Cherish The Ladies
by Hannah Swanson - West High School
You could hear the leprechauns singing along…
"Whoops and HEY!" Echoed in the Atwood Concert Hall on Saturday night. Old country inspired jigs, and classic hard shoe stepping kept the audience clapping and laughing under the huge Celtic knot hanging on the stage. Cherish the Ladies, straight out of Ireland, is a world renowned all woman ensemble. The name Cherish the Ladies, is actually a traditional Irish jig.
Joanie Madden led show with introductions, plenty of funny stories, and played the whistles. Many of the songs were written by the women themselves. Some were inspired by trips on the ferry, or the white beach strand. Kathleen Boyle, the pianist, wrote a song titled ‘Homecoming’ for her Mom and Dad overseas in Scotland. Mary Coogan, on the guitar, wrote a song in honor of her father who died from cancer.
Michelle Burke the singer for the group, sang four love songs throughout the evening, all with the classic Irish accent, with Madden singing the harmony lyrics. The songs were all sung with heartfelt and endearing meaning. The sorrowful songs, had the audience tilting their heads, to the lyrics of men and women in love. Burke had a low alto voice, that was a soothing alternative to the upbeat jigs.
The other aspect of the show was the hard shoe step dancing. Two dancers, both traveling with the ensemble performed multiple times, with each other, and did solos. Hard shoe is a type of classic Celtic dance with shoes like tap shoes, but the technique is very different. The speed executed by the two were incredible, along with high kicks, and professional technique.
The music performed that evening was very reminiscent of walking the cobblestone path to your small cottage, surrounded by autumn leaves. The music had the right beats to get your feet tapping, or your hands clapping. The fast fingers on the whistles, the violin, and accordion showed why these women have been awarded Best Musical Group of the Year by BBC. The audience gave them nothing short of a great thanks at the end of the two hour show.
Cherish the Ladies
Anchorage Concert Association
February 21, 2009 at 7:30 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Atwood Concert Hall
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
The “Best of Ballet” misses the professional marker.
By Woodruff Laputka - University of Alaska Anchorage
The ambitious performances of young ballet dancers were portrayed at last nights, “The Best of Ballet”, presented by the Anchorage Classical Ballet Academy in the Discovery Theater. This show features a collection of both famous ballet pieces as well as in-house choreographed dances, offering an interesting mixture of music, style and form while still making an effort to surprise and fascinate its audiences by the end of its two Act run.
During these two acts, a multitude of young dancers are put out on the stage to show the audience what they’ve learned. I have to say that, before I go any further, I was looking for the perspective of a layman to the ballet art. That said here is my observation of the production.
Though it was interesting to see some of the real talent in this show, it is understandable why so few people are truly ballet dancers, while so many other young boys and girls decide they are just hopeless dreamers and move on to other things. The striking difference in the aptitude from the older students to the young was, at times, so overwhelming that I almost felt sorry for the slightly older but greatly more talented dancers who had to be on stage with something similar to an elementary school pageant and not sophisticated ballet that they were training for. Some of the younger girls weren’t even paying attention when their cues came on, making it very difficult to experience the peaceful flow that the pre-produced soundtrack demanded. Though understandably they were just young girls making this effort, that doesn’t excuse the fact that their lack of sincerity in the performance made the other dancers look bad, or at least forced me to try and ignore the flippant attitudes that the young girls seemed to exhibit just so that I could experience as much of the ballet that the more sincere dancers were really trying to achieve, even if they were fighting for it. One might argue that it’s a learning curve based on the dancers’ age groups, but that’s usually why you don’t put two apparent age groups with different talents together on stage. It usually doesn’t turn out well.
