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contents

APRIL ~ 2013

FEATURES

TRY A LITTLE TENDERNESS | 26 Jazz Bridge is an all-volunteer, not-for-profit enterprise that seeks to raise cash and care for locals struggling with sickness, rent problems, drug addiction issues, legal hassles and all manner of debt. It does so not just by begging for money or throwing Kickstarter campaigns—both of which it has done and will continue to do—but through a series of shows in the area that it has booked, staged and promoted.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS KEVIN EUBANKS: HIP HUMANITARIAN | 28 Philly native Kevin Eubanks aims to be cooler and warmer after his Tonight Show gig. Funerary mask from the Roman Period, 2nd century CE. Photo: Steve Minicola

ANGELA BASSETT TAKES CONTROL…AGAIN | 30 A fiercely talented actress known for her authoritative roles, Oscar nominee Angela Bassett returns this season in Olympus Has Fallen, a political thriller that has her rightfully calling the shots as the head of the Secret Service.

COLUMNS

Nick’s Picks | 34 José James; Kendrick Scott Oracle; Benny Green; Madeleine Peyroux; NEXT Collective; Eric Alexander

City Beat | 5 Backstage | 5 Jim Delpino | 47 Sally Friedman | 48 Gael Garcia Bernal in a scene from No.

OPINION Harry Reid’s surrender | 6

ART It’s Personal | 7 Long Live Our Treasures | 8 The Bull, the Ring and the Painters | 10

FILM Cinematters | 16 Spring Breakers Keresman on Film | 18 No

Promised Land; A Simple Life;

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The Jazz Scene | 32

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At Lunch with Italian Winemakers | 46

Regional Theater & Dance | 52 The Laramie Project; Sister Act; The Winter’s Tale; The Marriage of Figaro; Ulysses Dreams: An Exploration of Origin and Destiny; The American Play and Other American Cousins; Everyone and I; The Trip to Bountiful; Eastern Standard

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The Company You Keep; The Place

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Agenda | 59

Jazz Library | 41 Shirley Scott

Laughing in the Darkness

Beyond the Pines; Reality; Upside Down

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Harper’s Index | 55

Classical Notebook | 38 Tine Thing Helseth; Christina Pluhar

This is Not a Film; Sholem Aleichem:

Film Roundup | 24

L.A. Times Crossword | 54

WINE

Reel News | 22

Kevin Eubanks. Photo: Raj Naik.

ETCETERA

Devon Seafood | 43 Erini | 44

Bad Movie | 20 The Call

Passion

Singer / Songwriter | 40 Terry Allen; Willie Nelson & Family; The Mike Eldred Trio; Devon Allman; Phil Lee

Exhibitions | 14

Co-founder of Jazz Bridge, singer and playwright Suzanne Cloud.

Keresman on Disc | 36 Claremont Trio/San Francisco Ballet Orchestra; Alasdair Roberts & Friends; Ben Harper with Charlie Musselwhite; Soft Machine Legacy; Lee Hazelwood; Roger Knox & the Pine Valley Cosmonauts

Footlights | 53

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ON THE COVER: Angela Bassett, who was photographed exclusively for ICON on March 18, 2013. Credits: Photographer/Makeup: D’Andre Michael; Hair: Randy Stodghill; Stylist: Dana Campbell.

city beat

THOM NIICKELS

ThomNickels1@aol.com

PARTICIPATION IN A PAID focus group used to be relatively easy with just a few quirks along the way. Focus groups are opinion forums where participants are paid for their thoughts and opinions about a wide variety of products and services. One of the largest Center City-based focus groups is Focus Point Global. It’s not unusual for FPG subscribers to answer 150 to 200 online screeners per year to determine eligibility for a three- to four-hour session that can pay upwards of 75 to 150 dollars. In a down economy, subscribers generally try to “out trick” FPG’s eligibility screeners, even if 90 percent of these pre-qualifying questionnaires ask applicants if they work (or have ever worked) in TV, radio or print journalism. A ‘yes’ answer in this case is an instant disqualifier, as the corporations who pay FPG to conduct the surveys don’t want journalists in their focus groups. A similar thing happens when it comes to serving on juries. A Yes answer to one eligibility question, “Are you a journalist?” will likewise guarantee an automatic rejection. Want to get out of jury duty? Tell the attorney in charge that you’re a journalist. Watch and see how fast they run. Let’s hear it for Philadelphia’s Walk of Fame! That mantra sounded big in 1987 when the Philadelphia Music Alliance put into action its plan to create a Walk of Fame along the Avenue of the Arts. The idea then was to install in the sidewalk commemorative bronze plaques with the names of famous-born Philadelphians who made it big in the music world. Developed as an idea of the Philadelphia Music Alliance, a community-based, non-profit organization founded in 1986, the first plaque inductees included Philadelphia greats like Marian Anderson, Mario Lanza, Dizzy Gillespie, Bessie Smith and Chubby Checker. For a decade at least, the South Broad Street plaques were shiny and bright. With every new inductee there were parties, photo ops, champagne toasts and gala dinners. The last Walk of Fame commemoration in bronze was in June 2010 when he Tonight Show’s band leader, Kevin Eubanks, was awarded a plaque. Since then the Walk of Fame has gone the way of Philadelphia’s abandoned and boarded up houses: It has become the Walk of Neglect. A good many of the plaques are partially sunken in cement or so dirty and corroded it makes you wonder if anybody in the city even cares about these bronzes anymore. Gone also are the parties, the plaque galas, the on-site photo ops. In the 1990s there’d be periodic “Star Dust” cleaning parties where music celebrities and others would lend a hand scrubbing grime off the various plaques. Parties like this are no more, which may be indicative of either a change in the Alliance’s financial priorities or a change in the way the normal citizen perceives celebrity. This is the age of instantaneous celebrity when people expect to become famous for nothing. A musician working for decades may not achieve the star power of a silicone-lipped reality TV bit player who happens to catch the eye of a lascivious producer. So yes, the nature of celebrity has changed: A sidewalk star has become a cheap thing, indeed. What’s a nice Jewish couple like Roberta and Richard Huber doing collecting 17th century Latin American Catholic art? Richard began his career at the First National Bank of Boston but later relocated to Buenos Aires (where there’s always been a large Jewish community) with his wife, Roberta in 1962. The couple decided to purchase local sculptures and paintings that interested them—mostly Catholic iconographic or Spanish and Portuguese Colonial Art. They say they bought only what interested them with no thought of where an item stood on the art hierarchy scale. That artistic intuition has resulted in the transformation of the Exhibition Gallery at PMA’s Perelman Building into a small basilica. The timing, of course, blends well with that other “Argentine” event in the city of Rome: the election of a pope who was known to join with local Jews in Buenos Aires to celebrate Hanukkah. Viewing the plethora of startling silver, ivory and wood masterpieces—most imported to Latin America at the bequest of patrons—we were reminded of the Museum’s The Arts in Latin America exhibit in 2006, organized by Joseph J. Rishel and aided by the Huber’s, who also happen to be Rishel’s longtime friends.

backstage

BRUCE H. KLAUBER

drumalive@aol.com

NERO BURNED WHILE POPS FIDDLED Though hardly qualifying as news, the media turned out in force for the “formal” welcome of new Philly Pops conductor Michael Krajewski, who takes over officially in October. Krajewski has a load of conducting experience, which includes his current posts as principal Pops conductor of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Houston Symphony and the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra. He’s a personable chap, who—humorously demonstrated via a funny video shown at this press conference—is said to do literally anything for the all-important group called “subscribers.” Krajewski is taking over this organization at a difficult time. The Pops is emerging from bankruptcy and has lost the man who has been its public face since day one, Peter Nero. Maestro Nero, who founded the Philly Pops in 1979 and owned the “Philly Pops” name, departed under less-than-positive circumstances. Though the situation is too complex to detail here, the simplified explanation is this: As a result of the bankruptcy of the Pops’ thenparent organization, The Philadelphia Orchestra, the Pops also found itself in deep trouble and asked Nero to take a 40 percent pay cut. He would not and under terms of a deal approved by a bankruptcy judge in August, Nero agreed to step down and turn over the rights to the Philly Pops name. Here’s a subjective take on the situation: Nero played piano, conducted and worked his can off for more than 30 years to put the Philly Pops on the international “Pops” map, and succeeded beyond anyone’s expectations. He was a fan favorite, a city favorite, a subscriber’s favorite, a national favorite and a worldwide favorite. Then, because too many of those “upstairs” lacked vision, the whole enterprise began to tank. As a stop-gap panic measure, the powers-that-be decided to change the rules of the game in mid-stream by asking Nero to take a hit in the wallet. Maestro would not. Continuing subjectively, those in charge should have kept Peter Nero. At any cost. Thousands of people came to hear the Philly Pops. And they showed up because of him. Allowing him to leave in this or any manner was embarrassing for all. The “new” Pops has their work cut out for them. The 2013-2014 appears to be a reduced schedule, with a total of six weekend shows that start in October, then run in February, March, April, May and December of 2014. Big name guest stars are conspicuous by their absence, save for Donna McKechnie, Jodi Benson and Doug LaBrecque, all a part of a Marvin Hamlisch tribute show in March. On the optimistic side, the Pops may be focusing a bit more on local performers, such as the mighty Eddie Bruce—who also entertained, with pianist Tom Adams, at the press conference—who will be a part of “Viva Philadelphia!” program on October 11, 12 and 13. For Pops ticketing info, visit PhillyPops.org. By the way, the press conference was billed as “The Peter Nero and the Philly POPS press conference.” Maestro Nero, pleading “a previous engagement,” was nowhere to be found. Backstage does hope to catch up with him at a future date.

SURREY WITH THE FRINGE The Philadelphia Live Arts Festival and Philly Fringe has officially—and thankfully— changed its name to “Fringe Arts” in tandem with the announcement of its new home across from Race Street Pier. “FringeArts defines the bold innovation that characterizes the art we pride ourselves in pursuing,” says President/Producing Director Nick Stuccio. All involved are hoping for an opening of their impressive new facility in time for their eagerly-anticipated September 6 to September 21 festival.

FOR ART’S SAKE When drug giant GlaxoSmithKline moved to its new, all-glass offices in the Philadelphia Navy Yard from their center city Philadelphia digs, they found out they had a problem. No, it wasn’t a shortage of Glaxo’s Levitra. It was worse. Because the walls were all made of glass,

Journalist Thom Nickels’ books include Philadelphia Architecture, Tropic of Libra, Out in History and Spore. He is the recipient of the 2005 Philadelphia AIA Lewis Mumford Architecture Journalism Award. thomnickels.blogspot. com

Bruce Klauber is a published author/biographer, producer of DVDs for Warner Bros., CD producer for Fresh Sound Records, and a working jazz drummer. He graduated from Temple University and holds an Honorary Doctorate from Combs College of Music.

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icon opinion

EUGENE ROBINSON

The intersection of art, entertainment, culture, opinion and mad genius

Filling the hunger since 1992 1-800-354-8776 • 215-862-9558

Harry Reid’s surrender

fax: 215-862-9845

www.icondv.com Publisher & Editor-in-Chief

SHAME ON HARRY REID for killing any prospect of an assault limb for something that’s so unlikely ever to become law? weapons ban. I understand why he did it, but that doesn’t make it The answer isn’t political, it’s moral. The answer is that this is right. a moment not to do the expedient thing but instead to do the In his State of the Union address last month, President Obama right thing. spoke with fiery eloquence about the cost of gun violence in shatIt is true that prospects are brighter for other proposals on tered lives. “They deserve a vote,” gun violence. The most important the president said of the victims, is expanding and toughening the challenging Congress to take a current system of background stand on reasonable legislation to checks for gun buyers. Despite the keep deadly weapons out of the National Rifle Association’s opposihands of killers. Reid obviously tion, sentiment for universal backdisagrees. The Senate majority ground checks—covering not just leader decided Tuesday to abandealers but also ostensibly “pridon a proposal by Sen. Dianne Fevate” sales at gun shows—seems instein (D-Calif.) that would have close to a consensus. banned the sale of some militaryI don’t mean to downplay the style firearms—weapons designed significance of background checks, not for sport or self-defense but which could save lives by keeping for killing enemy soldiers in batguns out of the wrong hands. But tle. The Nevada Democrat said he let’s not fool ourselves: The biggest was dropping the measure—withfactor in gun violence is the gun. out a vote—because it would Until we begin to deal with the surely fail. weapons themselves, we are work“I’m not going to try to put ing at the margins. something on the floor that won’t Despite what the NRA wants us succeed,” Reid said. “I want someto believe, guns do kill people. Yes, thing that will succeed. I think the mental health is a serious issue. Yes, worst of all worlds would be to the violence in movies and video bring something to the floor and games is shocking. But these other it dies there.” factors do not begin to explain why He’s wrong. The worst way to there is so much more gun violence respond to the shocking massacre in the United States than in other in Newtown, Conn., would be to industrialized countries. let political self-interest stand in Surely there are disturbed the way of meaningful action. The young men in Britain who are parents of those 20 slain children watching violent movies or playing deserve a vote on the assault violent video games at this very moweapons ban. The families of the ment—just like their American 30,000 Americans who will be counterparts. Yet the U.S. death rate killed by gunfire this year deserve from gun violence is 40 times higher a vote. Bringing the measure to than the British rate. Why? What the floor of both the Senate and could make such a huge difference? the House is the least Congress The biggest factor has to be can do. that British law makes it hard to We all know what’s happening buy a gun and U.S. law makes it A woman waits to hear about her sister, a teacher, following the shooting. here. Senate Democrats face a easy. Don’t blame the Constitution; Sandy Hook. tough battle next year to hold on even Supreme Court Justice Anto their slim majority. Going on tonin Scalia, in an opinion striking record in support of legislation that the gun lobby so vehemently down the District’s handgun ban, noted that the right to keep and opposes could cost some vulnerable incumbents their seats—and bear arms is not absolute. potentially make Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) the majority leader. Blame Congress for not imposing reasonable controls on instruReid said he could muster barely 40 votes for Feinstein’s ments of death that too often turn petty arguments into tragedies— weapons ban. Even if all 53 members of the Democratic caucus supand that allow disturbed individuals to turn their most warped fanported it, the measure would still fall short of the 60 votes needed tasies into reality. to break an anticipated GOP filibuster. And in the event that the Reid and his colleagues in the Senate are experts in political measure somehow made it out of the Senate, it would be dead on arithmetic. I’d love to hear them explain their calculations to the arrival in the House. So why should Senate Democrats go out on a parents of Newtown. n 6

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Assistant Editor

Trina McKenna trina@icondv.com Raina Filipiak

ADVERTISING 800-354-8776

City Beat Editor Thom Nickels Backstage & Bruce H. Klauber Jazz Scene Editor Fine Arts Editors Edward Higgins Burton Wasserman Classical Music Editor Peter H. Gistelinck Music Editors Nick Bewsey Mark Keresman Bob Perkins Tom Wilk Theater Critic David Schultz Food Editor Robert Gordon Wine Editor Patricia Savoie Contributing Writers A.D. Amorosi Robert Beck

Jack Byer Peter Croatto James P. Delpino Sally Friedman Geoff Gehman Mark Keresman George Oxford Miller Thom Nickels R. Kurt Osenlund Victor Stabin

PO Box 120 • New Hope, PA 18938 (800) 354-8776 Fax (215) 862-9845 ICON is published twelve times per year. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited. ICON welcomes letters to the editor, editorial ideas and submissions, but assumes no responsibility for the return of unsolicited material. ICON is not responsible for claims made by advertisers. Subscriptions are available for $40 (shipping & handling). Copyright 2013 Prime Time Publishing Co., Inc.

a thousand words

STORY AND PAINTING BY ROBERT BECK

It’s Personal

THERE ARE PHYSICAL, BIOLOGICAL and psychological reasons for the way we perceive the things we are looking at. They can range from the fundamental shape and color of an object to how it is influenced by what it is near, what you last observed before seeing it, or even the comparison to what it is not. There is reality and there is perception, and perception rules. When artists paint or draw from life they see all of that in action. They become familiar with how things are perceived and that helps them to determine what isn’t quite right in their painting. It helps them figure out solutions, too. They learn to move, alter, replace or abstract elements without compromising the integrity of the overall image. They can best adapt source material, whatever it is. Those skills are important if a painter wishes to effectively describe, evoke or communicate ideas. There is a big difference between copy and create. Working from life is the place to learn that. The majority of my paintings are done directly from the subject in one sitting. They depict where I am, what catches my interest, and what it feels like to be there. That last bit—the feel part—is tricky. It’s an element that emerged in my art after years of working from life as I began to recognize, mostly by paying attention to my mistakes, that doing things in different ways changed the impression one got from the image. Color, value and contrast relationships could be manipulated to alter mood. Brush calligraphy could invoke weight, energy or motion. I began to arrange things in accordance with my experience. The reason why I was drawn to a subject became part of the image. It got very personal. Things I learned while working from life help me to create images from my imagination. In the case of the one above, a front stoop that I had previously painted in New

York was still rattling around in my mind. In addition, ever since I started painting in the city I’ve been mulling how to better depict the Manhattan taxi experience. And I’d been thinking about capturing a rainy evening in the city with its light sky and hard reflective surfaces. There are plenty of vague images and ideas calling out from the corners of my brain, but a connection was made among those three that put me in gear. Now I needed a narrative. And a taxi. I would watch what taxis did and how they acted. I started to focus on the point when they stop for customers. It’s a good moment—the end of apprehension and delay, the return to movement. And there is a definitive look to the way it pulls over and how people get in. That was my narrative. I took photos of a cab with my phone, front, back and angles all around so I had some-

thing to refer to when I was in the studio and needed to know if I had the wheel well in the right position. I wove the stoop and taxi into an imaginary rainy evening street scene using charcoal on a panel. The road, buildings, cars and figures all were all moved about in a search for natural rhythms and balances. There was the brief issue of which way the cab would face but I wanted to play with the rain in the headlight beams so that settled that. I began to paint, unifying all my imagined elements into the same time and place. I gave the people gestures that told stories. I determined how important the umbrellas would be. The weather was a challenge; it’s one thing to make the streets look wet and another to conjure the feeling of being out in the rain. I got drenched a number of years ago while standing in Lambertville watching

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how a shower revealed itself in the lights and puddles. For this image, I relied on my memory of that exploration as well as the many paintings I’ve done outside at night to pull together a persuasive environment. It didn’t all just fall into place. Technique and intention aren’t enough to make a good painting. Passion, a thirst for discovery and an ill-tempered tenacity fuel my process. When things aren’t going well I get cranky-stubborn, and keep my teeth in it out of spite. Getting the feel right can be a wrestling match, but sometimes you have to fight for the right perception. You have to take it personal. ■

Robert Beck maintains a studio and academy in Lambertville, New Jersey. Email: robertbeck@robertbeck.net.

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EDWARD HIGGINS

Penn Museum project conservator Molly Gleeson cleans the surface of a painted coffin. Photo: Steve Minicola

This is the main panel of the Lod Mosaic. Measuring 13 by 13 feet and set in the center of one of the floors, it is divided into a series of smaller squares and triangles by an interlocking cable pattern, forming an outer polygon of twelve sides and sixteen square and triangular segments in which various birds, fish, and animals are depicted. These surround a larger octagonal space populated by ferocious wild animals—a lion and lioness, an elephant, a giraffe, a rhinoceros, a tiger, and a wild bull—with a mountainous landscape in the background. The mosaic scene is flanked by two smaller rectangular panels, not seen here. Of exceptional quality and in an excellent state of conservation, the Lod mosaic is believed to have been part of a large and well-appointed Roman house and is dated to about 300 C.E. Image © Israel Antiquities Authority.

View inside the Artifact Lab, showing a painted wooden coffin and a HEPA-filtered vacuum below, used for cleaning object surfaces. Photo: Steve Minicola

Long Live Our Treasures ARGUABLY, THE MOST NOBLE function of any museum is to educate. The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology has never failed to keep that mission uppermost in everything it does. The Museum demonstrates its fealty to the mission now with a groundbreaking concept that takes priceless artifacts and conservators and puts them both on full view. For the third straight year, the Philadelphia Science Festival spotlights science in all its weirdness and wonders throughout the city in which American science was born. The festival takes place April 18 to 28 with 105 participating organizations holding some 100 different programs, ranging from a murder mystery at the Mutter, to the living dead at Laurel Hill Cemetery, to the chemistry of beer at the Yards Brewing Company. The Penn Museum has launched its own offering called Long Live Our Treasures: The Science of Conservation and Preservation. It features mummies and mosaics, and on Wednesday, April 24 they’re pulling out all the stops with a behind the scenes look at the conservation process with the top conservators from 17 institutions. You can learn how to wire a bird à la John James Audubon,

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restore Grandma’s china lamp, film, a battleship, an Old Master painting, or how to get a gravy stain out of your tie in time for Easter. Concurrently, there are two exhibitions at the Museum which seamlessly tie into this theme: In the Artifact Lab: Conserving Egyptian Mummies and Unearthing a Masterpiece: A Roman Mosaic from Lod, Israel. In the Artifact Lab is part exhibition, part working lab and it’s filled with a combination of high tech and medieval witchery. It also has a real live person inside—most of the time it’s Molly Gleeson, Project Conservator, working on about 30 pieces of the Egyptian collection inside a glass-walled structure. A display board lets visitors know what’s going on inside, and twice a day Ms. Gleeson answers questions. Here’s what the Museum says is inside the lab: “The Lab is complete with conservators’ tools of the trade, including a high-powered (60x) binocular microscope and even higher powered (200x) polarized light microscope, optivisors, a fume extractor to whisk away noxious chemicals, a HEPA filter vacuum, an examination light trolley perfect for directing light at various power levels onto delicate objects, and a wide range of small hand tools as well as ad-

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hesives and other solvents.” Any questions? There are a number of other Egyptian marvels nearby, such as two complete galleries filled with artifacts. (The Museum has 42,000 of them.) Most of the materials were collected by Penn Museum in Egypt during expeditions that it self-sponsored. The focus of Unearthing a Masterpiece is a complete mosaic floor some 27 by 50 feet that was discovered in 1996 in Lod, Israel during a road project. It was reburied until 2009 when the excavation could be properly funded. The exhibition includes three of the most complete panels. The mosaic is believed to have come from the home of a wealthy Roman living circa 300 CE. The floor is in remarkable condition and its seven panels are decorated with wild animals which has fostered the theory that the owner may have been a dealer in wild animals used in gladiatorial games. In what surely must be a conservation miracle, the footprints of several workers who laid the floor some 1,300 years ago have been identified…some wearing sandals and some barefooted. Leaving no stone unturned, the Museum provides a link to the mosaic’s website and a video. The mosaic, on loan from the Israel

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Antiquities Authority, has been traveling the U.S. and Philadelphia is its last stop before heading home. Lod is located near Tel Aviv and the first mention of it occurred some 1,400 year before Christ. After Lod was destroyed, its population was sold as slaves. The Museum’s April 24 event, Long Live Our Treasures, will feature 17 organizations and their conservators. Tickets: $6 in advance from the Philadelphia Science Festival website: http://www.philasciencefestival.org and $12 at the door (regular admission to the Museum). The event will comprise exhibits, short talks, hands-on demonstrations, and a chance to do a bit of conserving. Those represented include the Academy of Natural Sciences, the Barnes Collection, Bartram’s Gardens, The Fairmount Park Preservation Trust, the Franklin Institute, the Free Library, the Seaport Museum, the Audubon Center, the Mutter Museum, LaSalle University, and the universities of Delaware and Pennsylvania. Officials from all these institution will be available for questions and conversation. n Edward Higgins is a member of The Association Internationale Des Critiques d’Art.

