Radio City Music Hall is as lavish inside today as it was in its 1932 opening. It was supposed to be called the International Music Hall, but due to the influence of it's first tenant (RCA) - aka Radio Corporation of America, the name of "Radio City" stuck. Originally, this was supposed to be a live theater venue - which accounts for its giant, and I mean giant, stage. However, by 1933, the depth of the Depression, it was obvious that if the building was to remain open, it needed to become a movie theater which it was until the 1970's when it was moldering into decay. The plans were to tear it down, but some foresighted folks recognized that the magnificent art deco building should be saved and restored. Ironically, it went back to being a live music theater venue, and today is famed for its theatrical presentations as well as for the Rockettes (a tap dancing troop of Amazon women).
Cirque de Soleil, after a dismal failure in New York City with its previous show (Banana Schpeel), is back to the Big Apple and has taken over the famed Radio City for a new attempt called "Zarkana". We were delighted to get tickets since I've always wanted to see a Cirque show, and who can come to NYC without going to Radio City? Thus, our Friday night outing was planned.
In keeping with staying close to home when we are going into Manhattan for the evening, we decided to take in more floors of the Brooklyn Art Museum. We had read that the Brooklyn Museum had an unrivaled Egyptian collection, and we decided to compare it to the other three Egyptian exhibitions we have seen over the years. (We've been to King Tut twice and to the Hatshepsut, exhibition at the Amon Carter.) Let me tell you faithful readers, the Brooklyn Art Museum has this enormous, first class, jaw dropping collection that I knew was going to be special from the giant slabs of Assyrian carvings right on to their 'Mummy' room. The display techniques were spacious, involved a lot of glass cases so you could view the entire piece 360 degrees, and the pieces were displayed in separate interconnecting rooms that flowed down the length of ancient Egyptian history. There were not only artifacts, but lucid, brief placards and more in depth discussions via computer terminals with user interfaces scattered through out.
I'm sure everyone picked up on the word 'mummy' - and yes, they are displaying one mummy (in wrappings) and two still inside their cartonnage (Those are the wooden painted boxes shaped like mummys.) They also have an original Book of the Dead in this section. This section was deliberately and carefully presented so tastefully that it was not ghoulish in the slightest. It was more like a 'visitation' - a concept all Southerners will recognize.
Of course, you have to understand that basically all of the magnificent collection was looted from Egypt in the 19th century starting with British, French, German and American archaeologists (a 'new' profession at the time) who began uncovering and, to be fair, attempting to preserve Egypt's ancient history which was rapidly disintegrating from lack of care or the financial ability to do so by the Egyptians. And these new archaeologists were simply following a time honored tradition of spoils - I'm sure Alexander the Great and the following Romans took what they wanted too. Napoleon is famous for taking so much statuary and slabs of carvings from Egypt that they were stacked up like cordage for years before being distributed to museums. Where do you think the British Museum got the nucleus of its Egyptian collection?
In the 1800s and the early 20th century, archeologists' digs were financed by the wealthy who considered the finds to be their personal property - they paid for them, didn't they? Many would turn around and sell some of the excess finds, and there were plenty, to museums around the world - which is how the Brooklyn Museum wound up with this magnificent collection. To be fair, lots of wealthy philanthropists financed museum digs letting all the finds go directly to the museum. Ironically, the collection we saw in Brooklyn was supposed to be bound for the Met (a seller, not a philanthropist wanted to cash in), but the money couldn't be raised to buy it. By various machinations, the Brooklyn Museum wound up with the goods. Today, the Brooklyn Museum is very, very quick to point out via a large placard that they don't buy ANYTHING from anybody but the Egyptian government since the 1983 antiquities laws went into effect which makes it a crime to take ancient artifacts out of Egypt. However, nothing seems to be going back to Egypt either.
