March is my time to reconnect with the Boston Arts scene. I hope you will follow along (pay attention to my Boston Ballet promo code)!
Week 1
The Huntington Theater We Had a World (through March 15) at the Calderwood Pavilion, 527 Tremont Street, Boston
Written by Joshua Jarmon (whose “Prayer for the French Republic” earned a Tony nomination) this three-character biographical tour de force of a play explores complex multigenerational family dynamics and an artist’s formative years and influences. A dying grandmother asks Joshua to write a brutally honest play about their life and boy, does he deliver. There is no smoothing of edges or contradictions, but there is plenty of humor and love!
As it is a “play within a play” we have both the narrator character Joshua (Will Conard) who recounts the events in his life for us in an almost intimate conversation, alongside re-created “play” scenes with his mother (Eva Kaminsky) and grandmother Renee (Amy Resnick). These multiple viewpoints and shifts in time and space are made seamless and effective through creative use of lighting, sound and theatrical staging. Acting is superb too and we feel connected to the characters and ourselves at all times. I cried at the curtain call which is always a sign of quality for me.
Note that there are various ticket discounts at the Huntington Theater. This performance is one hour 45 minutes without intermission.
For further reading, here is an interview with the director Keira Fromm in the Theater Mirror.
Week 2
The Boston Ballet started its spring season with Winter Experience (March 5–15) at the Citizens Opera House. Use code Victoria45 for $45 discounted tickets on March 6, 12 and 13 performances.
It is a two-part program with Part 1 a powerful Sacre du Printemps (Rite of Spring) piece by resident choreographer Jorma Elo updated from the original choreography he first created in 2009. Elo is denying “ties” with the 1913 choreography by Vaslav Nijinsky (to the famous Igor Stravinsky’s score) and is instead connecting with the music and dancers to find his inspiration. “The dancers are learning something old while at the same time recreating something new. The person next to you may have lived with this work for years, while you’re encountering it for the first time. It’s a huge arc of experience, life, and dedication that comes together in this project”, says Elo.
Part 2 Seasons’ Cannon by Crystal Pite (set to Max Richter’s recomposition of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons) is a massive work (originally created for Paris Opera) requiring 54 dancers to move as one creating patterns and groupings. This is a piece that takes you on a journey away from your seat. I’ve never experienced such raw audience reactions at the ballet- during the show! Do not miss it!
In Artistic Director Mikko Nissinen’s words, “The Seasons’ Canon is like a tidal wave, and it must be experienced to be fully believed. Crystal Pite is among the most in-demand choreographers working today, and it is a true pleasure to present her work once again.”
Winter Experience is approximately one hour and 30 minutes, including one 20-minute intermission.
Week 3
The Boston Ballet continues its spring season with The Dream (March 19-29)
(Victoria45 discount code works on 3/19, 3/20, 3/26, and 3/27 performances at 7:30). Another bonus: you get a free first floor access to Boston Athenaeum when you show your (printed or digital) ticket to The Dream.
The Dream is a clever combination of classical and modern works. The title piece, the enchanting The Dream, is based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream and features choreography by Sir Frederick Ashton. It is dreamy and mischievous at the same time, with beautiful sets and elaborate costume design (by David Walker) and beloved music by F. Mendelssohn.
The second ballet is a world premiere by former Boston Ballet dancer-turned-choreographer My’Kal Stromile, The Leisurely Installation of a New Window. It features newly composed music by Boston Ballet’s music director, Mischa Santora, in collaboration with Reeves Gabrels, guitarist for The Cure, and drummer Jonathan Kane. Trained in a variety of dance techniques, Stromile incorporates improvisation into his creative process, responding to the music while “allowing the body to go into places…to speak.” In the final “product” 18 dancers move in distinct but interdependent “role” patterns expressing choreographer’s ideas through accumulation and inviting audiences to engage and form their own opinions.
“As an artist, I see choreography as a dialogue with the world—a continual exchange that engages with the intricacies of culture, history, and human experience…The body holds an extraordinary capacity to convey stories […]
Week 4
The Boston Symphony is having a fervent spring season we could not miss. We are headed to a piano evening with Korean-born (youngest-ever winner of the Van Cliburn Competition and currently a student at the New England Conservatory) Yunchan Lim to hear Schumann’s piano concerto (written for his wife Clara, a renowned pianist of the 19th century) (March 19-22). This was a magnificent (and romantic) musical evening.
During the second half of the evening, we were privileged to hear the full BSO (led by Maestro Nelsons) at their best performing Tchaikovsky’s Manfred (after Byron’s poem). This piece requires the largest array of instruments in his orchestral works and you can hear every little sound distinctively- from flickering waterfall to the most powerful finishing climax.
For full spring schedule, visit BSO’s website.
An evening of jazz guitar virtuoso Joscho Stefan Trio (March 22) concluded our busiest arts weekend of March (and added another layer to our art form explorations).
There is still weekend no. 5 we could spend at the MFA’s “Framing Nature: Gardens and Imagination” (March 15-June 28). This exhibit promises some previously unseen nature-inspired pieces as well as the favorites from the Museum’s collection. Pre-reserved timed entry is required for this exhibit.