Life of Ludwig 

THE SHOW: Beethoven as I Knew Him, the world premiere of the final installment of the “Composer Sonata,” a trilogy of solo pieces written and performed by Montreal-born Hershey Felder. Last year, Felder brought George Gershwin Alone and Monsieur Chopin to the Old Globe; he’ll reprise those two performances in June. Beethoven and Chopin were directed by Joel (“My Big Fat Greek Wedding”) Zwick, who has directed plays on and Off Broadway, in addition to considerable work in film and television. 

THE BACKSTORY/THE STORY: Felder created his “Composer Sonata” to mirror the three-movement musical form of its title. This new piece would represent the first movement, which is typically dramatic and highly structured. Monsieur Chopin is the Romantic second movement and George Gershwin Alone corresponds to the upbeat, dance-like finale.   

Unlike the other two pieces, Felder does not portray the title character here, except only briefly, and those are the most dramatic moments of the play. Instead, he’s the heavily accented Viennese doctor Gerhard von Breuning, whom we meet in 1870, the 100^th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth. He’s 56, “the same age as the maestro before he died,” and the “last person alive with the honor to call myself his friend.” Well, that’s stretching it a little, since von Breuning first met Beethoven, whom he mistook for a “filthy vagrant,” when he was 12. His father was a childhood friend of Beethoven, but they’d been estranged for years. When they re-meet, it turns out that Beethoven is a neighbor. Young Gerhard visits him regularly in his messy digs, and studies piano with him during the last two years of his life.  

The stories told in the play come from von Breuning’s 1870 memoir, “Aus dem Schwarzspanierhaus,” (“From the Schwartzspanierhaus, My Memories of Ludwig van Beethoven”). The Schwarzspanierhaus,” or ‘House of Black Spaniards,’ so called because it was originally a monastery, was Beethoven’s final lodging. Von Breuning is writing his book as we watch. He provides a few juicy details about the great man’s living conditions, and tortured life, and a bit about his family -- though none of the harrowing story of Beethoven’s purported abuse of his nephew, for whose custody he battled mercilessly, for years, after which the teenager finally escaped his uncle’s relentless wrath (he briefly refers to the nephew as a loser who can’t even commit suicide successfully; the young man was reportedly trying to escape his awful life with his uncle). Von Breuning’s biggest revelation is the mistreatment of Beethoven by his remaining brother, who is implicated in the maestro’s death at age 57 (he froze and starved him at his home, and send him packing in an open carriage, during a storm). No mention, though, of the long-term lead poisoning that seems, in fact, to have been the real cause, or facilitator, of Beethoven’s demise. 

The problem is, we’d much rather spend time with Beethoven than with von Breuning, who’s a rather dull and colorless character. He serves little purpose, except as a conduit of information, and his heavy Germanic accent is off-putting to some. Felder intersperses his ‘lectures’ on the work and the life to play Beethoven’s ‘Greatest Hits’ on the grand piano (“Moonlight Sonata,” “Für Elise,” etc.), while waxing rhapsodic about the other works, some of which are heard in ethereal recordings. 

THE PRODUCTION: The set (François-Pierre Couture) is minimal, and beautifully, if somberly lit (Richard Norwood). The whole piece has a solemn tone; it’s relentlessly grim, dark and dour. The only joy in the 100-minute intermissionless evening is the “Ode” to same that opens the show (of his many talents – writing, acting, piano-playing --  singing is Felder’s least accomplished). Behind the action (what little of it there is), an enormous open tome hangs overhead, with a stylized ribbon bookmark bisecting its pages. The projections of highly abstracted pen-and-ink drawings of people and places in Vienna don’t add to the proceedings, and sometimes distract (just deciphering them demands attention). Felder’s piano playing is impassioned, but there’s just too much of it. Complete versions of several of the great works actually interfere with the narrative flow and make the evening seem like a recital rather than a play. The writing feels much more didactic than Felder’s other pieces; perhaps that’s an effect of having a third-person voice, rather than the subject himself as the central figure. We grow weary of von Breuning, and we long for more Beethoven. A great man, a great story. So much anguish and angst – poverty, deafness, fears, family feuds, madness, genius. Somehow, we come away unmoved, except by the glorious music.

THE LOCATION: The Old Globe, through June 1

Who’s that Girl?  

