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Review: ‘Muses IV: Memories of a House’
From the first to the last, every homeowner adds a little bit of themselves to a house — putting up a wall, taking one down, changing the light fixtures, re-tiling the bathroom.
Every house has a story, and the Vestige Group has undertaken the task of bringing those stories to life. The project began several years ago, when they invited Austin playwrights to write scenes inspired by and to be performed in a local home.
This year, in “Muses IV: Memories of a House,” running now through Sept. 12, the group added a family to the mix. Instead of telling ten separate stories, they asked playwrights to invent ten moments in the same family’s life - no small feat despite the size of the house.
The family begins with Winston, the venture capitalist father with handy-man aspirations, and his wife Denise, an alcoholic psychiatrist who receives patients in her home. Their children are Shawn and Nora, teenagers with understandable angst. Each character is played by a different actor in almost every scene, and the scenes span nearly three decades of familial evolution.
Three separate groups of audience members are simultaneously led through the stories, so we experience these narratives in a different order. Since the playwrights presumably couldn’t have known in which order we would see their scene, the exposition is understandably choppy and forced at times.
Though the intimate scenes between family members work better on the whole than the monologues and soliloquies, Kacy Todd gives a delightful performance as Nora in “Goodnight God,” a monologue written by Aimee Gonzales in which the Bible-thumping teen asks God for guidance.
Playing Shawn in two of the scenes, Gregory Orsack Ramirez is a convincingly apprehensive teenager. And though her scene comes a bit out of nowhere, Karina Dominguez is an amusingly unabashed sex-addict in “Pleasure to Meet You.”
Combining the efforts of eight playwrights, 16 actors, and five directors, “Muses” is a smorgasbord of Austin creativity. However, like any sampling - wine or cheese or what have you - it’s easy to get overwhelmed, over-inundated, or lost if the pairings are unstructured.
The sight-specific performance is an enjoyable departure from typical theater, and the artistic aims are commendable. But ten scenes might be a few too many, and asking eight playwrights to write about the same people may have been a bit ambitious.
‘Muses IV: Memories of a House’ continues 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays through Sept. 12. $15-$25, address given upon reservation thevestigegroup@gmail.com
Cate Blouke is an American-Statesman freelance critic.
Photo: Austin Candids
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ASH Bash: Insights Art Show & Sale
Combining art created by Austin State Hospital patients during an art therapy program along with the work of professional artists, the ‘ASH Bash: Insights Art Show & Sale’ challenges the notion of what constitutes so-called “outsider art” created by non-trained artists versus that created by professional artists.
Think you know what to expect? You may have to think again at the “ASH Bash: Insights Art Show & Sale,” a fundraiser for the State Hospital.
More than 100 pieces of patient-created art are displayed alongside local professional artists, including revered artist Maranda Pleasant, Roi James, Andrew Long, Eliza Thomas, Daniel Johnson and Billy Tice.
The event is 6 to 9 p.m. Sept. 16 at 816 Congress Ave. Tickets are $20. Music by Suzanne Choffel. See www.ashvolunteers.org for info.
Painting by Austin State Hospital patient (anonymous).
“We Who See,’ mixed media, by Maranda Pleasant.
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‘Opera in Cinema’ at the Long Center fills the house for its first screening
Can a free show be sold-out?
Well, it certainly can be maxed-out which what happened at the free screening of La Scala’s ‘Aida’ at the Long Center Friday night. All of the 2400 available tickets were reserved in advance. And while there may have been a few no-shows, nearly every seat was taken.
The screening was the first of a new collaboration with Emerging Pictures, purveyors of hi-def movies, many of them cultural. The Austin Lyric Opera is co-sponsoring the 2010-2011 ‘Opera in Cinema’ series with the Long Center.
With bragging rights to the second-largest movie screen in town (after the IMAX screen at the Bullock Museum), and with hi-def projection equipment, the Long Center makes for (literally) picture perfect of hi-def films. The image was crystalline — perfect for the Zeffirelli-designed production and its lavish sets and costumes. Indeed, the quality of the projection was leagues better than Austin screenings of the Met Opera hi-def movie series shown venues that lack hi-def projection equipment.
Without a proper cinema sound system at the Long center though, the acoustics weren’t quite as sparkling as the image, leaving the sound a little mono-directional. (A cinema sound system would cost the non-profit Long Center several tens of thousands of dollars. Who wants to donate that?)
Still, the audience was appreciative Friday night, applauding the arias while they sipped drinks (yes, water and clear-colored beverages are now allowed into the Long Center’s Dell Hall for certain shows).