Judge for yourself - the pictures show the magnificence better than words. Start the presentation about halfway thru - you'll see the Assyrians - you can't miss them.
https://picasaweb.google.com/jalyss1/NewYorkCityBrooklyn?authkey=Gv1sRgCK_S1Ly06YmR_wE#
As to the Cirque de Soleil performance - gaudy, acrobatic, musical, computer special effects and beautifully showcased by Radio City. I would give the effort a "B" - nice, but not WOW! I'm glad I paid $62 a ticket rather than $250. The same for our dinner (City Lobster and Steak) - very excellent service, great location, but the food was just a "B". I wasn't disappointed so much as I'm realizing as I eat in more places here, that it should have been better.
Stay tuned - today we are going to see Robin Williams in "The Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo" - he plays the tiger.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Thursday, June 9, 2011
The New York City Public Library and Grand Central Station
Today, we decided to do 'free' - a rare thing in New York City. We took the subway into Manhattan and went to Bryant Park, and the famous New York City Public Library, and had lunch at Grand Central Station.
I got my picture taken with a 'lion' (either Patience or Fortitude - so named by Fiorello LaGuardia, famous New York City Mayor during the depression. The library is probably the most recognized public library in the world, and we were so fortunate to see it during it's 100 year anniversary. The cornerstone for the library was laid in 1902, but it wasn't completed until 1911. It's first major benefactor was John Jacob Astor, and the entrance hall is called 'Astor Hall'. The architecture is very impressive like everything else built during this time period, and the marble floors were so hard that when it opened all the employees were issued rubber soled shoes.
The library has a thrilling centennial exhibition showcasing parts of its collection, Today we saw an original copy of the Declaration of Independence, a score in Beethoven's handwriting, the first Gutenberg Bible printed on a movable type printing press, Charles Dicken's letter opener (the end of which was the PAW OF HIS DEAD PET CAT), one of Martin Luther King's original letters from the Birmingham jail, a first edition score of the Star Spangled Banner, Charlotte Bronte's portable writing desk, 5000 year old cuneiforms, side by side with a laptop computer. There were so many great objects, and the exhibition was free!
We strolled down the street in sweltering heat today - thank heaven this isn't July - to Grand Central Station for lunch and saw more impressive architecture. It's still a functioning train station but is also has the most sophisticated food court I've ever seen - no McDonald's or Burger King here, but rather individually owned boutique restaurants and carry outs. We actually ate the NYC version of Mexican food today which was good, but not Tex-Mex. Grand Central Station is marble, marble and more marble. Even the doors on the stalls in the bathrooms looked like marble.
This part of NY is very vital with lots of people, lots of commerce, lots of shopping and lots of food. In some ways it seems to epitomize New York City more than Times Square does to me. Here are the pictures - you be the judge
https://picasaweb.google.com/jalyss1/NewYorkCityPublicLibraryBryantParkGrandCentralStation?authkey=Gv1sRgCIHixMHNpv2Xbg#
I got my picture taken with a 'lion' (either Patience or Fortitude - so named by Fiorello LaGuardia, famous New York City Mayor during the depression. The library is probably the most recognized public library in the world, and we were so fortunate to see it during it's 100 year anniversary. The cornerstone for the library was laid in 1902, but it wasn't completed until 1911. It's first major benefactor was John Jacob Astor, and the entrance hall is called 'Astor Hall'. The architecture is very impressive like everything else built during this time period, and the marble floors were so hard that when it opened all the employees were issued rubber soled shoes.
The library has a thrilling centennial exhibition showcasing parts of its collection, Today we saw an original copy of the Declaration of Independence, a score in Beethoven's handwriting, the first Gutenberg Bible printed on a movable type printing press, Charles Dicken's letter opener (the end of which was the PAW OF HIS DEAD PET CAT), one of Martin Luther King's original letters from the Birmingham jail, a first edition score of the Star Spangled Banner, Charlotte Bronte's portable writing desk, 5000 year old cuneiforms, side by side with a laptop computer. There were so many great objects, and the exhibition was free!
We strolled down the street in sweltering heat today - thank heaven this isn't July - to Grand Central Station for lunch and saw more impressive architecture. It's still a functioning train station but is also has the most sophisticated food court I've ever seen - no McDonald's or Burger King here, but rather individually owned boutique restaurants and carry outs. We actually ate the NYC version of Mexican food today which was good, but not Tex-Mex. Grand Central Station is marble, marble and more marble. Even the doors on the stalls in the bathrooms looked like marble.
