The first thing you might notice about Best Bets: October 16th – October 18th is I’ve left out the words at home. This doesn’t reflect a re-thinking of our coverage. Instead, for the first time during the pandemic I have a live event you can attend as part of this weekend’s listings (if you live in Los Angeles).
As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, cultural events are picking up now that we’ve entered the traditional fall season. This week proves that point as we have 13 different shows for you to consider. Plus a few reminders, just in case you don’t find something you like. But seriously, what are the odds of that?
So here are our Best Bets: October 16th – October 18th:
Shipwreck – The Public Theater – October 16th – 12:00 PM EDT/9:00 AM PDT
Starting on Friday – for an open-ended run – is a radio play from The Public Theater called Shipwreck. This is a recent work from playwright Anne Washburn who was named a Guggenheim Fellow in 2009.
The play was scheduled to be part of The Public Theater’s 2020 season and has been recorded and produced for listening at home.
In Shipwreck a group of friends have gathered in upstate New York. What starts out as a glorious day, suddenly turns dark and stormy. That applies to both the weather and to the relationships. It turns out that even close, liberal friends, can find their belief systems challenged in present-day America.
Performing Shipwreck are Mia Barron, Brooke Bloom, Phillip James Brannon, Rob Campbell, Bill Camp, Raúl Esparza, Jenny Jules, Sue Jean Kim, Bruce McKenzie, Joe Morton, Jeremy Shamos and Richard Topol. Saheem Ali directs.
When the Almeida Theatre in London produced Shipwreck in 2019, the play earned strong reviews. Amongst them was this comment from Michael Billington writing in The Guardian: “…this is an important play that not only examines the Trump phenomenon but also asks why he was elected: one character shocks his friends by explaining that he voted for Trump because a failing democracy needs a shock to the system. It is precisely the argument you sometimes hear in Britain about a no-deal Brexit being a catalyst for change.”
Andra Day – Los Angeles Philharmonic Sound/Stage – October 16th – 1:00 PM EDT/10:00 AM PDT
The fourth episode of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Sound/Stage online series starts running on Friday and it is the first one to feature a solo artist without the orchestra: singer/songwriter Andra Day.
Day is perhaps best known for her hit song, Rise Up. She’ll perform that song along with Gold (both songs are from her 2015 album Cheers to the Fall) and also Nina Simone’s classic song, Mississippi Goddam. She will also appear in an interview as part of the program.
Included in the program as well will be performances from Flypoet Summer Classic that was filmed at The Ford.
For details about the full Sound/Stage series, please check out our full preview here.
Henry IV – St. Ann’s Warehouse – October 16th – October 22nd – 7:30 PM EDT/4:30 PM PDT
Brooklyn’s St. Ann’s Warehouse has partnered with London’s Donmar Warehouse to stream Shakespeare Trilogy on Film, three of his plays performed by all-female casts. They began by streaming the 2013 production of Julius Caesar last week. (Don’t worry, you have another chance to see it).
This week the 2016 production of Henry IV is streaming.
Phyllida Lloyd (who, for better or worse, was the director of Mamma Mia! both on stage and screen) directed all three plays.
In this version of Henry IV, the two Shakespeare plays have been condensed into one 135-minute play. Harriet Walter, who is perhaps best known for her roles in Sense and Sensibility and Atonement, plays Henry.
Ben Brantley of the New York Times, called Walter “one of the great Shakespearean interpreters of her generation” in his review of this production when it played St. Ann’s Warehouse in 2015.
He also said of Lloyd’s Henry IV, which is set in a women’s prison, “It’s a multilayered act of liberation. Prisoners are allowed to roam the wide fields of Shakespeare’s imagination; fine actresses are given the chance to play meaty roles that have been denied them; and we get to climb out of the straitjackets of our traditional perceptions of a venerated play.”
