With yesterday’s good news that those who are vaccinated can go around without masks with the exception of a few specified areas, it seems like only a matter of time before live events will come roaring back.

The question now is whether or not all the streaming events of the past 15 months will become a relic of the era or a regular part of our cultural experience. Only time will tell.

For now, there are still plenty of great programs available for viewing. Topping our list is MCC Theater’s Miscast 2021 Gala. There are two other gala events, a new musical reading, a vintage classical music concert, new music, a play reading and more.

Here are the Best Bets: May 14th – May 17th.

*TOP PICK* – Miscast 2021 – MCC Theater – May 16th – May 20th

Yesterday we posted a full preview of this event, but here’s what makes this show so entertaining: Broadway stars perform songs separately or with others they would never be cast to sing. For instance, Robert Fairchild sings this song from the musical Sweet Charity in a clip from last year’s “quarantine” edition of Miscast.

This year’s line-up includes Annaleigh Ashford (Sunday in the Park with George), Melissa Barrera (In the Heights), Gavin Creel (Hello, Dolly!), Robin de Jesús (The Boys in the Band), Renée Elise Goldsberry (Hamilton), Leslie Grace (In the Heights), Cheyenne Jackson (Finian’s Rainbow), Jai’Len Josey (SpongeBob SquarePants), LaChanze (Summer: The Donna Summer Musical), Idina Menzel (Wicked), Kelli O’Hara (Kiss Me, Kate), Billy Porter (Kinky Boots), Kelly Marie Tran (Raya and the Last Dragon), Aaron Tveit (Moulin Rouge) and Patrick Wilson (The Full Monty).

This is a free event, though donations are encouraged.

PLAY READING: Watch on the Rhine – Broadway’s Best Shows – Now – May 17th

Lillian Hellman’s Watch on the Rhine had its world premiere at the Martin Beck Theater on April 1, 1941. Her play tells the story of a German man, Mueller, married to an American woman, who is involved with anti-fascist causes in Europe. While visiting his wife’s relatives in Washington, D.C., another guest, also staying with the family, blackmails Mueller after discovering Mueller is planning to send money to aid underground operations in Germany.

For this reading as part of Spotlight on Plays, Ellen Burstyn, Alan Cox, Carla Gugino, Mary Beth Peil and Jeremy Shamos star in this reading directed by Sarna Lapine.

Tickets are $18 with the reading available for viewing through Monday at 6:00 PM ET/3:00 PM PT. Proceeds from the reading benefit The Actors Fund.

Trivia: Two years later a film version of Watch on the Rhine was released starring Bette Davis and Paul Lukas (reprising his role from Broadway). The film was nominated for four Academy Awards including Best Picture. Lukas won for Best Actor.

DANCE: Stephen Petronio Company – The Joyce Theater – Now – May 26th

There are five works being showcased in this new film by the Stephen Petronio Company, the New York-based dance company that was founded in 1984.

Two of the five pieces being performed are set to songs made famous by Elvis Presley: Are You Lonesome Tonight and Love Me Tender.

There are two versions of Are You Lonesome Tonight being performed. Love Me Tender was originally performed in 1993 in a collaboration with artist Cindy Sherman.

New Prayer For Now (Part 1) has its debut in this film. Petronio was inspired by Balm in Gilead and Bridge Over Troubled Water when creating New Prayer…. Monstah Black (who is also a dancer and choreographer in addition to being a musician) composed the music and performs with the Young People’s Chorus of New York City.

The program wraps up with a new version of Group Primary Accumulation by Trisha Brown and Pandemic Portraits, a film by Dancing Camera.

Tickets are $25.

CLASSICAL MUSIC: Berlin Philharmonic 1967 – Carnegie Hall – May 14 – May 21st

Herbert von Karajan leads the Berliner Philharmoniker in a performance of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with soloist Alexis Weissenberg.

This is amongst the most popular concerti in the world. But if Weissenberg’s name isn’t familiar to today’s audiences, this quote from his obituary by Maraglit Fox in the New York Times defines his reputation:

“Mr. Weissenberg possessed a technical prowess rivaled by few other pianists. The ice of his demeanor at the keyboard (he sat, leaned forward and got down to business, playing with scarcely a smile or grimace) was matched by the fire that came off the keys.” (Weissenberg passed away in 2012.)

There is no charge to watch this performance. This is the first of a new series Carnegie Hall Selects featuring performances by artists who played major roles in the 130-year history of the venue.

BROADWAY VOCALS: Jose Llana: Broadway Stories & Songs with Ted Sperling – May 14th – 8:00 PM ET/5:00 PM PT

Broadway star Jose Llana is Ted Sperling‘s guest for Broadway Stories & Songs. Llana has been seen in The King and I, Rent, Street Corner Symphony, Flower Drum Song, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and Wonderland on Broadway.

I first saw him in Flower Drum Song at the Mark Taper Forum. I also saw him in the incredible show Here Lies Love at the Public Theater.