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BURTON WASSERMAN

Antonio Carnicero, Plate VII from Colección de las principals suertes de una corrida de toros (Collection of the main actions in a bullfight), Yale University Art Gallery, The Arthur Ross Collection.

the

Bull, the Ring and the Painters

THE PAST HISTORY OF Western art comes alive with images of bulls discovered in caves dating from the Neolithic period at Lascaux, France and archeological findings at Knossos from the pre-Greek civilization of ancient Crete. Also, from long ago, we learn that tauromachia is a Greek word for bullfighting. It migrated to the Spanish language through Latin and the days of the old Roman Empire. Back then, an early form of bullfighting was offered to spectators in a stadium as a warm-up event, performed before the fights to the death that constituted gladiatorial combat. To the present day, bullfighting continues to play a significant role especially in Spanish culture. And from an artistic point of view, it has even been a powerful source of inspiration for such great masters as Francisco Goya and Pablo Picasso. At this time, Tauromaquia is also the title of an exceptionally fine exhibition celebrating the 30th anniversary of the opening of the Arthur Ross Art Gallery at the University of Pennsylvania in Center City Philadelphia. The show, which opens April 19, 2013, consists of 75 superb graphic prints illuminating the world of bullfighting by Antonio Carnicero, Goya and Picasso. They are all on loan from the Arthur Ross Collection at Yale University. This installation at Penn is intended to honor Ross’ passion for interacting with deeply moving artworks that he had acquired. He wanted to share them and additional examples of interesting visual form with students and others who had occasion to visit the gallery named in his honor in Philadelphia. Few Spanish customs divide opinions here in America as much as traditional bullfighting. For every aficionado of bullring combat who is willing to defend the practice, there are surely a dozen people who see it as barbaric cruelty imposed on victimized animals. They believe it should be banned. Nevertheless, bullfighting still flourishes. 10

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Francisco Goya y Lucientes, Ligereza y atrevimiento de Juanito Apiñani en la de Madrid (The agility and audacity of Juanito Apinani in [the ring] at Madrid) from La Tauromaquia, Yale University Art Gallery, The Arthur Ross Collection.

The eminent author, Ernest Hemingway, attested to seeing some 1,500 bulls killed on what he chose to call, “the field of honor.” On the other hand, there are those who dismiss this as Hemingway’s obsession with a deeply rooted outlook that was intensified by his participation on the Loyalist side in the Spanish Civil War of 1937. Clearly, for better or worse, Spanish culture has carried on a love affair with events unfolding in the bullfight arena for many hundreds of years. Various artists, including Goya and Picasso have painted, lithographed and etched profoundly tragic pictures based on bullfighting. Many of the pieces in the show depend upon the combination of human and animal mutilation as well as the mixture of blood and sand in the bull ring for their emotionally expressive impact. They also bear witness to heroic ideals of courage in the face of impending death for both the animal and the matador. Unfortunately, from time to time, bullfighters die in the ring. And the bulls, even the bravest among them, are inevitably executed. In turn, they become meals for children in orphanages and assorted charitable facilities. For visitors to the local exhibition, it remains an open question whether or not many of Goya’s complex intaglio prints are critical inquiries into universal issues of survival and possible exposure to lifelong wounds that never really heal properly. One may also reflect on the way many of his images in both paint and ink envision the world as a place where pitifully dehumanizing acts and deeply upsetting nightmares take place again and again. Surely, much of his oeuvre reveals the world we live in to be an utterly irrational corner of the surrounding universe. Picasso also, from youth to old age, never made any bones about being a dedicated spectator and devoted fan of bullfighting. One of his most pithy masterworks deals with the sight of a horse being gored to death by a bull. It is a

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truly horrendous composition. Sadly, the subject of cruelty and the practice art do come together from time to time. Think, for example of painted crucifixions and scenes of saints being subjected to severe torture. Even Peter Paul Rubens and his gifted disciple, Franz Snyders, made pictures of supposedly civilized men hunting animals and then putting them to death in what those protagonists chose to call blood sport. It may have been partly through witnessing the traumatic drama of the bull ring that Picasso equipped himself sufficiently to be able to conceive an awesome metaphor dealing with the horror of aerial bombardment and the destruction of human life and limb. Of course, the reference here is to his great masterpiece, the “Guernica.” Likewise, with respect to Goya, the Tauromaquia series of etchings on view in Penn’s Arthur Ross Gallery, motivated him to render a condensed interpretation of convictions that inspired national pride and a willingness to endure the risks of total personal sacrifice. In the history of Western art, Goya was simultaneously the last old master of aesthetic form inherited from the past and the first to exercise a modern approach to freshly inspired artistic invention. That he did so with images taken from an environment where strength and confidence were earned in combat with bulls, is a tribute to his own daring and quest for uncorrupted truth. ■ The exhibition is on view in the Arthur Ross Gallery inside the Fisher Fine Arts Library, at 220 South 34th St. on the Penn campus until July 28, 2013. Dr. Burton Wasserman is a professor emeritus of Art at Rowan University, and a serious artist of long standing. Dr. Wasserman’s program Art From Near and Far is on WWFM in Central and Northern New Jersey and Bucks County and WGLS in S. Jersey.

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Bowl by Jon Harrington.

48th Annual Bethlehem Fine Art and Craft Show Historic Bethlehem May 11, 10-5 and May 12, 11-5 www.bfac-lv.org This sidewalk show along Main Street in Historic Bethlehem is a celebration of the finest local and regional artists. Over 70 juried artists and crafters are welcomed each year in this two-day outdoor Fine Art Show. One of the delightful elements of the event is the Artist In Residence. While this artist demonstrates his or her craft, on-lookers are encouraged to ask questions or engage in light conversation. The 2013 Artist in Residence is Arianne Schnalzer. The Children’s Art Activities are sponsored each year by Crayola. In addition to all the fun art projects and mural painting, a special creation will be raffled from the 2012 Show by artist Virginia Abbott and children participants. The piece, entitled “Faces,” is an “up-cycled” sculpture from found and discarded objects. Proceeds from this raffle will benefit the Children’s Art program. To complement the festivities, a number of local musicians will perform along the Show route.

Poster by Michael Thompson (aka Freestylee).

Haitian Art Allentown Art Museum of the Lehigh Valley 31 North Fifth Street, Allentown, PA AllentownArtMuseum.org Through April 21 (extended) This colorful exhibition of paintings and sculpture by Haitian artists was acquired by Robert and Ardath Rodale of the Rodale publishing family. The exhibition opens with a section about the history of Haiti from Cap-Haitien-style artists, then continues with works from the south of the country highlighting fantastical as well as everyday scenes. A cluster of paintings of iconic Voodoo spirits is also included. In conjunction with the exhibit is a display of graphic posters by the Jamaican artist Michael Thompson, aka Freestylee, who will speak at the Museum April 14 at 1 p.m. on “The Creative Activist and Positive Change.” On April 7, New York gallery owner Randall Morris will speak “On Haitian Art.” Also showing through April 21: Fabulous Flappers: Fashion from the Ellie Laubner Collection Vintage 1920s dresses, shoes, jewelry, lingerie, sportswear, and wedding apparel.

Flappers’ cloche.

Necklace/pendant by Cindy Blackburn.

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Patricia Hutton Gallery at the Bucks County Designer House The Sunroom Gallery The Clement Doyle House 360 Old Dublin Pike Doylestown, PA 18901 buckscountydesignerhouse.org M-W 10-4; Th, Fri, 10-7; Sat 10-4; Sun 12-4 April 28 – May 26 Patricia Hutton Gallery (47 W. State Street, Doylestown, PA 215-348-1728. www.patriciahuttongalleries.com) will feature the work of several Pennsylvania and New England artists in The Sunroom Gallery at the Bucks County Designer House, a project of the Village Improvement Association which benefits Doylestown Hospital. The Sunroom Gallery is a lovely venue in which to view plein air and studio paintings which feature Spring and Summer landscapes and still life. The Designer House typically welcomes 10,000 visitors during its one-month run, and it is a wonderful opportunity to see art displayed in a decorated room setting. Ultimately, art lives in the rooms of our homes. Those who collect know the joy of coming upon a piece that thrills them and then finding the exact right spot in which to display it. Besides supporting a fine organization, the Gallery decided to do a room in the showhouse to spread the word that to “live with fine art, enriches your life.”

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cinematters

PETE CROATTO

Spring Breakers

HARMONY KORINE’S TERRIFIC SPRING Breakers, or as I like to call it, Bikini Girls with Machine Guns, begs to be dismissed, or worse, embraced for purely lascivious reasons. It shouldn’t. Korine revels in the exploitative while preserving, even highlighting, the emotional. The film is erotic, hilarious, and bathed in nightclub neons, but the sadness sticks like bubble gum in your hair. We’re hooked at each turn. Four girls, eyes open to everything but reality, dive into the Girls Gone Wild culture without accounting for the jagged bottom. It starts off innocently enough. The college friends want to leave their small, boring town and escape to spring break. It doesn’t matter if they’re partying pretty hard already—this getaway promises more. Ko16

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rine plays the same scenes of sudsy sexed-up fun, with “spring break” repeated like a chant. The girls have become conditioned to expect a special kind of debauched glory. Brainwashed is probably a better word. So it’s not surprising that three of the girls, Brit (Ashley Benson), Candy (Vanessa Hudgens), and Cotty (Rachel Korine, Harmony’s wife) rob a chicken joint to raise the remaining cash for the sun-soaked sojourn. “Pretend it’s a video game,” one of them yells, which tells you everything about their perspective. Faith (Selena Gomez) doesn’t participate in the hold-up, probably because she’s the only one with any kind of ethical foundation. Faith is wisely advised to “pray super hardcore” by a member of her prayer group. Initially, the trip intoxicates Faith, who wants to shut her eyes and preserve it. She’s seen a different part of the world and is touched by its spirituality. The sentiments are funny because they are about a place featuring binge drinking and novelty T-shirts. It’s also an ode to the beauty of a young, uncluttered mind, a sign of just how unprepared the girls—who do gymnastics in the hallway and sing Britney Spears tunes without irony—are after they’re arrested during a raucous hotel room party. Alien (James Franco), a hip-hop gangster/wannabe high roller, who has no connection to the quartet, bails them out. He sees something in them that satisfies his own needs, a notion that immediately repels Faith. Having the girls around, or those who willingly stay, fills a void. You can see this in the now-famous “Look at my shit!” scene, where Alien rattles off his household possessions—“I have Scarface on repeat”—to the grateful, swooning bunch. This is not the behavior of a confident man. But Alien gives the girls, especially Candy and Brit, entry into the thug life—or at least the one that MTV has glamorized. When the girls help Alien on his rampage, they sport pink ski masks embroidered with unicorns. Their exploits are filmed in slow-mo or bathed in psycho Easter Bunny colors. It’s part of the fun of being young, responsibility-free, and on vacation. For all of the movie’s freaky behavior and dreamy cool—the fragmented narrative and color scheme makes Spring Breakers feel like a nightmare poem—Korine exhibits a ton of parental concern. After their arrest, Faith says, “This wasn’t the dream. It wasn’t supposed to end this way.” The advice given by the leader of her prayer group—“Every temptation, He’s going to give you a way out”—isn’t treated as satire but as good advice. The constant shots of gyrating asses and beer-bathed breasts lose their allure quickly. What’s left is a lonely, outmanned gangster with an unresolved blood feud. Franco now treats his career as some kind of performance art. That he’s a movie star seems to be a creative choice—witness his indifferent attitude in roles like Rise of the Planet of the Apes. As Alien, he turns a hip-hop influenced white boy gangster into a goofy, pathetic soul. Nothing about the performance is contrived. When Alien sings that these girls have come from heaven, it’s not some line. Candy and Brit, however, are more interested in serving as apprentices, not as icons in short shorts. I’m writing this a week before Spring Breakers opens in Philadelphia. Some undoubtedly will buy tickets to see Hudgens, Gomez, and Benson shed their clothes (and family-friendly personas) or to see how far the movie goes. These people must not use the Internet, which is ideal for slack-jawed gawking. Great movies stimulate another organ. Korine knows exactly what he’s doing in Spring Breakers. One way or the other, the public will be disappointed. Too damn bad. [R] n

Pete Croatto also writes movie reviews for The Weekender. His essays, features, and humor pieces have appeared in Philadelphia, New Jersey Monthly, The Christian Science Monitor, Grantland, Deadspin, and MAD. He can be reached at petecroatto@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter, @PeteCroatto.

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keresman on film

NO In 1973, Chile made the mistake of democratically electing a Marxist leader. Despite our collective “love” for democracy and freedom, the U.S. government backed a coup d’état in that country—“coup” being diplomatic-speak for the Chilean military, led by one General Pinochet, who grabbed the reins of power for his nation’s “own good,” and took on the hefty responsibility of Running Things. Of course, this didn’t sit well with many Chileans, and they took to the street in protest. The military reacted the way most South American militaries do—they beat anyone that got out of line. And you can take this to the bank: When- and wherever bad people pull a big-time power-play—be they of left- or right-wing political stripes—they both do generally the same thing: Lock-up, exile, brutalize, and/or croak anyone who has the brains or backbone to oppose them. Pinochet’s posse did all of this with bloody gusto. By 1988, however, international pressure—even from the U.S.—was beginning to mount for Chile to clean up its act, for Pinochet to at least “act” like he’s being democratic. So General P decided to have a national referendum, inviting citizens of Chile to vote YES for eight more years of him or NO for…change. (Not necessarily “back to Marxism,” but no more General P.) Each side is due to get some TV “ad space” to make their individual cases to the TV-watching population. Enter our reluctant hero, Rene Saavedra (Gael Garcia Bernal), an advertising executive whose father was 18

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MARK KERESMAN

against Pinochet and had to spend some time “away from home.” Rene is approached by Pinochet’s opposition to be a “media consultant”—they want his opinion on their TV ads. He lets ‘em have it—“Dudes, they’re a major downer.” OK, I paraphrase, but it’s close—Rene is something of an ‘80s Mad Man, who believes that it doesn’t matter how good the product is, it’s how you sell it. Like most good Mad Men, Rene is somewhat apolitical (and maybe somewhat amoral), but after witnessing first-hand some Pinochet-sponsored violence against some folks he knows, he decides to help the opposition persuade their fellow Chileans to vote…wait for it…“NO.” Much of the conflict in No comes from three sources: Rene’s Machiavellian boss Lucho (a very fine Alfredo Castro) whose sympathy is with the status quo; Pinochet’s minions, who intimidate anyone who’s problematic; and Pinochet’s opposition, who brim over with anger at Pinochet’s brutality (hundreds, if not thousands, jailed, tortured, executed) and political self-righteousness. Rene takes it all in stride, perhaps because he has faith in the power of advertising—his commercials for the “no” vote somewhat cynically “sell” political change as if it were an extra-fizzy new soda. No is a compelling political thriller seen through the prism of the advertising world…which looks just as silly and manipulative in Chile as it would in the U.S. or UK. It’s the story of an almost-bloodless revolution, catalyzed by the

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same jive we try to skip by going to the bathroom or refrigerator during the commercials on TV. We get to see what’s at stake, via footage of dissidents getting clobbered by the authorities. Bernal’s Rene (a composite of two real characters) is a bit of a slightly befuddled everyman and a caring father when he’s out of his element (the ad biz), but in his element he’s sharp and confident. No is filmed in a manner that makes it look like an ‘80s documentary, which works for (“you-are-there docu-style”) and against it. As good as it is, it dragged a little—too many scenes telling us what we already know. I would’ve liked to have seen a bit of exploration as to why some Chileans liked Pinochet’s regime—this was touched on slightly but not fleshed-out. Interestingly enough, the film ends on an ambiguous note, implying that Chile might be rid of Pinochet, but another kind of tyranny might be waiting in the wings, that of Conspicuous Consumerism. And that makes No an important film about the intersection of media and politics. I also recommend a similar film set in the USA: Power (1986), starring Richard Gere as a Mr. Wizard-like political consultant and co-starring Gene Hackman, Julie Christie, Denzel Washington, and E.G. Marshall—not fantastic, but like No, pretty good. n In addition to ICON, Mark Keresman is a contributing writer for SF Weekly, East Bay Express, Pittsburgh City Paper, Paste, Jazz Review, downBeat, and the Manhattan Resident.

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bad movie

MARK KERESMAN

SOMETIMES AN ACADEMY AWARD—aka an Oscar—can be a curse as well as a…well, whatever it is. True, it is one of the most, if not the most, prestigious symbol of recognition an actor or actress can receive, yet it in and of itself doesn’t necessarily bode well for a performer’s career. I can name a few actors and actresses that won an Oscar or Golden Globe only to see their careers stall—not trying to be mean, Dear Reader, really, but it’s true. Cuba Gooding Jr., Mira Sorvino, Mercedes Ruehl, F. Murray Abraham, Timothy Hutton, and, yes, Halle Berry all won Oscars and went on to appear in thoroughly mediocre if not downright crap films. (Did I forget to mention Roberto Benigni? Gosh, I hope so.) Call it bad luck, overly raised expectations, or…? The Call puts forth the proposition that Halle Berry is vying for the “position” of the “new” Ashley Judd. Those of you with memories, return with me now to those thrilling days of yesteryear when Michael Jackson was still alive and semi-regularly providing comedians with fresh fodder for jokes—there were many woman-in-peril movies: Blink, Along Came a Spider, The Bone Collector, Taking Lives, Jennifer 8, Kiss the Girls, Hear No Evil, The Watcher, Mute Witness. They all starred Ashley Judd, or seemed to…or perhaps Madeline Stowe or pre-Brad Pitt Angelina Jolie. Then Ms. Judd got more interested in politics, Jolie became a director and goodwill ambassador, and the Lifetime Channel began to churn out similar movies, so no more Judd-isms and women’s film roles got less fraught with danger. (I’m not counting horror 20

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films here.) Berry’s post-Monster credits have been somewhat underwhelming, so along comes an opportunity to play the plucky woman in peril. But since that’s been done so much, and cell phone technology is a big thing these days, how to up the ante to pull in crowds? How about an Oscarwinner as a 911 operator that gets personally involved in one of her calls? Berry is an instructor for 911 call center operators. She used to be on operator herself, but an error in judgment resulted in disaster for a caller (a young lady in very immediate danger) so she transitioned to the education side of things. But faster than you can say “pulled out of retirement for one last caper/job/assignment,” she’s back on active duty, trying to be a literal lifeline for Abigail Breslin, a kidnap victim trapped in the trunk of a serial killer’s car. It’s quite a responsibility, to be in contact with someone in danger and you are one of the main links in the chain of potential rescuers. Does Halle’s operator violate the rules that she teaches her students, i.e., do not get personally involved? Unless you’ve only seen 15 movies in your life, naturally—sometimes ya gotta break the rules to get the job done, don’cha know. Are there going to be massive leaps in logic, which the director (Brad Anderson, The Machinist, TransSiberian) figures to “obscure” by having lots of (understandably) frenzied activity? Example: One character’s cell phone doesn’t have service at a comparatively crucial time. (I hate it when that happens! That also happens frequently in horror films, too.) Yet we saw someone else make

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a call from that exact location…20 minutes later, cell service is miraculously reinstated in the same locale. Just another quirk of technology, I guess. Do law enforcement agencies appear to be understaffed or less-than-competent or both? If you think, “Golly, why would the filmmakers do that? Isn’t that a cheap and awkward plot device?,” then you really do need to get out more often. This writer has mentioned horror films before—while The Call purports to be a “thriller,” it’s really a horror film that skimps on the horror. There are grossly hackneyed tropes we’ve seen in too many scary-ish movies. Do we get a guaranteed-to-be-SO-creepy “tour” of the serial killer’s grisly den? Duh. Halle’s operator “deputizes” herself to rescue Breslin, naturally—but whether or not you are an operative trained in dealing with serial killers, if you have a chance to call for armed backup, by gum, why wouldn’t you? (Spoiler ahea…aw, who am I kidding?) Worst of all, if you think you’ve “killed” the bad guy and you are not a marksperson, Marine, SWAT person, or professional killer, why would you turn your back on them? “They” ALWAYS get up! Everyone should see the Coen Brothers’ Miller’s Crossing for—not only is it a great movie—it has one of the most practical bits of wisdom for permanently discontinuing mortal threats from any menacing biological unit: “Always put one in the brain!” The Call—maybe Berry didn’t phone it in, but the screenwriter certainly did. n

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reel news

REVIEWS OF RECENTLY RELEASED DVDS BY GEORGE OXFORD MILLER

Jafar Panahi in This is Not a Film.

