Topic: THIS MODERN WORLD (Read 19879 times)

Dan-in-Toronto · « **Reply #30 on:** June 25, 2004, 08:36:13 AM »

Meanwhile back at the ranch, BK is beating a dead horse while waiting for us to post till the cows come home.

Matt H. · « **Reply #31 on:** June 25, 2004, 08:37:26 AM »

I, too, slept and slept and slept this morning. Getting a VERY late start on the day.

Oh, ECCENTRICITIES OF A NIGHTINGALE, probably my favorite transcription of a Tennessee Williams work, and Blythe Danner gives her greatest performance, I think. And I do MUCH prefer this version to SUMMER AND SMOKE.

I have been lucky not to be plagued with many outages over the years, but there was a time a couple of years ago when my phone service (and thus internet since I use dial up) would get cut off whenever we had a heavy rain. I'd lose phone service for days at a time while the phone company tried to locate the source of the problem. Finally, after four or five visits over the course of two-three months, they located and fixed the problem. Have had no trouble since.

Matt H. · « **Reply #32 on:** June 25, 2004, 08:39:59 AM »

Friday Media Check:

CD - still listening to AN AMERICAN IN PARIS soundtrack.

DVD - THE HANGING GARDEN and disc one of THE JETSONS. (I, too, am taking my time with the episodes watching only one or two a day)

DVR - Graham Norton's show on COmedy Central last night.

I'm looking forward FINALLY to getting the soundtrack CD to THE FIVE PENNIES. Finally got abound to ordering it, and it should be here early next week. Can't wait!

Jennifer · « **Reply #33 on:** June 25, 2004, 08:41:03 AM »

Watched Nip/Tuck. Between them showing the sex and the surgeries this show is VERY graphic!

Btw, it's been so long since I saw the season finale that I forgot about the shocker about Christian's son.

Matt H. · « **Reply #34 on:** June 25, 2004, 08:44:05 AM »

Quote from: Panni on June 25, 2004, 08:29:37 AM

Book: Colored Lights: Forty Years of Words and Music
Interviews with Kander and Ebb. Saw it among the new acquisitions at the library. Looked like it would be interesting to dip into.

I think you'll find it is a very quick read. ENjoyable, a little infuriating at times, but definitely not a lot of meat on the bones there.

MBarnum · « **Reply #35 on:** June 25, 2004, 08:53:03 AM »

Media check:

CD: Los Bravos: Black is Black

VHS: Kikujiro. Taped off the Independent Film Channel

DVD: Godzilla Vs. The Thing

And the Bollywood movie for this week is:
NEEL KAMAL (1968). This one is a remake of THE MUMMY minus the bandages.

MBarnum · « **Reply #36 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:03:04 AM »

Today I shall hie myself to the Port of Land to luncheon with actor Rhodes Reason. Afterwards I shall visit the humongous books store Powell's Books and perhaps purchase some reading materials. In the evening I will trot over to Cinema 21 to see the long awaited release of GOJIRA! I can't wait to see it on the big screen!

Tomorrow I think I will treat myself to seeing TWO BROTHERS and perhaps I might try to catch THE NOTEBOOK at some point on Sunday.

I will also be baby-sitting a co-workers German shephard dog this weekend. I don't know how Freddy will feel about this, but hopefully they will get along.

DERBRUCER · « **Reply #37 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:08:48 AM »

I shall attempt to make some rational posts; however, I am still recovering from an evening of extreme nausea and horrific nightmares - thanx to being lured to visit "that terrible web site"! I mean, I thought, how bad can it be. And for the first time in eons, WORDS FAIL ME!

der Brucer (slowly recovering)

Jrand73 · « **Reply #38 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:16:57 AM »

LOL...derbrucer.

Have a great lunch with Mr Reason, MB!

DERBRUCER · « **Reply #39 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:18:42 AM »

The LA Times Calendar has an interesting artricle on the impact of non-equity show tours.