He also performed Adam Guettel’s song cycle Saturn Returns (later renamed Myths and Hymns) which is where he and Sperling first worked together.

If you can’t see the show on Friday, there is an encore showing scheduled for May 15th at 2:00 PM ET/11:00 AM PT. Tickets for either showing are $25. You can watch the show a second time if you buy tickets for the Friday night showing.

JAZZ: Robert Glasper: Everything’s Beautiful – SFJAZZ – May 14th – 8:00 PM ET/5:00 PM PT

This 2018 concert found innovative musician/composer Robert Glasper putting his own spin on works by Miles Davis for his album Everything’s Beautiful. Glasper’s music was featured in Don Cheadle’s film Miles Ahead from 2015.

If you don’t know Glasper or his work, he’s one of the most interesting artists working in jazz today. He’s also collaborated with Erykah Badu, Herbie Hancock, Kendrick Lamar, Ledisi and Jill Scott.

Joining Glasper in this performance are vocalist Bilal; Michael Severson on guitars; Burniss Travis on bass and Justin Tyson on drums.

If you can’t watch Friday night’s showing that is part of SFJAZZ’s Fridays at Five series, there is an encore showing on Saturday, May 15th at 1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT. Tickets require either a one-month digital membership for $5 or a $50 annual digital membership.

MUSICAL: Breathe: A New Musical – May 14th – July 9th

Playwright Timothy Allen McDonald (Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka) and novelist Jodi Picoult (The Book of Two Ways) have teamed up for this new musical suite that features interlocking stories of five different couples navigating their way through the Covid pandemic and its impact on their lives.

The songs were written by Doug Besterman (The Big One-Oh!), Zina Goldrich (Ever After), Marcy Heisler (Hollywood Romance), Kate Leonard (Ratatouille: The TiKTok Musical), Douglas Lyons (Peter, Darling), Daniel J. Mertzlufft (Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical), Rebecca Murillo (Credence & Cecilia), Ethan Pakchar (Five Points), Rob Rokicki (The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical) and Sharon Vaughn (My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys).

Appearing in this online musical are Tony Award winners Kelli O’Hara and Brian Stokes Mitchell along with Denée Benton (Hamilton), Rubén J. Carbajal (Hamilton), Max Clayton (Moulin Rouge), Josh Davis (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical), Colin Donnell (Anything Goes), Matt Doyle (the upcoming revival of Company), Patti Murin (Frozen), T. Oliver Reid (Hadestown), and Daniel Yearwood (Once on This Island).

Tickets are $25 to watch Breathe. If you want to join the official opening night on Friday, May 14th at 8:00 PM ET/5:00 PM PT, those tickets are $40 and includes an post-premiere cast party and a download of the music from the show.

CONTEMPORARY SONG CYCLE: Dorothea – CAP UCLA – Debuts May 15th – 10:00 PM ET/7:00 PM PT

Ted Hearne, one of our most fascinating and interesting composes, has created a song cycle inspired by the poetry of Dorothea Lasky.

Lasky is an acclaimed poet who told the LA Review of Books, “I do believe it’s better not to be safe in your poems.” As a composer, Hearne also doesn’t play it safe.

They both are utterly compelling. This combination should double down on that and prove to be very exciting to watch.

Hearne was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for his 2018 composition Sound From the Bench. Both Los Angeles Opera and San Francisco Opera performed his opera The Source about Chelsea Manning.

Hearne will be singing vocals in this performance. Joining him are Eliza Bagg on vocals and synths; Ashley Bathgate on cello; Nathan Koci on piano/keyboards; Diana Wade on viola; Ron Wiltrout on drums and Ayanna Woods on bass.   

There is no charge to watch Dorothea. Donations to CAP UCLA are encouraged.

CLASSICAL MUSIC: Nadia Sirota, Gabriel Cabezas and Rob Moose – The Phillips Collections – Debuts May 16th – 4:00 PM ET/1:00 PM PT

Johann Sebastian Bach’s Trio Sonata No. 6 in G Major, BWV 530 serves as the foundation for this performance by violist Nadia Sirota, cellist Gabriel Cabezas and violinist Rob Moose.

The concert will begin and end with a movement from the sonata with a third movement at the halfway point.

Interspersed amongst the concert are works by three of today’s most interesting contemporary composers: Marcos Batler, Missy Mazzoli and Nico Muhly.

Sirota is also the music producer for Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra’s Close Quarters series.

There is no charge to watch this performance, however registration is required. The program will remain available for viewing through May 22nd.

PLAY READING: Sejanus, His Fall – Red Bull Theater – Debuts May 17th – 7:30 PM ET/4:30 PM PT

New York’s Red Bull Theater will present a new adaptation of Ben Johnson’s 17th-century play Sejanus, His Fall on Monday night. The adaptation is by Nathan Winkelstein, who also directs.