★=SKIP IT; ★★=MEDIOCRE; ★★★=GOOD; ★★★★=EXCELLENT; ★★★★★=CLASSIC

Promised Land (2012) ★★★ Cast: Matt Damon, John Krasinski, Frances McDormand, Hal Holbrook Genre: Drama Written by Matt Damon, John Krasinski. Rated R for strong language. Is hydraulic fracturing for natural gas a devil’s bargain that poisons aquifers and threatens our health, or is it the only way to save struggling farms from foreclosure? Promised Land, shot near Pittsburg, doesn’t try to resolve that complicated and emotionally charged question. Instead it focuses on the human drama when farmers in an economically-stressed community are offered big bucks for their mineral rights. Global Oil sends Steve Butler (Damon) and Sue Thomason (McDormand) for what seems like an easy sell. Steve believes Big Oil offers the only solution to the ailing heartland economy. But when a local school teacher (Halbrook) and a environmentalist (Krasinski) challenge the safety of fracting, he suffers serious questions of conscience. The predictable ending and underdeveloped characters shave stars from the rating, but solid acting and clever dialogue keep the characterdriven plot from bogging down in controversial issues. A Simple Life (2012) ★★★★ Cast: Andy Lau, Deanie Ip Genre: Drama No MPAA rating, nothing objectionable. Awards: Hong Kong Film Festival; Venice Film Festival. Roger (Andy Lau), a Hong Kong film producer, leads a simple life, but not as simple as his housekeeper Ah Tao (Deanie Ip) who reared him and has served his family for 60 years. Now it’s only the two of them bound in an unchanging routine. He leaves for work each day and returns, she pre22

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pares meals and cares for the apartment. The story unrolls like a colorful ball of twine as hardly a word is spoken, but we see that both are physically and emotionally dependent on each other. Then Ah Tao has a stroke and the caretaking roles reverse. She insists on moving into an assisted living home; he visits regularly and often takes her out to eat. With remarkable tenderness and feeling, the story shows that though outwardly their existence appears boring and uneventful, the unspoken, undemanding love they share enriches and gives meaning to their lives. This Is Not a Film (2012) ★★★★ Cast: Jafar Panahi Genre: Documentary Directed by Jafar Panahi and Mojtaba Mirtahmasb. No MPAA rating, nothing objectionable. Awards: The European Union awarded Jafar Panahi the 2012 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. In 2009, Iranian security police arrested award-winning filmmaker Jafar Panahi for attempting to make an unauthorized movie chronicling the massive protests after President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s disputed election victory. He was sentenced to six years in prison and prohibited from making films for twenty years. While under house arrest awaiting his appeal (denied), he does what any savvy social media wizard does: he turns on his iPhone and starts recording his last day of freedom. Later, his friend comes by with a hand-held camcorder and adds more footage. Friends smuggled out the recording on a USB drive in a cake to show at Cannes. His non-film goes way beyond a video diary, self-centered tweet, or even a passionate protest against tyranny. Building on the Iranian movie tradition of slice-of-life examinations of social inequalities and religious and political intolerance, Panahi basically creates a new genre of artistic expression. With no

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script or plot, he infuses his all-encompassing monologue with a creative force that streams forth like a severed highvoltage cable. Sholem Aleichem: Laughing in the Darkness (2011) ★★★ Genre: Biographical documentary No MPAA rating, nothing objectionable. Awards: NY Times Critic’s Pick. You’ve likely heard of, and even seen Fiddler on the Roof, but how many have heard of Sholem Aleichem, the Yiddish storyteller whose tales inspired the play? Born Sholem Rabinovitz near Kiev in 1859, the prolific author is considered the Father of Yiddish literature, the Yiddish Mark Twain whose satire and tragic comedy still defines Jewish humor. His pen name means “Peace be upon you” or more flippantly “What’s up, dude?” and epitomizes his happy-go-lucky but never-giveup persona. As a young tutor, he married his rich student, inherited her family wealth, lost it in the stock market, wrote prolifically for Yiddish newspapers, and founded several literary journals. At a time when the Jews were denied many basic freedoms, he echoed the voice and concerns of millions. By turning the tragic events of daily life into farce and satire, he captured the hearts and eased the everyday hardships of Jews around the world. How widely was he known and loved in his time? More than 100,000 attended his funeral in New York. The documentary uses archival footage to capture the historic period and culture, interviews scholars, includes readings, and features his centenarian granddaughter Bel Kaufman, who wrote Up the Down Staircase. n

George Miller is a member of the Society of American Travel Writers and believes that travel is a product of the heart, not the itinerary. See his webmagazine at www.travelsdujour.com.

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film roundup

PETE CROATTO

Ryan Gosling in The Place Beyond the Pines.

★=SKIP IT; ★★=MEDIOCRE; ★★★=GOOD; ★★★★=EXCELLENT; ★★★★★=CLASSIC

The Company You Keep (Dir: Robert Redford). Starring: Robert Redford, Shia LaBeouf, Susan Sarandon, Julie Christie, Chris Cooper, Nick Nolte, Richard Jenkins, Terrence Howard, Anna Kendrick, Brit Marling, Brendan Gleeson, Sam Elliott, Stanley Tucci. After a domesticated radical (Sarandon) turns herself in for her role in a 1970s murder, a feisty newspaper reporter (LaBeouf) makes a stunning discovery: one of her accomplices, Jim Grant (Redford), lives with his daughter in town. Grant then embarks on a cross-country trek, reuniting with his former freedom fighter buddies (including Nolte and Jenkins) in a last-ditch attempt to clear his name. Redford’s latest politically charged pseudo-thinkpiece isn’t particularly insightful—newspaper reporters can only see the main story, ideologies change when people are involved—and it’s further hindered by the lack of a compelling central character. LaBeouf ’s changing view doesn’t register because he’s lectured into enlightenment instead of seeing it himself, while it’s preposterous to have Redford scaling fences and raising 11-year-olds. (Sorry. I don’t care how many jogging scenes you show; I don’t care if you cast Sarandon and Christie to obscure that he’s too old to have participated with the Weather Underground. Redford’s presence screams narc.) The biggest asset here is the acting, which lends an air of credibility that the movie’s content never achieves. [R] ★★1/2 The Place Beyond the Pines (Dir: Derek Cianfrance). Starring: Ryan Gosling, Bradley Cooper, Eva Mendes, Ben Mendelsohn, Ray Liotta, Dane DeHaan, Emory Cohen, Rose Byrne, Bruce Greenwood, Harris Yulin, Mahershala Ali. Cianfrance’s follow-up to Blue Valentine again features Gosling in a glori-

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ously lowbrow role. He plays a stunt motorcyclist who tries to connect with his infant son and his mother (Mendes). There’s no money in staying straight, so he starts robbing banks. That ends at the hands of a rookie cop (Cooper, whose stiffness is actually an attribute), who is establishing his own legacy until he’s faced with corruption in his department. Years later, the cop and robber’s teenage sons (DeHaan and Cohen) encounter each other, not realizing that they’re weighed down by the past. Simultaneously grand and mundane, Cianfrance’s epic account of escaping our own personal mediocrity never offers you solid footing. You don’t know how these lives will unfold. And that’s the point: Regardless of how we approach life, there’s no guarantee we’ll get away clean. It’s refreshing when a movie can offer a lofty message with good, old-fashioned tension instead of pretension. [R] ★★★★ Reality (Dir: Matteo Garrone). Starring: Aniello Arena, Loredana Simioli, Nando Paone. Luciano (Arena) is the family ham, the guy everyone says should be on TV, a dream the fishmonger hopes to attain by appearing on Italy’s Big Brother. When he nails an open audition and makes the final round, Luciano knows he has it. He tells everyone in the village it’s a sure thing. But as he waits for a phone call that never comes, Luciano seeks salvation and looks for signs from the satellite gods. Wonderful satirical drama is cutting and charming, surreal and sympathetic. Garrone offers a tender look at a family man flailing toward something better while lighting a match on organized worship, whether it involves a church or a television. And Arena’s performance—his face, rough and rugged, childlike and open—shows a man who is

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both invested and totally lost in the lure of celebrity. He’s through the plasma screen. Director-writer Garrone (Gomorrah) had to get permission from a judge to procure his leading man, a former Mafia hitman who is serving life in prison. So do not expect to see Arena in too many projects. [R] ★★★★

Upside Down (Dir: Juan Solanas). Starring: Jim Sturgess, Kirsten Dunst, Timothy Spall. On a planet with opposing gravitational pulls, there are two worlds—an affluent top world and a dreary bottom world. After discovering Eden, his long lost love from up top (Dunst), the bottom-dwelling Adam (Sturgess) longs for a reunion. Even though he gets a job at her company, TransWorld, whose strangling corporate conformity doesn’t feel satirical, obstacles exist. The two worlds do not mingle and Eden’s amnesia has wiped out their memories. Still, Adam fights against societal norms and neurology. Interesting take on the perils of class distinction never finds its creative juice. Writer-director Solanas’ desire to spell everything out for us—which starts immediately with Sturgess’ endless pie-in-the-sky prologue—while the concept of an upside down world feels unnecessary, not to mention a pain in the ass to watch. Adam and Eden’s story works without that angle—just ask the makers of The Vow—and Solanas never examines the logistics and challenges of living in this new world; he just puts old problems in a new setting. A better movie could have been made with this material. In fact, Sturgess’ concluding narration reveals one. That is not good. [PG-13] ★★ ■

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A.D. AMOROSI

Try a Little Tenderness Even musicians need love

IF APRIL IS INDEED Jazz Appreciation Month, there’s no better way for jazz fans to show their love for the genre than to track down Suzanne Cloud and give her money for her various causes. The Philadelphia-based singer with the bruised and husky voice behind albums such as With a Little Help from My Friends and Looking Back seems to be consumed by jazz at every turn; not just its sounds and sights but the care, feeding and tending to its less fortunate players and producers in the region. Her Jazz Bridge Project (JBP, jazzbridge.org) with fellow Philadelphia chanteuse Wendy Simon-Sinkler is an all-volunteer, not-for-profit enterprise that seeks to raise cash and care for locals struggling with sickness, rent problems, drug addiction issues, legal hassles and all manner of debt. It does so not just by begging for money or throwing Kickstarter campaigns—both of which it has done and will continue to do— but through a series of shows in the area that it has booked, staged and promoted. This season of JBP, from October 2012 through May 2013, is the organization’s largest so far with more than 40 gigs throughout the region with venues like the Collingswood Community Center, the Cheltenham Center for the Arts, the Unitarian Church in Media, and the Kennett Flash in Kennett Square joining in the fun and the philanthropy. Though Jazz Bridge gigs are one exception, in that they have always paid their series’ musicians fairly, in general, jazz players are notoriously underpaid, working long hours for little cash. Without retirement benefits, health insurance or decent living conditions, many of Philly’s jazz elders are staring at a bleak future. Cloud and Simon-Sinkler act as a balm and a financial aid to musicians on the musical fringe. “We’re still here helping professional jazz and blues musicians when they call in crisis,” says Cloud of a constantly shifting set of needs that includes driving jazz players to gigs, picking up their prescriptions and food as well as bailing them out of all manner of troubles. Jazz Bridge began on June 9, 2004 when Cloud’s collaborator and pianist Eddie Green was sick and in need of doctor. “With one look, I knew he was seriously ill. I was a nurse for years—it was my day gig. It turned out to be pancreatic cancer, and he was dead a month later.” Cloud did everything she could to keep him alive and thriving, from finding an emergency doctor to driving him back and forth. Though Green passed away, Cloud found her calling. Nine years later, problems are worse, but the spirit of giving is greater. “We’ll be having our yearly fundraiser at Chris’ Jazz Cafe on June 14 with pianist Elio Villafranca and band, “says Cloud, excitedly. “And we’ll be adding a new Neighborhood Concert Series next season at the Willingboro Free Library in Willingboro, NJ with Eguardo Cintron hosting.” More pressing to Cloud, at least where dates are concerned, is this month’s debut of her play, Last Call at the Downbeat, dedicated to trumpeter/bop innovator Dizzy Gillespie’s infamous stint at Philadelphia’s Downbeat nightclub in November of 1942. Opening in the Red Room of the Society Hill Playhouse (507 S. 8th St, starting April 5), Cloud’s Last Call at the Downbeat is done through the auspices of the 2013 Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts and its thematic take on time machines as a lens through which we can view the future. “When PIFA put out the call for proposals with the time machine theme, I thought, gee, where would I like to go? Or better yet, where should I ask the Philly music community to go?” asks Cloud. Why wouldn’t she consider this? Cloud also happened to be, at one point in her artistic life, a Philadelphia actress who hit the boards in such productions as The Pajama 26

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Game, Bell, Book and Candle and The Fantastiks. Her last foray into local theater was in 1989 with Sex Tips for Modern Girls. “I honestly thought that I’d never look back, but here I am doing theater for heaven’s sake.” Cloud, whose outreach into all things historical, jazzy and theatrical came when she was a student at University of Pennsylvania. She received her PhD in American Civilization in 2003; her dissertation was Children of the Earle Theatre: A History of the Philadelphia Jazz Community 1945 to the Present. “I pitched the play to PIFA and they said yes.” With all that knowledge behind her, November 1942, Philadelphia’s Downbeat and Dizzy Gillespie was a piece of cake. Cloud picked that moment in time because that’s when Diz got fired by Lucky Millinder at the Earle Theater and turned around and got a small group gig right around the corner at the Downbeat Club, a famous jazz watering hole at 11th and Ludlow. “The time and place is only a few months before he’s hired by Earl Hines where he fatefully hooks up with Charlie Parker,” says Cloud, enthused by Dizzy’s work on what he called “the new way” of bebop. “The play I wrote is partially based on an early section of Al Fraser’s great life history and biography on Dizzy called To Be or Not to Bop,” says Cloud. “I’ve talked to Al about the show, too, since we’re both Penn grads. The whole show is going to be pretty hip if I survive it.” The playwright has a sensational local actor for Downbeat, Erin Fleming, who will play Dizzy, with trumpeter Duane Eubanks (guitarist Kevin’s brother) doing all the music. There will be a multi-media presentation on scrim boxes with vintage photos of 1940s Philly, the Frankie Fairfax band and filmed shorts of 93-year-old drummer Charlie Rice—the only surviving member of the Downbeat house band—being interviewed. How Cloud’s Downbeat fits into her role with Jazz Bridge is simple math. Part of Jazz Bridge’s mission is to advocate for and illuminate the history and traditions of jazz in Philadelphia. “The reason for this is that it is much easier for folks to donate to help musicians in crisis when they know how crucial jazz is and has been to our region’s cultural scene,” says Cloud. The Downbeat Club, at 11th and Ludlow, was special during the 1940s since it was the only integrated music club in Center City. For this, the Downbeat found itself constantly harassed by the police. “By focusing the play around Dizzy, I’m able to tell the story about a gifted young man from a rural town in South Carolina whose family had ties to Philadelphia. He experienced Philly first at the age of nine and was amazed at how integrated the city was; later, Dizzy would here to live with the rest of his family on Pine Street when he was 18 years old.” Audiences will experience the black music scene in town through Dizzy’s eyes—the clubs, theaters, the black union, and the difficulties in living a life of jazz—Jazz Bridge’s interests, and the reason it serves the community it does. That’s where Jazz Bridge and the idea of Last Call at the Downbeat meet. “I always believed that the best way to illustrate the difficult choices an artist makes to pursue their art was with a multi-media, musical theater piece,” says Cloud. “Nothing speaks to [an audience] like live people on a stage telling a story.” ■

If A.D. Amorosi can’t be found writing features for ICON, the Philadelphia Inquirer, doing Icepacks and Icecubes (amongst other stories) for Philadelphia City Paper, he’s probably hitting restaurants like Stephen Starr’s or running his greyhound.

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exclusive interview

GEOFF GEHMAN

Hip Humanitarian

Philly native Kevin Eubanks aims to be cooler and warmer after his Tonight Show gig TWO MONTHS AGO KEVIN Eubanks guested on The Tonight Show, where he spent 15 years as chief guitarist, music director and assistant comedian. He played a tune from his new record, reminisced with host Jay Leno, thanked his former boss and friend for sending him rare gifts involving Jimi Hendrix, his guitar hero. He felt like he hadn’t been gone for nearly three years; it felt natural, like home. A more natural attitude is very much on Eubanks’ mind and in his fingers. On his latest CD, The Messenger (Mack Avenue), he branches out from contemporary jazz, his main medium, to other favorite tributaries: rock-funk, blues, Motown soul. He reunites with his brothers, trumpeter Duane and trombonist Robin, on “JB,” a tribute to James Brown, who helped convince him the guitar had to be his calling. Under what Eubanks calls “a roof of grooves” is a reminder to everyone to help loved ones in need and a reminder to himself to cut loose and just let it fly. Eubanks, 55, was a cool cat long before he became Leno’s side-splitting sidekick. The Philadelphia native picked up poise from playing in bars at age 13, picked up a quick wit from pickup basketball games, picked up musical and comic chops from performing in Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and living in Slide Hampton’s home. He’s that rare dude who can host Playboy’s jazz festival and an awards ceremony for top teachers. Eubanks was typically hip during a recent phone conversation from his Philly home. He was passionate and perceptive whether he was championing instruments for public schools or dissecting his Leno/Martin/Lewis/Abbott/Costello comedy act. The Messenger features your funky, hiphoppy take on John Coltrane’s “Resolution,” with a new, nifty vocal bass line from Alvin Chea of Take 6. Why is that tune so important to you?

It encapsulates modern jazz and ’Trane’s spirit leap. It has a spiritual energy that makes me listen to it over and over. It just makes me want to dig deeper. I had always wanted to work with Alvin [Chea]. We’ve been friends for years and he doesn’t live too far from my house outside L.A. So I sent him the song and told him that we’d just jam on it in the studio. I didn’t want it scripted; I didn’t want to copy ’Trane. You can’t copy him the same way 28

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you can’t copy Jimi Hendrix. Because both of them had such a personalized energy. Did anything surprise you while making The Messenger?

The most surprising thing was I stayed out of the way. Usually I have everything so planned out and well rehearsed. This time I let people find their own way. We were recording in my studio, so nobody was looking at the clock. I’d tell them, Don’t worry about the song; let’s just work on the groove until we get something real solid. That looseness allowed them to do more than they wanted to do, which made them more comfortable and unified. Everybody had more fun because I stayed out of the way. I’d like to do more of that in life in general. You were 12 when you first saw James Brown in action at the Uptown Theater in Philly. What happened that made you suddenly want to play guitar instead of sing or dance?

I have thought about that for so many years, but I still don’t know. I remember there was one part of the show when they put a strobe light on the guitar player and he was just moving around and that impressed me. But that was for all of two minutes. I just remember walking out of the Uptown Theater and looking down at the curbside and knowing I just had to play the guitar. It’s kind of bizarre. We think we know so much about ourselves but then one thing comes along that takes us on a completely new path. What gave you the chutzpah, the cojones, to start playing in bars at 13, just a year after you started on the guitar?

Oh, I never thought about it. It was just fun. I was 13, I was probably working on my second guitar (I painted the first one), and I had the neighborhood band—if you could call it a band. As long as the keyboardist’s mom was there, we could play and stay in bars all night. I never thought for a second it was dangerous. I was so wrapped up in the music, I didn’t even notice I was in a bar. Except whenever the keyboardist’s mom was not around and then we’d go: Where did she go? [laughs]

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Your mother apparently was more enthusiastic about your bar playing than your detective father, probably because she was a musician. What was the best lesson or advice your mom gave you about playing music?

Well, one piece of advice I didn’t take was to take piano lessons, which I should have taken because piano comes so much easier to me than guitar. I can’t play piano like I play guitar, but if I sit at a piano I just learn. The key is I have fun when I play the piano. I think some of the fun, some of the luster, goes away when you’re studying something for a different purpose, when there’s pressure. My mother is still pretty amazed, even for a mom, how naturally I can play the piano. She says: “You should have studied piano. But you did great as a guitar player, so don’t feel bad.” [laughs] I still think I could take piano lessons. I mean, if I can learn to swim at 50 I can learn to play piano at a certain level. Is it true you picked up early comedy tips from trading one-liners during pickup basketball games in Philly schoolyards?

It’s just the way kids hung out, especially in Philly. You could bust on anybody and nobody ever took it seriously. It was just a natural way to communicate, just like musicians on tour entertain themselves by telling jokes and funny stories. There are so many funny things that happen with a busload of musicians and, of course, the lives we lead on the road are hilarious. I’ll give you an example. One time everybody gets off the plane for a connecting flight and there’s one guy who is so tired, he’s still asleep. And no one wakes him. The flight

Geoff Gehman is the author of The Kingdom of the Kid: Growing Up in the Long-Lost Hamptons, which will be published in July by SUNY Press. Email: geoffgehman@verizon.net.

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exclusive interview

R. KURT OSENLUND

Angela Bassett Takes Control...Again A fiercely talented actress known for her authoritative roles, Oscar nominee Angela Bassett returns this season in Olympus Has Fallen, a political thriller that has her rightfully calling the shots as the head of the Secret Service.

WHILE SHE’S PERFECTLY CAPABLE of exuding tremendous grace on screen, it’s hard to think of a movie moment with Angela Bassett that isn’t defined by the actress’s trademark strength—a commanding presence that’s kept viewers riveted since she embodied Tina Turner in 1993’s What’s Love Got to Do with It? More creative force than mere performer, Basset, 54, has been a steadfast beacon for modern black actors, with influence as potent—if not quite as prominent—as that of Denzel Washington, Halle Berry, and Morgan Freeman. A Harlem native and Yale alum, who got her start on stage in various August Wilson plays, Bassett has come to be known as an icon of muscle, both in physiI always wanted to be in one of [Antoine Fuqua’s] cality and force of films... And then this one came along, and he made will. Whether turning heads as the the casting decision to change the [head of Secret original, sculpted Service] role from male to female... He just wanted a cougar in How strong person in that role. And Melissa Leo’s role as Stella Got Her well, as the Secretary of Defense—these roles are Groove Back, kicking ass as a futuristypically male, but they really just need strong inditic bodyguard in viduals. And I think we both carry it off... Kathryn Bigelow’s Strange Days, or simply dominating the room in recent fare like Notorious and Jumping the Broom, Bassett demands your attention when she speaks, or even, when she doesn’t. Still, if you’re looking for evidence of a lingering inequality in Hollywood, you need look no further than Bassett’s filmography. While she’s offered invaluable contributions to the cinema, and continues to build a legacy that will leave an indelible mark, this immensely gifted actress should, by rights, have a career near the level of Meryl Streep’s right now, but doesn’t due to color lines and ageism we pretend are no longer issues in the industry. To her fans’ certain delight, Bassett has remained prolific for more than two decades, but the leading roles she so deserves are few and far between. Which is hardly meant to imply that Bassett is anything close to a victim. Even in her latest role, she channels a bit of progress, playing someone the United States government can’t claim to have ever employed: a female director of the Secret Service. Almost alarmingly soft-spoken for a women so associated with delightful authoritativeness, Bassett, calling in from Los Angeles, discusses her career triumphs and struggles, her penchant for nailing the role of the boss, and the dream parts she can’t wait to tackle. Most of all, Bassett downplays her characteristic hard shell and conveys a wealth of that aforementioned grace, sharing a levelheaded outlook on life and work that makes her that much more commendable. In Olympus Has Fallen, you play Lynne Jacobs, the head of the Secret Service. In reality, we’ve never had a woman in that position be-

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fore. I’m assuming that has a lot to do with what drew you to the part.

Oh, yes, absolutely. That was intriguing. I like that I can be seen in a way that’s never been seen in reality. And hopefully that’ll be a bit of life imitating art in the near future. You have a gift and a reputation for playing strong, powerful women—directors turn to you to play these types of roles. Personally, I wouldn’t mind seeing a movie with Angela Bassett as president. Do you think that could happen?

[Laughs] Umm...maybe! We’re taking our baby steps. We’ve had a female president on the small screen, you know, with Geena Davis [in ABC’s Commander in Chief]. And Morgan [Freeman] has played president, so we’re beginning to see different faces as our leaders. So I hope that one day that is a possibility. I think this role as the director of the Secret Service, in this film, is a step toward that possibility...or inevitability. So, yes, I would like to be seen as president. Regarding your knack for exuding power, was there a certain project, like, say, What’s Love Got to Do With It? that kickstarted that for you? Or did you always carry yourself with a lot of confidence?

