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By Susan Dunn Why do we keep going to see Waiting for Godot?  Why is it a classic? Comedy or Tragedy? Irish playwright Samuel Beckett himself called it a “tragicomedy”,  First written in French in 1948 after the tragedy of WWII, he rewrote it in English and the new version premiered in 1953 in Paris.  In 1998/1999 it was voted "most significant English-language play of the 20th century". Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waiting_for_Godot   How can a classic play begin with the ordeal of taking off a tight boot? Thus, our two protagonists, Estragon and Vladimir, affectionately known to each other as Gogo and Didi - with subtle resonances to Ego and ID -  welcome us to their world. And immediately we see how this inseparable pair weaves their totally disparate personalities into a fragile whole.  Estragon is a man of few words, but a world full of grimaces, contortions, moods and physical needs.  He beckons Vladimir’s help with the boot, only to be met with his partners distractions, dissertations, memories, mental musings and questions.  The pair’s interactions are conversational banalities, passing time until they can achieve their main objective. They must meet with a man called Godot, whom they may have met before, or not, whose persona is never fully described, and what Godot will do for them when they meet remains a mystery.  Their lives are circumscribed by their poor physical conditions.  Vladimir has urinary distress issues which can be triggered by mentions of a French Brothel, and Estragon is always looking for a good sleep to make up for being beaten in his bed in a ditch. The pair meet up with a slave driver, Pozzo, driving his luckless vassal Lucky with a long rope and whip.  They are off to the market where capitalist Pozzo wants to sell his menial for profit. Lucky remains mute until Pozzo commands him to think.  This command unleashes a stream of strange movements and phrases which sound impressive but devolve into nonsense. As they depart, Vladimir and Estragon continue their time-killing repartees until a Messager Boy  appears and reveals that Godot is not coming that day.  Thus ends Act I and sets us up for a near repeat of this drama in Act II.   Productions of Waiting for Godot are variously treated on a continuum between comedy and tragedy. Los Altos Stage has an irrepressive comic in David Scott, who simply cannot stop his various mannerisms and moods, removing clothes, eating vegetables with panache and reaching out to the bemused Vladimir with impish delight and affection. His physicality is matched by the continual stream of mental outlay of trivia from his more subdued partner, Vladimir, ably dispatched by Evan Winet.  There is a Keystone Cops charm about this duo that masks some of the angst of the unknowing and disappointment that Godot hasn’t seen them that is at the heart of the play. Vladimir yearns to know and be known by Godot so that his existence can be validated and understood.  So that life is not totally random and meaningless.   The iconic set of a bare tree and a rock   one of the barest stage sets in theater, is also a revelation at Los Altos Stage. Ringed with stark geometric structural frames, it pulls us into a tight barren place that could be a desert.  But lit behind by the moon and clouds, its charm is a huge world of beauty and space.    There is often a moment, or perhaps many moments, when we wonder “Why are we here? Nothing is going on.” But this play is a shrine to the human condition of wanting to know the elusive meaning of existence and who controls it. And like the moth who is about to be consumed by the flame, we sit in rapt wonder, waiting for that meaning, that we think only Godot can reveal. And all the time knowing that it is the waiting itself  that is meaningful.   Production WAITING FOR GODOT Playwright Samuel Beckett Directed by Gary Landis Producing Company Los Altos Stage 1st Production Dates September 5 Through September 29 1st Venue 97 Hillview Avenue, Los Altos, CA https:// https://losaltosstage.org/ Telephone (650)-941-0551 Tickets $28 - $51

