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Local News for a Global Village | www.VoiceSB.com
May 13, 2022
Santa Barbara Symphony
Fandango Picante! Review by Daniel Kepl / VOICE
S
OMETIMES A FINELY CRAFTED CONCERT PROGRAM fits the listener’s ears like a tailor-made suit fits the body; a sweet synchrony of taste, temperament, and sound styling that engages the mind in cozy, form-fitting comfort from one piece to the next. That is exactly what happened at the Santa Barbara Symphony’s Granada Theatre concert on May 5th with guest artist, violinist Anne Akiko Meyers, and conductor Nir Kabaretti at the helm.
OnSTAGE PACIFIC CONSERVATORY THEATER
Photo by David Zentz
ALL IN THE TIMING Five one-act plays • Free-$20 • www.ojaiact.org • 7:30pm Fr & Sa, 2pm Su through 5/15.
Geared to send the audience dancing out of the concert, Márquez’ Danzón No. 2 For Orchestra, composed in 1994 and already a staple of the repertoire, brought the evening to a sexy, gyrating, utterly magical close. Daniel Kepl has been writing music, theatre, and dance reviews or Santa Barbara publications since he was a teenager. His professional expertise is as an orchestra conductor. For more reviews by Daniel Kepl visit: www.performingartsreview.net
THE NEW VIC
VINCENT One man play on Van Gogh’s life • Ensemble Theatre Company • The New Vic • $30 • www.etcsb.org • 2pm & 7pm Su, 5/15.
RUBICON THEATRE COMP.
Conducting from memory, Kabaretti opened the program with five movements from Guiraud’s two orchestral suites from Bizet’s opera, Carmen: Prélude and Aragonaise, Intermezzo, Séguedille, Les Dragons d”Alcala, and Les Toréadors. Both conductor and orchestra found an immediate comfort zone of performance affability and technical expertise together, highlighted by elegant individual solo moments, solid brass and wind choirs, lush high string ensemble playing, and a kind of collective consciousness about this glorious music they’ve all Vionlinist Anne Akiko Meyers played a hundred times and in various settings, that redefined the old saw, familiarity breeds contempt. In this case, familiarity bred consonance and sublime ensemble beauty. A dynamic performance.
It was a special treat to have composer Arturo Márquez in the audience, and as soloist, the artist for whom the concerto was composed, Anne Akiko Meyers. Neither disappointed. The first movement, Folia Tropical, introduced the violin in a low and sultry register - dramatic! Later, Márquez’ talent as tunesmith, augmented by the composer’s rich Mexican/Cuban/ Latino heritage, released its own delicious tropical intoxicants of Latin rhythm and melody. The second movement, Plegaria (Chacona) is indeed a prayer, perhaps of gentle seduction. Márquez’ orchestration skills, his timely use of brass in this stunningly beautiful movement, was inspiring. The last movement, Fandanguito, opens with a solo fiddle candenza, then slips comfortably into a Tango/Mariachi infused lush-out of contagiously coy esprit and wink/ nod playfulness. Great fun for audience, soloist, and orchestra alike. The full house roared its approval.
PUFFS Obra inspirada en Harry Potter • Anacapa School • $10-20 • www.centerstagetheater.org • 7:30pm viernes, 5/13 y 5/14; 11am domingo, 5/15.
EN EL BOSQUE Reimaginando cuentos de hadas • PCPA • Marian Theatre, Santa Maria • $33.50-62 • Hasta el 5/15. TWILIGHT: LOS ANGELES, 1992 Drama on LA Rodney King demonstrations • 1006 E. Main St. Ventura • $39.50-49.50 • www.rubicontheatre.org • Through 5/15.
The centerpiece of the evening, Arturo Márquez’ Fandango for Violin and Orchestra, has become in less than a year since its birth, a new staple for the violin concerto repertoire. In traditional three movement format, Fandango is immediately accessible to players and listeners alike, because Márquez is a master of melody and rich orchestration. The concerto is also sufficiently challenging for the soloist, to maintain its stature in the repertoire over time. In short, it’s a beauty.
PUFFS Harry Potter-inspired play • Anacapa School • $10-20 • www.centerstagetheater.org • 7:30pm Fr, 5/13 & 5/14; 11am Su, 5/15.
INTO THE WOODS Reimagining fairytales • PCPA • Marian Theatre, Santa Maria • $33.50-62 • Through 5/15.