On the production aspect of things, the show was rather mediocre. The entire first act, though well choreographed and in the vein of the classic Russian ballet, seemed hindered by a constant use of silent, black out breaks in-between dances. It was a lot of the audience sitting in the dark while the occasional sounds of young, slipper footed ballerinas could be heard scampering on and off the stage from behind the curtain, with no music playing to refresh our pallets or our appetite for more dancing , at all. And though dancing is certainly what the show was all about, you cannot excuse bad production work with good dancing, making me wonder just who they had working the operations board up-top. Also, in the more contemporary collection of the second act, the lighting and rhythm that the modern day music scores commanded simply was not present, which in production lingo is pretty damn terrible. Though, again, the dancers made a fine effort and did their best, their talents could not prevent the half second to second long delays in lighting or in music from overtaking the show and dismissing its once hopeful tenure of professionalism. At one point it seemed that the collection of young students on stage were the professionals of the whole presentation, while the rambunctious kids were the ones running the sound board and cueing the lights with little care for timely flashes, or even aesthetically pleasing spot light work. What is worst of all is that while this first occurred in the first act briefly, the classic ballet dances were not hindered, while in the second play, such delays were so common that it was purely damaging to the very time/rhythm oriented performances of both the dances and their strange, contemporary styles.
The Anchorage Classical Ballet Academy offers an interesting opportunity for its students, and there certainly is a lot of attentiveness as well as talent in their ranks of young aspiring dancers. However, as far as shows go, if you are looking for something to accompany the dancing itself, such as a full cast of student dancers that are working just as hard as their peers to make their show the most impressive, or even a group of professional adults who can easily present the complex lighting and musical cues of a more contemporary style, I cannot see the true one-hundred percent value in this, “Best of Ballet.”
Ballet at its Best
Anchorage Classical Ballet
February 20, 2009 at 7:30 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Discovery Theatre
By Woodruff Laputka - University of Alaska Anchorage
The ambitious performances of young ballet dancers were portrayed at last nights, “The Best of Ballet”, presented by the Anchorage Classical Ballet Academy in the Discovery Theater. This show features a collection of both famous ballet pieces as well as in-house choreographed dances, offering an interesting mixture of music, style and form while still making an effort to surprise and fascinate its audiences by the end of its two Act run.
During these two acts, a multitude of young dancers are put out on the stage to show the audience what they’ve learned. I have to say that, before I go any further, I was looking for the perspective of a layman to the ballet art. That said here is my observation of the production.
Though it was interesting to see some of the real talent in this show, it is understandable why so few people are truly ballet dancers, while so many other young boys and girls decide they are just hopeless dreamers and move on to other things. The striking difference in the aptitude from the older students to the young was, at times, so overwhelming that I almost felt sorry for the slightly older but greatly more talented dancers who had to be on stage with something similar to an elementary school pageant and not sophisticated ballet that they were training for. Some of the younger girls weren’t even paying attention when their cues came on, making it very difficult to experience the peaceful flow that the pre-produced soundtrack demanded. Though understandably they were just young girls making this effort, that doesn’t excuse the fact that their lack of sincerity in the performance made the other dancers look bad, or at least forced me to try and ignore the flippant attitudes that the young girls seemed to exhibit just so that I could experience as much of the ballet that the more sincere dancers were really trying to achieve, even if they were fighting for it. One might argue that it’s a learning curve based on the dancers’ age groups, but that’s usually why you don’t put two apparent age groups with different talents together on stage. It usually doesn’t turn out well.
On the production aspect of things, the show was rather mediocre. The entire first act, though well choreographed and in the vein of the classic Russian ballet, seemed hindered by a constant use of silent, black out breaks in-between dances. It was a lot of the audience sitting in the dark while the occasional sounds of young, slipper footed ballerinas could be heard scampering on and off the stage from behind the curtain, with no music playing to refresh our pallets or our appetite for more dancing , at all. And though dancing is certainly what the show was all about, you cannot excuse bad production work with good dancing, making me wonder just who they had working the operations board up-top. Also, in the more contemporary collection of the second act, the lighting and rhythm that the modern day music scores commanded simply was not present, which in production lingo is pretty damn terrible. Though, again, the dancers made a fine effort and did their best, their talents could not prevent the half second to second long delays in lighting or in music from overtaking the show and dismissing its once hopeful tenure of professionalism. At one point it seemed that the collection of young students on stage were the professionals of the whole presentation, while the rambunctious kids were the ones running the sound board and cueing the lights with little care for timely flashes, or even aesthetically pleasing spot light work. What is worst of all is that while this first occurred in the first act briefly, the classic ballet dances were not hindered, while in the second play, such delays were so common that it was purely damaging to the very time/rhythm oriented performances of both the dances and their strange, contemporary styles.