By Jeff Dunn Though winter is fast upon us, the ever-fresh La Bohème is available to warm our hearts at Opera San Jose. Listening to Kearstin Piper Brown sing Mimi’s Act 1 aria on opening night did it for me, where the I sudden shift from A-major to G-major chords brings on her lovely “… when the thaw comes and the sun and first kiss of April are mine.” Irresistible. There is plenty of color and action in Kim A. Tolman’s elaborate scenic design, Michelle Cuizon’s often astute stage direction, and Alma Bokovikova’s flavorful costume design. The era of the opera has been moved from 1830 to 1918, but the surroundings and outfits are general enough, seen from a distance, that either date works. I would point out, however, that the Barrière d’Enfer , a famous toll gate given anachronistic prominence in Act 3, was demolished between 1860 and 1870. Also, there are supposed to be trees in Act 3 for Mimi to hide behind. Instead, she had to disappear offstage temporarily through the gate left open by incompetent guards. Not that these issues should matter to non-specialist audiences! Competence was present in plenty by the cast. Artist-in-Residence WooYoung Yoon (Rodolfo) was especially outstanding, along with Kidon Choi (Marcello), in their Act 4 duet. Artists-in-Residence Younggwang Park and Jesús Vicente Murillo are a creditable Colline and Schaunard, respectively. Melissa Sondhi’s fine voice was applied to the role of the flamboyant Musetta. Kearstin Piper Brown portrayed an appropriate modesty as Mimi, often overplayed by Diva types. She alternates performances with Mikayla Sager in the role. Bay-area treasure Philip Skinner brought his special comic gravitas to the roles of landlord Benoit and Musetta’s hapless sugardaddy Alcindoro. Joseph Marcheso’s orchestra played flawlessly, and was spritely in the glorious Cafe Momus scene of Act 2. Tempi seemed a bit overextended to me in the following Act 3, although there is wonderful music to linger over. Perhaps a slightly faster tempo would add more energy to the delicious fight scene between Marcello and Musetta. I brought two of my grandchildren to the performance, and they were quite pleased. I am hoping their grandchildren will also be able to enjoy this masterpiece, long after I’m gone, whether the Barrière d’Enfer is there or not.

Three Renaissance geniuses duke it out By Susan Dunn   In 1504 an aging Leonardo da Vinci competes with youngster Michelangelo for dominance in the Florentine Art World. Negotiating a career-emblazing commission with these luminaries is Florentine “fixer,” Niccolo Machiavelli, slickly played by Alan Coyne.  He opens the play with the Florentine strategy for achieving excellence in art by signing competing artists to a commission.  It ratchets up our interest that the artists are amusingly combative and insulting to each other.  Christopher Herold, as Leonardo, struts an eye-popping wardrobe, grouches over everything from furniture to the recently unveiled and wildly popular Florentine statue of David, and pulls out his powerful negotiating guns to secure his best next deal.  A rugged Nathaniel Andalis as Michelangelo appears variously in a wardrobe of work clothes or merely a towel and is professionally at the top of his game with his completion of the Pieta in the Vatican and the triumph of his David.  His reputation in 1504 is for sculpture. These two are commissioned for large scale battle-scene painted murals for opposite walls in the Salone dei Cinquecento, part of the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence.  Leonardo accepts after much brow beating and negotiating not just for himself, but for his 'staff' as well. Michelangelo accepts readily, with no terms discussed, and no significant painting portfolio in his career, but seemingly based on his deep-seated desire to compete against Leonardo. The Contest revolves around this dual project which was the only time Leonardo and Michelangelo worked together. And ironically the project was never completed by either of them.    The artists are amusingly insulting and combative.   The Contest  is number three in playwright Gary Graves’s quintology of plays under the larger name The Prince .  With the current opening, four of the plays have been produced at Central Works.  In notes by the playwright,   “ The Contest  is a play about the conflict between Realism and Romanticism in Art.... and the conflict between art and power in the state.”     As produced at the Berkeley City Club, with no set or scenery in what could be called a “white box” setting, it relies on the audience’s imagination to envision each scene.  For starters, first we are high up in a Florentine apartment where Niccolo and Leonardo wrangle about the large wall painting commission. Next we are in a bath house where Michelangelo and Niccolo discuss the opposite wall commission as they sit naked in their towels.  This transitions to the Great Hall where Leonardo confidently faces a blank white wall, which the Berkeley City Club has provided by covering their fireplace with, of course, a white wall.   Leonardo describes in detail to Niccolo the battle scene he envisions that will cover the white wall.            