ALABAMA ARTS & EVENTS

Latest news and movie, music, event and restaurant listings for Alabama

The big movie of the week is Oliver Stone's "W.," which opens Friday. Take a look at this extended trailer for a sneak peak:

Continue reading "Videos in Play -- 10.12.2008" »

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Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde Opening Night Post-Performance Party

As the chills subside following the opening night performance of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, join Alabama Ballet's Junior Board for a post-performance party at The Wine Loft downtown on Thursday, Oct. 30. Spookily-themed drink specials will complement delectable hors d'oeuvres. Mix and mingle with cast members and enter to win fabulous door-prizes.

Proceeds benefit the outreach programs of the Alabama Ballet. Among these are the 2nd Tuesday Series, offering an informal performance and "studio chat" free to the public; CityDance, bringing dance education into inner-city schools; Dance Discovery Workshops, engaging students in dance history and technique presentations; and Student Matinee performances.

Alabama Ballet's 27th Anniversary Season opens on Halloween weekend with the chilling Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. This Alabama Ballet original sprung from the dynamic team of choreographer Roger Van Fleteren and composer and organist Thomas Helms. Based on the book, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, the story explores the duality of good and evil in human nature. Once again the creators of Alabama Ballet's wildly successful production of Dracula present an exciting evening of horror and intrigue. Performances of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde will grace the Samford Wright Center from Oct. 30 to Nov 2.

Admission is free with a Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde ticket stub or $10 without. For tickets to Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Call 205-975-ARTS, or visit www.alabamaballet.org. For more information call 205-322-9095.

Peter Winograd and Laurie Carney, violinists
Daniel Avshalomov, violist
Wolfram Koessel, cellist

American pride unfurls like peacock feathers when it comes to strides in democracy, science, literature and countless other fields.

But in the often-overlooked niche of American chamber music, the nation also has plenty to celebrate, as the American String Quartet proved in two nights of ear-bending music.

On Saturday, the New York-based ensemble concluded its mini-survey in this arena with seldom-heard works of rare humor, ingenuity and experimental spirit.

First to be brought to light was Louis Gruenberg, whose quirky "Four Diversions for String Quartet" (1930) vacillated between jazzy tunes, angular harmonies and what could have been a movie score to a western. Whimsy ruled, and the quartet milked it.

Keeping up with Henry Cowell's "Mosaic" (1935) was an exercise in futility. The order and repetition of each of its five short movements was a chance affair that only the quartet members knew in advance. Cowell, a pioneer of what became the American avant garde, apparently knew that the arcane unpredictability of this piece would be its charm.

Continue reading "American String Quartet enlightens in second night of American rarities" »

Chamber music that's made in America can be a hard sell, even if your string quartet has "American" in its name.

That may be partly why the intimate Reynolds-Kirschbaum Recital Hall was so sparsely filled Friday night. Names like Chadwick and Sirota simply don't resonate like Beethoven and Haydn.

Continue reading "American gems played with verve" »

4 stars out of 5

AMERICAN STRING QUARTET

Peter Winograd and Laurie Carney violinists
Daniel Avshalamov, violist
Wolfram Koessel, cellist

Chamber music that's made in America can be a hard sell, even if your string quartet has "American" in its name.

That may be partly why the intimate Reynolds-Kirschbaum Recital Hall was so sparsely filled Friday night. Names like Chadwick and Sirota simply don't resonate like Beethoven and Haydn.

Those who took the chance on the American String Quartet's crusade to shed light on our nation's music were rewarded tenfold. The New York-based ensemble opened the first of two concerts with George Whitefield Chadwick's Quartet No. 4 in E minor, disclosing the grounded romanticism that late 19th century New England composers adopted from their European counterparts.

This ensemble is uniquely suited to this Dvorak-esque music. Its potent, thick-textured sound has a fullness and depth few quartets can produce. It may not be as technically pristine as, say, the Takacs or Emerson quartets, but there is certainly no lack of fervency. Intonation discrepancies surfaced occasionally, and a lighter touch was needed in the"Giocoso" movement, but those can be forgiven considering the very unforgiving hall acoustics.

Continue reading "American composers get their due in first of two American String Quartet concerts" »

5 stars out of 5

ALABAMA SYMPHONY: VIDEO GAMES LIVE

Jack Wall, conductor
Tommy Tallarico, emcee

Video Games Live, a pre-packaged amalgam of video montages and game scores performed by the Alabama Symphony Orchestra, descended on the Birmingham-Jefferson Civic Center with all the subtly of a digital air raid.

The most impressive, thought-provoking part of Video Games Live was its audience - a 1,300-plus throng made up mostly of teenage and 20-something gamers, many of whom surely never voluntarily set foot inside a symphony concert until Thursday night. Continue reading "Amped-up orchestra entertains gamers with lights, videos, rhythm" »