The Anchorage Classical Ballet Academy offers an interesting opportunity for its students, and there certainly is a lot of attentiveness as well as talent in their ranks of young aspiring dancers. However, as far as shows go, if you are looking for something to accompany the dancing itself, such as a full cast of student dancers that are working just as hard as their peers to make their show the most impressive, or even a group of professional adults who can easily present the complex lighting and musical cues of a more contemporary style, I cannot see the true one-hundred percent value in this, “Best of Ballet.”
Ballet at its Best
Anchorage Classical Ballet
February 20, 2009 at 7:30 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Discovery Theatre
Soul Street
by Terra Laughton - West High School
A fusion of hip-hop, pantomime, and theatrical comedy, Soul Street was practically asking audience members to stand up and dance in the aisles of the Atwood Concert Hall on Friday.
The four-man Soul Street Dance Company performed February 20th, 2009 at 7:30 as Alaska Junior Theatre’s third presentation of the year. Anchorage’s very own Underground Dance Company provided the opening act, a sharp and eye-pleasing routine. Soul Street soon burst onstage in a frenzy of tumbling. From the beginning, it was clear these four men not only trust each other completely, but enjoy each other’s talents every minute they perform.
The performance involved very minimal costume changes: t shirts to suit jackets to colorful silk tops. And yet, the four men were consistently able to portray a variety of feelings and situations in a very clear way. It helped that, being an Alaska Junior Theatre Production, the audience consisted largely of children. No type of humor was rejected, no matter how physical or how repetitive.
Versatility was something in abundance on Friday, as we watched co-founders Javier Garcia and Rock Williams spin, flip, toprock, downrock and perform power move after power move. (Not familiar with the hip-hop lingo? I wasn’t either before reading the program!) Undoubtedly, Williams stole the show. Like his fellow dancers, he maintained a high energy level even after an hour and a half of intense dancing and tumbling. Williams, however, had something else to offer, a flair onstage that was completely captivating. His priceless expressions and uncanny contortions were entertaining from start to finish.
The show’s weakest point came right after the first number. Although Soul Street’s second dance involved skateboards, it felt long and failed to capture interest for its entirety. However, the acts soon picked up and culminated in several fast-paced group dances both before and after intermission.
Music included techno, “Spice of Life”, symphonic strings, and lounge-style jazz, to which the dancers flawlessly hopped and popped. At times the music followed the moves so perfectly, it was hard to believe it had been pre-recorded.
The extremely talented men of Soul Street Dance Company, simply put, are fun to watch. Their sheer physicality gave as much energy to the audience as we gave back to them. I’ll think of Garcia, Williams, Garcia and Cortez as I electric slide my way around the grocery store this week.
Soul Street
Alaska Junior Theatre
February 20, 2009 at 7:30 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Atwood Concert Hall
by Terra Laughton - West High School
A fusion of hip-hop, pantomime, and theatrical comedy, Soul Street was practically asking audience members to stand up and dance in the aisles of the Atwood Concert Hall on Friday.
The four-man Soul Street Dance Company performed February 20th, 2009 at 7:30 as Alaska Junior Theatre’s third presentation of the year. Anchorage’s very own Underground Dance Company provided the opening act, a sharp and eye-pleasing routine. Soul Street soon burst onstage in a frenzy of tumbling. From the beginning, it was clear these four men not only trust each other completely, but enjoy each other’s talents every minute they perform.
The performance involved very minimal costume changes: t shirts to suit jackets to colorful silk tops. And yet, the four men were consistently able to portray a variety of feelings and situations in a very clear way. It helped that, being an Alaska Junior Theatre Production, the audience consisted largely of children. No type of humor was rejected, no matter how physical or how repetitive.
Versatility was something in abundance on Friday, as we watched co-founders Javier Garcia and Rock Williams spin, flip, toprock, downrock and perform power move after power move. (Not familiar with the hip-hop lingo? I wasn’t either before reading the program!) Undoubtedly, Williams stole the show. Like his fellow dancers, he maintained a high energy level even after an hour and a half of intense dancing and tumbling. Williams, however, had something else to offer, a flair onstage that was completely captivating. His priceless expressions and uncanny contortions were entertaining from start to finish.