Before us, a battle. Horses rearing up, galloping, raging. On the horse’s back, a rider--horse and rider are as one--a monstrous centaur, half-man half-animal, wild, bestial, a phantom of a man....   But we never get to see this sketch of his battle scene. The next scene transitions to Michelangelo, the great sculptor, catching up with Leonardo’s treatise on painting and color, and despairing of his huge battle scene to be.  And later Leonardo gives a slide presentation of a castle we don’t care about with some of his iconic images thrown in for humor.  Instead, the Leonardo scenes are enriched by his flashy and superb wardrobe, a tribute to costumer Tammy Berlin. Although the actors are not dressed in period attire, their costumes do call out their function, as in the administrative business suit of Machiavelli, and the work clothes of Michelangelo.  For Leonardo, his distinctive clothes reflect his aura and persona.   Playwright Graves shows us Leonardo’s scientific realism in his approach to his various works, be they sculpture or painting, while Michelangelo is the romantic who approaches art from inner inspiration.  The verbal richness of The Contest script, (with perhaps too many expletives), helps to anchor the action, and the superb acting keeps us focused.  But at the same time it is a challenge to keep up with the varied visual locales, and the art which is so often the center of the scenes. Why can’t we see Leonardo’s great horse?  Why can’t we see the David? Why can’t we see the Cartoon sketches? More projections would add nuance and perspective to the viewer. The Contest  is an intellectual ride through obscure history with many famous artist and political references that us liberal arts majors may grasp. But without visuals to adorn two of the world’s most famous artists and follow their obscure story, we may lose the thread. Production THE CONTEST Play By Gary Graves Directed by Gary Graves Producing Company Central Works Production Dates Oct 19 – Nov 17, 2024 Venue Berkeley City Club Production Address 2315 Durant Avenue, Berkeley 94704 https:// https://centralworks.org/ Telephone (510) 558-1381) Tickets centralworks1@att.net

You’ve found your seat.  Now steady yourself for a wild ride with Masquers' Production of The 39 Steps .  This famous tall tale is based on the 1915 novel by John Buchan and the noir cult classic 1935 Hitchcock film.  It’s a popular and often adapted story which has proved its staying power: a mystery thriller base which is developed in the Hitchcock film, and then transformed with new and/or   excised material for the stage.   The four - actor play was originally written and premiered in 1996 by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon. The Masquers version is  a later adaptation by Patrick Barlow.  The   play’s conceit is to game three actors into 130 or so different roles, sometimes playing multiple roles at the same time using hat swaps and other trick devices. Our hero and fourth actor, Richard Hannay, remains himself throughout, navigating the challenges of place, person and peccadillos of fate, and grounding us in   the adventure.    Split-second timing, sound and light effects,   and continual hammy spoofs glue us to the action.   Actor 1: This stylish Hannay, marvelously played by Gene Mocsy, falls into one unlikely scenario after another , on a winding path from falsely accused murderer to international spy ring exposer – and ultimate hero.  Meanwhile, the three other actors, embodying a roulette wheel of characters, confront Hannay  from London to Scotland and back again. ( I confess I lost count of the number of their roles early on. )   Actor 2: Lithe and intense Amy Springer shows us the women in Hannay’s life:  Annabella, the spy whom Hannay is accused of murdering, Pamela, the girl on the train whom he first meets by attacking her with kisses, and Margaret, the Collier’s wife who helps him escape from the 39 Steps’ bevvy of  murderous thugs.  She morphs from a stabbed brunette body to a sleek blonde accuser to a hick   peasant girl in a farm bonnet.  Actor 3: Samuel Barksdale showcases a multitude of both male and female roles with a comic physical and facial wit that continually inspires laughter. A nd his   double-takes throw us additional merriment.   He both opens and closes the show with an important character, Mister Memory, and his shenanigans and eye revolutions expand this role with his stage antics. Covering another multitude of police men , thugs, a ruthless power-hungry professor , and a smirking innkeeper, Actor 4: Damion Clark seems to appear in every other scene in new costume or aspect, and sometimes in two outfits at once, depending on which way he is facing us.  