Mary Damiano’s Arts Scene

	Mary Damiano

Hurricane Woes
November has always been my favorite month.   That’s partly because of Thanksgiving, which I love, and because November is the gateway to the holiday season, which I also adore.  My birthday is also smack dab in the middle of November, so I like that as well.  Ever since I’ve lived in South Florida, though, there have been two more reasons to love November:  the weather is delectable---the best weather of the whole year, I think---and the arts season goes into full swing.

This November is going to be very different.  After experiencing the terrible tempest called Wilma, and now dealing with the mess left behind by this most unwelcome houseguest, this November is surreal and bittersweet.  Let’s put it this way:  I never thought I’d be wishing for electricity for my birthday.

Like most people, I’m rather cut off from the outside world---no power equals no communication---which is frustrating for a media junkie like me.    I do know that Wilma, although she left some gorgeous weather in her wake, has struck a harsh blow to the South Florida arts scene.  Many events have been canceled or postponed and venues had to close because they don’t have the basics to stay functional.  Theatres that do have power and can operate, such as New Theatre and GableStage in Coral Gables, are doing so with an abbreviated schedule.  Just when we need entertainment and escapism the most, it’s difficult to find.

But that old show biz maxim still applies:  The show must go on.  It might go on with a little delay, so before heading out to any events make sure they’re still taking place, but I predict that the arts scene will be fully up and running in no time.

I also predict that come December, Time’s annual Man of the Year will be a woman, namely Mother Nature. 

Love That Liza
One of the bright spots of recent weeks was being in the audience when Liza Minnelli christened the new Sinatra Theatre October 8 at That Big Arena Across from Sawgrass Mills Mall in Sunrise.  (I can’t keep up with all the corporate monikers the place has had since it opened, so I just call it what it is: That Big Arena Across from Sawgrass Mills Mall.)  Anyway, the Sinatra Theatre name is classy and a nice change from all the corporate crap (naming a venue for a performer---how refreshing) but really it’s a misnomer.  The Sinatra Theatre is really just an area of the arena that’s been artfully blocked off (only 3,000 seats) and spruced up (chandeliers, lots of potted plants) to give the illusion of an intimate theatre.  The thing is, it really works.  The acoustics were simply to die for and the view from even the upper sections was fabulous.
Liza was in great form. Backed by a 16-piece orchestra, Liza spent two hours singing carefully selected songs of survival and triumph over personal demons---any one of which could have served as Liza’s personal theme song.  And boy, did she give them life, singing every syllable like a woman who lived each word and earned the right to sing them.   When the audience rose to their feet and clamored for an encore of “Over the Rainbow”, Liza said, “That song has been sung,” and then passed on Mama’s (Judy Garland to the rest of us) words of wisdom: Be a first rate version of yourself, never a second rate version of somebody else.  Liza did do an encore, a startling, moving and definitely first-rate a capella rendition of “I’ll Be Seeing You”. 

A Fab New Life
Well, it looks like Broadway actor Malcolm Gets will not be starring in this year’s version of It’s a Fabulous Life, the gay musical version of It’s a Wonderful Life, which I reported in my last column.  Reliable sources tell me that Gets was supposed to star with Broadway alum Lee Roy Reams, who is now being touted in ads as the headliner. Gets decided he had a more important role waiting for him---sources tell me that Gets has given up acting to become a teacher. 

Traveling Light
And speaking of Fab Life, the South Florida born and bred musical will do some traveling this year, right up to the Windy City to Chicago’s Bailiwick Repertory Theatre.  The only local talent to go with the show is award winning lighting designer Travis Neff, who was handpicked by Bailiwick artistic director David Zak.  Neff’s work has been seen at many South Florida theatres, including the Mosaic in Plantation, the Mad Cat in Miami and New Theatre in Coral Gables.  Congrats, Travis!

Grease is a Grabber
The Actor’s Playhouse’s 10th anniversary season got off to a fun and frothy start October 7, with audience members decked out in poodle skirts and leather jackets for the opening night performance of the fifties-inspired musical Grease.  Although the production featured bland leads as high school sweethearts Danny and Sandy, the show belonged to the men, whose vocal and acrobatic prowess resulted in some jaw-dropping numbers, especially on “Greased Lightning”.  The mood turned, however, when actor Xander Chauncey, who played Kenickie, pulled a hamstring in the second act and had to sit out the rest of his scenes.  Word is that the injury was serious enough that Chauncey won’t be able to return, and alternate arrangements had to be made for the rest of the run, which ends November 13.
For more information, visit http://www.actorsplayhouse.org/.