Jim Munson - Page 9

The uncommonly versatile actor/writer/musician Darryl Van Leer has made it his mission to provide inspiration to others. It would therefore be hard to think of a more perfect way for The Marsh to launch Black History Month than with a live performance of his electrifying one-man play, Mandela: Let Freedom Reign, which it will present on MarshStream on Saturday evening, February 6th. From his early life to his epic struggles against apartheid, Nelson Mandela comes to vivid life in this life-affirming performance. An icon of democracy and social justice, Mandela’s life-long dedication to promoting forgiveness and equality are celebrated in this stirring reminder of one man’s incredible impact. Mandela: Let Freedom Reign will be presented at 7:30pm PST on Saturday, February 6th on MarshStream. Van Leer will also appear two days prior to that on Stephanie’s MarshStream at 7:30pm PST on Thursday, February 4th to discuss the play and perform a brief excerpt. For more information, visit www.themarsh.org/marshstream. Also, please note that the performance on February 6th will be live only, and not archived for later viewing. Van Leer is a man of many talents who has enjoyed an exceptionally wide-ranging career. While his theater work has focused primarily on his one-man shows about iconic historic and musical figures, he has also racked up some impressive film and TV credits in ensemble projects, sharing the screen with acting luminaries such as James Earl Jones, Samuel L. Jackson and Rue McClanahan. BroadwayWorld spoke with Van Leer last week from his home base in Nashville, Tennessee.  In conversation, he is instantly and effortlessly engaging, warm and upbeat, and clearly thankful for the opportunity to create and perform works of inspiration. His Kentucky roots are evidenced by the delightfully musical lilt in his speech patterns.

Good news for Hershey Felder fans and musical theater afficionados everywhere! TheatreWorks Silicon Valley is launching the New Year with three world premiere livestreamed performances in partnership with Hershey Felder Presents Live from Florence. First up is Hershey Felder as Sholem Aleichem in BEFORE FIDDLER, presented live at 5pm PST on Sunday, February 7, 2021. Decades before the beloved musical Fiddler on the Roof first delighted audiences, there was Sholem Aleichem and his beloved character of ‘Tevye the Milkman.’ Long before songs like “Tradition,” “If I Were a Rich Man” and “Sunrise, Sunset” first beguiled audiences, there was klezmer, a music that imitated talking, laughing, weeping, and singing, and where musicians didn’t just make music, they spoke to audiences in song. Acclaimed playwright & performer Felder will play Sholem Aleichem, giving audiences the true story of what happened ‘Before Fiddler.’ He will be joined by Florence’s celebrated Klezmerata Fiorentina, comprised of top musicians from Florence’s world-famous Orchestra of the Maggio Musicale. Filmed partially on location where the events actually took place, this production will feature the stories and characters of Sholem Aleichem, along with authentic klezmer music that is sure to move the soul. For more information and to purchase tickets, please visit www.theatreworks.org. BroadwayWorld spoke with Felder last week from his home in Florence where he’s been based ever since the Covid pandemic hit. As always, Felder is fascinating and delightful to talk to, simultaneously brainy and emotionally transparent, and confident enough in his own talents to be open about his enduring fears.

If your former spouse wrote a book describing how they left you to take up with someone else, even quoting your personal letters during the breakup – what would you do? That is the tantalizing question explored by Lynne Kaufman in her newest play, 'Divine Madness,' debuting January 30th and 31st on MarshStream. Local stage favorites Julia McNeal and Charles Shaw Robinson will play the roles of celebrated writer Elizabeth Hardwick and poet Robert Lowell, who had a long and intensely complicated marriage. Lowell went on the win the Pulitzer for this work, while Hardwick was left destroyed. What are the chances you would reunite after that kind of public betrayal? BroadwayWorld spoke with Kaufman from her home in San Francisco to learn more about what prompted her to write about Hardwick and Lowell, and also to talk about her long and productive partnership with The Marsh, where her play Who Killed Sylvia Plath? recently won top honors at the The MarshStream International Solo Fest. Kaufman is a terrific conversationalist, at once uncommonly erudite and naturally chatty. It is also clear that she is a born storyteller. Even the simplest question can lead her to unexpected places, like a fascinating tale of meeting spiritual guru Ram Dass in Hawaii.