One of the funniest moments occurs when Hannay has to escape from the farmhouse as authorities approach. But are they the police or the spy ring that’s after him?  He exits out a window which is snatched from the wall and stepped through on the floor. This reference to Hitchcock's Rear Window is used a few minutes later by his pursuers.   In another scene we suddenly morph into a silhouette showing an observer - the outline of Hitchcock - and planes pursuing Hannay, referencing Hitchcock’s North by Northwest.  Other Hitchcock films are also woven into the plot such as The Farmer’s Wife , and many more.  Guessing the reference to a scene is part of the payoff ,  of course. Like icing on a delicious cake, the lighting design, sound effects, use of fog, costumes, projections and puppetry mesh together with the clowning to create a play that is a many -l ayered spoof. Exceptional mention must be made of John Maio who has directed a tight, pitch-perfect show with varied pacing that keeps us on the edge of our seats. The 39 Steps is a romp that skims ever so lightly over themes of fate, chance, romance , and ultimately human empathy.  This production is a delight for all your senses, and is highly recommended to recharge your funny bone. PRODUCTION The 39 Steps PLAY BY Patrick Barlow DIRECTED BY John Maio PRODUCING COMPANY The Masquers PRODUCTION DATES November 15 to December 8 PERFORMANCE ADDRESS 105 Park Place, Point Richmond, CA 94801-3922. WEBSITE https://www.masquers.org/ TELEPHONE (510-232-3888 ) TICKETS https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=210336 reservations@masquers.org

Slacker bonds with Self-starter over LeBron James By Susan Dunn Are you game-ready?  Flushed with anticipation?  Ready for the dunks, the slides, the airballs, the swishes and flops? King James opens with basketball lingo that resonates like a pin-ball zig zag.  In four scenes, King James travels us through the unlikely bond between two young men of opposite backgrounds, cultures and means. As they spar over the cost of a game package, friendship is initially built and sealed with basketball lingo and season tickets.  And over the years that friendship is tested, challenged, torn and rebuilt over local team successes, mid-western pride and the shared love of the game.   King James opens with basketball lingo that resonates like a pin-ball zig zag.   Playwright Rajiv Joseph is a Cleveland native and lifelong Cavaliers Fan. In his first scene, ‘2004’, LeBron James has been named Rookie of the Year and is raising hopes of future championships for the local Cavaliers enthusiasts. Curtain rises in a Wine Bar where bartender Matt, a young white casual dayworker, is alone and mimicking basketball moves and shots with a wadded-up newspaper and garbage can.  As he dance-dribbles around the establishment, he’s joined by Shawn, a young black who is working three jobs, and wants to buy Matt’s Season Pass Package. They wrangle and spar over price but find an affinity in the glowing promise of LeBron, who can bring hope of championship glory to their locale. Both men are working survival jobs, but Shawn has a “third job” in writing short stories, for which he has just sold for a bundle, and is hoping to fulfill a dream of attending a big game in a prime seat. Luckily for Matt, who has attended Cavalier games in prime seats all his life - until now when he is forced to sell - Shawn has no companion for the second seat.    Emphasizing their opposing personalities, Matt is fascinated by the daring, initiative and imagination that Shawn has shown in doing creative writing, and most importantly, in leveraging it in the tickets sale.  Matt’s world is his locale, and his job is rote but sustainable. He is both comfortable and cranky in that world where people put up but complain tellingly.  Shawn, however, is sparked by his writing award bonanza and furthers it into a master’s program in TV Script Writing. Suddenly Shawn is leaving Cleveland for first New York to study and then Los Angeles to find TV work. Matt is bereft of his best, and seemingly only friend.   King Jame s is a two-hander that is marvelously directed and choreographed by Giovanna Sardelli, keeping the action flowing, the use of the large stage imaginative and the production elements moving the narrative.  Most outstanding are the actors Jordan Lane Shappell as Matt, and Kenny Scott as Shawn.  Their impersonations of each character are vivid, personified and typed, but make compelling sense of the brotherhood peaks and valleys these two men are taking.  A sound plot assaults us in key moments with the crowds in the stadium and the buzzers and bleeps of the action which resonate the world of sports. Live-audience cheers for the SF Warriors when the team is mentioned in the script reflect the inspiration and love of the game that is nearly universal.   