Performance

Cirque Goes to Hollywood – Millennium Park – July 6, 2022

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Hoorah for Hollywood, whose music the Grant Park Orchestra played as the backdrop for Troupe Vertigo, a dizzying group that creates an atmosphere, its website says, “where reality bends, expectations twist and the body embraces the imagination.”

I’ve given up on reality, as I hear it’s not so great, and try not to have any expectations, so as to avoid being disappointed, but I assure you that the manner in which the cirque performers’ bodies were bent and twisted into dangerous and sometimes painful looking positions, while hanging above the stage dangling from ropes or doing handstands on gymnastic equipment, transcended anything I routinely imagine.

The feats executed during the theme from Mission Impossible fit that bill. but, when three performers came out wearing horse heads while performing to the theme from The Magnificent Seven, I thought they should have done so for the prior number, the theme from The Godfather. I wonder if they were asked to do so but found the courage to refuse.

A little over three years ago I wrote about the Chicago Philharmonic playing classical music to accompany the Cirque de la Symphonie. How many more combinations like this do I need to see to complete a full cirque[it]?

When You Have Eliminated the Impossible . . .

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As Sherlock Holmes, in his 2009 eponymous film, said to Inspector Lestrade, “we now have a firm grasp of the obvious.” Or so I think. I am referring, of course, to the most important decision facing humanity since Eve pondered the risk versus reward of taking a bite from that apple, that is, the selection of the next Jeopardy! host.

Eliciting memories of the way the examination of judicial nominations changed forever when Ronald Reagan put forth Robert Bork for the United States Supreme Court in 1987, we have seen, and continue to see, articles about one reason or another that has been, or should be, used to eliminate one candidate or another from consideration for the most important job on earth.

But I have not seen anyone, other than someone on Reddit, whatever that is, even mention the most obvious choice, the one that combines the greatest player with the cleanest background. Yes, Holmes, I mean the undefeated, irreproachable Watson, conqueror of Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter in their highly anticipated 2011 match.

Let the games begin.

Piff the Magic Dragon – North Shore Center for the Performing Arts – February 28, 2020

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For the last 12 years, John van der Put has performed as Piff the Magic Dragon. Though it pays the bills, I’d think he’d be tired of the persona by now. It only took me about ten or fifteen minutes, the time at the top of the show he boringly bantered with willing audience members in the guise of humor as he searched for his first on-stage victim.

To be fair, he is widely acclaimed, has solid magician skills, and is funny in spurts. But I wonder if he would be as popular if he weren’t wearing a cheesy Halloween costume. Or is he merely following in the hallowed footsteps of Bette Midler and her wheelchair-bound mermaid alter ego Delores Delago.

The other thing that sets his show apart is his sidekick, Mr. Piffles, the World’s First Magic Performing Chihuahua™. There was a point where I thought, and hoped, that Mr. Piffles might shuffle a deck of cards, but, alas, the height of his powers was being put into a bag with a Rubik’s Cube.

As further proof that Mr. Piffles is not all that special, Piff replaced him on short notice for a show in New Zealand with a dog that had previously starred as Bruiser in a stage production of Legally Blonde. Clearly that dog has some range.

Piff’s act also makes good use of Las Vegas comedic showgirl Jade Simone, who is not to be confused with Nina Simone, who performed in Vegas in the 1960s, or Simón Bolívar, who never made it to Vegas.

Piff has appeared on television on Penn & Teller: Fool Us and America’s Got Talent, but hasn’t made it to the list of the Top Ten Most Famous Dragons of All Time, though his almost namesake Puff comes in at number 18, which magically is part of the top ten.

 

The Mystick Krewe of Laff 28th Annual Mardi Gras Bash – Speakeasy in the Big Easy Feat – City Winery – February 22, 2020

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How ya gonna keep ’em down on the farm after they’ve seen Paree?

The Mystic Krewe of Laff’s bash is promoted as being the biggest Mardi Gras event in Chicago. I don’t know if that claim is accurate, but even if it is, I’ve seen Paree, or rather I’ve seen the Krewe du Vieux Carré in New Orleans. It was 2012 and the theme was Crimes Against Nature, and they meant it.

In New Orleans, the party was outside, where Mardi Gras parties should be, and where you don’t mind standing, unlike in the City Winery, where they oversold the event and didn’t have enough seats, though seating for all had been promised.

In New Orleans the music was better, sounded more like New Orleans, and wasn’t as hard on the ears as the piercing din at the City Winery, though fortunately I was prescient enough to bring earplugs.

In New Orleans the food was better, as City Winery was apparently promoting a bland-food diet. How do you make jambalaya tasteless?

In New Orleans the costumes were more interesting, though a lot of people, not me, tried their best at the City Winery. They just didn’t understand the difference between flapper attire and the decadence and debauchery associated with a real carnival.

In New Orleans there were mule-drawn carts with kegs of beer and other libations on them, which, I admit, might have been somewhat challenging at the City Winery and probably in violation of several laws.

At the City Winery, people were handed beads at the door. In New Orleans, you had to earn them the old-fashioned way.

