James Taylor and Fireworks at Tanglewood on the Fourth
Mark Morris and Garrison Keillor Shoulder into Levine and Berlioz
By: Charles Giuliano - Jun 30, 2008
Moments after appearing on stage, at 5:45 PM, in the sold out Koussevitzky Shed of Tanglewood, on Saturday night, Garrison Keillor, tall and lanky in a blue suit, with white shirt, and flowing red tie, grabbed a mike and bounded off stage. While the band of his Prairie Home Companion vamped behind him, Keillor, looking more like a disheveled and a bit deranged, middle class business man than a crooner/ celebrity charged down the aisle.
The audience bolted out of their chairs straining to catch a glimpse of Keillor who announced that he was on his way to greet the thousands spread out on the lawn, far from the stage, and watching the action on a giant video screen mounted above the outer edge of the shed.
Perhaps to make us feel a tinge jealous those in the Shed were informed that the folks spread out on the lawn had "food and are drinking champagne." By contrast food and drink are verboten in the Shed. Water in clear bottles is allowed.
While the lawn folks were enjoying their food and drink there was a drizzle to contend with. Keillor broke into a heart wrenching version of "Singing in the Rain." That evoked an enormous chorus of approval. For the next fifteen minutes Keillor strolled about working the crowd before ambling back on stage to start the National Public Radio broadcast promptly at 6 PM. Briefly he clowned and cavorted about with a white towel draped over his head.
There were all the familiar elements of the popular National Public Radio show. There was a special episode of Guy Noir the private detective solving a crime set in Lenox. It provided a lot of in jokes and occasions for the sound specialist to mimic various instruments. There were musical intervals by the witty Bluegrass band of Del McCoury. Their "Forty Acres and Pool" was an amusing send up of a dude moonlighting as a cowboy. The New Hampshire based poet, Donald Hall, read from his recent work. A man popped out of his seat when Keillor crooned an Elvis song. But he was urged to sit down by a concerned usher. Such outbursts of joy are simply not allowed.
Keillor was entertaining during what is known as the Shoulder Season which precedes the official opening night of the summer long residence of the renowned Boston Symphony Orchestra. That official opening occurs on Saturday, July 5 when artistic director, James Levine, will conduct a much anticipated concert version of "The Trojans" by Berlioz, to be sung in French with English supertitles. Actually, that will represent Part One of the opera. The Berlioz production will conclude on Sunday as the Wilmer and Douglas Thomas Concert, at 2:30 PM. Sarting next Sunday, and throughout the season, the afternoon concerts will be broadcast live by WGBH FM hosted by Ron Della Chiesa.
As what has now become established as a tradition for the Shoulder Season the Mark Morris Dance Group performed in the more intimate setting of the Ozawa Hall on Thursday and Friday. Again, these were sold out performances with a small group of lawn folks seated at the edge of the open end of the Hall. Fortunately, it was an exquisite and rare evening during what has been a rainy spell for the past three weeks.
It is difficult to argue with success as all of the Shoulder Season events, of which it seems that there are too few, have been sold out. The James Taylor shows this week, on Thursday and Friday, were sold out within hours of tickets going on sale. It seems that Lawn tickets are scalped starting at $50 and Shed seats are getting rock star prices. At the other bookend of the Shoulder Season, after the BSO packs up and heads back to Boston, there will be what is becoming another Berkshire tradition The Tanglewood Jazz Festival from Friday, August 29 through Sunday, August 31. This event is held in Ozawa Hall but with more aggressive booking and planning could easily expand to the Shed.
While it is unproductive to argue with success it appears that the first half of the Shoulder Season has become all too predictable. It is more about branding than adventure. While Morris, Keillor, and Taylor are a winning combination, indeed money in the bank, at what point does the programming go to the well too many times? Why not vary the formula by presenting another leading dance company just for variety? Or pop artists other than Keillor and Taylor? Why not shift a jazz or blues night into the beginning of the season rather than waiting until its end? This is a debate that has been sustained through Berkshire Eagle editorials and letters to the editor but which appears to fall on deaf ears at the BSO. The key issue revolves around creating a younger audience that will sustain Tanglewood through years to come.
That tipping point may, heaven forbid, come sooner than we think. While Tanglewood appears to be getting off with a bang most folks bought their tickets months ago. Today the price of sweet crude is $143 a barrel. Gas is over $4 a gallon with no end in sight. Last week the stock market plunged over 500 points with the DOW at around 11,500 down from a year high of over 14,000. Those are the realities today as families plan for vacations and budget entertainment dollars. Even critics are feeling the pain at the pump. Everyone is scaling back. The wild card in this sour economy is that the Berkshires may prove more affordable that other vacation destinations.
As always it was a privilege to enjoy the Mark Morris Dance Group. But there was a sense of familiarity and lack of adventure and experimentation in the programming that, given the setting, appeared to be Chamber Dance.
The evening featured Love Songs and Waltzes. These were set to the Neue Liebeslieder Waltzer, Opus 65 of Brahms. A new work, Excursions, set to the piano of Barber. And, Bedtime, with music of Schubert. There was an insert with translations of the poetry in the program. My German born wife, Astrid, was familiar with the lullabies and serenades including a poignant poem by Goethe "Der Erlkoenig."
At this point in his career, Morris, who was seated in the audience, and appeared on stage for a curtain call, no longer dances. We recall the remarkable and riveting experiences of seeing him perform. It always conveyed with lightning rod intensity the essence of his persona and radical approach to combining modern dance, folk traditions and traditional ballet.
Today the company is his instrument. We experience the Morris ensemble and there are, as such, no soloists or star performers. While flawless in executing his concepts there is a lack of the kind of passion that comes from a brilliant soloist taking an evening to another level. Instead, the works we viewed, while well crafted and disciplined, seem too much an extension of the studio. We feel the presence of Morris instructing the company in an eccentric movement. At one point, for example, there is a curious wrinkle in which a dancer drags the legs of a partner over those of a third dancer lying on the ground. It is awkward, curious and interesting. But it is too much a part of the Morris vocabulary of quirky gestures which, when woven through an evening of chamber pieces, can tend to the enervating. We are all too familiar with Morris's same sex partnering, gender blending, non balletic, mismatched body types, and every possible variation on folk derived line dancing, running, circling, diagonals, lifting, reaching and crawling. To Brahms and Schubert. Thanks heavens for a dash of Barber.
Through repeated exposure one comes to grasp the style and approach of a company. An evening of Morris no longer feels as fresh and dynamic as it once was. We miss the outrageous, risk taking. Today the company seems too safe and academic. It suffers as a paradigm of modern dance and the curse of success. Brahms and Shubert may be perfect for Tanglewood and Ozawa Hall but one would like to see and hear more experimental work. The applause of the audience was warm and appreciative but, dare we say it, damned with faint praise. Morris used to leave us hungry while now both he and the audience appear to be well fed.
But, as the Tanglewood season is fully launched this week, well, tomorrow is another day. The next few days will be Taylor made. So pack the snacks and champagne and we'll see you under the stars. Hope it don't rain.