Is this just a feel-good production?  The many sub-themes undercut that simplicity, such as relationships with parents.  Matt doesn’t get along well with his parents whom he disparages.  Shawn is adored by Matt’s Mom and is constantly in touch with her much to Matt’s chagrin.  Matt blames the problems of America and other personal targets for problems he sees, and experiences personally.  He wonders why he is not better liked and loved.  Shawn has his challenges and disappointments, but by setting his personal bar reasonably, he navigates in a much broader, richer and happier world.  His caring and empathy finally break down Matt’s alienation and loneliness and leave us with hope for our own country’s better future. Production KING JAMES Play By Rajiv Joseph Directed by Giovanna Sardelli Producing Company TheatreWorks of Silicon Valley Production Dates Oct 9 – Nov 3, 2024 Production Address 500 Castro Street, Mountain View, 94041 https:// https://theatreworks.org Telephone (1-877-662-TWSV (8978) Tickets boxoffice@theatreworks.org

The flapper fun of No, No, Nanette will put a smile on your face By Jeff Dunn I know it's difficult today to imagine anyone except a former president making a fortune selling bibles. In the Roaring Twenties, however, Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel wrote the book for a musical whose lead character, Jimmy Smith, does just that. Moreover, unlike many today, Jimmy just gives his money away with no quid pro quo expected . "I won't be happy, till I make you happy too," he sings--only to pretty women, coincidentally. How could his generous intentions be misconstrued?   Such is the overly easy-breezy plot of No, No, Nanette . The 1924 show would have been a silly yawner today, but Vincent Youman's fusillade of great tunes ("Tea for Two," "I Want to Be Happy," "Too Many Rings Around Rosie," etc.*) is an opium for optimists. Moreover, South Bay Musical Theatre's team has put in more dance numbers than there are meteorologists in Florida, so there's plenty of action to toe-tap to. Michael Paul Hirsch does a great job as the salesman who knows his bible, chapters and skirts. His nice but conservative wife Sue is well portrayed by Christina Bolognini. Although her character must wear the relatively drab portion of otherwise fabulous collection of costumes provided by Amanda Seguin, Bolognini surprises with a terrific tap number and a lovely voice.   Michael Rhone is outstanding as BIlly Early, Jimmy's hapless lawyer. Billy's wife Lucille is superbly characterized by Jessica Whittemore as a shopaholic morphing into a person who realizes love is more important than gee-gaws. Pauline's Act 3 rendition of "Where Has My Hubby Gone Blues" brought out unexpected profundity in Youmans' music despite the song's trite lyrics replete with "you" rhymes.  The third romantic pair of the musical, the title character Nanette and her boyfriend Tom, were a joy to watch and hear. For the performance I attended October 13th, Melissa Momboisse's understudy Anat Baird was every bit the impatient wannabe flapper. And, at 17, she perfectly embodied the dutiful but vapid privileged teen aspiring to mature womanhood. Ryan Liu's Tom, Nanette’s ardent beau, was one of the strongest voices in the cast.   The three buxom beneficiaries of Jimmy's financial largesse––Flora, Betty, and Winnie––are nicely individualized by Lauren Jiang, Heather Mae Steffen, and Beth McClelland. Jiang in particular perfected a Betty Boop persona that brought on big smiles from the well-filled auditorium. Scenes were delightfully amplified by the Ensemble, an octet of singers and dancers in new costumes for every occasion, adding even more zest and treat to the afternoon.   Finally, Judith Miller, as the cranky maid Pauline, entertained with her every quirk--including hilarious stints with a robotified vacuum cleaner designed by Dan Singletary. This might be the first time a robot deserves to be a featured performer, and should have had his own bow and credits. Director Doug Greer, set designer Brett Carlson, and choreographer Lee Ann Payne are to be especially commended for their hard work, along with the rest of the production staff.   In short, No, No, Nanette is a Yes,Yes for anyone up for a frothy soda of yesteryear. * Interestingly, the melodic line and rhythm of the first eight notes of the catchy title song "No, No, Nanette" is strikingly similar to a tune in the last movement of Hungarian composer Ernst von Dohnányi's orchestral Suite in F# Minor . I'm guessing that Youmans attended the New York premiere of that work in Carnegie Hall conducted in 1921 by Dohnányi.

