Parks and Points - Wishing George a Happy Birthday

Parks and Points - Wishing George a happy birthday

Posted by TBN Editor On 02/22/2018

Hollywood, MD - Happy Birthday to George Washington, who would probably be mortified to know that his birthday (Feb. 22) is now celebrated by re-adjusting the date to fit conveniently around a 3-day weekend.

Sotterley's Spring Calendar March 26 - 30: Spring Break at Sotterley; April 7: Third Annual 5K Trail Run; April 8: Taste of Sotterley; April 11: Homeschool Day; April 19 - 21: "Save the Date" for a special multi-purpose event "Common Ground, Connected Heritage," to explore and celebrate uniquely American stories and Heritage. For more information, you may check the website at: sotterley.org or you may call 301-373-2280.

CHESS Plays at the Kennedy Center A concert version of the 1988 Broadway musical, CHESS, saw a limited run in the Eisenhower Theatre at the Kennedy Center last week. The musical, inspired by the 1972 Fischer-Spassky chess match, has seen several revisions; the latest book is by Danny Strong, producer of the TV show Empire and writer of many of its episodes. CHESS is best known for its music by ABBA's Benny Anderson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, and for its lyrics by Tim Rice (former Andrew Lloyd Webber collaborator for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Evita). Devoted fans will not be disappointed. CHESS is criticized for its convoluted plot and indeed, Peter Marks' review in the Feb.17 Washington Post was not too kind although Mr. Marks did praise the singing of the four leads. Indeed, veteran Broadway performer and rock-star persona Raul Esparaza (Freddie Trumper, the American champ), Ramin Karimloo - also a Broadway veteran (Anatoly, the Russian champ), Tony Award winner Karen Olivo (Florence, Freddie's "girlfriend"), and Ruthie Ann Miles - a Tony award winner for Broadway's 2015 The King and I (Svetlana, Anatoly's wife) all took advantage of myriad opportunities to demonstrate their powerhouse voices. Additional intrigue was also provided by Bradley Dean (Molokov, KGB), Sean Allan Krill (Walter, CIA), and Bryce Pinkham (Narrator). The plot may be convoluted, involving not only the game of chess and a couple of love triangles in addition to the political intrigue, but it is certainly interesting and entertaining. The 19-piece orchestra and the singing-dancing ensemble were comprised of thrilling performers (kudos to guest guitarist Matt Hinkley). The ensemble, dressed modestly in gray (dresses for the women, suits for the men), stripped tantalizingly down to red bikini underwear (guys too!) for the show-stopper rendition of the immediately recognizable ""One Night in Bangkok" (yes, CHESS is where this song comes from!) This concert version, aided by projections which featured Ronald Reagan, J. Robert Oppenheimer and scenes of military parades, ran almost 3 hours long. There had been a 10-minute start time delay at the Sunday matinee due to the illness of one of the stars—this announcement elicited groans from many in the audience, who had agreed to perform anyway. This follow-up announcement received cheers. The singers' amplified voices were only out-matched by the amplification of the orchestra. All four theatre lovers in our party admitted to missing chunks of both solo and ensemble singing even though we could see each character making a supreme effort to enunciate. The singers were loud but the orchestra was louder, the only drawback to the afternoon. Music director was Chris Fenwick; Michael Mayer was director, Lorin Latarro was the choreographer; and Anders Elias was arranger and orchestrator. There is a possibility that CHESS will see a Broadway revival sometime in 2018, so if you missed this concert version, perhaps there is a chance that a fully-staged version will make its way back to the Kennedy Center eventually.

Contact Ellynne Davis at [email protected]

Page 1