Don’t let the fact that we start this weekend on Friday the 13th make you nervous. Au contraire! There are still plenty of great ways to spend your time enjoying culture in our Best Bets at Home: November 13th – November 15th. Honestly, you won’t have time to think about such superstitions.
Wouldn’t it be ironic if I had selected thirteen Best Bets? Relax…I didn’t. I fifteen options for you this weekend. Our top pick is Long Beach Opera’s 2020 Songbook. We have dance, classical, cabaret, jazz, ballet and two opera productions for your consideration.
Here are our Best Bets at Home: November 13th – November 15th:
Chicano Batman – Los Angeles Philharmonic – Starts November 13th
A performance by Los Angeles band Chicano Batman is featured on this penultimate episode of the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Sound/Stage series. Along with (still-available) performances by Andra Day and Kamasi Washington, their performance does not feature the LA Phil.
Chicano Batman released their self-titled first album in 2010. They followed that up with 2014’s Cycle of Existential Rhyme, 2017’s Freedom Is Free and this year’s Invisible People. The members of the band are Eduardo Arenas, Carlos Arévalo, Bardo Martinez and Gabriel Villa.
There is no charge to watch the performance. Donations are, of course, encouraged.
Sierra Boggess Streamed from Birdland! – November 13th – 7:00 PM EST/4:00 PM PST
Broadway star Sierra Boggess made her Broadway debut as “Ariel” in the Broadway musical version of the Disney animated film The Little Mermaid. She appeared as “Christine” in the long-running musical, The Phantom of the Opera in 2013. She went on to originate the role of “Rosalie” in School of Rock – the Musical.
Boggess has filmed a concert at New York’s Birdland. She will be joined by her sister, Summer, on cello and by her music director Brian Hertz. This marks the first time Boggess has performed since the quarantine was put in place in New York.
Amongst the songs she’ll be singing are “Come to My Garden” from The Secret Garden, “Think of Me” from The Phantom of the Opera, “Beyond My Wildest Dreams” from The Little Mermaid and the title track from Andrew Lloyd Weber’s sequel to Phantom, Love Never Dies. Boggess received an Olivier nomination for her performance in the latter show where she originated the role of “Christine.”
Tickets (including the service charge) are $23.50 and can be purchased here.
Chris Thile and Madison Cunningham – New Jersey Performing Arts Center – November 13th – 7:30 PM EST/4:30 PM PST
The New Jersey Performing Arts Center’s fall virtual programming includes this conversation and performance with Chris Thile and Madison Cunningham.
Cunningham recently received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Americana Album for her 2019 record “Who Are You Now.”
While it might seem strange to have her listed on Cultural Attaché, Rolling Stone hailed her “jazz-school chord changes” when it included her in a July 2018 story about “The 10 New Country and American Artists You Need to Know This Month.” Frankly, her music speaks for itself.
Cunningham’s new EP, “Wednesday,” was released one week ago and features a cover of Tom Waits’ song “Hold On.”
Which makes the pairing of her with 3-time Grammy Award winner and MacArthur Genius Grant winner Chris Thile a natural fit. His collaborations range from Yo-Yo Ma to Brad Mehldau.
Mehldau told me two of Thile’s qualities as a musician he admires: “First, I knew from hearing and seeing him that he is a true improviser – and that is what I like to do a lot. Second, his singing really affects me, and I was excited about the idea of making music with that kind of vocal expression.”
You will find this show on NJPAC’s Facebook page. There is no charge to watch the show.
Sons of Kemet – SFJZZ – November 13th – 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST
You don’t immediately think of dancing when you think of jazz music. Saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings forces you to reconsider that combination with his band Sons of Kemet. They will be performing on this week’s Fridays at Five concert from SFJAZZ.
Formed in 2011 in London, they fuse jazz, afro-beat and world music influences into a mix that yielded a 2013 MOBO Award as the Best Jazz Act.
This concert is from the summer of 2019 and finds the band supporting their 2018 recording, “You’re Queen is a Reptile.” The album was nominated for the 2018 Mercury Prize.
As with all Fridays at Five concerts, you will need either a one-month membership ($5) or an annual membership ($60) to watch the concert.
Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles – PBS Great Performances – November 13th – check local listings
You’ll be forgiven for not knowing all the nominees for Best Musical at the 1965 Tony Awards. After all, Golden Boy, Half a Sixpence and Oh, What A Lovely War! haven’t had remotely the same impact as the musical that won. Not only did Fiddler on the Roof win Best Musical, it won nine of the 10 awards for which it was nominated.