The Crossing from Lower to Upper East Side is ZERE GUT!!   By Susan Dunn, September 21, 2024 Sometimes we need a simple story with archetypal and eccentric characters to raise our spirits and whisk us from those pesky daily issues.  Crossing Delancey is that perfect vehicle.  It surrounds us with a New York Jewish world where home cooking, kugel and tagelach, and occasional bottled spirits, put better faces on loneliness and bonding. Its mission is to solve Grandma Bubbie’s dilemma.  How can she lead her reluctant granddaughter Isabel, who has left the lower east side for the more upscale and cosmopolitan atmosphere of uptown, into a normal Jewish marriage? Bubbie and henchmen Matchmaker Hannah and Sam, the Pickle Vender, are up to the task.   As stage lights come up, Isabel is performing a comedic hair-plucking surgery on her grousing Bubbie, with inspired acting by Tamar Cohen.  Ever the theatrical, with a vanity that emerges and re-emerges through the play, Bubbie continues to entertain us through the scene, initially to the detriment of her subdued, intellectual and more prosaically attired granddaughter.  Bubbie’s wiles and maneuvers are well-intended, but romantically cool Isabel has visions of a different and more culturally independent life, which we quickly learn is based only on fantasy. Isabel, well played and embodied by Lisa Morse, lives alone and works for an uptown bookstore where her day dreams can explode on desirable-looking local authors who have a stake in visiting the bookstore. The more Bussie and Hannah scheme and push, the more Isabel becomes entrenched in her author du jour.  In a stand-out scene, Isabel greets her current author and would-be love, Tyler, a hilariously affected, pseudo British Accented Steve Price, who is stopping by the bookstore.  He finds she has read his latest book three times and is flattered.  The narrative morphs from their casual banter into a lights-dimmed fantasy world where Isabel is suddenly the object of Tyler’s affections.  As the scene returns to normalcy, Isabel is inspired to pursue Tyler with her own schemes for winning this impressive man.   Meanwhile Hannah is pushing another romantic candidate, Sam, who has inherited his father’s Pickle Vending business.  In a first meeting with Isabel, Sam is ignored or outright put down by Isabel despite his attempts to soften her resistance.  The pickles are a downer in Isabel’s hierarchical world, but Sam has outstanding charm, patience and attractiveness that win everyone over. He also gives her advice on changing her perspective, and despite rejections, gifts her with the ability to see her world from a broader perspective   I worried that the extensive program glossary for Jewish Words and Phrases meant the dialogue was going to leave me in an ethnic lurch, but the story unfolds through the impeccable acting, gestures, props, songs and the occasional breaking of the 4th wall narrative. And the Jewishness of the characters comes across with a real authenticity leavened with humor. The set is ingeniously used for swapping scenes between Bubbies house, the bookstore and side scenes of engagement, with choreography that keeps the action fluid and cogent. Costuming changes are continuous and keep the action lively with each character defined by clothes, especially Isabel, who wears the same rather dowdy outfit into Act 2 and verges on tempting us to run up and rip it off her.  High marks go to Hannah’s mod-Jewish Matchmaker ensembles which echo her brassy voice and in-your-face personality.  Lighting helps change scene moods, and spontaneous Jewish songs and other background standards help pave the way for love to flower. With superb acting all around, and exceptional range, force and truth in lead character Buddie, this is a comedy to treasure. From start to end, Director Adrian Effenbaum has crafted a marvelously oiled feel-good machine in Crossing Delancy. Production CROSSING DELANCY Playwright Susan Sandler Directed by Adrian Effenbaum Producing Company Ross Valley Players Production Dates Through October 13 Venue Ross Valley Players"The Barn"30 Sir Francis Drake Blvd, Greenbrae, CA 94904 https:// http://www.rossvalleyplayers.com/ Telephone  (415) 456-9555 Tickets $21.60 - $37.80