Up next, on Sept. 14,is Mozart’s ‘Cosi Fan Tutte’ from London’s Royal Opera House followed by ‘Carmen’ from Spain’s Gran Theatre del Liceu on Oct. 13.
See www.thelongcenter.org for more info.
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Review: ‘I Witness’
Postmodern is one of those lovely ambiguous labels that tends to get bandied about by critics and academics when we don’t exactly know what to say. It often seems to mean whatever its speaker wants it to mean. So in this instance, I’ll be sure to clarify.
“I Witness,” Tutto Theatre Company’s current production, running now through Sept. 4 at the Blue Theatre, is definitely postmodern. What makes it postmodern? The intentional juxtaposition of “high” and “low” culture, and a disorienting use of fragments, pastiche, montage — to me, these are fundamental aspects of postmodern art. While a collage sort of performance can make it difficult to focus on any given thing, it also allows you options about where to look or listen, which can be nice.
Billed as “an evening of dance (and spoken-word) with choreography by Amanda Oakley, Shawn Nasralla, and Jennifer Micallef,” the show is neither a play, nor a poetry reading, nor a dance recital… it’s all three — sort of.
It’s a play only in the sense that there does seem to be some sort of narrative through line that deals with love, identity and physics. There are performers who speak lines to an audience. And it happens in a theater.
The lines are a mish-mash of poetry, literary excerpts, quotations and explanations of physics by Albert Einstein and Niels Bohr, verging dangerously on the edge of pretentious. These “spoken-words” can be difficult to follow despite the actors efforts. Lizzi Biggers infuses her lines with captivating ardor, but Alex Cogburn would have done well to find some emotions to put behind his.
The dancing is certainly not traditional though classical elements appear, and it occasionally reminded me more of pilates than of pirouettes — which actually made it much more enjoyable than that might sound. Seeing legs in the air and not on the ground was disorienting in a delightful way and at times produced a whimsical sort of beauty that can be lacking in more stoic forms of dancing.
The play of shadows orchestrated by Natalie George’s breathtaking light design is worth the trip in itself, but the talented array of dancers really make the magic happen. Unlike a traditional chorus line, each woman stands out with her own shape, size, and costume.
You may have to pick a favorite to focus on with so much happening at once, but it’s not like that’s a new dilemma for anyone living in the age of the world wide web.
8 p.m. Thursday - Saturday. $15 (Thursdays pay-what-you-can). www.tuttotheatre.org
Cate Blouke is an American-Statesman freelance arts critic.
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Review: ‘B-Boy Bluez’
There’s an undeniable energy to hip-hop music, a kinetic force, a driving beat that just won’t stop.
Writer and performer Zell Miller III channels this energy into “B-Boy Bluez,” a lively theatrical love letter to hip-hop culture running through Sept. 4 at the Vortex theater, in co-production with UpRise! Productions.
One of the few performers in Austin whose work fits into the genre of hip-hop theatere, Miller skillfully combines hip-hop elements (graffiti art, rap/spoken word, dj-ing beats) with autobiographical stories and character-driven monologues. The fourth element of hip-hop, breakdancing (or b-boying) is brought to life by dancers from local dance crew Outta Kontrol (with choreography by Ananda Mayi Moss and Tony Phillips), who glide through space effortlessly and are a sheer joy to watch.
Miller is a fast-paced and spirited performer who excels at connecting with the audience through telling personal stories that are funny, touching, and full of pop culture references (“Charlie’s Angels,” “Hawaii Five-0”) that will make old-enough audience members flash back to their own pasts nostalgically. In other memorable scenes, Miller plays a “professor” of hip-hop, who schools the audience in hip-hop history.
Like all true hip-hop artists, Miller threads his rhymes with incisive social commentary. In “B-Boy Bluez” he tackles the gentrification of East Austin and the way hip-hop has been commercialized and turned into a commodity for the masses. He also calls out current hip-hop artists for continuing to spread misogyny and homophobia through their music.
Mostly, though, the show centers on the positive effect hip-hop culture had on Miller’s life as a young boy growing up in Austin. As Miller talks about the artists who have influenced him— KRS-One, Public Enemy, Digable Planets — his passion and respect shine through. The show is definitely about race, class, and history, but it’s also about the power of language, art, and music to inspire lives and reshape worlds.
The program note rather mysteriously states that Miller is planning to “walk away” from being a featured performer to focus more time on producing and writing in the future. If this is true, one should definitely see “B-Boy Bluez” before he does.
