Dance Cleveland: Ballet Memphis

After Joe Rebman's harp recital at CIM, Rachel and I headed back down to PlayhouseSquare's Ohio Theatre for one of the two Ballet Memphis performances I previewed a while a back (the program repeats tomorrow at 3:00 PM). Having seen the slightly fictional Memphis two doors down at the Palace Theatre about a week ago I was interested to see and hear Ballet Memphis.

Tonight's program brought together a great mix of dance with classical and modern influences. Opening the program, Being Here With Other People (Julie Niekrasz, Stephanie Hom, Hikedo Karrasawa, Virginia Pilgrim, Rachel Shumak, Ben Warner, Rafael Ferreras, Brandon Rame; Choreographed by Steven McMahon, Music: III Movement (Rondo Allegro) from Beethoven's Concerto in D Major for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 61) was full of joy -- in the music, dance, and dancer's expressions. Choreographed by a Ballet Memphis member at the beginning of he recession at artistic director Dorthy Gunter Pug's invitation to choreograph something to bring joy to the audience -- and he certainly succeeded.

It was impossible not to settle in to your seat and find a happy place with that beginning of the piece. Subtle humor (and some not so subtle humor in the form of soloist Stephanie Horn's gestures) raised laughter from the audience and set the right tone for the performance.

Next up was an addition to the program Takademe (Kendal G. Britt, Jr.; Choreograped by Robert Battle; Music: Speaking in Tongues I by Shelia Chandra, a solo piece that was full of eye catching movement and ear catching (if slightly hypnotic) sound. Mr. Britt seemed at one with the music and at one point Rachel leaned over and asked if the human body could actually move that quickly. In a post-show question and answer session, Mr. Brit mentioned that both how the day and the specific dynamic of the audience affects his interpretation of the piece, with some audiences welcoming a bit more experimentation than others, and now two performances are exactly the same.

The last piece before intermission Curtain of Green (Crystal Brothers, Steven McMahon, Kendall G. Britt, Jr., Choreographed by Julia Adam, Music: Philip Glass Etudes No. 2 and Etudes No. 5 from Etudes for Piano, Vol.1 No. 1-10) is based on a short story by Eudora Welty about a woman who's husband is killed by a falling tree, and the mourns by taking after her garden where she takes out grief and anger on her Gardner. Seemingly a collection of storybook scenes this dance had a more linear feel (and was a bit more serious) than the first two. Though it was revealed at the post show Q&A that there were a couple technical glitches, the dancers recovered seamlessly and someone not familiar with the dance (including yours truly) would have had any reason to be suspicious.

Which was true of the entire performance -- if there were any other technical problems, the company was so elastic and responsive that they were easily overlooked.
Picking up after intermission, S'epanouir (Crystal Brothers, Stephanie Horn, Hideako Karasawa, Rachel Shumake, Ben Warner, Rafael Ferreras, Brandon Ramey, kendall G. Britt, Jr.; Choreographed by Jane Comprot and Company, Music: Journey to AbunDANCE or S'epanouir by Kirk Whalum) starts slow and dark ("A woman is in the depths of an emotional and/or spiritual crisis...") and I was wondering what to say--not particularly enjoying the dance or the music--until both blossomed into a much brighter and happier mood ("...until the community comes to her aid...") and concludes with a gospel choir and a powerful image ("...and lifts her to a joyous transformation.")

Last on the program In Dreams (Julie Niekrasz, Stephanie Horn, Virginia Pilgrim, Travis Bradley, Steven McMahon, Choreographed by Trey McIntyre, Music (all performed by Roy Orbison): Dream Baby, You Tell Me, The Crowd, I Never Knew, In Dreams, Crying. Playing homage to fellow Memphian Roy Orbison, it was an interesting concept and a lovely collection of warm songs but I didn't really sense a strong connection between the music and the dance -- and at times the warm sounds of the music (with dark costumes on a dark stage) tempted me to just close my eyes.
But if that's all I have to complain about it was a very good show...