You know, I was thinking about that recently, and I think that [movie] was probably the beginning of it in a really big way. That, and then followed with Waiting to Exhale, and [the scene with] the burning of the car. [Laughs] Big scenes, big images—powerful, strong, takecharge images. So I think that probably cemented it for me. But I try to carry myself with confidence. Not that I feel that way all the time. But I try to exude as much as I can—so it’ll help me believe it! [Laughs] You’ve gotten the chance to play alongside a lot of incredible actors—Laurence Fishburne, Meryl Streep, Robert De Niro, Denzel Washington. In Olympus Has Fallen, you finally get to work with Morgan Freeman, who plays the Speaker of the House, and then, the acting president. I understand he treated you to some musical entertainment on set?

Yeah, he’s quite the songbird. [Laughs] Morgan “iTunes” Freeman. It was quite unexpected, but so pleasant. It really broke the ice for me. I don’t think it did for him, I think he was just being himself—entertaining himself between scene set-ups, which are frequent. But it definitely broke the ice for me. Because I think we all see him as an authority figure as well. You feel a little nervous around him, as he’s one of our preeminent actors. But he was just this warm and wonderful guy. And on the last day, I couldn’t help it, I just bear-hugged him. It just came out of me—very spontaneous.

R. Kurt Osenlund is the managing editor of The House Next Door, the official blog of Slant Magazine. He is also the film critic for South Philly Review, and a contributing writer for ICON, Slant, Cineaste, Fandor and The Film Experience. He compiles his work at www.yourmoviebuddy.blogspot.com. Email: rkurtosenlund@gmail.com.

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Angela Bassett and husband Courtney B. Vance. Photo: Matthew Jordan Smith.

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the jazz scene

BRUCE KLAUBER

BERKS WORKS The Greater Delaware Valley jazz scene is healthy and thriving, and it would take several full pages in this months’ ICON to detail every event happening in April. Still, there is no doubt that the corporate-sponsored, multi-day jazz festival à la the Mellon and Kool fests Philadelphia hosted years ago, is sorely missed. Such events put the spotlight on jazz and during their time here, had restaurants and clubs scrambling to book anything related to improvised music. Yes, we do have the fine neighborhood fests taking up the slack, like the one sponsored by Tony Williams and the on-again, offagain Oak Lane confab. But our neighbors in Reading are doing it in a gigantic way, as it’s home to the 23rd annual Berks Jazz Fest, sponsored by Boscov’s and running at a variety of locations from April 5 to April 14. Highlights abound— and just about every star of the jazz world will be there—but of particular interest to those in this neck of the woods include Gerald Veasley and his “Jazz Base,” appearing on and off throughout the entire series; and trumpeter Dave Stahl and the big band with guests Andrew Neu and Bobby Caldwell. Drummers take note: The one and only Steve Smith will be making a rare appearance with his fusion group, Vital Information, on April 12. Whenever percussionists gather, the question of “who is the best out there today?” invariably comes up. The answer? Steve Smith. For more festival information and schedules, visit BerksJazzFest.com. RYAN’S HOPE Singer Jackie Ryan is a seasoned pro with an individual sound and style that often recalls the throaty and sensual singing of Julie London, if London had unparalleled jazz chops. Ryan deservedly has a load of fans, and her exceptional new CD, Listen Hear, done in collaboration with Grammywinner John Clayton, is number one on the jazz charts. Particularly effective on Listen Hear are updated versions of Mel Torme’s “Comin’ Home Baby,” and two, little-heard opuses from the Sinatra songbook, “No One Ever Tells You” and “How Little we Know.” From an insider’s perspective, note that Ryan could teach the community something about press and publicity, in that she has one of the greatest “advance” teams ever encountered, all dedicated to the artist named Jackie Ryan. Chris’ Jazz Café’, playing host to Ryan on April 5 and 6, is to be given a good deal of credit for this thoughtful and innovative booking. Ryan, by the way, obviously knows a good accompanist when she hears one. Backing her that weekend is a quartet led by saxophonist Larry McKenna. For tickets and details, log on to ChrisJazzCafe.com. In another impressive Chris’ booking, look for multi-instrumentalist James Witherite and his organ trio on April 10. There is nothing—including playing trumpet, orchestrating, composing, singing, arranging and, yes, calling horse races professionally—that this youngster doesn’t do. His choice of a drummer—a certain, sometime-columnist who has gained fame as a shameless, self-promoter—is a good one, too. MUSEUM MUSINGS For years, area museums have had an on-again/off-again relationship with improvisational music. On the on-again side, Doylestown’s wonderful James A. Michener Museum recently played host to singer Paula Johns, who is also headlining the ICON-sponsored benefit for Musicopia on 32

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June 2. Consider this ample, advance notice: Headlining Michener’s Jazz Night on May 18 is an incomparable young drummer, the Settlement Music-trained Justin Faulker, who got his start in the business with another groundbreaker named Branford Marsalis. Tickets and registration for Michener events like these—all inclusive and including a reception, by the way—tend to go quickly. For details, visit MichenerMuseum.org. Performances include an Arpeggio Ensemble tribute to Dizzy Gillespie and Louis Armstrong on April 5, a be-bop extravaganza on April 12 with guests that include pianist Jim Holton, drummer Lucky Thompson, trumpeter Josh Lawrence, and saxophonist Marion Salaam; a swing program on April 19; and as the finale on April 26, “A United Nations Jazz Jam: Musicians from Around the World.” Just some of the artists on that show will be Korea’s Yoomi Kwan on cello, Trinidadian steel drummer Atiba, Italy’s Gloria Galante on harp, and Brazilian pianist Phyllis Hadad. These events deserve your support, as swinging together in any language is what jazz is all about. Tickets and details: WoodmereArtMuseum.org. TARRY WITH LARRY Our veteran players are, from time to time, taken for granted. Case in point is guitarist Larry Coryell, once described by musicologist Whitney Balliett as “the most innovative and original guitarist since Charlie Christian. That was quite something, coming from someone as discerning as the late Balliett, but also quite true. Coryell, who will appear with his organ trio—featuring Pat Bianchi on organ and Carmen Intorre on drums—at the Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh University on April 3, is still at it, 40 years after playing with the legendary Chico Hamilton, still inventing, still breaking new ground as a fusionist, and still finding new things to say when it comes to jazz standards. Any appearance by this giant is not to be missed. A JAZZ ORCHESTRA FOR PHILADELPHIA? Deena Alder is an area jazz supporter, clinical psychologist , psychoanalyst, and long-time manager of area reed legend Odean Pope. Word has come that Adler, along with trumpeter/Temple University Jazz Studies Chair Terrell Stafford, are starting something called The Philadelphia Jazz Orchestra, à la NYC’s Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra directed by Wynton Marsalis. Though in the formative stages, what is definite right now is that the big band will be 16-musicians strong, with their mission being, says Stafford, “To preserve, represent, and continue Philadelphia’s unique, rich jazz sound and tradition by presenting the highest quality jazz to the greatest number of people.” Look for a debut at City Hall on April 30 and a fundraiser/premiere performance at the Kimmel Center early next year. The idea of The Philadelphia Jazz Orchestra is needed, vital, essential and important. The Jazz Scene will keep you updated. For info on how to support same, visit: indiegogo.com/projects/jazz-orchestra-of-philadelphia. RHENDA’S HERE Jazz singer Rhenda Fearington is a charismatic ball of fire who can swing like mad and, on the next number, touch listeners deeply. She is also a great champion of area

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jazz, somehow on the scene all the time. She has two public appearances set for April right now, on April 14 with an all-star jazz sextet—the ubiquitous Larry McKenna, bassist Mike Boone, pianist Jim Holton, drummer Wayne Smith, Jr. and guitarist Larry Tamanini—as a part of the Somers Point Jazz Festival. Rhenda also checks into Chris’ Jazz Café April 19. There’s a good deal going on with area performers at Somers Point, officially called “Cape Bank Jazz@The Point 2013,” running from April 11 to 14. Details: SPJazz.org. SECOND ENDINGS Clarinetist/vocalist/bandleader Ken Silver celebrates his one year anniversary at Chops Restaurant and Bar, 7th and Walnut Street. He’s there each Friday evening beginning at 5:30, accompanied each week by one of the area’s top pianists including Dean Schneider, Dave Posmontier, Joe McAnally and Josh Yudkin…Powerhouse saxophonist Victor North continues his long-running Sunday Brunch sessions at the Nodding Head Brewery, 1516 Sansom Street…Media’s Rose Tree Inn, 1243 North Providence Road, has recently announced a Thursday through Saturday jazz policy, though interested parties will have to do some digging to see just who is playing when…A reader of The Jazz Scene wanted to make sure that ample space was given to Ars Nova, a cutting-edge non-profit dedicated to presenting jazz and experimental music. Set for a rare United States performance, from April 1 to 3, is a concert featuring the work of “Instant Composers Pool Orchestra,” the famed Dutch ensemble. The concert will take place at Christ Church Neighborhood House, 10 North American Street in Philadelphia. For tickets and details, visit ArsNovaWorkshop.com. ALL-STAR GAZING The resurrected, revitalized, energized and hot-again All-Star Jazz Trio—and sometimes Quartet—is joining forces with the extraordinary center city restaurant Serafina Rittenhouse, 130 South 18th Street, for something called “Jazz at Serafina After Work.” The Trio will be playing Tuesdays throughout April beginning at 5:00 p.m. Serafina’s special menu and full bar will be available, as will the swinging sounds of the boys. For information, 215-977-7755. ISSUES AND ANSWERS Booking jazz is a two-way street. There’s no secret to hiring a jazz group, and many restaurants, clubs and other “music-interested” facilities believe that doing so is more difficult than it actually is. Let’s deal with half of the equation this time out—how does a place go about booking jazz?—by referencing a piece written not long ago for AllAboutJazz.com titled “Booking Jazz: A Subjective Guide” (Allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=42510#). n As the song says, “Come Swing With Me” by emailing me your news, bookings, questions, issues, etc. at DrumAlive@aol.com. We advise that you check with venue for last-minute changes to artist line-up or schedule.

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nick’s picks José James ★★★★1/2

No Beginning, No End Blue Note The Blue Note debut of the pop and jazz singer José James, No Beginning, No End, so resolutely taps into the vein of classic American soul music that he invites impulsive comparison to artists like Marvin Gaye, Bill Withers and Al Green. The Minneapolis-born and Brooklyn based James, 33, has been an underground hero of sorts, laying down his analog vocals over digitized electro-grooves on 2008’s excellent and bass-boosted Dreamer, and last year’s Blackmagic, two albums that smartly married jazz to the pulse and beats of hip hop. He briefly detoured for 2010’s deflating For All We Know (Impulse!) that paired him with Belgian pianist Jef Neve for a set of jazz stanJosé James. dards. Fast-forward to 2013 where James seems to have found his footing by confessing straight up that this album “sums up how I feel about music right now. I don’t want to be confined to any particular style. I decided I didn’t want to be considered a jazz singer anymore and that was really freeing.” Produced independently and recorded without a contract in place (Blue Note picked it up for distribution after its completion,) the album features some of James’ longtime band mates—drummer Richard Spaven, keyboardist Grant Windsor, trombonist Corey King, trumpeter Takuya Kuroda, and guitarist Jeremy Most. But it’s the collaboration with Grammy-winning pianist Robert Glasper, bassist Pino Palladino, RG Experiment drummer Chris Dave and guitarist Emily King that clarifies James’ vision where tunes like “Trouble” (a slick Sly Sylvester-like jam) and the low slung funk of “Vanguard” are filled with keyboard vamps, thickened drum beats and ‘70s style bass lines. The gospel fueled “Do You Feel” features up and coming pianist Kris Bowers who takes a magisterial solo, underscored by a pulsating organ that shimmers throughout. For the swift, danceable “Sword + Gun,” the French Moroccan singer Hindi Zahra duets with James on a percussive tune striking for its infectious rhythm and a brightly tuned horn section. As genres, R&B and soul run deep through American culture, creating experiential and cross-generational touchstones for everyday people. Time will tell whether or not No Beginning, No End will connect the same way for listeners, yet James’ writing and singing surge with confidence and in the end, his musical truths—delivered with soft-edged vocals and innate soulfulness—penetrate all the more deeply for it. (11 tracks; 59 minutes) Kendrick Scott Oracle ★★★★

Conviction Concord Jazz The inquisitive and visionary drummer/leader, Kendrick Scott and his band, Oracle, taps his spirituality as the basis for Conviction, an exhilarating exploration of contemporary jazz. Scott lets straight-ahead beats collide with the modern gloss of contemporary sounds, defining his recording as an experiential hang—the album has no breaks as one tune segues into the next. The unexpected vocals of guitarist Alan Hampton (a singer/songwriter in the style of Jesse Harris) adds heft to the band’s cover of Sufjan Steven’s “Too Much” and again on

Nick Bewsey has been writing about jazz for ICON since 2004. A member of The Jazz Journalists Association, he blogs about jazz and entertainment at www.jazzinspace.blogspot.com. Twitter: @countingbeats 34

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“Serenity,” a prayer-like ballad co-written by Hampton and Scott. As a sophomore effort, Scott’s musical conviction extends to a set of choice originals and a tune by Herbie Hancock (“I Have A Dream”) executed with nuanced style by his grounded band—bassist Joe Sanders, pianist/keyboardist Taylor Eigsti, guitarist Mike Moreno and saxophonist John Ellis. As a group, Oracle purrs like a finely tuned engine with Scott as its natural leader, employing smoothly confident percussion that never breaks its flow. Hav-

Kendrick Scott.

ing previously toured with both The Crusaders and trumpeter Terence Blanchard earlier in his career, Scott brings a sharp focus and disciplined craftsmanship to this artful recording along with some tight grooves that sonically endure. (11 tracks; 58 minutes) Benny Green ★★★★ Magic Beans Sunnyside Benny Green was the pianist in 1980s bands led by Art Blakey, Betty Carter and Ray Brown, as well as a prolific sideman before establishing his own dazzling solo career on Blue Note Records (doubtless a dream-come-true for this champion of the Blue Note sound.) For his 13th solo recording, Magic Beans, Green calls on the dynamic bassist Peter Washington and urbane drummer Kenny Washington, best known for their peerless work as members of pianist Bill Charlap’s trio. Green concocts a tasty program of familiar-sounding post-bop workouts, retaining both the hard swinging energy of his musical heroes and illustrates why he is indeed a true Jazz Messenger. Imagine a student who absorbs all the best quintet, quartet and trio dates produced by Blue Note, learning the pianist’s solos and filtering that music and playing style through your own imagination. That’s what Green sounds like he’s doing here with tracks named “Kenny Drew,” “Jackie McLean” and “Harold Land.” And he sounds great! Latin vamps, the bouncing and pop of swing, swift rhythmic interplay and sensual harmonics à la Horace Sil-

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NICK BEWSEY ★=SKIP IT; ★★=MEDIOCRE; ★★★=GOOD; ★★★★=EXCELLENT; ★★★★★=CLASSIC

ver (“La Portuguesa”) dance throughout the album. Written over the course of an afternoon, the tunes showcase the best qualities of Benny Green—a master craftsman and, despite his love affair for a legendary old school sound, a true original, too. (10 tracks; 45 minutes) Madeleine Peyroux ★★★★

Blue Room Decca Records Inspired by Ray Charles’ hugely popular Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music, Madeleine Peyroux’s Blue Room is like an extra down-filled comforter you want to curl up under—the recording is split between happy-go-lucky road songs and aching ballads, all soothing to the ear and splendidly appropriate for rainy days and Mondays. With her longtime producer Larry Klein (Joni Mitchell, Tracy Chapman, Luciana Souza) and MVP band members (pianist/organist Larry Goldings, guitarist Dean Parks, bassist David Piltch and

Madeleine Peyroux.

drummer Jay Bellerose) back for more, Peyroux sets her lustrous voice and sympathetic reading to tunes that were once provocative (Charles’ 1962 recording stirred racial emotions on both sides by blending a large white chorus on songs originally penned for white radio.) But Charles’ renditions endured and these days stand relatively free of politics, providing Peyroux an opportunity to coo her distinctive vocals over a lush program—Vince Mendoza arranges an effective string orchestra for most tracks. While there’s not much difference from Peyroux’s previous stellar albums, Blue Room mixes mid-tempo tunes like “Bye Bye Love” with others by Buddy Holly and Leonard Cohen (the classic “Bird On A Wire”). Like Billy Holiday, with whom she’s unfairly compared, Peyroux conveys heartbreak (the gorgeous “Born To Lose”) with pitch perfect authenticity. Randy Newman’s “Guilty” highlights Peyroux as a femme fatale, but the best is the afterhours closer by Warren Zevon. “Desperadoes Under The Eaves” bathes the singer in the dappled glow of candlelight, awash in vulnerability as she sings with clear eyed conviction, “And I’m trying to find a boy who understands me / But except in dreams you’re never really free / Don’t the sun look angry at me.” As the tune fades and the strings swirl around her smoldering voice, Madeleine Peyroux drifts into shadow with her heart extinguished but hope intact. (10 tracks; 43 minutes) NEXT Collective ★★★★1/2

Cover Art Concord Jazz The weather outside was frightful, but the sleet and cold rain didn’t dissuade several hundred of us from standing outside New York’s La Poisson Rouge on February 26 to hear

the immensely engaging NEXT Collective, a band that brings together rising talent and modern jazz power players (saxophonists Logan Richardson, Walter Smith III, guitarist Matthew Stevens, pianists Gerald Clayton and Kris Bowers, bassist Ben Williams and drummer Jamire Williams) playing their own unrestricted jams of pop and hip hop tunes from their debut release, Cover Art. Most of these youngish guys are leaders in their own right and as a band they plug in to a zeitgeist, bringing diverse listeners together through instrumental jazz fused with funk, electronica and alt-rock. Conceived and produced by Chris Dunn, Cover Art takes ten tunes by Bon Iver, Dido, D’Angelo, Pearl Jam and others and divides the arranging duties among the Collective. Protean trumpeter Christian Scott stuns on two tunes that he arranged (a fiercely lyrical version of Kanye West and Jay Z’s “No Church In The Wild, with Scott playing Frank Ocean’s vocal lines) and Drake’s “Marvin’s Room,” a delicately shaped ballad gilded by Scott’s muted horn. Bassist Ben Williams reshapes N.E.R.D’s affecting “Fly Or Die” with a strong NEXT Collective. backbeat; beefy guitar licks and a dancing bass line conspire to make his rendition especially tuneful. With saxophonists Logan Richardson on alto and Walter Smith III on tenor, a tight frontline with harmonics to burn and drummer Jamire Williams (his spacey take on Stereolab’s “Refractions In The Plastic Pulse” adds phase-shifting and dappled beats to great effect,) NEXT has a confident, juggernaut approach to delivering music with both gravitas and chill out vibes. The Collective successfully transcends demographics delivering music tight enough for those with Beats headphones as well as traditional minded listeners with an appetite for giddy eclecticism. The CD release gig concluded after a fleeting hour-plus set and while everyone expected an encore, the DJ signaled the wrap up by spinning “Afro Blue” from Robert Glasper’s Grammy-winning R&B project, Black Radio, and so we filed out into the rain with the buzz of NEXT Collective still in our heads. (10 tracks; 56 minutes / the download on iTunes features an expanded album with four bonus tracks.) Eric Alexander ★★★★

Touching HighNote Back in 1991, saxophonist Eric Alexander competed against Chris Potter and Joshua Redman in the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition, where he came in second and launched his recording career the same year with Straight Up (Delmark.) Thirty-three solo albums later, this astonishingly prolific straight-ahead musician slows things down for a particularly enriching sonic experience entitled Touching. Over the years, Alexander has recorded dates with great jazz pianists (Cedar Walton, Kenny Barron, John Hicks) but none has proved to be as valuable as Harold Mabern, an intuitive two-fisted musical force with an appealing lyrical style. As a ballad album, Touching is flush with unexpected charm helped along by the leader’s first-rate quartet that also includes bassist John Webber and drummer Joe Farnsworth. The tunes are not heard all that often—Bobby Lyle’s title track originally appeared on a Stanley Turrentine album—and despite this being an all-ballads program, the quartet zeroes in on the innate soulfulness within each tune. While the highlight is inevitably Coltrane’s beautiful “Central Park West” the album showcases an astute and highly musical band that brings a refined sense of swing to every track. Engineered by Rudy Van Gelder, Touching sounds perfect, the music sublime. (8 tracks; 49 minutes) ■

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keresman on disc

MARK KERESMAN ★=SKIP IT; ★★=MEDIOCRE; ★★★=GOOD; ★★★★=EXCELLENT; ★★★★★=CLASSIC

Claremont Trio/San Francisco Ballet Orchestra, Martin West, cond. Beethoven: Triple Concerto/Trio ★★★★1/2 Bridge Good old Ludwig van—he built upon what Mozart, Handel, and Haydn did and nearly eclipsed them, and he didn’t let a thing such as going deaf slow him down. (I said “nearly,” Mozart fans, so no hate mail.) The “Triple Concerto” is the only concerto (orchestral compo-

Claremont Trio.

sition with featured soloist) Beethoven wrote for three instruments, violin, cello, and piano, and it’s a beautiful thing, very dramatic without being dark or ponderous, its passages flowing with aristocratic pomp but lots of elegance and heart. Anyone think “classical music” (i.e., venerated dead white Euro-guys) doesn’t have rhythm needs to hear this—while you can’t boogie to it the swirling, bolero-like momentum throughout is hard to dismiss. “Trio” for the three instruments alone is oddly more jaunty and angst-ridden, but just as rhythmic as the concerto. The ladies of the Claremont perform with warmth and inspired precision; sonic quality is excellent. Fans of Ludwig van AND classical novices are hereby urged to glom forthwith. The Claremont Trio performs with the Chamber Music Society of Bethlehem on May 3, 2013 at Foy Concert Hall, Moravian College, West Church and Main Streets in Bethlehem. Program includes Mozart, Piano Trio in E Major, K. 542; Gabriela Lena Frank, New Work (2012); Mendelssohn, Piano Trio in c minor, Op.66. Tickets: www.lvartsboxoffice.org or at the door.