Other than all that Mrs. Lincoln, I enjoyed my first visit to City Winery.

Happy Together: Songs You Know By Heart – Michael and Angela Ingersoll – North Shore Center for the Performing Arts – February 15, 2020

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The New York Times obituary of Mary Martin mentioned how it was her suggestion that her character Nellie Forbush in the Broadway production of South Pacific should literally wash that man right out of her hair (okay, the man wasn’t literally in her hair), as a result of which Martin shampooed her hair on stage for 1000 performances.

I never got to see that, except on a very grainy video of a West End production, but I did get to see Angela Ingersoll do it on stage, without the aid of a shower like Martin had, instead dunking her head into a bucket of water after donning a robe to protect her dress from any splatter. Nothing says show business like good, clean(ing) fun.

Angela’s husband Michael has some substantial credentials (including over 1300 performances in the Broadway touring company of Jersey Boys) and talent of his own, but Angela was the draw for me, having been captivated by her at a couple Porchlight Music Theater productions, including her Jeff Award-winning tour-de-force as Judy Garland in End of the Rainbow.

Among the other women in Angela’s repertoire is Cher, which reminded me of Stephanie J. Block’s story about finding Cher’s speaking voice for her Tony award-winning performance in The Cher Show. “I happened to be reading lines . . . while I was wearing Crest Whitestrips, and all of a sudden, I was beginning to sound more and more like Cher . . . . So I had to figure out how my mouth was projecting the sound and all the energy once I took the product off. Really, that was the key into how I found her exact sound. Thank you, Oral B!”

The singing aside, one highlight for me was the Ingersolls bringing their Greyhound, Dolly, on stage for a number (the dog didn’t sing) and then announcing that it was time for intermission because it was time for the dog, and perhaps some of the audience members, to pee.

But the most memorable moment of the evening may have been the recreation of the Jennifer Grey leap into Patrick Swayze’s arms while the Ingersolls sang I Had the Time of My Life as their closer. I was ready to be extremely impressed, and was, when the couple wound up doing a jumping chest bump that sent Angela flying backwards onto her butt. Cabaret meets The Three Stooges.

Indulgence with Lucy Darling – Chicago Magic Lounge – December 4, 2019

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Arthur C, Clarke’s Third Law states that “any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Carisa Hendrix, aka Lucy Darling, proves that the technology doesn’t have to be that advanced to seem like magic, which is defined as “the power of apparently influencing the course of events by using mysterious or supernatural forces.”

But, more importantly, she proves that what often separates the headliners from the run-of-the mill magicians is their patter and persona, especially when they purport to do comedy magic, as she does. Lucy’s talented, smart and funny. How often do you go to a magic show that includes a Chekov allusion about an illusion?

This was my second trip to the Chicago Magic Lounge, but first time at the main stage. It’s a beautiful room, and, if I may divert (and isn’t magic all about diverting your attention), the sliced potato pancakes were pretty darn good.

On the other hand, though Lucy is a cut above, her tricks are pretty standard fair. She does multiplying bottles, the linking finger ring, the any drink called for trick and one where she makes a book chosen by an audience member appear in a shopping bag. That last one didn’t fool Penn and Teller on their tv show, where, interestingly, the audience member chose the same book that was chosen at the Magic Lounge show. What would Arthur C. Clarke say about that?

I don’t know what P&T know, but it seems to me that Lucy could just hide a portable 3-D printer in the shopping bag, allowing her to produce an exact replica of the book in a matter of seconds during her stage patter. Or maybe she has an easier way.

Before she developed her current character, Carisa became a Guinness World Record Holder after holding a flaming torch in her mouth for just over two minutes. No torch this time, but the act is still hot.

Audra McDonald (with Seth Rudetsky) – Steppenwolf Theater – September 15, 2019

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I got to experience the best part of a Seth Rudetsky Broadway Cruise without having to get on a boat, although even I have to admit that his June, 2020 Venice to Venice excursion sounds interesting. I know there are a lot of cruise bloggers, but I don’t know if any of them get free passage for their efforts. I need an agent. What’s 10 per cent of nothing?

McDonald also has a cruise next year. Perhaps that’s the one for me. After seeing the six-time Tony award winner in person for the first time, I just know we could be friends. The woman loves to laugh so much that she gets stomach cramps, and is down-to-earth enough to share that information as it happens.

McDonald also admitted to being a little loopy after driving to Chicago from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, following a concert the night before, because her flight had been cancelled due to storms. I wonder if she sings along with the radio in the car. Seth should have asked her that.

People came to hear McDonald sing, and she didn’t disappoint, hitting a note so high at the end of her audience sing-a-long of I Could Have Danced All Night that it caused the insides of a cat in the alley behind the theater to explode. However, her inner diva appeared briefly as she admitted her competitiveness over the fact that an audience member had matched the note.

McDonald’s personality glowed in stories about a beeper in her coffin in Ragtime, her improvisation in Shuffle Along, and her daughter texting immediately after McDonald’s Climb Every Mountain solo in The Sound of Music live television production to ask her about laundry.