Lincoln

Cleveland Institute of Music: Junior Recital: Joseph Rebman, harp (@CIM_edu)

Grandjany: Fantaisie Sure un Theme de Haydn
Rebman: Eros: Pithos Anesidoras (2011)
Debussy: Sonate for Flute, Viola, and Harp (Jeiran Hasan, flute; Julia Clancy, viola)
Saint-Saens: Fantaisie for Violin and Harp
Ravel: Introduction and Allegro (Andrea Hughes, Nicole Sauder, violin; Julia Clancy, viola; Cecilia Orazi, cello; Jeiran Hasan, flute, Elinor Rufeizen, clarinet)
Joseph Rebman, harp

The harp is an instrument relatively rarely encountered in the wild, and there seem to be relatively few orchestral peices that feature the instrument. I was delighted a while back when, at a Classical Revolution event a harp rolled through the front door and the attendees were given a unique and upclose exposure to the music of the harp. That harpist was Joseph Rebman (who I also heard at FiveOne Music's Sonic Cinema performance last year), and Mr. Rebman was kind enough to extend an invitation to his junior recital this afternoon, and it was wonderful to hear the instrument again.

Although today's recital was more traditional in both programming and setting than either of those events it was no less interesting. As expected, the harp was at the forefront and the range of both the instrument and Mr. Rebman were demonstrated.

Marcel Grandjany's Fantaisie Sur un Theme de Haydn for solo harp was crisply played and I was impressed by the nimble finger work -- the piece was festive with ever so slight a hint of mediteranean flair about midway though. Second on the program, an impressive composition by Mr. Rebman, Eros: Pithos Anesidoras was likewise interesting, beginning with alternating notes played by his left hand with plucked interruptions from the right hand. As the piece progresses there's a sense of building energy and frenzy into an explosion and then a more deep and meditative sound -- both deeper and more meditative than I typically think of for a harp.

Debussy's Sonate for Flute Viola and Harp, was technically interesting for contrast in instruments: In the first movement, the impulse of the harp, the sustained notes of the viola, and the flute as the wind outsider. Between the three the sounds of spring seemed to be floating in the air. In the second movement, the feeling becomes even warmer and you begin to feel as if you're running through the countryside, but the third and final movement starts with an opening that seems almost ritualistic and builds to an exciting crescendo.

After intermission the recital picked up with Saint-Saens's Fantaisie for Violin and Harp which was full of the somewhat sureal feeling (almost pastel-colored view on reality) that I associate with Saint-Saens's works, though it turned intense nearer the end

Closing out the program Maurice Ravel's Introduction and Allegro featured the largest ensemble from the afternoon's program with a slow, romantic introduction and strong relationships between the individual instruments, as when Elinor Rufeizen's clarinet met a note begun by Ms. Orazi's cello. The variety of sounds combined with the extensive solo piece made the piece quite enjoyable to hear, even if it isn't quite as striking as some of Ravel's better known works.

Lincoln

Cleveland Museum of Art: Ensemble Signal: Music of Steve Reich (@ClevelandArt)

Reich: Sextet (1984) (Jamie Dietz, Doug Perkins, Bill Solomon, David Skidmore, David Friend, Lisa Moore)
Reich: Double Sextet (2007) (Courtney Orlando, Olivia DePrato, Lauren Radnofsky, Caitlin Sullivan, Kelli Kathman, Jessica Schmitz, Bill Kalinkos, Ken Thomson, Doug Perkins, David Skidmore, David Friend, Lisa Moore)
Brad Lubman, conductor; Paul Coleman, sound director.

I first consciously heard Steve Reich's music in the form of New York Counterpoint played by Elinor Rufeizen at her Junior Recital at CIM and then again in the Museum's Contemporary Galleries. This year marks Steve Reich's 75th birthday and over that period of time his music and from of minimalism have snuck into culture through film and other avenues.

Sextet, from 1984 the first piece on tonight's program, was heavily percussive and shared many of the same textures and feelings of New York Counterpoint, and like that piece I loved the vibrant feeling of the energy of an urban landscape that evolves. While sometimes ambiguous (in the program note the composer observes "In music which uses a great deal of repetition, I believe it is precisely these kinds of ambiguities that give vitality and life") the overlapping sounds and constant motion gave a nicely drifting focus from instrument to instrument. Pushing forward it was interesting to hear as impulses from the vibraphone had effects of rippling through the pattern established by the other instruments, like a drop of water disturbing the glassy surface of a still lake.

Taking yet a different feeling, the piece earns a slower, more dark and ominous feeling making me think of a dark side street near a happening district at night. That feeling didn't last long with a dramatic shift and punctuated change to brighter sounds that would have been right at home in a busy elevator lobby with cars quickly arriving and departing with the accompanying chimes, transitioning into what I scribbled to myself as a "time clock tango" with the hustle at the end of a shift to punch out and go home -- with the next feeling being unquestionably one of rush hour.

Throughout the piece the insistent, driving, feeling of the percussion was stunning.

