Man and Superman
Newmark Theatre
April 8-15
www.pcs.org
“The philosopher abhors wedlock … as being an obstacle and fatality on his road to the optimum. Who among the great philosophers is knowm to have married? Heraclitus, Plato, Descartes, Spinoza, Kant, Schopenhauer – they were not: Nay we cannot so much as conceive them as married. A married philosopher is a figure of comedy.” It was Nietzsche who originated the “superman” concept in “Thus Spake Zarathustra,” giving George Bernard Shaw the concept for the play “Man and Superman.”
This delightful play brings to light the battle of wit and wills between a radical philosopher, Jack Tanner, and Ann Whitehead, a headstrong, beautiful, wealthy young woman determined to marry him. Much like Shaw himself, Jack believes that marriage will distract him from political and philosophical preoccupations that animate his very being. Ann is a woman on a mission. Their courtship comprises mad dashes in fast cars across three continents, plots and sub-plots, and even a scent of scandal that is not at all what it first appears.
Chris Coleman directs “Man and Superman,” with Klara Zieglevrova’s (“Outrage”) inventive set and Sydney Roberts’ (“The Devils”) beautiful costumes. As Shaw says, “It is a woman’s business to get married as soon as possible, and a man’s to keep unmarried as long as he can.”
Stark Raving Theatre premiers Kennedy Center honoree
2257 N.W. Raleigh
Thursday-Saturday at 8 p.m.
Sunday at 7 p.m.
$15 general admission; $10 students, educators, seniors
www.starkravingtheatre.org
503-232-7072
Remember this name: Joseph Fisher. He is a Portlander who is fast becoming one of the nation’s most sought-after playwrights. With the success of “Prometheus Bound” and “Cupid and Psyche,” he’s won the National Arts Club Playwrights First Award. He’s also been accepted into the prestigious New Dramatists, a New York organization with a reputation for nurturing some of the finest American playwrights of the 20th century.
Fisher’s new play, “Tundra,” was chosen by the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays as a recipient of a major grant to receive its world premier at Stark Raving Theatre.
This same fund has also recognized Pulitzer Prize-winning and Broadway hits such as “The Kentucky Cycle,” “The Heidi Chronicles” and “Angels in America: Part I.”
“Tundra,” set in a frozen town that sits on an arctic tree line, explores the loneliness and solitude that takes place in the equally frozen landscape of a tortured composer’s soul. With rumors surrounding the composer’s famous last piece, a journalist seeks out the retired composer with questions. Probing into his life, she learns the truth behind his last sonata, as well as the truth about the death of a young man years ago.
“Tundra” properly depicts the human emotional defense mechanism in all its stages, from the shutting down of the heart to avoid pain to the journey back to thaw it once more.
The play is directed by Matthew B. Zrebski, SRT’s artistic director. He is also a composer, playwright and producer who has collaborated with Fisher on numerous projects throughout their careers.
With an extremely talented cast and the resounding endorsement from the Kennedy Center Fund for New American Plays, “Tundra” is sure to be one of the most talked about plays this year.
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
April 12-14
$23-$65
www.orsymphony.org
Swing With The Big Bands!
Norman Leyden, the world’s foremost expert on the big-band style (given that he was an arranger for the great Glenn Miller Band),and his big band perform the enchanting music of Miller, Goodman and many others with vocalists Shirley Nanette and Michael Redman.
Nanette made her debut with the Oregon Symphony in 1981. She is a favorite of Pops concert audiences and has performed with James DePreist. She has also performed at other noteworthy Oregon institutions such as ArtQuake, The Mt. Hood Festival of Jazz, Cascade Music Festival and the Oregon Art Museum’s “Museum After Hours.”
Additionally, she’s opened for such music icons as Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, Lou Rawls and Eddie Harris.
In 1983, Nanette won the first “Star Search” national talent competition. Recognized as the “Best Female Vocalist of Portland” from 1981 to 1991, Nanette was the first minority and first female to win the Master Fellowship Grant from the Oregon Arts Commission. Her first release was in 1992 was called “See You Later.” It included compositions by Cole Porter, Rodgers and Hart, Irving Berlin, Michel LeGrand and George and Ira Gershwin.
Don’t be surprised if you actually recognize the famed Michael Redman. You might not know where to place him, but if you think long and hard, you’ll remember. He was a cast member of such vintage TV shows as “The Smothers Brothers,” “The Donny and Marie Show,” “The Carol Burnett Show” and “The Sonny and Cher Show.” His voice is equally recognizable in such creations as “The Little Mermaid,” “Yogi Bear,” “Scooby Doo,” “Pound Puppies” and “The Flintstones.” Additionally as a recording artist, Michael has performed and recorded with such noteworthy performers as Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, Ray Conniff, Henry Mancini, Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers, Gene Kelly and Glen Campbell.
He’s also appeared in TV shows such as “Eight is Enough,” “Little House on the Prairie” and “Highway to Heaven.”
There is no question as to Redman’s talent or skill as an artist. He continues his performance schedule of solo concertizing and recording, as well as sharing co-hosting chores with his wife, Cinda, on TV fund-raisers for various charities such as PBS pledge drives. Cinda Goold Redman is a concert pianist and chamber music performer appearing with the symphony orchestras and recitals internationally.
The name of Redman’s latest recording effort is titled “Michael Redman: Yesterday and Today.” It features a complementary blend of pop, contemporary, inspirational, standards, and that ever-present touch of jazz.