This part of NY is very vital with lots of people, lots of commerce, lots of shopping and lots of food. In some ways it seems to epitomize New York City more than Times Square does to me. Here are the pictures - you be the judge
https://picasaweb.google.com/jalyss1/NewYorkCityPublicLibraryBryantParkGrandCentralStation?authkey=Gv1sRgCIHixMHNpv2Xbg#
Art and Ballet - What more could you want?
I'm telling you that each day just gets better and better.
We started our day with a visit to the Brooklyn Museum of Art - which is second only to the Metropolitan in size and scope. It's a 5 story building in the Beaux Arts style of architecture which means lots of mythical allusion and marble with columns, rotundas and arches. In other words, it's real 'purty'. We were amazed at the quality of art available here. The most interesting part of the top 2 floors (all we had time to see) was the Henry Luce exhibition of a chronology of American Art from 1700's to present which incorporated not only paintings but also the decorative arts all put together to give a more rounded representation of the art of a specific period, and all the pieces were from the museum's collection.
This museum also had a presentation I'd never seen before: Storage viewing. They put tons more of their collection into large glass enclosed shelving and then they let patrons wonder around these cases and look at stuff grouped by type. The pictures make it obvious. Here's a set of pix to look at which sets out the Brooklyn Art Museum
https://picasaweb.google.com/jalyss1/NewYorkCityBrooklyn?authkey=Gv1sRgCK_S1Ly06YmR_wE#
I've been anticipating last evening's entertainment since March when I bought two tickets to "Jewels", a George Balanchine ballet by the New York Ballet. A little background for my non-ballet friends: "Jewels" is a three act ballet thought to be the first non-storyline ballet ever produced. That means just free form dancing without a story plot. The legend says that Balanchine visited VanCleef and Arpel and was so taken with their beautiful jewelry that he NAMED his ballet Jewels. (After the jewelry exhibit, I can really understand how he came under the spell of those beautiful baubles.) The ballet itself has nothing to do with jewelry - one act is called Emeralds and all the costuming is green, the composer is Fauve and the style is strictly classical. The second act is called Rubies, the costuming is devil red and the style is jazz to the music of Stravinsky, and the third act is called Diamonds with white/sparkle costuming and the style of Swan Lake with music by Tchaikovsky.
The dancing was so superb that I now understand why NYC Ballet is considered to be one of the top two companies in the United States. It was thrilling and each act transported you to your own private fantasy. The Pas de Deax in the final act was the most magnificent I've ever seen - the prima ballerina was just ethereal. Good ballet is always a pleasure; great ballet is transcendent. We saw great ballet last night.
The theater itself was impressive. It was reminiscent of the Wortham in Houston, but with better seats for all price levels. We sat on the second row of the second tier, and the seats were fabulous. Lincoln Center has this wide lovely plaza with a fountain in the center of it ringed by the various theaters that make up the Center. We ate in a classic New York restaurant right across the street that's been there for about 40 years. (Cafe Fiorello) Our meal was excellent as only a $200 meal should be. To top off the perfect evening, Drake went over to the American Ballet Theater (across the Lincoln Center Plaza) and bought tickets to the ABT's production of SWAN LAKE later this month and we are going to get to go with Jay and Sarah. Another great evening coming up, in which we will get to see the second great ballet company of the USA.
We started our day with a visit to the Brooklyn Museum of Art - which is second only to the Metropolitan in size and scope. It's a 5 story building in the Beaux Arts style of architecture which means lots of mythical allusion and marble with columns, rotundas and arches. In other words, it's real 'purty'. We were amazed at the quality of art available here. The most interesting part of the top 2 floors (all we had time to see) was the Henry Luce exhibition of a chronology of American Art from 1700's to present which incorporated not only paintings but also the decorative arts all put together to give a more rounded representation of the art of a specific period, and all the pieces were from the museum's collection.
