Broadway To Vegas

Copyright: July 1, 2007
By: Laura Deni
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4TH OF JULY CELEBRATIONS RANGE FROM TRADITIONAL TO BIZARRE

With the 4th of July falling on a Wednesday many are using the mid-week date to kick off a five day, fun for all. Celebrations encompass enough unique activities to accommodate the most outrageous desires - mud wrestling, the World's Tallest Uncle Sam to participating in the World's Largest Group Marriage Vow Renewal Ceremony. The obligatory fireworks are everywhere and so is the entertainment.

DENVER CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS is staging the Stephen Sondheim slapstick A Funny Thing Happened on the Way To the Forum. Following the 4th of July performance an ice cream social will be held with ice cream and soft drinks served on the terrace outside the theatre.

A UNIQUE PILLOW FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP held over a pit of mud takes place on the 4th of July in Kenwood, CA. The annual Kenwood festival begins with the 10K and 3K Kenwood Foot Race followed by The Biggest Little Home Town Parade. There's also live music, games and food vendor booths, plus that infamous pillow fight.

HEAD DOWN TO FISHERMAN'S WHARF for The City of San Francisco's Fourth of July Waterfront Celebration. Immediately following the onstage entertainment, the city's spectacular 21-minute fireworks display will take place over the San Francisco Bay - launched from the foot of MUNI Pier and off barges to the north of Pier 39.

FAIR SAINT LOUIS July 3-4. Riverfront at Gateway Arch. Grounds open at 6 pm on July 3 for family entertainment. The musical lineup includes Colbie Caillat, Lifehouse, Goo Goo Dolls, Everlife, Kim Mawswsie and Cyndi Lauper. Fireworks will light the sky over the Gateway Arch at 9:15 pm on both evenings. There will be music, food and fun for the whole family on the riverfront. The Fair is a Free event.

THE TASTE OF CHICAGO is a 10-day test of gastronomy; admission is free, and food tickets are bought in bulk so you can sample away in the Gourmet Pavilion. You'll find colorful tents and lively kitchens from over 65 Chicago-based restaurants. The Taste of Chicago attracts over 3.5 million visitors every year, and evolved from a simple tourist attraction back in 1980. The Taste starts on June 28, 2007 and runs through July 8. Fourth of July menu items to enjoy include flag-shaped cookies and patriotic cupcakes!

THE CHICAGO HISTORY MUSEUM on Fourth of July morning will host the A Star-Spangled Independence Day event where you'll catch the World's Tallest Uncle Sam, a children's costume parade, patriotic musical performances, and other family-friendly events. The outdoor event is free.

2007 SAFEWAY WATEFRONT BLUES FESTIVAL Enjoy blues music and fireworks on the 4th of July, the opening date of the Waterfront Blues Festival. Blues music is featured on several stages. The opening evening is capped off by a fireworks display over the Willamette River. Tom McCall Waterfront Park in Portland, OR.

THE CITY OF MIAMI BEACH for the 17th year will host a Fourth of July Celebration. The event starts at 7 p.m. with the induction of children from all over the world into citizenship, followed by a musical performance by the Miami Symphony Orchestra and fireworks.

BOSTON HARBORFEST which began June 28 is a week long block party, with music, Revolutionary War re-enactments, which you can join in, a best chowder competition where you can pick your favorite and a chance to dress up in authentic-that means no zippers or other things we take for granted-Revolutionary Era garments. There are dozens of things to choose from each day. Free concerts every day, special events at the museums and tours of the Freedom Trail.

The culmination is the magnificent July 4th Fireworks and Boston Pops Concert. On the Esplanade in Boston, along the Charles River, there will be two days of free concerts by the Boston Pops.

EVERY JULY 4TH THE SCHOFIELD BARRACKS IN HAWAII home to the 25th Infantry, opens up the post and invites the public to come celebrate with them. And it is a day long celebration ending when the fire works start. There is a 5K race, a children's race, a midway with rides and games, plenty of food vendors, entertainment, a concert by the national Guard band, and this year one extra-special event. If you have ever thought of doing something to get into the Guinness Book of Records, here is your chance. The only requirement is that you are married. There will be an attempt to have the World's Largest Group Marriage Vow Renewal Ceremony. You just need to bring you marriage license. It will be a non denominational ceremony.



