Interludes

VIEWPOINTS – Streaming Diary: Week 2 of CITY BALLET’s digital fall season, Scott Silven THE JOURNEY, and the Public Works documentary UNDER THE GREENWOOD TREE

• By drediman
• October 5, 2020
• No Comments

Here are some thoughts on my recent streaming adventures.

UNDER THE GREENWOOD TREE
The Public Theater / All Arts

This week via All Arts – WNET’s wonderfully comprehensive, arts-focused online platform – I tuned into Under the Greenwood Tree (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED), a film documenting the inspiring story behind the Public Theater’s seven-year-old Public Works program, particularly its 90-minute musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s As You Like It. I had seen the show, which features a spiffy new score by amiable songstress Shaina Taub (who also starred in the staging as Jacques), when it was first put on for a handful of performances at the Delacorte Theater during the summer of 2017. The joyous musical was supposed to have been remounted this past summer for a longer run of four weeks (given their huge scale, Public Works productions have tended to run no longer than a week). Obviously, that didn’t transpire, but fortunately, we have this documentary to remind us of the importance of Public Works’ mission. The film’s guiding voice is As You Like It director Laurie Woolery, who makes an impassioned and articulate case for the need for such programs as Public Works, which partners with a number of vital community groups to engage New Yorkers from across the five boroughs to participate in the creation of live professional theater. Scattered throughout the film are ample snippets from the 2017 run, as well as several uplifting personal stories testifying to the positive impact the program has had. The film also brings us to the present, depicting how the bonds that have been forged through Public Works continue to enrich lives during our current desperate times, despite the cancellation of this summer’s run.

DIGITAL FALL SEASON – WEEK 2
New York City Ballet

New York City Ballet’s digital fall season continues this week with a jam-packed bill. Under the umbrella title “Modern Innovation”, the program (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED) – which is available for free streaming until October 13 – seeks to highlight the company’s ongoing dedication to realizing uncharted choreographic visions. Unlike Week 1, which solely focused on the works of George Balanchine, Week 2 features the works of various choreographers, including Jerome Robbins (Opus 9/The Dreamer, Glass Pieces), Ulysses Dove (Red Angels), Lynne Taylor-Corbett (Chiaroscuro), and of course, Mr. Balanchine (Kammermusik No. 2, Movements for Piano and Orchestra). Personal highlights included watching a younger Sara Mearns and Teresa Reichlen rip through – with aplomb – Kammermusik No. 2‘s fiendishly intricate and fast choreography in a 2012 performance. It was also a treat to see Maria Kowroski, the current grand dame of the company, move with the poetry and grandeur that has been the hallmark of her dancing as of late in such diverse works as the modernist Movements for Piano and Orchestra and the sexy and brash Red Angels. And what better way to cap off the program than with the full company dancing the last movement of Glass Pieces, one of the most galvanizing finales in City Ballet’s repertory (in fact, the rest of the Robbins’s striking ballet, which isn’t shown in this program, is pretty darn iconic, in my book). Collectively, these works point to City Ballet’s inspired history of applying its considerable resources to advance the scope of the art form.

THE JOURNEY
Scott Silven / The Momentary

This week, I also had the opportunity to live-stream Scott Silven’s The Journey (RECOMMENDED), courtesy of the Momentary, a contemporary art museum located in Bentonville, Arkansas. I first encountered Mr. Silven as the mysterious but charismatic host of At the Illusionist’s Table, an intimate but immensely popular attraction that played the McKittrick Hotel a few years ago. In the best mentalist/magic tradition – consummate showmen like Penn & Teller, Derren Brown, and Derek DelGaudio quickly come to mind – Mr. Silven artfully intertwines his illusions with personal musings on the mysteries of life and the universe. In doing so, he imbues his “magic” with meaning, thereby engaging the soul and mind, in addition to inciting visceral astonishment. In The Journey, our attractive guide hones in on the notions of home, time, and our inevitable interconnectedness, all themes that resonate strongly in this unprecedented time of extended isolation and lockdown. As in his stint at the McKittrick, Mr. Silven’s persona – which translates potently to the screen – draws audiences in with its unique blend of dashing youthfulness and world-weariness. Even if the trickery of it all isn’t quite as gasp-inducing as when I was a newcomer to the genre, I nonetheless still marveled at the technical skill and elegance of Mr. Silven’s craft. I’d like to also note that the quality of The Journey‘s production is superb, much more polished than most of the interactive live-streaming events I’ve come across.