The show’s weakest point came right after the first number. Although Soul Street’s second dance involved skateboards, it felt long and failed to capture interest for its entirety. However, the acts soon picked up and culminated in several fast-paced group dances both before and after intermission.
Music included techno, “Spice of Life”, symphonic strings, and lounge-style jazz, to which the dancers flawlessly hopped and popped. At times the music followed the moves so perfectly, it was hard to believe it had been pre-recorded.
The extremely talented men of Soul Street Dance Company, simply put, are fun to watch. Their sheer physicality gave as much energy to the audience as we gave back to them. I’ll think of Garcia, Williams, Garcia and Cortez as I electric slide my way around the grocery store this week.
Soul Street
Alaska Junior Theatre
February 20, 2009 at 7:30 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Atwood Concert Hall
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
"It’s not just Modern…. Its Art..."
by Hannah Swanson - West High School
A legend of modern dance was performed Friday night at the PAC. Martha Graham Dance Company, from New York City, performed 5 famous pieces. This is the company’s 83rd year of existence, and first time performing in Alaska.
Jane Eilber, the Artistic Director of the Company, led a small series of history tid-bits before each piece, and explained the meaning of the story, the movements, and the characters in each dance. Martha Graham first started dancing with Denishawn Company in 1916. This is where she acquired the international influences demonstrated in all her pieces, and ever famous modern dance technique. The middle-east, India, and Greece were all major influences.
The first piece was really a combination of stories. It included, ‘the Incense’, ‘Gnossienne’ or a Priest, and ‘Tanagra‘(of Greek culture). The two women were dressed in flowy, Arabic style fabrics, and the man dressed in an Indian style turban, and red and gold arm bands. The three dancers each expressed a different style. The Incense had arm movements, curling and twisting like smoke. The Gnossienne had strong, flexed, stalled movements. The Tanagra had a fan and moved like a small bird, softly.
The second piece, ‘Serenata Morisca’, represented Martha’s time she spent with the Greenwich Village Follies. The solo dancer came out in a swirling sage skirt, and plenty of attitude. The jingling bells on her feet added certain emphasis to the choreography already full of high kicks, and quick turns.
The next piece was ‘Excerpts from Chronicle’, one of the most powerful pieces of the night. The first section was called ‘Steps in the Street’. This demonstrated the devastation, and exile caused by, at the time, World War 1. The intensity of jumps, flexed feet, and sharp hands, made it impossible to blink. The black costumes with high slits created a dark effect as the dancers did one legged turns. Most of the story was either portrayed thru the aspect of the army, or the desperation of the people.
The second section was ‘Prelude to Action’. This is the ‘answer’, instead of the war. To represent the unity, a soloist in a white, long-sleeved dress stood on-top a small stand comprised of three large circles, in center stage. The dancers previous, connected with the woman in white as she gave them hope. This was symbolized in choreography with lifts, and all 9 dancers dancing in unison. Once again, the Graham’s strong technique of flexed heels, and exasperated movements made the piece a strong statement, especially at that period in time.
The most anticipated piece of the night was performed after intermission. ‘Appalachian Spring’, tells the story of a pioneer woman, a husband and his newly wedded bride, along with a preacher and some town people. The piece had a pioneer spirit, not only in the choreography, but as well in the music. The Shaker tune, ‘Simple Gifts’ was a common phrase used in the 2nd half of the 9 minute piece. Originally called ‘Ballet for Martha’ the night ended with a standing ovation as the curtain closed.
Not only was the night a beautiful demonstration of a technique taken for granted, but it was an artistic view of the hardships during the time of war, loss, and struggle in the new west. A night of remembrance for a woman reviewed by critic that once said, her movements would make her “give birth to a cube."
Martha Graham Dance Company
Anchorage Concert Association
February 6, 2009 at 7:30 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Atwood Concert Hall
by Hannah Swanson - West High School
A legend of modern dance was performed Friday night at the PAC. Martha Graham Dance Company, from New York City, performed 5 famous pieces. This is the company’s 83rd year of existence, and first time performing in Alaska.
Jane Eilber, the Artistic Director of the Company, led a small series of history tid-bits before each piece, and explained the meaning of the story, the movements, and the characters in each dance. Martha Graham first started dancing with Denishawn Company in 1916. This is where she acquired the international influences demonstrated in all her pieces, and ever famous modern dance technique. The middle-east, India, and Greece were all major influences.
