Septa Bus Routes Updated
The Septa Bus Route timetables were updated on Feb 7th. If you’re using printed copies like me, but sure to print out some fresh copies.How did I find out so quickly ? Perhaps I just obessively check the Septa website everyday ? Nope. Perhaps Septa’s has handy RSS feeds to notifiy their ridership of schedule changes ? Certainly not. I used a sneaky service called “Follow That Page”. It quiely looks at a web page everyday (like the Route 48 PDF schedule), and notifies you if the content changes. Neat.
This is definitely NOT theatre
Not every night is theatre, on Mondays, I get to play a little volleyball !
My review of My Name is Asher Lev (The Arden)
Loved it. Really loved it.I was engaged from the first line. That’s rare. Usually, it’s takes me a good 20 minutes to get into a play, but they hooked me from the first line, and I don’t know why. I just found the story really compelling. I’d say it’s because it meant alot to me personally, but the two main themes were Judaism and artistic suffering. I’m not either, but just the same, really enjoyed the journey.
I did start to drift during Asher’s first trip to Europe, about half way through the play. But surprisingly, they hooked me again during the 2nd half, and held me raptured right through the end.
The cast was great. Karl Miller played Asher, and spoke quite directly to me. I was impressed. Adam Heller played all the other male parts, including Asher’s Father. What I found remarkable was his ability to shift between characters, sometimes without even leaving the stage. Wow.
Oh yeah, really liked the lighting too. Subtle, but super-effective. Way to go lighting guy.
Go see it. You have until March 15th.
Making way for the Barnes…
The Barnes Musuem is one of the best collections of art around, and in one of the most unique settings. It’s located out in Montgomery county in what used to be a private residence. As part of his will, Albert Barnes decreed that the collection could never be moved. Well, he died, and you guessed it, they’re moving it. While the movement itself is rather polarizing, the location they picked is impressive. Right on the Ben Franklin Parkway. Honestly, I’m not sure if I support the move, but am hoping for a good end result. You see, when the Parkway was originally constructed, it was meant to mimic the Champs-Élysées in Paris. It doesn’t. Yet. Maybe this will change things…It’s going next to the Whole Foods, where the detention center used to be. As you can see, they are making steady progress…
Parking Garage at Art Musuem
You know about the new parking garage at the Philadelphia Art Museum, right ? It’s mighty hard to miss. I’ve been watching them build it over the last few months, sometimes getting excited, sometimes getting depressed. It’s actually starting to take shape, and I think it might actually be OK. Here’s a picture of the new glass enclosure used to house the elevators at the top. Looks pretty nice.
My review of “Les Mis” at the Walnut Street Theatre
I saw the opening performance of Les Mis at the Walnut Street Theatre this past Wednesday night ! Wow, what a show ! I’ m sure that big shows with expensive sets can be pretty intimidating for a regional theatre to produce; however, I think the Walnut really stepped up to the challenge, and hit a home run.Thought, I must admit, that during the 1st act, I wasn’t so sure. I’d seen Les Mis once before, and during the intermission, Meg asked me what I thought of the show so far…. “Well,” I said, “I thought it was a bigger show.. I just remember it being… bigger”. Boy, in the 2nd act, they really delivered, and it was indeed bigger ! The set construction dudes must have REALLY had their hands full for this one !
Anyway, should you go see it ? Absolutely ! It’s a classic, and pretty easy to follow, though, you might want to read a short summary of the play before you go. There are a few things that are a tad tough to figure out. Like just who are they trying to barricade out of the city, anyway ? I still haven’t figured that one out.
This is a LONG production run (4 months, into August), but from what I hear, tickets are going really, really fast. If you’re thinking about seeing it, buy tickets now. Go to the Walnut’s website to buy tickets.
Rowing in the Dad Vail Regatta
I raced in the Dad Vail Regatta this past weekend !! Unfortunately, we didn’t do quite as well as we’d hoped, but still had a great time ! Check out the video. We’re in the 3rd race, in Lane 5 (farthest from the shore).Click Here to see the Dad Vail Video
Oh, and a big thanks to Meg for filming the race for us !!
