his on again/off again girlfriend to cross was unfortunately caught in the explosions that left him a double amputee.  Jeff is played heroically by Jake Gyllenhaal but the major problem with the movie is the capitalizing of Jeff's terrible misfortune to be standing where he became an innocent victim of a heinous plot.  But, what of the mixed messages the movie makes.  The ad nauseam ironic "Boston Strong" trope feels somehow wrong.  I'm not blaming the victims.  But I'm befuddled with the biopic focus on Jeff & his beer guzzling, tough working class family/friends who feed of the fame & perks that came with the loss of his limbs.  Jeff's mother is played by the brilliant British actress Miranda Richardson.  She doesn't pull any punches portraying Jeff's mom as a brassy, alcoholic who's crushed by Jeff's refusal to be interviewed by Oprah.  Jeff's estranged girlfriend at the time of the bombing Erin (an admirable Tatiana Maslany, "Orphan Black") becomes his steadfast supporter through all the misery he suffers & inflicts on her.  There are plenty of perks that Jeff & his wolf-pack reap:  Boston Bruins' box & a starting pitch at a Red Sox game.  I blame the media & filmmakers for well intentioned films meant to inspire & unify our nation by aligning our righteous anger at a common enemy but miss the strike zone.  Both the films "Stronger" & "The Tillman Story" shamefully lionize men for jingoist purposes while clearly missing the mark of what should be the rallying cry.  We must stand united against prejudice & inequalities here at home and stop sending our soldiers into senseless foreign battles.  

Pultz. Prize Playwright Patrick Shanley's "The Portuguese Kid" Stars Jason Alexander & Sherie Renee Scott

Patrick Stanley (b. Amer 1950) is a Pulitizer Prize & Tony Award winner for his play "Doubt".  He earned an Acad. Award for his screenplay for Moonstruck.  He's written numerous plays & movie scripts.  Stanley skillfully manages both serious & comedic material. "The Portuguese Kid" now at MTC is a (long) 1 Act comedic play that has a first rate cast that elevates the material into a light, entertaining diversion.  It was obvious by the overblown guffaws from the audience the show was a crow pleaser. Those who kept more of a poker face(myself included) it won me over with Shanley's clever writing & clarion Trump bashing (bravo)!  The 5 card cast all delivered on the script they were dealt.  The king & queen of the cast were TV celebrity Jason Alexander (Seinfeld) as Barry and Tony winner & B'wy veteran, Sherie Rene Scott as Atalanta.  Barry & Atlanta have known each other since she was 10 & he 15.  The story of their 1st encounter; Barry being beaten by a Portuguese punk & Atlanta came to his rescue was recounted ad nauseam.  The two are middle-aged star crossed lovers.  Barry has been Atalanta's atty. advising her through the estates left her from 3 dead husbands.  The tempest off stage is carried onstage in Barry's law office. Atalanta is attired in chic style; black dress showing décolletage, long white gloves, & dark glasses.  Barry employs his mother, Mrs. Dragonetti, played straight up, uproariously funny by B'wy veteran Mary Testa (2 Tony noms. & 5 Drama Desk noms. & an Obie award).  Tensions are combustible & hysterical when Barry's mom enters & the no holds barred contempt between Atalanta & Mrs. Dragonetti turns into a ballistic battle of wills. There's another pair of star crossed young lovers, Patty a sex kitten married to the much older Barry and Freddie (Pico Alexander, currently starring opposite Reese Witherspoon in Home Again) who is having an affair with the much older, wealthy widow Atalanta.  The tells for outcome of this comical romanic romp make the foregone ending obvious.  Shanley's play is no royal flush but it holds 2 pairs & an ace (Mary Testa), enough to make it a winning pot.    

Irish Author Sebastian Barry Discusses His Book "Days Without End" at the Irish Arts Center

Sebastian Barry (b Ireland 1955) is an author, poet & playwright.  He's amongst an elite group of major Irish writers.  His literary honors are bountiful.  He's received the Man Booker & Costa Book of the Year (twice).  "Days without End" earned the Costa Award ('16).  This epic novel follows the journey of a young Irish lad, John Cole from Ireland to escape the famine to the US where he's orphaned & must fend for himself in during the brutal Civil War & the harsh western expansion.  The most trying of times is told through John's uneducated but pure voice.  His stark & lyrical descriptions harken unto Huck Finn; beautiful in its poetic candor.  John finds a companion his age, Thomas.  With Thomas by his side will take on an amazing journey through the savageries of slavery, war and the annihilation of the indigenous native Indian population.  Spliced throughout these unendurable times, John & Thomas will maintain a profound love & commitment.  The humanity of their love is juxtaposed against a harsh, cruel world. Together they form a family adopting a native Indian girl whose people John & Thomas were compelled to kill as soldiers or face treason.  Barry began his blarney by singing a short ballad.  It was a lovely & startling start for what was one of the most intimate & appealing conversations I've attended by authors.  Admittedly, I had some trouble deciphering him clearly.  But his humanity illuminated his talk.  Barry spoke of his love for his own family.  And, he spoke of his duress during his son's depression.  After Troy told his parents he was gay the shroud of darkness lifted and they were relieved.  Barry shared a very personal talk with the packed house at the IAC.  John's character in the novel was inspired by his son.  Barry deferred to his wife Ali in the audience several times in an endearing & jesting manner.  He reminisced about Troy & his twin sister as infants and how tortuous sleep deprivation was.  He said Ali had been up for several nights & he knew he was now on duty for the night.  He stood & mimed soothing a crying  infant.  "I held her away for a moment, she looked at me & vomited all over me.  When I got back to bed my wife Ali said {You're a good dad.  You never got angry.}  This memory has stayed with me."  He went on to say in writing Days without End I was writing about a family, John, Thomas & Winona the Indian girl they adopted and the former slaves who came to live & work with them on their farm.   This was not a conventional family but a family is made by choosing to love & care for one another.  Sebastian Barry's novel Days without End reads like a heroic poem through very traumatic, historical events.  Listening to the Barry's blarney broque broke my heart with tenderness.