The first piece was really a combination of stories. It included, ‘the Incense’, ‘Gnossienne’ or a Priest, and ‘Tanagra‘(of Greek culture). The two women were dressed in flowy, Arabic style fabrics, and the man dressed in an Indian style turban, and red and gold arm bands. The three dancers each expressed a different style. The Incense had arm movements, curling and twisting like smoke. The Gnossienne had strong, flexed, stalled movements. The Tanagra had a fan and moved like a small bird, softly.
The second piece, ‘Serenata Morisca’, represented Martha’s time she spent with the Greenwich Village Follies. The solo dancer came out in a swirling sage skirt, and plenty of attitude. The jingling bells on her feet added certain emphasis to the choreography already full of high kicks, and quick turns.
The next piece was ‘Excerpts from Chronicle’, one of the most powerful pieces of the night. The first section was called ‘Steps in the Street’. This demonstrated the devastation, and exile caused by, at the time, World War 1. The intensity of jumps, flexed feet, and sharp hands, made it impossible to blink. The black costumes with high slits created a dark effect as the dancers did one legged turns. Most of the story was either portrayed thru the aspect of the army, or the desperation of the people.
The second section was ‘Prelude to Action’. This is the ‘answer’, instead of the war. To represent the unity, a soloist in a white, long-sleeved dress stood on-top a small stand comprised of three large circles, in center stage. The dancers previous, connected with the woman in white as she gave them hope. This was symbolized in choreography with lifts, and all 9 dancers dancing in unison. Once again, the Graham’s strong technique of flexed heels, and exasperated movements made the piece a strong statement, especially at that period in time.
The most anticipated piece of the night was performed after intermission. ‘Appalachian Spring’, tells the story of a pioneer woman, a husband and his newly wedded bride, along with a preacher and some town people. The piece had a pioneer spirit, not only in the choreography, but as well in the music. The Shaker tune, ‘Simple Gifts’ was a common phrase used in the 2nd half of the 9 minute piece. Originally called ‘Ballet for Martha’ the night ended with a standing ovation as the curtain closed.
Not only was the night a beautiful demonstration of a technique taken for granted, but it was an artistic view of the hardships during the time of war, loss, and struggle in the new west. A night of remembrance for a woman reviewed by critic that once said, her movements would make her “give birth to a cube."
Martha Graham Dance Company
Anchorage Concert Association
February 6, 2009 at 7:30 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Atwood Concert Hall
"Barber of Seville Gives a Clean Shave..."
By S.M.Griffin - University of Alaska Anchorage
Anchorage Opera’s latest rendition of Gioacchino Rossini’s ‘The Barber of Seville’ is off to a fantastic start Saturday night as familiar tunes come to life at the Discovery theatre. In an evening of antics, the beloved barber, Figaro, the leading lady, Rosina , and her secret beau, the Count Almaviva, race about Doctor Bartolo’s house in a flurry of comical mishaps, ridiculous disguises, and cunning diversions, all in the name of true love. Director Bill Fabris deserves a round of applause for coordinating a delightful combination of talented actors, invigorating orchestra, whimsical sets, and convincing costumes.
Spotlight of the evening and well deserving the attention, James Taylor brings the part of greedy yet heartwarming Figaro into reality as he bounds energetically through each act. His presence on stage is the perfect balance of dramatic humor and characterized wit to bring the young lovers together, with laughter all the way. Leading lady Kate Egan is a delight, carrying the role of tender Rosina through an unending whirl of hair-trigger emotions with conviction as she escapes the machinations of Todd W. Robinson’s pompous Doctor Bartolo. While the heartsick Count Almaviva, played by Dillion J. McCartney, lacks the vibrancy of his co-stars, particularly in the first act where he’s bound strictly to the role of nobility, he picks up fervor with each ridiculous transformation to reach Rosina, allowing the energy of the show to power his performance. The supporting cast is nothing short of stellar, never once feeling forced or unnecessary and instead adding extra joy at every appearance.