The third play in this trilogy is The Tempest, which will become available on October 23rd – October 29th. But fear not, the entire trilogy (which includes Julius Caesar) will be available for streaming at will October 30th – November 1st. All viewings are free.
Mary Stallings and Bill Charlap Trio – SFJAZZ – October 16th – 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT
This week’s Friday’s at Five concert from SFJAZZ features vocalist Mary Stallings with the Bill Charlap Trio (which includes Peter Washington on bass and Kenny Washington on drums). The concert is from March, 2018.
If Mary Stallings isn’t familiar to you, let me start by sharing this review from her concert.
“At 78, Stallings has entered territory that’s largely uncharted. Her voice sounds remarkably lithe and strong, and her gift for blues-tinged phrasing links her directly to matriarchs Billie Holiday and Dinah Washington.
“The only precedent for a world-class jazz vocalist sounding this good closing in on 80 is Ernestine Anderson (the extraordinary Sheila Jordan is still going strong at 89, but she’s a very different kind of jazz singer). Considering how relatively little Stallings has recorded, her performances feel like precious, ephemeral experiences, and she made the most of her time with Charlap’s trio, a unit that’s been touring and recording together for more than two decades.”
Those were the words of Andrew Gilbert writing in the San Francisco Classical Voice.
Stallings’ most recent album was last year’s Songs Were Made to Sing. She has kept some pretty fine company during her career: Tony Bennett, Billy Eckstine, Ella Fitzgerald, Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Williams and the list goes on. Her best known recording was Cal Tjader Plays, Mary Stallings Sings which came out in 1960.
This collaboration with the Bill Charlap Trio should be a great way to start your weekend.
Sticks & Stones – October 16th – 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT
The story of David versus Goliath gets a new telling in the musical Sticks & Stones which was written by composer John McDaniel and lyricist/bookwriter Scott Logsdon.
A concert performance of Sticks & Stones will stream this weekend as a fundraiser for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation.
Teen bullying is the theme of Sticks & Stones with the Biblical story serving as the setting for the story.
An impressive cast has been assembled for the concert. Audra McDonald plays David’s mother, Nizevet. Javier Muñoz, who was the first actor to take over the title role in Hamilton after Lin-Manuel Miranda left the show, plays David’s father, Jesse. George Salazar, who appeared in Be More Chill, plays King Saul. Joshua Colley (2014 revival of Les Misérables) is David and Mykal Kilgore (Motown: The Musical) is The Prophet Samuel.
The concert will be available for streaming through October 20th. There is no charge to watch Sticks & Stones, but donations are encouraged.
Aaron Diehl Trio – Caramoor – October 16th – 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT
Because I think he is one of the finest pianists working today, I’ve written about Aaron Diehl a few times and have interviewed him. He plays both jazz and classical music. (You can read the interview here.)
For this concert he’ll be performing standards and some of his own compositions with Aaron Kimmel on drums and Paul Sikivie on bass.
Rather than reiterate his credits or offer more praise, just listen to the music.
This concert is streaming from Caramoor in Katonah, NY which is a bit more than 40 miles from Manhattan. They are presenting the Aaron Diehl Trio in association with Jazz at Lincoln Center.
Tickets are free for Caramoor members. If you’re not a member, there is a $10 fee to watch the live stream concert.
Ben Williams Live – Blue Note New York – October 16th – 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT
At the 2009 Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz International Bass Competition, the musicians had a mightily impressive jury to win over. Ron Carter, Charlie Haden, Dave Holland, Robert Hurst, Christian McBride and John Patitucci were the judges. They awarded 1st place to Ben Williams.
Williams will be performing live from Blue Note in New York on Friday.
In addition to the live stream listed above, there is an encore showing at 11:00 PM EDT/8:00 PM PDT.
Lest you think his competition victory was a fluke, he’s gone on to work with George Benson, Terence Blanchard, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Stefon Harris, Roy Hargrove, Chaka Kahn, Pharrell and many more.
