Notes on the Arts by Marilyn Rowland

Notes on the Arts by Marilyn Rowland

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Lenore Lyons Brings Art and Enthusiasm to the Cotuit Center for the Arts

January 6th, 2012 by Marilyn Rowland

Lenore Lyons, arts education coordinator at the Cotuit Center for the Arts

“I feel I have landed where I belong, and where I can make a difference,” said Lenore Lyons, arts education coordinator for the Cotuit Center for the Arts. We met in the Art Barn at the center, which she has helped transform from a serviceable, but somewhat-the-worse-for-wear, drafty barn-like structure to a warm and inviting art studio, brimming with art supplies and tools of every imaginable kind.

She had a vision of an arts center that would match the rest of the center, with its high-quality theater and gallery space, but was told, when she arrived at the center in late August, there was no budget for improvements.

That didn’t stop her. She went to Steve Luciano of Coachlight Carpets in Centerville, who was happy to work with her to provide sturdy, industrial wood flooring to cover the once-cold concrete floors. That immediately perked up the place, and Lyons knew she could make the rest of the paint-up, clean-up, fix-up improvements herself.

Art supplies of every description are stored in card catalog files from the Centerville Library and in other storage cabinets donated by friends and organizations, and Lyons has arranged it all to make it easy to find and use.

Now that the studio is in order, Lyons has endless ideas for the space and for classes, activities, and events. “I’m kind of an idea person,” she said. “In fact, my friends call me an idea factory.”

Her aim is to keep the studio full of people–adults, children, and teens–making art, music, dance, and theater all day long. The center’s winter classes, which start Saturday, January 7, are a good start.

One of Lyons’ passions is journaling, and teaching others how to record their own lives “as a way of remembering and as a way of forgetting.” She encourages writing and illustrating journals as a way of releasing stress, and is quick to say that one does not need to know how to draw to create a beautiful, meaningful journal. And, for those who may be reluctant to share what they have written, she demonstrates ways of hiding or disguising one’s writing.

Her “Journal A Year” class starts Saturday, January 7, and runs for 3 consecutive Saturdays, from 10:30 AM to 12:30 PM. ($75, $60 for members, $10 materials fee)

Those who have already learned how to journal may take it up an artistic level in “Journal on Your Own” offered during the same time period, to have use of the studio space, tools, and supplies. ($15 per session, $10 for members)

Lyons is also teaching “Artist’s Way,” based on the book of the same name by Julia Cameron. Classes are every other Monday night for six sessions, but, by the time you read this, this class may be full.  On Thursday nights, she is teaching “Artists Along the Way,” based on Julia Cameron’s book, “Walking in the World.” This class continues the self-discovery process begun in “Artist’s Way.”

Rosalie McCarthy will teach Life Drawing on six Wednesday evenings from 7 to 9 PM, beginning January 11. Students will work from a live nude model, using a variety of media. Beginners through advanced students are welcome. ($135, $110 for members)

Christine Rathbun, who presented her monologue, “The Further Adventures of the Fat-Ass Cancer Bitch,” at the Cotuit Center for the Arts’ Black Box theater last summer, will teach “I thought I was the only one, women’s lives in context,” an eight-week series of classes in autobiographical storytelling for women of all ages and writing abilities. The class filled up quickly.

Music classes are offered too. Ballroom Dancing will be taught Sunday evenings from 5 to 6:30 PM, beginning January 22, for 6 weeks. (singles: $120, $90 for members; couples, $210, 150 for members)

The popular Ukulele Orchestra classes continue, taught by Steve Gregory, beginning January 14, for six weeks. Intro to the Ukulele is 9 to 10:30 AM, and Ukulele Orchestra 2 meets from 10:30 AM til noon. All ages are welcome, and singing along is encouraged, but not required. ($120, $90 for members)

Scotty West will teach a 12-week series on the language of music in Music Appreciation from the Inside Out: Structures in the Language of Music on Tuesday evenings from 7 to 9 PM.

For children, Lyons offers an innovative class called Altered Books, in which she shows children how to transform an otherwise unwanted book into a work of art, gluing some pages together, removing others, painting some, folding some, adding doors, windows, and pockets, and working with paints, stamps, collage, and a variety of other media. They will create a unique altered book while learning to think outside the box.

Lyons uses the word “pentimento” to describe part of the process of making altered books. The work refers to a time when people painted new pictures over old canvases or paintings they didn’t like. Sometimes the new paint would wear off, and a bit of the earlier painting would show through, perhaps a forest scene showing up on a woman’s cheek.

In the case of altered book, part of the original book might show through, as a pentimento. The possibilities are endless for both intentional and unplanned uses of this technique.

Lyons wants to tie art classes to events and activities at the center, and an example of this is her “Wild Things” mixed-media sculpture class for 8-to-12 year-olds. Students will visit the Wild Things exhibit at the center’s gallery, and then come back to the art studio to create their own wild things. Students will learn how to create sculpture of various materials and using different methods of holding the sculpture elements together. This class meets on Tuesdays from 4 to 6 PM, beginning January 10. ($120, $90 for members)

Children will learn to work with different challenges and restrictions. They may be given specific materials that they will be required to incorporate into their sculptures (for example, a long piece of foam tubing) and they will not be allowed to use others (for example, they might be restricted from using glue and have to figure out other means of fastening their sculpture together). They might be challenged to make a figure, an animal, a container, or a vehicle.

Lyons has found a variety of nontraditional art materials for this class for free, from Craig’s List and other sources.

Acting classes are offered on Wednesday for children 8 to 12 (5 to 6:30 PM) and for teens 13 and older (6:30 to 8 PM), beginning January 11, and running for eight weeks. ($120, $90 for members)

Coming up during school vacation week, Michele Colley, Patti Anderson, and Michelle Law will offer Music Theater Workshop for ages 6 to 12. Classes will run Monday through Friday, February 20 to 24, from 10:30 AM to 3 PM. In this popular workshop, kids will learn the basics of singing, dancing, acting, and the visual arts, culminating in a creative production for family and friends. (175)

Though she did not major in art in school, Lyons comes from a crafty family (“My family makes things”), and that has always been part of her life. She majored in theater education in college and worked with Looking Glass Theater for a while and toured her own one-woman puppet show in the Boston area, until she had children and moved to the Cape.

She worked in advocacy for children for a time and then went back to school to become a teacher. She turned to art education as a direct response to the September 11 terrorist attacks. At the same time, a good friend, an art teacher, died of breast cancer, and her oldest child went off to college. It was a time of uncertainty and change, and Lyons realized that life could end at any time. If she ever wanted to teach art, to have a more creative life, she knew she had to get started.

So, she got certified to teach art and began teaching out of her home studio and other places, including the Cape Cod Art Association.

“Art connects,” Lyons said. The art classes are more than simply teaching art, they are a way of bringing people together, encouraging conversations, allowing people to chat about all kinds of things.

“Life is stressful,” she said, “and art helps to relieve that stress, connects you to other people–and it is fun.”

Lyons has an abundance of ideas for future classes. In March, an Irish singer/songwriter will come to perform at the Cotuit Center for the Arts. She will teach a songwriting class and, in the arts center, a bodhran (Irish drum) class. There will be a portrait drawing class to go along with a portrait art exhibit.

She has created art workshops for  Stop Bullying programs. Art journals have proved to be excellent tools for encouraging self-awareness and acceptance of others, and she will continue the program at the Cotuit Center for the Arts.

She also enjoys creating family events. Her Family Holiday Workshops were successful in bringing the generations together in December, and she has more planned. The next one is Valentine Arts on February 11. Children and their parents or grandparents can come in and make art together. “They can spend two hours making one giant valentine, or they can make 25 valentines for their class,” she said.