Morgan Library "Poussin, Claude: French Drawing in the Classical Age" - The Library is simply amazing!

The Morgan Library on Madison Avenue is a jewel of a museum. It was the NYC residence for JP Morgan.  Like the Frick, the palatial homes have been converted into art & antiquities museums.    The Morgan Library is foremost a bibliotheca housing priceless first editions of literary giants (Austen, James & Hawthorne to name a few).  It houses an original Gutenberg Bible in mint, legible condition under glass.  There are other bibles with precious jewels on their covers; a treasure to view.  The most wondrous of all is the official library off what was the main entrance to the JP Morgan mansion.  I felt like Belle when first reveling in the Beast's bounty of books.  The grandeur and craftsmanship of the interior that has been retained is transporting.  There are handwritten correspondences (a dying art) from past presidents (Jefferson), authors (Austen) and artists (Pollack). While these may not be decipherable, their origins are certifiable and incredible.  The modern addition to the building adjoins fittingly to the original wing but it's nothing like the real thing.  The present exhibit is Nicolas Poussin (b France 1594-1665), Claude Lorrain (b France 1600-1682):  French Drawing in the Classical Age.  Poussin's drawings were commissioned works by his royal patrons Louis XII & Louis XIV.  Poussin's artistic works were constrained to noble portraitures, religious & mythology themes.  The works by Lorrain show a freer range and venture outside to capture the splendor of the landscape and provincial life.  Belle may have wanted more than her provincial life but there is wonder to behold in books of old and the expansive envisioning of the countryside.  Belle's sentiments mirror mine, "Your library makes our small corner of the world feel big."  "Oh, isn't this amazing."  Oh, yes indeed!

Louise Bourgeois "An Unfolding Portrait" at MoMA is an Unforgettable Show so Go

The Louise Bourgeois (LB) exhibit opening at the MoMA is an exhilarating & eye opening look at the work of one of most significant artists of the 20th C.   LB (b France 1911) was a prolific artist into  her late 80's into the 21st C.  She died in NYC in 2010, the city she called home for most her adult life.  On view are works made in 2006 - 2009.  Known primarily as a sculptor, especially for her large spiders, her work spanned many mediums & styles.  The unifying theme to her work cannot be confined to any one idea, image or emotion.  However, her works do evoke strong emotional responses unfolding from tension to serenity and fair to say, female sexuality.  Art historians claim Bourgeois' art germinated from traumatic childhood experience.  How mundane & inane to make these claims.  LB explained, "It is not an image I am seeking.  It's not an idea.  It is an emotion you want to recreate."  This fascinating exhibit elicited strong visceral responses from me.  On MoMA's 2nd floor is one gargantuan spider sculpture sitting atop a cage.  The limbs of the spider are fascinating & ferocious as are the objects confined within the cage, including a decaying chair & fraying tapestries.  LB's most recent etchings (2006-2009) line the walls of the gallery.  The etchings are of nature motifs, a trope throughout her career.  They are beautiful in their grace & simplicity.  Some resemble Ellsworth Kelly & Georgia O'Keefe works.  Her clever titles include "Look Up".  In case you haven't, there is a large spider suspended high on a wall.  The third floor expands the unfolding portrait of LB's work.  The entrance shows rows of 4 X 9 equal sized watercolors.  The childlike images depict the female form & spiders.  The palette is simple and the composition as a whole vibrates with energy.  I favor LB's totem structures.  There are several in the exhibit.  A wall-mounted totem is named "Jean-Louis Portrait" (1947-49).  It's a narrow, oblong form that looks like a skyscraper on top of a large tooth.  "I wanted my son to be beautiful as the skyscraper."  Architectural buildings are often represented in LB's body of work; a tribute to her affinity for NYC.  There are several sculptures that express topiaries.  They are organic & vibrant forms.   Included are her iconic Saint Sebastian drawings.  These depict of the female body assailed by arrows.  Many of the images show a tigress image as an attached head.  Double imageries and spiral shapes appear in multiple galleries.  There is so much to take in with one visit I struggled to digest its full emotional impact.   "An Unfolding Portrait" is wound with fluctuating tension & serenity.  This is an exhibit I will need to come back to see.