Alasdair Roberts & Friends ★★★★1/2 A Wonder Working Stone Drag City Ben Harper with Charlie Musselwhite ★★★★ Get Up! Stax

What can an indie trad-folk-rocker from Scotland have in common with an eclectic-yetsomewhat-mainstream California blues-tinged singer-songwriter? Heck, what can the latter have in common with one of the greatest harmonica blowers to emerge from the 1960s blues scene? Quite a lot, actually—both of these albums use traditional styles as a basis for very personal and distinctive ventures, Alasdair Roberts being the former, and Harper and Musselwhite the latter two. Both feature terse, stinging electric guitar; earthy, not-pretty-but-notraw voices that feel as real as the mist covering your earlyAM windshield (or bus window, if you’ve no car), a knack for unassuming storytelling, and a flair for inspired arrangements. Get Up! has a feel that combines Ben Harper and Charlie Musselwhite. back-porch informality (think Lightnin’ Hopkins) with an intense late-night studio session (think John Lee Hooker), with skeletal guitar, cut-to-the-bone harmonica, and ominously pulsing rhythms. Wonder Working Stone has the sinewy sparkle of Richard Thompson-era Fairport Convention with hints of courtly Renaissance-era classical strains. Both sets deal with the vicissitudes of love and mortality (Stone features the line “get over your tiny self ”) and both feel timeless and yet of no time at all. concordmusicgroup.com / dragcity.com Soft Machine Legacy ★★★★ Burden of Proof Moonjune Formed in the UK in the mid-1960s, Soft Machine evolved from a jazz-influenced psychedelic rock outfit to one of THE bands working on jazz’s fusion equation, albeit from the (nominally) rock side of the divide. Since founding member Mike Ratlidge’s departure, the Machine has been in a state of flux (always has, really) until morphing into Soft Machine Legacy, featuring three cats that’ve been in the Machine at one point or another: guitarist John Etheridge (who’s played with everyone from Nigel Kennedy to Pat Metheny); bassist Roy Babbington, and drummer John Marshall, and one that wasn’t, sax-guy Theo Travis (also flute and electric piano). On Burden, they come into their own a bit—most tunes are originals, instead of interpreting gems from the Soft catalog, and it’ll warm the cockles of anyone that looks back fondly on the time(s) before fusion became a joke. Etheridge plays with a biting, slightly smoldering tone evoking pre-Mahavishnu John McLaughlin; Travis has a fluid, surging wail out of Coltrane, Rollins, and Joe Henderson, and the bass/drums team is tight and propulsive as you’re likely to hear this year. No, Burden doesn’t evoke beloved early Softs, so if you’re seeking that you may be a lil’ crestfallen—however, if you still thrill to jazzrock-whatever fusion circa 1969-1974, dive in. moonjune.com

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PETER H. GISTELINCK ★=SKIP IT; ★★=MEDIOCRE; ★★★=GOOD; ★★★★=EXCELLENT; ★★★★★=CLASSIC

Tine ★★★★ Tine Thing Helseth, trumpet Kathryn Stott, piano released on EMI Classics www.emiclassics.com

Mediterraneo ★★★★ Christina Pluhar L’Arpeggiata released on Virgin Classics www.virginclassics.com

Tine is the eponymous recital disc by the exciting young Norwegian trumpet virtuoso Tine Thing Helseth. Her first two albums, Storyteller and tenThing 10, were critically acclaimed; Gramophone praised her “...soulful approach to phrasing, quite astonishingly outstanding intonation and open and honest sound.” Now Tine Thing Helseth presents a personal choice of works which reveal the trumpet’s lyric voice and takes us on a varied journey through the musical landscape of the late 19th and 20th centuries. The album unites original trumpet works with arrangements of pieces originally written for voice or another solo instrument. Tine’s repertoire choices were guided chiefly by the affective powers of each work and her goal to combine those works together into an inventive and coherent recital journey; works include composers as Ibert, Glazunov, Enescu, Puccini Hindemith, Rachmaninov among others. A special shout-out should definitely go to Kathryn Stott, the amazing pianist who accompanies Tine so beautifully on this CD. This is what Tine Thing Helseth had to say about her: “The first time Kathy and I ever played together was live on Norwegian radio (NRK). It was at a Festival in Stavanger, and we had barely uttered two words to each other before the red light was turned on and we played the opening bard of Enescu’s Légende. I was immediately immensely inspired. We spoke the same musical language and we decided we needed to do this more often.” This album contains a program for a perfect evening of music making, starting with the playful jazz-inspired intrada by Ibert Tine Thing Helseth. and ending with the monumental sonata by Hindemith, the closing chorale of which quotes Alle Menschen müssen sterben (“All men must die”)—not much can follow that. But a longing vocalize and two characterful Kreisler pieces leave us on a slightly happier note when the evening is over. The CD is a journey that will hopefully take listeners to several emotional places. Enjoy this beautiful recording by an amazing female trumpeter and a gifted pianist who definitely masters the skills of accompanying!

Mediterraneo is a real musical cruise of the Mediterranean Sea, the cradle of European civilization, with Christina Pluhar, L’Arpeggiata and the glorious voices of Misia, Nuria Rial, Vincenzo Capezzuto, Raquel Andueza, Dhafer Youssef and Katerina Papadopoulou. Or as Christina Pluhar puts it in her own words: “The habitat of the olive tree is commonly accepted as a rough guide to the boundaries of the Mediterranean region; hence reference is sometimes made to the ‘olive frontier.’ Only a small part of France, Turkey and the North African countries falls into this region, while Portugal and Jordan are considered a part of it for cultural and climatic reasons, despite having no Mediterranean coastline. This project took as its starting point the canti greci-salentini, songs and tarantellas whose musical roots lie in Italy but which have Christina Pluhar. been sung in Greek for many centuries by the Greek population resident in Salerno, in the heel of Italy. The fascinating blend of southern Italian and Greek culture prompted me to embark on a musical voyage of discovery throughout the Mediterranean region and to seek further interconnections.” And yes, the music on this disc travels from Portugal to Turkey, following the coasts of Greece, Tunisia and Italy, enchanted by the rocking of the waves and the captivating interplay between the Baroque strings of L’Arpeggiata and traditional plucked instruments of the Mediterranean region—the qanun, saz, Greek lyre and lavta, the oud and Portuguese guitar. Joining all the elements together in a seamless musical fusion is Pluhar, at the helm and leading with her theorbo. A beautiful facet of this recording is the organic approach of the whole project, not at the least the technical aspect of it. Locations as the Salle Byzantine at the Palais de Béhague and the Institute Culturel Roumain in Paris definitely have their positive impact. Enjoy this unique experience and try to hear them live when you have the opportunity. n

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Peter H. Gistelinck is the Executive Director of The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia. Prior to joining the Orchestra, he was the Director of Sales and Marketing and Co-Artistic Director for the Brussels Philharmonic Orchestra and Flemish Radio Choir in Belgium. Mr. Gistelinck is a member of the Kimmel Center Resident Advisory Committee, The Recording Academy, American Film Institute, Musical Fund Society, Philadelphia Arts and Business Council, International Academy of Jazz and International Society for the Performing Arts.

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singer / songwriter

TOM WILK ★=SKIP IT; ★★=MEDIOCRE; ★★★=GOOD; ★★★★=EXCELLENT; ★★★★★=CLASSIC

Terry Allen ★★★★ Bottom of the World TLA Records Bottom of the World, Terry Allen’s first studio album of new material in 14 years, finds the multi-talented Texas native still at the top of his game. Allen, who turns 70 in May, retains his dry wit and sharp-eyed observations of the world. A successful sculptor and and visual artist who has received Guggenheim and and National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, Allen has a knack for crafting memorable songs. “Queenie’s Song,” co-written with Guy Clark, shows the pain and anger of losing a dog to a gunman’s bullet. The title track conjures up a road trip to the wilder parts of the globe. “The Gift” is Terry Allen. Allen’s somber take on the Bernie Madoff saga and its toll on Mark Madoff, the swindler’s son who committed suicide. It’s a real-life case of the sins of the father being visited on his children. “Do They Dream of Hell in Heaven” is Allen’s idiosyncratic take on the afterlife and a candidate for song title of the year. Allen has the voice of a natural storyteller, expressing a combination of experience and world weariness. On Bottom of the World he doesn’t use bass or drums, relying on cello, fiddle and mandolin and guitar along with his keyboards to give the album’s 11 songs a low-keyed balance and intimacy. Willie Nelson and Family ★★★1/2 Let’s Face The Music and Dance Legacy Recordings Willie Nelson returns to the music of his youth and formative years for Let’s Face The Music and Dance, a collection of 12 vocal songs and two instrumentals that are a good fit for his voice and style. Written by Irving Berlin for the 1935 film Follow The Fleet, the title track allows Nelson the opportunity to show to show his reflective side. Nelson captures the joy of romance on “Walking My Baby Back Home,” a hit for Nat King Cole. The uptempo “Matchbox,” popularized by Carl Perkins, gives Nelson a chance to stretch out vocally. Nelson displays his Western Swing roots with “Shame on You,” a 1945 hit for Spade Cooley and tenderly mines the soulfulness of Frank Loesser’s “I Wish I Didn’t Love You So.” Nelson revisits the rueful “Is The Better Part Over,” a ballad he wrote he for his 1989 album A Horse Called Music. Nelson turns the spotlight over to his band, including his pianist sister, Bobbie, for the instrumentals, “Vous et Moi” and “Noages,” the latter written by guitarist Django Reinhardt. With his 80th birthday on April 30, Nelson shows no signs of slowing down as music seems to keep him young. The Mike Eldred Trio ★★★1/2 61 and 49 Rip Cat Records The first two songs of 61 and 49 reveal the eclecticism and reach of the Mike Eldred Trio. “Don’t Go Down There” is a slice of a cappella gospel performed with the Emmanuel Church Gospel Choir that calls the story of bluesman Robert Johnson. “Jake’s Boogie” makes a 180-degree turn with a full-throttled rhythm and blues-based instrumental. A Los Angeles based-guitarist and songwriter, Eldred and his rhythm section of bassist John Bazz and drummer Jerry tomwilk@rocketmail.com 40

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Angel run through a lively set of American roots music with some special guests. The frantic “She’s a Rocket,” a ‘50s-style rocker, is enhanced by the piano work of Ike Turner. Scott Moore, the original lead guitarist for Elvis Presley, adds his trademark licks to “Ms. Gayle’s Chicken House. “This Old Train” teams Eldred with Cesar Rosas of Los Lobos on nylonstring guitar for a wistful love songs. Eldred steps into the instrumental spotlight on “Ruby’s Blues,” a spirited showcase for his trio. Devon Allman ★★★1/2 Turquoise Ruf Records Turquoise , the first solo album by Devon Allman, serves as a summation of his musical career to date. Allman initially made his mark in the Southern Rock jam band Honeytribe, and more recently in the Royal Southern Brotherhood. As a solo artist, he’s pursuing a more personal direction. The propulsive “When I Left Home,” title courtesy of Buddy Guy’s recent memoir, recounts Allman’s musical journey with contributions on slide and lead guitar from Luther Dickinson of the North Mississippi All Stars. “Homesick” serves as the flip side, a song that looks at what the traveling musician leaves behind. A guitarist, Allman works in a trio format with bassist Myles Weeks and drummer Yonrico Scott. They serve up a change of pace with the tropical/Latin groove of “There’s No Time.” Vocalist Samantha Fish joins Allman Devon Allman. for a tough-edge version of Stevie Nicks’ “Stop Draggin My Heart Around” that shows off his soulful growl. “Turn Off The World” offers a look at Allman’s meditative side, ending the album on a note of tranquility. The son of Gregg Allman is successfully carving out his own musical path. Phil Lee ★★★ The Fall & Further Decline of the Mighty King of Love Palookaville Records At 61, Phil Lee is unlikely to rise above being a cult figure, but he shows there’s room for an original singer/songwriter with an offbeat sense of humor and view of life’s quirks. The evidence is is contained on The Fall & Further Decline of the Mighty King of Love, his fourth solo album. “Blues in Reverse” turns the genre’s cliches upside down. “When things can’t get better/They’re only gonna get worse,” Lee good-naturedly warns. “Cold Ground” is a Lee’s take on the classic death ballad, highlighted by Dylaneseque vocal style. “Every Time” and “All You Need” make the Dylan connection more explicit. The former recalls the humor of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan while the latter has the spirit of “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” with its expressive harmonica and heartfelt backing vocals. “She Don’t Let Love Get in the Way” is Lee’s character sketch of a determined woman, while “It Can’t Hurt,” a live recording, offers a taste of his uninhibited interaction with a concert audience. ■

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jazz library

BOB PERKINS

Shirley Scott Queen of the Organ

WHEN CERTAIN PEOPLE ARE close to you…or maybe just acquaintances you’ve known for many years, and you see frequently, you may get to thinking that they’ll always be around, simply because they have been. There are folks who have gotten angry at a loved one for dying, and leaving them alone. There is just that tendency to attach an immortality status to certain people to whom we’ve become closely attached. Unreasonable? Sure; but nonetheless true. Having been a radio newsman and editorialist, and also being one that has been privileged to host jazz music programs, I’ve been mouthing news of the deaths of high-profile figures in all walks of life for more than four decades. But I have been—and still am—surprised and saddened by the death of people I had once reported on and had grown to admire. The passing of Shirley Scott affected me deeply. I knew her for some 25 years—interviewed her, collected her recordings, played her music on the air, and as an emcee, introduced her to many audiences at concerts and in nightclubs. I admired her and her artistry. She was a somewhat shy person, and for many years, we never got to really know much about each other, because we never got beyond discussing her career, and perhaps some small talk on the side. But just a couple of years before her last days, I had occasion to call her house, and we began to discuss things other than her career. Nothing all that personal mind you, but going deeper than we had before, about family, friends, acquaintances, likes and dislikes. Although I admired her work as a pianist and organist, I wasn’t aware that she liked what I did on the air. She said she tuned in frequently and liked what she heard. She became more of a listener as her health began to fail in the beginning of the new century, and she was confined to her newly-acquired digs in Delaware. Shirley Scott began playing the B-3 organ after first studying and conquering the piano. She got acquainted with the musical behemoth in the mid-1950s, after hearing Jimmy Smith, who introduced the B-3 to modern jazz. She soon became one of the world’s best jazz organists—period! She told me many stories about her career and growth as a jazz figure…about some of her early gigs as a teenager, while still attending Girls’ High School. She confided that pianist Red Garland, who later became a member of one of Miles Davis’ legendary Quintets, was a neighbor, and became something of an unofficial mentor, recalling that, “He would stop by my house in North Philly, and rip off arpeggios on the piano and smilingly challenge me to do the same. I’d just look at him dumbfounded and smile back.” Shirley married Stanley Turrentine, and the two recorded and traveled the road together during the 1960s. Theirs was the quintessential husbandwife led jazz combo in the nation. Shirley’s name grew in popularity, and she earned the sobriquet “Queen of the Organ.” Her marriage to Turrentine dissolved after ten years, and she remained close to home from a time; returned to school, earned a bachelor’s degree

and became a professor of music at Cheyney University. She was a few credits shy of a master’s degree when she became too ill to continue her studies. Shirley is said to have received a multi-million dollar settlement following a lawsuit lodged against the manufacturer of the diet preparation, which was said to have affected her heart. She was ultimately confined to a wheel chair and had to take an oxygen tank wherever she ventured from home. During her limited public appearances, her fans saw her became quite frail, and her breathing became a struggle. These signs may have signaled that end was near. But the word was nonetheless shocking when it was finally delivered. But some months before her passing, she and former spouse Stanley Turrentine shared the stage at Philly’s Clef Club in a very special concert. For many, the occasion brought back memories of a time when the dynamic duo had made beautiful together while recording and traveling the road. Not only was Shirley Scott a very talented musician, she was a genuinely fine person, and I treasured her friendship. She signed one of her record albums for me with the observation: “Bob, as long as you do what you do, I can do what I do.” During her reign, the regal “Queen of the Organ,” wore her crown well. Shirley Scott passed on, March 10, 2002 at the age of 67. ■ Bob Perkins is a writer and host of an all-jazz radio program that airs on WRTI-FM 90.1 Mon-Thurs. 6 to 9pm & Sunday, 9am–1pm. W W W. FA C E B O O K .C O M / I C O N D V

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HOTEL Modern Cuisine h Classic Comfort Corner of Swan & Main Lambertville, NJ 609-397-3552

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dining

ROBERT GORDON

Devon Seafood IT HAPPENED MORE THAN once. Friends and readers who stay or stray near Rittenhouse Square ask for restaurant recommendations. That’s prime dining turf, with an embarrassment of good choices, including some that induce sticker shock, so I rattle off several names, including Devon Seafood. I used to be mildly surprised when they named Devon Seafood as their favorite. I expected to hear some other high-glam spots, particularly for those with expense accounts to shift the pain off to the taxpayer. But Devon always held and holds its own in a competitive restaurant quarter. Devon has been a solid performer for years. Operating out of its corner nook on the Square, Devon’s alfresco turf is choice real estate, albeit perhaps a shimmer short of some of its Gallic-evoking neighbors. Inside, Devon was always commodious. It always exuded the confidence of an eatery focused on turning out consistently good fare. The kitchen hums along industriously, visible to most in the double-nave main dining room. Vaulted tiled white ceilings glisten above. Waiters bustle about like Parisian taxis. Little has changed in the decade or so I’ve visited Devon Seafood. Devon’s business model is straightforward and effective. Devon remains the quintessential fish house that serves all the classic fish dishes and then some. The menu changes daily, reflecting whatever sameday or “top of the catch” fish is available that day. You do generally pay a premium for such a net-to-plate model. Yet on the other hand, Devon’s $35, 3-course prix fixe is one of the city’s better bargains. Devon doesn’t aim for fanciful flights or cutting-edge flash. The calling card is freshcaught, natural taste. By serving fresh fish, Devon’s dishes aren’t polluted with chemicals that are needed to preserve older-caught fish served in other venues. But Devon’s is not just a fish story. Most city foodies love the addictively sweet hot biscuits served tableside that kick start each meal. The Starters list manages some contemporary touches and even a smattering of exotic influences. Crisp and crunchy Roasted Duck Flatbread is topped with Granny Smith apple chunks, three cheeses (fontina, provolone, and Gorgonzola), addictively fruity fig BBQ sauce, and thyme vinaigrette. Smoked Salmon Flatbread plates roasted garlic white sauce, red onion caper, watercress with lemon infused olive oil. For a non-sushi house, Tempura Shrimp Sushi Rolls stuffed with cucumber are a decent take on sushi. The sushi expands the realm of small-plate choices as do Vietnamese Crab Spring Rolls with daikon, avocado, pea greens, carrots, and flavored with mint and basil. The Steaks & Combos menu section includes chops like Center Cut Filet Mignon and pairings like Center Cut Filet Oscar. But the heart of the menu is the Today’s Fresh Fish section. No fewer than eight fresh choices are available each day—choices like Arctic Char, grilled deftly, oozing natural juices, slightly charred atop and served glistening on a large white plate. Ditto for melt-in-your mouth Idaho Rainbow Trout. Sides of silky smooth mushroom risotto and grilled asparagus complement the trout nicely. The sides, in fact (each priced $3.50 or $4.50), are generally good. Mushroom risotto is silky smooth. Whipped Yukon Gold Potatoes are wispy and light. On one occasion however, Brussels sprouts were too hard and should have been sautéed a bit longer. A number of house-made desserts, like Key Lime Pie topped with mango sorbet in delectable roasted pineapple-maraschino relish, have pop. Pecan Waffle, filled with raisin ice cream turbocharged with banana foster sauce is a full-throttle joyride.

You might consider accompanying your dinner with one of Devon’s reasonably priced wine flights. The wine list is fairly extensive and moderately priced and there’s a bevy of fun specialty cocktails. The Devon barroom is one of the city’s livelier scenes, particularly during Friday night happy hours. From 5-7 PM on weekdays, $1.00 gets knocked off all draft and bottled beer, house wines drop to $5, specialty martinis and cocktails are available at $6.50. Oyster Shooters are $3.50. All of which keeps the Devon as one of the big fish in Rittenhouse’s pond. ■ Devon Seafood, 225 South 18th Street, Philadelphia PA 19103 (215) 546-5940 devonseafood.com

Please send comments or suggestions to r.gordon33@verizon.net

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ROBERT GORDON

ERINI ERINI WAS HATCHED FROM a beneficial Ponzio plan. That’s Ponzio, not Ponzi, and this particular plan pays honest, hard-earned dining dividends. Chris Fifis, a co-owner of Erini, had been a principle in Ponzio’s, a family-style restaurant in Cherry Hill. Chris bowed out of the business a decade or so ago while his son Nick was launching his own culinary career. Like his dad, Nick graduated from the CIA. After toiling in various eateries around Philadelphia, the younger Fifis got the itch for a place of his own. Timing is everything. His father missed his active cheffing days at Ponzio’s, so dad Chris, mom (Dori) and son Nick partnered and purchased the former Diamond’s in Ewing, New Jersey. You may remember it under a previous name like Landwehr's, Peroni's, or Merlino's Waterfront. When the Fifis clan took over in 2007, they christened it Erini after Nick’s grandmother.

BBQ scallops in a sweet balsamic sauce with baby spinach and arugula.

Nick’s vision was to create an American-contemporary restaurant. True, his expansive menu shows some contemporary American noodling. The Erini Salad drafts New World ingredients like dried cranberries and apples and sparks them with old world standbys like Gorgonzola and candied walnuts. There’s also red, white, and blue standards like Clams Casino, Shrimp Cocktail; a trio of distinctly American Steaks & Chops; and scrumptious Baby Back Ribs. The menu sports a smattering of Asian influences as well. The texture of Lobster Spring Rolls is on target, while the popular “My Favorite Appetizer” is Ahi Tuna, lightly seared, crusted with black and white sesame seeds, served with soy and ginger wasabi dipping sauces. Still, Erini’s overarching strength lies in the culinary philosophy and techniques that trace back to Nick’s GreekMediterranean heritage. The Southwest sauce on Sizzling Chili Shrimp gives it some smokin’ tang, but it’s the crumble of creamy feta, the drizzle of balsamic reduction—the Mediterranean touches—that elevate the dish. True to the Med tradition, no drop of sauce should go unsopped with crusty Italian bread. And the beating heart and soul of Erini’s offering is seafood. Stuffed Grouper, a recent entrée special, is baked and stuffed with jumbo lump crabmeat. The grouper, served with a mild remoulade, is folded over itself and crested with olive compote that’s flush with tomatoes and onions. Nestled Email comments and suggestions to r.gordon33@verizon.net 44

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between the upper and lower halves of the grouper is a lode of jumbo crabmeat. Mixed Grill is a trio of scallops, shrimp, and lamb chops.

Nick making fresh mozzarella for Erini’s tomato salads.