THE SHOW: Attempts on Her Life: Seventeen Scenarios for Theatre, an experimental play by English writer Martin Crimp. First performed at the Royal Court in 1997, the piece has subsequently been translated into 20 languages.

THE STORY: In the text, none of the lines is assigned to a particular character; Crimp doesn’t even specify how many actors should perform the play. In the 17 apparently disconnected scenes, groups of people give mutually contradictory descriptions of an absent protagonist (variously name Anne, Anny or Anushka), a woman who’s talked about as if she were a terrorist, a suicide, a daughter, an artist and a new car. The non-linear, deliberately fragmented work challenges an audience to re-define its notion of play, character and identity, and contemplate whether a person has any existence beyond the models we construct.

THE PLAYERS/THE PRODUCTION: This was a risky production for a community college, but Rebecca Johanssen (left), founder/artistic director of Stone Soup Theatre and adjunct faculty at Mira Costa College has never been one to shy away from a challenge (witness her 2006 production of Sarah Kane’s 4.48 Psychosis). Working 2-3 hours a day for the past five weeks, she shepherded seven members of the student theater club, the Backstage Players, and mounted an often-exciting production. The students handled themselves well, for the most part (some words got swallowed, or mispronounced), and the dance moves were evocative (created by Anna Valendez, and executed by her and Karen Villareal and Jamie Hunt). The bilingual moments were powerful, with Venezuelan Anyelid Meneses speaking Spanish, and later, in a provocative scene, Valendez and Villareal played closely entwined prostitutes, talking in Tagalog. The best scenes were ‘The New Anny’ (Anne as shiny new bilingual vehicle, with Meneses describing a smiling Hunt), ‘Kinda Funny,’ about “the bitter sweetness of things,” The rhymed sections have been done in other productions as songs, and that would have altered the tone and pace of the piece, for the better, I think. Johanssen has a good feel for the enigmatic material and its delicious, language-drunk text. She should definitely consider a full production for her plucky little company. This isn’t for all theatergoers, by any means. If you need a narrative arc and clear sense of character and story, stay away. But if you like a challenge, a dramatic puzzle, a boatload of play on and with words, you will be titillated, intrigued and absorbed by this 20^th century contemplation of all our worst fears and obsessions. 

A WEEKEND OF DANCE 

THE PRODUCTIONS  

…Soulos: Green is Eveoke Dance Theater’s first major production since the departure of founding artistic director Gina Angelique. There have been some trials since she left, including searching for, and finding a new homebase/rehearsal space (the studio is in North Park, the Tenth Avenue Theatre will be the regular performing space). Gina’s are big shoes to fill. This evening of new work continued in her footsteps, perpetuating and extending a series of color-themed solo pieces she initiated (the visual pun of SOUL and SOLO wasn’t explained on opening night, though choreographers Ericka Moore and Yvonne Hernandez made a spirited curtain speech).  

Given the ‘compassionate social action’ on which the company was founded, I expected ‘Green’ to have something to do with the environment. But there was little political edge. And unfortunately, unlike Angelique’s best work, there was little humor or whimsy, which always made her creations such a delight. The solo pieces had names like ‘Wealth Soulo,’ ‘Purpose Soulo,’ ‘Alone Soulo,’ and one each named ‘Push’ and ‘Pull.’ The latter two were choreographically transparent, as was ‘Wealth,’ as Erica Buechner strutted, diva-like, trailing a scarf and blowing kisses, providing a tiny bit of light relief. The rest seemed pretty dark;d if there was a narrative through-line, it appeared to be the evolution of a woman, or women in general.  

Charming 12 year-old Niah Wilcox emerged from the light at the outset (and as Green, sported the only real hint of the titular color). After confronting the other women in the opener, ‘Fading Green,’ she retreats upstage, watching for awhile and then falling asleep, ultimately rejoining Ericka Moore (who has been the most Pushed and Pulled), to walk off into the light (enlightened, perhaps) at the end. In between those events, there is angst, competition, rejection, friendship and forgiveness among the five female dancers. The most compelling solos were by Moore and Eveoke co-founder/now executive director Nikki Dunnan. Moore was ‘Alma’ (which in Spanish means soul, spirit, heart), a woman who fights vigorously for acceptance and independence  -- but later rejects Becky Hurt’s forceful and unrelenting attempts to get close in ‘Purpose Duet’. Dunnan’s ‘Alone Soulo’ is gut-wrenching, an anguished, hand-wringing exploration of pain and solitude, beautifully realized. Overall, the evening moves slowly, as do the dancers. There is more walking, pushing and leaning than actual dance. Despite all the discord and suffering, everyone comes together in the final moments, united in a big group-hug. That’s the earnest goodwill Eveoke has always expressed; I hope the group continues to come together to solidify the future of this small company that’s had a big impact in reaching out into the community. 

