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Streb – Jacob’s Pillow Click here to RSVP I don’t know how they don’t fall off. You’ll see what I mean. Award-winning choreographer Elizabeth Streb’s Extreme Action Company is famous for pushing the boundaries of aesthetics and kinesthetic bravery in what is part acrobatics, part physics, part sport, and part dance, using specially devised equipment which allows her dancers to ‘fly’. They are brave, these dancers. This is a retrospective of Elizabeth Streb’s classic solos from the 70s and 80s, early equipment experimentations from the 90s, and jaw-dropping extreme action opuses with the large scale “action machines” the company has since become known for from the early 21st century. This historic look back connects their experimental path with the extreme action of their current and future works. It’s free but you have to RSVP Sept 2-16 Angela’s Ashes: The Musical – Irish Rep Click here for tickets Frank McCourt’s memoir of his escapades and experiences in a Dickensian landscape peopled by a drunken father, a helpless mother, pompous priests, and bullying schoolmasters; money-lenders, dancing-teachers, and charity workers, culminating in his escape from grinding poverty to the redemption of a new life in America, is now a musical. Angela’s Ashes was a literary sensation when it was published in 1996. The book climbed quickly to the top of the bestseller lists and remained there for nearly three years, selling 4 million copies in hardback alone. Since then, the memoir has sold over 10 million copies worldwide and has become a phenomenon continuing to attract a global readership. Now, New York’s Irish Rep presents Angela’s Ashes: The Musical. This is a remarkable story, told with rare lyricism and McCourt’s warm inimitable sense of humour. Sept 9-22 at 7pm (ET) is the live stream and then on demand. $30 Wigmore Hall Live Streams – Riot Ensemble Click here to watch Two interesting and eclectic concerts this week livestreamed from Wigmore Hall. On Tuesday, Riot Ensemble showcases its characteristic flexibility and flair. Ahead of Xenakis' centenary next year, this programme opens with his pulse-filled Ikhoor ('the transparent, ethereal liquid that flows in the veins of the gods') and then shifts between string trio and works for Riot Ensemble soloists (commissioned by Riot Ensemble during the 2020 COVID Pandemic - two receiving their first live performances here). Often calm, meditative and intensely personal, each half then closes with a virtuosic display adding piano into the mix: George Lewis' A Mangle of Practice and Enno Poppe's Trauben - both of which require an abundance of 'Ikhoor' in the veins of their players! Sept 7 at 8pm Free to watch but do drop them a few quid to keep these great concerts going, And on Wednesday….. 12 Ensemble - Mary Bevan Click here to watch 12 Ensemble is a group that plays without a conductor, and, over the past year, this exciting string ensemble has, become part of Wigmore audiences’ listening experience through live-streamed or open-air events. Here Mary Bevan, one of the UK’s finest sopranos, joins them for classic Britten, Les Illuminations. The 12 Ensemble also offers a work written for them by a rising star composer, Kate Whitley, and their own arrangement of Schubert’s death-haunted quartet, Death and the Maiden. Sept 8 at 8pm. Free to watch but donations in any amount are welcome. English National Ballet – Emerging Dancers Click here to watch This promises to be a treat for ballet lovers who enjoy watching young dancers at the start of their professional careers. For eleven years, English National Ballet has recognised the excellence and dedication of its artists through the Emerging Dancer competition, where six young dancers are selected by their peers to perform in front of a panel of judges and a live audience, before one of them receives the Emerging Dancer prize. This season’s opening event is a special live stream starring winners of the competition and its People’s Choice Award, beamed live from London to ballet fans across the globe. Enjoy an exciting programme of classical ballet and new creations online, and watch these talented dancers light up the stage. Their technical prowess and thoughtful artistry promise to shine through the screen and move ballet lovers the world over. Sept 9 at 7pm BST Can I Live - Complicité – Oxford Playhouse Click here for tickets A unique performance about environmental activism, using hip-hop, spoken word and theatre. Conceived, written and performed by Fehinti Balogun it tells the story of how, as a Black British man, his path was changed forever by what he learnt about our planet. The specially filmed performance is directed by Daniel Bailey, co-directed by Simon McBurney. It is an energising and uplifting exploration of the place where climate emergency and social justice meet. Sept 13-18 Pay what you can Lotte Lenya Competition Click here to watch In 1998, to honor the centenary of the birth of Lotte Lenya (1898-1981), an extraordinary singer/actress and one of the foremost interpreters of the music of her husband, Kurt Weill (1900-1950), the Kurt Weill Foundation for Music established an annual Lotte Lenya Competition. The Lotte Lenya Competition recognizes talented singer/actors of all nationalities, ages 19-32, who are dramatically and musically convincing in repertoire ranging from contemporary Broadway scores to opera/operetta, including the works of Kurt Weill. Total prizes each year exceed $75,000; individual prizes range from $500 (semi-finals) to $20,000 (finals). First round prizes include $500 “Emerging Talent” awards and $500 to non-advancing semifinalists. To date the Kurt Weill Foundation has awarded more than $1.1 million in prize money to nearly 500 singing actors chosen from 15 finalists. This year, in honour of 6-time judge, the late Rebecca Luker, the Lotte Lenya Competition has created the Rebecca Luker Award, given for an outstanding performance of a selection from a Golden Age musical. The first Luker award will be given to Taylor-Alexis DuPont for her performance of “Supper Time,” from As Thousands Cheer. Sept 10 at 7pm CET (Central European Time which is 1 hour ahead of the UK) A Rogues’ Gallery: The Real Stories Behind Art Theft Click here to register Here’s one I’m really looking forward to. The theft of a major work of art never fails to make the headlines, reflecting both the deep sense of loss felt by owners, curators and the art loving public. The finger of suspicion is pointed at the mythical billionaire collector whose desire to possess the painting far outruns any sense of morality or respect for the law. This is an online talk by Dick Ellis, who used to run the Art Squad at Scotland Yard. He will share his fascinating stories about the high profile cases that he solved including Munch’s The Scream which was stolen and recovered in 1994 and Picasso's "Portrait of Dora Maar" which was stolen in 1999 and recovered in 2019. Sept 10 at 11am £10 This is Broadway - Promotional Video Click here to watch The Broadway theatre has been even slower to reopen than London’s West End and is only now, in September, beginning to show signs of life. This is another of those beautifully made booster videos, this one intended to welcome audiences back to the live stages of Broadway. It’s narrated by Oprah Winfrey and worth seeing for the quick clips of the Broadway theatre’s greatest hits and for glimpses of a wide array of Broadway icons. “Live,” says the recognisable voice of our Oprah, “is more alive than ever.” Well, not entirely. It’s exciting to see our world coming back to life, sort of, although it worries me slightly that in a video designed to look forward to more Broadway triumphs, a number of the actors it features, albeit very very fast, are very very dead. Greg Hines, Yul Brynner, Elaine Stritch, many more, are, sadly, no longer with us but here they are, dancing and singing on this video. Surely they could have constructed as good a Broadway come-on with living artists and contemporary shows? Looking forward, not looking back. Just saying. See what you think.
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AuthorRuth Leon is a writer and critic specialising in music and theatre. Archives
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