Marina Nebro: Arts and Culture

Probably the most widely known opera is Carmen, written by Georges Bizet (score) and Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halevy (libretto). The story actually comes from a short novella written by Prosper Merimee. Though there are other operas out there that compete for the spot of most known, I would argue that people of all ages and from all walks of life will be able to hum along to the Habañera or the Toreador’s song. That being said, not everyone knows the story of Carmen, so let me enlighten you. (more…)

Thanks to Professor Healey of Introduction to Theatre Design at Queens College, I know of a really quaint museum in NoHo: The Merchant’s House Museum. “The Merchant’s House Museum is New York City’s only family home preserved intact — inside and out — from the 19th century. Built in 1832 just steps from Washington Square, this elegant red-brick and white-marble row house on East Fourth Street was home to a prosperous merchant family for almost 100 years” (Merchant’s House Museum). Because I’m a crazed lover of the old, I decided I’d get a student membership to the museum and go to three events that they’re holding in one month (though I must cancel one of my reservations due to a prior obligation)! The first of the three events was Chant Macabre, a vocal concert performed by the Bond Street Euterpean Singing Society. Follow me on a journey back in time, a journey to a 19th century parlor filled with macabre music.

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Let’s fill our tummies before we go back in time! I’m just going to put in a little plug here for the B Bar & Grill restaurant which is right across the street from the Merchant’s House Museum (along with many other eateries that I must try in the near future). The floor plan of the restaurant is really spacious and there’s more than enough tables to go around. They serve brunch, lunch, and dinner, along with drinks. There were too many things on the menu I wanted to try (macaroni and cheese, a lamb burger, pizza, just to name a few), but I ended up tasting their Fish ‘n Chips. I have a question, why are Fish ‘n Chips portions always so large? Anyway, the food was delicious, and their french fries are to die for (like my little death joke there?)! Definitely a recommended spot for food before any event at the museum. (more…)

The Museum of Modern Art is not my favorite museum in New York City. It’s not my favorite museum, period. But I had to go for my Arts in New York City seminar. And I have to admit, I had a semi-enjoyable time there. Look, a museum is a museum, and no matter what museum I might find myself in, something ends up interesting me.

What I went for: Photography

My seminar group decided that they wanted to focus on the photography exhibit – mainly New Photography 2012. Of course, me being me, I chose images from the older collection of photography. I found three interesting pieces – all interesting for different reasons.

Harrell Fletcher’s The American War (2005) was possibly the most disappointing series I have ever seen in a museum. Yes, there is Rothko who tends to paint colored squares, and Pollock who thinks art is waving a loaded brush on a canvas. And yes, I do have a problem looking at these modern artists with the same prestige as I look at Rembrandt. But, at least they’re doing something. Harrell Fletcher did absolutely nothing in this photography series. He went to the Ho Chi Minh museum in Vietnam and simply took photos of the images on the wall. What’s different between that and what I did on my trip to the MoMa? I took photographs of the images I thought were interesting – but I’m not considering these photographs art!!! This really infuriated me. What is art coming to? And this is one reason that the MoMa isn’t my favorite museum – too conceptual for my taste. (more…)

One of our field trips for the Arts in NYC seminar was to the New York City Center’s annual season of Fall for Dance. Each performance is specialized – each featuring different dance companies and different types of dance. The October 11th performance featured Shen Wei Dance Arts, Laboratory Dance Project, Circa, and the María Pagés Compañía.

SHEN WEI DANCE ARTS
Artistic Director Shen Wei
RITE OF SPRING 

I’ve heard Stravinsky’s composition before – most recently on WQXR and in an orchestra rehearsal last year. My first reaction to the piece was – ugh! It’s not a pleasant piece of music. The Rite of Spring is extremely dissonant, busy, and rhythmic. And for me, hearing it without any context was difficult and I couldn’t enjoy it. In class, we had watched a version of Rite of Spring choreographed by Maurice Béjart. The dancers were in nude bodysuits and the dancing was very provocative. I quite enjoyed the performance seen on YouTube because there was a story behind it and seemed to have a logical progression. Shen Wei’s choreography was abstract. I don’t deal well with abstract. I couldn’t focus on any one person in the performance. All the dancers had similar costumes, and none of the dancers had a main role. There was no “main character.” The entire dance was around fifty minutes and seemed extremely repetitive. There was no meaning behind the movements. I couldn’t sense a story. Overall, not one of my favorite performances. (more…)

It’s Italian Heritage Month and though I’m not Italian, I enjoyed the festivities that took place October 10th in room 264 at the Aaron Copland School of Music during free hour. Sponsored by John D. Calandra Italian American Institute, the Office of COO/VP Elizabeth Hendrey, and the Aaron Copland School of Music, the concert featured both current vocal students and alumni of the music school. The program went as follows: (more…)

One of my favorite museums is the Nassau County Museum of Art. Situated in a Roslyn mansion originally built by Lloyd Stephens Bryce, the museum holds various temporary exhibits while also housing the well known Tee Ridder Museum of doll houses and its many outdoor sculptures of modern and more traditional art. The museum is right off of Northern Boulevard and is also a great place to stroll around – it has nature walks and vast grassy areas for picnicking and the like. After several decades of existence, the Nassau County Museum of Art has been able to acquire art collections of well-renowned artists such as Tiffany, Richard Avedon, and Marc Chagall.

My visit to the museum this past weekend was spurred by the need to find an inspiring piece of artwork for my Introduction to Theatre Design class. Since I was home for the weekend, I thought this would be the most doable and accessible museum for the job. The temporary exhibit being shown until the beginning of November is a collection of Marc Chagall paintings and drawings from various donors including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the National Gallery of Art. Many might know Marc Chagall for his crazy color-schemes and inattention to the law of gravity. All I knew was that my family wasn’t a big fan of his “cuckoo” style. But I thought it was worth a try. (more…)

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Peter Pan has been readapted a myriad of times to theatre, cartoon, movies, and children’s book. Each has a different take on J.M. Barie’s original mischievous forever-boy who flies. Rick Elice (influenced by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson’s novel) explores the story about the boy before the forever-boy. He explores the boy without a name – the boy before Peter Pan.

The story is told through occasional narration by all of the actors in the play. I would say the curtain opens up, but it doesn’t. As the lights dim, the actors just walk onto the stage and start the tale. Imagine two ships: the Neverland, a pretty wimpy ship on a voyage to Rundoon, and the Wasp, a strong vessel making a similar voyage to Rundoon, only a more direct and dangerous path. Lord Aster (Rick Holmes), aboard the Wasp, is on a mission to destroy one of Queen Victoria’s (GOD SAVE HER!) secret treasures in a volcano on Rundoon. Unfortunately, Slank (Matt D’Amico), the captain of the Neverland, switches the treasure filled trunk with a sand filled trunk. The main plot revolves around getting that trunk – everyone wants it! Of course there are more specific scenes – the dangerous jungles of Randoon, the magical mermaids, the swashbuckling pirates (yeah right!) – but I don’t want to give too much away. (more…)