Jonathan Shipley

Rep Announces Jinkx Monsoon Holiday Show

The Seattle Repertory Theatre recently announced that the revolutionary Jinkx Monsoon (Jerick Hoffer), last seen at the Seattle Rep last fall with The Vaudevillians, is returning for a holiday show with Major Scales (Richard Andriessen).

“After the overwhelming response to The Vaudevillians last season, we gave Jerick and Richard an open invitation to come back to us with a new show,” says acting artistic director Braden Abraham. “We can’t wait to see what they have in store.”

Rumor is it’ll be a reprise of a holiday show they did last year in New York. The show will take place at Seattle Repertory Theatre’s Leo K. Theatre from November 25 to December 13.

Are you not yet familiar with Jinkx Monsoon, winner of season five of RuPaul’s Drag Race?

Here’s a bit about the aforementioned The Vaudevillians:

At the Capital Pride Parade, a rendition of “The Origin of Love”:

At 5th Avenue Theatre in the role of Angel in Rent:

Finally, “The Bacon Shake”:

Meet the Cast: ‘Ariadne auf Naxos’

Ariadne auf Naxos, running at Seattle Opera through the end of the week, is a screwball comedy in two parts. There’s lots happening in this show—check out Travis Vogt’s latest installment of “Going to the Opera with Grandma” for more about its inner workings.

Let’s meet some of the cast…

The role of Prima Donna/Ariadne is being played by Berlin-born Christiane Libor. Ms. Libor gave her American operatic debut at Seattle Opera in 2012–13 in the title role of Beethoven’s Fidelio. Here she is singing Wagner:

The role of Zerbinetta is being played by Sarah Coburn. She recently performed the role of Princess Yue-Yang in the world premiere production of Tan Dun’s The First Emperor at the Metropolitan Opera opposite Placido Domingo. Here she is rehearsing for Lucia di Lammermoor:

The role of Tenor/Bacchus is being sung by Issachah Savage. Mr. Savage was the winner of the 2014 Seattle International Wagner Competition earning the main prize, audience favorite prize, orchestra favorite prize, and a special honor by Speight Jenkins. Here he is at another competition singing Wagner:

The role of Harlekin is being played by Andrew Garland, who has had multiple recitals at Carnegie Hall and around the world. Here he is singing a piece from the musical Carousel:

The cast also includes Patrick Carfizzi, Doug Jones, Amanda Opuszynski, Maya Lahyani, and others.

‘Robin Hood’ Reviewed by a Sixth Grader

Grace Shipley, a theatre-going sixth grader from Hamilton International Middle School, discusses Robin Hood

Robin Hood was very well done, as most all Seattle Children’s Theatre productions are.

I very much enjoyed seeing the same people perform the show since nearly the same cast did the show a few years before.

I also liked how the story was adventurous enough to have small fight scenes that the actors must have worked very hard on.

My favorite character was the sheriff because the actor [Basil Harris] really brought out that specific character quite well, portraying the evil bumbling sheriff quite nicely. I also enjoyed Prince John [played by David Quicksall]. He’s my second favorite character because he had a weird, crazy role that was good weird and pretty childish and kind of crazy. But good crazy.

It was nice at intermission how they didn’t make the audience pay a lot of money on snacks! Most everything was $2 dollars and some of the drinks were only a buck! I had some hot tea and a Rice Krispy Treat.

Overall, I really thought Robin Hood was good the first time I saw it years ago. Now, it’s even better!

A poem by Grace Shipley, based on Robin Hood’s Sherwood Forest:

The deer turn to me, their beady eyes
always watching, as they run
back into the brush, the huckleberries
falling beneath their feet.

The orange fish dance in blankets
of waves and the river spirits
laugh as they speed ahead.

The trees drip with sunlight
as they bake under the sky’s sheet.
The sun burns a yellowy orange
and puts all of its power inot
warm summer says.

The monarchs fly overhead,
their patterns endless, like a maze
they swirl in and out of each
other until they must collide.

In the forest.

Robin Hood runs through May 17 at Seattle Children’s Theatre.

A Farewell to Carla Körbes

Pacific Northwest Ballet’s principal dancer, Carla Körbes, will be retiring at the end of the season. She started dancing in Brazil at age five and as a teen she was encouraged by Peter Boal to pursue her career in New York. By 1999 she was dancing with the New York City Ballet, attaining the role of soloist. She joined the Pacific Northwest Ballet in 2005.

