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)

The post Best Bets: May 14th – May 17th appeared first on Cultural Attaché.

If you love Broadway, we’ve got several stars appearing in readings, live concerts and more.

If you love jazz, we have an advance screening of a documentary about one of jazz’s most legendary singers and a great concert from 2017 that introduced a new tentet to the world.

Classical music fans have everything from Baroque music to contemporary music to watch and hear.

If you love Verdi and opera, we’ve got that for you, too.

Theater fans have a new translation of a classic play and a documentary born out of a highly-acclaimed show from 2013. There’s also our featured selection: The Gaze, a 12-part series from playwright Larry Powell.

Here are your Best Bets at Home: November 20th – November 22nd.

Uncle Vanya – Spotlight on Plays – Now – November 23rd

Anton Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya gets a new translation by playwright Neil LaBute in this Spotlight on Plays reading from Broadway’s Best Shows.

Vanya and Sonya manage the property owned by an old professor and his second wife, Yelena. Vanya is the professor’s late first wife’s brother. Sonya is his daughter with his first wife.

Sonya has romantic feelings for Dr. Astrov, a local doctor, who is smitten with Yelena. Vanya, too, has become enamored with Yelena. With unrequited love ensnaring the characters, Vanya and Sonya are shocked when the professor announces he plans to sell the home they have been managing for him. They are appalled when the old man announces why he’s selling the house Vanya and Sonya have called home for so long.

Starring as the title character is Tony Award-winner Alan Cumming (Cabaret). Joining him for this reading are Constance Wu, Samira Wiley, K. Todd Freeman, Anson Mount, Mia Katigbak, Manik Choksi and Academy Award winner Ellen Burstyn (Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore). Narration is by Gabriel Ebert. Overseeing the production is director Danya Taymor.

For me, this reading had me at Ellen Burstyn. Add Alan Cummig to the mix and what’s not to love?

Tickets are only $5 to watch Uncle Vanya. Proceeds will benefit The Actors Fund.

Citizen Detective – Geffen Stayhouse – Now – February 7th

In their continuing series of newly-produced Zoom shows, Los Angeles’ Geffen Playhouse offers up a brand new virtual murder mystery called Citizen Detective.

Written and directed by Chelsea Marcantel, Citizen Detective finds best-selling crime author Mickie McKittrick (Mike Ostroski) enlisting the audience’s help in trying to solve a mysterious Hollywood murder from the 1920s.

Either as one large group or broken out into smaller rooms, audience members while have to find evidence and see where that might lead them. No two shows are going to be the same.

Also in the cast is Paloma Nozica as Andrea. The show runs 85 minutes without an intermission.

Citizen Detective‘s original announced run sold out. The show has been extended through February 7th with those tickets going on sale on November 27th. There are only 24 tickets available for each performance. Tickets are $65 per household.

Finales – LA Philharmonic Sound/Stage – November 20th – continuing

Earlier this week the Los Angeles Philharmonic announced that there will be a second season of Sound/Stage starting in February. For anyone who has seen the previous eight episodes of the inaugural season, you’ll know this is good news.

Like any season, it has to wrap up with a grand finale. This week the final episode of Sound/Stage will do just that.

This new show finds Gustavo Dudamel back on the podium leading the LA Phil. On the program are the Finale of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7; Ritual Mind – Corporeous Pulse from Gabriela Ortiz’s Corpórea and Maurice Ravel’s The Fairy Garden from Mother Goose.

If you have missed some of the previous eight shows, they are still available and will remain so for one year. The only exception is the episode Solitude which will only be available through December 15th. They are all worth checking out.

All episodes of Sound/Stage are free. (Not that a donation to the LA Philharmonic would go amiss.)

TaReKiTa – Los Angeles Master Chorale – November 20th – 1:00 PM EST/10:00 AM PST

Composer Reena Esmail composed TaReKiTa in 2016 for Los Angeles-based Urban Voices Project. She has revised the work and it will have its premiere in this video performance from the Los Angeles Master Chorale. 24 singers will be joined by choreographer and dancer Shalini Haupt.