The Location: Eveoke at the Tenth Avenue Theatre, through June 1

…Voices of San Diego Dance Theater (one weekend only). Jean Isaacs, in association with the SDSU School of Music & Dance, and the SDSU Department of Theatre, presented a weekend of works by four choreographers, including Isaacs, Wendy Rogers (based at U.C. Riverside), Keith Johnson (from Cal State Long Beach) and San Francisco-based Joe Goode. It was an exhilarating evening of eight short pieces, each stylistically and musically unique. The standout was “Caved-In Heart,” the solo Isaacs created for Lauren Slater, daughter of County Supervisor Pam-Slater Price, who was there with husband Herschel, both proud as could be. Lauren is a stunning dancer: lithe, focused, controlled, statuesque. She stayed within a sharply focused spotlight (lighting design by Michelle Caron), with her marvelous extensions and outrageous flexibility, executing with extreme precision Isaacs’ twists, turns, crumblings, snakelike moves and bird-wing arms. The Isaacs/Slater collaboration produced a stunning image of a woman crushed, trying to reclaim her poise and stability and hold her head high.   

Photo: Manuel Rotenburg

Another of Isaacs’ works, “Engulf,” was also provocative, performed by her modern dance students, to Jordi Savall’s “Homage to Pablo Casals.” Ten black-clad women take positions of suffering and anguish, supplication and prayer. They crisscrossed the stage in a tight cluster, moving as one, like frightened shore birds. They looked to the sky and crumpled to the ground, slithering away as the light faded (lighting design by Kelli Grovskopf). Powerful imagery of pain. Goode’s gripping piece, “I Don’t Want to Be There,” included projections, spoken word and imagistic moves, telling a story of loneliness and isolation (“I’m what you’d call perennially lonely… But why? Why am I like this? I like to protect myself against this vicious world”). Liv Isaacs-Nollet was especially potent here, as dancer and solo bar-sitter (projected onscreen). The dancing, by six of Isaacs’ company, was robust.  

Isaacs’ “Satie Suite,” set to the elegant, redoubtable “Two Gynmopedies,” was played live – elegantly -- by her main squeeze, pianist Steve Baker, and danced by her daughter, Liv Isaacs-Nollet, in duet with tiny, weightless Veronica Martin Lamm, joined by the wonderful Bradley Lundberg and John Diaz. At first, the moves for the women were angular and lyrical, gentle and impulsive. As strong and connected as they were together, that’s as weak and disengaged as they became once the males arrived. The women hung like deflated balloons, pretty little ragdolls flung around by their men. At the end, though, the gals came together again, left to lean and depend on each other, in a striking final image.  

Wendy Rogers’ piece, “Second Story,” with a prolonged startup of eye-catching projections and silent dance moves, opened the evening, followed by Bradley Lundberg’s “Leave Me Alone (Don’t Leave),” an alluring push-me/pull-you duet by Lundberg and Rayna Stohl. Lundberg’s dancing was excellent throughout, especially in his titillating duet with Sadie Weinberg, Keith Johnson’s “I Dream a Highway,” ‘inspired by the Dust Bowl of the 1920s’ (the horrific dust storms of the American prairie actually occurred in the ‘30s, but we get the point). Though the piece went on too long and repetitively, it told a mournful, poignant tale of separation (“I dream a highway back to you”), told in sepia tones (lighting by Jen Horowitz). For most of the piece, the pair is separated, a stage apart, a gulf of longing. Then, they come together in a sensual dream of spoon-sleeping, cuddling and lost, erotic love, and end in the light of day, once again, and probably forever, apart.  

The evening ended with Sadie Weinberg’s “American Torch Songs (excerpts),” set to music by Aretha Franklin, Etta James and Dinah Washington, strong women telling a woman’s story of hope, expectation, desolation (all in froufrou prom dresses) and finally, strength and independence. The seven female dancers, including Weinberg, go through adolescent histrionics and despair, being left and lost, and then, tossing off the corsage and crinolines (Weinberg designed the costumes, too) and standing up for themselves. 

