Out West Arts: Performance at the end of the world

Opera, music, theater, and art in Los Angeles and beyond

Some Dance to Remember

January 27, 2012

 
Rinde Eckertand Nora Cole Photo: Caleb Wertenbaker
Opera should be impossible. Obviously it isn’t, but the artistic forces involved from so many people at the same time make it perhaps the most challenging and least individual of art forms. The impossibility of such an artistic quest gives the concept of opera ideological parallels to a novel like Melville’s Moby-Dick. Music and theater artists have frequently picked up on this peculiar relationship to produce such varied work as Laurie Anderson’s Songs and Stories from Moby Dick from 1999 to Jake Heggie’s recent outright operatic treatment of the novel that premiered in Dallas in 2010 and will be seen next month in San Diego before arriving in San Francisco this fall. The commonalities also served as the inspiration for Rinde Eckert’s And God Created Great Whales a performance art piece that isn’t exactly opera, but takes up the topic of the creation of an opera based on Moby-Dick as its subject. The work originally premiered in 2000 to much acclaim and various performances over the following three years. More recently, Eckert, along with his collaborators, costar Nora Cole and director David Schweizer, developed a technologically retooled new version of the show that opened up the spring season at REDCAT on Wednesday for five performances before moving onto New York later this year.

Eckert directly taps into the concept of the struggle of artistic production and its parallels both with the struggle of every day life and the struggles for greater knowledge and the unknown in Moby-Dick. And God Created Great Whales tells the story of Nathan, played by Eckert, a composer working on an operatic version of Melville’s novel. Nathan has been diagnosed with a degenerative cognitive disorder and is losing his memory, making his task that much more difficult. He’s created an elaborate system using several tape recorders, including one that is strapped to his chest, to remind and orient himself to his project and work on a repeated daily basis. He’s also joined by Cole, who portrays an imagined version of a famous opera singer Nathan has previously befriended during his work as a piano tuner. She advises and motivates Nathan and after each repeated start with the tape recorder, she joins him in re-enactments of various scenes from his opera. Slowly but surely, things deteriorate for Nathan until he too must face the inevitable sway of forces greater than himself.

Nora Cole gives a wonderful performance as the imaginary friend with a lovely voices and a big stage presence. But at the heart of it, this is Eckert’s show. He has composed all of the accompanying music, much of it incorporating samples of whale sounds, and sings and moves through most of the evening. He plays and tunes a dilapidated piano strung up to the rafters above with thick rope. He’s both touching and funny at times in a script filled with wry, and sometimes bitter humor. Still the last decade alters one’s perspective on the show. The notion of saving memory on a tape recorder comes off as even more archaic in a post Momento, post i-whatever world which makes Nathan seem decrepit and weak even before the scope of his deterioration is elaborated upon. The operatic segments can also be rather genteel and softball in their lampooning of operatic conventions. The laughs here are warm, but rarely all that dark or biting. Nathan’s decline is more marked by apathy than psychic pain, which may be more naturalistic, but doesn’t always make for the best drama. Granted it’s smarter than drivel like Moises Kaufman’s 33 Variations, but I often felt like I was missing something in the fleshing out of Eckert’s concept. The show continues through Sunday at REDCAT, downtown’s still best kept open secret.

Labels:


[Permalink] Posted by Brian | 1/27/2012 11:22:00 PM

Comments:

Post a Comment



<< Home

This page is powered by Blogger. Isn't yours?

Calendar

2/23/12
Max Raabe and Palast Orchester
 UCLA LIve
Royce Hall
Los Angeles, CA

2/24/12
Beethoven Trio for Violin, Cello and Piano
Zwilich Quintet for Violin, Viola, Cello, Contrabass, and Piano
Schubert Piano Quintet in A major
 Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio and Friends
Irvine Barclay Theater
Irvine, CA

2/24/12
El pasado es un animal grotesco
 Mariano Pensotti
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

2/25/12
Britten Albert Herring
 Conlon, cond
Shrader/Kelly
Los Angeles Opera
Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Los Angeles, CA

2/26/12
What the Butler Saw
 Joe Orton
Odyssey Theatre
Los Angeles, CA

2/27/12
asamisimasa
 recital
Monday Evening Concerts
Zipper Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

2/28/12
Andriessen La Girò
Andriessen Anaïs Nin
Andriessen Life
 Los Angeles Philharmonic
New Music Group
de Leeuw, cond.
w/ Zavalloni
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/1/12
Mussorgsky Khovanshchina
 Petrenko, cond
Borodina/Didyk
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

3/2/12
Show Boat
 Hammerstein/Kern
Lyric Opera
Chicago, IL

3/3/12
Mahler Das Lied von der Erde
Schoenberg Piano Concerto
Nott, cond
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Symphony Center
Chicago, IL