Drama behind the curtain
Nonunion touring shows complicate Equity contract talks.
By Don Shirley
Times Staff Writer

Jun 25 2004

(extracts)

Jennifer Paz wowed Los Angeles in the city's first "Miss Saigon," at the Ahmanson Theatre in 1995. Wrote The Times' Laurie Winer: "The stillness, simplicity and grace of her performance form the heart of the show, a perfect jewel in a garish setting."

Paz had joined "Miss Saigon" in 1992 without any professional experience. The show was her ticket to a membership in the Actors' Equity Assn., the stage actors' union.

Now Paz is back in town in the same role, in a touring version at the Pantages Theatre. But she is no longer a member of Equity. The tour is produced by Big League Theatricals, which has never signed a union contract. To repeat her role, Paz quit the union last year.

Paz isn't alone. At least three other members of the "Miss Saigon" company are former Equity members, she says.

They provide a human face for one of the most divisive issues in the commercial theater: non-Equity tours of Broadway-derived musicals. It propels ongoing negotiations in New York between Equity and the League of American Theatres & Producers — the Broadway producers' organization.

The two sides are negotiating the contract that governs Broadway shows and tours. The current contract will expire Sunday. If agreement isn't reached by then, talks might be extended. Or, in the worst-case scenario, the actors could go on strike and darken not only Broadway but also such touring productions as "Thoroughly Modern Millie," at the Ahmanson.

In recent years, the number of non-Equity tours has mushroomed. This week, both the Pantages and the Orange County Performing Arts Center — which usually book musicals with union contracts — are hosting non-Equity productions: "Miss Saigon" in Hollywood and "Oklahoma!" in Costa Mesa.

Over the years, Equity has protested some engagements with leaflets and demonstrations. Union officials often complain that these shows appear in series with names that boast of Broadway ties — such as "Broadway/LA" and the "Bank of America Broadway Series" — even though the touring versions couldn't appear on Broadway, where Equity contracts are required.

They contend that the lower wages for non-Equity actors might easily translate into less seasoned performances that aren't of Broadway caliber.

...

In recent years, the number of non-Equity tours has mushroomed. This week, both the Pantages and the Orange County Performing Arts Center — which usually book musicals with union contracts — are hosting non-Equity productions: "Miss Saigon" in Hollywood and "Oklahoma!" in Costa Mesa.

Over the years, Equity has protested some engagements with leaflets and demonstrations. Union officials often complain that these shows appear in series with names that boast of Broadway ties — such as "Broadway/LA" and the "Bank of America Broadway Series" — even though the touring versions couldn't appear on Broadway, where Equity contracts are required.

They contend that the lower wages for non-Equity actors might easily translate into less seasoned performances that aren't of Broadway caliber.

Equity is not protesting either of the current engagements in the Southland. In the case of "Oklahoma!," the union and the tour's producer Ken Gentry are on relatively good terms, because Gentry uses Equity contracts as often as not.

The "Miss Saigon" tour encountered protests last fall in the East. And at the Pantages, in a separate labor dispute, "Miss Saigon" is the target of a leafleting campaign by the musicians' union, which contends that the pit orchestra is too small and too computerized to meet contractual requirements and that it includes nonunion musicians. (Martin Wiviott, managing director of the Pantages, responded in a written statement that the theater management and the musicians' union local "differ on the interpretation of the contract between the parties with regard to what is allowed and what is prohibited.")
...

Equity and league officials agreed not to talk to reporters this week as their negotiations approached the Sunday deadline. However, Paz provided The Times with a letter that Equity President Patrick Quinn wrote to her last February in which he rebutted some of the points she had made when she left the union. One of the issues he raised in the letter was Equity's health plan, which is the other key topic in New York this week.

"You don't seem to grasp the obvious connection," Quinn wrote, "between the difficulties facing our health plan and the loss of Equity employment ... due to the proliferation of non-Equity tours" — which results in fewer producers' contributions to the health plan.

In response to Paz's concerns that she and her fellow minority actors (Paz is Filipina American) have even fewer opportunities than other Equity members, Quinn cited Equity's efforts to redress that imbalance and added that Paz had "contributed to that problem for all Equity minority actors by lending your talents to a nonunion production."

der Brucer

(DRs having "difficulty" accessing the site can PM me for a full copy)

bk · « **Reply #40 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:26:00 AM »

Re Jane Fonda: My favorite in Barefoot in the Park - she's so fresh, and pretty and funny.