The lamb boasts the lip-smacking succulence and vibrant spicing found in lamb we ate on visits to Greek Isles like Mykonos and Santorini. Erini’s desserts are special. Dali, given his “All art is edible” philosophy, would have raved over Erini’s dessert. Desserts are art but they're also guilty pleasure for the sweettoothed. Nick Fifis is a dynamo, who devotes off-hours to conjuring meal-ending treats hand-confected with pulled sugar. First-time diners are usually delighted at meal’s end when a diorama of whimsical pulled-sugar figures; apples intricately carved into swans; colorful, edible sugar flowers; and filigreed spheres is placed on the table. The whole “scene” is edible. For the nostalgic, eating the pulled sugar and apple together recalls the traditional candy apple. Erini occupies a pretty knoll along tree-lined River Road on the Jersey side not far from Washington Crossing. The interior, though not particularly extravagant, is tidy and pleasant. Erini is a hit with the locals and the business set, particularly on Tuesday’s Dungeness Crab Night and Thursday’s Prime Rib night. Check the website for other specials and special events here because this is one Ponzio plan you should jump in on. ■ Erini, 1140 River Road, Ewing, NJ (609) 882-0303 erinirestaurant.com

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PATRICIA SAVOIE

At Lunch with Four Italian Winemakers

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Glorious Food

DURING A TWO-WEEK PERIOD in March, four different Italian winemakers were in NYC showing their best wines. They all chose to host lunches at some of the city’s top Italian restaurants. This is the best way to sample wine, which is at its best with food. Following are capsule descriptions of the wineries and of some of their nicest wines. An asterisk (*) indicates a good value. BRANCAIA (Tuscany) In 1981, Swiss couple Brigitte and Bruno Widmer fell in love with the abandoned Brancaia estate in Chianti and purchased it. Only two years later, Brancaia earned top honors in an important

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Chianti Classico tasting. Now, they have three estates in Tuscany, including a winery in Maremma, near the Mediterranean coastline. Since 1998 Barbara Widmer, oenologist and daughter of the founders, has been responsible for the winemaking as well as for the vineyards on all three estates. With Barbara at lunch at Del Posto restaurant in Manhattan, I tasted four of her red wines: *Tre 2010: A blend of 80% Sangiovese and 20% Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, the grapes come from the three estates. Dried cherries, dried flowers and spices and some smoke. Very easy drinking. ($23) Ilatraia 2009: Made from 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Petit Verdot and 20% Cabernet Franc, this is a modern blend. It ages 18 months in French oak. Black currant, peach, plum, pepper. ($50) Chianti Classico Riserva 2009 – From their top Sangiovese grapes with about 20% Merlot, the wine ages 16 months in French oak. Black cherry, plum and a touch of dried herb. Smooth. ($40) Il Blu 2008: A blend of 50% Sangiovese, 45% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, the wine ages 20 months in French oak barrels. Black cherry, blueberry, black currant and herbs. ($85)

BERTANI (Agricola Gaetano Bertani e Figli) (Verona, The Veneto) The Bertani family went through a sale of assets this past year to satisfy a family dispute, and now they have launched Agricola Gaetano Bertani e Figli (& Sons).The family has been making wine in the Veneto for over 400 years. In the 1850s, the Bertani family became the first to bottle and sell Veronese wines abroad, creating a worldwide demand for Soave, Ripasso and appassimento-style reds. Their focus is on “wines that are in every way a proud and true expression of the local terroir.” Giovanni Bertani brought several of his wines for journalists to sample over lunch. * Tenuta Santa Maria Lepia Soave 2011: Fresh and clean, with pear, peach and herb notes. ($21) Tenuta Santa Maria Torre Pieve Chardonnay 2008: Nice tropical fruit notes from old vines, with a refreshing touch of acidity. ($32) * Tenuta Santa Maria Valpolicella Ripasso 2009: Dry cherry fruit and dried rose petal, with some mushroom and forest notes. ($32) Temuta Santa Maria Decima Aurea Merlot 2007: Made by the Amarone method, which means some of the grapes are dried somewhat before being crushed. Dried prunes, wild berries and hints of mocha and eucalyptus. ($48) SCARBOLO (Friuli) Valter Scarbolo is a legendary winemaker. From his 60+ acres of vineyards in Friuli he produces some fine wines from native varieties. I tasted several of his wines over lunch at Zampa, a small, still somewhat undiscovered Italian wine bar and restaurant in the West Village of Manhattan. * Pinot Grigio 2011: Meyer lemon, pear, apple and honey aromas and flavors with a tart edge. A fine Pinot Grigio. ($15) * Friulano 2011: Tocai Friulano is a native here and this is a great representation of it. Almond and flowers. ($17) * Pinot Grigio XL 2009: The shimmering copper color comes from the ageing of the wine with the grape skins for 9-12 months. Aromas of flowers and wild strawberry. Spice notes. Can be drunk as an aperitif or with seafood. ($20) Merlot 2010: Blackberry and violets. ($15) * Refosco 2008: This is an ancient Friulian grape and Scarbolo makes one of the best. Earthy, spice, blackberry jam. ($34) TENUTA DI BIBBIANO (Tuscany) Tommaso Marrocchesi Marzi, an owner and winemaker at Tenuta di Bibiano, entertained journalists at Maialino in Manhattan’s Grammercy Park Hotel. His family has owned the estate, in the Chianti Classico region, since the mid-1800s. He and his brother are producing some top Chiantis, emphasizing the special character of the land. * Chianti Classico 2010: Sour cherry with a hint of tar. Earthy. ($15) * Chianti Classico Montornello 2010: Fruity with some menthol notes. Lush and full bodied. ($17) Chianti Classico Vigna del Capannino Riserva 2009: Dry with very ripe black cherry. ($25) ■ Patricia Savoie is a wine and culinary travel writer. Email: WordsOnWine@gmail.com

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about life

JAMES P. DELPINO, MSS,MLSP,LCSW,BCD

De-Grooving the Brain: The Key to Changing Negative Self-Perception PEOPLE TEND TO REPEAT more than they tend to change. Consider this thought for a moment. Experience will verify that it is true. Whether it’s a problem with anger, trust, sadness, complaining, etc., change is very challenging. Neuroscience offers several theories about why this is so. One is that certain traits and characteristics are hard-wired in individuals, and this is just a fact of genetics. Another theory is known as “Brain Grooving,” which simply means that brains can get stuck in a negative rut and stay there. There are many, many other reasons that change is difficult. A key time in life that determines a great deal about how a person will turn out has to do with each person’s family of origin. Parents, siblings and relatives have an enormous influence over a developing child. A child is given messages about who she or he is or what she or he is supposed to act like, think like, look like and become. These messages (parental programming) sculpt the inner and outer worlds of the child. Some of these messages reflect unsolved issues in the parents themselves. Some of these messages are projections or manipulations. The style of handling emotions and communication is role-modeled for children by other family members. While some families communicate openly and positively, other families have closed or negative communication styles. Thousands of messages are sent to the developing child. The repetition of these messages induces a hypnotic-like trance that can control self-image throughout the life cycle. Cultural, religious and societal norms and expectations create another level of overlay and influence on the inner and outer worlds of each person. Certain thoughts and actions are condemned and judged harshly. Disapproval by society, religion and culture sculpt how a person will think, act, and feel; these influences affect how each person might perceive and understand reality. These factors condition the individual both subtly and overtly. While many of these influences can be positive, they’re not without a downside. Conditioning creates the “Brain Grooving” effect so that those under the influence of these factors resist change and view the familiar, even if it is harmful, as the correct reality. As the child grows and develops, peers and authority figures outside of the family begin to take on more and more importance. Being accepted or rejected by peers has led

many young people to become discouraged and develop a negative self-image. Experiences of being bullied, alienated or ostracized can harden perceptions into the cement of fixed, hard to change attitudes, beliefs, feelings and behaviors. Young people are much more vulnerable to these forces than are adults. The approval or disapproval of authority figures also reinforces self-perception to a great degree. Authority figures represent society and the world at large to the young. Rejection and disapproval by them often suggests to a child that he or she will be a failure; peers and authority figures with fixed and rigid personalities also reinforce that change may be difficult. Discrimination based on ethnicity, gender identity or religious belief continues to harm people in countless ways. By reinforcing stereotypes, for example, the message often becomes, “This is how you are and there is nothing you can do about it.” This creates a sense of hopelessness and robs people of the belief that they could change for the better. These things are equally true for socioeconomic conditions. For people who are culturally deprived or economically disadvantaged, the overwhelming message conveys that positive and/or upward change is difficult at best. In some cases, this creates the sense that things will always be against him or her. In some sense this can create a mass hypnosis paralyzing entire social classes and genders. Consider that educating women is a relatively new idea in the history of man as an example of this kind of thinking and its effect on the lives of women throughout the centuries. Also consider that fifty years ago, African-Americans were lynched and not allowed to use the same bathrooms as caucasians. Mass societal change to the extent of having an AfricanAmerican president would have been an impossible to conceive back then. From each person’s internal hard-wiring to his or her genetics, people receive the message that their bodies, minds and futures cannot change. Although there’s always hope for change—and change is possible in more situations than most folks realize—the most common result is repetition and not change. We recognize those who have overcome great difficulties to become better people because we know they have done something rare and commendable..change. ■

Jim Delpino is a psychotherapist in private practice for over 30 years. jdelpino@aol.com (215) 364-0139.

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sally friedman

AFFAIR

EVERY NOW AND THEN, in the course of my quite ordinary life, I reach inside the mailbox and some gorgeous ivory envelope of considerable heft falls out. And there, in perfect script, is an invitation to an event, along with those singular words “black tie.” My heart flutters. Standing alone in my kitchen, I let my guard down and imagine myself a Cinderella incarnate, a woman going to the ball so utterly transformed that I’ll be virtually unrecognizable. Jaws will drop. Cameras will flash. Men will stare. Picture those red carpet moments, especially at the Academy Awards, and you’ve got the idea: the sweep of gown, the hair, the fabulously strappy sandals with four-inch heels. And then I remember. There may be women who truly can pull off the whole deal—gown, hair, shoes—but I am not one of them. I’m fairly certain that this fashion fever sometimes simmers in many of my sisters, too. We’re seduced by those beautiful ads featuring outrageously gorgeous models and secretly imagine ourselves with those pouts and hand-on-hip postures, unsmiling and still irresistible. And sometimes, we yearn to satisfy that longing for a singular transformational experience, one that would declare in neon lights that we are women of style, panache and effortless sexiness. And it often starts with a dress. My own forays go something like this: I start out on a day when I feel thin and my hair is reasonably working— with some degree of optimism. Mornings usually work well because my stomach is a bit flatter. I’m certain that I’ll find something wonderful in the very

first store because my emotional planets are still in alignment at 10:30 in the morning. I bypass the black cocktail dresses—too boring. I walk right by the beiges—too safe—and the pastels, which are too bland. Then I grab an armful of corals and midnight blues, and head off to the dressing room caressing these delicious fabrics, already trying to imagine them with those sexy sandals and wonderful jewelry. No matter that I currently own neither. The corals are certainly dramatic. They also made me look as if I have the flu or a raging fever. I love one of the deep, rich blues until I turn around and see that it is virtually backless. And trust me, I don’t have that much courage—or the right underwear—to carry that off. Has Angelina Jolie ever worried about back-fat? Not likely. I push on, grateful now that I had resisted the impulse to invite a friend to join my expedition. I want no one seeing me seeing myself in a three-way dressing room mirror. Friendship goes only so far. Let me cut to the chase: by the third store, I’m grabbing black and beige only. I’ve had the humiliating experience of seeing myself in a three-way mirror wearing a watermelon and turquoise print dress that might have looked wonderful on a woman with not a hint of midriff bulge, wonderful collarbones, and an additional seven inches of height. It’s in those fitting room cubicles that reality bites. Yes, I need to remind myself who I am. And it’s decidedly not a prom queen or sensuous starlet. On perhaps three occasions in my life, I’ve managed to look right—and feel comfortable—in formal gear. And none was recent. So I rush home from my formal foraging to console myself with some cake straight from the freezer, and a side dish of potato chips. Never mind the nutritional implications. And just once more, I study the elegant response card for the charity ball before I firmly deposited it into the waste basket. No, no ball this time around. This Cinderella will be stay home in her jeans and sneakers, and perhaps clean out the kitchen junk drawer. The banquet of the evening might be a turkey meat loaf. And somehow, the prospect doesn’t seem half-bad. ■

Sally Friedman contributes to the New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, AARP Magazine and other national and regional publications. She is the mother of three fierce daughters, grandmother of seven exceptional grandchildren and the wife of retired New Jersey Superior Court Judge Victor Friedman. Email: PINEGANDER@aol.com. 48

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30 / EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW / ANGELA BASSETT

And you’re friendly with Olympus Has Fallen director Antoine Fuqua’s wife, actress Lela Rochon. Did that friendship play any part in connecting you to this project?

Not a bit.[Laughs] I am proud to say, not a bit. No, Antoine and I have wanted to work together for a number of years, beginning at a time that predates their relationship. We had crossed paths on a potential project that never came to be for either of us. But it was intriguing to follow each other’s work. I always wanted to be in one of his films and never knew when I’d have that opportunity. And then this one came along, and he made the casting decision to change the [head of Secret Service] role from male to female, and offer it to me. He just wanted a strong person in that role. And Melissa Leo’s role as well, as the Secretary of Defense—these roles are typically male, but they really just need strong individuals. And I think we both carry it off, but I think it also just adds an unspoken layer of depth to the room, because these women are there. It makes you think about who they are, what they must do, and what they’ve had to do to gain these positions that they’re in. And that they need to be able to go toe-to-toe with any man in the room in order to help save the nation.

that could be on screen. The live-theater experience is so visceral and different, I couldn’t imagine capturing that snapshot and putting it on screen. It just felt like such a living organism for me. In hindsight, I think he did a good job with it, but at the time, I just couldn’t make the leap because it was such a theater piece for me.

And I’m sure you’re busy with your own family these days—husband Courtney B. Vance and your two children. But speaking as a fan, I’d love to see more of you up on the screen. Is there anything other than family that’s keeping you from taking a lot more leading roles? Like, perhaps, Hollywood’s lack of offers to actresses of a certain age?

You know, the business has always been challenging, for women and for African American women. It always has been. I don’t want to say it always will be, but it always has been. In spite of it, I have attempted to make a career, and fortunately, acting is all I’ve ever had to do since I began doing it so many years ago. You just go where the work is, and try to find what excites you, until you, I don’t know, produce and direct yourself, I guess? Produce, direct, write, and fund your own movies? You just have to deal with the landscape, such that it is. I spoke to someone earlier today, and they asked me if I’d seen Girls, the new HBO show, and how I felt about the flak [Lena Dunham] is getting because the show is set in New York and there are no people of color. I don’t know how that’s my problem. [Laughs] You know, if I were casting that world, I’d cast it differently because I see it differently, but until it’s mine to cast and direct, that belongs to her. You just choose to work with people who have a broader vision of the world. You just stay positive and keep plugging at it. It’s a joy. I came into this with joy. And these are just the little realities that can steal your joy if you’re not careful. So family is important, friendships are important, having interests and a life outside of it are important, faith is important, maintaining your passion is important. The business is what it is, and we just need to know that certain aspects of it are imperfect. On a similar note, a film that I love, and initially hoped I might see you in, is For Colored Girls. So rarely do you see many amazing actresses of color in one place. Did you read for a part in that film?

No, I didn’t. But I was offered a part. I spoke with [writer/director] Tyler Perry a couple of times and he was interested in me portraying a part in the film. It meant a lot, and I enjoyed the finished product, because that [source material] was also my senior thesis when I was an undergrad at Yale. I directed a production of For Colored Girls and I also played the lady in red in that production. So it’s close to my heart, and it meant a lot, but I just could not envision what

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Actors Angela Bassett (L) and Danny Glover present the Outstanding Motion Picture award during the 40th NAACP Image Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium on February 12, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Vince Bucci/Getty Images for NAACP)

But you had previously worked with Tyler Perry on Meet the Browns. As someone who’s also been a pioneer for black performers on stage and on screen, what are your thoughts on Tyler and what he’s done for African Americans in cinema?

I think he has a broad audience, as evidenced by the success that he’s had. And I think some folks love him a lot, and for others, it’s not their particular taste. But I think he’s absolutely amazing in what he’s been able to do for himself, and how he’s been able to change the game for himself in Hollywood. And also, he’s been able to influence others in terms of his work model. Overall, he’s very impressive. You had mentioned the car-burning scene in Waiting to Exhale. If you go onto YouTube, and start typing “Waiting to Exhale,” some of the first search items that appear are “Waiting to Exhale Angela Bassett car scene” and “Waiting to Exhale Bernadine’s revenge.” Why do you think that scene connected with people so much?

[Laughs] Ah, because it’s completely cathartic. It’s a completely cathartic experience. We all wish we could express ourselves in a way that gets our point across emphatically, but, you know, we’re bound by law. [Laughs] We’re bound by law in life. And, of course, you co-starred with Whitney Houston in that film. Did you remain close with her? And also, I don’t want to overshadow a tragedy with talk of business, but how did her death impact plans for the film’s sequel?

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We remained close in spirit. Folks’ lives take them take them on different paths and in different directions. But we’d run into each other now and then. The last time we saw each other was at an awards show where she sang and I presented something. So we were able to get together, and she was excited and expressing her enthusiasm to start Exhale 2. So, I loved hearing that. But her death, I mean how could it not affect the plan? I mean, it was hard enough, so to speak, that we had to consider [the late] Gregory Hines’s character, another beloved character, and man. So that was another great part of our heart that we lost. And then, years later, to lose Whitney too, it’s just... The filmmakers continue to work on it, and continue to think about it, because it’s a movie that audiences still want to see. They ask for it, they ask after it, they love those characters and the situations they found themselves in. The questions are: Do you recast it? Do you deal with it? Which way is most respectful? Which approach will audiences respond to? It’s been difficult, I’m sure, and I don’t know how it’s going to pan out. [Source author] Terry McMillan is my neighbor, and she’s just given it up to the writers, so they’re trying to come to some conclusion. Unfortunately, it just took too long. [Laughs] If we had done it the Sex and the City way, by next year, we’d be on Waiting to Exhale 5. I recently rewatched What’s Love Got to Do With It? and the physicality of that performance is just incredible. All through your career, from How Stella Got Her Groove Back to now, you’ve been in terrific shape. What’s your fitness/self-care regimen like these days? Anything you swear by?

Oh, gosh. I swear by eating small meals frequently. That’s what I try to do these days. But it’s always the same: You get ready for a project and you tone up, then you come off a project and you gain ten or 15 pounds. [Laughs] It’s like, ahh...vacation. So now, I’m just trying to do small meals, every three hours. Not too much. And cardio. In the past, I’ve probably done it all, but these days that’s just not the case. Through the years you’ve played a number of remarkable real-life women—Tina Turner, Rosa Parks, Katherine Jackson—and I think you’re one of few actors who’ve played the same person, Betty Shabazz, in two unrelated films, Malcolm X and Panther. Now, to make things more interesting, you’re playing Coretta Scott King in Betty and Coretta, opposite Mary J. Blige, who plays Betty Shabazz. It’s head-spinning!

I know. I’m Betty, I’m Coretta, I’m Betty, I’m Coretta... Did Mary J. ask you for pointers?

No. [Laughs] Not at all. And this film addresses these women at different points in their lives than the earlier films. A lot of it is right after the assassinations of their husbands and the friendship that they developed. Of course, the role that I played [in the prior films] was just up to the assassination, and the story focused more on Malcolm. Is there a role that you’re dying to play that you haven’t yet?

I’d love to play the villain—the crazy. From an actor’s point of view, you like to switch it up, and work out different muscles. So I’d like to play the bad guy. Or the queen! One or the other. n

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regional theater The Laramie Project 4/5-4/13 In October 1998 Matthew Shepard was kidnapped, severely beaten and left to die, tied to a fence on the outskirts of Laramie, Wyoming. Soon after the brutal beating, Moises Kaufman and fellow members of the Tectonic Theater Project began year-long interviews with two hundred town residents.

EDITED BY DAVID SCHULTZ

new slant on the Master’s timeless eye toward humanity finds grace and humor with elan. McCarter Theater, 91 University Place, Princeton, New Jersey. (609) 258-2787. mccarterorg The Marriage of Figaro 4/25-4/28 Writing a few years before the French Revolution, Beaumarchais pours his rage at the aristocracy into a comedy of class and sexual inequality. Originally produced in 1784, the play served as inspiration for Mozart’s famous 1786 opera. Three years after the happy ending of The Barber of Seville (to which Marriage is a sequel), it’s the valet’s turn to marry.

modern adaptation of the adventures of the hero Ulysees to vivid life. Touchstone Theatre, 321 East 4th St., Bethlehem PA. (610) 867-1689. touchstone.org The American Play and Other American Cousins 4/4-4/21 From Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Susan-Lori Parks comes The American Play, a remarkable story of an AfricanAmerican man who looks just like Abraham Lincoln and can be shot by would-be John Wilkes Booths for a small fee. When he disappears into the Great Hole of History, his wife and son go to find him. Questions of race, family, legacy, and the act of theater itself play out in a surprising and emotionally stunning journey. World premiere short plays, Other American Cousins, written by Quinn D. Eli and Kimmika L. H. Williams-Witherspoon, named for the play President Lincoln was watching when he was shot, will examine America’s place in today’s world and serve as a prologue to The America Play. Plays and Players Theatre, 1714 Delancey Place, Phila. (800) 595-4849. playsandplayers.org Everyone and I Thru 4/7 July 17, 1959: Billie Holiday dies, and soon after Frank O’Hara pens one of his most beloved poems—an intersection of elegy and love letter, ”The Day Lady Died.” Co-produced by the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts 2013 and in partnership with The American Poetry Review, Azuka Theatre is creating a new work based on this poem, the character of this extraordinary man, and his love for the music of Billie Holiday. Written by Elizabeth Scanlon. Directed by Kevin Glaccum. Azuka Theatre, Kimmel Center, Broad Street, Phila. (215) 563-1100. azukatheatre.org

The Laramie Project was born from those interviews. The brutal murder of Matthew Shepard, an openly gay 21-year-old student, sparked a dialogue about hate crimes that rocked the nation and continues to this day. Written by Moises Kaufman & Tectonic Theater Project members. Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University, Bethlehem PA. (610) 758-2787.