The piece does not use words, but rather sounds.

Esmail explains it on her website as “based on sounds the Indian drum, the tabla, makes, called ‘bols’ — they are onomatopoeic sounds that imitate the sound of the drum. The result is something like a scat would be in jazz – ecstatic, energetic, rhythmic music that feels good on the tongue.”

I’ve heard the original version and can’t wait to hear it expanded for so many more voices. Esmail’s composition is short and the entire performance runs two minutes.

Virtual Halston – Cast Party YouTube Channel – November 20th – 5:00 PM EST/2:00 PM PST

I’ve written several times about the delightful Julie Halston and her Friday happy hour virtual salons. The reason for writing again is that her guest this week is the phenomenally talented Gideon Glick.

Glick made his Broadway debut in the original production of Spring Awakening in 2006 after launching the show off-Broadway. He survived Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark when his role was cut during previews of the troubled musical. He played the lead role of Jordan Berman in Joshua Harmon’s Significant Others both off-Broadway and on. His most recent Broadway appearance was in the Aaron Sorkin adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird. He received a Tony Award nomination for his performance. Last year he appeared in the off-Broadway revival of Little Shop of Horrors as Seymour.

At 32, Glick is an actor to watch. You should follow him on Twitter where his pithy comments make it abundantly clear he’ll make a great guest with Halston.

There is no charge to watch the show, but donations are encouraged with proceeds going to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation

Angela Hewitt Performs Bach – 92 Street Y – November 20th – 7:30 PM EST/4:30 PM PST – December 4th

In 2018 pianist Angela Hewitt culminated a four-year journey through the works of Johann Sebastian Bach at New York’s 92 Street Y with performances of the Goldberg Variations, The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I and The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book II. All three performances will be available for streaming starting on Friday and continuing through Friday, December 4th.

Hewitt has recorded all three works twice. With the Goldberg Variations she recorded them first in 2002 (in a recording that started around 11 PM at night and was captured live with just a few retakes the next day) and she revisited the work in 2015.

BBC Music Magazine raved about the later recording by saying, “Sixteen years on, the fingers are as formidably on the ball as ever—capable of the most tender translucency, of staccato leaps that ‘ping’, and able to differentiate and characterise several voices simultaneously with jaw-dropping felicity.”

She recorded The Well-Tempered Clavier (both books) in 1998-1999 and again in 2008. The earlier recording was named by BBC Music Magazine as Best of the Year. The later recordings were named a Gramophone Magazine Editor’s Choice.

All three performances become available simultaneously. There is a $15 fee to watch each performance. You can also purchase all three performances for $35. Links to each performance can be found in the opening paragraph of this preview.

Laura Osnes & Tony Yazbeck – Caramoor – November 20th – 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST

The music of composer George Gershwin will be celebrated by Broadway stars Laura Osnes (Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Anything Goes) and Tony Yazbeck (On the Town, Finding Neverland) in this live-streamed benefit concert for the Caramoor Center for Music & the Arts in Katonah, New York. Fred Lassen serves as accompanist and music director.

In 2017, Osnes and Yazbeck worked together on a concert version (with dance) of the musical Crazy for You at Lincoln Center. That 1992 musical featured Gershwin’s songs and won the Tony Award for Best Musical.

They have also performed Gershwin together in cabaret settings since Crazy For You. In other words, they know their way around a Gershwin tune.

Two very talented Broadway stars, great Gershwin music, who could ask for anything more?

Tickets range from $50 – $125 and are tax-deductible. The two-hour show will remain available for 24 hours after its conclusion.

Anat Cohen Tentet – SFJAZZ – November 20th – 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST

This week’s Fridays at Five concert from SFJAZZ features clarinetest Anat Cohen in a concert from December 2017.