The play depicts a power struggle between Tiberius, the Emperor of Rome and Sejanus, his right-hand man. Sejanus covets being the emperor. Tiberius has no desire to make that a possibility. Factions line up behind each man and the power struggle begins with all of our own contemporary issues surrounding politics and power at play.

Participating in the reading are: Shirine Babb (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), Grantham Coleman (The Great Society), Keith David (Seven Guitars), Manoel Felciano (To Kill a Mockingbird), Denis O’Hare (Assassins), Matthew Rauch (Junk), Liv Rooth (To Kill a Mockingbird), Laila Robins (Heartbreak House), Stephen Spinella (Angels in America), Emily Swallow (High Fidelity), Raphael Nash Thompson (The Red Letter Plays), Tamara Tunie (Radio Golf) and James Udom (The Rolling Stone).

Tickets are pay what you can with proceeds going to Red Bull Theater.

CONCERT/GALA: Stand Up, Stand Strong – Covenant House – May 17th – 8:00 PM ET/5:00 PM PT

Sara Bareilles, Stephanie J. Block, Jon Bon Jovi, Zach Braff, Terron Brooks, Rachel Brosnahan, Stephen Colbert, Charlie Day, Darius De Haas, Ariana DeBose, Mary Elizabeth Ellis, Morgan Freeman, Jon Hamm, Adrianna Hicks, James Monroe Iglehart, Capathia Jenkins, Jewel, Jeremy Jordan, Amanda Kloots, Ames McNamara, Laurie Metcalf, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Abby Mueller, Alex Newell, Desus Nice and The Kid Mero, Kelli O’Hara, Laura Osnes, Dolly Parton, Jo Ellen Pellman, Ben Platt, Jason Ralph, Ryan Reynolds, Chita Rivera, Robin Roberts, Aliza Russell, Keala Settle, Tony Shalhoub, Meryl Streep, Ana Villafañe, Dionne Warwick, Marlon Wayans, Frank Wildhorn, Vanessa Williams, Daniel Yearwood and more will join co-hosts Audra McDonald and John Dickerson for this annual fundraiser for Covenant House.

The organization provides shelter for homeless youth living on the streets. They have helped more than one million youth since their inception more than 40 years ago.

This gala fundraiser will offer music, stories and more. There is no charge to watch the show, however donations are encouraged. For a list of the many ways you can watch Stand Up, Stand Strong, please go here.

VOCALS/STORIES: Jim Caruso’s Pajama Cast Party – May 17th – 8:00 PM ET/5:00 PM PT

Though Jim Caruso has multiple guests for this Monday’s 58th episode of Pajama Cast Party, I can sum up the reason to tune into this particular episode with two words: Marilyn Maye.

That’s the official list of Best Bets: May 14th – May 17th. Here are also a few reminders:

Lincoln Center Theater’s Tales from the Wings, which we previewed here, will remain available through Monday, May 17th. This is a must for theater fans.

The Los Angeles Philharmonic debuts Chamber Music: Piazzolla in their Filmed at the Ford series. You can find details here.

This weekend’s offering from the Metropolitan Opera include the documentary The Audition on Friday; Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia from the 2014-2015 season on Saturday and Donizetti’s Roberto Devereux from the 2015-2016 season on Sunday.

Sunday will also be the finals of the National Council Auditions at the Met at 3:00 PM ET/12:00 PM PT.

Monday begins Week 62 at the Met where the theme is Unhinged Mad Scenes. The first production being streamed is the 2006-2007 season production of Bellini’s I Puritani with Anna Netrebko.

There are just two weeks left to see Sutton Foster’s Bring Me to Light. You can find details in our preview here.

There you have a jam-packed list of Best Bets: May 14th – May 17th.

Enjoy your weekend and enjoy the shows!

Photo: Renée Elise Goldsberry (Photo by Justin Bettman/Courtesy MCC Theater)

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Topping this week’s list is AMPLIFY a gala fundraiser event by and for Maestra, an organization that supports and helps develop women composers, writers and musicians working in musical theatre. This is a great organization and they have an excellent event planned.

So here are my Four Days of Best Bets: March 26th – March 29th:

*TOP PICK* BROADWAY VOCALS: Amplify 2021 – Maestra – March 29th – 7:00 PM EDT/4:00 PM PDT

Maestra is an organization founded by songwriter/composer Georgia Stitt. On Monday night they are having a gala featuring Ashley Park, Nikki M. James, Brandon Victor Dixon, Tanya Birl, Kenita Miller, Shelley Thomas, Eva Noblezada and Reeve Carney, along with appearances from Anaïs Mitchell (Tony Award-winning creator of Hadestown), Kirsten Childs (OBIE Award-winning creator of Bubbly Black Girl), Helen Park (Lortel Award-winning creator of KPOP), Rona Siddiqui (Larson Award-winning creator of Salaam Medina: Tales of a Halfghan), Britt Bonney, Kristy Norter, Dionne McClain-Freeney, Meg Zervoulis, Kat Sherrell, Nicole Rebolledo, Stitt, and a special appearance by Bernadette Peters. Shoshana Bean will sing an original song with music, lyrics and orchestrations by Maestra member Lynne Shankel (Allegiance) for the finale of the event.