My Review of “Romeo & Juliet” at the PSF
I saw Romeo and Juliet at the Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival last night. First things first : I’m very grateful to the PSF for working so hard over the last 11 years to bring Shakespeare to the Philadelphia area. Like many other people, I often struggle with Shakespeare, but each year, I find that I get more and more out of it. Over the last four years, I’ve seen Taming of the Shrew, Julius Caesar, The Condensed Works of William Shakespeare, and now Romeo and Juliet. The PSF is just a wonderful opportunity for local folks like myself hone their skills as a Shakespeare audience. Oh yeah, one more big shout out to Dave Liegeot for talking me into going each year !!Now, about last night’s production. It’s been quite a few years since I saw R&J, and forgot just how much depth there is to the story. I think PSF did a wonderful job capturing and exploring that depth, and in the end, I was incredibly moved by the tragedy. To me, that’s the first and last criteria for a terrific show.
Romeo (David Raphaely) did a great job. I think he portrayed the love-struck character really well, without taking it too far, and going off the deep end with it. Romeo was believable from front to back. He’s just a kid knocked on his heels by love at first sight.
I was a little bit confused by the portrayal of Juliet by Melissa Dunphy. I believe Melissa hails from Australia, and she brought her native accent to the stage in playing Juliet. I’m not sure whether she’s just still working on her American accent, or if playing Juliet with an Australian accent was a conscious choice, but either way, it was distracting for me. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with an Australian accent, in fact I quite like it; however, it was inconsistent with the rest of the cast, and it kept bringing me out of the story. Outside of that, I think her portrayal was quite good.
Within the rest of the cast, Damon Bonetti’s portrayal of Mercutio was my favorite. He made some really big choices with the character, and it was just plain entertaining each time he walked on the stage.
If you want to see it, you’ve got two more weeks. Been thinking about boning up your Shakespeare ? Then Romeo & Juliet is for you ! By it’s very popularity, it’s an easy story to follow, which helps immensely when trying to understand the language. Hop to it, and make the plunge !
My Review of “Othello” at the Lantern Theater Company
Nobody said Shakespeare was easy, right ? Well, it ain’t all that hard either. You see, early in the play, I thought I didn’t understand what was happening, but then I stopped trying so hard to figure it out, and realized that I already had ! Sure, the language was tough, and there were times that I just couldn’t understand the dialog, but they zipped by soon enough, and by paying attention to the interaction between characters, it all became clear !You might be like me, and didn’t know the gist of Othello, so here goes : It’s the story of a young military man (Iago) who gets passed over for promotion. Feeling slighted, and rather bitter, he goes a rampage of subterfuge, misleading and misguiding all those around him. His true aim is the destruction of the romance between his commander, Othello, who is a Moor (i.e. a black man), and his new wife, a young, fair (white) maiden. I won’t give a way the ending, because it’s definitely worth checking out.
As for the production, I thought it was very, very good. Pete Pryor did a really stellar job as Iago. I also liked Frank X as Othello, though I do think he peaked a bit too early. His portrayal seems a bit too tormented in the middle of the play, but for the end, seems entirely appropiate.
And best of all ? I now understand why the game pieces in the Othello board game are black and white !
It closes on Sunday, so you better hurry. Be prepared, it’s a 3 hour play.
My Review of “Picnic” at the Montgomery Theatre
I continued to be wow’ed by the productions at the small Montgomery Theater in Souderton, and Picnic is no exceptoin. This is a pretty old script, but the cast did a wonderful job of breathing new life into it. Speaking of the cast. They say that 90% of the work for a new production is casting the play, and Tom Quinn did a stellar job. And it was no small task because this is a huge cast ! Especially for a small space. I don’t know how they did it, but the large cast really comes together. At some points, all 11 people are running around stage at the same time, but somehow it works beautifully.Now I’m the first to admit that I see more theatre than the average “Joe”, and being entertained is hugely important. I’m rather Type A, and no matter how good the play, I usually find myself looking at my watch at least once during the show. Not this time. Not once.
Big Disclaimer : My girl is in this show (http://www.meghanheimbecker)… I try to not let this sway my opinion… In fact, she’s kissing other boys during this show, so’d you think it would actually sway my opinion against the show. No so… like I said, hugely entertaining (except for the kissing part :) Definitely go so this… Particulary if you’ve never been to a small theatre.