This museum also had a presentation I'd never seen before: Storage viewing. They put tons more of their collection into large glass enclosed shelving and then they let patrons wonder around these cases and look at stuff grouped by type. The pictures make it obvious. Here's a set of pix to look at which sets out the Brooklyn Art Museum
https://picasaweb.google.com/jalyss1/NewYorkCityBrooklyn?authkey=Gv1sRgCK_S1Ly06YmR_wE#
I've been anticipating last evening's entertainment since March when I bought two tickets to "Jewels", a George Balanchine ballet by the New York Ballet. A little background for my non-ballet friends: "Jewels" is a three act ballet thought to be the first non-storyline ballet ever produced. That means just free form dancing without a story plot. The legend says that Balanchine visited VanCleef and Arpel and was so taken with their beautiful jewelry that he NAMED his ballet Jewels. (After the jewelry exhibit, I can really understand how he came under the spell of those beautiful baubles.) The ballet itself has nothing to do with jewelry - one act is called Emeralds and all the costuming is green, the composer is Fauve and the style is strictly classical. The second act is called Rubies, the costuming is devil red and the style is jazz to the music of Stravinsky, and the third act is called Diamonds with white/sparkle costuming and the style of Swan Lake with music by Tchaikovsky.
The dancing was so superb that I now understand why NYC Ballet is considered to be one of the top two companies in the United States. It was thrilling and each act transported you to your own private fantasy. The Pas de Deax in the final act was the most magnificent I've ever seen - the prima ballerina was just ethereal. Good ballet is always a pleasure; great ballet is transcendent. We saw great ballet last night.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Arts and Crafts
Today was another museum day, but the ones we saw today aren't the most popular even though they are in the "museum district". We went to see the American Folk Art Museum and the Museum of Art and Design (formerly the American Craft Museum). These are actually complementary in that the Folk Art Museum specializes in pre-20th century pieces and the Art and Design focuses on contemporary art pieces. This is the stuff that the debate always rages whether it is really 'art' or not. Even today, Drake was quite skeptical - not of the older stuff, but of about 1/3rd of the contemporary pieces that we saw.
The Folk Art Museum has declared this year is the Year of the Quilt - as everyone knows, you really had to twist my arm to go here. The quilts were amazing, and we are even going to get to see more of them at Lincoln Center tomorrow night where this museum has a 'branch' that's open until 7:30 in the evening.
I also saw Central Park from another angle - the corner of it from Columbus Circle - made famous in the Judy Holiday/Jack Lemon movie "It Could Happen to You". Columbus Circle figures prominently in the movie, but I feel sorry for Peter Lawton who had to DRIVE his car around and around the circle. I can't imagine why ANYONE would ever want to drive a car here. We also ate lunch at at Irish Pub today, and I has some succulent corned beef and a Harp's, of course. I'm pretty sure there's going to be a pedi-cab ride around Central Park in my future. It looks like a fun way to see the Park. We look so tourist that we actually had two people accost us trying to sell the pedi-cab tour to us. One of the things I learned on my Gray-Line tour is you can tour the park by horse and carriage and smell horse-shit or for 1/2 the price and no horse manure smell do it by pedi-cab.
Tomorrow is the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, and LINCOLN CENTER! It's ballet night tomorrow night with a lovely dinner preceding the performance. I still haven't had a bad meal here.
Here are the pictures from today - I hope you enjoy the pieces of art as much as I did
https://picasaweb.google.com/jalyss1/NewYorkCityAmericanCraftMuseumAndMuseumOfArtAndDesign?authkey=Gv1sRgCNf5uPrI6qr0gAE#
The Folk Art Museum has declared this year is the Year of the Quilt - as everyone knows, you really had to twist my arm to go here. The quilts were amazing, and we are even going to get to see more of them at Lincoln Center tomorrow night where this museum has a 'branch' that's open until 7:30 in the evening.