The event will be hosted by Brooks Ashmanskas (The Prom) and Andrea Burns (In the Heights). The event is produced and directed by Kate Baldwin (Hello, Dolly!). Baldwin appears on Stitt’s 2020 album A Quiet Revolution. You should check out her song, The Water Is Wide, and the entire album.

Tickets range from free to $500. Those who are able to pay for the higher-priced tickets will have access to post-show events with Gavin Creel & Celia Keenan-Bolger; “Chers” Stephanie J. Block, Teal Wicks & Micaela Diamond; Chaplin co-stars Jenn Colella & Rob McClure; Book of Mormon original stars Nikki M. James & Michael James Scott; Mean Girls Ashley Park & Erika Henningsen; and The Prom stars Caitlin Kinnunen & Isabelle McCalla. If you are interested in purchasing one of those tickets, you must do so by 5:00 PM EDT/2:00 PM PDT on Sunday, March 28th.

MUSICAL: BKLYN – The Musical – Stream.theatre – Now – April 4th

Mark Schoenfeld and Barri McPherson collaborated on this musical based on his own experiences as a street musician. From personal experience to Broadway where Brooklyn opened in the fall of 2004.

The musical depicts a group of homeless musicians performing a show about a girl from Paris searching for her father. She gets discovered when performing with the group under the Brooklyn Bridge and becomes a big star, but one still trying to find her dad. It’s actually structured as a play-within-a-play.

Sejal Keshwala, Emma Kingston, Newton Matthews, Jamie Muscato and Marisha Wallace staged in this filmed production from Ugly Duck, London Bridge in England.

You’ll have a choice of either a specific showtime or an on-demand purchase to watch the musical. Tickets are £18 which includes service charges. That’s approximately $25.

VOCALS: Giles Terera in Black Matter – Now – March 31st

Just as Leslie Odom Jr. won the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his performance as Aaron Burr in Hamilton, Giles Terera won the British equivalent, The Olivier, for his performance in the same role in London.

During the pandemic, Terera took to expressing his feelings and experiences during the pandemic and with all the social upheaval by writing songs. He performs that song cycle, Black Matter, in a concert filmed at Crazy Coqs in the Soho area of London.

Terera received rave reviews for Black Matter. Tickets are £13 (which includes service charges) which equals approximately $18.

PLAY: The Thanksgiving Play – Spotlight on Plays on Broadway’s Best Shows – Now – March 29th

Native American playwright Larissa FastHorse received a MacArthur “Genius” Grant in 2020 and it was largely due to her well-received and often performed The Thanksgiving Play. As part of their Spotlight on Plays series, Broadway’s Best shows is streaming a reading of the play with Bobby Cannavale, Keanu Reeves, Heidi Schreck and Alia Shawkat.

The premise finds four white people trying to put together a culturally-sensitive Thanksgiving play to be performed in schools.

Jesse Green, in his New York Times review, said of FastHorse’s play:

“Just because a target’s too easy doesn’t mean it won’t make a satisfying meal. Take turkeys, or the holiday they stand for. In Larissa FastHorse’s The Thanksgiving Play, which opened on Monday at Playwrights Horizons, the familiar, whitewashed story of Pilgrims and Native Americans chowing down together gets a delicious roasting from expert farceurs.”

Tickets are $15. This play will only be available through Monday at 6:00 PM EDT.

MUSICAL/DANCE: Tango the Musical – Center Theatre Group – Now – March 28th

The music of Astor Piazzolla serves as the foundation for this show from Argentina. Eleven dancers perform Argentina’s most famous dance while accompanied by a 10-piece live orchestra. Tango the Musical is set during Argentina’s Guerra sucia (“Dirty War”).

This was a period of enormous conflict from 1976-1984 that found crackdowns on anyone considered or rumored to be a socialist or dissident. As many as 30,000 people went missing during this time.

Tango the Musical is directed by Sergei Tumas and choreographed by Argentinians Iván Leonardo Romero and Silvana Nuñez.

I’m not sure that anyone truly sings, so I’m not sure how much this show is a musical or a dance, but if you love this music, this should be quite entertaining.

There are performances available Friday and Saturday at 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT and 11:00 PM EDT/8:00 PM PDT and on Sunday at 4:00 PM EDT/1:00 PM PDT and 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT. Tickets are $10.

JAZZ: Voices of Freedom – Jazz at Lincoln Center Virtual Season – March 26th – March 31st

Singers Betty Carter, Billie Holiday, Abbey Lincoln and Nina Simone will be celebrated in this concert by Wynton Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra under the baton of Chris Crenshaw.