The concert was in support of the first release by the Anat Cohen Tentet called Happy Song. Amongst the members of the ensemble are guitarist Sheryl Bailey, pianist/accordionist Vitor Gonçalves, trumpeter Nadja Noordhuis and vibraphonist James Shipp.

The music director/arranger is Oded Lev-Ari.

Last year the Anat Cohen Tentet released a follow-up album called Triple Helix.

Watching this concert requires the purchase of either a one-month digital membership ($5) or an annual membership ($60). The show streams only once at 5:00 PM PST (thus the program’s name Fridays at Five).

The Gaze…No Homo – Fountain Theatre – November 20th – December 31st

Actor and playwright Larry Powell (The Christians, The Legend of Georgia McBride) has adapted his Eugene O’Neill National Playwrights Conference finalist play THE GAZE…(NO HOMO: PART ONE) into a twelve-episode series that begins streaming this week.

Powell has created stories that examine the lives and stories of queer people of color within what are traditionally white spaces.

The Gaze stars Eugene Byrd (Star Wars, 8 Mile), TC Carson (God of War, Star Wars:The Clone Wars), Yvette Cason (Dreamgirls, A Wrinkle in Time), Jason Green (The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo), Sharon Lawrence (NYPD Blue, Shameless), Devere Rogers (Will & Grace, My Spy) and Galen J. Williams (Pose, Motown The Musical).

Each week three of the episodes will be released on the Fountain Theatre’s website.

Powell directed three of the episodes. The other directors of The Gaze…No Homo are Satya Bhabha, Reginald L. Douglas, Amber A. Harris, Bianca Laverne Jones, Zhailon Levingston, Jonathan McCrory, Joanna Strapp and Leland Durond Thompson.

This digital series should be both thought-provoking and thoroughly entertaining.

If I Should Wake – Greenway Court Theatre – November 20th – December 10th

As long as we’re on the topic of playwright Larry Powell, let’s take a look at another project in which he’s involved.

If I Should Wake is a play in two-parts featuring eight different monologues that explore the impact of the upheaval we’re experiencing in the world today and how that might alter our existence in the afterlife.

It’s a continuation of a program that launched Greenway Arts Alliance back in 2000. That series of monologues was written by José Rivera and was centered around the millennium.

There are eight different playwrights involved with If I Should Wake. In addition to Powell, they include Alex Alpharaoh, Boni B. Alvarez, Arianna Basco, Diana Burbano, Inda Craig-Galván, Yehuda Hyman and Grace McLeod.

The first part begins streaming on November 20th at 10:00 PM EST/7:00 PM PST. Part one includes The Waiting Room by McLeod, Body Quakes by Basco, The Reclamation of my Black Ass Imagination: An Awakening by Powell and Francis by Alvarez.

Part one will be available from November 20th – November 27th. It will be available again December 4th – December 10th.

The second part will feature Quicksand: A Bardo Monologue by Burbano; They Say My Name by Craig-Galván; Cassandra by Alpharaoh and The Let Go by Hyman.

Part two will be available from November 27th at 10:00 PM EST/7:00 PM PST and will remain available through December 10th.

Both parts of If I Should Wake will be available on Greenway Theatre’s Twitch.TV page. There is no charge to watch the play.

Gershwin & Dvořák– Pasadena Symphony – November 20th

The final concert in the Pasadena Symphony’s Pasadena Presents series finds a performance of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and Antonin Dvořák’s String Quartet No. 12 “American” on the program.

The soloist for Rhapsody in Blue is pianist Llewellyn Sanchez-Werner. The musicians performing the Dvořák are Carrie Kennedy and Joel Pargman on violin; Aaron Oltman on viola; Ryan Sweeney on cello and James Lent on piano.

Music Director David Lockington conducts.

Tickets are $25 to watch the concert.

