Lights! Costumes! Magic! Beetlejuice Brings the DPAC Audience to Its Feet!
“The costume and physical appearance of Lydia (Isabella Esler) is delightfully reminiscent of Christina Ricci's wardrobe as Wednesday in the 1991 film adaptation of The Addams Family or the costumes that Winona Rider wore when she played Lydia in Tim Burton's 1988 movie Beetlejuice. Whether speaking or singing, Esler's voice is prominent and clear, with the made-for-stage lilt and vibrato of a pop star.”
Mom’s Hugs and Kisses: A Review
Like Nancy Tafuri’s All Kinds of Kisses and Steven Henry’s picture book by the same name, Loupy’s story describes the different kisses given by numerous animals, in this case through a puppy protagonist who requests and receives others' kisses throughout the day. In the end, of course, “the best kiss of all is the kiss he gets from his mother.”
Q&A with Amberjack Author Melissa Rooney, Creator of Eddie the Electron
My Ph.D. advisor urged me to come back to work for him, eventually making me an offer he thought I couldn’t refuse. When I finally admitted that I hated lab work and, by no means, wanted to return to academics, he asked me, insistently, how I was going to put my degree to use. I told him I’ve always wanted to write a children’s book, he gave me a deadline, and Eddie the Electron was born.
#VoiceInMyHead on April 13, 2023:
Those who are not willing to listen are not willing to learn. Walk away. There are plenty of people in this world who you can work with and love. Problem solved. *** Now think about the factions that violently divide this country….
What to do with a Stick, by Jane Yolen: A Book Review
My 1st review for New York Journal of Books is Jane Yolen's What To Do With A Stick. JY’s Owl Moon is one of my absolute favorites - I take it to elementary writing residencies. The story being written by one of my current Winston Salem students centers on a stick, which I is surely no coincidence…
John Frazier Lights Up the PSI Stage as Ladies' Man Garry Essendine in Noël Coward's Present Laughter
Present Laughter, which was written in 1939, but not staged until 1942, due to World War II, opens on a young woman in her dressing robe, waiting in a sitting room for world-loved comic actor Garry Essendine to emerge from his bedroom. Daphne, played in dramatic juvenile fashion by Dani Coan, forgot her latchkey the previous night and had to spend the night in Essendine's "spare room" …
Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill Earns a Standing Ovation at the Durham Performing Arts Center
When the musical debuted in 2018, it became the highest-grossing production at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, MA, which is no surprise, given that Alanis Morissette's album by the same name is considered one of the most important albums of the '90s and of the alternative rock genre in general, selling 33 million copies, topping the charts in 13 countries, and winning five GRAMMYS, including Album of the Year….
Durham Students Sparkled in An Evening to Shine on Feb. 21st at DPAC
An Evening to Shine is an annual event, presented at the Durham Performing Arts Center by Durham Public Schools (DPS), in partnership with the Durham Public Schools Foundation, which showcases the talents of dedicated youth from every public school in the county. [Of note, the DPS Scholarship Foundation merged with the DPS Foundation in 2020.] Only a handful of students are selected from each school, and they must commit to five weekly two-hour rehearsals, plus two full days of preparation at DPAC before show time…
The Justice Theater Project's Performance of Mark St. Germain's Best of Enemies Is Transformative
As a young, Afro-Latina woman, Yamila Monge said that she wants the production to demonstrate appreciation for the difficult trailblazing of the previous generation and their glowing, though generally not well-known, examples of the healing transformation that can occur when even the most heated adversaries agree to work together and listen to one another…
Simple, Proven Self-Care Strategies for Kids
As with other essential disciplines, teaching your child the importance of self care begins with you. You must model healthy habits in your own life and show your child real-life examples of prioritizing them. This is not only good for your child, it’s good for you. With the help of Melissa B. Rooney, we share some simple tips…
The Power of Coffee
Waking up late on a Monday, this #VoiceInMyHead demanded a hearing, yielding this short poem and original song in honor of Coffee.