However, the actors are only one important part of the evening’s music. The orchestra, conducted by William Hicks, gives a seamless performance carrying the show through the chaotic confusions and exhilarating chases, adding just enough sweetness to wish us all a good night.
One of the most unexpected surprises is the imaginative detailing of the set. Set Designer Amanda Walker is new to the world of Opera, but she’s made her debut with pride. Instead of creating an efficient yet simple period home, Walker took the extra creative step and added fantastical asymmetric cut-outs all along the body of the Bartolo home, carrying the design along the entire upper edging of the entire set. The ingenuity of Walker’s set is balanced perfectly by the accuracy of Howard Tsvi Kaplan’s costuming. Each piece brings the feeling of Seville, Spain, one step closer and perfectly personifies each character.
An emersing performance, ‘The Barber of Seville’ is three hours of charming and engaging fun that does not disappoint.
The Barber of Seville
Anchorage Opera
February 7, 2009 at 8:00 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Discovery Theatre
By S.M.Griffin - University of Alaska Anchorage
Anchorage Opera’s latest rendition of Gioacchino Rossini’s ‘The Barber of Seville’ is off to a fantastic start Saturday night as familiar tunes come to life at the Discovery theatre. In an evening of antics, the beloved barber, Figaro, the leading lady, Rosina , and her secret beau, the Count Almaviva, race about Doctor Bartolo’s house in a flurry of comical mishaps, ridiculous disguises, and cunning diversions, all in the name of true love. Director Bill Fabris deserves a round of applause for coordinating a delightful combination of talented actors, invigorating orchestra, whimsical sets, and convincing costumes.
Spotlight of the evening and well deserving the attention, James Taylor brings the part of greedy yet heartwarming Figaro into reality as he bounds energetically through each act. His presence on stage is the perfect balance of dramatic humor and characterized wit to bring the young lovers together, with laughter all the way. Leading lady Kate Egan is a delight, carrying the role of tender Rosina through an unending whirl of hair-trigger emotions with conviction as she escapes the machinations of Todd W. Robinson’s pompous Doctor Bartolo. While the heartsick Count Almaviva, played by Dillion J. McCartney, lacks the vibrancy of his co-stars, particularly in the first act where he’s bound strictly to the role of nobility, he picks up fervor with each ridiculous transformation to reach Rosina, allowing the energy of the show to power his performance. The supporting cast is nothing short of stellar, never once feeling forced or unnecessary and instead adding extra joy at every appearance.
However, the actors are only one important part of the evening’s music. The orchestra, conducted by William Hicks, gives a seamless performance carrying the show through the chaotic confusions and exhilarating chases, adding just enough sweetness to wish us all a good night.
One of the most unexpected surprises is the imaginative detailing of the set. Set Designer Amanda Walker is new to the world of Opera, but she’s made her debut with pride. Instead of creating an efficient yet simple period home, Walker took the extra creative step and added fantastical asymmetric cut-outs all along the body of the Bartolo home, carrying the design along the entire upper edging of the entire set. The ingenuity of Walker’s set is balanced perfectly by the accuracy of Howard Tsvi Kaplan’s costuming. Each piece brings the feeling of Seville, Spain, one step closer and perfectly personifies each character.
An emersing performance, ‘The Barber of Seville’ is three hours of charming and engaging fun that does not disappoint.
The Barber of Seville
Anchorage Opera
February 7, 2009 at 8:00 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Discovery Theatre
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Anchorage Symphony Orchestra presents The General
By Woodruff Laputka - University of Alaska Anchorage
After watching Buster Keaton’s, “The General” tracked live by the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra, it is easy to see why the age old quote, “sound came to film 10 years too early” still stands. The concept of taking a classic film and tracking it live is something that’s done occasionally and in novelty, either as an experiment or as a study, and usually lacks the sincerity that a live, fully assembled orchestra carries with it. Considering logistics, man power and the over-all time needed for something that will impress the thousand some odd patrons who will be attending, while still appeasing to the promised many art snobs and film fanatics of the community, the project of revisiting the old movie theater style in a modern day concert hall, under the flag of delivering a good show, is ambitious at the very least. However, the Anchorage Symphony’s attempt to do this, if anything, has not only proven it to be possible, but that perhaps that age old saying about sound coming too early to film is quite correct.