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SPREADING THE WORD

HOW PRESIDENT DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER'S LOVE OF GOLF HELPED SHAPE 1950'S AMERICA author Catherine Lewis speaks about her book Don't Ask What I Shot including fascinating stories of how during WWII General Eisenhower ordered an air force pilot to drop a bomb on a new army golf course in Italy to quickly dig a hole for a sand trap, and how as president he took to the links with not only golf clubs but a "doomsday" briefcase that held the codes to launch a nuclear attack.

Eisenhower used golf as a way to relax from stress and as recuperative exercise after his first heart attack in 1955. Lewis explores how Eisenhower often directed national policy from fairways and clubhouses, including Little Rock's Central High School integration standoff and the response to the American spy plane crash in the Soviet Union.

Without Ike’s stand on racial desegregation, some of the best golfers in the world, including Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh, might never have picked up a club or competed on the PGA Tour.

Public awareness of President Eisenhower’s obsession with golf led to his being simultaneously credited with the surge in the sport’s popularity and criticized for running the country from a golf course. He played more than 800 rounds during his presidency.

By his second term, however, Ike and golf represented a bygone era because, more than any other sport in America, golf’s moneyed culture remained insulated from the race and class struggles that were transforming the country in the postwar period.

Don't Ask What I Shot is also a never-before-told biography of Eisenhower, a president whose legacy is forever intertwined with the game of golf and the impact it has on our lives today.

Dr. Catherine Lewis is an associate professor of history and at Kennesaw State University. She is the author of six books, including Bobby Jones and the Quest for the Grand Slam. In addition to her work at KSU, she is a curator and special projects coordinator at the Atlanta History Center, having curated more than thirty exhibitions, including the award-winning Down the Fairway with Bobby Jones. Dr. Lewis holds a B.A. in English and History from Emory University and an M.A. and Ph.D. in American Studies from the University of Iowa.

She appears at the President Carter Museum and Library in Atlanta on Wednesday, July 10. Free and Open to the Public.

INSIGHTS SEMINARS This Monday night series provides Old Globe patrons with an opportunity to be more closely connected to the work on stage and backstage at the venue's three theatres. A panel selected from the artistic company of each production - playwrights, actors, directors, designers, and/or technicians - engages patrons in an informal and illuminating presentation of ideas and insights to enhance the theatre-going experience. Each Insights Seminar takes place in the theatre where the production is performed and is followed by an informal champagne reception. A seminar on Measure for Measure takes place on July 9. The Old Globe in San Diego.

SWEET CHARITY

ROBERT MONDAVI WINERY ANNUAL SUMMER FESTIVAL kicks off it's 38th Annual Summer Festival with an evening of live jazz and a fireworks show in celebration of Independence Day. The Preservation Hall Jazz Band performed last night with all proceeds to benefit the Hurricane Katrina Relief Fund. On July 7th Dianne Reeves performs. On July 14th multiple Grammy award-winning jazz pianist and composer Herbie Hancock takes to the stage. Los Lobos with their unique East LA musical sound entertains on July 21.

The Robert Mondavi Winery’s Summer Festivals - located at Saint Helena Highway, Oakville, CA - have been music to the ears of Napa Valley residents and visitors since 1969, offering a dazzling range of headliners—but their contribution to life in the Valley has always been more profound than just entertainment. Now a Napa Valley tradition, the Summer Festival has raised approximately $2 million since its inception, funds that have offered a lifeline for the local arts community including the Napa Valley Unified School District and Napa Valley Symphony

ART AND ABOUT

THE SAN DIEGO NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM'S EXHIBITION DEAD SEA SCROLLS is the largest, longest, most comprehensive ever assembled in any country. Spanning two floors and 12,000 square feet, 27 Dead Sea Scrolls - 10 exhibited for the first time ever—will be on display over the course of the exhibition.