Handmaids' Dystopia makes for a grim experience By Jeff Dunn If you’re in the mood for a well-done dose of despondency, Poul Ruder’s  The Handmaid’s Tale , now playing at the San Francisco Opera, is just the ticket. Prepare with a quick re-read of  1984  and  Animal Farm . Then, you’ll be ready to show up and experience an impressive array of artists doing their very best to show you some of the very worst that could happen to this country. Margaret Atwood’s 1985 novel posits a future (2014 in the book, 2030 in the current opera production) where a worldwide infertility disease, environmental degradations, and nuclear disasters have created enough social instability to allow a puritanical cult to mastermind a coup of the U.S. government. As a result, a “Republic of Gilead” is created and put under martial law. Next, claiming that infertility is God’s punishment for women’s sinfulness, women are progressively deprived of most of their rights, including reading and writing, and forcibly separated into classes depending on their ability to procreate and other factors. Fertile women are designated as “Handmaids,” forced to have intercourse with upper-class men whose wives have been unable to produce children — and then forced to surrender their babies. Ruder’s music is utterly appropriate to this dismal situation. Written from 1996 to 1998 in a late Modernist orchestral style, with drone bass lines, accretionary tone clusters, and periodic fusillades from the brass. Vocal lines are relatively simple in comparison, but nothing you’d want to sing in the shower. A cultural icon of melody (“Indian’s Farewell,” now known as “Amazing Grace”) can be detected in several instances, where it adds a bitter irony to the cult’s pseudoreligion. For some, the music may become as hard to bear as the gross indignities and devasting losses suffered by the opera’s characters. Mezzo-soprano Irene Roberts portrays the central Handmaid sufferer “Offred.” In such a production I cannot imagine a better performance than the way she passes on her anguish, travails, failing hopes, and powerlessness to listeners. Bass John Relyea adds a rich sound and complexity to the bad-guy role of Offred’s Commander and would-be impregnator. Mezzo-soprano Lindsay Ammann adds a special poignancy to her portrayal of the Commander’s jealous wife. Soprano Rhoslyn Jones’ sweetness is a welcome contribution to her part as Offred’s shopping partner Ofglen. And soprano Sarah Cambidge’s fearful stridency is perfect in her projection of how, given a little power, oppressed women are happy to subjugate other women. Conductor Karen Kamensek carefully handled the score’s complexities and did not stint at providing a full dynamic range of occasionally terrifying sounds. Chloe Lamford’s sets were spare and utilitarian in foreground, but massive where needed in portraying the huge “Hanging Wall” where traitors’ bodies remind viewers of the cost of cult disobedience. Will Duke’s large projections were especially apt in personalizing the loss of Offred’s pre-coup daughter. The Handmaid’s Tale  serves as a very unpleasant object lesson on the perversion of authority and psychology. San Francisco Opera’s production is true to Atwood’s vision. Fortunately, since the United States is still a free country, attendance is optional.

Inspired by 300 years of music history By Jeff Dunn How many times do you go to a symphony concert where at least one of the pieces is boring or has issues of execution or interpretation, no matter how good the rest of it is? If you're an old feisty music critic like me, it's almost always. But last weekend's SF Symphony concert, masterfully assembled by Music Director Essa-Pekka Salonen, was perfect in every respect, with enthralling, varied, and integrated  repertoire giving all sections of the orchestra a chance to shine. And shine they did! To top it off, Salonen's superb conducting maximized the inherent drama and dynamic ranges of the selections, leading to one standing ovation after another. What integrated the four pieces offered was their consistent references to baroque composers set in the respective styles of the Romantic, Modernist, and 21st-Century composers Edward Elgar, Paul Hindemith, and Nico Muhly. The result was a resplendent survey of many glories of the last 300 years of music history.   Muhly's work was a SF Symphony-commissioned premiere of his 2024 Piano Concerto. This was the most impressive of his works I've heard so far, one immediately pleasurable and worth many future listenings as well when recordings become available. Its three movements were played without pause over a 25-minute span. The first showed orchestrational evidence of Muhly's eight years as an assistant to Philip Glass, along with tads of John Adams' postminimalism. But the second conjured up unique sounds, including eerie glissandi and a shattering central climax. The third is a brisk toccata. All movements successfully exuded touches of the baroque composers Rameau and Couperin in a thoroughly contemporary and dazzling orchestral setting.   