His most recent album is I Am a Man which was released earlier this year. It’s a terrific album. He also released an instrumental-only version called I Am a Man: Mentals.
Tickets for either the live performance or the re-stream are $15.
Los Angeles Dance Festival Week #3 – October 16th – October 18th
The third week of Los Angeles Dance Festival is upon us. The show, which runs two hours, becomes available at 9:00 PM EDT/6:00 PM PDT on October 16th and will remain available until 3:00 AM EDT/12:00 AM PDT on October 19th.
This week’s line-up features Charlotte Katherine & Co (modern dance), Nannette Brodie Dance Theater (modern dance), Kybele Dance (multi-cultural contemporary dance), Poets In Motion, MarieElena Martingano & Camryn Eakes, John Castagna (contemporary ballet), Louise Reichlin & Dancers/Los Angeles Choreographers & Dancers (contemporary dance), The Dance Narrative Project, Lula Washington Dance Theatre (modern dance) and SIDFIT South Korean Artists: Lee Jihee, Kim Jubin.
Atilla – SF Opera – October 17th – October 18th (begins 10:00 AM through 11:59 on 10/18)
This marks the second weekend of opera productions streamed by San Francisco Opera this fall. This weekend finds a rarely performed opera by Giuseppe Verdi: Atilla.
Verdi’s opera, his ninth, had its premiere in Venice in 1846. The libretto was based on Zacharias Werner’s play Attila, König der Hunnen (Attila, King of the Huns) and was written by Temistocle Solera.
Atilla isn’t an easy man to please. Odabella, a prisoner of war, hopes to kill Atilla in retribution for his killing of her father. Ezio, a Roman Envoy, wants to cause havoc in the empire with Atilla’s help. Instead he infuriates him.
Amongst those who have survived the carnage that is dividing the empire is Foresto. He reunites with Odabella who had assumed he was dead.
Meanwhile Attila has a dream where an old man tells him not to enter Rome. He disregards the advice and marches in. In doing so, he sets off a series of events that will ultimately lead to his death.
This 2012 production marked the return of Atilla to San Francisco Opera after 21 years. Ferruccio Furlanetto sings the title role. Ana Lucrecia García sings Odabella. Diego Torre is Foresto and Quinn Kelsey sings the role of Ezio. Gabriele Lavia directed and Nicola Luisotti conducted.
In looking up reviews of this production, my favorite quote comes from Joshua Kosman writing in the San Francisco Gate. He wrote, “…it was a swift, short onslaught marked by ferocity and thunder. The difference was that only the title character died, and everybody else had a grand time.”
Atilla runs 1 hour and 50 minutes. It will become available at 1:00 PM EDT/10:00 AM PDT and ends on Sunday, October 18th at 11:59 PM PDT/2:59 AM EDT on October 19th.
Speaking Truth to Power – Orpheus Chamber Orchestra – October 17th – October 22nd
Most classical music fans are well-acquainted with Ludwig van Beethoven’s Egmont Overture. Fewer are familiar with the subsequent nine pieces that follow which call for soprano, narrator and orchestra.
In Beethoven’s work (inspired by a play by Johann Wolfgang Goethe) he used the story of Lamoral, Count of Egmont, whose execution prior to the start of the Eighty Years’ War inspired a movement that led to Netherlands’ independence.
The composer was using this work as a statement against Napoleon.
The Orpheus Chamber Orchestra has commissioned a new translation to reflect our present-day world. Egmont was adapted by playwright/translator Philip Boehm.
Joining Orpheus for this performance are Liev Schreiber as the narrator and Karen Slack singing the soprano parts.
Schreiber won a Tony Award for his performance in the 2005 production of David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross. He also starred in the Showtime series Ray Donovan.
Slack made her Metropolitan Opera debut in their 2006 production of Verdi’s Luisa Miller. She also sang the role of Emelda Griffith in Terence Blanchard’s Champion at San Francisco Opera. (That production will be streaming next week by SFJAZZ beginning on October 21st.)
