2007 ROUNDUP

Posted by arts_reviews

Posted: December 28, 2007 - 9:16 am

What we liked, didn't like and hope to see

We asked some of the regular contributors to the Daily News’ arts and entertainment coverage to look back on 2007 and pick something they liked, something they didn’t like, and/or something they look forward to in 2008. Add your picks, disses and wishes in the comments section here. Happy New Year, art lovers!
Kokopelli's "Inishmore"
LIKED: “The Lieutenant of Inishmore.” Ordinarily I’m not a big fan of blood and gore, but this (very) black comedy about an Irish revolutionary was staged so well that it was impossible not to have a good time. Great selection, great direction. I look forward to the next big thing from the Kokopelli company.
I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention Alaska Theatre of Youth’s production “Much Ado About Nothing.” The thought of teenagers doing Shakespeare is a little scary, I know. But ATY’s contemporary, seemingly “High School Musical”-inspired twist on this classic was a ton of fun, and the young actors were clearly having a ball with the Bard.
DIDN’T LIKE: No particular 2007 production stands out in my mind as being overrated, but I can think of a few egregious instances of overacting. Enunciation, emotion and expression are all good things. Like salt, though, a little goes a long way, and I’ve seen some performances this year that could have been great if the actors weren’t acting quite so hard. UAA’s production of “We Bombed in New Haven,” for example, was marred by a few instances of actors overdoing it, although the production as a whole was good.
WANNA SEE: The Anchorage Symphony Orchestra has excellent double reed players. Some pieces featuring oboe, bassoon and English horn would be wonderful – maybe some Sibelius or Shostakovich? And I’d love to see Ralph Vaughn Williams on next season’s program.
“Othello” is among my favorite of Shakespeare’s plays, and I’m looking forward to David Edgecombe’s Alaskan interpretation. For me, the “Othello” experience hinges on a good Emilia, so I’m hoping for a strong actor in that oft-misunderstood and misinterpreted role.
— Maia Nolan
Daily News music and theater reviewer
Bela Fleck and the Flecktones
LIKED: I loved the Bela Fleck show. It is the first time I have witnessed such complex bebop music giants translate their genius into a language mere mortals can easily understand and enjoy. Violinist Geoffrey Castle’s performances were a close second. The 2007 Alaska State Fair brought the most diverse talents together in one place — Cheap Trick, Blue October, Little Joe et la Familia, Craig Morgan, LuLu and the Aquanets and a host of local bands. Reggae Fest, featuring The Wailers, was also a wonderful family event to behold.
DIDN’T LIKE: I dislike the pathetic quality and content of most, but not all, of the independent local music CDs I heard this year. Most make excellent drink coasters.
WANNA SEE: I still dream of a venue here in Alaska where I can see Paul McCartney, The Rolling Stones, etc. Dream on.
– Leland Smith
Daily News music reviewer
Sonya Kelliher-Combs: Photo: Fran Durner
LIKED: David Sedaris. The literary wit pealed into brilliant illuminations about everything from family dynamics and trashy sex magazines to language studies and zombie science in his reading and rant at the Atwood Concert Hall last May. No one can turn ordinary humiliations and ridiculousness into hilarity quite like the man who wrote “Me Talk Pretty Some Day.”
Also: Theatre Artist United’s sold-out, campy, rousing performances of iconic musicals like “Rocky Horror” and “Hair,” not to mention a enveloping, if wandering, exploration of humanity in its serial soap opera about crime, art, true love and the porn industry.
DIDN’T LIKE: After all the hype about transforming the Ship Creek Mall into a cultural center, the big yellow building on 4th Avenue continued to face small crowds all winter while relying on touristy gimmicks all summer.
WANNA SEE: “Sway Me, Moon,” the theater piece written by Anchorage poet Arlitia Jones, author of “The Bandsaw Riots,” coming to Out North in January and February.
— Dawnell Smith
Daily News arts reporter

LIKED: “From the Fire,” Contemporary Korean Ceramics at the Anchorage Museum: A great opportunity to see a significant exhibition of well-crafted and inspiring clay pieces from Korean artisans. “Con-Census,” Alaska Native art exhibition at the Anchorage Museum, curated by Sonya Kelliher Combs: A thought-provoking and innovatively assembled look at Native arts.
DIDN’T LIKE: Rie Munoz retrospective at the Anchorage Museum. Despite the popularity and romanticism surrounding the artist’s work, the paintings do not quite reach the pinnacle expected for a retrospective at a major museum of art.
— Don Decker
Daily News visual arts reviewer
Space Vixens
LIKED: Concerts by Melissa Ferrick, Indigo Girls and Lucy Kaplansky, performances of “Perfect Prayer,” “Doubt,” “Saucy Jack and the Space Vixens” and David Sedaris, the art exhibition “Changing Hands” at the Anchorage Museum, and the poetic memoir “Just Breathe Normally” by Peggy Shumaker.
WANNA SEE: The new play “Sway Me, Moon” at Out North, written by Arlitia Jones and directed by Schatzie Schaefers.
— Laura Carpenter
Daily News theater and music reviewer

LIKED: “Con-Census.” I’m with Don Decker on this. Sonya Kelliher-Combs’ installation at the Anchorage Museum, using rarely-displayed material from the museum’s storage rooms, brilliantly combined expertly-crafted and often antique parkas, mittens and such with the artist’s insights and talent created a visually fascinating, intellectually thoughtful and emotionally profound experience. The elegant layout of the sinking, waving hands of the departed and a parade of empty traditional clothing continues to stick with me long after the show was taken down.
Nick Kendall and Chris Brubeck: In the lobby of the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts a few minutes after the world premiere of Brubeck's "Spontaneous Combustion" on Oct. 27, 2007. Photo: Leland Smith
DIDN’T LIKE: “Spontaneous Combustion.” The cross-genre concerto by Chris Brubeck, premiered by the Anchorage Symphony and violinist Nicolas Kendall, did not live up to hopes. Spectacle aside, nothing of the music remains in memory a few months after hearing it — except the sound of the teenager next to me quietly singing the “Riding on the Bus” schtick from “Family Guy” along with part of the score.
WANNA SEE: “Pillowman.” The UAA Student production of a stimulating new play was so intense that plans are afoot to send it off to national competition. If that happens, expect a fundraising revival or two to give us a second chance to see the work before it heads off.
— Mike Dunham
Daily News arts &
entertainment editor

Find Mike Dunham online at adn.com/contact/mdunham or call 257-4332.

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