Körbes is the type of once-in-a-lifetime performer who has inspired a legion of superfans. Their enthusiasm will no doubt follow her beyond the ballet into whatever creative endeavor she pursues next—and she’s hinted that there will be more dancing in her future. In an interview with the New York Times she said, “It’s not the end. I just need a change.”

Before her lamented departure from the PNB, we present a few video snippets of her virtuosity. Here’s Körbes at the 2012 Vail International Dance Festival:

And as Juliet:

And in Christopher Wheeldon’s ballet Carousel:

And as Giselle:

And in A Midsummer Night’s Dream:

Finally, here she is performing the Black Swan at the 2010 Vail International Dance Competition:

Congratulations on all your successes, Carla Körbes, and our good wishes for many more!

A Kid Reviews ‘Dick Whittington and His Cat’

Dick Whittington and His Cat one of the best shows I’ve ever seen at Seattle Children’s Theatre.

Yeah?

Totally. I’m not just saying that.

You’re saying you liked it.

I liked it. My favorite characters were Bloody Bess, the pirate. She was a good bad guy. I tend to like bad guys.

Hopefully not when you start dating.

DAD! So, Bloody Bess. And I liked the Peacock Hat Chief Guy. I liked Peacock Hat Chief Guy because he was hilarious and made me laugh so hard my stomach hurt.

Are you sure it wasn’t that giant cookie at intermission you could barely finish?

WHAT?! IT WAS A GOOD COOKIE!

Were there any parts that particularly struck you?

One part I liked was when Dick Whittington was sleeping up in the attic. It was really creepy and there were rats everywhere and the housekeeper guy sang this funny rat song. I liked the differences there—we were scared and laughing at the same time.

Did you know the guy who plays Pinky wrote the music?

Pinky was SOOOOO GOOD!

And you do you know how he moved that little boat of his around the stage all night? There’s a motorized wheelchair underneath it all. They have a little joystick that you can’t see and they can move it around anywhere across the stage.

And when they turned out the lights and the rats glowed. That was so cool! And the cat itself. It’s just a puppet but they moved it around like it wasn’t. You almost believed it was a real cat.

However funny it was though, or how much good singing there was, or how great the characters and sets were realized, it was about more than just a guy and his cat, wasn’t it?

Here’s a poem I wrote…

DICK WHITTINGTON AND HIS CAT: A Poem

Quick. Agile. Eyes that shimmer like
diamonds in the dark. Fast, yet unmoving.
The fur like a blanket covering you
in the coldest of nights. A friend.
Braveness and good feelings. True heart.

That’s good.

DAD!

For Thanksgiving dinner perhaps I should find peacock hat and dance around like that guy?

If you do, I’m eating Thanksgiving dinner somewhere else.

An Eleven-year-old Encounters ‘The Garden of Rikki Tikki Tavi’

“Dad,” my eleven-year-old daughter says as we enter the theatre and find our seats to the sound of bird calls, “I think I might be the oldest kid here.”

She could be right. Little kids are everywhere. “Hmm, yes,” I say, consulting the program, “It looks like the show is for kids five and up.”

“I’m up above five.”

“What about me?! I’m WAY above five.” I say.

“You don’t act like it.”

Waiting for the lights to go down, we read our Encore Arts program to learn a bit about the show before it begins. Based on the classic short story by Rudyard Kipling, the man who wrote The Jungle Book, it’s a story of friendship and cooperation in an Indian garden. There’s an innocent baby mongoose named Rikki Tikki Tavi, a vain bossy bird named Darzee and a befuddled muskrat named Chuchu who have to work together to rid the garden of their arch-enemy, the sneaky cobra Nag. By cooperating, they realize that friendship makes the garden a home.

After the show ended the cast signed autographs for the little ones.

What did you think?

I would rate the whole production four stars.

Out of 5 stars?

No, dad, out two thousand stars. Yes, five stars!

Who was your favorite character?

Darzee, because she has such a dramatic change from the beginning to the end. And, also, she’s really funny.

She was a good actor.

I wrote a poem about her!

Darzee
A poem by Grace Shipley

Purples, reds, oranges, greens, and blues swirl
together, flapping wings and selfish spirit.
Emotions spread across the feathers that
sway and beat in the wind. A dance of
difference occurs through every chapter.
What is this beautiful, strange creature.
It is a bird. It is Darzee.