We may be in the doldrums of winter right now – with nippy temperatures, dark skies and some much-needed rain – but January also means that San Francisco Ballet (SFB) is back in season for the next several months and, to me, that signifies all’s right with the world. SFB is kicking off its 2021 digital season exactly where it left off last March, when the remainder of its 2020 season was abruptly cancelled for obvious reasons. The company presented an enchanting new production of George Balanchine’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream only to have the curtain come down on opening night to the news that the just-ended performance would be its last for the season.

Opera San José hits it out of the park with its immensely moving new virtual production of Three Decembers, the chamber opera by composer Jake Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer, based on an unpublished play by Terrance McNally. Due to popular demand, streaming access has now been extended through January 31, 2021. It’s about a family of three – diva Maddie, played by world-renowned mezzo-soprano Susan Graham, and her two adult children Bea and Charlie, played by Opera San José Resident Artists Maya Kherani and Efraín Solís. In a swift 90 minutes, the three journey from a place of disconnect to a place of understanding and ultimately healing. BroadwayWorld spoke with Ms. Kherani shortly after she had completed filming 'Three Decembers.'

Talking to Khori Dastoor, General Director of Opera San José brings to mind that old quote from Elizabeth Taylor when she was faced with unimaginable adversity, “Now is the time for guts and guile.” Just one year into her tenure as GD, Dastoor is faced with an almost impossible situation due to the Covid pandemic. Out of all the arts, opera, the artform which she has made her life’s work, arguably has the biggest challenges. After all, the act of singing operatically produces enormous amounts of aerosols, the core audience is older and thus especially at risk for Covid, and the population at large may not consider opera to be essential to their lives. Since creating new works is practically impossible, many GD’s are offering a sort of greatest hits of former glories, video snippets from past years that were already in the can. Or maybe something like a “reading” of an old holiday chestnut like Der Rosenkavalier, presented Brady-Bunch style on Zoom. So what does Dastoor do instead? She goes bravely programs a brand-new, beautifully-produced production of Jake Heggie’s Three Decembers, starring no less than world-renowned opera star Susan Graham, alongside two of Opera San José’s super-talented Resident Artists, soprano Maya Kherani and baritone Efraín Solis. This immensely moving chamber work is based on an unpublished play by Terrance  McNally, adapted by librettist Gene Scheer, and tells the story of a family struggling to connect during the early years of the AIDS pandemic. The work premiered in 2008, yet somehow feels more relevant than ever, given the parallels with what we’re all going through today, as evidenced by McNally’s death from Covid earlier this year. The opera is currently available for streaming through the end of December. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit operasj.org. BroadwayWorld spoke with Dastoor shortly after the filming of Three Decembers had been completed. Dastoor was remarkably open and forthcoming about the challenges of the opera world right now, even as her passion for growing the artform burns stronger than ever. We talked about how she managed to produce Three Decembers during Covid, her successful earlier career as a lyric soprano, and the imperative to keep the arts alive during these difficult times. Her responses to my questions were invariably thoughtful, often surprising and not without humor. And, as a rare woman of color leading an opera company, her understanding of the need to open up her artform runs deep. Above all, though, she is just plain fun to talk to - effortlessly engaging, whip-smart, emotionally transparent, and without an ounce of pretension.

Virtuoso actor/pianist/playwright Hershey Felder is bringing us a holiday treat with a livestreamed performance of his hit show Hershey Felder TCHAIKOVSKY presented live from Florence, Italy where Tchaikovsky lived and worked. It is also not so incidentally where Felder himself lives and has been hunkered down ever since his normally hectic life of constant touring was brought to a halt by the Covid epidemic. Hershey Felder TCHAIKOVSKY features an extended focus on the composer’s iconic The Nutcracker ballet, and also delves into his life in Italy, and his array of works from the ballets Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty, to his 1812 Overture, and brilliant symphonic works. Presented by TheatreWorks Silicon Valley in partnership with Hershey Felder Presents Live from Florence, the richly cinematic show is directed by Florentine film artist Stefano Decarli and based on the original stage play directed by Trevor Hay. Hershey Felder TCHAIKOVSKY will be presented live on Sunday, December 20, 2020 (5pm PST/8pm EST) with streaming on-demand access available December 21 – 27, 2020. Tickets and more information are available at TheatreWorks.org. BroadwayWorld spoke with Felder just a couple of days ago while he was in the thick of final preparations for the livestream - about who the real Tchaikovsky was and his difficulties as a gay man in tsarist Russia, the enduring popularity of his music, and how Felder is spending the holidays in Florence. He is always a fun and fascinating person to talk to, with his encyclopedic knowledge of the arts and his idiosyncratically musical syntax. His response to even a simple question can be at once funny, nerdy and heartfelt.