3/3/12
Hit the Wall
 Ike Holter
The Inconvenience
Garage Theatre
Chicago, IL

3/4/12
Beethoven Egmont Overture
Matheson Violin Concerto
Strauss Ein Heldenleben
 Heras-Casado, cond.
w/ Chalifour
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/6/12
Timboctou
 Alejandro Ricano
Martin Acosta, dir.
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

3/7/12
Jeffrey Kahane and LACO: a 15th Anniversary Celebration
 Kahane, cond.
w/ Batjer, Shulman
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/9/12
Copland Orchestral Variations
Harrison Concerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra
Ives A Concord Symphony
 Tilson Thomas, cond.
w/ Jacobs
San Francisco Symphony
Davies Symphony Hall
San Francisco, CA

3/10/12
Foss Phorion
Cowell Piano Concerto
Cage selections from Song books
Ruggles Sun-treader
Tilson Thomas, cond.
w/ La Barbara, Monk, Norman, Denk
San Francisco Symphony
Davies Symphony Hall
San Francisco, CA

3/10/12
Donizetti Don Pasquale
 Guidarini, cond.
Del Carlo/De Niese
San Diego Opera
San Diego, CA

3/11/12
Poulenc The Breasts of Tiresias
Martinu Tears of a Knife
 Mitisek, cond.
Center Theater
Long Beach, CA

3/17/12
Culture Clash American Night: The Ballad of Juan Jose
 Kirk Douglas Theater
Culver City, CA

3/17/12
Dvorak Carnival Overture
Tchaikovsky Lansky's Aria from Eugene Onegin
Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1
Shostakovich Symphony No. 5
 Piatigorsky International Cello Festival
Jarvi, cond.
w/ Maisky
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/18/12
Dvorak Carnival Overture
Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations
Respighi Adagio con Variazoni
Shostakovich Symphony No. 5
 Piatigorsky International Cello Festival
Jarvi, cond.
w/ Weilerstein
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/23/12
Frances-Marie Uitti
 REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

3/23/12
wild Up Craft
 Beyond Baroque
Venice, CA

3/24/12
Strauss Rosenkavalier Suite
Aho Clarinet Concerto
Sibelius Symphony No. 6
 Vanska, cond.
w/ Frost
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/26/12
Jazz Encounters
Works by Wolpe, Ablinger, and Johnson
 Monday Evening Concerts
Zipper Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/28/12
Copland Fanfare for the Common Man
Tower Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman
Higdon Percussion Concerto
Prokofiev Symp No. 5
 Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Alsop, cond.
Segerstrom Concert Hall
Costa Mesa, CA

3/29/12
Ute Lemper
 UCLA LIve
Royce Hall
Los Angeles, CA

3/31/12
Beckett Waiting for Godot
 Center Theater Group
Mark Taper Forum
Los Angeles, CA

4/1/12
Bach St. John's Passion
 Gershon, cond.
Los Angeles Master Chorale
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/5/12
Part Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten
Adams Violin Concerto
Glass Symphony No. 9
 Adams, cond.
w/ Josefowicz
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/6/12
Gloria's Cause
 Dayna Hanson
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

4/10/12
Stockhausen Tierkreis
Cage Concerto for Prepared Piano
Bettison Livre des Sauvages
 Adams, cond.
w/ Cheng
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/11/12
Pacifica Quartet
 UCLA Live
Royce Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/12/12
Samsara
 KarmetiK Machine Orchestra
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

4/13/12
Beethoven Missa Solemnis
 Blomstedt, cond.
w/ Ziesak, Romberger, Croft, Muller-Brachmann
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/14/12
Truth, Revised Histories, Wishful Thinking, and Flat-Out Lies
 John Jasperse Company with ICE
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

4/16/12
Schubert Die Schone Mullerin
 w/ Goerne, Eschenbach
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/17/12
Mendelssohn Symp No. 3
Saariaho Orion
Shostakovich Symp No. 6
 Cleveland Orchestra
Welser-Möst, cond.
Segerstrom Concert Hall
Costa Mesa, CA

4/18/12
Schubert Winterreise
 w/ Goerne, Eschenbach
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/20/12
Schubert Orchestrated Songs
Schubert Symphony No. 9, "Great"
 w/ Goerne, Eschenbach
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/21/12
Gurira The Convert
 Kirk Douglas Theater
Culver City, CA

4/23/12
Helmut Lachenmann Intérieur I
Schwitters Ur Sonata
Clementi Madrigale
Clementi L'orologio di Arcevia
 Monday Evening Concerts
Zipper Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/24/12
Baroque Variations
Concerto Koln
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/26/12
Wagner Rheingold
 Luisi, cond.
w/ Harmer, Blythe
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