I thought all the actors were pretty good. Didn’t you, kiddo?

The cobra was great. The actor put a lot of emotion and enthusiasm into it. And the muskrat was funny. The actor worked really hard at it and his funny voice was solid through the whole show. And Rikki Tikki Tavi, herself, was well cast. She was small, too. I liked that. It was a baby mongoose after all.

Do you know what the plural of mongoose is?

Mongooses. Duh, dad.

What about the costumes?

They were neat but I would have changed the costume for the muskrat because I couldn’t clearly see the character and I didn’t understand what it really was at first. But then he said he was a muskrat. So, that’s cool.

[We walked out into the lobby afterwards.]

So, even though you’re a little older than five, you actually didn’t mind seeing the show at all, did you?

But, I’m eleven, dad. Let’s hope I’m not the oldest one in the audience for their next show.

Don’t forget, kid. I’ll be one of the oldest in the audience for the next show. I’m 30 years older than you are.

But you’re an adult.

But with the heart of a child!!

DAD!

In Conversation with Seattle Symphony Music Director Ludovic Morlot

Fearless. That’s what Ludovic Morlot, Music Director of the Seattle Symphony wants to be. He wants to stretch what a symphony can do. He’s conducted composers like Boulez, Dvorak, Mahler, and Verdi while also producing programming that interfaces with the local community—last year’s collaboration with rapper Sir-Mix-a-Lot is a perfect example.

He chatted with us about the upcoming season, ferry rides and the Seattle Mariners.

What are you most excited about with this year’s opening night gala?

To present to Seattle French music that’s less well known. This will be the first performance of Ibert’s Suite symphonique, “Paris,” for instance. That’s very exciting for me, bringing these French composers who were important to the landscape of classical music in the first half of the 20th century to audiences.

And you get to work with violinist Gil Shaham.

He is a great violinist and a great friend. We’ve performed many times together, starting in New York City.

You play violin. Is there a difference when you conduct a violinist over some other musician?

You know the repertoire better, having played it yourself. I can read their body language. It’s easier for me to connect with them.

Are there any particular highlights for you personally in the coming season?

When you design the whole thing you love the whole thing! But: Dvorak’s final three symphonies, the Sibelius symphonies, Mahler’s Third Symphony, and our other programming, too: co-commissions with Mason Bates and Sebastian Currier, working with [Seattle-based sound sculptor] Trimpin.

What composers do you never tire of conducting?

Beethoven, Mozart, Haydn. I feel like I know about 1% of what they were trying to say. Each time I conduct I learn something else.

You mentioned your other programming. Innovating the symphony seems to be important to you. How do you find that balance between challenging symphony-goers and giving them what they’re used to with the Beethoven and Mozart and Haydn?

Art is about how we allow ourselves to get out of the box. To move forward as an organization you have to be open-minded. You can’t fear bringing different types of music to audiences—by doing that you might bring in new audiences. Everyone’s starting point to classical music is different, and I’m trying to hit all those starting points. Regardless of the repertoire, you have to be open to tolerate it. It just might trigger creativity. Sir-Mix-A-Lot, I had to get out of my comfort zone for that performance and Sir-Mix-A-Lot had to get out of his. We have to be open and great things can happen.

What do you like to do in Seattle?

I love to go on the ferry, to be out on the water. You get a different perspective on the city. You see that dichotomy between nature and city. The Olympics and downtown, the water; that duality is very striking to me.

There’s no limit to what one can do here. I haven’t found 1/10 of what the city has to offer.

When people come to visit you here—where do you like to take them?

I take my French visitors to a Mariners game. Baseball isn’t anything in Europe. They’re fascinated by it like I am!

What’s the future for the symphony? Have you started planning for next season?

Oh, yes. The 2015–16 season is nearly done. The 2016–17 season we’re well into. The designing of the season programming—I lose sleep over it, I find it so fascinating. I love it.

In Conversation with ‘Jane Eyre’ Actor Art Anderson

First published in 1847, Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre is the story of Jane, an orphaned girl living with a family that dislikes her. She grows in strength, excels at school, becomes a gonverness and falls in love with the mysterious Edward Rochester. Deceived by him, Jane Eyre soon discovers something within her self—an inner-strength—and becomes a strong, independent woman. Taproot Theatre brings that story to the stage, as a musical, with Jessica Spencer playing Jane Eyre and Art Anderson playing the role of Rochester.