This musical about a milkman who finds his homeland of Russia changing just as his three daughters are leaving home to pursue their own lives ran for 3,242 performances. There have been five Broadway revivals. The lead role of Tevye has been played on stage by Zero Mostel, Herschel Bernardi, Alfred Molina, Harvey Fierstein, Danny Burstein and Topol, who played the part in the 1971 film.
Why has this musical resonated so profoundly for 55 years? That is has is celebrated in the documentary Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles. Filmmaker Max Lewkowicz features interviews with composer and lyricist Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick, librettist Joseph Stein, original producer Harold Prince, filmmaker Norman Jewison, multiple cast members from the various productions, Stephen Sondheim, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Joel Grey and many more.
Grey directed the most recent production of Fiddler on the Roof. The musical was performed completely in Yiddish and ran for over a year-and-a-half off-Broadway. There had been discussions about a possible transfer to Broadway prior to the pandemic.
As with all PBS programming, check your local listings.
Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake – Center Theatre Group – November 13th – November 15th
Center Theatre Group’s Digital Stage program includes a selection of programming that falls under the category Digital Stage Plus. These are select events that are free for subscribers and $10 for non-subscribers.
The first program they are showing is a film of Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake. The show was performed most recently at the Ahmanson Theatre in 2019.
The film features the 2018 cast which appears to be some of the same performers including Will Bozier as The Swan/The Stranger. Liam Mower dances the role of The Prince.
If you are wondering if you read that correctly, perhaps you didn’t know that all the swans in this production are male. For more information about the production, read my interviews with Will Bozier and Max Westwell who alternated the roles of The Swan/The Stranger when the show was in Los Angeles.
The performances are on November 13th at 11:00 PM EST/8:00 PM PST; November 14th at 5:00 PM EST/2:00 PM PST and 11:00 PM EST/8:00 PM PST and November 15th at 4:30 PM EST/1:30 PM PST and 9:30 PM EST/6:30 PM PST.
Boris Godunov – San Francisco Opera – November 14th – November 15th
Conducted by Vassily Sinaisky; starring Samuel Ramey, John Uhlenhopp, Vladimir Ognovenko and Vitalij Kowaljow. This Stein Winge production is from the 2008-2009 season. This is the original 1869 version of the opera.
This opera by Modest Mussorgsky had its world premiere in St. Petersburg in 1874. The libretto, written by the composer, was based on Aleksandr Pushkin’s Boris Godunov. Mussorgky completed an earlier version of the opera in 1869, but it was rejected. He revised the opera and included elements from History of the Russian State by Nikolay Karamzin to gain approval and ultimately a production in 1874.
In the opera, a retired and very reluctant Boris Godunov assumes the throne as Tsar. He is bedeviled by a constant foreboding and hopes his prayers will help him navigate what lies ahead. An old monk named Pimen discusses the murder of Tsarevich Dimitri with Gregory, a novice. Had he lived, Dimitri might have ascended to the throne. Godunov was implicated in his murder years ago. What follows is one man’s pursuit of forgiveness, his being haunted by the Dimitri’s ghost and the Russian people who demand justice.
Joshua Kosman, writing in the San Francisco Chronicle, explained the differences in his review of this production. “The lack of any romantic element – or even of women – seems to have been the reason that government bureaucrats denied the piece access to the stage. In revising “Boris” for its eventual 1874 premiere, Mussorgsky added a female love interest for Grigory, the ex-monk who claims to be the rightful heir to the throne, as well as two major sequences (the so-called “Polish” act and the final scene in Kromy Forest).
“But Mussorgsky went even further, making the new work more formally balanced, more conventional in tone, and more musically integrated. He sprinkled little songs and character pieces around, the better to contrast with the moments of greatest dramatic charge; he arranged his acts to move with assurance toward a surefire curtain.”
He later said in the review that, at least in this production, “the rewards are great.”
Blue 13 Dance – LA Soundscapes at The Ford – November 14th – 2:00 PM EST/11:00 AM PST
With this free program you can watch Blue 13 Dance perform Bollywood, Bhangra, and Classical Indian Dance and also receive some instruction on how you can bust out some of the same moves.
Founded in 1999, Blue 13 Dance celebrates and preserves the cultural and classic forms of India. They are lead by Artistic Director Achinta S. McDaniel.