But I’m not kidding when I say that the hit of the evening may have been her rendition of The Facebook Song, which, be warned, or perhaps encouraged, contains language that may be considered offensive.

Teatro ZinZanni: Love, Chaos, and Dinner – Cambria Hotel – July 28, 2019

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Described as The Kit Kat Club on acid or The Moulin Rouge meets Cirque de Soleil, Teatro ZinZanni is too long, but what a hoot. Even the lobby is fun.

If you see it, be aware that it makes a difference where you sit. You don’t need to worry about blue paint or flying watermelon parts, but some of the action in the middle of the spiegeltent flows over onto a table or two, and if you’re centrally located you’re more likely to become part of the show, interacting with The Caesar or Lady Rizo, who is part Janis Joplin, part Bette Midler.

If you’re follicly challenged, you may get your scalp rubbed by various cast members, and if you’re a woman of a certain age, you might find yourself being theatrically-wooed by The Caesar, whose wild patter is reminiscent of Robin Williams. If you’re a healthy-looking young male, The Caesar may pick you out to participate in a faux competition to be his successor.

Sitting in a back booth provides relief for the stage shy. And you might, as I did, wind up in a conversation with a sixth-generation circus-family contortionist watching her ninth-generation circus-family, body-juggling, crowd-wowing boyfriend from an area behind your table in preparation for joining the show herself in a couple months when the acts change, as they regularly do to encourage return customers.

Between aerial artists, rhythmic gymnasts, and dancing waitstaff, Joe De Paul sang a little like Frank Sinatra (backed by a band that never took a break), portrayed King Kong, and partnered with the multi-talented Mr. P.P. (if you consider juggling with your mouth a talent) to leave the audience in tears of laughter from their hijinks.

My only regret was that singer Kelly Britt, hitting a ridiculously high note, failed to break the wine glass in her hand. Had she succeeded, she might have brought me over to the dark side, or as it is more commonly known, opera.

Sunday Near Millennium Park Without Anyone Named George – July 21, 2019

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Interestingly, both Doctors Without Borders and Borders book stores, which no one was able to save (thereby making the doctors’ organizational name prescient), were founded in 1971. On the other hand, Crossing Borders Music, which put on the concert by my piano teacher, Marianne Parker, that I attended at the Chicago Cultural Center, across Michigan Avenue from Millennium Park, originated in 2011.

The wonderful solo concert featured music from Marianne’s new album of Haitian music, entitled Pages intimes. As I told her afterward, she obviously has been holding out on me, not teaching me everything she knows, because, shockingly, I can’t play like she can. What other reason could there be?

I then rushed over to the Art Institute, across Monroe Street from Millennium Park, to attend its annual Block Party. On my way to the Impressionism room containing Van Gogh’s The Drinkers, for a program put on by the Brewseum, I passed by Seurat’s A Sunday on La Grande Jatte, thereby completing my park-adjacent trilogy.

Pub historian, and Brewseum founder and executive director, Liz Garibay presented a delightful lecture to the crowd on both the Van Gogh painting and the history and culture of drinking and drinking establishments in Chicago, including the 1855 Lager Beer Riot. After this educational tasting, I now thirst for more information, which I attend to drink in at the Brewseum’s exhibition currently on tap at the Field Museum.

I ended my near-the-park Sunday by watching Mucca Pazza (which translates as mad cow) end the party with one of their unique musical performances. P.T. Barnum would have been proud of the way they closed by marching through the Monroe Street exit, helping to clear the building by leading out hundreds of visitors, who then realized that the show was over.  This way to the egress.

The Big Red Show – Venus Cabaret – June 17, 2019

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Watching Meghan Murphy, a.k.a. Big Red, wipe off the sweat, excuse me, glisten, between numbers made me wonder how many signature, low-cut, red dresses she must own in order to put on her show three nights in a row.

At least this night she had the foresight to bring a small towel on stage with her. Both she, and the bartender before the show, told us that he had to give her napkins the night before to stem the tide.

Seeing Murphy on a Monday added an extra level of entertainment, as the audience was filled with her show business friends who had the night off from their own gigs, and who were not shy about emitting a plethora of joyous sounds of appreciation throughout the evening to the amusement of all, including Murphy.

And Big Red is not shy about enjoying herself on stage, as when she calls extra attention to the length of a note she’s holding by turning around slowly, then looking at her watch, except she isn’t wearing a watch, and mugging her reaction to that faux realization.

Murphy plays the part, not only of actress and chanteuse, but also of storyteller and philosopher. When she told the crowd she doesn’t like people to try to fit her talents into a neat box, I half expected her to transform into a mime trying to get out of a box, though it’s hard to imagine her remaining silent, or keeping a straight face, long enough to do that.

She also played the part of music critic, taking the time to pause and humorously parse Heart’s All I Wanna Do Is Make Love to You in the middle of singing it. She didn’t invent this. I found a 2013 article online that forges the same ground. Still, when Big Red does it, it’s more fun, because, as embodied in her final song as Mama Rose, some people ain’t her.