“It is difficult sometimes for parents to get together materials for their children to do art. I want to make it easy for them by providing the space, the tools, and the materials.”

“You come and enjoy, and I’ll clean up,” she said. “My goal is to create fun experiences in the arts for people to enjoy together.

“I feel like the vision of the Cotuit Center for the Arts and my vision are the same. We want to create a community place for people of all ages to gather together, whether it is for music, for performance, or to have an opportunity to perform, or make music and art, to have an opportunity to share.

And if Lyons is not already offering a class that is of interest to you, let her know what you might be interested in making, what kind of class you’d enjoy taking, and it is likely that she will be able to come up with just the thing to meet your needs.

The Cotuit Center for the Arts may be reached at 508-548-0669. For a list of classes available now, click here.

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Best of The Arts 2011: Classical Music

December 29th, 2011 by Marilyn Rowland

The Boston Cello Quartet concert in Woods Hole (MBL, Lillie Auditorium) in June was one of the highlights of the musical year.

The Cape has much to offer music lovers of all kinds, no matter what one’s musical preferences. This is a sampling of the best offerings for 2011, but there are many other choices that could have been made, and many venues and musicians offering excellent opportunities to hear live music. This list is of those concerts that stood out for me; upcoming concerts are also listed for those who might have missed the 2011 events.

Cape Cod Symphony Orchestra, 50th Anniversary Concerts

From its elegant Vienna-themed New Year’s Day concert, complete with Viennese coffee and pastries, to its December holiday concerts (five of them, over three days, all sold out), the Cape Cod Symphony Orchestra has given us a spectacular year. It is impossible to pick one concert that stood out from all the others, but the opening concert of the 2011-2012 season in September might be the one to mention here, not only because it introduced the orchestra’s 50th anniversary year, but because it did so with such joy and virtuosity, directed with enthusiasm, as always, by Jung-Ho Pak.

The concert featured the premiere of “Cape Cod Impressions,” commissioned from two Cape Cod composers, David M. Cohen and Don Nardo. Mr. Cohen wrote the first two movements, “Sunrise on the National Seashore” and “Summer on the Cape.” Mr. Nardo composed the second two: “Hidden Harbor” and “In Full Sail.”

The orchestra also performed the “Anniversary Overture” by Malcolm Arnold, coincidentally a piece chosen by former CCSO conductor Royston Nash on the 25th anniversary of the orchestra. Mr. Nash was the surprise guest conductor for Giuseppe Verdi’s “Overture to Nabucco,” to the delight of the audience.

Guest soloist Jon Nakamatsu performed Beethoven’s Concerto No. 3 in C minor for Piano and Orchestra. The choice of Mr. Nakamatsu as soloist was especially fitting, not only because he is a fine pianist (a winner of the Van Cliburn piano competition), but because he is also co-artistic director of the Cape Cod Chamber Music Festival. The concert ended with a jubilant “Happy Birthday Variations,” arranged by John Williams.

Upcoming: The CCSO is giving its second annual New Year’s Day concert on Sunday, honoring the Viennese tradition with music by Strauss and his contemporaries, and offering Viennese pastries as well. Then, on January 21, at 8 PM, and January 22, at 3 PM, the CCSO will present “Tchaikovsky’s Winter Dreams: Great Expressions of Russian Romanticism,” with pianist Martina Filjak performing Tchaikovsky’s Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 23. A special celebration is offered on Wednesday, February 1, when cellist Yo-Yo Ma performs with the orchestra (though tickets are nearly all sold out for that concert). For ticket information, visit www.capesymphony.org.

Simon Sinfonietta, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9

The Simon Sinfonietta, a 40-piece chamber orchestra directed Stephen Simon, has been performing in the warm, intimate space at Falmouth Academy since 2004. Mr. Simon is known for bringing together little-known gems of Baroque and classical music, talented local musicians, and accomplished soloists.

In May, Mr. Simon did something completely different. Joining forces with John Yankee, director of both the Falmouth Chorale and the Falmouth Academy chorus and Joseph Marchio, director of Chatham Chorale, he conducted an expanded orchestra of 52 players and a combined chorus of almost 150 singers in a gala performance of Ludwig von Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in D minor. The symphony is much loved, especially for its fourth movement, “Ode to Joy.”

The concert was held at the Parish of Christ the King in Mashpee, one of the few places on the Cape that could accommodate the many musicians and the large audience that turned out for the event. Mr. Simon led the musicians with a keen respect for the music and an abundance of enthusiasm. Though the words were in German, the theme of the symphony, universal brotherhood, resonated throughout the hall.

Upcoming: The Simon Sinfonietta’s next concert is February 18 at 7:30 PM at Falmouth Academy, and features classical guitarist Benjamin Verdery, who will perform Vivaldi’s Guitar Concerto on D Major. Other works include Mozart’s Symphony No. 38 in D Major, “The Prague,” Juan Rodrigo’s “Concerto de Aranjuez, and Carl Maria von Weber’s Symphony No. 2. Tickets are $40, $10 for students. For more information, call 508-457-9696 or visit www.simonsinfonietta.org.

Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra: Fall Concert

Brittany Rodriguez at the piano, just prior to playing with the Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra

 

The Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra, now in its fourth year, is made up primarily of amateur musicians from across the Cape, but also includes some professionals. Conducted by John Yankee, the orchestra generally performs concerts in the fall and spring, often featuring a soloist, and offers informal reading sessions for musicians in the summer.

The orchestra had invited Robert Wyatt to perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 in November, and many in the community were looking forward to hearing Dr. Wyatt perform. Unfortunately, he had a bicycle accident on the Monday before the weekend concerts, and was unable to perform. (He is recovering well now.)

With almost no time to find a substitute pianist, Mr. Yankee called on friends and colleagues throughout New England. Finally, a student at the New England Conservatory’s preparatory school, Brittany Rodriguez, was located. She was studying the concerto for a piano competition and for a scheduled performance in Bogota, Colombia, in December. Only 11 years old she came with high recommendations from NEC.

The young prodigy did brilliant job, performing the half-hour concerto from memory, with seeming ease, confidence, and a love of the music and the whole experience. It was her first time playing with an adult orchestra, and she loved every minute of it.

The orchestra performed beautifully too, not only on the concerto, but also on an impassioned presentation of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, which followed. This was a big undertaking for a chamber orchestra, but the FCPO played with power, sensitivity, and an obvious love for the music, and for sharing it with the community.

Upcoming: The Falmouth Chamber Players will perform a musical celebration designed to appeal to the whole family on Saturday, January 28, at 7 PM, and Sunday, January 29, at 3 PM, at the Cape Cod Conservatory, 60 Highfield Drive in Falmouth. The concert will include traditional music by Schubert, Bach and Telemann, and lighter fare, such as a “zany” arrangement of “Three Blind Mice” and works for various combinations of winds and strings. Suggested donation is $10 for adults and $5 for those under 16. For more information, call Fritz Sonnichsen at 508-274-2632.

Mastersingers by the Sea, “Autumn”

Mastersingers by the Sea, under the direction of David MacKenzie, presented “Autumn: A Season of Mystery” in October, an elegant collection of instrumental and chorale works celebrating the mystery and power of the season: Vivaldi’s “Autumn” violin concerto from “The Four Seasons” and his Concerto for Two Flutes in C, as well as Francesco Durante’s “Magnificat,” and two newer works, Jennifer Higon’s “O Magnum Mysterium” and Knut Nystedt’s “Immortal Bach,” and other works.