The Trip To Bountiful Through 4/7

Sister Act 4/2-4/7 When disco diva Deloris Van Cartier witnesses a murder, she is put in protective custody in the one place cops are sure she won’t be found—a covent. Disguised as a nun, she finds herself at odds with both the rigid lifestyle and an uptight Mother Superior. Deloris breathes new life into the church, but in doing so blows her cover, so it’s nun-on-therun time...but she finds salvation in the heavenly power of her newly found sisterhood. Based on the feature film, “Sister Act” features an original Alan Menken/ Glenn Slater score with a vast inspiration of musical styles from Motown, soul and funk to great big disco anthems. Academy of Music, Broad St., Phila. (215) 893-1999. kimmelcenter.org/broadway The Winter’s Tale 4/2-4/21 Directed by Rebecca Taichman, this gorgeous, musicfilled, and magical classic celebrates redemption, reconciliation, and the mending of broken hearts. Princes and princesses, disguised identities, jealous kings, oracles, pickpockets, and one ravenous bear fill the McCarter stage. A 52

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But his master, the Count, has tired of his lovely Countess and lusts for Figaro’s bride-to-be, Suzanne; he determines to revive the ancient droit du seigneur—the lord of the manor’s right to bed any new bride on her wedding night. Figaro and the women concoct a counter-plot, but the Count’s page, Cherubin, makes hash of it through his passionate crush on the Countess. The multiple layers of misunderstanding yield one of the most perfect farce scenes of all time, in one of the most scathing critiques of aristocratic privilege ever written. Written by Beaumarchais. Muhlenberg College, Trexler Pavilion for Theatre & Dance, Baker Theatre. (484) 664-3333. muhlenberg.edu/main/academics/theatre-dance/ Ulysses Dreams: An Exploration of Origin and Destiny 4/13-4/21 Touchstone Theatre goes Epic in this mind-blowing production. The adaptation, performed in the form of a song cycle, deals with the character of Ulysses and his relationship with various women in his life, from his mother’s care for him in childhood, to the nymphs and goddesses who trouble him on his journey home, to his loving wife Penelope waiting patiently for his return. The Touchstone Ensemble brings this

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The air by the river, the song of the red bird, and the feel of the soil in her fingers, Carrie Watts’ fondest wish is to visit Bountiful, the small town of her youth. A beautiful and heartbreaking story by one of our country’s greatest writers, Horton Foote (Dividing the Estate, and the screenplays for To Kill a Mockingbird and Tender Mercies). People’s Light & Theatre, 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, PA. (610) 644-3500. peopleslight.org Eastern Standard 4/11-5/4 Eastern Standard revolves around two pairs of people— one gay, one straight—and their hilarious and touching attempts to form relationships amid the turbulence and crises of New York in the 1980s. Take these four yuppies, toss in a waitress (i.e., actress), and a homeless woman, and you get a comedy that “captures the romantic sophistication of the most sublime comedies ever made in this country...dazzling good fun.” (Frank Rich, The New York Times). Quince Productions, Walnut Street Theatre Studio 5, 825 Walnut St., Phila. (215) 627-1088. quinceproductions.com n

footlights

Ryan Silverman, Melissa Errico and Judy Kuhn.

DAVID SCHULTZ

A BIT OF FASCINATING back story furnished by composer Stephen Sondheim in his illuminating book Look, I Made a Hat: Collected Lyrics (1981-2001): “Iginio Tarchetti, born in a small Italian town in 1939, was an experimental writer, a central figure in a movement of nonconformist artists known as the Scapigliatura, who were the equivalent of the French Bohemians of the time and, like Baudelaire and Rimbaud, among others, were rebellious Romantics, worshipers of Poe, attuned to abnormal psychology and the macabre. Tarchetti’s novel Fosca was a fictional recounting of an affair he’d had with an epileptic woman when he was a soldier posted to a small provincial town like the one he describes in the story. He fell ill there and was sent home to Milan, where he died of tuberculosis at the age of thirty, before finishing the book. Completed by a friend of his, Fosca was published posthumously and, a little more than a hundred years later, made into a movie directed by Ettore Scola called Passione d’Amore, which I saw in 1983 and which, suddenly, half an hour into it, struck me as a story worth singing.” I, too, had seen that same film at a college screening room at Temple University, and was floored by the Beauty & The Beast fairytale turned on its head. The plot concerns a handsome young soldier named Giorgio, who is having an affair with a beautiful married woman named Clara. He is transferred, leaving his mistress behind,

and finds himself hounded and desired by that ugly, tenaciously obsessive, frail creature named Fosca, the cousin of one of the commanding officers in his new company. Her comic, pathetic yearnings for his friendship and love grow more disturbing with every encounter. The slow, almost incremental change from Giorgio’s contempt for this gargoyle of a woman to love and desire is strange and mysterious. It’s as if her passion is a fever that infects his heart and soul, and he becomes equally obsessed with her. It was a most disturbing film, and I never dreamed it would be transformed into a Sondheim musical many years later. When I eagerly attended a late preview of the original Broadway production in 1994, I again was totally enveloped in the story set to a gorgeous musical score. Much of the power of the piece was not only what Sondheim and James Lapine (book & director) had done with the work, but my introduction to the woman playing Fosca. Actress Donna Murphy brought an amazing, gut-wrenching pathos to the role, and her vocal inflections and musical artistry captured the soul of the piece. The sheer audacity of the work is unusual—the dialogue and music emerge organically, there are no delineated moments for applause, and the piece just builds and builds to its shattering crescendo. If I recall correctly, even the Playbill did not include any song ti-

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tles…. not one. The musical orchestration and pace almost demand that you dare not break the spell with the communal act of recognition, applause. Many others in the audience seemed restless and uncomfortable with the piece, even laughing at inappropriate moments. It’s probably because it’s easier for some to comprehend the ugly man and beautiful woman scenario, but to reverse it was—and to some still is—a stretch. A full 19 years has elapsed since the original work debuted on Broadway. Director John Doyle has had great luck producing previous Sondheim works (Sweeney Todd, Road Show, Company), so it was a perfect match to pair him with this small chamber piece and mount it at the intimate Classic Stage Company Theater. Befitting the work and the limited space, director Doyle creates a claustrophobic atmosphere with minimal sets and lighting. Formal blocking movements on a nearly bare stage, chairs that the actors move in militaristic fashion, and curtains that sway to and fro reveal the heat and heart of this intimate work. The floor is an apparent black marble, a few cloudy gold rimmed mirrors are strewn about, the open and empty space works wonders. This Passion has an undeniable dreamlike/nightmare vibe. Period costumes by Ann Hould-Ward are perfectly suited to the time period. The subdued lighting effects by designer Jan Cox occasionally burst into visual manifestations of the characters’ personas— blue-hued for sickly Fosca, burnt umber for Clara and Giorgio’s romance. The nine-member orchestra in an installed balcony above the stage brings superb shadings to the delicate music. The three main leads, Ryan Silverman (Giorgio), Melissa Errico (Clara), and Judy Kuhn (Fosca) are superb. The conscious decision to make the obsessive Fosca less repulsive, visually horrific and shrewish may make the piece more accessible to some. Her portrait here is less all-stops-out and more pitiable. The consistent quality of the production, the fluid staging, and galvanizing beauty of this work is breathtaking. This mysterious musical of unconditional love may not be everyone’s cup of tea—a timeless tale that defies logic. Who are we to judge them? n Passion, The Classic Stage Company, 136 East 13th Street, Manhattan. Running through April 16, with a possible extension.

David Schultz is a member of the Outer Critics Circle.

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The Los Angeles Times SUNDAY CROSSWORD PUZZLE

SUBWAY SERIES By Amy Johnson Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

1 6 11 15 19 20 21 22 23 26 27 28 29 30 31 33 34 36 42 43 44 45 50 51 55 56 57 61 62 64 65 66 69 72 75 77 78 81 86 87 88 89 92 96 97 98 99 104 108 109 110

ACROSS “___ Mia!” Botanist’s study Economics pioneer Smith Evite letters Victim of Artemis Chewy chocolate treats Wrap alternative Sport with touches “I say, lovely places to worship!”? Summers of Food Network’s “Unwrapped” Ancient concert venues European chain Functional clothing accessory Mount near Olympus __-am: kids’ book character Symphonic finale Sleep inducer of a sort Teflon advisory groups? Cry over, maybe Division word Surg. workplaces Concerns in substance abuse therapy Insert “@#$%!,” say RAZR MAXX manufacturer Its first maps were pub. in 1905 Central Eur. power until 1806 IOU? Western treaty gp. Speakeasy difficulty Horn of Afr. country King and queen Filled Italian fare Showed (in) White House middle name Religious sch. with the motto “Make no little plans here” Latin I word Pod resident Really bad nursery color schemes? 24-hr. banking service She played Mia in “Pulp Fiction” It was held outside of California only once, in 1942 “Memoirs of a __” Ristorante topper Comfy top Salon supplies Pretense Ones who control the markets? Curious box opener February deity Frankfurt’s river Suffix with smack ■

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“Food, Glorious Food” musical Lyon lover’s word Shopping list entry __ hall What to grab for an early morning flight? Agt. after tax evaders DOE part: Abbr. Half a historic bomber VW and BMW Sisterhood name in a Rebecca Wells novel Hardly leave wanting Latin for “he holds” Food often spilled? DOWN Charm Fading star of the East? 1,760 yards Sugar refining byproduct Whichever Gambol Roller coaster inversion Road travel pioneer Mythical flying giant Kutcher of “That ’70s Show” Word with sex or snob Downsizing program? World carrier Maybelline purchase Update, in a way Muscle malady Vice __ Pie nut More sordid Helper Onetime Yes label Social group Crux Cheese-topped chip Palais Garnier performance Tiger’s front and back? Dragon’s island Figurehead place Confident leader? Siesta Eponymous inventor Tupper It might be going What Simon does Soccer stadium shout Alphabetic run July 4th reactions Jury trial Amendment Señorita’s other Joins the race

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SFO approximation Indian royal Lady’s business? St. Louis player Prunes Wrath, in a hymn Eponymous comet tracker Maximum trio? Bra spec Funny Bombeck Makeup artist? PC port Far from in vogue Merman of Broadway Squirrel away College Football Hall of Fame inductee 29 years after Knute Like epics Beach bags Still-life vessel Like drinkable milk Beckett’s homeland Mystery writer’s forte Frequent child companion? Earth-friendly prefix Disco balls, e.g. Admire to the max Hurler Hershiser Victoria’s Secret purchase Fight Picayune Therapy prefix

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106 “When pigs fly!” 107 Ex of Rod Stewart 112 “__ a Kick Out of You”: Cole Porter 113 Soon 114 Like chitchat

116“Bye” 117 Bespectacled Ghostbuster 118 Neatnik’s bane 121 Prop- suffix 122 Chitchat Answer in next month’s issue.

Answer to March’s puzzle, SPRING FORWARD

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INDEX Facts compiled by the editors of Harper’s Magazine

Number of the 400 wealthiest Americans who count as small-business owners under House Republicans’ definition : 237 Percentage of the Bush tax cuts made permanent by the “fiscal cliff” compromise : 82 Portion of American households that will have a higher tax rate in 2013 as a result of the deal : 3/4 Percentage of likely voters who identified themselves as Tea Party members in 2010 : 24 In 2012 : 8 Portion of its annual budget that the state of Texas gives back in tax incentives to corporations : 1/2 Amount the National Rifle Association’s Victory Fund spent on the 2012 election : $11,159,493 Percentage of that spending that went to support winning candidates : 0.44 Estimated portion of the world’s privately held guns that are owned by Americans : 1/2 Number of U.S. children under the age of thirteen killed by firearms between 2006 and 2011 : 680 Portion of Americans infected with HIV each year who are under the age of twenty-five : 1/4 Projected minimum percentage increase by 2050 in the number of children worldwide with type 2 diabetes : 49 Estimated number of people who died because of high cholesterol in 2010 : 2,000,000 Because of air pollution : 3,200,000 Projected year by which annual firearm fatalities will surpass motor-vehicle fatalities in the United States : 2015 Chance that a U.S. driver admits to having fallen asleep at the wheel in the past thirty days : 1 in 20 Value of supermarket gift cards the City of Los Angeles gave out as part of a one-day gun buyback in December : $155,375 Date of a state supreme court decision that requires the University of Colorado to allow guns on campus : 3/5/2012 Number of students there who have elected to live in dorms designated for those with concealed-weapon permits : 0 Percentage increase since 1982 in the portion of U.S. college students with a “problematic” level of narcissism : 60 Percentage of Americans under the age of thirty who can identify Roe v. Wade as a decision about abortion : 44 Weeks after conception that a proposed Michigan law would allow a fetus to be claimed as a dependent on tax forms : 12 Number of India’s state legislators charged with “crimes against women” : 42 Cost of removing a profile from Potential Prostitutes, a user-sourced photographic database of suspected “offenders” : $99.95 Cost of a four-hour session at a London “cuddle workshop” : $46 Weight in pounds of ram penises shipped to China from an Icelandic slaughterhouse after an October trade agreement : 4,000 Minimum portion of chemical food additives approved by the FDA that the agency has never tested : 3/10 Portion of antimalarial drugs privately sold in sub-Saharan Africa that are fraudulently manufactured : 1/5 Change in years in the life expectancy of a female in sub-Saharan Africa since 1970 : –0.95 Of a female in the Middle East : +16.9 Percentage of people killed by U.S. drone strikes in Pakistan in 2012 who were Taliban or Al Qaeda leaders : 2 Rank of Saudi Arabia among nations with the most viewers per capita of YouTube : 1 Portion of the world’s countries in which Christians face religious harassment : 2/3 Percentage of ongoing deportations dismissed following Obama’s promise to “use discretion” in immigration prosecutions : 4.8 Percentage change in the amount of money awarded to winners of the Nobel Peace Prize since 2011 : –20 Portion of U.S. law-school graduates from the past twenty-five years not working as lawyers : 1/3 Chance a prisoner seeking a commutation of sentence under President Clinton received one : 1 in 90 Under George W. Bush : 1 in 780 Under Barack Obama : 1 in 6,631

Index Sources 1,2 Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (Washington); 3 Urban–Brookings Tax Policy Center (Washington); 4,5 Rasmussen Reports (Asbury Park, N.J.); 6 New York Times; 7,8 Sunlight Foundation (Washington); 9 Small Arms Survey (Norfolk, Va.); 10 FBI Crime Reporting Program (Clarksburg, W.Va.); 11 National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention (Atlanta); 12 U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Atlanta); 13,14 The Lancet (N.Y.C.); 15 Harper’s research; 16 U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Atlanta); 17 Office of the Mayor (Los Angeles); 18 Colorado Supreme Court (Denver); 19 University of Colorado (Denver); 20 Jean Twenge, San Diego State University; 21 Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life (Washington); 22 Michigan House of Representatives (Lansing); 23 Association for Democratic Reforms (New Delhi); 24 Harper’s research; 25 Cuddle Workshop (London); 26 Sláturfálag Sudurlands (Reykjavík); 27 Pew Health Group (Washington); 28 Fogarty International Center, National Institute of Health (Bethesda, Md.); 29,30 The Lancet (N.Y.C.); 31 New America Foundation (Washington); 32 YouTube (San Bruno, Calif.); 33 Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life (Washington); 34 Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (Syracuse, N.Y.); 35 The Nobel Foundation (Stockholm); 36 Marc Gans, UCLA School of Law; 37–39 Office of the Pardon Attorney (Washington).

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28 / EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW / KEVIN EUBANKS

attendants are gone, the people who clean the plane are gone, and he’s still there, sleeping. And we’re sitting on the next plane, wondering: Where is he? So for the next tour you call him “Sleepy.” Even onstage. So he has to hear, over and over again: “Where did you get the name ‘Sleepy’?” Just because he fell asleep and was left behind on a plane, just once. That road camaraderie was one of the reasons Jay [Leno] and I hit it off right away. We have that in common, that you have to be on your toes when you’re traveling. That’s why we could bust on each other on the show and never take things personally. He could joke about me not having a date. I could tease him about staring at a really pretty girl. Who would have thought that hanging out, playing pickup basketball, could be so useful?

[the Los Angeles] Lakers, Jay would have Lakers players come on the show and I would bet them the Sixers were going to win.

B So what was the Sixers bet you lost that ended up with you, PETA’s World’s Sexiest Vegetarian Man, eating meat?

Rick Fox [former Lakers forward turned actor] bet me that if the Lakers beat the Sixers, I had to eat a chili dog on the air. So I told the camera man: “Look, man, get a good shot because I’m going to spit this thing out in three seconds. We don’t want that on camera and I’m certainly not going to swallow any part of that chili dog.”

How normal or abnormal was it to guest on the Feb. 21 Tonight Show and then sit down in the interview chair next to Jay?

It felt completely normal. It felt absolutely like no time went by. I still knew everybody there. Before the show I was still hanging out with Jay and the executive producer in the office. Before the show I was in my dressing room, talking to Dennis Rodman [former pro basketball player and new rogue envoy to Kim Jong-un, North Korea’s b-ball-loving leader]. And when I sat down and spoke to Jay, we talked just as easily as ever. I think part of our success was that Jay and I were comfortable with each other, so people watching us were comfortable. We were part of their evening, part of their extended family. Over 15 years we had time to develop a safe routine where we both trusted each other. I could get him out of his comfort zone, so he could do some dance moves on camera—even the finger dance. You don’t want your partner to do something that feels uncomfortable because then he can’t do something on his feet; then he feels stifled. After a while I started understanding comedy better, in a traditional sense, along the lines of Abbott and Costello and Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Of course Jay is such a great comedian, you could see how things formed, that there is a science to comedy, like music. But, like music, you still have to have spontaneity. The punch line has to be unexpected but still completely appropriate. You know, there’s something to be said about development, which doesn’t happen much today in anything. Nobody wants to develop rawness, so new bands are hit and miss. It’s not like the way Motown developed musicians or even the way the country developed industry after World War II. We want to have high-speed trains but nobody wants to develop them; we just want to keep the cash flow flowing. When you take development out of things, you shouldn’t be disappointed when it’s not heroic.

Jay develops your friendship by giving you choice gifts associated with Jimi Hendrix, one of your guitar heroes. What are some of your Hendrix-Leno treasures?

Vinyl never before released. An immaculate box set. A lot of things from England that don’t reach the States. It makes me feel weird. All I send him for his birthday is a dorky card or something. I can never find something related to his great passion for great cars. You know, “Oh, I’m sorry I don’t have access to a Bugatti blueprint.” [laughs] I can tell you that for 15 years I parked next to Jay and never, ever touched his cars. I should get an award for never leaving a scratch or a dent [laughs]. Kevin Eubanks with unidentified guest on The Tonight Show. Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

Why are you so passionate about putting public instruments back in public schools? Was there a favorite comic routine on The Tonight Show that you originated?

We had a recurring thing that Jay was never that fond of but everybody enjoyed. I love sports, which Jay doesn’t care about. So I was always looking for some reason for us to be at odds, to pick sides for a bet. It was not really about sports or a particular game; it was more about competing in a comic contest. Let me pick one thing. The Philadelphia Eagles [Eubanks’ favorite pro football team] were playing the New England Patriots and I said: “Well, Jay, are you saying the Eagles can’t beat the Patriots? People, what do you think?” And then the audience would start clapping. And then I said: “Jay, the Eagles will tear the Patriots to shreds.” And then the audience would “Woo! Woo!” And I told Jay: “I’m still thinking about you thinking the Patriots will beat the Eagles; I think we should have a bet.” More applause. And Jay looks at me: “You did it again!” The executive producer loved it because now they start writing about the bet in Philly and Boston. And people would be calling from sports radio and saying “You’re going to get dunked in a big vat of Campbell’s Soup if the Eagles don’t win.” Most of the time the loser was me, which worked with the show because, after all, I was the sidekick. So Jay gets to throw the football and I get dunked in a huge vat of Campbell’s Soup. If the Sixers [the Philadelphia 76ers, Eubanks’ favorite pro basketball team] were playing 56 ■

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Playing music in public schools is so important for so many reasons. Learning music means kids have to stay at school a few extra hours a week. It means they have to spend extra hours at home preparing to play at school. You play with like-minded people, so that makes you focus better. You start to make friendships, too. With music there’s a connection that continues even if you don’t play it for a living. Music cracks open a door so there’s a part of your personality that has more emotion. All these things are tied together. When you lose music in public schools you lose a bit of culture and a lot of humanity. Without music I don’t think people would be as happy or appreciative or kind. What is there to be gained by making our children less happy, less inquisitive? ■ Kevin Eubanks will perform with his band, including former Tonight Show drummer Marvin “Smitty” Smith, 8:30 and 11 p.m., on April 9-13 at Birdland Jazz Club, 315 W. 44th St., between 8th and 9th Avenues, Manhattan; 212-581-3080, www.birdlandjazz.com. Geoff Gehman is the author of The Kingdom of the Kid: Growing Up in the Long-Lost Hamptons, which will be published in July by SUNY Press. Email: geoffgehman@verizon.net.

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5 / BACKSTAGE

hanging artwork was impossible. GlaxoSmithKline then decided to start donating its collection of several hundred works, auctioning off others, and gave employees the opportunity to buy some works at half price. Perhaps the most impressive piece donated—and it was donated to the Philadelphia Museum of Art—was an N.C. Wyeth painting, The Trial of the Bow, a 1929 work depicting a moment in The Odyssey. This is quite an addition to the Museum’s collection, as it’s the first N.C. Wyeth work to ever be on view there. N.C., by the way, is the patriarch of three generations of artists who lived and worked in Chadds Ford, with the other two being son Andrew and grandson Jamie. The painting now hangs on the wall at the entrance to the Museum’s American Galleries. Leave it to old Glaxo to come up with a unique spin on this situation. “This is how we increase the quality of life in our community beyond the economic engine of jobs,” said Glaxo Senior VP Bob Carr. Westphal College, within Drexel University, is home to the new Leonard Pearlstein Gallery. The featured artist for their first exhibition that ran through all of April, was Wangechi Mutu and the opening festivities announcing it were impressive. Noted poet Sonia Shanchez read new poetry that complemented the artist’s work, and the Drexel Dance Ensemble performed a new work choreographed by Drexel Dance faculty member Tainie Isaac. The gallery is located on 3401 Filbert Street. For more information on upcoming exhibits, log on to Drexel.edu/Westphal/Resources/Venues/LeonardPearlsteinGallery. Also on Drexel’s ever-expanding campus was a superb musical concert, the Drexel University Mediterranean Ensemble, under the leadership of our colleague Bruce Kaminsky. His ensembles at Drexel and elsewhere continue to bring all ethnicities together through music, and, as usual, this was an instructive and always entertaining program. BOOKINGS Edna Phillips, born in Wyomissing, PA, joined the Philadelphia Orchestra in 1930. She was the Orchestra’s first female member and also the first female principal player in any major United States orchestra. As you can imagine, it was not easy for her musically or otherwise, serving under a taskmaster—and yes, womanizer—like Leopold Stokowski. Phillips is the subject of a superior biography written by Mary Sue Welsh, a retired children’s book editor from this area. The book is titled One Woman in a Hundred and is published by University of Illinois Press. Barbra Streisand is among the very, very few artists in any field of endeavor who has not only transcended styles, eras and classifications, but has a talent that is still relatively intact and still evolving after almost six decades. Always good copy and the subject of any number of full-length works, it would seem there really isn’t anything left to say. William J. Mann, author of the new book on Streisand, Hello Gorgeous: Becoming Barbra Streisand (Houghton/Mifflin/Harcourt) has found plenty to say. This is a meticulously written, welldocumented and researched work that covers the showbiz queen’s formative years, basically from 1960 until 1964, when she opened on Broadway in Funny Girl. Even the personal stuff, courtesy of Mann, isn’t gratuitous. And for those of any age who have any show business aspirations, this is required reading. Talent, she had and has. But this book tells just how a legend is made. BOARDWALK BEAT To no one’s surprise, the multi-billion dollar white elephant known as Revel has declared bankruptcy, reaching agreement with the majority of its lenders to significantly reduce its debt. No taxpayer funds are involved, they say, and everything is said to continue there as usual, including April’s two sold-out shows for Rihanna and Alicia Keys. But “continuing as usual” is the problem. CEO Kevin DeSanctis has just jumped ship, as has Chief Investment Officer Michael Garrity. “The bankruptcy comes as no surprise,” says Suzette Parmley of the Inquirer. “Every month since its opening, Revel—the most expensive casino ever built in New Jersey and the first to have a full non-smoking gambling hall—has finished near the bottom for total casino revenue among Atlantic City’s dozen venues,” she reports. The two main questions that have no answers right now are: 1) How long can Revel continue to do business? 2) What happens when they can’t? On the positive side of the Boardwalk, spring and summer always means there are nightclub performers here—often of the “vintage/timeless” variety—that cannot be seen anywhere else near here. For April, they include Jack Jones at the Taj Mahal on April 3, Martin Short at the Borgota on April, Johnny Mathis at Caesars on April, Diana Krall at the Borgota on April 13, Smokey Robinson at Caesars on April 20, and Paul Reiser at the Borgota on April 20. Someone is watching the “entertainment store” down there, as this is the most impressive, early spring lineup seen at the shore in some time. n W W W. FA C E B O O K .C O M / I C O N D V

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The brassy, neon world of casinos stands in stark contrast to almost everything else in life, but when we were invited to check out a Philly Style party at Sugar House in Fishtown recently, we jumped at the chance. The gambling arena is only slightly larger than a casino on a cruise ship, but the players—poor, minority people at the slots, most smoking and drinking robotically, confirmed for us what we’d always known: casinos are mainly a draw for the down and out. The faux glitz put us smack down into a “garden” of life-size Queen of England cardboard cut-outs meant to advertise this year’s British-themed Flower Show. The Queen looked odd in this mix of Secret Service-looking male employees in ultra-shiny polyester suits and party-happy babes primping for vodka martinis and photo ops. We thought we’d die of Stylitis until Einstein Healthcare ‘s Senior Manager of Communications, Kerry O’Connor, took us aside and made the observation that if Sugar House was savvy they’d make arrangements for a pier to be built on the river so that boaters could anchor up for a Sugar siphon from the rear of the building.