FrazierTales Collection Volume 2 by Mark and Chris Frazier Continues the Tradition Of Volume 1
Frazier Tales Volume 2 continues the whacky stories and overstimulating illustrations of Mark and Chris Frazier, based on a series of bed time stories Mark told his once three-year-old son. The storylines in Volume 2 mimic those in Volume 1 and, likewise, teach moral lessons based on inclusiveness…
Come From Away at DPAC Tells the True Story of the Stranding of 7000 Airline Passengers in Gander, Newfoundland, After 9/11
I was a little wary about seeing the Durham Performing Arts Center's presentation of Come from Away, playing through Sunday, Jan. 22nd, as part of WRAL Greatest Hits of Broadway at DPAC. This 2013 Sheridan College Canadian Music Theatre Project, 2017 Broadway, and 2019 West End musical, written by Irene Sankoff and David Hein, is based on the emergency landing of 38 airplanes (with 7,000 total passengers) in the Newfoundland town of Gander (population: 11,880) after the September 11, 2001 attacks.
The Beautiful Attrition of Family Relics
We have forfeited my grandmother’s chair to the cat and are appreciating its beautiful attrition…
FrazierTales Collection Volume 1 by Mark and Chris Frazier is Vivid and Easy-to-read
Today I review Frazier Tales Collection Volume 1, written by Mark and illustrated by Chris Frazier. It’s a hardcover volume of three illustrated children’s stories, so it’s a good value for money. And there are a lot of illustrations, all of them quite detailed and of the quality garnered by Ren and Stimpy or Rocko’s Modern Life, both Nickelodeon series…
Jump the Moon: A Children’s Picture Book Review
This morning I had the pleasure of reading Kathy Simmers’ and Marjorie van Heerden’s children’s picture book, Jump the Moon, about the mystical bond that forms between “the girl with the long blond hair” and the misbehaving pony she is charged with for a summer. The book is based on a true story involving the author’s daughter. I rode horses throughout my adolescence (was president of the riding team at my college), so the subject of Jump the Moon immediately spoke to me.
Zalman Raffael's Elegant Reinterpretation of The Nutcracker Sparkles
Not feeling that Christmas Spirit as much this year as in the past? Going to see the Carolina Ballet artistic director Zalman Raffael's reinterpretation of The Nutcracker, inspired by the Raleigh, NC-based ballet's previous productions by George Balanchine and Carolina Ballet's founding artistic director Robert Weiss, will change that. Last night, I saw The Nutcracker at the Durham Performing Arts Center, with my 12-year-old son, who had never seen the holiday staple and -- except for the melody of The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy (which I couldn't stop humming since we got the tickets) -- knew very little about it…
After Seeing JTP's Black Nativity in Concert, All This Reviewer Can Say Is, "Wowwie Wow Wow!"
I had the privilege of going to The Justice Theater Project's 2022 production of Langston Hughes' Black Nativity: A Gospel Christmas Musical Experience in Concerton Sunday, Dec 11th, at the Mount Calvary United Church of Christ in Durham; and can I just say: Wowwie Wow Wow...
Playing Possum a No Win
Three weeks ago, my son spotted a tiny opossum outside our house. The next day, he found the opossum in our garage. An Internet search suggested it was about 13 weeks old – too young for weaning. We put the little guy in a newspaper-lined box with fruit, cat-food and water. Over the next few days, our neighbors and we had rounded up 5 littermates…
Hairspray Will Have You Singing When You Wake Up the Next Morning
I woke up this morning humming "You Can't Stop the Beat," the hit song written by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman for the 2002 hit Broadway musical Hairspray, playing now through Sunday, Nov. 20th, at the Durham Performing Arts Center. It wasn't just the music that was in my head. Images of the actors in the Tuesday-night performance of this romantic comedy by Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan (based on John Waters' 1988 film) were singing and dancing across my mind as well. This can only make for a good review.