After intermission, Double Sextet finished the program. According to the program note it can be performed either by a single sextet playing against a recorded iteration of itself or by two different sextets simultaneously occupying the stage. The use of a single group of musicians playing against is similar to the technique in New York Counterpoint, and is an interesting challenge for the performer. Tonight's performer was the much rarer true double sextet and while I didn't have any clear images formed while listening to the piece it was interesting to hear the relationship between instruments at any given moment and the amazing cohesiveness (Honestly, 12 different musicians playing 6 different instruments, rarely--if ever--playing the same thing, has to be a difficult feat to pull off). Once the initial bright energy faded a more melancholy sound emerged and the sound that hovered over the ensemble made me think of a slowly played accordion.

After the performance it was interesting to hear reactions -- virtually everyone enjoyed the concert, but if you asked someone to pick a favorite the results were nearly perfectly split. 

Lincoln

Cleveland Orchestra: Dohnanyi Conducts Beethoven's Ninth

Ligeti: Atmospheres
Wagner: Prelude to Act I of Lohengrin
Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 ("Choral")
(Meagan Miller, soprano; Tamara Mumford, mezzo-soprano; Eric Cutler, tenor; Iain Paterson, bass-baritone and The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus, Robert Porco, director)
Christoph von Dohnanyi, conductor.

Periodically a word pops into my head that seems appropriate I just have to check the definition of; listening to tonight's concert gobsmacked was that word--it's definition "utterly astonished"-- perfectly applicable to tonight's nearly sold-out concert.

Based on information on the Orchestra's website shortly before the concert's start time there were only about 60 seats (plus some standing room) available in the house: Surveying the hall from the side of the Box Level, that number actually seemed high. (If you're attending any of the remaining 3 concerts this weekend, allow plenty of time: I arrived an hour and fifteen minutes before the concert and the Severance Garage was already full

The first two pieces come from different composers from different eras that when played without pause seem amazingly closely related. The program note mentions that portions of Atmospheres along with other works by Gyorgy Ligeti were used (without permission) in Stanley Kubrick's 2001 A Space Odyssey  and in listening to the piece it's easy to understand why. The feeling throughout is of rugged darkness, as if the listener is drifting through space encountering planets and constellations along the way. Some of the sustained notes early in the piece were reminiscent of an organ, others where the wind players passed air through their instruments creating a very desolate sounding wind. A piano is found on the opposite side of the stage from its usual home--and it's played exclusively by percussionists directly manipulating its strings.

The prelude to Act I Wagner's Lohengrin, had an easy by contrast the sensation was one of being distinctly Earth bound. Instead of the isolated darkness of Atmospheres, it seemed to be the restrained glory of the first rays of sunrise wit just a hint of wind sweeping across a field of grain (that imagery may have been helped by a slight draft of pleasantly refreshing cool air at about this time in the piece.

Through both of those I think there may have been times when my heart stopped beating for fear of intruding upon the specialness of the connection between Mr. Dohnanyi and the orchestra -- there was clearly mutual respect.

Following intermission, Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 -- perhaps the best known piece in the classical literature and I know a few people thing the piece has become a little overworn and threadbare -- but that couldn't be further from the truth with The Cleveland Orchestra, The Cleveland Orchestra Chorus, and Christoph von Dohnanyi. All four of the movements were wonderful but I was particularly pulled into the confident and celebratory second movement (Molto vivace--Presto--Tempo I) and, of course, the fourth movement (Presto--Allegro assai--Presto, Finale on Schiller's Ode to Joy) which brought out the full and unrestrained power of the Cleveland Orchestra Chorus. The balance between orchestra and chorus was spot on with occassional explosions of vocal energy to hit home the point.

Lincoln

Cleveland Museum of Art Young Professionals (@ClevelandArt)

One corner of the Atrium as viewed from the Boardroom.
A single photo does not do it justice.

Anyone who knows me -- or who has read more than a few installments of this blog -- knows that I'm a passionate supporter of the arts in Cleveland and a relatively young professional.

Heretofore the Cleveland Museum of Art has not had an organization targeting its appeal at the Younger Professional and I have to admit that I've been a bit concerned that the sharp and stately appearance of the Museum's physical presence may unfairly color others impression of the institution. Namely, as something "old" "stuffy" and "academic"; something that as I've become closer to the museum is certainly not true of either the Museum, its staff or current leadership.

In short something should be done to take the sharp edge of the granite exterior to help other young(er) Clevelanders to enjoy and appreciate the gem we have in our back yards.