The concert was recorded in Beechwood Park in Hillsdale, New Jersey, following social distancing guidelines.
Speaking Truth to Power begins streaming at 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT on October 17th and remains available through October 22nd. Tickets to watch the performance are $15.
Lizz Wright – Mandolin – October 17th – 9:00 PM EDT/6:00 PM PDT $15
I’ve seen singer Lizz Wright several times in concert. From the first time I heard her 2003 record, Salt, I was hooked. She has a beautiful voice and has a unique ability to make each song she sings her own.
Rather inexplicably she has only recorded five other albums since her debut. The most recent was 2017’s Grace. She does appear on No Beginning No End 2 by José James which was released earlier this year.
If you don’t know Lizz Wright, I strongly encourage checking out this concert. If you do, you know how terrific it’ll be.
Ticket are $15.
March – Los Angeles LGBT Center Anita May Rosentein Campus Parking Lot – October 17th – November 15th
Our first live and in-person event (and the reason the title of this column was changed). The venue is the parking lot below the Anita May Rosentein Campus at the Los Angeles LGBT Center. Sixteen cars will be admitted per performance. The audio will be broadcast to you through your radio.
The title of this play is March and it was conceived and directed by Jon Lawrence Rivera. The cast has contributed to the writing of the play during exercises and rehearsals.
A pandemic is gripping the world in March. The time could be a quarter century into the future – or not. Three Trans/Gender Non-Confirming women need to find a place where The Military will not find them. Not much is known beyond that. A little mystique never hurt anyone, did it?
The cast of March includes Miss Barbie Q (MJ), Chad Christopher, Matthew Clark, Amir Levi, Marcelino Mendoza, Coretta Monk, and Roland Ruiz.
What makes this so appealing is that Rivera is one of the most interesting and talented writer/directors working in Los Angeles theater. I have no idea what to expect from March, but I have absolutely no doubt that it will be fascinating.
Performances take place only on Saturday and Sunday. There are two performances each night. One at 7:30 PM and one at 9:00 PM. The per car price to attend is $20.
Keala Settle & Seth Rudetsky – October 18th – 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT
Anyone who saw The Greatest Showman knows who Keala Settle is. She introduced the song This Is Me to the world in her role as Lettie Lutz, the bearded lady in the film. She is Seth Rudetsky’s guest this week for his conversation/concert show.
If you only know Settle from that film, you’re missing out. She was memorable as Norma Valverde in Hands on a Hardbody. It’s a role that yielded multiple nominations including a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical. She’s appeared in the musicals Les Misérables, Waitress, Hairspray and South Pacific.
If the Sunday live performance does not work for you, there will be an encore showing of the concert on Monday, October 19th at 3:00 PM EDT/12:00 PM PDT. Tickets for each showing are $25.
That’s the official list of Best Bets: October 16th – October 18th. A few reminders before we go:
Donizetti Week at the Metropolitan Opera concludes this weekend with Maria Stuarda on Friday; Roberto Devereux on Saturday and Don Pasquale on Sunday. You can read our full preview here.
Table Top Shakespeare: At Home has the following plays this weekend: Henry VI, Part 2 on Friday; Henry VI, Part 3 on Saturday and Richard III on Sunday. You can read our preview here.
Part 2 of Evelina Fernández’s A Mexican Trilogy is now streaming from Latino Theater Company. The play is called Hope and will be available through October 22nd. For details read our preview here.
That is my complete list of your Best Bets: October 16th – October 18th. Whatever you choose to watch, I hope you enjoy!
Photo: Aaron Diehl (Photo by Maria Jarzyna/Courtesy AaronDiehl.com)
Update: Center Theatre Group has changed the dates for Luis Alfaro’s trilogy of plays. Though originally announced to start this week, they have been rescheduled to start November 6th. We have removed “Electricidad” from this weekend’s Best Bets.