After 17 years, the Los Angeles Philharmonic is saying goodbye to Gustavo Dudamel and that tops this week’s Best Bets: June 1st – June 7th.
By the way, Dudamel will be back. Just not as Music Director.
GIRL, INTERRUPTED – Public Theater – New York, NY – Now – July 12th
OPENING NIGHT: June 4th
Susanna Kaysen’s memoir about voluntarily going to a psychiatric hospital and making connections with other women there, has already been turned into a film.
Now Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Martyna Majok (Cost of Living) has written the book for this musical featuring songs by Aimee Mann.
Lisa is played by King Princess; Dr. Wick is played by Emily Skinner; Susanna is played by Juliana Canfield and the always incredible Manoel Felciano plays The Male Presence.
Jo Bonney directs with choreography by Sonya Tayeh.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
GUSTAVO DUDAMEL: CELEBRATING THE MUSICIANS OF THE LA PHIL – Los Angeles Philharmonic – Los Angeles, CA – June 4th
What I love about this one-night-only concert is that it celebrates many of the fine musicians that make up the LA Phil.
Before getting to the program, here are those musicians: Boris Allakhverdyan (clarinet); Andrew Bain (horn); Denis Bouriakov (flute); David Rejano Cantero (trombone); Emmanuel Ceysson (harp); Whitney Crockett (bassoon); Robert deMaine (cello); Christopher Hanulik (bass); Thomas Hooten (trumpet); Matthew Howard (timpani); Joanne Pearce Martin (piano); Joseph Pereira (timpani); Ryan Roberts (oboe); Christopher Still (trumpet); Jeffrey Strong (trumpet); Bing Wang (violin) and James Wilt (trumpet).
The concert will include music by Glass; Mendelssohn; Mozart; Paganini; Rossini; Rota; Tchaikovsky and more. Plus, there are two world premieres: Bravo Gustavo! composed by John Williams and Mujer Arena composed by Gabriela Ortiz.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
GUSTAVO DUDAMEL: CELEBRATING 17 YEARS – Los Angeles Philharmonic – Los Angeles, CA – June 5th – June 7th
It all comes down to the final three. Dudamel has selected to end his tenure at the Walt Disney Concert Hall (he’s still performing this summer at the Hollywood Bowl) with John Adams’ 1980-piece Harmonium and Antonio Estévez’s Cantata Criolla from 1954.
Dudamel chose Harmonium because Adams became LA Phil Creative Chair the same year he became Music Director. Cantata Criolla is a work Dudamel introduced to the LA Phil.
This relatively brief concert (the music totals just over an hour give or take) features direction by Alberto Arvelo. Special guests include baritone Gustavo Castillo; tenor Anthony León; member sof the Youth Orchestra (Jade Alfaro; Pablo Fernández; Alondra Herrera Lopez; Camila Higueros; Catalina Mihok and Greyson Session) and the Los Angeles Master Chorale.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
EVERY KIND OF LIGHT: THE LOVE AND LYRICS OF ALAN & MARILYN BERGMAN – 92nd Street Y – New York, NY – June 6th – June 8th
I’m a big fan of the Lyrics and Lyricists series at the 92nd Street Y. I’m also a fan of the lyrics written by Alan & Marlyn Bergman for some of the greatest songs of all time.
They include Nice ‘n’ Easy, The Way We Were, What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life, You Don’t Bring Me Flowers and the beautifully bizarre The Windmills of Your Mind.
Ann Hampton Callaway and Billy Stritch co-host. Callaway is also a featured performer and Stritch is the music director. The show was co-written by Malcolm Gets and Dick Scanlan (who directs).
Also performing are Nikki Renée Daniels, Brandon Victor Dixon and Ali Stroker.
Sadly, none of these performances will be livestreamed.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
ELEKTRA – San Francisco Opera – San Francisco, CA – June 7th – 27th LIVESTREAM OPTION
Strauss’ opera about a daughter (the title character) exacting revenge on her mother, Klytemnestra, for having killer her father, Agamemnon.
Keith Warner’s production, first seen in San Francisco in 2017, is set in a museum.
Starring as Elektra is Elena Pankratova. Michaela Schuster sings Klytemnestra; Elza van den Heever sings Chrysothemis (Elektra’s sister); Kyle Ketelsen sings Orest (Elektra’s brother) and William Burden sings Aegisth (Klytemnestra’s lover).
Eun Sun Kim conducts.
The June 14th performance at 2 PM PT will be livestreamed.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE. For livestream tickets and details, please go HERE.
That’s all for Best Bets: June 1st – June 7th.
Enjoy your week and Go See a Show!
Main Photo: Conductor Gustavo Dudamel (Courtesy LA Philharmonic)