Luckily I'm not the only one who has felt this way and a group of staff within the museum over the past few months has been quietly reaching out laying the groundwork for such an endeavor, culminating in the first official task force meeting tonight.

Tenatively named RallyMUSE, there are some really exciting ideas in the air and it will be exciting to see what comes out out meetings between  now and when the group officially launches later this summer.

I probably shouldn't say much more -- and perhaps I shhouldn't have said that much -- but while I'm on a roll, it's clear that this endeavor has the enthusiastic support of all levels of museum staff. Likewise the crosssection of individuals in attendance was wonderfully diverse. Through conversations that bubbled across the course of the evening it's clear there are a lot of passionate people inside and outside the museum prepared to invest time and energy to help make this a success
I'm looking  forward to the process and already can't want of the official launch!

Lincoln

PlayhouseSquare: Memphis The Muscial

In 2010, I was lucky enough to win a PlayhouseSquare-sponsored trip to the Tony Awards as a seat filler. Though that evening was at once both a blur and unforgettable, looking back at that show the most memorable performances were American Idiot (featuring blinding light and the music of Green Day) and Memphis -- for the sheer energy of performance during the show and then the unadulterated joy that seemed to break free in Radio City Music Hall when the Best Musical Win was announced (YouTube video).

Combined with the inclusion of the song Memphis Lives in Me on a Broadway Sampler digital album I picked  up somewhere along the way, I was eagerly awaiting Memphis's arrival in Cleveland. Tonight seemed like a good night to head downtown -- and fortuitous timing with DanceCleveland presenting Ballet Memphis next weekend.

Collecting Rachel from work and heading towards PlayhouseSquare the evening got off on the wrong foot with quite possibly the most inattentive, slow, and generally lackluster service[1] (combined with overpriced and mediocre food) I've experienced in a restaurant from Star at PlayhouseSquare--it reminds me why I don't dine in the district more often. Putting more weight on the wrong foot, I have to say I despise PlayhouseSquare's practice over the past year or so of forcing ushers to march around the house with "No Cameras" signs on poles. It's distracting, seems rather amateurish and a bit demeaning.

Luckily, when the curtain rose and the houselights dimmed that all faded  into the background as we slipped back into the 1950s where Huey (Brian Fenkart) is a white man who seems either willfully or blissfully ignorant of the matter of race as a societal divider. Huey is drawn to "race music"--facing challenges and finding success as a DJ then television host, chasing the love of a talented black singer, Felicia (Felecia Boswell) in a time when such a relationship wouldn't be tolerated. Felicia finds success and a New York recording contract, Huey has the opportunity to follow her to New York and take his television show nationwide but only if he replaces his dancers with whites -- which he refuses to do, and after kissing Felicia on TV fades to obscurity while she finds success. (The Wikipedia entry has a full synopsis)

The music is powerful and as compelling as the story and weaves the elements together; my favorites being Everybody Wants to be Black on a Saturday Night, Memphis Lives in Me, and Steal your Rock and Roll. Every time I looked over at Rachel she was enjoying it -- frequently laughing to a degree usually reserved for one of  my truly awful puns. And I have to say that Mama's (Julie Johnson) performance in Change Don't Come Easy and the scene leading up to that number reminded me of Rachel's mom.

Though minor little technical issues tend to drive me crazy, an have been a factor in attending fewer PlayhouseSquare performances, this performance was pleasantly free of such warts: The audio was clear and competently mixed; lighitng was compelling and directed the audience's attention without being distracting.

Although said to be based to some extent on the life of Memphis DJ Dewey Philips (the first DJ to play an Elvis Presley record on the air), sitting in the Palace Theater, just down the block for the former location of the WJW-AM studios it's impossible not to consider some of the parallels to Cleveland DJ Alan Freed -- credited with popularizing the term "Rock 'n' Roll" and to wonder how the same love story would have unfolded in a "northern" city during the same period.

Memphis, through March 11 at the Palace Theater, PlayhouseSquare.

Lincoln
[1] Of many examples, we're seated: We wait several minutes before our waitress shows up, asks us if we'd like a wine or martini list. I say yes please. She disappears. Several minutes go by before she reappears and asks us what we'd like to drink, we remind her that we still haven't seen the wine list. Several more minutes go by before we see a wine list. More time passes  before she returns to take our drink order. It was nearly a half hour between being seated and  first drinks.

