Criticultura em Portugal

King Lear By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran Starring Antony Sher Brooklyn Academy of Music April 19, 2018 The Mayor of Casterbridge By Thomas Hardy Yerma Written and directed by Simon Stone (after Federico Garcia Lorca) Starring Billie Piper Park Avenue Armory April 11, 2018 Sansho the Bailiff Directed by Kenji Mizoguchi What makes a good tragedy? The same themes of human missteps followed by self-induced or extrinsic punishment have fascinated us since the dawn of civilization. Classical Greek tragedy usually consisted of a human misstep, major or minor (e.g. Oedipus’ mistaken killing of his father), followed by a divine retribution, often out of proportion to the initial mistake. The punishments are usually divine, but occasionally more linked to humanity. For example, Phaedra, scorned by her young lover, falsely claims to have been raped by him, leading to his death after his horses stampede, frightened by vengeful Poseidon’s ...

Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra Gustavo Dudamel, conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen: Pollux Edgard Varèse: Amériques Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 47 David Geffin Hall, Lincoln Center April 27, 2018 I was not prepared for the quality and excitement of the recent LA Phil concert. The orchestra has been widely praised for its innovative programming, community outreach, multiethnic emphasis, and embrace of contemporary composers. While a lot of its fusion/new age things are not to my taste, the LA Phil is probably doing the best job anywhere of expanding the vision of a symphony orchestra. The program at Lincoln Center exemplified this. The orchestra sounds great, with precise ensemble and great flexibility, matched by a creative, maturing conductor. The first half was very exciting, showing how the orchestra can be used as a mixing palette of tonality and rhythm. Conductor/composer Esa-Pekka Salonen has long been one of my favorite contemporary compo...

Artemis String Quartet Zankel Hall, Carnegie Hall Manhattan April 10, 2018 Julliard String Quartet Town Hall, Manhattan April 29, 2018 The Artemis String Quartet from Berlin is innovative in several respects. The quartet, founded in 1989, was mentored by the Berg and Julliard Quartets and won multiple competetions. Unusually, they perform standing up, except for cellist Eckard Runge (the sole remaining founder), who plays elevated on a riser so he can be at similar eye level as the others. This gives the quartet an immediacy and connection to the audience that is refreshing. String quartet recitals often seem introverted, with the quartet performing more to each other than to the audience. Not here. The quartet has a refreshing gender balance of 2 women, 2 men, and their playing was superb, with perfectly matched interpretation and technique, and a balanced, direct sound that clarifies textures while maintaining flexibility and dynamic range. This concert seemed odd o...

Angels in America, A Gay Fantasia on National Themes Written by Tony Kushner Directed by Marianne Elliott Starring Andrew Garfield, James McArdle, and Nathan Lane, and Beth Malone Neil Simon Theater, Manhattan April 1 and 8, 2018 The ovations (both after the show and after individual scenes) for this strong British National Theatre revival of Tony Kushner’s 1991 play Angels in America reminded me of what I saw for Hamilton , but this time for a very long (7 hour) two-part play on a grim topic: the AIDS epidemic of the 1980-90s. The play has legendary status, stimulating an unusual sense of audience anticipation. On prior viewings (in San Francisco in the 1990s and the excellent 2003 HBO miniseries starring Justin Kirk and a volcanic Al Pacino as Roy Cohn) I was often dazzled but thought the play lacked taut construction. How would it now play in an era where AIDS is a manageable chronic illness, rather than the apocalyptic horror that animated the play in the 1990s? Pr...

Richard Goode, piano Lincoln Center Alice Tully Hall April 17, 2018 Leon Fleisher, pianist/conductor The Peabody Conservatory Chamber Orchestra Town Hall, Manhattan April 15, 2018 The renowned New York pianist Richard Goode (b. 1943) is best known for his complete recorded Beethoven sonatas and for music of the classical era generally. His recent wide-ranging Lincoln Center recital largely disappointed outside his Beethoven core. He began with an unusual offering, Two Pavanes and Galliards by Renaissance composer William Byrd. These pieces are usually played on the virginal or harpsichord, and while the piano could in theory be a viable alternative, Goode did not emphasize the dance character adequately to make the pieces come alive. Comparatively, Bach is more often played on the piano, even though written for harpsichord; the standard of Bach playing from young pianists has risen in recent years, so that I now expect crystalline clarity and inner voice emphasis t...