Good morning and welcome to Ruth Leon’s Theatrewise
No, I’m not in the mountains, I just like this picture because mountains always speak to me of freedom.
Today’s Ruth Leon’s Theatrewise is dedicated to those people who are denied the freedom of artistic expression, even access to the arts. According to a new edict from Afghanistan’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, Afghani women can’t look at men they are not related to, speak or sing in public, or talk loudly at home. And since they are not allowed to listen to music or see a visual portrayal of living beings, they are not free to enjoy the wonderful arts events that are available to us off- and online, even in their own homes. No concerts, no plays, no musicals, no entertainment at all.
I’m so grateful that we can. This week, on Ruth Leon’s Theatrewise, is the Centennial concert for Leonard Bernstein’s 100th birthday, studded with classical music’s stars. Here too is a cornucopia of Chekhov short plays and short stories, rediscovered by a host of popular TV and stage actors and comedians.
Here’s ballet, the full-length reimagined Giselle from choreographer Akram Khan, and a documentary about a 19th century painter you may never have heard of who is considered the most important German artist of his generation.
The stage musical Waitress, whose successful Broadway and West End runs were truncated by the closing of the theatres during Covid lockdown, is now available to stream on a variety of UK (UK only, I’m afraid) platforms.
You will find all this below, just by scrolling downwards. While you’re enjoying whichever of these delicious items you choose to watch, spare a thought for those, all over the world, who are denied the freedom of the arts, and be grateful, as I am.
Chekhov Comedy Shorts
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This star-studded series of comedies and farces celebrates the life and work of the Russian playwright Anton Chekhov. Chekhov has entered the pantheon of great writers since his death in 1904, yet his plays are still largely regarded as grim records of human suffering.
Now, a group of famous British comedians are out to prove he can be extremely funny. These adaptations reveal a dramatist who finds great joy in the broad comedy of human nature.
There are three parts to this show which includes a double-bill of farce featuring two famous faces from Gavin & Stacey
The one-act play "On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco," sees Steve Coogan portray Ivan Ivanovich Nyukhin. MacKenzie Crook co-stars with Johnny Vegas in A Reluctant Tragic Hero where a request for sympathy turns into a scream for blood. And in The Bear, death, love, and then possibly death again feature in Chekhov’s seminal farce.
Christine Gernon is the director and the cast includes Mathew Horne (Lomov), Philip Jackson (Father), Sheridan Smith (Natasha), Steve Coogan (Nyukhin), Mackenzie Crook (Murashkin), Johnny Vegas (Tolkachov), Julian Barratt (Smirnoff), Julia Davis (Popova), and Reece Shearsmith (Luka).
The Leonard Bernstein Centennial Celebration
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Leonard Bernstein, if he were still alive, would have been 106 last week. In contemplating that, I don’t think I’ve ever shared with you the spectacular Boston Symphony Orchestra concert which celebrated his Centennial at the Tanglewood Festival in 2018. So here is the 100th birthday of a true music legend performed at his favourite summer home.
An extraordinary cast of superstar soloists—from Midori and Yo-Yo Ma to Thomas Hampson, Susan Graham, and Nadine Sierra—and conductors (including John Williams, Michael Tilson Thomas, Andris Nelsons, and Christoph Eschenbach) join the Boston Symphony Orchestra in a poignant tribute to the great Leonard Bernstein, who studied conducting at Tanglewood and went on to teach and perform there for half a century.
Beginning with the Overture from Bernstein's Candide, the program also features the Serenade for Violin, String Orchestra, Harp, and Percussion, as well as excerpts from MASS, the Symphony No. 3, and the timeless West Side Story. Also on the programme: works by Copland and Mahler that Bernstein counted among his favorites, plus a brand-new composition by John Williams, written specially for the occasion.
Akram Khan’s Giselle
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I notice that the English National Ballet is re-mounting Akram Khan’s version of Giselle in London next month. If you can’t get to the Sadlers Wells Theatre, or even if you can, you might enjoy watching it online on this video, sensitively directed by former ballet dancer Ross MacGibbon.
In 2018 Akram Khan, the renowned contemporary choreographer, took the greatest of all romantic ballets and put his own stamp on this story of love, betrayal and redemption with Tamara Rojo as Giselle, James Streeter as Albrecht and Jeffrey Cirio as Hilarion.
Hailed as a modern masterpiece, this stunning version by the English National Ballet includes sets and costumes by designer Tim Yip, and an adaptation of Adolphe Adam's original score created by composer Vincenzo Lamagna. Lighting, a big part of this production, is by Mark Henderson.
Interestingly, the English National Ballet is planning a UK tour in October with performances in Manchester, Liverpool and London, which will include this Giselle and also the traditional version by Mary Skeaping so that ballet audiences, especially those less familiar with this most famous of dance dramas, can compare the two.
Casper David Friedrich's 250th birthday
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Who? Caspar David Friedrich (5 September 1774 – 7 May 1840) was a 19th-century German Romantic landscape painter, generally considered the most important German artist of his generation.
He is best known for his mid-period allegorical landscapes which typically feature contemplative figures silhouetted against night skies, morning mists, barren trees or Gothic or megalithic ruins. His primary interest as an artist was the contemplation of nature, and his often symbolic and anti-classical work seeks to convey a subjective, emotional response to the natural world.
Friedrich's paintings characteristically set a human presence in diminished perspective amid expansive landscapes, reducing the figures to a scale that, according to the art historian Christopher John Murray, directs "the viewer's gaze towards their metaphysical dimension".
He was inspired by the Sturm und Drang movement and represented a midpoint between the dramatic intensity and expressive manner of the budding Romantic aesthetic and the waning neo-classical ideal. Among his influences were such sources as the Icelandic legend of Edda, and the poems of Ossian and Norse mythology.
Waitress – Stage musical
Click here to rent or buy
The Broadway musical Waitress is now available to rent and buy across a variety of streaming platforms for the many UK fans of the show. Based on the film of the same name, it follows a young waitress in a diner who dreams of leaving her job and forging a life of her own.
Filmed at New York’s Ethel Barrymore Theatre in 2021, where the show made its home temporarily post-pandemic, the cast was led by the hit musical’s creator Sara Bareilles as Jenna, alongside Drew Gehling as Dr Pomatter, Charity Angél Dawson as Becky, Caitlin Houlahan as Dawn. Waitress has a book by Jessie Nelson, direction by Tony Award-winner Diane Paulus and choreography by Lorin Latarro.
It had its UK premiere at the Adelphi Theatre in 2019, the sold-out run prematurely truncated when lockdowns closed theatres although there was a tour in 2021, visiting locations nationwide.
This is not the movie but a film of the Broadway stage musical. It was first shown in UK cinemas earlier this year and is now available more widely across a variety of streaming platforms as well as DVDs and Blu-Rays. It is not yet available in the US.
Available to rent in HD for £3.49 or buy for £11.99. Rentals include 30 days to start watching this video and 48 hours to finish once started.
I hope you will enjoy watching every item. Do let me know if you come across any online arts which should be included here. In the meantime, enjoy your week, and relish your artistic freedom.
More next week,
Ruth