The concert’s theme, Fandango Picante! celebrated the Santa Barbara premiere of Mexican composer Arturo Márquez’ Fandango for Violin and Orchestra, which Meyers debuted last August at the Hollywood Bowl with Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. Also on the program, Márquez’ Danzón No. 2 (1994) and two of the oddest bedfellows ever to don toreador pants, the Russian Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov, his Capriccio Espagnol, Opus 34 (1887) and the Frenchman Georges Bizet, a suite from his opera Carmen (1875) compiled posthumously by his friend, Ernest Guiraud. The odd bit: neither Bizet nor Rimsky ever set foot there, yet these two works have become eponyms in public consciousness throughout the world for everything Spanish.
Ditto, Rimsky-Korsakov’s iconic Capriccio Espagnol, Opus 34, clearly also a familiar repertory favorite of the musicians. Turning in a characterful performance pumped with feisty élan and daring do, the orchestra regaled the audience with a powerhouse of a performance. Kabaretti beamed with pleasure as he soothed each of several famous, and famously difficult solo cadenzas from principals, and engaged in spirited tempo fights with the orchestra, particularly during the last breathtaking bars of the Fandango asturiano that nearly spiraled the orchestra off the stage - an E ticket!
CENTER STAGE THEATER
VINCENT Obra de un hombre sobre la vida de Van Gogh • Ensemble Theatre Company • The New Vic • $30 • www.etcsb.org • 2pm y 7pm domingo, 5/15.
TWILIGHT: LOS ANGELES, 1992 Drama sobre las manifestaciones de LA Rodney King • 1006 E. Main St. Ventura • $39.50-49.50 • www.rubicontheatre.org • Hasta el 5/15.
OJAI ART CENTER THEATER
TODO EN EL TIEMPO Cinco obras en un acto • Gratis-$20 • www.ojaiact.org • 7:30pm viernes y sabado, 2pm domingo hasta el 5/15.
SAN MARCOS HIGH SCHOOL
LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS Rock horror musical comedy • Marquis Performing Arts Auditorium • $8-14 • www.smhstheaterdept.com • 7pm Fr, 5/13-5/14. PEQUEÑA TIENDA DE LOS HORRORES Comedia musical rock-terror • Marquis Performing Arts Auditorium • $8-14 • www.smhstheaterdept.com • 7pm viernes, 5/13-5/14.
UCSB DEPT. OF THEATER/DANCE
THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE Musical comedy • UCSB Ballet Studio • $1319 • https://tinyurl.com/yc6daaur • 7pm We, 5/18, runs through 5/28. EL 25° CONCURSO ANUAL DE ORTOGRAFÍA DEL CONDADO DE PUTNAM Comedia musical • UCSB Ballet Studio • $13-19 • https://tinyurl.com/yc6daaur • 7pm miércoles, 5/18, hasta el 5/28. ONE ACTS By undergrad directing students • UCSB Studio Theater • Free • 7pm Fr, 5/13 & 5/14; 1pm 5/14. UNA ACTA Por estudiantes de dirección de pregrado • UCSB Studio Theater • Gratis • 7pm viernes, 5/13 y 5/14; 1pm 5/14. A MEDUSA THREAD Drama about healing • UCSB Performing Arts Theater • $13-19 • https://tinyurl.com/p3kue98j • 7pm Mo, 5/16, 5/18, 5/21-22, & 5/23-25; 1pm Sa, 5/21.
Photo courtesy of UCSB Dept. of Theater/Dance
“A Russian, a Frenchman, and a Mexican meet in a bar...”
UN HILO DE MEDUSA Drama sobre la curación • UCSB Performing Arts Theater • $13-19 • https://tinyurl.com/p3kue98j • 7pm lunes, 5/16, 5/18, 5/21-22, y 5/23-25; 1pm sábado, 5/21.
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Spelling — and adolescence — are tough, as the UCSB Department of Theater/Dance’s production of the musical comedy The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee will reveal. Performances take place Wednesday, May 18th through Saturday, May 28th at UCSB’s Ballet Studio. For tickets ($13-19) visit www.theaterdance.ucsb.edu
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
La ortografía — y la adolescencia — son difíciles, como lo revelará la producción de la comedia musical del Departamento de Teatro/Danza de UCSB, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Las funciones se llevarán a cabo del miércoles, 18 de mayo al sábado, 28 de mayo en el Ballet Studio de UCSB. Para boletos ($13-19) visita www.theaterdance.ucsb.edu