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Lee Hazlewood ★★★★★ Trouble is a Lonesome Town Light in the Attic Using an old saw, Lee Hazlewood (1929-2007) was and remains a strange duck. He was an Oklahoma Dust Bowl lad that achieved mainstream success but remained a subtle subversive—born too early for the revolutionary sounds of the 1950s and ‘60s yet he was an undeniable influence on them as a producer and songwriter. The hit records by Duane Eddy, Dean Martin, and Nancy Sinatra? Hazlewood, and he was an influence on (the production style of) notorious icon Phil Spector. The records (‘60s/’70s) under his name were made with (probably) no particular audience in mind, as they’re collections of Western and lush

No sooner did we toast Kerry’s proposal then we found ourselves thick inside the Pennsylvania Convention Center to take in a special Wedding Wednesday party for brides-to-be. We watched as future brides sampled a variety of wedding reception miniatures, from chocolate candies, cupcakes and wedding cake squares to (very) carefully measured portions of vodka and wine. The Queen, still cardboard stiff, acted as a magnet for photo-op brides, as did a cutout of Prince Harry, whose mischievous grin seemed to suggest, to the future wives at least, that one last round of dirty dancing before their big day might be the way to go. We ran into photographer Hugh E. Dillon, who snapped our picture, after which we checked out the wedding gown samples which unfortunately made us think of Mummers costumes. We recalled the bridal gown shop near 13th and Locust Street with its storefront displays of overthe-top dresses that always put us in mind of the Fellini film, Roma, especially the scene where the clergy of Rome, some on roller skates, model holy taffeta and brocade. “Where is the simplicity of the Aubrey Hepburn or Jackie O?” we asked a woman offering us cupcakes. “Why do so many brides in modern weddings have to look like white-plumed ostriches on parade?” Pablo Picasso confessed that he was a fraud when he stated, “…I am celebrated, I am rich….But when I am alone with myself, I have not the courage to think of myself as an artist in the great and ancient sense of the term. Giotto, Titian, Rembrandt were great painters. I am only a public entertainer.” Picasso even adds, “The less [my public] understood me, the more they admired me….Mine is a bitter confession, more painful than it may appear.” Architect Al Holm forwarded us this quote shortly before the annual Al Holm lecture at the Athenaeum on Washington Square. These lectures, though named after Holm, offer a different speaker every year. This year’s topic was “The Great American House: Tradition for the Way We Live,” by New York architect Gil Schafer. An Athenaeum lecture is the next best thing to being in Rome or Paris, though this year’s event was packed to the gills due to the renovation of the new Bush Room (which Bush was never specified). Al and his wife Nancy joined us at the congested after party where we chatted with Wesley Parrott, former president of the Franklin Inn Club. We ran into a smiling Daniela Holt Voith of Voith & Mactavish Architects who told us that the firm’s move to 2401 Walnut Street, 6th Floor, has finally been made and that—despite reports to the contrary—the new digs do offer spectacular views of the city. Philadelphians who still refer to Kensington as a terrain of toothless yahoos and empty syringes need only to walk along the Frankford Arts corridor to see that a revolution has occurred. Bundled up in winter scarves, we got an eyeful in late February when we headed to the FJord gallery at 2419 Frankford for their annual Valentine’s Dessert Party. The Frankford Avenue renaissance got us thinking of New York’s Soho because this once barren industrialwaste land dotted with deserted lots, boarded up factories, remnants of soup kitchens, now looks as though it’s been combed free of infestation with RID. The FJord Arts collective was co-founded by Philly-based urban planner and antique car expert, Rick Shnitzler, 28 years ago. Rick introduced us to Fjord’s new president, Lindsay, who gave us an impromptu tour of the upstairs studios for working artists. These small rustic spaces crammed with canvasses, paint, and preliminary sketches had great window views of nearby tall factory smokestacks. For a peek: http://frankfordavearts.org North Philadelphia is another neighborhood beating the odds despite the long lines there at many PhilAbundance outlets. We headed over to the new Stephen Starr 11,000 square foot commissary at 667 North Broad Street for an evening of “interactive stations and demos.” Although the commissary’s understated wood Swiss chalet entrance is located near a small Dunkin Donuts and a gas station/car wash named East Coast, the place is a culinary Kubla Kahn. Are there people anywhere in this city who can claim to dislike Stephen Starr food? We chatted with Laura Krbes (Cashman and Associates), and Janet Binswanger and Morgan Bedore (Starr restaurants). High energy reigned supreme as A. D. Amorosi remarked, “It’s a sexy night,” and as Queer Times’ Three Musketeers, Thom Cardwell, James Duggan and Josh Kruger, gave us their spin on local politics. ■ 58

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pop noirs, loaded with laconic, wry fatalism—think a cross between Johnny Cash and Charles Bukowski with remote echoes of Jack Kerouac. Released in 1963, Trouble is a Lonesome Town was LH’s first solo album. It’s something of a once-lost-now-found treasure in which Hazlewood chronicles life in a (fictitious?) small town—think of the play Our Town narrated by Andy Griffith…but the words are by Rod Serling, Shel Silverstein, and Willie Nelson. Hazlewood sings in deep Southwestern drawl that’s straightforward, droll, and oddly comforting. “Long Black Train” is an ancestor of Bruce Springsteen’s “Highway Patrolman” and “Son of a Gun” is about love crossing social barriers—some things never change. Lambchop and Nick Cave took cues from LH—learn what they know and know harrowing Americana. lightintheattic.netv Roger Knox & the Pine Valley Cosmonauts ★★★★1/2 Stranger in My Land Bloodshot Country music gets a bad rap sometimes, mainly because the wrong stuff gets heard on the radio. The harrowing tales of Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, and the rest got replaced by Garth Brooks and Shania Twain…but no sense crying over spilt mayo, right? Country music, with its tales of the longing of rural people displaced in big cities, made an impression on the Aboriginal people of Australia, and especially on Roger Knox. Known as the Black Elvis of Australia, Knox has a deep, smooth, poignant voice not unlike the young Glen Campbell and, occasionally, Marty Robbins. Stranger in My Land is a collection of country songs by Aboriginal performers and if you love country music from that time when it was called “country & western,” it’s a winner. Songs that tell a story of life on the prairies (with kangaroos and emus instead of cows), romantic devotion, and the (intermittently doomed) feeling of an outsider are sung with warmth and directness and played with unfussy twang. The Pine Valley Cosmonauts are a collective of singers Kelly Hogan, Andre Williams, and Charlie Louvin (of the Louvin Brothers) along with Dave Alvin and members of the Mekons and Sadies. If you feel at all melancholy or nostalgic, keep some Kleenex handy while listening to this—it’s “Wichita Lineman” in the outback…truly. bloodshotrecords.com ■

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agenda CALL TO ARTISTS ARTISTS AGAINST HUNGER EXHIBIT to benefit The Food Trust. Delivery Dates: Sunday, 4/28, 10 AM- Noon & Monday, 4/29, 10 AM- Noon. Pick up work not selected by juror Moe Brooker, artist, teacher and head of Mayor’s Commission of the Arts: Wednesday, May 1, 10 AM- Noon. Exhibit Dates: May 2- 5 2013 Gala Opening Reception: Thursday, May 2, 6- 8 PM, First Friday, 6-8 PM, Saturday and Sunday 1-5 PM ART Sales: Cash & checks to DaVinci Art Alliance. No credit cards. Pick up Date: Sunday, May 5, 5-6 PM & Monday, May 6, 10 AM to Noon. The fee for participating in this exhibit is $35 for one or 2 piece(s) All checks should be made out to smART business consulting. 40% commission retained on all works sold. Cash and checks accepted. No credit cards. DELAWARE VALLEY ART LEAGUE Friday, April 12, 2013, 1-3 PM: Membership business meeting followed by a watercolor demonstration by award winning artist, Mick McAndrews. The public is invited to the demonstration! Jury for Penn Medicine @Radnor and Valley Forge. Friday, April 19 10 AM- 2 PM Oil Painting Workshop . Paoli Presbyterian Church, 225 South Valley Rd, Paoli, PA Check for more exhibits, workshops and information about membership: delawarevalleyartleague.com CALL FOR ENTRIES 4/28-5/11. Garden State Watercolor Society Spring Sale and Show. Prallsville Sawmill, Rt. 29, Stockton, NJ. Entry fee only $20. Registration due 4/22. Framed (under $1,000) and unframed art any media. Contact Pat Morgan at pmorganstudio@comcast.net. CALL FOR ENTRIES 5/11-25. Garden State Watercolor Society Annual Associates and Signature Member Exhibition. Registration due 4/23. Entry fee only $17. Cash awards. Contact Pat Morgan at pmorganstudio@comcast.net. ART EXHIBITS THRU 4/21 Fabulous Flappers! Fashion from the Ellie Laubner Collection. Also: Haitian Art from the Rodale Family Collection. Allentown Art Museum, 31 North Fifth St., Allentown, PA. 610-432-4333. allentownartmuseum.org THRU 4/28 Wendy Paton & Stephen Perloff: “Two for the Road.” Red Filter Gallery, 74 Bridge St., Lambertville, NJ. Thur.-Sun.12-5. 347/244-9758 redfiltergallery.com THRU 4/30 Mixed media art opening for Barry Sharplin students, Carrie Moran, Ethan Liebross, and Abby Ferdinando. Reception 4/7, 12-2pm, refreshments. For info. about art classes, 908872-8382. Alchemy, 17 Bridge St., Frenchtown, NJ. 908-996-9000.alchemyclothing.com THRU 4/30 New Work, Schmidtberger Fine Art, 10 Bridge St., Suite 7, Frenchtown, NJ. 908-268-1700, sfagallery.com THRU 5/4 Spring Juried Show. Delaware Valley Art League, Penn Medicine at Radnor, 250 King of Prussia Rd., Radnor, PA.

THRU 6/28 La Tauromaquia: Carnicero, Goya and Picasso. Arthur Ross Gallery, inside the Fisher Fine Arts Library, University of Pennsylvania, 220 So. 34th St., Philadelphia, PA upenn.edu/ARG 4/5-5/5 Patterns of Life: new work by Pat Lange and Carol Sansalone. The Artists’ Gallery, 18 Bridge St., Lambertville, NJ. Reception 4/6, 47. Fri-Sun 11-6. 609-397-4588. lambertvillearts.com 4/6-5/18 New Hope Arts Sculpture Exhibition 2013. The 13th Annual exhibition showcases more than 40 regional & national artists. Opening reception/awards 4/6, 6-8 PM. Members Preview 5pm. New Hope Arts, 2 Stockton Ave., New Hope, PA 215-862-9606. newhopearts.org 4/8-6/15 Martha Jackson Jarvis: Ancestor’s Bones. Drawings, paintings, digital imagery, and sculpture. Williams Center Gallery, Lafayette College, Easton, PA. M-W & F 11-5; Th. 11-8; Sat. & Sun.12-5. 610-330-5361. http://galleries.lafayette.edu 4/19-6/2 John Petach, “River Town.” Quiet Life Gallery, 17 South Main St., Lambertville, NJ. Open Wed.-Sun. 609-397-0880, quietlifegallery.com 4/28-5/26 Look for our Sunroom Gallery at the Bucks County Designer House. The Designer House. Visit BucksCountyDesignerHouse.org Hutton Galleries, 47 West State St., Doylestown, PA. 215-348-1728.PatriciaHuttonGalleries.com 5/2-5/5 Artists Against Hunger exhibition to benefit The Food Trust. Da Vinci Art Alliance, 704 Catharine St., Philadelphia. Reception 5/2, 6-8. 5/5-6/16 21st Invitational Exhibition of Fine Art Miniatures from Around the World. Opening recep. 5/4, 1-5. Live music/hors d’oeuvres. The Snow Goose Gallery, 470 Main St., Bethlehem, PA. 610-974-9099. thesnowgoosegallery.com 5/10-12 Pennsylvania Guild FINE CRAFT FAIR. Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia. Friday & Saturday: 11-7; Sunday: 11-5. pacrafts.org 5/11 & 12 48th Annual Fine Art & Craft Show. Over eighty regional, national & local artists, arts projects for children. Main St., Bethlehem, PA. Sat. 10-5, Sun. 11-5. bfac-lv.org 5/18 28th Annual Baum School Art Auction, silent auction 6pm; live auction 8pm. Preview night, 5/16, 6-8pm. The Baum School of Art, 510 W. Linden St., Allentown, PA. 610-433-0032. baumschool.org 5/18 The 13th Annual Arts Alive! Juried Arts & Craft event. Downtown Quakertown, PA, 104, East Broad St. Rain date, 5/19. 215-536-2273. quakertownalive.com

THEATER 4/5-6 and 12-13 Last Call at the Down Beat, dedicated to Dizzy Gillespie’s infamous stint at Philadelphia’s Downbeat Club in 1942. Music by Duane Eubanks. The Red Room at Society Hill Playhouse, 507 So. 8th St., Philadelphia. 215923-0210. 4/13-4/21 Ulysses Dreams, an exploration of origin and destiny. Touchstone Theatre, 321 E. Fourth St., Bethlehem, PA. touchstone.org 4/23-4/28 In the Mood, a 1940s musical revue. Bucks County Playhouse, 70 South Main St., New Hope, PA. 215-862-2121. bcptheater.org. artbeatshows.org and inthemoodlive.com 4/25-4/28 The Marriage of Figaro. Muhlenberg College Theatre & Dance, Allentown, PA. 484-6643333. muhlenberg.edu/theatre 4/26-28 and 5/3-5 If She Stood. Step inside a 19th century Quaker meeting house to meet Philadelphia’s first multiracial collective of female reformers at the moment they chose to move. The Painted Bride Art Center, 230 Vine St., Philadelphia. 215-925-9914. paintedbride.org

12:10pm. Arts at St. John’s, St. John’s Lutheran Church, 37 So. Fifth St., Allentown, PA. 610435-1641. stjohnsallentown.org 4/6 Larry Coryell Organ Trio. Zoellner Arts Center, 8pm. Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA. 610758-2787. zoellnerartscenter.org 4/7 Fall of the Berlin Wall. Ignat Solzhenitsyn, Conductor Laureate. Chamber Orchestra of Phila. 215-893-1709. chamberorchestra.org

4/20 Pennsylvania Sinfonia Orchestra- All-Beethoven concert with guest pianist, Michael Gurt. Symphony No. 4 and Piano Concerto No. 4. 7:30 p.m. First Presbyterian Church, 3231 W. Tilghman St., Allentown, PA. Tickets-$15-$30 in advance/at door. 610-434-7811. PASinfonia.org

5/3-6/2 Into the Woods. Book by James Lapine; music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. McCarter Theatre, 91 University Place, Princeton, NJ. mccarter.org.

4/28 “Simple Gifts,” Folk Music Trio, 4:00pm. Arts at St. John’s, St. John’s Lutheran Church, 37 So. Fifth St., Allentown, PA. 610-435-1641. stjohnsallentown.org

5/4 Héctor Del Curto, Tango Quintet, 9PM. Dinner & Show 6PM. Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University, Bethlehem. 610-758-2787. zoellnerartscenter.org

5/3 Claremont Trio, 8:00pm. Chamber Music Society of Bethlehem, Foy Concert Hall, Moravian College, W. Church & Main Streets, Bethlehem, PA. Tickets: vartsboxoffice.org. Visit cmsob.org

5/19 An Evening with Garrison Keillor, 7:30pm. Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University, Bethlehem. 610-758-2787. zoellnerartscenter.org

5/5-7 ALL MOZART. Adagio and Fugue in C minor, K.546; Sinfonia Concertante in E-flat major, K.364; Symphony No. 29 in A major, K.201. The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia. 215-545-1739. chamberorchestra.org.

4/2, 4/9, 4/16 and 4/23 Jazz at Serafina After Work, starting at 5PM. Relax, unwind, and listen to soothing, swinging, world-class jazz by The All-Star Jazz Trio in an elegant Center City setting. Special Serafina menu and full bar. Serafina Rittenhouse, 10 Rittenhouse Square, 130 So. 18th St., Philadelphia, PA. Admission $10. 215-977-7755. Saturday nights: Sette Luna Restaurant, 219 Ferry St., Easton, PA. 610-253-8888. setteluna.com

CONCERTS Some organizations perform in various locations. If no address is listed, check the website for location of performance. THRU 4/30 The Noon-Ten Concerts, every Tuesday,

4/13 4/19 4/20 4/26 4/27 5/3, 4 5/10 5/11 5/17 5/18

4/14 “Bachs of Suites,” Tim Schwarz & Larry Stromberg. 4:00pm. Arts at St. John’s, St. John’s Lutheran Church, 37 So. Fifth St., Allentown, PA. 610-435-1641.stjohnsallentown.org

4/21 CABARET! at DeAnna’s. A benefit for Animal Alliance, NJ. DeAnna’s Restaurant, 54 No. Franklin St., Lambertville, NJ. 609-397-8957. deannasrestaurant.com

5/24 5/25

THRU 4/30 Every Saturday. Cupcakes & Cocktails, 1-5. Sample three slushy mixed drinks, then select your favorite served with a cupcake of your choice. Tasting fee $8 per person. Chaddsford Winery, Peddler’s Village, Shop #20, Lahaska, PA. 215-794-9655. chaddsford.com 4/11 Vintage Fashion Trunk Show, 6-8 pm at Cosmopolitan. Shop vintage finds, eat fine food, support The Baum School of Art, and learn about The Jane Stieg Collection. 22 North 6th St., Allentown, PA. Tickets & information: baumschool.org or call 610-433-0032 4/13 and 4/14 Civil War Days at Peddler’s Village, routes 202 & 263, Lahaska, PA. 215-794-4000. Peddlersvillage.com 5/4 and 5/5 Strawberry Festival, Peddler’s Village, Rtes. 202 & 263, Lahaska, PA. 215-794-4000. Peddlersvillage.com CLASSES 4/20 and 4/21 Atelier Dualis holds the first of their 2013 art workshop series, “Figure Drawing with Charcoal.” Participants will enroll in an intensive weekend, study drawing from a live model. To register: atelierdualis.com/workshops

6/2 An Afternoon of Jazz and Classical Music: A Benefit for Musicopia. 3PM. Presented by ICON, The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, WRTI.FM, Jacobs Music and Drum Workshop. Philadelphia Ethical Society, 1906 Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia. Tickets: icondv.com or 215-730-1789.

Summer Arts Programs at DeSales University. Summer Video Institute: desales.edu/svi, ext. 1732; Summer Theatre Institute:desales.edu/sti, ext. 1320; and Summer Dance Intensive: desales.edu/sdi, ext. 1663. DeSales University, 2755 Station Ave., Center Valley, PA. For more information, 610-282-1100 or desales.edu/svi

ARTSQUEST CENTER AT STEELSTACKS (Musikfest Café) 101 Founders Way, Bethlehem, PA 610-332-1300. artsquest.org

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Eaglemania Willy Porter Paula Cole Band Kalob Griffin Band Kashmir: Led Zeppelin Tribute Cast of Beatlemania Lindsay Lou and the Flatbellys Start Making Sense The Peek-A-Boo Revue Commander Cody with Professor Louie and the Crowmatix The Jon Herington Band Childhood’s End: Pink Floyd Tribute

EVENTS

5/4 and 5/11 106th Bethlehem Bach Festival: Rioult Modern Dance Company in an all-Bach program with Bach Festival Orchestra. Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University. 610-866-4382, ext. 10 or 15. bach.org.

4/13

The Mavericks Marc Maron Carbon Leaf XPN welcomes Keb’ Mo’ Preservation Hall Jazz Band The Red Elvises The Fabulous Thunderbirds Chick Corea: Solo Piano Concert Music of Grover Washington, Jr: Jason Miles, Musical Director

MAUCH CHUNK OPERA HOUSE One of America’s oldest vaudeville theaters, built in 1881. 14 West Broadway, Jim Thorpe, PA. 570-325-0249. mauchchunkoperahouse.com

4/10 James Witherite, modern organ trio. Chris’ Jazz Café, Sansom St., Philadelphia. 7PM. chrisjazzcafe.com

5/2 Dana Carvey, 8pm. State Theatre, 453 Northampton St., Easton, PA. $52/$47. 610252-3132. statetheatre.org

DINNER & MUSIC

4/18 4/19 4/25 4/26 5/9 5/11 5/17 5/22 5/24

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