Joining them as guest vocalists are Melanie Charles, Shenel Johns, and Ashley Pezzotti who will perform songs the women wrote and made famous.

All four women were powerhouse singers who left everything they had on the stage. I was lucky enough to see Carter, Lincoln and Simone in concert. These are four women well worth celebrating.

Tickets are $20.

CONVERSATION: Virtual Halston with Lucie Arnaz – March 26th – 5:00 PM EST/2:00 PM PST

Lucie Arnaz joins Julie Halston for this Friday’s Virtual Halston on the Cast Party Network. Arnaz has been in the news recently with the start of production on Being the Ricardos, a feature film about the relationship between her parents, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem are playing the two television icons.

When fans got upset about the casting, Arnaz, who is an Executive Producer on the movie, took to Facebook and said, in part, “Stop arguing about who should play it – ‘she doesn’t look like her, her nose isn’t the same she isn’t as funny’…Just trust us. It’s going to be a nice film and p.s. the voting is over.”

Now that should make for some great conversation!

JAZZ: Jane Monheit – SFJAZZ – March 26th – 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT

While we’re celebrating great women of jazz with the Voices of Freedom concert listed above, let’s also acknowledge The First Lady of Song Ella Fitzgerald. That’s precisely what singer Jane Monheit does in this concert that is part of SFJAZZ’s Fridays at Five series.

Monheit’s 2016 album, The Songbook Sessions: Ella Fitzgerald features her performing such songs as Somebody Loves Me, Ill Wind and This Time the Dream’s on Me. Will Mack the Knife be part of this concert? I don’t know, but as good as Monheit is, nobody could swing that song (or screw it up) quite like Fitzgerald.

Seriously Monheit is terrific. It would be impossible not to enjoy this show. Joining Monheit for this concert are Andy Langham on piano; Rick Montalbano on drums; Dave Robaire on bass and Jamey Tate on percussion.

Tickets are $5 for a one-month digital membership or $60 for an annual digital membership.

CHAMBER MUSIC: Gil Shaham Plays Boulogne – Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra – Debuts March 26th – 9:30 PM EDT/6:30 PM PDT

Violinist Gil Shaham joins the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra for their Close Quarters series. In this film he will perform Arvo Pärt’s Fratres and Boulogne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges’ Violin Concerto No. 9.

If you are accustomed to seeing classical music performances with the camera on the periphery of the orchestra, this will be different. According to Shaham the cameramen were working their way in and around all the musicians during the performance. It’s certain to give a more up-close look at performance than we usually get to see.

Margaret Batjer leads the LACO in an approximately 33 minute film. There’s no charge and the film will be available for viewing at any time.

DANCE DOCUMENTARY: Twyla Moves – American Masters on PBS – March 26th (check local listings)

Whether you love or hate what choreographer Twyla Tharp does (and I know people in both camps), she is arguably one of the most independent and intriguing figures in modern dance. Which probably is what interested filmmaker Steven Cantor to create this documentary on Tharp.

Her work has been performed on stages around the world and includes ballet, modern dance and Broadway musicals. She’s also choreographed for feature films including Hair, Ragtime and Amadeus.

The documentary includes interviews and never-before-seen footage of Tharp at work and in performance. As with all PBS programming, check your local listings for exact airdate and time.

WORLD MUSIC: Zakir Hussain and Masters of Percussion – CAP UCLA – March 26th – 10:00 PM EDT/7:00 PM PDT

Zakir Hussain is a master table musician. Tabla is a pair of hand drums indigenous to India and Pakistan. He has performed with a diverse range of artists that includes George Harrison, Charles Lloyd, Yo-Yo Ma, Van Morrison and Pharoah Sanders.

For this filmed concert he will be joined by Pezhham Akhavass on tombak and Iranian percussion; Marcus Gilmore on drums and Abbos Kosimov on doyra and Uzbek percussion with special guests.

Zakir Hussain and Masters of Percussion was immensely popular when this program was performed at UCLA during the 2018-2019 season. There’s no charge to watch this concert.

OPERA: Götterdämmerung – San Francisco Opera – March 27th – March 28th

Conducted by Sir Donald Runnicles; starring Daniel Brenna, Iréne Theorin, Greer Grimsley, Andrea Silvestrelli, Melissa Citro, Brian Mulligan and Falk Struckmann. This revival of Francesca Zambello’s 2011 production is from the 2017-2018 season.

The final opera in Der Ring des Nibelungen had its world premiere in 1876 in Bayreuth as part of the first-ever performance of The Ring Cycle.

Alberich’s curse placed on the ring and its owners comes to haunt the characters in this final opera in the Ring Cycle. Siegfried, having fallen in love with Brunnhilde, is convinced to consume a potion that renders him without memory. That lack of remembering finds him proposing to another woman, Gutrune. Her brother consents as long as Siegfried will allow him to marry Brunnhilde. The ring changes hands and with Alberich’s son, Hagen, manipulating the action, ruin comes to all, including the gods whose glory has come to an end leaving Valhalla in flames.