‘B-Boy Bluez’ continues 8 p.m. Thursdays-Sundays through Sept. 4 at The Vortex, 2307 Manor Road. Tickets $10-$30. Sundays 2-for-1 admission with donation of two non-perishable food items for SafePlace. www.vortexrep.org
Claire Canavan is an American-Statesman freelance critic.
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Scriptworks tweaks name, broadens reach to DFW
The playwrights’ service organization Austin Scriptworks is now just Scriptworks to reflect the group’s expansion of services to the Dallas/Fort Worth area.
The playwright-driven organization offers coaching, staged readings, worshops and co-presents FronteraFest, the annual fringe festival of new work. Now, Scriptworks will be taking its readings and workshops to the Dallas-Fort Worth area as well.
We’re very excited about expanding our programming to the Dallas - Fort Worth area, and since about a quarter of our membership lives outside of Austin, now is the perfect time to change our name to reflect our reality,” says executive director Christian J. Moore.
This Sunday, Aug. 29, Scriptworks will be hosting its annual end-of-summer .Meet N Greet,’ 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Vortex Theater, 2307 Manor Road. Area playwrights, actors, directors, designers, technicians and those interested in finding out more about ScriptWorks are invited. It’s FREE; libations provided.
For more info see www.scriptworks.org.
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Hanger company launches ‘ARTroduction’ art competition
Now that it’s relocated its headquarters to Austin, the Hanger Orthopedic Group, a supplier of of orthotic and prosthetic products, is launching a competition for local artists.
“Hanger’s ARTroduction to Austin” competition offers a local artist a $10,000 commission plus the opportunity for exhibition at Hanger’s corporate office in the Domain in Northwest Austin.
From the new release, the details of Hanger’s contest:
The artwork should reflect the theme of “Moving Lives Forward,” representing Hanger’s vision to provide services and products that enhance human physical capability. The winning art will be displayed in the gallery space of Hanger’s new headquarters at The Domain in Northwest Austin for approximately two years. After that time, the work will be auctioned with proceeds benefitting a local nonprofit organization.
Artists can decide what concept would best represent the theme and have the most impact on the designated space, whether that is a series of artwork or a single piece. The competition is open to all visual art mediums except video or any work that requires electricity. Entries, including a 500-word-limit description, a photo of one completed original piece of art, and the artist’s resume, are due by 5 p.m., CST, on Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2010.
A jury of area art professionals along with Hanger Orthopedic Group representatives will select up to 10 finalists who will be awarded $500 each. The winning artist, chosen by the same jury, will receive a $10,000 Hanger Commission Award to carry out his or her vision for Hanger’s gallery space. Hanger employees across the country will also select one artist to receive the Employee Choice Award and a $1,000 prize. The Employee Choice artist’s work will likely be displayed at one of Hanger’s patient care centers in the Austin area.
Full details on the competition are available at www.ARTroduction.com.
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Tapestry Dance Company to offer free Saturday intro classes
The professional hoofers at Tapestry Dance Company are offering to share their secrets for free.
Beginning next week, the company will offer a series of free Saturday classes for adults and teens in tap, ballet, modern and jazz dance.
The first Saturday of each month Tapestry co-founder and artistic director Acia Gray will lead in intro tap class. Gray was recently elected to the National Tap Hall of Fame.
Every second Saturday, Tapestry co-found Deirdre Strand will teach an introductory ballet class. Third Saturdays it will be modern dance and fourth Sundays, jazz dance.
No experience is required; no obligation to sign up for anything else.
Introduction to Dance Series
11 a.m. Saturdays beginning Sept. 4
Tapestry Dance Studios, 2302 Western Trails Blvd.
www.tapestry.org
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Five Austin museums declared a “cultural campus”
Five Austin museums located at or near the University of Texas have joined forces to create single joint profile for marketing purposes.
Dubbing themselves “Austin’s Cultural Campus,” the Blanton Museum of Art, the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum, the Harry Ransom Center, the LBJ Library and Museum, and the Texas Memorial Museum plan to dovetail some promotional efforts such as creating a descriptive brochure and map. Additional plans call for some collaborative programming.
To recognize the group effort, Mayor Lee Leffingwell will proclaim September 2010 as “Austin Cultural Campus Month” at today’s City Council meeting
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Weekend Arts Pix
‘New Works: Okay Mountain’
Austin Okay Mountain artist collective has had a heck of success in the past year. Their current show in New York is getting critical raves. And ten-person collective got a ton of attention at last year’s Pulse Art Fair in Miami, taking home the ‘Pulse Prize’ — all while running a ground-breaking gallery in East Austin. Now, the group presents its latest venture, a video installation entitled ‘Water, Water Everywhere, So Let’s All Have a Drink,’ a satirical send-up of mass media. Exhibit continues through Nov. 14. Austin Museum of Art, 823 Congress Ave. $4-$5. www.amoa.org
Joseph Phillips & Shawn Smith
‘Muses IV: Memories of a House.’