Rendall Craig Fleischer (Music Director) and the Anchorage Symphony were able to revisit the lost era of silent film in such an effective manner that everyone not only applauded. but I cannot say I have yet been to a show at the PAC that incited a triple doosey of standing applause, yells for an encore and even whistling, not because the film was particularly special, nor because the soundtrack was particularly striking, but because the ASQ was able to make the two mesh so effectively that is was easy to forget a live, full orchestra was even present, allowing the crowd to be captured into the clever, slapstick antics and risky action packed stunts of Buster Keaton, while being enveloped in the most effective form of musical presentation: the live concert.
To catch you up, The Generals simple yet clever story, Buster Keaton is an everyday train engineer whose’ cold, solid face matches his otherwise cold, solid life, with the only two, warm elements being his train, notably dubbed, “General”, and his sweet-heart, the lovely Annabelle Lee, played by Marian Mack. The two have a good thing going with Buster visiting when ever his General stops through the quaint little southern town of Annabelle’s when war breaks out, and by war, I mean the Civil War. Buster tries to enlist with everyone else, but because he’s an engineer he’s just too useful to the South in trains without being on the front lines getting shot at. How does the wonderful Annabelle relate to this? Not very well, you might expect, especially with Buster being painted as a coward by Annabelle’s father and brother who also go to enlist for the sake of States rights. Buster finds his way in a funny predicament though as, a year later, his general is stolen by ruthless, blood thirsty Union spies and proceeds to lead him on an action packed, slapstick rail road rampage that, while watching, you almost think would be impossible to do without modern digital technology. Still, the film pulls it off and permits the simple Buster to develop into the hero of the day, crossing into enemy lines to find that his beloved Annabelle has been kidnapped, and fooling the Union troops at every turn as he races back to the confederacy to warm them of an eminent invasion. For this, the simple, stone faced engineer is not only enlisted into the Confederate army, but as a Lieutenant, first class, winning the girl and saving the day for the South, who, as we all know, will eventually lose anyway.
But, the story isn’t about that. It’s about wise cracking antics while hot on the trail of locomotive after soldier toting, fire blazing, death defying stunt portraying locomotive. The film even shoots a train falling through a burning bridge. A whole engine! How did the crowd react to this? Well, with the climatic, “you know its coming” drum roll from the orchestra and the even more anticipated clash of symbols and eruption of music, it only celebrated in amazement at this still standing marvel of cinematic special effects. And, whether your Buster Keaton or Spielberg, that’s still a pretty cool thing to pull off. And, with the climatic effect that this scene and every other had with its live symphony accompaniment, the crowd only shouted in cheer as our Buster road his engine “General” to victory, getting the girl and saving the day for us wanna-be Southerners.
The overall air of this project was one of fun and great effort, where you could tell just by listening to the music that the Symphony not only had to have practiced intensely to get the music and mood just right, not to mention trying to match the original soundtracks mood perfectly, but that they were also enjoying it, laughing at whatever silly slapstick or death-defying stunt Buster through at us again. It allowed the music to mesh with its live presentation so well that you almost felt like a community had formed, living and breathing as we were all brought together by the live power of a symphony orchestra pursuing the very beginning of the film production medium. If this promises a testimony to the art of live theater/film production as it did in the day of your grandparents, the question left to be answered is, with the effect that the Anchorage Symphony had with Buster Keaton, does film really need to have its own soundtrack at all? Could it survive if it reverted back to the classic style of theater going, with live music and intermissions? Truly, would that not refine the art form of filmmaking as it has worked for theater? Frankly, the audience from the AQR’s performance of Buster Keaton’s, The General, surely knows this answer.
ASO Silent Film: Buster Keaton's The General
Anchorage Symphony Orchestra
January 31, 2009 at 8:00 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Atwood Concert Hall
By Woodruff Laputka - University of Alaska Anchorage
After watching Buster Keaton’s, “The General” tracked live by the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra, it is easy to see why the age old quote, “sound came to film 10 years too early” still stands. The concept of taking a classic film and tracking it live is something that’s done occasionally and in novelty, either as an experiment or as a study, and usually lacks the sincerity that a live, fully assembled orchestra carries with it. Considering logistics, man power and the over-all time needed for something that will impress the thousand some odd patrons who will be attending, while still appeasing to the promised many art snobs and film fanatics of the community, the project of revisiting the old movie theater style in a modern day concert hall, under the flag of delivering a good show, is ambitious at the very least. However, the Anchorage Symphony’s attempt to do this, if anything, has not only proven it to be possible, but that perhaps that age old saying about sound coming too early to film is quite correct.