The six-month exhibition brings together materials never before exhibited together: Dead Sea Scrolls from Israel and Jordan reunited for the first time in sixty years, never-before-exhibited ancient Hebrew codices from the Russian National Library, medieval manuscripts from the British National Library, and stunning modern interpretations of the texts. Tracing the scrolls and their meaning through time, the exhibition connects the ancient world to the modern.

The Dead Sea Scrolls—objects of great mystery, intrigue and significance—are widely acknowledged to be among the greatest archaeological treasures ever discovered.

Exhibition highlights include:

Authentic Dead Sea Scrolls, fully interpreted with translation of text and background information
Psalms scrolls containing passages from liturgy still in use today
The best preserved of all Deuteronomy manuscripts containing the text of the Ten Commandments
A section of the Copper Scroll from Jordan, the only Dead Sea Scroll inscribed on copper
Ancient, illuminated manuscripts from the National Library of Russia
In addition to displaying ancient artifacts, the San Diego Natural History Museum will explore the scientific interpretation of the scrolls, including:
The use of infrared photography to enhance the appearance of the soiled and weathered texts
DNA analysis that matches individual scroll fragments
Multi-spectral imaging used to read fragile rolled scrolls
Computer programs that match edges of torn scrolls
Carbon-14 dating used to precisely date the scrolls
Paleography that establishes a chronology based on the evolution of styles of ancient handwritings
Chemical analysis of clay scroll jars to determine the source of the clay Archaeology of nearby settlements of the same period
Analysis of ancient human burials near Qumran
Conservation and preservation of the scrolls
Modern interpretations of the text from Ethiopia and St. John’s University in Minnesota

To ensure preservation of the 2000-year-old parchment, the Israel Antiquities Authority only allows scrolls to be exhibited for a three-month period. The Museum has been granted the unusual opportunity for a six-month exhibition with 12 scrolls displayed for the first three months and an additional 12 in the last three months. In addition, three Dead Sea Scrolls from Jordan will be on display throughout the course of the exhibition.

During the course of the exhibition the Museum will offer 22 lectures by world-class experts on the Dead Sea Scrolls.

The Exhibition opened June 29 and continues through December 31.



QUEENS ELIZABETH HONORS ENTERTAINMENT WORLD with her Birthday Honors List - one of two annual awards lists when knighthoods and other Royal honors are distributed. The queen turned 81 on April 21, but traditionally celebrates the day in June. The other time the queen passes out honors is the New Year's Honors List.

Author Salmon Rushdie was knighted as was cricketer Ian Botham who was honored for his services to Leukemia Research.

87-year-old actor Peter Sallis, the voice of Wallace in Ardman Animation's Wallace and Gromit films, received an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire). Others receiving OBEs in the Queen's Birthday List included singer Joe Cocker, best-selling novelist Barbara Taylor Bradford, CNN reporter Christianne Amanpour and actress Sylvia Sims, who played the Queen Mother in last year's film, The Queen.

Australian Barry Humphries, alter ego of Dame Edna Everage, received a Commanders of the Order of the British Empire, or CBE. Michael Eavis, a dairy farmer and founder of England's annual music and mud fest, the Glastonbury Festival, also received a CBE.

In descending order, the honors are knighthoods, CBE, OBE and MBE. Recipients of knighthoods are addressed as "Sir" or "Dame." Those awarded CBEs, OBEs and MBEs have no title but can put the letters after their names.

OTHER PEOPLE'S MONEY

SPAMALOT the London production, beginning July 23 is moving its matinee to Friday at 5:15 pm and has introduced a novel ticket pricing policy for kids and young audiences at this new family friendly performance - kids aged Five-to-Fifteen can pay their age for tickets.

FROST/NIXON production on Broadway has a special ticket offer. Between July 2-8 patrons can purchase tickets for as low as $55.

CURTAIN DOWN

RADIO GOLF by the late August Wilson - the final play in his epic ten-play cycle chronicling the African-American experience in the twentieth century - will close July 1 after 64 performances and 17 previews at the Cort Theater on Broadway.

