“What the Constitution Means to Me,” by contrast, is an audacious idea, one that starts slowly – at least in this format – before sinking in its hooks about halfway through. Heidi Schreck in 'What the Constitution Means to Me' Amazon “American Utopia” doesn’t set the screen ablaze, but Byrne and his collaborators certainly know how to put on a show, even when it feels like they’re going nowhere. Lee does an admirable job of shooting the performance from every conceivable angle, although while the overhead shots are quite cool, one could probably do without closeups on Byrne’s feet, which along with the rest of the performers, are bare.īyrne’s playlist includes the hit “Burning Down the House,” and a boisterous rendition of “Road to Nowhere,” which includes a march through the appreciative audience. The main drawback is that while Byrne addresses pressing issues during his chatting with the audience – including the importance of voting, and introducing his performance of Janelle Monae’s “Hell You Talmbout,” name-checking Black people killed by police – there’s scant thematic adhesive to the presentation, unlike some other productions wedding rock to Broadway (Bruce Springsteen’s “Springsteen on Broadway,” filmed for Netflix, comes to mind). On the plus side, that sense of fun is entertaining enough. (Like CNN, HBO is a unit of WarnerMedia.)īyrne, the Talking Heads front man, has always possessed a theatrical and cinematic flair, including his 1986 directorial effort “True Stories.” Those qualities inform “American Utopia,” a collection of songs – imaginatively choreographed and lit – that conveys the joyous and playful aspects of his music. Notably, HBO Max’s “The West Wing” special also captures some of that by bringing a TV show to the stage for the purposes of watching at home. Together, they underscore what “Hamilton” so impressively accomplished by conjuring that elusive magic. Discovered recently by a family descendant, the correspondence documents the thoughts and experiences of ordinary people struggling to uphold common ideals in demanding circumstances.With Broadway marquees dark, this weekend brings a welcome double dose of the New York stage to TV screens: “American Utopia,” David Byrne’s free-spirited concert, directed by Spike Lee for HBO and “What the Constitution Means to Me,” Heidi Schreck’s not-quite one-woman show, a searing political commentary that finds an at-home forum via Amazon.īoth shows are worth the time, although seeing them at home, frankly, reinforces what’s lost in translation given the tingle that live theater, at its best, can send up your spine – a sensation that doesn’t quite emerge on either front. This volume brings together a remarkable set of seventy-five letters written by the members of the Stetson family, who belonged to the Association for almost four years. Members sought to challenge the prevailing social attitudes of their day by creating a society in which "the rights of all are equal without distinction of sex, color or condition, sect or religion." In 1842, a group of radical abolitionists and social reformers established the Northampton Association of Education and Industry, a utopian community in western Massachusetts organized around a collectively owned and operated silk mill. ''Letters from an American Utopia'' allows those interested in Northampton's past, in this anniversary year, to let voices sound out of the wilderness of time, now two centuries distant. "Letters from an American Utopia" a remarkable collection of writings from a family that lived there. What a joy to look over the family's shoulders into the everyday life of the Northampton Association! For the first time we can see Sojourner Truth as a flesh-and-blood person enmeshed in her own family and the Association's activities, not in retrospect, but, as it were, in real time.". "The newly discovered Stetson letters answer a historian's prayer. Buckley, eds., Letters from an American Utopia: The Stetson Family and the Northampton Association, 1843-1847 (Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 2004) ![]() Museum Shop - Historic Northampton Museum and Education CenterĬhristopher Clark and Kerry W.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |