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Archive: September, 2011
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Visceral and absurd, Philapolis Theatre Co.'s blithe Lion (El León) makes you rethink your fantasy about leaving the banality of the U.S. for a "transcendental" locale. In a Spanish-speaking “biggest city in the world,” an American expat hosts a visiting friend in his litter-strewn apartment while the city is on lock-down — animal noses have been attaching themselves to people’s faces. A campy lion, puppets and a leprechaun-like drug lord help round out a bilingual cast of characters that struggle with battles of normalcy, idiocity and (in some cases) a drug-like dependence on tortillas.
Through Sept. 17, $15, Second Stage at the Adrienne, 2030 Sansom St., MORE INFO HERE.
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The exhibition begins in quaint Bardascino Park in the heart of Bella Vista. A mysteriously graceful dance unfolds around you, using things like a picnic table to fuse the performance with the park. Before you know it you're listening to a spoken word piece on the steps of an adjacent church. Then a mellow strut along League street captivates you before you triumphantly parade down Kimball street to Dixie tunes and dancers encouraging you to join them in one final celebration.
Through Sept. 11, $12, Bardascino Park, 10th and Carpenter streets, MORE INFO HERE.
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Imagine you put your iPod on shuffle — and every song you hear is played live. That sums up the Philly Song Shuffle, now in its ninth year. With more than 50 musicians each playing a single song, there was plenty of talent onstage. There was also a good deal of variety on display, from full bands to solo vocals to a guitar-and-juggling act. Trouble is, when you hear that many artists at once, they start to blur together — no matter how good they are.
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Mindless violence makes a much welcome return to the stage in the guise of Mr. Punch, a puppet conceived in an era of wanton murder, urban decay and rampant police brutality, and therefore born to play before a Philadelphia audience. Equal parts anarchic slapstick, eerie drama and haunting musical , The Devil and Mister Punch is that sort of highly original, well crafted production which should define the festival at its best. Yes, it could benefit from some editing, but its mad, twisted dark charms well outweigh any minor flaws.
Through Sept. 16, $25, Christ Church Neighborhood House, 20 N. American St. MORE INFO HERE.
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With borrowed actors filling in at the last minute, This Is How It Goes could’ve gone south very quickly. Neil LaBute’s play is steeped in racial tension, shifting alliances and deceit between spouses, and timing and inflection are key – especially in a production with minimal staging. But even though two of the three stars were on book, the show was riveting. If you know LaBute, the sudden shifts between comedy and drama won’t come as a shock, nor will the provocative dialogue. But that it can be done this well with so little rehearsal comes as a welcome surprise.
Through Sept. 11, $15, AxD Gallery, 265 S. 10th St., MORE INFO HERE.
Tangle’s Ampersand is more than just a trapeze act. These women are acrobats, actresses, mimes, songstresses and directors -- all bringing a separate story to the stage, stories set to a fantastic soundtrack. Fifteen short acts are performed with an almost variety-show air, composed of spoken word, acrobatics to live guitar, more interpretive-style floor acrobatics and even short comedic miming. Yet the piece in its entirety does not read as sophomoric. There is a wisdom and elegance here, showing us that circus arts are much more than girls on ponies.
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Blame it on the rain: While Friday was beautiful and dry – if you don’t count the humidity – bad weather earlier in the week forced the dancers and musicians involved with Poetic Passageways to rehearse and restage their show in Isaiah Zagar’s indoor studio, rather than in the wonderland outside. So instead of encountering the performers in Zagar’s mosaicked nooks, the audience was largely chairbound. And while it was a treat to see the troupe in motion within a special space not usually open to the public, it’s probably fair to say that the piece lost something in the change of venue.
The Undead resists pop-culture zombie clichés while exploring not-quite-life after death. V.F. Zialcita’s “The Haunting” and Greg Romero’s “Dallas” are ethereally poetic, while Joy Cutler’s “The Frogg Prince” and Brian Grace-Duff’s “The Death Card” provide more conventional laughs. In “Working Stiffs,” Colleen Quinn presents her wickedly absurd corporate recruitment powerpoint, building hilarious horrors to a perfect final twist. Rick Horner’s zombie clown and Tom Tansey’s three roles leads a strong ensemble, and Matt and Melissa Dunphy’s "Up Your Cherry" wrap it all together wittily with zombie rock. Death isn’t the end!
Through Sept. 17, $15, Playground at the Adrienne, 2030 Sansom St., MORE INFO HERE.
One of my friends won't go see modern dance with me anymore. She says she just doesn't get it, and she's sick of feeling dumb for not understanding the meaning behind the movement. Really, it's an awful feeling: You know the performers are trying to tell you something, but if you aren't schooled in the intricate, incredibly nuanced art form, modern dance sometimes just looks like a bunch of people rolling around on the floor. Which is why it helps when these companies give you a little something to go on: an identifiable score, emotive interplay, perhaps even a plot referenced -- even obliquely -- in the program notes.
John Jasperse's Canyon does us no such favors. (It should be noted that the festival guide does better at explaining what to expect than the program itself, so do your homework.) Amplified by lyricless, sometimes migraine-inducingly loud, downtempo electronica, six dancers -- the choreographer among them -- begin their 70-minute journey to nowhere with a fast-paced ensemble movement series, a warmup of sorts. At this point you're thinking to yourself that these young performers are graceful, energetic; you might even know enough about dance to recognize their clean lines and synchronicity. But as they forge ahead, sometimes standing still for minutes on end, sometimes writhing back and forth on a black floor decorated with haphazardly applied neon-yellow painter's tape, no clear themes emerge. Is that the point? Are you supposed to be getting angry by now? And will someone please explain why there's a guy scooting around the stage from inside a cardboard box?
You're not alone if you don't get it -- nor if that confusion has pissed you the hell off. A little post-performance-confusion-fueled research indicates that Canyon is about disorientation. You don't say. Three audience members were so disoriented, they left halfway through. (When I saw that Live Arts 2008 show with the guy torturing a live lobster, only two folks left. Sayin'.) My question to Jasperse is, would it have killed you to clue us in? This choreographer is no amateur -- the chaos is intentional, the movements clean, the piece itself cohesive -- but by refusing to help your audience, you only alienate us.
Sat., Sept. 10, 8 p.m.; Sun., Sept. 11, 2 p.m.; $30, Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad St., MORE INFO HERE.
This is one of those “wait for it” songs and it’s got a sweet Jersey-pride video to match, directed by The Best Show’s Tom Scharpling. I love the part when the dude in the background jumps into the air at 1:40.
Also playing Popped: Shins, The Hold Steady, Pains of Being Pure of Hearts, Girl Talk Black Thought and more. Fri. and Sat., Sept. 23 and 24, Single-day tickets $59.50, both days $110, FDR Park, near Broad and Pattison, poppedphiladelphia.com.
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