A great evening for dance… and for women. Two proud mamas there on Mother’s Day weekend: Isaacs and Slater-Price, watching their daughters do what they do so wonderfully.  

…Don Quixote (one weekend only), the elaborate, full-length production by City Ballet, closed the company’s 15^th season. Based on the Cervantes novel, the ballet was created by choreographer Marius Petipa to the music of Léon Minkus. Its 1869 debut was performed by the Ballet of the Moscow Imperial Bolshoi Theatre, with a seminal revival by Aleksandr Gorsky in 1900. A conflation of both productions served as source material for City Ballet, whose version was staged by resident choreographer Elizabeth Wistrich and Kimberly Roberts. I took my mother to the ‘Brunch and Ballet’ package, and sadly, both were disappointing. Brunch at the Bristol Hotel was overpriced and underwhelming (and under-prepared for the number of people and their eating habits, despite advance
reservations).  

I’ll only comment briefly on the ballet, because I have to believe that a principal dancer falling in the first act colored the rest of the performance. Taureen Green, playing the romantic lead, Basilio, recovered rapidly, but though his later leaps were at times thrilling, his pairing with Janica Smith, as the ingénue Kitri, was not. The lifts never had smooth landings, and as the lovers central to the story (Don Quixote is really a marginal – and rather pointless – figure here) there was no visible chemistry between them – either emotional or terpsichoreal. Several times during the course of the production, Green seemed at peril of losing his footing. Smith was consistently outstanding in her flawless form and endless turns. But the lack of connection affected even the famous Grand Pas de Deux in the final act. Each seemed better dancing alone. Throughout the performance, the women fared better than the men. Ariana Samuelsson (daughter of company founders, Steven and Elizabeth Wistrich) was polished and exciting as Mercedes (she alternated in the role of Kitri, and I would’ve liked to see her in it, too). Tara Formanek and Kate Spaulding were delightful as the friends of Kitri, and Megan Nichols was aptly agile and sprightly as Cupid.  

Many of the characters in 19^th century narrative ballets were created as non-dancing, acting roles. Here, that included Don Quixote (Steven Wistrich, who had very little to do and barely registered as an onstage presence, except for his evocative costume) and Sancho Panza (Paulo Manso de Sousa, who brought pratfalls and physical comedy to his big-bellied role). The corps de ballet, which looked beautiful but wasn’t always in perfect synch, included a bevy of young, budding ballerinas, who acquitted themselves well as the Baby Cupids in the second-act dream sequence. There were many virtuoso dance moments, and some striking stage pictures. The attractive sets (Robert O’Hearn), costumes (David Heuvel) and lighting (Stephen Judson) highlighted the proceedings. I can only assume that I saw a really skewed performance, and will surely give the company another try in their 16^th season. 

NEWS AND VIEWS ….

…Tony-Time! The nominations for the 62^nd Tony Awards are out… and San Diego is IN! Cry-Baby, which launched at the La Jolla Playhouse, got four nods, including Best Musical (despite tepid critical reviews). A Catered Affair, the Harvey Fierstein show which began at the Old Globe (also not that rapturously received) snagged three noms (including Best Performances for Faith Prince and Tom Wopat). And Xanadu, directed by La Jolla Playhouse artistic director Christopher Ashley, took away two nominations, including Best Musical. Once again, we have a vested interest in the results. So be sure to watch/tape/TiVo the Tonys, hosted by Whoopi Goldberg, on Sunday, June 15 on CBS-TV.

… Hats off to Gaffney! Common Ground Theatre will pay tribute to Dr. Floyd Gaffney in an evening called “This is Gaffney” – The first Annual Tribute and Fundraiser.” The title refers to the dedicated theatermaker’s signature telephone greeting. The event, replete with silent auction, opportunity drawing and local chefs’ food/beverage stations, will celebrate Gaffney’s life, work and birthday, through dance, music and drama, showcasing some of the people and productions that were dear to him. Proceeds will benefit Floyd’s beloved brainchild, the CGT Youth Academy, which offers free summer and after-school programs for underserved adolescents, introducing them to the performing arts and “providing a positive environment for them to channel their creative energies.” Sat. June 14 at 6pm at the Educational Cultural Complex. Info at www.commongroundtheatre.org.  