COMPANY by Stephen Sondheim and George Furth will close July 1 having played 34 preview performances and 247 regular performances at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre. The revival won director John Doyle a 2007 Tony Award. The production has been filmed for future airing on PBS television as part of their Great Performance series.



THE PAIN AND THE ITCH by Bruce Norris. In his first UK production, American writer Bruce Norris takes a withering look at phony liberal values in this hilarious social satire. This UK premiere is directed by Dominic Cooke in his first production as Artistic Director of the Royal Court.

Cast includes: Amanda Boxer, Abdi Gouhad, Hannah Gunn, Shannon Kelly, Matthew Macfadyen, Andrea Riseborough, Sara Stewart, Peter Sullivan and Angelica Trew.

A cozy family Thanksgiving dinner for six. The hosts are Clay, an insecure and aggrieved house-husband (Matthew Macfadyen) and his spouse Kelly (Sara Stewart), a bitter corporate exec. Their guests are Clay's mother (Amanda Boxer), and his cynical plastic surgeon brother (Peter Sullivan) and his gloriously trashy girlfriend, Kalina (Andrea Riseborough).

Someone - or something - is leaving bite marks in the avocados. Clay and Kelly's daughter Kayla has an itchy genital infection and Carol can't remember who played Gandhi. The Pain and the Itch premiered at the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago before a sold-out run off-Broadway. Performances to July 21 at the Royal Court Theatre in London.

GASLIGHT by Patrick Hamilton. Peter Gill directs a cast, including Rosamund Pike, Kenneth Cranham, Andrew Woodall and Rowena Cooper in Gaslight, the powerful story of a young woman psychologically dominated by her husband.

While Jack Manningham is out on the town each evening, his wife, Bella, stays at home alone, believing she's losing her mind: she can't explain the disappearance of familiar objects, the mysterious footsteps overhead or the ghostly flickering of living room gaslights. However, questions about Jack's behavior and true identity are aroused following the unexpected arrival of Detective Rough.

Set design by Hayden Griffin. Lighting by TA Kemp. Music by David Shrubsole.

June 7-August 18 at The Old Vic in London.

SWEENEY TODD music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Book by Hugh Wheeler.

Starring Welsh opera star Bryn Terfel as Sweeney Todd, The Demon Barber of Fleet Street in a dramatized concert created especially to celebrate the reopening of the newly refurbished Royal Festival Hall in London.

Maria Friedman sings the role of Mrs. Lovett and David Freeman directs

One of the most operatic of all musicals, Sweeney Todd is a dark and absorbing tale of love, murder and obsession set in the harsh underworld of Victorian London. Having spent 15 years in jail for a crime he didn't commit, Todd returns to London to seek revenge. He sets up as a murderous barber above Mrs. Lovett's pie shop - with grotesque edible results.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of Stephen Barlow, perform Stephen Sondheim's richly melodic score, bringing this tale of vengeance brilliantly to life. This is the first time that Bryn Terfel has performed the role in London.

July 5-7 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre in London.

ELLINGTON BY STARLIGHT From Jazz to Big Band, Gospel to Musical Theatre, Duke Ellington preferred to think of his music as “beyond category,” and there is no denying “The Duke” was a prominent force in shaping the entire American musical landscape for nearly 50 years. His rise to stardom at the Cotton Club in 1927 led to a lifetime of memorable hits including Solitude, Sophisticated Lady, Take the ‘A’ Train, Black Beauty, and I Got It Bad and That Ain’t Good.

Ellington by Starlight pays homage to the elegance and sophistication this musical genius provided the world of song. July 5-15 at the Bristol Riverside Theatre in Bristol, PA.

THE BARBER OF SEVILLE Need a haircut? Call Figaro. Need a date? No problem. Broken heart? Figaro is your man. Watch out because Seville's Mr. Fixit has come to town with a stylish new production of Rossini's much-loved romantic comedy, bubbling over with playful melodies and melting arias.