Border Crossings Continued – Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra – November 20th – 9:30 PM EST/6:30 PM PST

The Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra continues their Border Crossings series with Close Quarters Episode 2. Once again, Patricia Mabee leads the performance from the harpsichord.

On the program are Joseph Pla’s Sonata III; Heitor Villa-Lobos’ Assobio a Jato, Gaspar Sanz’s Jácaras and Pastoreta Ychepe Flauta by an anonymous composer.

As these films combine performance and visuals (under the curation and supervision of James Darrah), the artists whose work appear in Close Quarters Episode 2 are Yuki Izumihara and Yee Eun Nam. Choreography is by Chris Emile and the dancer is Rosalynd LeBlanc.

The musicians are Josefina Vergara and Susan Rishik on violin; Armen Ksajikian on cello; Ben Smolen on flute; Jason Yoshida on theorbo/baroque guitar and Peter Corpela on percussion.

The performance lasts approximately 30 minutes. If you missed Episode 1, you can find it on LACO’s YouTube channel.

Rigoletto – San Francisco Opera – November 21st – November 22nd

Conducted by Nicola Luisotti; starring Željko Lučić, Aleksandra Kurzak and Francesco Demuro. This revival of the 1997 Mark Lamos production is from the 2012-2013 season and was directed by Harry Silverstein.

Victor Hugo, the author of Les Míserables, was also a playwright and it was his play, Le roi s’amuse, that served as the inspiration for Giuseppe Verdi’s opera. Francesco Maria Piave, who regularly collaborated with the composer, wrote the libretto. The opera had its world premiere in Venice, Italy in 1851.

The title character is a jester who serves the Duke of Mantua. The Duke is a seductive man who, upon learning that the woman with whom Rigoletto lives is his daughter and not his wife, makes the young woman, Gilda, his next target. Curses, assassination plots and more leave this clown without much to smile about.

For this production, San Francisco Opera had two casts in the three lead roles and Rigoletto was performed on back-to-back nights its opening weekend.

In Joshua Kosman‘s review for the San Francisco Chronicle he said there was one definitive revelation: “Polish soprano Aleksandra Kurzak, whose company debut Friday night as Gilda was nothing short of remarkable. In a role that is often sung with silvery, laser-like precision and naivete, Kurzak opted instead for a full-throated sound and an air of emotional assurance that made her plight all the more poignant.”

There is no charge to watch Rigoletto. The opera becomes available at 1:00 PM EST/10:00 AM PST and remains available until just before midnight PST on Sunday, November 22nd.

Circus Kid – Center Theatre Group Digital Stage – November 21st – 10:00 PM EST/7:00 PM PST

Seven years ago Lorenzo Pisoni brought his show, Humor Abuse, to the Mark Taper Forum. The play explored his life growing up in the circus. Filled with humor, pathos and some daring maneuvers, it was a thoroughly entertaining evening of theatre.

Pisoni has now taken that story further with a film called Circus Kid. This 2016 documentary finds him in search of the man behind the clown make-up who was his father. Pisoni grew up in and around the Pickle Family Circus. From a young age, he was made a regular performer as part of the circus.

Center Theatre Group will stream the documentary just this one time.

Following the documentary there will be a conversation between Pisoni and one of our finest actors and clowns: Bill Irwin (more about him later.)

The film runs 1 hour and 47 minutes. There is no charge to watch Circus Kid.

Jeremy Denk Recital – Philharmonic Society of Orange County- November 22nd – 10:00 PM EST/7:00 PM PST

If you’ve been reading Cultural Attaché for some time, you know how strongly I feel about pianist Jeremy Denk. I’m not alone in that assessment. He’s the recipient of MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship, he’s had his recordings top the classical music charts and critics regularly try to find new superlatives to describe his playing.

On Saturday, he’ll be performing a recital live from the stage of the Irvine Barclay Theatre. The program includes Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 14 in C minor, K. 457; Clara Schumann’s Three Romances, Op. 22; Rzewski’s Winnsboro Cotton Mill Blues and Beethoven’s Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111.