As we all continue to navigate our way through these unprecedented times, The Marsh is meeting this moment with its weekly Solo Arts Heal series, which uses lightness and humor to explore some of the challenging issues we’re all grappling with. The series comes from artists’ inspiring true stories that celebrate overcoming adversity; surviving emotional, mental, and physical challenges; and becoming health advocates. The vulnerability of the participating artists leads listeners through their personal journeys of trauma and healing. Producer, writer and longtime champion of the Arts and Sciences Gail Schickele is host of the informative and entertaining series, available to stream every Wednesday at 7:30pm (PST) on MarshStream. Each week, Schickele is joined by a new guest for performance excerpts, talkbacks, and Q&A. Visit themarsh.org/soloartsheal/ for additional info. BroadwayWorld recently caught up with Schickele to learn how the series came about and find out more about her own fascinating career working in various contexts with a wide variety of well-known artists.

If there’s any truth to the notion that names can become our destiny, then I can’t think of a more apt name for TheatreWorks Silicon Valley’s new Artistic Director than Tim Bond. As an artist, as a leader and as a person, he is all about finding and honoring those things that can bring us all together. The latest case-in-point is Simple Gifts, the brand-new holiday show he has crafted to ring in the season. Simple Gifts is a joyful, multicultural celebration of beloved holiday songs and traditions from many diverse backgrounds. Conceived and directed by Bond, the show features a cast of Bay Area theater veterans who share beautiful music, meaningful memories, and take audiences on a journey through a variety of winter celebrations, including Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Bodhi Day, Noche Buena, Diwali, Las Posadas, Winter Solstice, as well as exploring Christmas traditions from around the world. Presented as part of TheatreWorks from Home, Simple Gifts will be streamed at set times through December 27, 2020, with on-demand streaming available December 28, 2020 - January 1, 2021. Live post-show conversations with members of the cast will follow every performance. For additional information, and to gain streaming access to Simple Gifts, visit TheatreWorks.org. BroadwayWorld spoke with Bond about how he came up with the idea for the show and went about putting it all together in the time of Covid. We also talked about what the winter holidays mean to him and his own traditions and memories. He is effortlessly engaging and very easy to talk to, sort of like that interesting person you happen to meet at a party and suddenly find yourself chatting away with about any number of things. And it seems that any conversation with Bond ultimately comes around to his passion for using the arts to bring people together.

While performing arts organizations around the world are dusting off existing productions of the usual chestnuts during the month of December, Opera San José is taking a more audacious approach with its holiday programming. They are presenting a new, fully-staged production of Jake Heggie’s immensely moving chamber opera, Three Decembers, featuring world-renowned mezzo-soprano Susan Graham in the central role, alongside celebrated Opera San José Resident Artists soprano Maya Kherani and baritone Efraín Solís. Based on the unpublished play Some Christmas Letters by Tony-winning playwright Terrance McNally, Three Decembers follows the story of a famous actress, Madeline Mitchell, and her two adult children, Beatrice and Charlie over three decades (1986, 1996, and 2006). With a witty and touching libretto by Gene Scheer and a soaring musical score by Jake Heggie, Three Decembers is a 90-minute fullhearted American opera about family – the ones we are born into and those we create. The world-class digital production is offered via on-demand streaming through December 31, 2020. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit operasj.org or call (408) 437-4450. BroadwayWorld speaks with charismatic baritone Efraín Solís, who plays son Charlie.

If your spirits could use an extra little lift, and frankly whose couldn’t these days(?!), San Francisco Ballet’s Nutcracker Online may be just the tonic you need. In this most unsettling of holiday seasons when so many of us are feeling a bit unmoored and longing in vain for the festivities of years gone by, it is like a breath of fresh air to be able to reconnect with a cherished holiday tradition and perhaps even experience it in a new way. While in-person performances remain on hold, San Francisco Ballet (SFB) has made its Nutcracker Online available for streaming through December 31st. The presentation consists largely of a beautifully-produced video of its popular annual production from 2007, plus some added bells and whistles to make the experience more interactive and appeal to a wide variety of ages and differing levels of knowledge of classical ballet. Kids of all ages can enjoy learning some of the dance moves, and many folks may be surprised to learn about SFB’s extensive history with this ballet, dating all the way back to Christmas Eve 1944 when SFB presented the first full-length Nutcracker ever performed in the U.S.