In Seville's swankiest health spa Dr. Bartolo thinks he has everything – including his beautiful ward, Rosina – under control. But he is not counting on the antics of his head stylist. When Bartolo steps out, Figaro steps in, ready to play Cupid.

The masterly Richard Bonynge conducts Rossini's sparkling score, José Carbó is the smooth-talking Figaro, Figaro, Figaro, while popular soprano Amelia Farrugia, makes her debut as Rosina with Henry Choo as her suitor, Almaviva.

Directed by John Milsom. Set and costume design by Leon Krasenstein. Lighting designer is Donn Byrnes.

Sung in Italian with surtitles. A free, pre-performance Opera Talk takes place prior to the July 4th and 12th performances.

This Opera Conference Production is kicking off Opera Australia's winter season. That sounds refreshing given that Las Vegas expects temperatures all week ranging from 115 degrees upwards. Performances through August 11 in Sydney, Australia.

OUT OF THE WATER staged reading, written by Brooke Berman and directed by Trip Cullman. Additional readings of the play will take place on Sunday, July 8th, and Monday, July 9th.

Out of the Water is a funny, bittersweet play about the unbreakable ties of family. Polly and Graham meet by chance at a funeral, only to discover they’re actually estranged ex- siblings. Fueled by forgotten desire, the two adults forge a whirlwind affair that redefines the meaning of love and fidelity.

Playing the role of Graham is Matthew Arkin. Marin Hinkle, who will play Polly. Also performing in this new play as Cat is Katherine Waterston, a rising young actress and the daughter of Sam Waterston of Law & Order.

The 2007 season is the 13th for The Cape Cod Theatre Project. The mission of CCTP is to contribute to the vitality of American theatre by developing new plays that enable fresh voices to emerge. Of 42 plays developed since 1995, 27 have gone on to full production at stages across the country.

CCTP’s summer home is Falmouth Academy on Highfield Drive in Falmouth, MA.

THE CYCLE PLAYS developed by Theatre of Yugen. These five plays performed during the course of a one-day-only presentation on Saturday July 7, informed by the ritualistic Japanese Noh theater, written and directed in an ensemble process by Yugen’s Artistic Associate and playwright Erik Ehn. Musical composition by Allen Whitman and Suki O’Kane with the Yugen Orchestra.

This marathon theatrical event presents American stories told in the signature poetic, dance-drama style of Yugen, with its roots in the spirit of Noh, reaching up to new movement and narrative forms through pioneering contemporary music. The five categories of plays forming the traditional Noh architecture are re-invented in the lexicon of Western archetypes and with American legendary figures.

The opening ritual, 10,000 will be followed by the first play, Winterland, a comedic interlude by Laura Jorgensen and Fred Curchack, and the second play Letters from a Small House. Following the first sitting there will be a meal break. The second sitting will feature Dark/Silent, Long Day's Journey Into Night and Pretty with comedic interludes by Bay Area favorites mugwumpin and Moshe Cohen. The project team is headed up by Erik Ehn (Playwright and Director) and performed by Sheila Berotti, Max, Jubilith Moore, John Oglevee, Lluís Valls, Libby Zilber, with an opening ritual featuring Theatre of Yugen's Founder Yuriko Doi, with Stephen Siegel and guest founding members Brenda Wong Aoki and Helen Morgenrath. Allen Whitman & Suki O'Kane are the lead composers and musicians for the Yugen Orchestra which includes Liz Allbee, Larnie Fox, Lynn Murdock, Dan Plonsey, Jay Rozen, Jonathan Segel, John Shiurba, Moe! Staiano, Jason Stamberger, and Lexa Walsh. Costumes by Erin Blendu; Set design by Larnie and Bodil Fox; Masks by Max; Fans by Kate Rannells, Kim Boekbinder, Sanna Olsson; Production Management and Lights by Josh McDermott; Dramaturgy by Mei Ann Teo.

Takes place at the Project Artaud Theater in San Francisco.

INTERIORS an interactive production by comedian Johnny Vegas and Stewart Lee, the comedian behind Jerry Springer: The Opera.