Tickets are $20 and allow for viewing through November 28th.

Billie – 92 Street Y – November 22nd – 1:00 PM EST/10:00 AM PST

In advance of its release theatrical and online release, the 92 Street Y is hosting a free screening of James Erskine’s documentary Billie. His subject is, of course, the legendary Billie Holiday.

If what you know about Holiday can be summed up in one or two sentences, or is based on the film Lady Sings the Blues, this documentary sheds new light on all the factors that lead to Holiday’s trouble with drugs and the law. This includes battles with racism, the exploitation of her as an artist, how politics factored into her daily life and, of course, her addiction.

The film makes use of interviews with Count Basie, Tony Bennett, Charles Mingus and others that were conducted in the 1970s.

You need to register in advance to watch the screening.

Jarrod Spector & Kelli Barrett: Funny How It Happens – Adelphi Theatre – November 22nd – 5:00 PM EST/2:00 PM PST

Tony Award-nominated actor Jarrod Spector made his Broadway debut at the age of 9 in the long-running original production of Les Misérables as Gavroche. He joined another long-running musical, Jersey Boys, as Frankie Valli. He originated the role of Barry Mann in Beautiful: The Carole King Musical and received his Tony nomination. He also originated the role of Sonny Bono in The Cher Show.

As an adult he’s taken on some pretty iconic men in music. He’s also taken on a more important role as husband to another Broadway star, Kelli Barrett.

Barrett first appeared on Broadway in the 2009 production of The Royal Family. She followed that by playing two different roles in the musical Baby It’s You. Next up was a turn as Nessarose in Wicked in 2014. The short-lived musical adaptation of Dr. Zhivago followed. Her most recent Broadway role was as Dani Franco in Gettin’ the Band Back Together.

With their show Funny How It Happens, Spector and Barrett will explore, through stories and song, how two people can fall in love, get married, keep busy performing and filming schedules and still remain the best of friends.

Tickets are $20.

Adam Pascal with Seth Rudetsky – November 22nd – 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST – POSTPONED DUE TO TECHNICAL ISSUES. RESCHEDULED FOR DECEMBER 20th.

Broadway fans, and particularly Rent-heads, know Adam Pascal from his role as Roger in the original production of Jonathan Larson’s Rent. His other Broadway credits include the Elton John and Tim Rice musical, Aida, Cabaret, Chicago, Memphis, Something Rotten! and most recently, Pretty Woman.

He’s Seth Rudetsky’s guest for this week’s concert and conversation.

Pascal knows Rudetsky well. He appeared in his musical, Disaster!

If Sunday’s live stream doesn’t work for you, they will re-stream the concert on Monday, November 23rd at 3:00 PM EST/12:00 PM PST.

Tickets are $25.

Those are my Best Bets at Home: November 20th – November 22nd. But it wouldn’t be one of my weekly columns if I didn’t offer up a reminder or two.

Earlier I mentioned Bill Irwin. Don’t forget that there are four more opportunities to stream his show, On Beckett/In Screen from the Irish Repertory Theatre.

Metropolitan Opera‘s celebration of Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin continues with Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmélites on Friday (very strongly recommended); Puccini’s Turandot on Saturday and Berg’s Wozzeck on Sunday.

Long Beach Opera’s 2020 Songbook remains available through Sunday for viewing. (See last week’s Best Best at Home for details.)

I suppose if you add these four reminders, you actually have almost as many options from which to choose as you have hours in a day. Luckily you have three days to watch them all.

That’s the complete list of Best Bets at Home: November 20th – November 22nd.

Enjoy your weekend!

Photo: Galen J. Williams in The Gaze (Photo courtesy Tell Me a Story Productions)

Update: This post has been updated to include the Sunday morning announcement that the Adam Pascal concert with Seth Rudetsky is postponed until December 20th due to technical issues.

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