The auditioned chorus has a very focused and harmonious sound, blending well with the small orchestra. The instrumentalists are all members of the New Bedford Symphony Orchestra, which Dr. MacKenzie also conducts, and the cohesiveness and professionalism of the combined ensembles is evident.

Upcoming: The Mastersingers will present “Winter: A Season of Remembering,” on Saturday, February 25, at 8 PM, and Sunday, February 26, at 3 PM, at St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Falmouth. The program will include Vivaldi’s “Winter” violin concerto from “The Four Seasons,” Samuel Barber’s “Dover Beach,” Mozart’s “Missa Brevis,” Alberto Williams’ “Primera Suite Argentina for Strings,” and Dominick Argento’s “A Toccata of Galuppi’s. Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 at the door, and $10 for students. For more information, visit www.mastersingersbythesea.org.

Falmouth Chorale, “Coming of the Flood”

A scene from "Noye's Fludde."

The Falmouth Chorale’s fall concert, “The Coming of the Flood,” was a creative and varied presentation by director John Yankee. The 73-member chorale had wonderful expressive sound, and Mr. Yankee brought out every aspect of its musicality, giving each work a distinct flavor.

The first half of the concert included a wide variety music written from the 1500s to the present day, about water, the ocean, and the rain, culminating in a dramatic contemporary piece, “Cloudburst,” incorporating handbells, percussion, piano, and the 15 young people in the chorale’s Coro Ragazzi Children’s Chorus.

The second half was a rich and multifaceted “Noye’s Fludde,” a one-act opera by Benjamin Britton. The work was written for both professional and amateur vocalists and instrumentalists, and children. Mr. Yankee brought in amateur musicians from the Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra, professionals from the Cape Cod Symphony Orchestra, a recorder choir, a bell choir, five percussionists, keyboard players, professional and amateur vocal soloists, young ballet dancers from the Turning Point Dance Studio and singers from Coro Ragazzi, and brought the audience in with several sing-along hymns.

It was a wonderful production, full of life and feeling, warmth and humor

Upcoming: The Falmouth Chorale’s next concert “Samson,” by George Frideric Handel, is on Saturday, March 17, at 7:30 PM, and Sunday, March 18, at 3 PM, at St. Patrick’s Church in Falmouth. Handel. The oratorio tells the story of Samson’s last days. For more information, visit www.falmouthchorale.org. 

Boston Cello Quartet

The Boston Cello Quartet performed in Woods Hole in June, presenting a variety of works written or arranged for four cellos. The cellists, all young members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, are marvelously talented, bringing virtuosity, individuality, and a range of emotions to the music, extending the range and musical characteristics of the cello, sounding at times like all the instruments of the orchestra.

Upcoming: The Boston Cello Quartet will return to Cape Cod on May 27, for a 3 PM concert at the Unitarian Church in Barnstable and may also perform again in Woods Hole during the summer. For more information, visit www.bostoncelloquartet.com.

Briefly Mentioned

The TD Bank Pops by the Sea concert, featuring the Boston Pops and presented by the Arts Foundation of Cape Cod is an annual August highlight, held on the Hyannis Village Green. For more information on the 2012 event, visit www.artsfoundation.org/pops-by-the-sea.

JazzFest Falmouth offered a Jazz Stroll on September 30, with musicians performing in local eateries and shops and outside, their music enjoyed by young and old alike. For more information, visit www.jazzfestfalmouth.org.

Two folk venues offered well-known and upcoming singer-songwriters and folk and roots musicians: the Woods Hole Folk Music Society (www.arts-cape.com/whfolkmusic) and the Cotuit Center for the Arts (cotuitarts.org), where the Third Fret Coffeehouse has moved.

The CCftA also offers the Art Barn Songwriter Series, Wine and Music Wednesdays, and a regular series of concerts by rock, jazz, blues, popular, classical, and roots music.

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Best of the Arts 2011: Theater

December 23rd, 2011 by Marilyn Rowland

It has been a great year for the arts on the Cape. We have seen wonderful shows and entertainments from tried and true theater companies, orchestras, ensembles, artists, and from some fresh new faces. There is plenty to appeal to all tastes and budgets, and room to explore new genres.

This is an informal look at the best of the arts on the Upper and Mid-Cape, or, rather, the best of the shows I have attended. It is is a fairly representative sampling of the offerings in theater, musical theater, vocal and instrumental concerts, art galleries and events, both amateur and professional, from Cape Codders and others.

This week is a review of the best plays and musicals of the year, in more or less chronological order, starting in January. Next week, we will list the best arts, cultural, and music events.

“Side by Side by Sondheim”

The Cotuit Center for the Arts’ production of “Side by Side by Sondheim,” was directed by Mark LiCalsi. The perfect antidote to a cold winter night, the show was a splendid review of Sondheim songs. His witty and intricate lyrics sometimes taxed the mental agility of the listener, but the songs were always entertaining and engaging, taken from a number of different musicals, some very well-known, others more obscure.

The set was elegant: a pair of chandeliers, a plush, red velvet curtain folded against the back wall, and two enormous grand pianos flanking the stage, played with style and precision by Elizabeth Beckel and Nancy Wendlandt.

But what made this show so outstanding was the professional and authentic presentation by vocalists Laura Garner, Lily Mae Harrington, Martha Paquin, Kevin Quill and Glenn Wall, and narrator Todd Bidwell. They not only sang each solo, duet, or ensemble piece with wonderful precision, expression, and tone, they became the characters in each vignette, bringing the audience into one little world of musical theater after another.

“I Hate Hamlet”

“I Hate Hamlet,” written by Paul Rudnick in 1991 and directed by Toby Wilson for the Barnstable Comedy Club, was a fast-paced, witty tale of one man’s confrontation with Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” and with his own theatrical career and the people around him.

The cast was excellent, exuberantly bringing out the heart and soul—and eccentricities—of each character: an angst-ridden television actor whose series had just been canceled (Mike Devine); a swordfighting John Barrymore as Hamlet (Michael Ernst); a chain-smoking agent with a romantic past (Diana Silvester); a 29-year-old virgin (Katie Beatty); a ditzy real estate agent (Susan Cannavo); and an over-the-top Hollywood director (Chris Compton).

Though “I Hate Hamlet” was not a Broadway success, its treatment by the Barnstable Comedy Club was a not-to-be-missed production for its wonderful dialogue, its commentary on Shakespeare and the theatrical world. But the best parts were the excellent casting and the enthusiasm with which each of the actors delivered their lines.

“The Sound of Music”

The Sound of Music” is about the power of music, its power to heal a family, to honor a nation, to inspire and to bring joy. Ably directed by Joan Baird, the Falmouth Theatre Guild’s production was a delight from beginning to end, resounding with fine music, singing, dancing, and acting, and supported by impressive sets, costumes, and technical know-how. But, above all, it powerfully conveyed the indomitable spirit of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s memorable show, and the glory of music.

Jodi Edwards, as Maria, led a large and talented cast. She was perfect as Maria, the novice nun whose heart was too full of music to settle down to the quiet and dutiful life of a nun. She had a lovely singing voice, joyful and clear, and moved gracefully across the stage.

This was a superb production of one of the classics of musical theater.

“Anything Goes”

The set for “Anything Goes” was magnificent. A splendid ocean liner docked on the stage at the Cotuit Center for the Arts, beckoning the audience to cast their cares aside and climb aboard for a madcap adventure. Designed by Nicholas Dorr, the ship was two stories high, with staircases on either side of the ship. Cast members gracefully moved up and down, singing and dancing with ease. Changeable cabins, deftly maneuvered by the stage crew, added to the flexibility of the set.