Muhly, admittedly obsessed by soloist Alexandre Tharaud, designed the concerto around his unique pianistic skills: lightning-fast fingers, ultra-high energy, and masterful control (except for his left foot, which periodically shot out to the side as if kicking away a cuff-chewing dog--but this added to, not subtracted from the excitement).   The first piece after intermission was Elgar's orchestration of Bach's Fantasia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 537, a superlative example of what became a fad with Leopold Stokowski's transcriptions later on in the 1920s. Elgar's over-the-top conclusion to the end of the Fugue goes beyond anything Stokowski attempted. Even Richard Strauss, Mr. Excess himself, thought it went too far, but to me it's a thrilling example of the Romantic spirit emanating from Berlioz.   The first and last works were Hindemith's. When he died in 1963, he was considered one of the greatest 20th-century composers, along with Stravinsky, Bartok, and Schoenberg. Such is no longer today, and it's a shame. His four-minute Ragtime (Well-Tempered) (1920) is full of robust good humor, immersing the theme of Bach's C-minor Well Tempered Clavier  tune in a sea of obstreperous fox trots, rags, and brass raspberries. And the concluding work, his masterpiece, Symphony, Mathis Der Maler  brought the audience to their feet for three long curtain calls. It's totally incredible that this staple of music history had been neglected by Symphony programmers for more than 36 years. How many lesser works have we heard countless times in that interval here? When compared to Mahler even, Hindemith's symphony surpasses when you consider greatness per minute. In fact the whole program, less than an hour of music, makes it a champion by that measure.   Perfect!

Many laughs, endless melodies By Jeff Dunn I couldn't get my fill of the regiment in Donizetti's opera La fille du régiment. Why? Because Livermore Valley Opera's regimental chorus was such a scene stealer. Whenever the outstanding cast of principals had gloriously sung one bel canto aria too many, this eight-man posse of protectors would pop in and provide welcome comic relief. Kudos to Chorusmaster Bruce Olstad and Stage Director Marc Jacobs!   Who is the octet protecting? The Daughter (Marie), a foundling raised by the regiment whom she addresses as her "fathers." We are in the Tyrol of 1809, and the French are battling Austrian sympathizers in an area then under Napoleonic control. Since Donizetti penned his tuneful theaterpiece for the Paris Opéra-Comique, the French occupiers are the good guys. No surprise, then, that local boy Tonio changes sides and enlists in the regiment to go after his squeeze Marie. But it turns out she's the child of the Marquise of Berkenfield, who wants her to marry into nobility.  Véronique Filloux warmed quickly into her demanding role as Marie, hitting her high notes with power and accuracy, but more importantly conveying an impish sense of fun as a soldiers' pal in Act 1 and as a would-be trainee in aristocracy in Act 2. Chris Mosz brought a uniquely sugary voice to the character of Tonio, effortlessly hitting all eight high Cs in Tonio's famous Act 1 Ah! mes ami ... aria, and even adding a higher-than-high C to the unwritten (by Donizetti) ninth one. Eugene Brancoveanu's rich and venue-filling voice, not to mention his acting, was perfect for his role as Sulpice, the sergeant in charge of the octo-posse. Finally, mezzo-soprano Lisa Chavez' lovely voice was a joy to hear as she negotiated her Marquise's character change from a snobby fussbudget to a woman who begins to display caring for her once-abandoned child at the cost of her own reputation. Jean-François Revon's sets and projection designs were a marvel–simple, colorful, effective, and surprising when cannon-blast lighting effects popped out in distant background hills. Linda Pisano's wonderful costumes, originally designed for the Utah Opera, were a pleasure to examine in detail during the longer arias.   Music Director Alexander Katsman's tempos and dynamics were managed with aplomb in Francis Griffin's reduced-orchestra score that displayed little trace of emaciation. The horn section had a little difficulty handling the difficult and highly exposed overture opening in the September 28th performance I heard, but the cello section was especially beautiful for the lead-in to the Par le rang et par l'opulence aria in Act 2.   The many laughs, endless melodies, outstanding voices, costumes, and sets all make Livermore Opera's version of La fille a highly recommended and relatively inexpensive way to experience great opera. If you go before it closes on Sunday, October 6th, see if you can hear the clever reference to Rossini's William Tell overture in Donizetti's overture. Both operas take place in the Alps.