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Friday, Sep 05, 2008
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| Mamma Mia! blows into town, Camerata Ireland visits Benaroya Hall, PNB ends Director's Choice | |
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by Milton W. Hamlin -
SGN A&E Writer "High-energy" is the word for the week in Seattle's incredible entertainment scene. The high-energy Mamma Mia! blew into town Tuesday for a one-week encore visit and nearly blew the roof off the historic Paramount Theatre. To say that the capacity opening night audience was dancing in the aisles would be an understatement. Over at Jazz Alley, Dr. John and his New Orleans Mardi Gras-style piano sets rocked the handsome club all last week. Diane Schuur, always a Seattle favorite, returns to the Alley for an April 10-13 visit. Benaroya Hall, downtown home to the Seattle Symphony, welcomes the touring Camerata Ireland Monday night for a rare visit from the award-winning classical chamber orchestra from Ireland. And Pacific Northwest Ballet - talk about high energy. Ending the two-week Director's Choice this weekend, PNB is advertising tickets for the welcome return of A Midsummer Night's Dream and planning its Laugh Out Loud Spring Dance Festival of three diverse April programs. What a time.... MAMMA MIA! ENCORES AT PARAMOUNT THEATRE WITH PERFORMANCES THRU SUNDAY According to Broadway legend, the opening night of Mamma Mia! found the New York audience dancing in the aisles at the lengthy curtain call. Each touring edition of the high-energy musical works hard to recreate that historic, perhaps apocryphal moment. Tuesday night at the Paramount, Mamma Mia had the capacity audience dancing in the aisles before the curtain went up. Two mid-40s women, obviously reliving their junior high moments of bubblegum music, were so high on nostalgia that the usher had a hard time getting them to sit down and watch the show start. It was that kind of night. The touring company - hard-working, energetic musical theater pros - features no names, no fading television stars to prop up the box office appeal. It doesn't need any. Even the original Broadway cast used no-name leads and pushed the jukebox music of Abba and its timeless appeal. THREE PROGRAMS OFFERED BY PNB - LAUGH OUT LOUD HOLDS GREAT PROMISE There might be a busier group in the Emerald City, but for now the folks over at Pacific Northwest Ballet seem to hold the record for high energy. PNB ends its four-part Director's Choice mixed repertory bill with final performances this weekend. Tickets - and appealing ads for the upcoming A Midsummer Night's Dream - are filling the airwaves. And - as in and - the Laugh Out Loud Spring Dance Festival is shaping up for its April 17-20 run at McCaw Hall at the Seattle Center. Give PNB a call at 441-2424 and ask for the free program brochures and other details about all the spring activities. You'll be glad you did. (One of the most intriguing titles of the new works in the Festival is Lost Language Of The Flight Attendant - can't wait to find out what that's about.) With tickets starting at just $20, PNB remains one of the best live entertainment values in the Emerald City. CAMERATA IRELAND PLAYS MONDAY NIGHT CONCERT AT BENAROYA HALL DOWNTOWN Conductor and pianist Barry Douglas brings his Camerata Ireland to Seattle for a one-night visit on Monday, March 24, at 7:30 p.m. at Benaroya Hall, the downtown home of the Seattle Symphony. The program includes Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 14 plus works by Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky and Stravinsky. Camerata Ireland sent along its new recording of Beethoven's Piano Concertos and its been in this scribe's CD player all week. Remarkable playing of classic classical works - a winning combination. The troupe was founded by Douglas in 1999 and has won numerous awards for its classical output. Tickets start at $21. Details and reservations at 215-4784. JAZZ ALLEY BOOKS RETURN OF DIANE SCHUUR, SEATTLE FAVORITE Diane Schuur, always a Jazz Alley favorite, returns to the elegant downtown supper club for an April 10-13 encore visit. Schuur, a native of Auburn, is one of many "local girls" who made good. The winner of two Grammy Awards, with three additional Grammy nominations, Schuur returns to her jazz roots with her new Concord CD, Some Other Time. The recording - nicknamed the "Mama Album" - is a tribute to her mother and the music that Schuur grew up listening to. Schuur, originally famed as the "blind since birth" jazz singer, is firmly established in the jazz world with frequent forays into pop and other music styles. She - and Jazz Alley - promise "just jazz" for this outing. Reservations - always a good idea - at 441-9729. The vocal quartet, New York Voices, opened last night and continues at the Alley this weekend with five more performances through Sunday. Check it out. |
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