Rendall Craig Fleischer (Music Director) and the Anchorage Symphony were able to revisit the lost era of silent film in such an effective manner that everyone not only applauded. but I cannot say I have yet been to a show at the PAC that incited a triple doosey of standing applause, yells for an encore and even whistling, not because the film was particularly special, nor because the soundtrack was particularly striking, but because the ASQ was able to make the two mesh so effectively that is was easy to forget a live, full orchestra was even present, allowing the crowd to be captured into the clever, slapstick antics and risky action packed stunts of Buster Keaton, while being enveloped in the most effective form of musical presentation: the live concert.
To catch you up, The Generals simple yet clever story, Buster Keaton is an everyday train engineer whose’ cold, solid face matches his otherwise cold, solid life, with the only two, warm elements being his train, notably dubbed, “General”, and his sweet-heart, the lovely Annabelle Lee, played by Marian Mack. The two have a good thing going with Buster visiting when ever his General stops through the quaint little southern town of Annabelle’s when war breaks out, and by war, I mean the Civil War. Buster tries to enlist with everyone else, but because he’s an engineer he’s just too useful to the South in trains without being on the front lines getting shot at. How does the wonderful Annabelle relate to this? Not very well, you might expect, especially with Buster being painted as a coward by Annabelle’s father and brother who also go to enlist for the sake of States rights. Buster finds his way in a funny predicament though as, a year later, his general is stolen by ruthless, blood thirsty Union spies and proceeds to lead him on an action packed, slapstick rail road rampage that, while watching, you almost think would be impossible to do without modern digital technology. Still, the film pulls it off and permits the simple Buster to develop into the hero of the day, crossing into enemy lines to find that his beloved Annabelle has been kidnapped, and fooling the Union troops at every turn as he races back to the confederacy to warm them of an eminent invasion. For this, the simple, stone faced engineer is not only enlisted into the Confederate army, but as a Lieutenant, first class, winning the girl and saving the day for the South, who, as we all know, will eventually lose anyway.
But, the story isn’t about that. It’s about wise cracking antics while hot on the trail of locomotive after soldier toting, fire blazing, death defying stunt portraying locomotive. The film even shoots a train falling through a burning bridge. A whole engine! How did the crowd react to this? Well, with the climatic, “you know its coming” drum roll from the orchestra and the even more anticipated clash of symbols and eruption of music, it only celebrated in amazement at this still standing marvel of cinematic special effects. And, whether your Buster Keaton or Spielberg, that’s still a pretty cool thing to pull off. And, with the climatic effect that this scene and every other had with its live symphony accompaniment, the crowd only shouted in cheer as our Buster road his engine “General” to victory, getting the girl and saving the day for us wanna-be Southerners.
The overall air of this project was one of fun and great effort, where you could tell just by listening to the music that the Symphony not only had to have practiced intensely to get the music and mood just right, not to mention trying to match the original soundtracks mood perfectly, but that they were also enjoying it, laughing at whatever silly slapstick or death-defying stunt Buster through at us again. It allowed the music to mesh with its live presentation so well that you almost felt like a community had formed, living and breathing as we were all brought together by the live power of a symphony orchestra pursuing the very beginning of the film production medium. If this promises a testimony to the art of live theater/film production as it did in the day of your grandparents, the question left to be answered is, with the effect that the Anchorage Symphony had with Buster Keaton, does film really need to have its own soundtrack at all? Could it survive if it reverted back to the classic style of theater going, with live music and intermissions? Truly, would that not refine the art form of filmmaking as it has worked for theater? Frankly, the audience from the AQR’s performance of Buster Keaton’s, The General, surely knows this answer.
ASO Silent Film: Buster Keaton's The General
Anchorage Symphony Orchestra
January 31, 2009 at 8:00 P.M.
Alaska Center for the Performing Arts, Atwood Concert Hall
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