Encore recently sat down with Anderson to discuss the complexity of his character, what music brings to the story, and the genius of Charlotte Brontë.

What do you like most about your character?

The character of Rochester is complex and loaded with contradictions. His goals and intensions are clear and focused to get the girl, though his methods of achieving them are less than thoughtful. As an actor, the challenges here are intoxicating which says nothing of the pure joy of singing this incredible score.

How did you get involved in this particular show?

When I heard Taproot was going to produce Jane Eyre, the Musical, I felt drawn to the possibility of auditioning. I was not very much aware of the staged musical but the character of Rochester is iconic in English literature and I knew it would be a role worth pursuing. The open call for the role was at a time when I was out of town and I was crushed that I could not be considered. After jumping through some hoops and shameless, pleading correspondence, I was able to persuade the Production Stage Manager and Director for consideration after the fact. I was later notified that they would hold up casting the role until I was back in town to audition in person. I was and am still very grateful for the risk that the production staff took in holding off and casting me.

Jane Eyre is a classic. Why add singing? What does it add to the story?

I say, why not? Composer Paul Gordon has written this sweeping and incredible score to this timeless tale. It should be heard and appreciated. The significant story themes continue to resonate long after the production is over… To add musical nuance and emotion only enriches the experience of the book, especially if done well, as I feel we have achieved.

What will be surprising about your production to those who have read the book?

For those that know the Bronte novel and the journey of literature’s first real female heroine, will appreciate that the play keeps, for the most part, the descriptive and passionate first-person voice of Jane Eyre throughout the play. Through the use of a most excellent and diverse ensemble cast, the playwright and director are able to keep the essence of this storytelling through a Greek chorus, if you will, as well as Jane’s own narrative. The one thing that struck me most of Charlotte Bronte’s novel is her mastery of an amazingly descriptive and beautiful narrative. This is not lost in the writing of this play. It’s very loyal to the novel within the limited time constraints.

What’s your favorite role you’ve played thus far in your career?

As the old adage dictates, the role you are in at present is always your favorite. The role of Rochester has opened my eyes, with the help of some careful direction from Karen Lund, to an array of choices and risks worth taking. I look at favorite roles from which I grow as an actor and the personal relationships I experience during the rehearsal process and performance. My experience here with this production has easily risen to ‘favorite’ status, also because it’s just so much fun.

What actor would you like to work with?

Seattle is a hub of amazing talent and the list of actors with whom I’d like to work is long. One local actor, in particular comes to mind, my husband, Nick DeSantis. He is an amazing actor and I’m sure I’d get a kick out of the experience if we could ever arrange the same working schedule. It is how we met, after all, eleven years ago.

Favorite place to see live theater in Seattle?

There is no specific venue I enjoy more than any other. I love how each venue succeeds in transporting me to different worlds in their own unique way.

Terri Weagant Talks ‘Julius Caesar’

Seattle Shakespeare Company is bringing an all-female version of William Shakespeare’s epic political thriller Julius Caesar to Seattle parks this summer, in a production directed by Vanessa Miller. Seattle theatre veteran Terri Weagant, who has performed on the stages of Book-It Repertory Theatre, ACT’s Central Heating Lab, Theater Schmeater and others, takes on the formidable role of charismatic Roman politician Mark Antony. We caught up with her to discuss the play, how (and if) having an all-female cast affects the production and the mosquito-related challenges of performing outdoors.

What do you like best about your character?

Antony is fiercely loyal to Caesar. In his youth, he spent much of his time gambling, drinking and seducing women and men. He was basically run out of Rome. Caesar became a surrogate father to him; teaching him about military strategy, political prowess and personal forgiveness. When Caesar is killed, Antony vows to avenge his death. Antony is an incredible orator and a master manipulator. Those are two great traits that can help you take over a country.

What do you bring to the character that males might not be able to bring to it?

I have worked on numerous shows that have played with non-traditional casting, where races and sexes differ from the original. The thing that changes is the perception of the audience. Antony is proud, conniving, dedicated, passionate and a bit of a hot-head. That’s the character that I want to play. The audience can read into “Friends, Romans, Countrymen,” being spoken by a woman in any way they please. Meaning can be attached to anything. That’s for them to decide.

What does an all-female cast bring to Julius Caesar that another cast potentially couldn’t?