1000+ Visitors plus Cleveland Museum of Art: Bulletin of the Museum 1968-70

February marked a milestone for Lincoln in Cleveland: During the month this blog had more than 1,000 unique visits. While I've been flirting near the thousand mark for the past several months this is the first time I've hit that number. Thanks to everyone who's stopped by to read -- I always welcome comments and suggestions.

Since this week has been quiet (though Rachel and I are thinking about seeing Memphis at PlayhouseSquare Frideay) Below I continue with the series looking that the Cleveland Museum of Art, through old issues of its publication, The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art. All of the posts in the series, in reverse chronological order, can be found here.

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My collection of Bulletins continues with September 1968. The format changed sometime in the 1960s and by the September issue, the bulletin no longer carries a issue or volume number and it is devoid of information about the Museum, instead presenting extensive essays on specific pieces.

This format continues in November 1968 but the back cover announces Design and the City: An Architectural Exhibition at The Cleveland Museum of Art from December 11 to January 12: It sounds interesting, and I wonder if any lasting change came out of it:

"...conceived by the Cleveland Chapter of the American Institute of Architects and brings together the interest of the public and professionals alike in planning for choesive improvement of the Metropolitan Cleveland Area. The ehxibit [...] consists of the efforts of over 60 architects, planners, engineers, and desigeners as well as numerous public officials of the city and the county, the Cleveland Board of Education, Case Western Reserve University, the Greater Cleveland Growth Association, and the Seven County Transportation Study. Interesting physical features of past and present Cleveland are shown together with possible directions for future planning of the city"

December 1968 through February 1969 are also again devoid of institutional infromation, but June 1969 includes the 1968 annual report which is full of gems, some foreshadow the Museum's current expansion and renovation projects. The new Educational Wing, designed by Marcel Bruer, began construction on June 17, 1968:

The curtailment of the Museum's exhibitions and activities -- due to a lack of classrooms or auditoria for the duration of construction -- is in fine focus, as is the work of the Museum's "inhabitants" -- which from the description has probably not changed much in the 43 years since, but in reading

"[68.206] is the Museum's registration number and has also been carefully painted onto the back of the painting by a member of the Registrar's Department. Here at least four cards must have been prepared [...] these are the permanant records by which the Museum mantains its inventory of works in the collection."

I have to assume that these cards (and the "notebook with much additional information gleaned from previous and continual research" maintained by the Paintings Department) have been supplanted by technology, but I'm sure the process is much the same. The introduction, announcing the addition of 365 new works to the collection and pinning completion of the Educational Wing Construction as 1970, continues "We are more certainly justfied than Mr. Micawber in repeating that, "Things will be much improved in the not too distant future" -- as it will be when the current renovation and expansion is concluded.

Although reports of individual departments are interesting, very little jumps out as being strongly relevent after 40 years, though it was interesting to read the Registrar's report noting a collection of 41,287 objects (I haven't been able to locate the 2011 current collectcion size), and Public Relations noting Museum attendance of 435,106, "a reduction attributed in part to inconveniences occasioneed by the construction of the new Education Wing."

The Printing department is proud to announce that a IBM Selectric Composer was installed to facilitate printing of some publications formerly printed outside. Admission to the museum continues to be free -- and Monday remains day off for the Museum's galleries, with normal hours being published as  Tuestday, Thursday, and Friday 10-6, Wednesday 10-10, Saturday 9-5, and Sunday, New Year's Day, and Memorial Day 1-6.

The February 1970 and February 1974 bulletins have little text but serves as an illustrated "Year in Review" for acqusitions from the previous year, and it's interesting to compare acquisitions over time and to see how many of the pieces from both I can recall seeing in the Museum's galleries -- somewhat suprisingly, I recognize more pieces from the 1970 edition.

June 1974 ends this tour through the Museum's history-via-Bulletin with the 1973 annual report. Light on institutional (vis collection) information, Betsey Belkin is noted as joining the Cleveland Museum of Art Library -- today, Ms. Belkin is Ursuline College's Director of Library. Also coming of note from the Library is the note that the circulating collection of the library's photography department has been phased out (with much of the contents donated to the Cleveland Public Library). This change makes the Museum's library for the first time completely non-circulating.

Burried near the end of the report, in the sea of text, "A decision was reached to permanently install The Thinker in its present damaged condition in front of the museum's south entrance. A bracket was designed and manufacturerd to support the sculpture on a new granite pedestal which was imported from Italy." -- it's easy to forget that the well-weathered and slightly deformed statute wasn't always the way we see it today.

Lincoln