Directed by Michele Colley, “Anything Goes” featured a large and talented cast of all ages, great Cole Porter songs, glamorous costumes, and an entertaining storyline.

Eileen Fendler played Reno Sweeney, doing an outstanding job on all of her vocal numbers, commanding the stage, with or without the fine chorus. “Blow, Gabriel, Blow” was particularly effective, but she also shone in “I Get A Kick Out of You,” “Anything Goes,” “Let’s Misbehave,” and “Take Me Back to Manhattan.”

Moonface Martin (Pete Steedman) played a dumb gangster, “Public Enemy No. 13.” His “Be Like the Bluebird” was hilarious, and his comic timing was perfect, as he advised his friends to “Remember, it is always darkest right before you turn the lights on.”

“The 39 Steps”

Directed by Mary Arnault, “The 39 Steps” was a wonderfully imaginative show, using only four actors to play 140 roles, quickly and comically switching back and forth between roles, often with the addition or removal of a hat, sometimes with an elaborate, but deftly executed, on-stage costume change.

The action shifted from London to the highlands of Scotland, from the theater to a train to a farmhouse, a mansion, a police station and more, with just a hint of props and stage furniture.

“Night Falls on Emerald City”

In “Night Falls on Emerald City,” a one-person show, Larry Marsland became Judy Garland, without makeup or costume, using only subtle gestures and vocal expressions. He provided an intimate portrait of the much loved, but troubled star, one year before her death from a drug overdose at the age of 47.

“Trial by Jury” and“Pirates of Penzance”

The College Light Opera Company offers a new fully staged musical every week throughout the summer at Highfield Hall, its 32-personcast of college students performing one show while they rehearse for the next, and audition for the one to follow. It is an intense schedule and CLOC should be on the list for that alone, but the shows are also some of the best around.

This year, the opener, a double bill of Gilbert & Sullivan shows, “Trial by Jury” and “Pirates of Penzance,” a nicely matched pair, stood out.

“Trial by Jury,” a half-hour curtain raiser first staged in 1875, was presented in 1930s-style costumes, in shades of blacks, whites, and grays, against a courtroom backdrop in the same colors. The operetta, which was entirely sung, told the story of Angelina’s breach-of-promise suit against Edwin. The all-male jury and the all-female chorus of reporters followed the case, as presented by the various legal personnel, until it was all resolved to everyone’s satisfaction by the judge.

As bright and colorful as “Trial” was muted, “Pirates of Penzance” was spirited and full of fun. The vocals were excellent, and the orchestra provided just the right balance, supporting the chorus and soloists with ease, and providing dramatic flourish when appropriate. The set features sparkling ocean waves in gorgeous shades of blue and green.

“Man of La Mancha”

The final show of the CLOC season, “Man of La Mancha,” directed by Corin Hollifeld, was also among the season’s very best. From the first look at the set, the richly textured, but crumbling walls of the 16th-century dungeon to the final triumphant, inspiring strains of “The Impossible Dream,” the show was magnificent. Brian Acker was outstanding as Cervantes/Don Quixote, capturing the essence of each of these very different men in his stance, vocal expression, and gestures. He and the rest of the company breathed new life into the show’s most frequently heard hit song, giving “The Impossible Dream” solid context. He was supported by an excellent cast and vibrant orchestra.

“Unnecessary Farce”

“Unnecessary Farce” was a genuinely funny, wonderfully crafted play. An undeniably silly, but not preposterous, tale, it pulled the audience in, and kept them laughing from beginning to end.

Directed by James Brennan for the Cape Playhouse, the play told of two earnest junior policemen intent on “taking down the mayor”setting up an undercover stakeout in a hotel. The beautifully constructed set showed two adjoining, mirror-image hotel rooms, one serving as the stakeout room, and the other, the mayor’s room. The policemen can see what happens in the mayor’s room through their video camera setup.

The show was often a two-ring circus, with activities in one room mimicking what was happening in the other—with a twist: one scene has two characters in the throes of passion on one bed, while on the bed in the adjacent room two characters struggle for control of a gun.

But it was not only the physical humor that was so appealing. The script was very witty, and the plot twists kept the audience intrigued—and laughing out loud. The seven professional New York actors in the show all had expert comic timing and delivery and worked well as an ensemble. All of them had appeared in Cape Playhouse productions in the recent past, and it was nice to see some favorite actors return.

“Crazy for You”

The Cape Playhouse’s production of the Gershwins’ “Crazy for You,” directed by Mark Martino, had “everything—and more,” as the man near us said to his wife, as the audience floated out of the theater on opening night, buoyed by the Broadway extravaganza we had just witnessed.

Matt Loehr was magnificent as the lead—Bobby Child—tap-dancing vibrantly across the stage, on top of a limo, a table, and a precarious arrangement of luggage, singing his heart out, and demonstrating the fine rubbery expressiveness of his body as he fell in love at first sight and tasted some potent whiskey.

He was supported by a large and very talented cast of colorful characters of New York and the Old West and a splendid orchestra that was free to play out because the cast was miked. The multiple elaborate sets were vivid and detailed, while retaining an appropriately cartoonish look, and the costumes were varied and exquisite, from cowboy duds to feather-bedecked fans. In short, the playhouse provided a very good reason to skip a trip to New York and see a fabulous Broadway show right here on the Cape.

“Quills”

“Quills” was thoughtful, wickedly funny, beautifully written, and professionally presented by the Cotuit Center for the Arts. Directed by Mary Arnault, the acting, the sets, the costumes, the lighting and the sensitivity of this production were exemplary.

Doug Wright, the author of “Quills,” wrote that art is “innately subversive,” that art, including writing, must be used to challenge the status quo. His Marquis de Sade was driven to write, even when his writing implements, his quills and more, were taken from him, in brutal acts of censorship, and, in the end, his art triumphed, changing the status quo.

The play was only loosely based on the life (and death) of de Sade. The play was no less intriguing as fiction, and it may have encouraged people to learn a little more about the real life of the man who gave us the word “sadism” and to explore the issues related to artistic censorship a little more deeply. As in life, issues were multidimensional and complex.

“Blithe Spirit”

The Woods Hole Theater Company’s production of “Blithe Spirit” was a ghost story—not spooky or scary, just slightly unsettling; it was also funny, loving (for the most part), and unpredictable. Directed by Lisa Smith of East Falmouth, the production was nicely done: a lighthearted look at séances, death, love, and marriage, with a fine ensemble cast.

Written by Noel Coward in 1941, “Blithe Spirit” offered plenty of witty dialogue and unexpected plot twists as novelist Charles Condomine (Norbert Brown of Bourne) seeks out a “complete charlatan” of a spiritual medium to use as a model for a book he is working on. Madam Acati (Louise Patrick) was just eccentric enough to be both hilarious and believable. She managed to bring back Charles’s dead wife Elvira (Jeanne Lohnes), who was strikingly ghostly, as well as sweet, catty, and manipulative.

Mr. Brown’s Charles melted boyishly in Elvira’s presence, and was torn between his dead and living wives, wanting to keep them both. Michelle Slattery, as the living wife, Ruth, was also entertaining, giving us a full range of emotions: skepticism, anger, jealousy, protectiveness, and more, as the story progresses.

“Jesus Chris Superstar”

Alex Valentine as Judas Iscariot, alone, was worth the price of admission to the Falmouth Theatre Guild’s production of “Jesus Christ Superstar.” Mr. Valentine had the perfect voice, attitude and angst for his conflicted role as Jesus’ friend, critic, and ultimate betrayer.