The 8 person company brings to joyous life the rich tradition of the Indian culture from the past and guides it fully into the future.
The program is free to watch on LA Soundscapes at The Ford’s Facebook page. Thirty minutes before this program starts there is a crafts program with Nasimeh B.E. If you RSVP at theford.com/crafts you can get a free Craft Box.
Dee Dee Bridgewater – JazzAid Live at the Banyan Bowl – November 14th – 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST
South Florida’s Pinecrest Gardens launches a series of live streaming concerts on Saturday, November 14th with Tony Award and Grammy Award winner Dee Dee Bridgewater. The shows fall under the umbrella of their new program, JazzAid Live.
Regular readers of Cultural Attaché know how much I love Bridgewater and the music she performs.
Her most recent studio album was 2017’s Memphis…Yes, I’m Ready! Earlier this year Dee Dee’s Diamonds was released which is a compilation of songs from some of her earliest recordings. The Tony Award came for her performance as “Glinda” in the musical The Wiz.
Other concerts in this series are Kurt Elling (December 12th); The Glenn Miller Orchestra (January 16th); Wycliffe Gordon (February 13th); Grace Kelly (February 27th); Joey Alexander Trio (March 13th) and The Manhattan Transfer (April 10th).
Each concert will stream live and only once at the announced start time.
Tickets for each individual concert are $15. You can buy all seven concerts in a bundle for $87. Part of the proceeds from the JazzAID Live concerts will go to Chef José Andrés’ World Central Kitchen which, in addition to providing assistance to impoverished and hungry communities worldwide, is providing assistance to families impacted by the pandemic.
Save Tip’s: A Benefit for Tipitina’s – November 14th – 9:00 PM EST/6:00 PM PST
Like many a venue that has had to suspend operations due to the Pandemic, New Orleans institution Tipitina’s is struggling to stay alive. So they are holding an online fundraiser that will feature new and archived performances from many of the legends who have played on their stage since it opened in 1977.
Amongst the performers that will be shown are Professor Longhair, Fats Domino, Willie Nelson, Dr. John, Widespread Panic, Wilco, Billy Strings, Jon Batiste & Stay Human feat. Trombone Shorty, Dinosaur Jr, Manu Chao, The Radiators feat. Gregg Allman, Michael Franti and Spearhead, St. Paul and the Broken Bones, Funky Meters, Preservation Hall Jazz Band feat. Allen Toussaint, Galactic feat. Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph, Les Claypool’s Flying Frog Brigade, The Revivalists, Big FreediaTank & The Bangas, Rebirth Brass Band, Zigaboo Modeliste, Juvenile, Samantha Fish, Dumpstaphunk, George Porter and Runnin’ Pardners, Big Chief Monk Boudreaux + Donald Harrison Jr., Anders Osborne, Ivan Neville, Cha Wa, James Andrews, Papa John Gros, The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Kermit Ruffins, Corey Henry, Roger Lewis, Leo Nocentelli, The Soul Rebels, Davel Crawford, John Cleary + Walter “Wolfman Washington”, The Naughty Professor Horns, Taj Mahal, North Mississippi Allstars + Big Sam and tributes to Art Neville, Dr John and Allen Toussaint.
The show is free to watch. But donations are encouraged by texting “SAVETIPS” to 24365.
Rachmaninoff and Chopin – Pasadena Symphony – November 14th
Pianist Inon Bartanan is featured in this Pasadena Symphony concert. He will start the program with his own transcriptions of Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances. He will then be joined by a string quartet of Pasadena Symphony members for a performance of Frederic Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor, Op. 11.
The musicians joining Bartanan are Amy Hershberger and Nancy Roth on violin; Suzanna Giordano Gignac on viola; Nadine Hall on cello and Peter Doubrovsky on bass. David Lockington conducts.
Tickets are $25.
2020 Songbook – Long Beach Opera – November 15th – 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST
Like many an organization, the Long Beach Opera had to be creative when it came to raising money for its work and finding a suitable replacement for an annual gala. The result, a fascinating idea, is 2020 Songbook.
Hosting the show is one of opera’s most exciting performers, countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo.
He can be seen on November 14th in the Metropolitan Opera’s 2019-2020 production of Philip Glass’ Akhnaten.
Here’s what makes this show exciting: Donors this year commissioned new art songs instead of purchasing gala tables. All the commissioned works had to follow a few rules:
They had to be 3-5 minutes long, feature voice plus accompaniment and thematically had to address or reflect events or experiences from the year we all know and love, 2020.