If you've attended theater in the Bay Area with any degree of regularity over the past few decades, chances are you've seen actress Lorri Holt - a lot! Since the 1980's, Holt has become a veritable local treasure, performing with theater companies large and small across the Bay Area, creating roles in scores of new plays along the way. Among many career highlights, she was part of the fabled Eureka Theatre Company that commissioned Tony Kushner to write Angels in America where Holt originated the role of Harper Pitt. Holt's latest performance, in Who Killed Sylvia Plath? by award-winning playwright Lynne Kaufman, is enjoying a virtual return engagement on MarshStream November 28th and 29th after winning the award for Best Full Length at the recent MarshStream International Solo Fest. The play had premiered at The Marsh in 2019 before being adapted into a virtual offering for Solo Fest. For further details on the livestream, visit the MarshStream website. BroadwayWorld speaks with Holt from her home in Nevada City, California where she relocated just prior to the Covid pandemic.

It's hard to believe, but the ever-youthful, trailblazing actor/writer/comedian Marga Gomez is now well into the fourth decade of her remarkable career. Known for her funny and touching solo theater pieces as well as her uproarious standup comedy, Gomez recently revived her hit play Not Getting Any Younger for the MarshStream International Solo Fest where it won the award for Best Solo Show. In the play, Gomez weaves commentary through hilarious surreal life vignettes like little Marga visiting the worst amusement park ever with her showgirl mom in tow, and adult Marga trying to get a senior discount at Forever 21. In a swift 55 minutes, Gomez looks back on how even an outspoken lesbian can find herself in the closet for women of a certain age. Luckily for viewers everywhere, Gomez is now reprising the show for two more livestreamed performances on December 5th and 6th. Additional details can be found on the MarshStream website. BroadwayWorld recently chatted by phone with Gomez from her home in the Glen Park neighborhood of San Francisco. Our conversation delved into how she adapted Not Getting Any Younger for virtual performance, her experience as one of the first successful, out lesbian comedians, and her colorful family history in the Latino variety show world. Offstage, she is much as you would expect - naturally warm, funny and down-to-earth - but also surprisingly nerdy about the careful technique that goes into making a successful virtual performance.

Virtuoso pianist Hershey Felder has just the thing for our travel-starved souls. On Sunday, November 22nd, he will livestream a performance of Hershey Felder as Claude Debussy in A PARIS LOVE STORY, transporting audiences to Paris without needing to leave home. This musical tour de force take us to many of Paris’s most-loved sites in a personal journey through the life and music of Impressionist composer Claude Debussy, who created music of ravishing beauty, color, and compassion, from the sweeping La Mer to the evocative Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune, and the mystical “Clair de lune,” ultimately shaping a whole new world of color in sound. Felder will perform the show live on Sunday, November 22 (5pm PST/8pm EST) from a rich, filmic setting in Europe that provides audiences a front-row view of the hit show. Tickets and additional information are available at HersheyFelderLive.com. BroadwayWorld recently spoke with Felder from his home in Florence, Italy while he was in the midst of preparations for the livestream.

The name Ariel Craft evokes an improbable combination of magic and skill, whimsy and rigor. If that weren't already her real name, I honestly don't think you could invent a more apt moniker for the director of Charles L. Mee's Utopia now enjoying a virtual world premiere from San Francisco's Cutting Ball Theater. After all, it takes a person of uncommon prowess and boundless creativity to bring this kind of unorthodox play to life. Utopia is a quirky, multidisciplinary work incorporating contemporary dance and animated artworks by disabled artists to offer a delightful commentary on life, love and the absurdity of the everyday. Utopia is available for streaming on demand through November 15th. For further information or to order tickets visit cuttingball.com or call (415) 525-1205. BroadwayWorld caught up with Craft from her home in Berkeley while she was in the thick of rehearsals for Utopia.