The show, directed by Eric W. Gomes, mixed three time periods, 30-something AD, the 1970s, and today, but it all worked. Jesus (Bobby Price) was more of a beloved “community organizer” (who can heal the sick) than a spiritual leader, while Corrine E. Coates, who played Mary Magdalene, was a highlight, with her bouncy “Everything’s Alright,” sung to comfort Jesus, and memorable “I Don’t Know How to Love Him.”

Jim Hill brought welcome humor and excellent vocal skills as a punk King Herod, who, along with his court of amusing characters, mocks Jesus as the “King of the Jews.”

Honorable Mentions

The year brought two new theater production companies, Theater Under the Stairs directed by Christopher Compton and Holly Erin McCarthy and Wit’s End (Really Lively) Arts directed by Laura Garner.

Theater Under the Stairs presented “No Exit,” “Medea,” and “Alice in Wonderland” at the Cotuit Center for the Arts, as well as “Avenue Q” at the Cape Rep Theater in Brewster.

Wit’s End opened with a seasonal “Christmas Punch” at the Cotuit Center for the Arts.

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Best of 2011 Arts & Entertainment

December 16th, 2011 by Marilyn Rowland

I’ve been putting together a list of the Cape & Island’s best theater, concerts, art shows, films, books, and cultural events–of the events that I have seen this year, which limits the list somewhat, but not too much, as I go to every show I can. I see no need to limit the list to theater, as we have such wonderful and talented artists, writers, filmmakers, and musicians of all genres on the Cape.

But, before I put the finishing touches on the list, I would love to hear what you think. What shows, concerts, art shows, books, events, individuals, organizations, or groups deserve to be on this list, and why?

You can respond by commenting on this post or e-mailing me at entertainment@capenews.net. Thanks for your thoughts!

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“A Winter’s Solstice Celebration”

December 7th, 2011 by Marilyn Rowland

“A Winter’s Solstice Celebration”
By MARILYN J. ROWLAND

One of the most festive holiday celebrations around, “A Winter’s Solstice Celebration,” is sure to put anyone in a festive, holiday mood. Filled with stirring music, good humor, and a bit of medieval history, the show is a collection of songs, poetry, skits, and short plays selected by director Carol McManus of Sandwich. The elements of the show are seamlessly interwoven, the 24 cast members gracefully choreographed by Michele Colley. Patti Anderson is music director. This very satisfying production is at the Cotuit Center for the Arts through December 18.

Some of the Solstice cast, clockwise from upper left: Peter Cook, Cynthia Cook, Alex Cook, Robert Bock, Rebecca Hill, and Kaitlin Cook. Josh Cox in the center. Photo by Daniel Fontneau, Cotuit Center for the Arts.

The show is enhanced further by its unique treatment of intermission, which was an unexpected pleasure. Audience members are invited to bring their own feasts to this medieval celebration and they are seated at long tables rather than in rows of chairs. At last Friday’s production, the start of intermission signaled the opening of often elaborate picnic dinners and community festivities, in the manner of a medieval solstice celebration. People were congenial and good-humored, sharing food and conversation. The cast joined in, offering cider and shortbread cookies to all. Specially themed cocktails may be purchased before the show and during intermission.

A very festive, feasting intermission! Photo by David Kuehn, Cotution Center for the Arts.

There is a splendid member art exhibition in the gallery to browse during intermission, for any who choose not to participate in the feast, but the feasting adds to the holiday spirit and the community spirit of the production.

Ms. McManus has long been a student of medieval theater and has sought to make this evening authentic and educational, as well as fun and community-spirited. The solstice celebration marks the passage of the shortest day of the year and welcomes the lengthening of the days and the shortening of the hours of darkness. People “caroled and feasted and gave thanks and hoped for peace,” we were told.

The show opens in darkness, as singers with candles softly begin with “In the Bleak Midwinter.” With each song or poem, the light brightens, and so does the mood. The singers move through the hall, sometimes off-stage, sometimes on stage, sometimes clustered in small groups. It all flows harmoniously.

Sprinkled in among the carols and poems are four short plays, three authentic medieval plays, and one “in the spirit of medieval play,” a very humorous take on Cinderella. The first play, “The Fall of Man,” tells the story of Adam and Eve. Michele Colley is the worm, or serpent, who tempts Eve to take a bite of the forbidden apple. Her costume, designed by Claude Danner, is long and serpentine, but even better is Ms. Colley’s ability to slither across the stage, coaxing, manipulating, and deceiving poor Eve. Shielding the snake is a uncredited cast member in a magnificent sculptural tree costume designed by Kahren Dowcett. It was so impressive that one could not help but wish that the tree had a larger role.

Robert Bock provides an introduction to “The Fall of Man.” Kiley Donovan plays Eve and Bobby Price is Adam. Garry Mitchell is God, his booming voice lending authority, and Kaitlin Cook is the angel who tells them to leave the Garden of Eden.

“Bar the Door” recounts the unintended impacts of a squabble between a husband and wife. It features Meredith Richter as narrator, Mr. Mitchell as the husband, Liz Brown as the wife, and the father-son team of Peter and Alex Cook as thieves who enter their home. It is an amusing little piece, not all that distant from contemporary comedy. Ms. McManus follows it with a song, “Drink to Me Only,” by Mr. Mitchell and Ms. Brown, a sweet affirmation of their characters’ love for each other.

“The Second Shepherds’ Play” is described as the first play written from imagination, rather than as a recounting of a story in the Bible for the purpose of elucidating the illiterate peasantry of the tales and lessons in the Bible. It begins, however, with a tale of three shepherds (Robert Bock, Peter Cook, and young Josh Cox of Sandwich) on a cold winter night, complaining about the weather, marriage and the dark. Along comes Mak (Paul Fendler) who steals a sheep (whose baas are sure to amuse) and brings it home to his wife, Jill (Cynthia Cook), while the shepherds try to find their lost sheep.

After the shepherds sleep, the scene shifts to Bethlehem, where, guided by two angels (Kinsale Steedman and Kaitlin Cook) they bring their gifts to the baby Jesus, and the scene melts into a beautiful a cappella rendering by the ensemble of “Lo, How A Rose.”

“Cinderella” is presented as a dramatic reading by miscast actors who are not quite ready to perform. The fairy godmother (Patti Anderson), for instance, refers to the “fairy couch” before being corrected to say “fairy coach,” and Cinderella has a cold. Lisa Jo Rudy is terrific as a comic Cinderella, supported by real-life young sisters Celeste Levine and Vivian Levine of Sandwich as her cruel stepsisters. They are adorable.

Alex Cook plays the Prince, who, as he and Cinderella, begin their happily-ever-after, is immediately pursued by multiple young women in “The Eriskay Love Lilt,” a lyrical, Scottish traditional tune. These and other transitions are very well done, and the selection of ancient carols, like “Lord of the Dance,” “Coventry Carol,” and “The Boar’s Head Carol” (complete with a sculpted boar’s head) is inspired.

Several poems are recited. Garry Mitchell reads “The Passionate Shepherd to His Love” (“Come live with me and be my love”) with warm intensity, winning the approval of his love, who, with a careless shrug and a smile, joins him at the end of the poem. Ms. Rudy becomes a spiteful troll in “The Faerie Revels” by John Lyly. Susan Cannavo tells an atypical story of a princess and a dragon in “The Princess, the Knight, and the Dragon.”

Musicians provided a gentle accompaniment: Donna Albert on recorder, Drew Anderson on guitar and percussion, Patti Anderson on keyboards and Kathy Spirtes on hammered dulcimer.