Composers Anthony Davis (2020 Pulitzer Prize for Music winner for The Central Park Five which premiered at Long Beach Opera); Annie Gosfield (The War of the Worlds with Yuval Sharon and the Los Angeles Philharmonic); David Lang (2008 Pulitzer Prize for Music winner for The Little Match Girl Passion); George Lewis (his opera based on the W.E.B. Du Bois short story “The Comet,” will be paired with Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea in a world-premiere production in collaboration with Anthony Roth Costanzo and Yuval Sharon in the 2021 Long Beach Opera season) and Du Yun (2017 Pulitzer Prize for Music Winner for Angel’s Bone).
Tickets are $25 and $75 and includes the ability to watch the show for 72 hours.
Modern Beauty Part 3 – Pittance Chamber Orchestra – November 15th – 6:00 PM EST/3:00 PM PST
Part 3 of Modern Beauty from Pittance Chamber Orchestra features the world premiere of Austrian composer Gernot Wolfgang’s Decisions.
This eleven-minute work was composed in 2016 and was written for piano and oboe. There are three movements in the piece. Joining Gloria Cheng, who curated all three concerts that make up Modern Beauty, is Jennifer Cullinan.
There is no charge to watch the performance, but donations are encouraged.
The Anonymous Lover – Los Angeles Opera – November 15th – November 29th
Born nearly 11 years before Mozart was composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges. Not only was he a composer, he was a violinist and quite the fencer. More importantly he was, particularly for the time, one of just a few Black composers. (George Bridgetower and Francis Johnson were two other important Black composers from around this era.)
LA Opera is presenting a newly-filmed performance of his third opera, L’amant Anonyme (The Anonymous Lover). The work dates back to 1780, written when the composer was in his mid-30s and has a libretto inspired by a play by Caroline-Stéphanie-Félicité, Madame de Genlis. The opera had its premiere in Paris.
The Anonymous Lover tells the story of Léontine, a woman who has eschewed love. She is young and is a widow. Her good friend, Valcour, also has sworn off love – or so he claims. Secretly he’s been in love with Léontine. Unable to express his feelings, he chooses to anonymously send her letters and gifts. Can two friends become lovers when Valcour finds the nerve to reveal himself to Léontine?
James Conlon conducts the LA Opera Orchestra. The production stars Tiffany Townsend, Robert Stahley, Alaysha Fox, Michael J. Hawk, Gabriela Flores and Jacob Ingbar.
The film was directed by Bruce Lemon, Jr. and incorporated social-distance guidelines during production. Press notes indicate that the staged setting blends both modern film and traditional opera staging.
The Anonymous Lover is free to watch beginning at 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT on November 15th.
Lillias White with Seth Rudetsky – November 15th – 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST $25
I personally find it hard to believe that Tony Award winner Lillias White made her Broadway debut in 1981 (replacing Terri White in the musical Barnum.) Roles in Dreamgirls, Cats, Once on This Island, the 1995 revival of How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying and the never-ending revival of Chicago all lead to her role as Sonja in The Life.
Following her Tony Award win for The Life, she spent time doing concerts (both her own and fundraisers including an incredible turn singing “Don’t Rain on My Parade” from Funny Girl) before returning to Broadway for 2009’s Fela! She received a Tony nomination for her role as Fela’s mother.
White will join Seth Rudetsky for his concert series this weekend. If you can’t watch the live performance on Sunday, there is an encore performance on Monday, November 16th at 3:00 PM EST/12:00 PM PST. Tickets for either showing are $25.
That’s our list of your Best Bets at Home: November 13th – November 15th. But you know we won’t leave you without a few reminders:
Metropolitan Opera‘s streaming productions this weekend are the 2007-2008 production of Benjamin Britten’s Peter Grimes on Friday, Philip Glass’ Akhnaten on Saturday and Thomas Adés’ The Exterminating Angel on Sunday.
Don’t forget Laura Benanti’s Live from the West Side: Women of Broadway concert on Saturday.
Table Top Shakespeare: At Home wraps up this week with The Comedy of Errors rather appropriately on Friday the 13th; Timon of Athens on Saturday and The Tempest on Sunday.
That does it. With so many wonderful opportunities to get lost inside these wonderful programs, who has time to be superstitious?
I hope you enjoy our Best Bets at Home: November 13th – November 15th.
Photo: Countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo (Courtesy Opus 3 Artists)