San Francisco’s Cutting Ball Theatre has scored quite a coup in presenting the world premiere of Utopia, the latest work from Obie-winning playwright Charles L. Mee, available for streaming from October 16th through November 15th. Directed by Ariel craft, who is also Cutting Ball’s Artistic Director, the play is a multidisciplinary fantasia that explores the question “How do you make a life?” Cutting Ball is partnering on the production with RAWdance contemporary dance company, and Creativity Explored which supports artists with developmental disabilities, to create a work that harmonizes theater, dance and animation in a genre-defying dreamscape.  Audiences can stream from home from October 16th through November 15th. Additional details can be found at www.CuttingBall.com. BroadwayWorld chats with Mee from his home in New York City.

Under Artistic Director Tim Bonda??s leadership, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley has just launched an ambitious new online initiative entitled Voices of Democracy, with the intention of encouraging audiences to get out the vote and stand up for racial justice. Leading up to the 2020 election, Voices of Democracy offers digital theatrical experiences that celebrate diverse voices and build a bridge from empathy to action, including plays, poetry, and curated quotes that shine a light on pressing issues during this election year. It will also feature an interview with Tony Award winner & TheatreWorks alum James Monroe Iglehart (Broadwaya??s Aladdin and Hamilton). BroadwayWorld recently caught up with Tim Bond to learn more about Voices of Democracy and his own history before coming to TheatreWorks. Bond is a fascinating guy to talk to so our conversation took all kinds of interesting twists and turns. A true people person, he is especially committed to using theater to build community and effect change. In conversation, he often takes his time to respond to questions and is apt to speak in complex sentences that show a great deal of thought. He is not someone who needs to shout to make his voice heard and frequently leavens his responses with gentle laughter. At once brainy and comfortable expressing his emotions, Bond is clearly a person of heart and mind.

On October 7-11, an astounding array of 56 performers from Scotland, Canada, Russia, and across the United States are (virtually) coming together to take part in The Marsha??s MarshStream International Solo Fest. Acclaimed as the San Francisco Bay Areaa??s a?oebreeding ground for new performance,a?? The Marsh is thrilled to present a wide-ranging festival line-up that includes an internationally renowned Russian stand-up comedian, musicals, a traditional Indian dance piece, clowning, and much more. As added enticement, with the Vice Presidential Debate happening right before the festival kicks off, the October 7th opening will also include a post-debate discussion with The Marsha??s astute comedian/performers Don Reed and Maureen Langan weighing in about the debate. Further details can be found at www.themarsh.org. BroadwayWorld caught up recently with The Marsha??s Artistic Executive Director/Founder Stephanie Weisman, calling in from the Trinity Alps where shea??s been sheltering away from the Bay Area, and Festival Director Maggie Wilson from her home base in Brooklyn.

42nd Street Moon, San Franciscoa??s venerable theatre company dedicated to celebrating and preserving the art of the American musical, is about to launch a paid virtual subscription series called MoonBeams. Consisting of five very different and highly entertaining shows, the series will run from September 28th to November 26th, 2020. Highlights include Michael Patrick Gaffneya??s funny and touching The Oldest Living Cater Waiter, Moona??s popular Broadway Flipped evening where favorite Moon performers get the chance to sing songs from roles they would otherwise never get the chance to play, and a final show to kick off the holiday season, Home (literally) for the Holidays. Subscriptions, single stream tickets and additional information are available at www.42ndstmoon.org/moonbeams. BroadwayWorld catches up with Daniel Thomas, who shares Executive Director duties at Moon with Daren A.C. Carollo, to learn a more about the series and check in on how he and Moon are weathering the myriad difficulties that seem to be hitting us without end in 2020.

The best part of my job as a theater writer is that I get to speak with fascinating people, and they dona??t come more fascinating than actor and Paralympic athlete Katy Sullivan, who plays the titular role in TheatreWorks Silicon Valleya??s benefit online workshop reading of Pandora. This intriguing new work by acclaimed playwright Laurel Ollstein investigates the Pandoraa??s box myth, delving into the world-changing curiosity and hope resulting from one womana??s fateful actions. The streamed performance features a stellar cast of actors assembled from across the country and was recorded over Zoom under the direction of TheatreWorks Artistic Associate and Director of New Works Giovanna Sardelli. Pandora will be offered via video streaming from 6pm (PDT), Thursday, September 24, 2020 until 6pm (PDT), Monday, September 28, 2020. Viewers can sign up to receive a link to view Pandora at TheatreWorks.org without charge, although donations are encouraged to support TheatreWorks Silicon Valley. For additional information, visit TheatreWorks.org or call (650) 463-1960.