Medieval costumes were designed by Cindy Parker, and the Barnstable Comedy Club and Eva Broderson of the no longer active Mostly Medieval Carolers of Sandwich also provided costumes. L. Michelle Law designed the set, and Erin Trainor designed the lighting.

There is much more, but go see it for yourself. “A Winter’s Solstice Celebration” continues Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 7 PM and Sunday at 1 PM. Tickets are $20, $18 for seniors, $15 for members, and $10 for students. Tickets may be purchased at www.cotuitarts.org or by calling 508-428-0669.

The audience is invited to bring their own dinner to enjoy during the festivities. Cider and sweets will be provided. Audience members may order a gourmet medieval picnic for two in advance. Contact the Cotuit Center for the Arts for additional information or to order dinner.

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“Christmas Punch”

December 7th, 2011 by Marilyn Rowland

Wit’s End (Really Lively) Arts Presents A Lively “Christmas Punch”
By MARILYN J. ROWLAND

The laughter starts before anyone comes out on stage, as we hear the actors backstage at the Black Box Theater at the Cotuit Center for the Arts, loudly wondering where the rest of the cast is. We smile at a woman’s exasperation as she learns two of the actresses are in Hyannis, held up in a traffic jam.

Finally the woman, Mrs. Phoebe Reece, founder and director of the Farndale Avenue House Estate Townswomen’s Guild Dramatic Society (played by Diane Quaid), composes herself and comes out on stage. To stall for time, she reads Robert Benchley’s short story, “Christmas Afternoon Done in the Manner, if Not the Spirit, of Dickens.”

Diane Quaid reads a Christmas story by Robert Benchley. All photos by Daniel Fontneau, Cotuit Center for the Arts.

Thus begins “Christmas Punch,” directed by Laura Garner and presented by her new theater company, Wits End (Really Lively) Arts. The Black Box Theater is small and intimate, seating only 26 audience members. It was full on opening night, and the audience was appreciative of this new endeavor and its five talented and accomplished actors—even as they portray very bad actors in a catastrophe-ridden production of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” in David McGillivray and Walter Zerlin, Jr.’s “The Farndale Avenue Housing Estate Townswomen’s Guild Dramatic Society’s Production of ‘A Christmas Carol.’”

Ms. Quaid gives a delightful (and very professional) reading of “Christmas Afternoon,” temporarily abandoning her scatter-brained Phoebe persona to give a warm and humorous performance. Known not only for her acting skill, but also for her readings at the Woods Hole Public Library and other Cape Cod libraries, Ms. Quaid knows how to bring a good story to life.

Glenn Wall, as Gordon Pugh, begins "A Christmas Carol."

Still waiting for the missing actors, Phoebe starts auditioning audience members to play the role of Scrooge. Just as she is about to settle on someone, the delayed actors finally arrive. Mrs. Stephen Doyle plays Thelma Greenwood, the brusque, humorless woman who is perfectly cast to play Scrooge. Ms. Doyle is excellent in this role, enriching it with subtle touches, as when she (as Scrooge) refers to the traces of dirt beneath his fingernails and gives a sly little glance to her own bright red polished nails.

Hannah Carrita as Felicity and Mrs. Stephen Doyle as Scrooge

Felicity is played by Hannah Carrita, an engaging young actress from Sandwich. A junior in high school, she plays her several roles in the play-within-a-play with an ebullient Valley Girl sort of energy and style, excited to be on stage and playing to the audience.

Glenn Wall plays Gordon Pugh, who is reluctantly involved in the play. His laid-back acting style is very effective, and he is very funny as the door knocker face of Marley and in other roles.

Cleo Zani as Mercedes -- you can feel her pain.

Cleo Zani plays Mercedes, a woman who, in full makeup and ornate earrings, plays several male and female characters, sometimes hurriedly donning his skirt inside out. The only problem is that Mercedes has been injured in a recent shopping cart pile-up and is in severe pain, downing more and more pain killers as the play progresses to keep it together. Mr. Zani is so convincing that you can feel her pain, and it can feel very uncomfortable.

Ms. Quaid’s Phoebe also plays several roles in the play, including Tiny Tim, but never puts down her oversized floral handbag.

There are some very funny moments in “Christmas Punch,” and some very effective visual scenes, as when several characters throw snowballs at each other—big, heavy beanbag snowballs that just thump on the floor. The portrayals of the Spirits of Christmas Past, Present, and Future, are also fun, and very creatively done. The contemporary music played during scene changes is appropriately jarring.

Yet, sometimes it feels as though the play is overacted, or overwritten, that it tries too hard. Sometimes, one just wants to see the classic tale unfold, without the constant and glaring ineptness of the members of the Dramatic Society. A more subtle approach might improve the play, especially in the relatively confined space of the Black Box Theatre.

Even so, the show is a positive beginning for Ms. Garner’s new theater company, and we look forward to her future productions.

“Christmas Punch” continues on Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 PM, this Saturday also at 4 PM, and Sunday afternoon at 2 PM. Tickets are $12 and may be purchased by calling 508-428-0669 or visiting cotuitarts.org. Tickets may already be sold out for the run of the show, so do call ahead.

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Best “Best Christmas Pageant Ever”!

December 6th, 2011 by Marilyn Rowland

In what is quite possibly one of the best ever “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” the Falmouth Theatre Guild offers a warm and engaging holiday show for young and old. What sets this performance apart is the decision to set the play in the 1950s and present the scenes leading up to the pageant in black and white, gray, and silver, giving it a slightly surreal effect, as if we are watching a 1950s television show. It gives the show a very sophisticated look.

When color is finally introduced, in the Christmas Pageant itself, it glows with intensity and warmth, reflecting the vibrant characters and their discovery of the true meaning of Christmas.

Directed by Suzanne Lawson (who played the role of Grace Bradley in last year’s FTG production of the play), with music direction by Jeanne Kuzirian, the play is based on Barbara Robinson’s 1972 book of the same name (copies of which are awarded to random ticketholders at the start of each show), a heartwarming and laughter-packed tale of how the Herdmans, a family of six badly behaved, carelessly dressed children, shake up the annual church Christmas pageant.

“They went through Woodrow Wilson School like those South American fish that strip your bones clean,” we are told as the play begins. Drawn to the church by the promise of free snacks, they demand, and receive, key roles in the play, learn the story of the birth of Jesus for the first time and end up transmitting their joyful interpretation to others.

Olivia McKnight, a seventh grader at Lawrence Junior High School in Falmouth, is outstanding as Beth Bradley, who narrates this story of the year her mother Grace took over the pageant. Confident and self-assured on stage, she speaks  clearly and projects her voice well, expressing both her concerns about the Herdmans and her support for her mother.

Her brother Charlie is played by Max Quidley, who lives in Mashpee and attends Mullen-Hall School in Falmouth. He explains why he enjoys church: “No Herdmans.” All that changes when he mentions to one of the Herdman boys that the church provides snacks.

Grace Bradley is played by Kimberly Emerald Boutin of Falmouth, elegant in her black-and-white dress, and determined to put together the “best Christmas pageant ever,” despite the many obstacles in her way. Ms. Boutin is new to the theater (having appeared as Baroness Elberfeld in FTG’s recent production of “The Sound of Music”), but you would not know that from her fine performance.

Jerry Morse plays her husband, Mr. Bradley, and though he was sometimes difficult to hear at Saturday afternoon’s performance, he delivers some of the funniest lines, usually some version of “Do I have to go?” In the end, though Mr. Bradley helps his children see that the Herdmans’ participation, and their various alterations of the “same old boring pageant” have lent new meaning to the Christmas story and given new energy to the pageant.