I also saw Central Park from another angle - the corner of it from Columbus Circle - made famous in the Judy Holiday/Jack Lemon movie "It Could Happen to You". Columbus Circle figures prominently in the movie, but I feel sorry for Peter Lawton who had to DRIVE his car around and around the circle. I can't imagine why ANYONE would ever want to drive a car here. We also ate lunch at at Irish Pub today, and I has some succulent corned beef and a Harp's, of course. I'm pretty sure there's going to be a pedi-cab ride around Central Park in my future. It looks like a fun way to see the Park. We look so tourist that we actually had two people accost us trying to sell the pedi-cab tour to us. One of the things I learned on my Gray-Line tour is you can tour the park by horse and carriage and smell horse-shit or for 1/2 the price and no horse manure smell do it by pedi-cab.
Tomorrow is the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, and LINCOLN CENTER! It's ballet night tomorrow night with a lovely dinner preceding the performance. I still haven't had a bad meal here.
Here are the pictures from today - I hope you enjoy the pieces of art as much as I did
https://picasaweb.google.com/jalyss1/NewYorkCityAmericanCraftMuseumAndMuseumOfArtAndDesign?authkey=Gv1sRgCNf5uPrI6qr0gAE#
Monday, June 6, 2011
Diamonds, Diamonds and more Diamonds plus Rubies and Emeralds
Well, they wouldn't let me take pix of the jewelry that we saw today. We went to the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum in the Carnegie Mansion where the exhibit is the jewelry design of Van Cleef and Arpel, a jewelry business run by one family in both France and the United States, New York, of course. They are famous for their innovative designs that have managed to lead the changing styles over the decades. This family has been designing jewelry for the very rich and the very famous since 1900. Princess Grace of Monaco as well as Elizabeth Taylor and, wait for it, the infamous Wallis Warfield Simpson AKA the slut that caused Edward to abdicate in 1936 because he couldn't live without her and English law forbade him to marry an American divorcee are the types of customers we are talking about here.
Seriously, the jewelry was breathtaking and you could definitely see and understand the design elements that the Cooper Hewitt was trying to display. The pieces are truly spectacular. Lots of the pieces are so big that you have to wonder exactly where you could wear some of this stuff. Ladies manage though. They also designed evening purses, cigarette cases and compacts. There was an amusing story that Frances Gould (a big tycoon's wife) was carrying her 'necessaries' around in a metal Lucky Strike tin when she went out. The Van Cleef and Arpel family decided they could meet that need and thus, some really cunning cases were designed, executed and sold to ladies like Frances Gould.
If you would like to see some examples of the jewelry (not the exact ones, but very close) click on this website http://www.google.com/search?q=van+cleef+and+arpels+jewelry+pictures&hl=en&rlz=1G1ASUS_ENUS321&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=LX7tTaezMMLi0QHW6byhAQ&ved=0CEwQsAQ&biw=1191&bih=583
We also took a little stroll along one edge of Central Park today and ate in another new restaurants called Sarabeth's. This was a ladies luncheon spot - very upscale, very upper west side. These women are hilarious. You can spot them a mile away. First, they all wear black - I swear these New Yorkers look like they've just come from a funeral. The ladies on the Upper West Side just have his sort of 'buffed and polished' look that you can only achieve with money. We did a little window shopping and each shop window is like a piece of art - and they are all selling these women lots or crap they really don't need. However, it's all pretty and in the very best of taste.
More exciting things are upcoming: New York City Ballet at Lincoln Center; Cirque de Soleil performance at Radio City Music Hall; the American Folk Art Museum; the Brooklyn Botanical Garden to name a few. Stay tuned - it just keeps getting more fun by the day.
Seriously, the jewelry was breathtaking and you could definitely see and understand the design elements that the Cooper Hewitt was trying to display. The pieces are truly spectacular. Lots of the pieces are so big that you have to wonder exactly where you could wear some of this stuff. Ladies manage though. They also designed evening purses, cigarette cases and compacts. There was an amusing story that Frances Gould (a big tycoon's wife) was carrying her 'necessaries' around in a metal Lucky Strike tin when she went out. The Van Cleef and Arpel family decided they could meet that need and thus, some really cunning cases were designed, executed and sold to ladies like Frances Gould.