Re The Baker's Wife: I've said for years, ever since seeing the show here in LA with Topol - the book of the show can NEVER work (nor can parts of the score) because, as others have pointed out, you absolutely love the baker and HATE his wife. Even when she comes back at the end I don't think she apologizes (that may have changed).

Panni · « **Reply #41 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:40:05 AM »

Ms. Jane Fonda - I also like BAREFOOT; my other favorite JF performance is in THEY SHOOT HORSES, DON'T THEY?

Panni · « **Reply #42 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:42:34 AM »

Has anyone noticed that the Canadian actor, Colm Feore has become the Villain du Jour? I must have seen his name as villain in at least four films recently.

Dan-in-Toronto · « **Reply #43 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:44:25 AM »

I've opened the windows to freshen up the place. Unfortunately, the woman in the aptartment below is very big on aromatherapy - and the blend drifting upward is giving me a headache.

Dan-in-Toronto · « **Reply #44 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:51:56 AM »

I thought Jane Fonda was a hoot in Barbarella. I also loved her in Barefoot in the Park (though Mildred Natwick nearly stole the movie) and Klute. I never did see Hurry Sundown. Was it really that awful?

JoseSPiano · « **Reply #45 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:57:12 AM »

Good Afternoon!

Well... I'm still here... (ah, a Follies reference)...

We're due for some possibly major thunder storms this afternoon. The skies have been cloudy and gray all day, and from the looks of the trees outside my window, there have been some wind gusts every now and then. -And they've reported some tornados about an hour south of here - I hope the damage reports are minimal.

So, I'm just going to hang out for a little bit longer - and finish "The Young & The Restless" too.

We'll see if the skies ever open up today - we've been in the pattern the whole week, but it did not rain here yesterday or Wednesday.

Hmmm... I wonder if I'll get a chance to do my Gene Kelly impression again today?!?!?

Jrand73 · « **Reply #46 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:58:56 AM »

Yes, DIT, it was pretty bad.

William E. Lurie · « **Reply #47 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:59:08 AM »

I have a couple of questions regarding non-Equity tours. Why haven't the other unions like the Musicians and Stagehands refused to work with a non-Equity tour? I know that at least in large cities, the theatres have to hire union people in many jobs, so why don't the other unions support Equity? Are they afraid that they will all be replaced by non-union people too if they complain? Also do any tours have a contract with Equity that allows them to use x amount of non-Equity members for every y number of members they use?

DERBRUCER · « **Reply #48 on:** June 25, 2004, 09:59:50 AM »

Re Jane Fonda:

Unlike JRand, I hold a grudge for a very long time.

I enjoyed "Barefoot in the Park" and "Barbarella" before she became "Hanoi Jane" - then, like many of us who were "in-theatre" at the time I imposed a personal boycott on her work, so I've missed out on "Klute" and "China Syndrome".

der Brucer (who admits to falling off the wagon for "9 to 5" and "On Golden Pond".

DERBRUCER · « **Reply #49 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:03:35 AM »

Quote from: Dan-in-Toronto on June 25, 2004, 09:44:25 AM

I've opened the windows to freshen up the place.

Well, I opened my window and got these pictures:

der Brucer (thinking of naming that corner of the yard "Burgoo Garden".

Jay · « **Reply #50 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:07:51 AM »

I finally caught up with Thoroughly Modern Millie last night at the Ahmanson Theatre. This was my first exposure to the show, and I must report that I was rather underwhelmed by it. (This an opinion that probably won't sit well with a number of Dear Readers.)

I thought the show had an OK score, OK book, OK choreography, OK performances, and somewhat less than OK sets. Nothing was particularly bad (other that Mrs. Meers' substituting "L"s for "R"s and vice versa, which grew tiresome rather quickly) but I didn't find anything particularly outstanding either.

bk · « **Reply #51 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:13:42 AM »

I think, Jay, that if you check my notes you'll find we're pretty much in agreement. I haven't cared for Rob Ashford's choreography in the past, so I liked Millie a bit better in that regard just because it was better than his past work. I really didn't like the set, and I went on at length about what they did to Mrs. Meers and her "dialect". I hated it, and yes, you can't understand much of what she says. Bea Lillie didn't need to do that and was a hoot. Of the new songs, I only liked Forget About the Boy, and didn't "get" all the hoopla over Gimme, Gimme, whose reaction, I think, stems more from loud singing and the performer rather than what the performer is actually singing.