…Debbie Does La Jolla… Three-time Oscar-nominated actor Debra Winger (“Shadowlands,” “Terms of Endearment,” “An Officer and a Gentleman”) will discuss her first book, “Undiscovered,” a series of vignettes from her life. In her new memoir, she talks about her three priorities (in rank order): motherhood, her work as ambassador for Sight Savers International, an organization working to eradicate blindness in the world’s poorest countries, and acting. A few fascinating factoids: As a teenager, Winger emigrated to Israel, where she worked for two years on a kibbutz and served in the Army. After her return to the U.S., she was involved in a serious accident that left her in a coma. During her recovery, she decided to become an actress, and she made her wish come true, from commercials to the TV series “Wonder Woman” to film. She walked away from the business in 1995, but has now come full circle. Get the whole story on June 17 at 7:30pm at the Lawrence Family JCC in La Jolla, part of their Distinguished Author Series 2008. Info and tickets at www.lfjcc.org 

… The Final Fritz Frontier… Fritz Theatre artistic director Duane Daniels (left - in younger days) has announced “absolutely, probably the last Fritz Blitz ever.” After 15 years of presenting “the biggest festival of its kind on the West Coast,’ the Fritz Blitz of New Plays by California Writers will celebrate its potential demise with The Best of the Blitz, featuring nearly a dozen plays, including last year’s hilarious Liferaft Willy  by Kim Porter (who won a McDonald Playwriting Award at the Pattés for her searing 2005 creation, Munched) and  Kevin Armento’s Bets and Blue Notes (which I loved, especially as acted, uproariously, by Daniels himself and John Garcia). Don’t miss what may be the final Blitz. Mark your calendar now: Aug. 28-Sept. 21 at the Lyceum.  

THE READING CORNER 

…Intelligent Design (but not THAT kind!)… Carlsbad Playreaders presents The Intelligent Design of Jenny Chow (An Instant Message with Excitable Music) by Rolin Jones. Seema Sueko reprises her Patté Award-winning performance (Old Globe, 2004) as an agoraphobic Chinese teen with OCD, a compulsion to build a robotic doppelganger and an obsession about finding her birth mother. The staged reading, directed by Siobhan Sullivan, also features Frances Regal, Jim Chovick (left), Dana Case, Jacob Caltrider and David Peryam. 7:30pm Monday, May 19 in the Dove Library. 

… Lovely weather for ducks! … ion theatre presents the fifth installment of its Intimate Ibsen series --  The Wild Duck, an 1884 drama that is on one level a domestic tragedy and on another, a morality tale of human frailty, fall and possible redemption. Before the performance, which will be directed by San Diego Rep co-founder D.W. Jacobs, Ibsen scholar and series translator Brian Johnston will present a symposium on the play, followed by a discussion with the audience. Monday, May 26. Reservations highly encouraged. In the Lyceum Theatre Space: Symposium at 4pm, Reading at 7pm (with a one-hour dinner-break in between). tickets@iontheatre.com 

… Driving Miss Sandy… Sandra Ellis-Troy will star, along with Antonio TJ Johnson, in a reading of Driving Miss Daisy, Alfred Uhry’s touching 1987 Pulitzer Prize-winning play about feuds, family, friendship and race (as relevant now as ever). Joe Powers is also in the cast, directed by Moonlight Stage Productions artistic director Kathy Brombacher. At the Avo Theatre, Monday, May 26 at 7:30pm. http://www.moonlightstage.com/events.  

'NOT TO BE MISSED!' (Pat’s Picks)  

Corpus Christi – highly theatrical, thoroughly delightful – and very respectful (even if Jesus and the Apostles are gay). Diversionary Theatre, through 6/1 

Prelude to a Kiss –a modern-day fairy tale, enchantingly told. New Village Arts, through 5/18  

*****

The mid-month of May is a marvelous moment for some drama – or comedy, or music. Go see a show! 

'Pat 

© 2007 PATTÉ PRODUCTIONS, INC. 

For more than 20 years, Pat Launer has been the only regular broadcast theater critic in San Diego. An Emmy Award-winner with a Ph.D. in Communication Arts & Sciences, Pat sees and reviews more than 200 local theater productions every year. For the past decade, she has hosted and produced The Patté Awards for Theatre Excellence, a gala community event that honors local theatermakers (“San Diegans making theater for San Diego”) and celebrates the broad diversity of San Diego theater.

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