Whenever I see an email from Palo Alto photographer Laurie Naiman in my in-box, I know it's well worth reading. He always has something interesting to say, and unusual images to share.
Laurie is from Toronto and knows what fall color really is. He agreed with me that this autumn has been particularly striking. Definitely better than in years past, when he took the photo at right, "Stuck!"
The poor Palo Alto leaf is not only captured, but also has no scarlet to make it proud. Still, the contrast with the blue sky is striking. Wonderful image as always, Laurie.
Could this Palo Alto fall be more glorious? I don't know why the colors are so stunning this year, but I'm thankful. Even the crunched-up yellow leaves that are piling up on the sidewalks in today's wind look pretty.
Here's a photo I took last week. It feels like we're in Wisconsin, which is always a good thing.
Got beautiful Palo Alto autumn images you want to share? Feel free to send them my way at rwallace (at) paweekly.com. I'll write about them or swoon over them, or both.
Weekly theater critic Kevin Kirby is back on stage, which is always a good thing. He's one of the finest actors I know. Now he's also in one of the best shows around: Tabard Theatre Company's graceful, poignant production of "The Story of My Life."
In this two-man musical about the evolution of a long friendship, Kevin plays the gentle bookseller Alvin, paired with the equally talented Tim Reynolds as best-selling author Thomas.
"The Story of My Life," which I saw last night in San Jose, was new to me and undoubtedly to many in the house. It had a brief run on Broadway in 2009, giving composer and lyricist Neil Bartram his debut on the Great White Way. The musical's book is by Canadian actor/director Brian Hill.
The show is a retelling of the decades-long friendship between Alvin and Thomas: the playfulness, camaraderie and warmth -- and also the hurt and guilt that can arise when two such close people take two vastly different life paths. It begins with Thomas' aching efforts to write Alvin's eulogy, and travels back to the boys' school days. "Life" is performed without intermission and is a very full 90 minutes for the two actors under the lights and the musicians behind the curtain.
Kevin and Tim are both theater veterans, and it shows. They have real chemistry, and deftly handle the emotional extremes, easy humor and difficult musical moments, which include unexpected harmonies and swift rivers of words that sometimes achieve a Sondheim-esque pace.
I found myself thinking about Sondheim's "Sunday in the Park with George" more than once as Thomas grappled with writer's block, in a quietly intense performance by Tim. Like George, Thomas must balance the creative life with the demands of the world outside his head. And there were some nice melodic moments in the song "Write What You Know" that reminded me of "Finishing the Hat" in "Sunday."
While Thomas faces his problems in the city, his best friend keeps working in the family small-town bookstore, and Kevin plays Alvin as a soul perpetually open to childlike wonder and hope. When Alvin throws himself onto the ground to make snow angels, Kevin's performance was so natural that I could see the ice crystals and feel the bite in the air. Alvin frolics around with a free, loose-limbed delight in the natural world that is made all the more poignant by the knowledge that the story must eventually return to his eulogy.
Throughout the show, the two actors moved smoothly about the stage with the subtle choreography of Tyler Risk, and director/vocal director Diane Milo's expert hand was also always evident.
"The Story of My Life" has one more weekend left. Go.
Note: Kevin is a friend of mine. Also, my significant other does some marketing for Tabard. Neither fact plays a role in this post.
Pictured: The sign outside the Theatre on San Pedro Square, where "The Story of My Life" is playing. Photo by Rebecca Wallace.
I know, arts editors should be setting a good example. But I go into exhibits with my little reporter's notebook and take notes in pen, when only pencils are allowed. The museum guards have a word with me. I take photos of the sculptures with my little pink iPhone. You're usually not supposed to do that.
I could play the press card and tell the truth, which is that I'm considering the exhibition for an article. But that seems snotty. So I just keep getting in trouble. It's not the guards' fault. I just forget to bring a pencil. (Sorry, Anna.)
Today, though, I had a really nice interaction with one of the museum guards. In a hurry, I was dashing in and out of the galleries getting quick looks at a few of the shows. Somehow, the same guard ended up holding the door for me three times.
He was a friendly young guy, and finally I said: "Three times. That's getting to be a record."
Without missing a beat, he said, "I'd do it a hundred times if you went through that many doors."
I felt like I was in a Cary Grant movie. Pictured: Someone at the Cantor who isn't me (i.e., well-behaved). Photo from museum.stanford.edu.
Busy Palo Alto playwright Sharmon J. Hilfinger is having her seventh full-length play produced in the Bay Area. It seems like we just wrote about "Tell It Slant," the play with music about Emily Dickinson that she penned with composer Joan McMillen. (Weekly critic Chad Jones called it "a welcome addition to the realm of Dickinson lore.") But now the pair are on to Georgia O'Keeffe with "Hanging Georgia," another play with music.
The plot centers on O'Keefe's passionate connection and marriage with the photographer/art dealer Alfred Stieglitz in the early 1900s. Palo Alto native Paz Pardo takes the stage again as the title character. Paz, a graduate of Peninsula School in Menlo Park, played the demiurge in "Tell It Slant," acting as a sort of period emcee who clarified the plot as it unfolded.
Now Paz is part of the Slanters Performance Ensemble, the troupe of actors and musicians who helped bring "Tell It Slant" to life. "It is such a joy to have an ensemble to work for," Sharmon said in a press release.
Presented by Sharmon's BootStrap Theater Foundation and TheatreFIRST, "Hanging Georgia" is scheduled to run Oct. 8-30 at The Thick House in San Francisco. Info here.
Pictured: Sharmon Hilfinger in a photo from the "Tell It Slant" website.
I cover visual art, music, theater, film and dance for the Palo Alto Weekly ... which means it's a challenge trying to decide what to do on the weekend. Here's hoping that in this economy the arts scene stays diverse and vibrant. Fingers crossed (and many tickets bought).
Whenever I see an email from Palo Alto photographer Laurie Naiman in my in-box, I know it's well worth reading. He always has something interesting to say, and unusual images to share.