For this production, Zambello has set the story in the American West. The cycle began during the gold rush and ends with Götterdämmerung in present-day America.

Lisa Hirsch, writing for Classical Voice San Francisco, raved about the orchestra’s performance under the baton of Runnicles:

“No Ring production can succeed without a fine orchestra and strong leadership, and as long-time operagoers know, Donald Runnicles and the San Francisco Opera Orchestra make a splendid team. Runnicles, a great conductor of long and complex works, led a performance of breadth, subtlety, and beauty, full of telling detail. The orchestra played tirelessly and beautifully, with a warmly blended and layered sound, over the many hours of the cycle. The brass sections were especially impressive, given the demands Wagner makes on them, playing with unforced power.”

JAZZ: Delfeayo Marsalis Quintet – Snug Harbor Jazz Revival – March 28th – 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT

If you can have a show with one Marsalis brother this week, why not have two? Trombonist/composer/producer Delfeayo Marsalis is performing from Snug Harbor in New Orleans in this concert on Sunday.

In addition to performing with his brothers, his late father, Ellis, and countless other musicians, Delfeayo Marsalis has produced recordings by such artist as Terence Blanchard, Harry Connick, Jr., the Preservation Jazz Hall Band and has worked with filmmaker Spike Lee.

Tickets to watch his concert are $15.

PLAY READING: SQUEAKY – Guild Hall – March 28th – 7:30 PM EDT/4:30 PM PDT

Jessica Hecht, Marc Kudisch, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Ben Shenkman and Harris Yulin are lined-up for this reading of SQUEAKY by playwright Jeff Cohen.

The play is an autobiographical comedy that stars Kudish and Shenkman having a hard time agreeing on the best course of action for their father (Yulin) who is nearing the end of his life.

Throw in a caretaker (Jackson) and Squeaky’s estranged wife (Hecht) and you’ve got the makings for plenty of familial conflict and loads of opportunities for humor.

Bob Balaban directs. Tickets are free, but donations are encouraged.

PLAY: Pedro Páramo – Goodman Theatre – March 29th – April 11th

Juan Rulfo’s 1955 novel of the same name is the inspiration for this play by Raquel Carrió that was part of the Goodman Theatre’s Latino Theatre Festival in 2013. Pedro Páramo is performed by Cuba’s Teatro Buendía and directed by Flora Lauten.

As in the book, Juan Preciado returns home to honor his dying mother’s wishes of settling old scores with his father, Pedro. What Juan soon realizes is everyone in the town he has returned to is a ghost. It is through this realization that the full story of Pedro Páramo (both the character and the play) becomes fully revealed.

Tony Adler, in his review for the Chicago Reader, said of the play:

“Rulfo’s story is like Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol without the redemption, and like Edgar Lee Masters’s Spoon River Anthology—a collection of poems written from the points of view of people buried in a small Illinois cemetery—without the nice distinction between life and afterlife. Rulfo’s reality allows for a free conflation of bodies and souls, places and times. It isn’t magic, but a simple apprehension of the resonances that wait in all things.”

Tickets are free, but registration is required.

CABARET/CONVERSATION: Pajama Cast Party One Year Anniversary Show – March 29th – 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT

Two weeks ago I highlighted Jim Caruso’s 50th Pajama Cast Party show. But this week is the real anniversary: one year of doing online shows. Caruso is pulling out all the stops for this celebration. But I don’t know who or what that will be.

All I know is the VIP guest list is being kept very hush hush. But between his stellar guests for both the live version at Birdland and this full year of shows, this is going to be one swellegant party.

Those are my official Four Days of Best Bets: March 26th – March 29th. A couple reminders before I close out this weekend’s listings.

OPERA: The Metropolitan Opera is streaming two productions this weekend for the first time. On Friday they are streaming Mozart’s Idomeneo from the 1982-1983 season. That production stars Hildegard Behrens, Frederica von Stade and Luciano Pavarotti. This was the first-ever production of that opera at the Met. On Saturday Mozart’s Don Giovanni from their 2000-2001 season with Bryn Terfel and Renée Fleming is being streamed. On Sunday they are showing their 2019-2020 season production of Wagner’s Der Fliegende Holländer.

And here’s a preview of next week’s streaming operas: love triangles is the theme and the week opens with the 2017-2018 season production of Bellini’s Norma with Sondra Radvanovsky and Joyce DiDonato. Check back on Monday for our preview of the full week of programming.

Finally, it’s always a good idea to check back at the last two or three weeks of Best Bets as some of the programming I write about is available for longer than just the weekend. If you don’t find something you like here, perhaps the most recent two or three weekend lists will have something you’ll like.

That does it for my Best Bets: March 26th – March 29th. Have a great weekend and enjoy whatever you watch!