We’ve had many discussions during the process about masculine vs. feminine traits. What makes something inherently masculine? Or feminine? Gender lines blur together. Are men guided by reason and action, and women by intuition and emotion? The characters change tactics throughout the play, employing traits that are characteristically male or female. It becomes less about gender and more about interpersonal relationships.

The central conflict in the play is political power. Our director, Vanessa Miller, said on day one that she thought a great deal about her 9-year-old daughter when she decided to go with an all-female cast. She wanted the young girls and boys who come to the show to see women in political power and not be fazed by it. Wooden O goes into communities all over the Puget Sound and for many young people this is their first exposure to Shakespeare. If they can accept that these people talk this way, then they can accept that women are the ones ruling Rome.

Why is Julius Caesar still important in this day and age?

Most of the themes from the play we see popping up in the news daily: political strife, betrayal, manipulation of information, power struggles and sacrificing personal morals for the good of the cause. History repeats itself.

What are the plusses and minuses of doing Shakespeare outdoors?

You have a lot of things against you when you work outdoors: planes, weather, fights, mosquitoes, etc. This is what makes the work fun. You’re always on your toes. You can look the audience directly in the eye. I love that the shows are free so whole families can come out. Shakespeare in the Park was my first introduction to his work. It took me a while to figure out what the heck they were saying, but once I did I was hooked.

In Conversation with Seattle Symphony’s Jeff Tyzik

Jeff Tyzik brought his creative arrangements, inventive programming and easy audience rapport to Seattle last year, when he joined the Seattle Symphony as Principal Pops Conductor for the 2013-14 season. This year, he’s back and eager to explore even more diverse music for more diverse audiences.A trumpet player by training, Tyzik has appeared with the Boston Pops, the Cincinnati Pops, the New York Pops, the Los Angeles Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl and the Dallas Symphony at the Vail Valley Music Festival, amongst others. From his home in Rochester, New York, Tyzik chatted with us about the coming season, what he likes to do in Seattle when he’s in town and his symbiotic relationship with Seattle Symphony Music Director Ludovic Morlot.

What are you looking forward to in the Seattle Symphony’s 2014-15 season?

I’m really excited about this coming season. We’re doing a performance of classic film scores—film music is some of the most compelling music created in the 20th century. We’ll play John Williams. We’ll play Star Warsand Superman, of course, but did you know he also did the score for The Witches of Eastwick? I like introducing less familiar music to audiences. We’ll play James Bond music, Casablanca, and some of the best music from westerns—Silverado, Dances with Wolves. For the holiday show we’re working with cirque groups to do a holiday themed aerial ballet, if you will. They will be performing while we play holiday music beneath them. We’ll also do a concert highlighting Ellis Hall, the last artist to sign on Ray Charles’s label. He was in the Tower of Power, and we’ll be playing a soul show with him, playing all sorts of great soul music from the late ’60s and early ’70s.

How do you go about choosing the programs that you do?

I want to keep audiences interested. If it’s interesting to me, hopefully it’ll be interesting to the audience. I’m always looking for new and different types of programming to keep things exciting. That’s why I like working with Ludovic Morlot. It’s a symbiotic relationship. We’re both looking for new ways to showcase great music. We go about it differently but we arrive at the same point in that regard.

Who is your favorite composer?

My tastes are eclectic. I like to bring that to the pops programming. I love Stravinsky. I love Beethoven. I love Miles Davis. I love Duke Ellington. Billy Joel. I’ve been listening to a lot of Latin music recently. The Beatles. I love all sorts of music.

What’s your favorite show you’ve done with the Seattle Symphony?

They’re like children: You like each of them for a different reason! “A Night at the Cotton Club” was fun, and we did a salute to veterans that was very powerful. I love working with this orchestra.

What’s your dream conducting gig, realistic or not?

I’m living it. I am very fortunate to be the Principal Pops Conductor for three orchestras: Seattle Symphony, Dallas Symphony and Detroit Symphony, and these are symphonies I grew up listening to.

What’s your principal instrument?

I play the trumpet. I’ve dabbled in keyboards. In the 1980s I had some jazz crossover albums on the Capitol Records label.

What do you like to do when you’re in Seattle?

I walk Pike Place Market, get the vibe. I like to cook, so if my hotel is one of those suites with a little kitchen in it I’ll go down to the market and buy some seafood and veggies and cook right there in my room.