Casey and Diana – Stratford Ontario Shakespeare Festival Click here to rent The Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Ontario, Canada, now has a website which allows both purchase and rentals of their plays. It’s work trawling the site as there are a number of fine productions, which may never make it over the border, not to mention the Atlantic, that are worth our attention. One of those came to my attention because it was reviewed positively in an otherwise scathing review of the dramatic and theatrical ways in which Princess Diana has been portrayed and exploited since her death. This made me track it down and I’m delighted to share it with you as well as the website where it lives. My dear Canadian friend Sheena alerted me to this strong play. She reminds me that AIDS is on the upswing again because so many young people don't know what happened in the 80s and they are taking terrible risks. Casey and Diana may serve as a wakeup call for some of them. The play is based on a true story about a real event. It is set in the Toronto AIDS hospice, Casey House, as it prepares for the historic visit of Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1991, residents and staff are inspired to beat the odds as a plague continues to ravage a generation. This potent and moving drama by Nick Green, which was commissioned by the Stratford Festival, vividly captures a moment in time when a rebel Princess, alongside less famous caregivers and advocates, reshaped the course of a pandemic—and how those stricken by the virus found hard-won dignity, community and love in the face of astonishing hardship. Rent £3.91 for three days. Please Call Me Claudio – Documentary on Abbado Click here for tickets A decade has passed since the classical music world lost one of its most important conductors yet Claudio Abbado's legacy continues to grow. Produced to mark the tenth anniversary of his death in January 2014, Call Me Claudio seeks to honor the legendary Italian conductor. Punctuated by over two dozen excerpts of noteworthy performances featuring Abbado at the helm of some of the world's greatest orchestras (the Berlin Philharmonic, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, the Vienna Philharmonic and more), this brand-new documentary highlights Abbado's lasting impact not only on those he knew personally but also on future generations through the ensembles he created and those he inspired. A set of wide-ranging interviews show Abbado as a person through the eyes of those who knew him best: his family and the musicians he collaborated with and inspired over the course of his career, nearly all of whom underline his impressive ability to harness the skill and passion of individuals into a harmonious, collaborative ensemble. As cellist Gautier Capuçon, a young member of the Lucerne Orchestra says, "We all came from different worlds and cultures and we were united by the shared goal of making music together—under the guidance of this towering musician." Late Flowering Lust – John Betjeman and Matthew Bourne Click here to watch So many of you loved Matthew Bourne’s Spitfire, the ballet parody that was on last week’s Ruth Leon’s Theatrewise, that you have begged for more from Bourne and his company, Adventures in Motion Pictures. No sooner asked than answered: here’s another really original and creative Bourne work, recommended by my friend Hazel who worked for the BBC in 1993, when it was made and helped to get it off the ground. This movie is a combination of mime and dance that accompanies the "voiced-over" lyrics of a selection of poems by John Betjeman. Altogether, it portrays the events of a weekend party at an English country house. Late Flowering Lust is as much wistful as lustful, although there's more than enough lust to go around, but it is a real gem. It is a reading of a number of John Betjeman's poems by Nigel Hawthorne (of Yes, Minister fame), one of which gives its title to the film. However the format is unique. The 'plot' is that 'Cousin John' (Hawthorne) is invited for a weekend at a country house. He and owners of the house are of the older generation and the daughter and all her friends are of the younger one. The action of the film consists of Nigel Hawthorne speaking the selected poems while the three older people mime the subject matter of each one and the 'bright young things', all soloists from Matthew Bourne’s dance company, Adventures in Motion Pictures), dance each poem. Hard to describe, see it for yourself. Very English, very amusing and very well done. It has choreography by Matthew Bourne, and music composed by Jim Parker. Try not to mind the video quality. The film was only ever released on VHS, so is not available in DVD or anywhere else. The Chevalier – Music Before 1800 Click here for tickets This is a stream of the NYC premiere of this global touring production, featuring the first-ever collaboration between The Harlem Chamber Players and Music Before 1800, a New York concert presenting organisation, in a landmark performance at the sumptuous United Palace on 175th St. The Chevalier tells the incredible true story of Joseph Bologne, the composer, conductor, abolitionist, fencer, and hero of the French Revolution. Commissioned by the Tanglewood Music Center, this original work of concert-theatre combines orchestra with actors who portray W. A. Mozart, Marie Antoinette, Bologne, and Choderlos de Laclos as they navigate the gathering clouds of revolution in 1778 Paris. For those of us who were disappointed by the rather cheesy movie version of this story from 2020, I’m hoping this will be a more musical and higher quality retelling of a story that is certainly worth the telling. Artists include violinist Brendon Eliott and actors from Concert Theatre Works. It is written and directed by Bill Barclay. It will be performed live on Sunday at the United Palace, Manhattan and will then be available to stream $30 Feb. 4-18.
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AuthorRuth Leon is a writer and critic specialising in music and theatre. Archives
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