Vegas portrays Jeffrey Parkin who is selling his house in order to pursue new property development opportunities in Montenegro. Unfortunately, he labors under the misapprehension that the way he has decorated the place reflects his sense of taste. Come for a viewing and be shown around his home, since the audience becomes the prospective buyers. The property has staircases and confined spaces, and may not be suitable for some visitors.

Promoted as being one of the first pieces of theatre for which the audiences are bused 20 at a time to a venue ,which is a real house.

Born Michael Pennington in 1971, the son of strict Catholic parents, Pennington joined a seminary at the age of 11 but left after 18 months, deciding a career in the priesthood was not for him. Instead, when he was old enough, he headed for London to follow his new chosen career, pottery, and studied ceramic design for three years. He flirted again with the idea of joining the church during a period of depression at the age of 24, but instead chose a career in comedy.

Performances began last Friday and continue to Sunday July 15 as part of the Manchester International Festival.

WHO'S WHERE

STING AND THE POLICE performs Monday, July 2 at the Scottrade Center in Saint Louis, MO. On Tuesday the show is at the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul, MN. Thursday finds the group opening a two night stand at Wrigley Field in Chicago and on Saturday they appear with Live Earth at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ.

AL GREEN on stage Monday, July 2, at the Edinburgh Playhouse in Edinburgh, Scotland. On Wednesday the show is at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, England. On Friday the performance takes place at Carling Apollo Hammersmith in London.

ANDY WILLIAMS winds up his across the pond tour this week with a show Monday at Colston Hall in Bristol. On Tuesday he sings at Plymouth Pavilions in Plymouth. Wednesday finds him at Symphony Hall in Birmingham and on Thursday he can be enjoyed at Royal Centre in Nottingham.

THE NEVILLE BROTHERS on stage, Wednesday, July 4, at Waterfront Park in Louisville, KY.

KEITH URBAN kicks off July with a performance Monday, July 2, at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City. On Tuesday he'll be entertaining his fans at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas. On Thursday the show is at the Toyota Center in Houston. On Friday he's on stage at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

DIANA KRALL on stage Monday, July 7 at Constellation Brands-Sands PAC in Canandaigua, NY. Thursday the show is at the Chevrolet Theatre in Wallingford, CT. Friday finds her performing at the Cape Cod Melody Tent in Hyannis, MA> On Saturday she is center sage at the Bank of America Pavilion in Boston.

LYLE LOVETT AN KD LANG perform Monday, July 2, at Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, OH. Thursday finds them at Northrop Auditorium in Minneapolis. On Friday they can be enjoyed at the Starlight Theatre in Kansas City. Saturday finds the busy duo at the Oklahoma City Zoo Amphitheatre in Oklahoma City. Next Sunday, the show is at The Brady Theater in Tulsa, OK.

TONY BENNETT bring his show to the Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium in Calgary, Alberta on Monday, July 2. Playing fair with both sides, on Tuesday he performs at the Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium in Edmonton.

BOB DYLAN has a busy week. On Tuesday he is on stage at the Colisee Pepsi in Quebec City. Wednesday finds him participating in the Festival International de Jazz de Montreal at the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier. On Thursday is appearing with the Cisco Systems Ottawa Bluesfest in Ottawa. On Saturday he begins a two night stand at Casino Rama in Rama, ON.

INDIGO GIRLS perform at John Ascuaga's Nugget in Sparks, NV one night only on Saturday, July 7.

BIG BAD VOODOO DADDY entertain Tuesday, July 3 at Stanford University in Palo Alto, CA.

PIFFLE AND PROFUNDITIES

OUR OBSERVATION ON PARIS HILTON assuming what she says is true - that the only physical or mental problems she suffers are ADD and being claustrophobic, then that was quite a thought provoking, quirky walk she displayed as she left jail. If she were of another age one might think she walked like her diaper needed changing.

Next Column: July 8, 2007
Copyright: July 1, 2007. All Rights Reserved. Reviews, Interviews, Commentary, Photographs or Graphics from any Broadway To Vegas (TM) columns may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, utilized as leads, or used in any manner without permission, compensation/credit.
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Laura Deni

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