DERBRUCER · « **Reply #52 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:14:04 AM »

Quote from: William E. Lurie on June 25, 2004, 09:59:08 AM

Also do any tours have a contract with Equity that allows them to use x amount of non-Equity members for every y number of members they use?

Well, Equity does "do deals".

From the aforementioned LA Times article:

Equity has occasionally provided reduced contracts on a case-by-case basis. An upcoming "Evita" tour, produced by a company that sometimes mounts non-Equity tours, received some concessions in a special contract, prompting the producers' league to charge Equity with hypocrisy for not providing a similar deal for league members. The union responded that any such deals would require the producers to open up their books for Equity inspection, as the "Evita" producer did.

The regional theatre, on whose B of D I served, had special contracts with Equity that covered salaries and percentage of Equity/non-Equity players.

der Brucer

DERBRUCER · « **Reply #53 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:15:32 AM »

Quote from: Jay on June 25, 2004, 10:07:51 AM

I finally caught up with Thoroughly Modern Millie last night at the Ahmanson Theatre. This was my first exposure to the show, and I must report that I was rather underwhelmed by it.

Have you seen and enjoyed the movie?

Jennifer · « **Reply #54 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:16:30 AM »

DR Der Brucer those photos are lovely!

Jay · « **Reply #55 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:18:40 AM »

Quote from: DERBRUCER on June 25, 2004, 10:15:32 AM

Have you seen and enjoyed the movie?

I must confess that I have not seen the film version of TMM.

Noel · « **Reply #56 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:33:38 AM »

Seems like a good day to read the L. A. Times...

Did I miss any DR's reaction to the Master Chorale's "New Broadway" concert at the Disney Hall?

Dan-in-Toronto · « **Reply #57 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:35:44 AM »

When Sutton Foster sang "Gimme Gimme" on the Rosie O'Donnell show, Rosie O'D shreaked "Tony Award!!!" and the audience went nuts. But I too thought it was just a loud song.

I found the movie delightfully nutty. Bea Lillie (born on Dovercourt Road in Toronto) with chopsticks in her hair? Julie Andrews singing "Trinkt le Chaim"? And I think Carol Channing saved her Muzzy outfit for this year's Tonys.

DERBRUCER · « **Reply #58 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:36:12 AM »

Quote from: Jennifer on June 25, 2004, 10:16:30 AM

DR Der Brucer those photos are lovely!

I just wish I could get a good shot of the birds.

Day before yesterday, a new clutch of baby Crackles showed up under the feeder. The sat there with mouths agape while Momma picked up seed from the ground and popped it in their mouth. Yesterday the youn-uns were back, and most were happily picking up seed from the ground - all but one, that is. There it sat, head up turned, mouth open wide, waiting (in vain) to be fed. The baby Blue Jays now hide in the woods and dash out to a feeder when there is a spot. The only species that seems to get along (sort of) are the Blue Jays and the Woodpeckers - they will share at the bird seed bar. (The Woodpecker, however, beats the bejesus out of any Crackle that gets near - and the Crackle is nearly twice his size. Noticed a baby woodpecker yesterday - his head still hasn't turned red.

Panni · « **Reply #59 on:** June 25, 2004, 10:36:29 AM »

Great squirrels, DB! I must say, however, that looked at in a different light, squirrels are just rats with furry tails. I pulled into the parking lot of Wells Fargo the other day and was startled to see a rat scurrying about in the middle of the day. The nerve! On closer look, I realized the "rat" was a squirrel which for some reason was on all fours and very close to the ground. (Perhaps a squirrel with emotional problems who was a rat wannabe.)

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Author Topic: THIS MODERN WORLD (Read 19879 times)

MBarnum

MBarnum