If you would like to see some examples of the jewelry (not the exact ones, but very close) click on this website http://www.google.com/search?q=van+cleef+and+arpels+jewelry+pictures&hl=en&rlz=1G1ASUS_ENUS321&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=LX7tTaezMMLi0QHW6byhAQ&ved=0CEwQsAQ&biw=1191&bih=583
We also took a little stroll along one edge of Central Park today and ate in another new restaurants called Sarabeth's. This was a ladies luncheon spot - very upscale, very upper west side. These women are hilarious. You can spot them a mile away. First, they all wear black - I swear these New Yorkers look like they've just come from a funeral. The ladies on the Upper West Side just have his sort of 'buffed and polished' look that you can only achieve with money. We did a little window shopping and each shop window is like a piece of art - and they are all selling these women lots or crap they really don't need. However, it's all pretty and in the very best of taste.More exciting things are upcoming: New York City Ballet at Lincoln Center; Cirque de Soleil performance at Radio City Music Hall; the American Folk Art Museum; the Brooklyn Botanical Garden to name a few. Stay tuned - it just keeps getting more fun by the day.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Impressions of Broadway
I was excited to get two for one tickets this weekend. Ticket prices run from $75 to $400 per ticket. Average is about $140 each. Well, you can see that if you can get two tickets for the price of one it's a major savings. The only shows not available at the twofer window (so far) are Lion King and The Book of Mormon - which tops the ticket prices at about $400 a ticket. I'm NEVER going to pay that kind of money for a 3 hour performance. Drake has cleverly found the way to the Brooklyn outlet of two for one tickets which turns out to be about 2 subway stops away. It does take a little effort - and you can only buy for the day of the performance or for tomorrow's matinee. Thus, we got matinee tickets for Saturday and Sunday and saved about $300 dollars. Worth a little effort.
On Saturday we went to see Jerusalem, a play that has been nominated for Tony awards for Best Play of 2011 and Best Actor. Even more thrilling was that my first Broadway show (on the actual Great White Way) was at the Music Box Theater. This is a famous theater built by Irving Berlin and Sam Harris in the 1920's. This is the stage where the Moss Hart George Kaufman plays were first seen - "Once in a Lifetime" and "The Man Who Came to Dinner" - these guys are Pulitzer winning playwrights.
What was the most surprising was not the quality of the performance - I expected that, but rather the size of the theater. Now, I've seen Broadway plays - the traveling companies who take a mega hit (think Cats or Man from LaMancha or Rent, etc.) and bring it to Houston, Dallas, even Tulsa. However, when that happens, the venue is always huge - thousands of seats in an auditorium type setting. Modestly priced tickets are so far from the action that the actors seem more like dolls than people. At least that's what it was like when I was younger.
Ah, but the Music Box Theater is a little jewel. There are between 500 and 2000 seats - that's actually the definition of a 'Broadway' show. The Music Box has much fewer than 2000 seats. What constitutes an off-Broadway show is the theater has fewer than 500 seats. Therefore, our two for one tickets have been stupendous. We were in the orchestra for both performances we saw this weekend - and not in the far back either.
Today we tried a musical performance - called The Million Dollar Quartet. It's based on the true story that one night in December of 1956, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis met Sam Phillips, the owner of Sun Records in Memphis and had themselves an old fashioned jam session. This is the 'book' for about 2 hours of early rock and roll music including Blue Suede Shoes, Great Balls of Fire, Hound Dog, Walk the Line, Folsom Prison, etc. The actors playing Elvis, etc. were also musicians, and I mean musicians - their piano, guitar, bass and drum playing was what you would expect from New York City talent. This is a popular show especially with people of a certain age - those about 10 years older than Drake and I remember the real people and the real performances. My mother had a friend who actually went to see Elvis Presley perform in the 1950's and she became an ardent fan buying every record he ever made.
Bottom line: whether it's a drama or a musical - Broadway performances are everything and more that you've ever heard. There's a whole class of actors and entertainers who forsake the national media (TV, radio, movies) in favor of live performance in New York City. They are about the world's smallest professional league, and they are fabulous. I can't wait to see more of their work.
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