Many of those in the large cast (58 people, the large majority of them children, including 10 tots in the Baby Angel chorus and 14 middle school children in the Angel Choir) do not have extensive acting experience, in keeping with the Theatre Guild’s desire to give opportunities to new actors and to retain the flavor of a real Christmas pageant.

Jane Earley as Imogene Herdman and Ann-Marie Freeman as Gladys Herdman are both terrific. This is Jane’s third appearance in “Best Christmas Pageant,” her first as Imogene. Jane is a sixth-grader at Bridgeview Montessori School. A gymnast as well as an actress, Jane walks on her hands with ease, but it is her metamorphosis from an annoying, controlling loudmouth to a compassionate young woman that is the heart of this show, as she discovers “the wonder and mystery” of Christmas.

Ann-Marie, who received the loudest applause on Saturday, was perfect as the Gladys portraying the Angel, full of over-the-top, from the heart, enthusiasm. Ann-Marie is a third-grader at Mullen-Hall.

Hale Thomas, a sixth-grader at Morse Pond, does a fine job as Ralph Herdman; Thomas Earley a fifth-grader at Bridgeview Montessori School, in his third appearance in the show, plays Leroy Herdman; Alden Thomas, a fourth-grader at Mullen-Hall, is Claude Herdman; and Thomas Walker, as second-grader at North Falmouth Elementary School, plays Ollie Herdman, in his second appearance in the show.

Helena Connell, a sixth-grader at Morse Pond, is Alice Wendelken, who is making her second appearance in the show, playing the girl who has always played Mary in the past and, though a friend of Beth’s, keeps a diary of everything that goes wrong in the show.

Gabrielle Melchiorri, homeschooled, of East Falmouth, is Maxine, another friend of Beth’s, who complains about the Herdmans and helps run the pageant.

In addition to providing a wonderful cast of characters and her very effective use of black-and-white, Ms. Lawson has enlivened this production in other ways. Mrs. Armstrong (who previously directed the show and is played by long-time FTG actor and director Davien Gould) is brought on stage in a new way during Mrs. Bradley’s phone calls with her, and the transitions are flow magically. Aisles are creatively used, and set design, also by Ms. Lawson, is just right.

“The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” should be part of everyone’s Christmas theater-going tradition. Appropriate for the whole family, the show runs about an hour, with no intermission.

“The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” may be seen Friday, December 9, at 7:30 PM and Saturday and Sunday, December 10 and 11, at 4 PM. Tickets are $12 for adults and $10 for children, seniors, and groups. Call 508-548-0400 for tickets and information, or buy tickets online at www.falmouththeatreguild.org.

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Brittany and the FCPO

November 22nd, 2011 by Marilyn Rowland

Brittany Alexa Rodriquez wowed audiences last weekend with her performance of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 with the Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra, directed by John Yankee. The 11-year-old played beautifully and won everyone’s hearts as well. She has a bright future ahead.

Brittany also won the concerto competition she played in on Sunday morning at New England Conservatory–between her first concert with the COP on Saturday evening and the second on Sunday afternoon. Rather than review Brittany performance, I’ll simply let you watch it.

The Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra also performed Haydn’s “Music for the Royal Fireworks” and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5. Both were very well played, but the Beethoven was spectacular.

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Brittany Rodriguez to Perform with Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra

November 18th, 2011 by Marilyn Rowland

11-Year-Old Is Last-Minute Substitute

Brittany Rodriguez

Brittany Rodriguez

Brittany Alexa Rodriguez is a warm and personable 11-year-old—and a very remarkable pianist. Local audiences will have a unique opportunity to hear her play Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 this weekend with the Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra, under the direction of John Yankee. It should be a splendid  concert for both children and adults.

The Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra performs Saturday, November 19, at 7:30 PM, and Sunday, November 20, at 3 PM, at Falmouth Academy, 7 Highfield Drive in Falmouth. In addition to Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23, the orchestra will play Handel’s “Music for the Royal Fireworks” and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5. Suggested donation is $12 for adults and $5 for children 18 and under.

At her first rehearsal with the orchestra Thursday night, she played beautifully and confidently, and enjoying the interplay of the piano with the orchestra, which she told me was the best orchestra she had ever played with. John Yankee was clearly equally delighted with her, as were members of the orchestra. He did have to ask her to slow down her performance of the very fast final movement so that the orchestra could keep up. “Could you do it just a little slower,” he asked, “but just as thrilling and exciting?” And she did.

The concerto was originally scheduled to be performed by Robert Wyatt, an accomplished pianist and prominent member of the local arts community. However, Dr. Wyatt suffered serious injuries in a bicycling accident earlier this week. He is currently recovering in the hospital and is expected to be just fine, a relief to his many friends and admirers.

Brittany Rodriguez and John Yankee

John Yankee was not only concerned about his friend, but about the upcoming concert. He sent out an all points bulletin to his colleagues, other musicians, conductors, and music schools in search of a replacement. Within a day or two he heard back from Tom Novak, dean of New England Conservatory, who told him about Brittany, who has been preparing the Mozart concerto for a concerto competition at NEC and for a performance in Bogota, Colombia in December.

Rehearsal begins at Falmouth Academy.

Her teacher, Wha Kyung Byun, assured Yankee that Brittany was qualified and capable, and she and her parents were agreeable, even though this is a very busy weekend for Brittany. In addition to two rehearsals with the orchestra and concerts on Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon, she has classes to attend, and is performing the Mozart concerto Sunday morning for the concerto competition. (She is one of seven finalists in this competition for pianists under 12.)

Brittany started piano lessons at Westminster Conservatory in Princeton, NJ, the age of 5, after her parents, Marcos and Iris, noticed her fascination with a toy piano.  By 6, she was performing in public. When she was 7, the family moved to Colombia, where her father was born. There, she continued her studies at the Unimusica Foundation in Bogota and taking private piano lessons  with Sergei Sitchkov and theory with Elena Krasutskaya.

In Colombia, she won the Jovenes Interpretes 2009 at the Biblioteca Luis Angel Arango, one of the most prestigious music competitions in that country.  At the age of 9, she was the only non-college music student allowed to participate in the La Sala Fabio Lozano competition at Jorge Tadeo Lozano University, and was selected to be part of the 2009 concert series.

When Brittany was 9, and again when she was 10, she attended the summer music program at New England Conservatory. She received so much help there from Ms. Byun, whom her father describes as one of the best teachers in the world, that her family decided to move back to the US last fall so that Brittany could attend NEC’s Preparatory Program year-round. Bilingual, Brittany holds dual citizenship.

Brittany is very talented, her father told me, but her abilities are not just the result of talent. She is also a very dedicated student and loves the piano.  She not only takes piano lessons at NEC, but also takes theory classes at the Berklee College of Music, and attends a private school in Framingham for her “regular classes.” She is in the seventh grade.

Brittany’s studies also require a big commitment from her parents, who not only moved back to the US to give their daughter access to a first-class education, they take her to lessons and classes, rehearsals and concerts, making sure she has everything she needs. It can be very time-time consuming, they said.

Brittany and her parents

And they try to keep her grounded so that she will have a normal childhood. They don’t push her, but allow her to progress at her own rate. The warmth and love between family members is very evident.

Marcos plays guitar and studied music himself in Colombia, though he says he is not really a musician. All of Brittany’s weekly hour-and-a-half music lessons are videotaped so that she can study them during the week. Without the recording, said her father, it is easy for a child to forget the many comments a teacher can make during a lesson. He studies the videos along with her and helps her focus.