4/27/12
Janacek The Makropoulos Case
 Behlolávek, cond.
w/ Mattila
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

4/28/12
Wagner Die Walkure
 Luisi, cond.
w/ Voigt, Westbroek
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

4/28/12
Verdi La Traviata
 Noseda, cond.
w/ Poplavskaya
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

4/29/12
Grau and Guinand program
 Los Angeles Master Chorale
Gershon, cond.
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

4/29/12
Maurizio Pollini
 recital
Carnegie Hall
New York, NY

4/29/12
TR Warszawa Festen (The Celebration)
 St. Ann's Warehouse
Brooklyn, NY

4/30/12
Wagner Siegfried
 Luisi, cond.
w/ Dalayman, Bardon
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

5/2/12
GATZ
 Elevator Repair Service
Public Theater
New York, NY

5/3/12
Wagner Götterdämmerung
 Luisi, cond.
w/ Dalayman, Harmer
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

5/4/12
Britten Billy Budd
 Robertson, cond.
w/ Daszak, Gunn, Morris
Metropolitan Opera
Lincoln Center
New York, NY

5/6/12
Ligeti Atmospheres
Wagner Prelude to Act I of Lohengrin
Mahler Ruckert-Lieder
Bruckner Symphony No. 9
 Rattle, cond.
w/ Kozena
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/8/12
Akiho Alloy
Pereira Percussion Concerto
Berio Recital for Cathy
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ Currie, Duffy, Foundry Steel Pan Ensemble
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/9/12
Dvorak Carnival Overture
Lindberg Piano Concerto No. 2
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4
 New York Philharmonic
Gilbert, cond.
w/ Bronfman
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/10/12
Mozart Adagio and Fugue, K. 546
Vasks Distant Light
Mozart Posthorn Serenade, K. 320
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ Pogostkina
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/12/12
"The Armory"
 wild Up
Armory Center for the Arts
Pasadena, CA

5/12/12
Puccini La Boheme
 Summers, cond
Perez/Costello
Los Angeles Opera
Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Los Angeles, CA

5/16/12
Arcane Collective Cold Dream Colour
 The Edge/Paul Chavez
REDCAT
Los Angeles, CA

5/18/12
Mozart Don Giovanni
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ Kwiecien, Burdette
Los Angeles Philharmonic
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/19/12
Elaine Stritch Singin' Sondheim... One Song at a Time
 Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

5/24/12
Follies
 Sondheim/Goldman
Ahmanson Theater
Los Angeles, CA

5/26/12
Formalist Quartet
 Beyond Baroque
Venice, CA

5/26/12
Golijov Ainadamar
 Center Theater
Long Beach, CA

5/31/12
Adams The Gospel According to the Other Mary
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ O'Connor, Mumford, Thomas
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

6/1/12
Adams The Gospel According to the Other Mary
 Dudamel, cond.
w/ O'Connor, Mumford, Thomas
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

6/7/12
Adams Inuksuit
 Libbey Park
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/7/12
Adams Red Arc/Blue Veil
Shostakovich Six Poems of Marina Tsvetaeva, Op. 143a
Ives Concord Sonata
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/8/12
Janacek String Quartet No. 2 "Intimate Letters"
de Leeuw Im wunderschönen Monat Mai
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/9/12
Buene Langsam und Schmachtend
Wagner Wesendonck Lieder
Berg Four Songs Op. 2
Berg Four Pieces Op. 5
Beethoven Piano Sonata No. 21 in C Major, Op. 53, Waldstein Sonata Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/9/12
Los Otros
 Fitzhugh/LaChiusa
Mark Taper Forum
Los Angeles, CA

6/9/12
Hallgrimsson Poemi, Op. 7
Sorensen Piano Concerto No. 2, “La Mattina”
Hillborg Peacock Tales
Mozart Trio in E flat “Kegelstatt” K. 498
Kurtag Hommage à Robert Schumann
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/10/12
Bartok Contrasts
Grieg Holberg Suite
Bolcom Cabaret Songs (Selections)
Copland Clarinet Concerto
Kurtag Hommage à Robert Schumann
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

6/10/12
Gorecki program
 Los Angeles Master Chorale
Gershon, cond.
Walt Disney Concert Hall
Los Angeles, CA

6/10/12
Debussy Danses sacrée et profane
John Adams Shaker Loops
John Luther Adams Dark Waves
Stravinsky Sacre du Printemps
 Libbey Bowl
Ojai Music Festival
Ojai, CA

Recent

Opera Reviews '10-'11

Opera Reviews '09-'10

Opera Reviews '06-'09

L.A. Phil Reviews '09/'10

L.A. Phil Reviews '08/'09

L.A. Theater Reviews

 

Follow Along

Brian

Los Angeles

Follow me on Twitter

Archives