Archives for 2007

“Gratitude is a sickness suffered by dogs.”
Joseph Stalin (quoted in Nikolai Tolstoy, Stalin’s Secret War)

Most shows currently playing on Broadway remain closed until further notice by the stagehands’ strike. All off-Broadway shows are open as usual. Here’s my list of recommended shows in New York and out of town that are unaffected by the strike. In all cases, I gave them favorable reviews in The Wall Street Journal when they opened. For more information, click on the title.

Warning: Broadway shows marked with an asterisk were sold out, or nearly so, last week.

BROADWAY:

• Pygmalion * (comedy, G, suitable for mature and intelligent young people, closes Dec. 16, reviewed here)

• The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee * (musical, PG-13, mostly family-friendly but contains a smattering of strong language and a production number about an unwanted erection, closes Jan. 20, reviewed here)

OFF BROADWAY:

• The Fantasticks (musical, G, suitable for children old enough to enjoy a love story, reviewed here)

• The Glorious Ones (musical, R, extremely bawdy, reviewed here)

• Things We Want (drama, R, adult subject matter, reviewed here)

MINNEAPOLIS:

• The Home Place (drama, PG-13, adult subject matter, reviewed here, closes Sunday)

“One can never pay in gratitude; one can only pay ‘in kind’ somewhere else in life.”
Anne Morrow Lindbergh, North to the Orient

We always celebrate Thanksgiving at my parents’ house here in Asheville. My parents are accomplished cooks and hosts, but a while back it struck me that I should make a gesture toward contributing to the meal. I was told to bring “green bean casserole.” This was disappointing — although I often talk about not being a good cook, I was a little offended that my family seemed to believe me. And green bean casserole is, I’ve decided, the cream-of-mushroom equivalent of an O. Henry story: A sacrifice to make, and a sacrifice to eat. But my mom continued to request it, so each year I would arrive at their door clutching a murky, bog-laden Pyrex. Last year, however, circumstances combined to make it impossible for anyone else in the family to cook, and I was put in charge of the dinner. The experience was not unlike when a fourth-string scrub is plucked from the bench for the Big Game. I made beef tenderloin, homemade macaroni and cheese, cranberry chutney and a beautiful pear salad (I was working with the theme: what if the Pilgrims had landed at a Wisconsin steakhouse instead of Plymouth? After dinner we had Grasshoppers.) It wasn’t traditional — I had to make something that could be delivered picnic style — but it came off well enough that this year I’ve been asked to reprise the chutney and salad. No green bean casserole, hoorah.
Tomorrow is also Mr. Tingle’s and my anniversary. It’s our seventh, so we’ve rented The Seven Year Itch to watch when we get home. (I now wish I’d had the presence of mind to rent Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? too, to make it a truly romantic double feature.)
I have many things to be grateful for this year. One of the nicest among them is joining Terry and Laura at About Last Night. My thanks to them and to you readers, along with hopes that you enjoy a happy, safe holiday. See you next week!

“Gratitude is the most exquisite form of courtesy.”
Jacques Maritain, Reflections on America

I just got back from the first set of Maria Schneider’s opening night at the Jazz Standard. It was completely sold out. The band played gorgeously. The music was beautiful. The barbecue was tasty.
If you want to hear Schneider’s big band this week, don’t delay–make a reservation now. Go to the Top Five module of the right-hand column for more information.
(We return you now to your increasingly desperate Thanksgiving Eve packing routine.)

“Gratitude is a fickle thing, indeed. A person taking aim presses the weapon to his chest and cheek, but when he hits, he discards it with indifference.”
Franz Grillparzer, Libussa

Mrs. T and I are flying back from Chicago, where we spent the weekend seeing two shows in the company of Our Girl. Tomorrow Hilary returns to Connecticut, while I write two pieces and go to the Jazz Standard to hear the Maria Schneider Orchestra. On Wednesday I drive north to spend Thanksgiving with Hilary and her family, see two musicals, and continue working on my Louis Armstrong biography.
The joint, in short, is jumping like hell, and things were further complicated when I learned last Friday night that my mother had fallen and cracked her pelvis. (She’s in the hospital, resting comfortably.) All this means, not surprisingly, that posting will be iffy for the rest of the week. Expect the usual almanac entries and theater-related items–including news about the stagehands’ strike, which is still very much up in the air as I write these words–but otherwise I shall try to stick to my last.
OGIC and CAAF will do whatever they do, or don’t.
See you around.
UPDATE: Strike talks broke off last night and Broadway producers announced the cancellation of performances through Nov. 25.
For a list of Broadway shows that remain open, go here.