Photo: Georgia Stitt and Kate Baldwin (Photo by Kristin Pulido/Courtesy Maestra)

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With the balance of this season already cancelled and the Hollywood Bowl season a big question mark, this series offers a great opportunity to see one of the world’s finest orchestras in action.

If you haven’t seen Season 1, those performances will be available through late this year. Sound/Stage Season 2 performances will be available for one year from their debut.

Here is the schedule for Sound/Stage Season 2:

March 5th: Camille Saint-Saëns’ The Carnival of the Animals

You might be familiar with this work as one of the earliest pieces of classical music you heard. With its musical evocations of lions, donkeys, elephants, cuckoos and swans, The Carnival of the Animals is often used as a way of introducing the sounds of an orchestra to young listeners.

So it is completely appropriate that Music Director Gustavo Dudamel will be accompanied by his son, Martín, as co-host.

This arrangement is for two pianos and orchestra. The soloists in this performance are Yuja Wang and David Fung. Dudamel will be leading the LA Philharmonic in this performance.

Narration will be provided by El Sistema students Arão (12) from the The Recanto Youth Orchestra in Santa Maria, Brazil; Afra (14), Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (YOLA) at EXPO Center and Maya (8) from The Sydney Russell School in London, England. Traditionally the narration is the text written by Ogden Nash.

This performance will also incorporate animation.

March 19th: A Pan-American Musical Feast

Dudamel and the LA Phil welcome José Andrés as his special guest for this program. The two will been seen in a conversation. Andrés has been donation a lot of time and resources to helping feed people in the aftermath of natural disasters and also for those caught up in other crises. Last year they activated in the Albania; Bahamas; California; Central America; Haiti; Mozambique; Nebraska; Puerto Rico; South Dakota; Venezuela; Washington, D.C. and more.

For this concert the orchestra will be performing:

Fanfarria by Tania León

This is a perfect pairing of material. The Cuban-born León wrote Fanfarria after receiving a commission from the Library of Congress to write a piece in celebration of the centennial of composer Aaron Copland in 2000. (See what they are doing there with this program?)

Sinfonia Burocratica ed’Amazzonica: “Bananera” by Paul Desenne

Written and premiered in 2004, Desenne’s Sinfonia Burocratica ed’Amazzonica is a five moment chamber symphony. Bananera is the fourth movement. Desenne uses cumbia as the foundation for this movement.

Appalachian Spring Suite (chamber orchestra version) by Aaron Copland

Dancer/choreographer Martha Graham commissioned this work from Copland in 1942 for a ballet. Two years later Appalachian Spring had its world premiere. One year later Copland was commissioned again to create a symphony version.

The LA Phil will be performing the smaller version as it was first performed which calls for 13 instruments.

April 4th: Easter Sunrise at the Hollywood Bowl

The tradition of having an Easter sunrise service at the Hollywood Bowl dates back to 1921. For the 100th Anniversary of that tradition, Dudamel and the Hollywood Bowl welcome gospel singers Mary, Mary and soprano Nadine Sierra to the stage for this concert.

On the program are:

Air pour les trompettes by Johann Sebastian Bach

This work was originally written for harpsichord. It can be performed with as few as two trumpets (with an organ) or for a full eleven brass musicians. It is very short and runs less than two minutes. This is the Michael Allen arrangement.

Exsultate, jubilate by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Mozart composed the piece of music for soprano and orchestra. It had its world premiere in Milan in 1773.

There are four parts to this work whose name translates to Exult, rejoice. Originally written for a castrato, it is far more commonly performed by a soprano.

If you’ve been following the Metropolitan Opera’s weekly streaming concerts, you would have seen Sierra in productions of Mozart’s Idomeneo. She also appeared in San Francisco Opera’s production of Romeo and Juliet by Charles Gounod that was available in January.

All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name – a traditional hymn arranged by Carlos Simon

Edward Perronet is the composer of this hymn which he wrote in 1780.

Sisters Erica and Tina Atkins are the duo who make up Mary Mary. They have had their recordings on the Billboard charts and their songs have been recorded by a multitude of artists.

April 16th: Grand Pianola Music

John Adams’ Grand Pianola Music will be performed in this concert. Joining Dudamel and the LA Phil are sopranos Elissa Johnston and Holly Sedillos and mezzo-soprano Kristen Toedtman.

Adams composed Grand Pianola Music in 1981. The work had its world premiere in 1982 by the San Francisco Symphony with the composer leading the performance. The score calls for three amplified female voices and two pianos.

When Mark Swed of the Los Angeles Times reviewed a performance by the LA Philharmonic of this work in January, 2019, he wrote, “…what had seemed regressive in 1982, Adams’ supposed cheapening of pure minimalism with show-off, almost Liberace-esque effects doesn’t sound so regressive anymore.

“In an expansive performance, Adams brought out a range of colors from the L.A. Phil winds. His soloists focused on rhythmic intricacies. Climaxes were operatic. Once booed, Grand Pianola Music is now wildly cheered. With perspective, the regressive has become progressive. You can hear in its theatricality the birth of an opera composer.”