Home is where the stories are. The theater artists of the Vestige Group know this. And for their latest site-specific performance, they use the history of an historic South Austin and the people who lived in it as a basis for an intimate theatrical journey. Audience members wander from room to room and happen upon characters and settings that weave a narrative web of the family that once called he thouse a home. 8 p.m. Fridays-Sundays through Sept. 12 Private residence in South Austin. Location given upon reservation. $15-$25. www.vestigegroup.org
‘Totally Telemann.’
The Guinness Book of Records cites German Baroque composer Georg Philipp Telemann as the most prolific composer of all time. For an all Telemann concert, countertenor Andrew Hallock is joined by Baroque oboeist Billy Traylor, harpsichordist JiMin Kim and members of the La Follia Baroque ensemble. 8 p.m. Saturday. First Presbyterian Church, 8001 Mesa Dr. $15 ($12 seniors, $5 students). www.lafollia.org
Image: Joseph Phillips, ‘String Theory (Earth),’ courtesy D. Berman Gallery.
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KLRU’s “In Context” series to feature Anton Nel and Bion Tsang
Thought that KLRU’s famed Studio 6A soundstage was just pop music?
Think again.
In February, the legendary set of “Austin City Limits” was the site for a concert by two Austin-based classical musicians, pianist Anton Nel and cellist Bion Tsang. The gig was a recording for KLRU’s “In Context” series, which presents performances by Austin artists and cultural organizations.
Tsang and Nel played selected movements from Boccherini’s Sonata in A major, Rachmaninov’s Sonata in G minor, Shostakovich’s Sonata in D minor, Beethoven’s Sonata in A major and Brahms’s Hungarian Dance No. 1 in G minor.
Thursday KLRU will air the 30-minute special at 8 p.m.
The duo — both celebrated soloists in their own right — crossed paths more than 15 years ago in New York and have since developed a musical partnership. Now both on the faculty of the University of Texas’ Butler School of Music, they continue their collaboration, frequently performing and recording together.
Their new CD, “Bion Tsang and Anton Nel: Live in Concert, Brahms Cello Sonatas and Four Hungarian Dances,” recently was released on Artek Recordings and iTunes. The CD was recorded live in New England Conservatory’s celebrated Jordan Hall in 2008. In his more than three decades of concertizing, Nel has developed a reputation as a sensitive interpreter and wholly present performer, known for his virtually encyclopedic repertoire.
Among the famed concert halls he’s played are Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw and London’s Wigmore Halls.
Tsang, who made his debut with the New York Philharmonic at age 11, is noted as a chamber collaborator having played with the likes of Austin Grammy-nominated choir Conspirare, pianist Leon Fleisher and celebrated fellow cellist Yo Yo Ma. Nevertheless, the chance to play on the “Austin City Limits” stage was not without its excitement for Tsang.
“I’ve lived in Austin since 2002, and it is a thrill to play in the ‘Austin City Limits’ studio, where so many legendary musicians — Willie Nelson, B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, to name a few — have inspired audiences,” says Tsang.
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Ballet Austin hosts free day of dance class, opens new studio
Think you can dance?
Ballet Austin invites you to give it a try Sept. 12 when it hosts its third annual free day of dance and fitness classes. “Come Dance! 2010” will offer classes for adults and children in ballet, yoga, jazz dance, hula, hip hop, pilates and broadway and musical theater dance, among other offerings.
The celebration will also include the opening of a new 1,910-square-foot studio within the ballet’s Butler Education Center— a direct response to the growing demand for dance classes. Ballet Austin has seen a remarkable 472% growth in demand since opening its new downtown center in 2007.
WHAT: “Come Dance! 2010” Celebration: A day of free classes and opening of a new studio
WHEN: 2 to 6 p.m., Sept. 12
WHERE: Ballet Austin’s Butler Dance Education Center, 501 W. Third St.
Free admission
INFO: www.balletaustin.org
image: Free day of dance classes 2008. Photo by Kelly West/A-AS.
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I am embarrassed that my photograph was attached to such a juvenile and poorly thought out review. I am amazed at the reviewer’s one dimensional view of theater and of her wild assertion that this play somehow made excuses for racism or homophobia.
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Would have loved to see this show, but couldn’t because of my rehearsal schedule for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in Wimberley. We would love to have you come and see our show. Our last weekend is August 20 and 21 at 8 p.m. and August 22 at 2:30 p.m. at
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