BWW Review: SOUVENIR at Penguin Repertory TheatreAugust 28, 2018Singing poorly is an easy task for those of us who can't sing. But it's daunting task to singers who have spent a lifetime refining their vocal production. As Florence Foster Jenkins Debra Jean Templin puts aside all of her skill and technique to become the legendary tone-deaf diva, society matron cum opera singer.
BWW Review: A FOX ON THE FAIRWAY at Elmwood PlayhouseMay 17, 2018Ken Ludwig had a worldwide hit with 'Lend Me a Tenor,' which was a throwback of sorts to the madcap physical British stage comedies of yesteryear. According to all the press materials for his play, 'A Fox on the Fairway,' this play is another tribute to the great English farces of the 1930s and 1940s. And truth be told there are many valid comparisons, but the comedy is of a far less polished and elegant form in his play (the female love interest actually says she needs to kiss her paramour's 'balls' for luck). This kind of low brow humor is found everywhere in 'A Fox on the Fairway.'
BWW Previews: 2018 SEASON PREVIEW at Penguin Repertory TheatreMay 14, 2018Every spring for the last 40 years, something very special has happened in Rockland County: the Penguin Rep, the not-for-profit professional Equity theatre started by artistic director Joe Brancato in 1977, begins its season. This year will be their 41st season! Brancato along with with executive director Andrew M. Horn -- has grown Penguin from a small summer theatre into what the New York Times calls: 'the gutsiest little theater!' - one of the Hudson Valley's most influential nonprofit cultural institutions, and nearly half a million theater-goers have passed through its doors during that time.
BWW Review: The NJSO Performs MENDELSSOHN & SIBELIUS at Bergen PACMay 9, 2018The well-worn, and well-loved Mendelssohn Violin concerto lead off the first half of the program, as Violinist Ning Feng brought great energy and virtuosity to what must be just about the most-performed violin concerto of all time. Mendelssohn broke tradition by introducing the solo instrument right at the beginning of the piece and also by writing out the solo cadenza. Prior to this concerto, cadenzas had generally been completely improvised by the soloist. Mendelssohn's letters have told us that he chose to connect the movements of his concerto into one uninterrupted piece because he detested mid-performance applause - which he viewed as an annoying distraction, and it was a masterstroke.