Adams will participate in a conversation with Dudamel during the program. The performance will be accompanied by visuals created by Deborah O’Grady.

April 30th: Unfinished

Classical music fans know that the word unfinished is closely associated with composer Franz Schubert and his 8th Symphony. Indeed, that is the work being performed in this concert.

This symphony did not remain unfinished because the composer died. In fact, Schubert lived another six years after the two complete movements were finished in 1822. There’s speculation as to why he didn’t finish this work, but no definitive reason is known.

There have been several attempts to finish the symphony based on piano scores and what little was orchestrated for additional movements. But this symphony is traditionally performed with just the two completed movements.

Dudamel leads the LA Phil in this concert.

June 18th: Dudamel and Common

In August of 2018, I attended a concert at the Hollywood Bowl with Queen Latifah and Common. Common opened and once he was finished I knew the Queen would have a mighty big challenge in front of her. Common was so powerful and so dynamic that she risked being seen as the runner-up in that evening’s concert. That didn’t happen, but I still walked away completely blown away by Common’s performance.

The program for this concert has not been announced. But it will undoubtedly be good.

Oh and if you don’t know Common, he’s an Oscar, Grammy and Emmy award-winning performer, composer and writer. He joined the LA Phil for their recent Icons and Inspirations which you can still watch here.

June 25th: Dudamel and Carlos Vives

Composer Carlos Vives will be featured in both conversation and performance in this concert. With Dudamel leading the LA Phil, Vives will perform an acoustic set.

Vives is best known as one of Colomobia’s finest sons. With two Grammy Awards and 11 Latin Grammys, his music has been entertaining audiences and selling records for over 30 years.

There is no announced set list for this show.

You might have noticed there’s a big gap between episodes in Sound/Stage Season 2. There won’t be official episodes of Sound/Stage during that time, but there will be a series of five chamber music performances. Four of them were filmed at The Ford and one at Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.

May 7th: Chamber Music: Tchaikovsky – Filmed at The Ford

Pyotr Illyich Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir de Florence is performed in this program. The composer wrote the work for two violins, two violas and two cellos in 1890. He revised the work in 1891-1892 before it had its world premiere in 1892.

There are four movements in Souvenir de Florence and the piece runs a little more than half an hour.

Performing in this concert are violinist Nathan Cole and Gabriela Peña-Kim; violists Ingrid Hutman and Ben Ullery and cellists Jason Lippmann and Gloria Lum.

May 14th: Chamber Music: Piazzolla – Filmed at The Ford

Argentinian composer Astor Piazzolla is synonymous with the tango. The work being performed in this concert is his Tango Ballet for String Quartet. It’s a brief piece, running just 14 minutes or so, but is an immensely popular one.

The musicians for this concert are violinists Sydney Adedamola and Bing Wang, violist Dana Lawson and cellist Jason Lippmann.

May 28th: Chamber Music: Mendelssohn – Filmed at Walt Disney Concert Hall

Fanny Mendelssohn is the older sister of her better-known composer brother, Felix. She never gained the same level of success or popularity as Felix did, despite his attempts to bring her work to a wider audience and to have her compositions published in the last year of her life.

She is primarily known for her songs (lieder) than her orchestral compositions. She, herself, felt that composing lieder was more suited to her abilities.

The String Quartet in E-flat was composed in 1834. It was only performed once, privately. Her brother was harsh in his criticism of the work. She never composed another quartet, but this work remains one of the few surviving quartets written by a woman.

This performance of selections from the quartet will feature Martin Chalifour and Lyndon Johnston Taylor on violin; Teng Li on viola and Robert DeMaine on cello.

May 28th: Chamber Music: Schumann – Filmed at The Ford

Composer Clara Schumann’s Piano Trio in G minor is being performed in this companion piece to the Mendelssohn work just above. Schumann was married to composer Robert Schumann and she composed this, her only trio, in 1846.

It was a tumultuous time for the couple. During that year her husband was battling serious health issues. She also suffered a miscarriage. A year after this work’s premiere her husband published his first piano trio.

Performing in this concert are Joanne Pearce Martin on piano; Rebecca Reale on violin and Dahae Kim on cello.

June 4th: Chamber Music: Márquez – Filmed at The Ford

Mexican composer Arturo Márquez is a prolific 20th and 21st century composer. The work being performed in this concert dates back to 1993: Homenaje a Gismonti.

The work is dedicated to Cuarteto Latinoamericano, a classical music ensemble founded in Mexico in 1982. They included Homenaje a Gismonti on their 1998 album, Four, For Tango.

In this performance Sydney Adedamola and Bing Wang play violin; Dana Lawson on viola and Jason Lippmann on cello.

As a reminder, all Sound/Stage Season 2 concerts will remain available online, for free, for one year from their debut.

Photo: Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic on the stage of the Hollywood Bowl (Courtesy LA Philharmonic)

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