“These are difficult pieces,” Marcos said.  “She has a very demanding repertoire, and she is working on developing the musical knowledge and technique that she needs, training her muscles just as athletes train theirs.”

Though Brittany likes the Mozart concerto very much, it is a big undertaking he said, a very difficult piece. It has three movements, each very different from each other, is 30 minutes long, and it must all be played from memory. It has to be very polished, said Marcos. “Mozart doesn’t allow you to make any mistakes because the music is so exposed.” You can hide a few mistakes in Beethoven,” he said, but not in Mozart.

But it is more than that, he said. The second movement of the concerto, the very beautiful slow movement for which this concerto is so well known, is “deceivingly difficult.”  There is a lot of “conversation with the orchestra” and many little details that Brittany will have to attend to.

Despite Brittany’s many accomplishments, she is always working hard to learn something new. “It is very difficult,” said Marcos, “to see your child struggling all the time. She conquers one piece, and receives a harder one to learn. Sometimes I wonder what we have gotten ourselves into.”

I asked if changes were ever made in the music or techniques to accommodate Brittany’s small hands. “No,” said Marcos, “that would be counterproductive. She can make the reach necessary, but it is not yet completely comfortable.”

“There is something very rude about the way the piano treats pianists,” Marcos said. “You have to learn how play correctly or you can hurt yourself. With the guitar, you can play for hours and hours without injuring yourself.”

In the end, though, the piano brings joy to both Brittany and her parents, and all three are excited about this weekend’s concerts. Not only is it fun for her to play with the orchestra, but the experience should help her in the concerto competition (which will be performed with a second pianist playing an orchestra reduction) and in her performance next month with the Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogatà.

Brittany turns 12 on December 16.

For more information and to see videos of her performances, visit www.brittanyrodriguez.com. For more information on the Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra, visit www.falmouthchamberplayers.org.

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Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra Presents Much-Loved Music

November 18th, 2011 by Marilyn Rowland

Members of the Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra in a concert performed last spring. From left, they are Robert Knapp on viola, Fritz Sonnichsen and his wife, Laura Tutino, both on violin, and Patricia Knapp, Robert Knapp’s wife, also on violin. The orchestra includes three couples who play together. The third couple is JoAnne Caputo on violin and Frank Caputo on French horn.

The Falmouth Chamber Players Orchestra, under the direction of John Yankee, will present a program of classical music favorites Saturday, November 19, at 7:30 PM and Sunday, November 20, at 3 PM. Both concerts take place at Falmouth Academy, 7 Highfield Drive in Falmouth.

The 30-member volunteer orchestra will perform Handel’s “Music for the Royal Fireworks” and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5.

Steinway Artist Robert Wyatt had been scheduled to play Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23, but he will be unable to perform due to injuries sustained in a bicycling accident earlier this week. Young pianist Brittany Alex Rodriguez will substitute for him.

Despite their sorrow over the absence of their featured soloist, the orchestra is ready to perform. Formed in the spring of 2008, the orchestra has “come a long way,” according to Mr. Yankee.

“Although we’re comprised mostly of amateur players from diverse backgrounds, we continue to come together, prepare as best we can, and grow as an ensemble.” Three years ago, he said, “we couldn’t have taken on such a ‘classic’ program as this, but I believe now we can.”

Fritz Sonnichsen, president of the orchestra and a violinist in the group, agreed. “As we complete our fourth year, the orchestra is happy to have gained six new players, all with prior orchestral experience, and they have been a great boost to the quality of the orchestra.”

The music selected for the concert by Mr. Yankee is challenging for an amateur orchestra. “Handel’s ‘Fireworks’ asks for clean, well-tuned, sometimes flourishing ensemble playing, with a clear understanding of baroque style,” said Mr. Yankee, certain that his musicians were up to the task.

Mr. Sonnichsen said that the work is “somewhat of a landmark for us.” In the orchestra’s first year, “we were only confident enough to play one movement from Handel’s ‘Water Music.’ ”

Performing the complete “Fireworks” is thus a major move forward. The FCPO’s version of the piece has been expanded to include a complete wind section. “There were no clarinets in Handel’s time,” Mr. Sonnichsen explained.

The work was originally written for a large wind band including 24 oboes, 12 bassoons and a contrabassoon, nine trumpets, nine French horns, and three pairs of kettledrums. After the first performance, which accompanied the royal fireworks in London in 1749 to celebrate the end of the War of the Austrian Succession in 1748, Handel rescored the piece for full orchestra.

“Fireworks” has five movements, including the dance form “Bourrée”; the pastoral “La Paix”; the celebratory “La Réjouissance”; the overture; and two minuets.

About the Mozart piano concerto, Mr. Yankee said, “The FCPO has supported soloists in a couple smaller-scale concertos in the past—Bach, Vivaldi, Telemann—and I believe are now primed to play one of Mozart’s finest piano concertos.”

Mozart’s Piano Concert No. 23 in A Major is indeed considered one of his finest works. Written in 1786 while Mozart was in Vienna, it has three movements, a sunny and bright opening Allegro; a slow, expressive, and somewhat melancholy Adagio, the only movement Mozart composed in F# minor; and a final Allegro Assai, a cheerful and spirited rondo.

The concerto has been described as a “constant exchange of ideas” between the soloist and the orchestra and various ensembles within the orchestra. It features a piano cadenza, an extended solo passage.

Laura Tutino, vice president and concert mistress of the orchestra, and the wife of Mr. Sonnichsen, said that she had greatly enjoyed working with Dr. Wyatt in rehearsals. “He was very generous with his time,” she said. “He exudes a nice positive attitude toward musicianship in general that makes you want to absolutely do your best.”

She described the concerto as “very light, one of the most beautiful concertos.” Though not “terribly difficult technically for the orchestra,” she said, “it requires a lot of finesse, proper dynamics, and nuances to make it blend well. It has a very delicate quality, and it is a pleasure to play it.”

“Mozart,” she said, “often makes life difficult for violinists. He was more kind in this piece, and everyone is enjoying playing it. It is also an easy classical piece to listen to,” she said, “even, perhaps for people who don’t listen to a lot of classical music.”

Familiar to all, whether or not they are classical music fans is the final piece on the program, Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, with its familiar “da, da, da daaaah” opening, first performed in 1808. It was described in 1810 by E.T.A. Hoffmann as “indescribably profound” and “magnificent.” He went on to say, “the soul of the thoughtful listener is assuredly stirred, deeply and intimately,” and “he will be powerless to step out of that wondrous spirit realm where grief and joy embrace him in the form of sound.”

“We’ve been working up to a symphony as demanding, extensive and well-known as Beethoven’s 5th,” said Mr. Yankee. “It’s risky, but everyone’s working hard and I’m confident that we will rise to its many challenges.”

Though the symphony has been challenging for the musicians, Ms. Tutino said, “It feels really good to go into rehearsals and see it come together more and more each week, in the large group, and in sectionals. The camaraderie of the orchestra has grown, too. It is very collaborative.”

“People are familiar with the music, and I think they will find it very exciting,” she said. “It is surely exciting for all the musicians. We’re really growing musically as an ensemble, sounding better and better, thanks in part to some of the fine new musicians who have joined.”

She also credits Mr. Yankee for bringing out the best musicianship in all of the players.

A donation of $12 is suggested for adults, $5 for youth 18 and younger.

The orchestra, a nonprofit organization, is supported in part by grants from the Woods Hole Foundation and the South Shore Playhouse Associates/Cape Cod Melody Tent. For more information, visit www.FalmouthChamberPlayers.org, or call Mr. Sonnichsen at 508-274-2632.

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