A Singer’s Notes by Keith Kibler – Page 2

A Moment between Gustav (Jonathan Epstein) and Adolphe (Ryan Winkles) in Strindberg's Creditors. Photo Eloy Garcia.

A Singer’s Notes 146: August Strindberg’s Creditors at Shakespeare and Company

September 9, 2018September 9, 2018Keith Kibler

The plays of August Strindberg that I know tend to reach their greatest intensity in the middle. His plays crave engagement. Energy is all. This was shown deftly, powerfully in Shakespeare and Company’s production of Creditors. Convincing performances were provided by Jonathan Epstein as Gustav, Ryan Winkles as Adolph, and Kristin Wold as Tekla. As Gustav, Mr. Epstein was the mover and shaker. He had been given the difficult task of showing a kind of hidden abuse in the guise of providing instruction in living to the young Adolph, Mr. Winkles.

A Singer’s Notes 145: Great Beginnings with the TMC Orchestra

August 24, 2018Arts Press

The first two concerts this summer season by the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra were among the best I have heard in several decades. The energy level was palpable. The intensity of the playing, particularly the strings, was a marvel. The two greatest challenges for the ensemble were Strauss’s Ein Heldenleben and the Leonore Overture No. 3 of Beethoven.

A Singer’s Notes 144: Aston Magna, “Dueling Violins, Genial Gambas, June 30 at Saint James Place in Great Barrington

August 24, 2018August 24, 2018Arts Press

At the risk of repeating myself, I must once again give my best praise to Aston Magna’s concert, “Dueling Violins, Genial Gambas,” on June 30 at Saint James Place in Great Barrington. Though I am not on the lookout for poor performances from anyone, I am continually amazed at the high level of the participating artists in this group. The style has become an easy, normal thing, speaking clearly to us centuries later in large part because of the ease these wonderful players show.

A Singer’s Notes 143: Aston Magna in Great Barrington: “A Baroque Cornucopia”

July 2, 2018July 2, 2018Keith Kibler

What is best in Aston Magna’s concerts is a complete lack of pretension, whether it is Daniel Stepner’s quiet erudition or the singing of soprano Dominique Labelle, who shows an almost childlike identification with the music she sings, this requiring of course, a superb technique. The players take pleasure in the style which they have mastered so completely. It doesn’t proselytize or force anything on you. We are a family, privileged to hear some of the greatest music there is.

"The Game": (Left to Right) Baseball Players- Gino Cardoni, Charlie Munday, Jonah Hale, Nathaniel Dolquist, Jayke Workman, Chris Hendricks.

A Singer’s Notes 142: Damn Yankees at the Mac-Haydn Theatre

June 8, 2018June 13, 2018Keith Kibler

A show both rollicking and precise began the season at the Mac-Haydn Theatre in Chatham, New York. Among several accomplished performances, Corrinne Tork as Lola connected the threads of the play into the real thing and raised her performance to an expression of kindness. Damn Yankees purports to be a play about baseball, but it is really a soul-searching adventure. Baseball is only a tangental part of the action, although the writer does allow a victory for all at the end. What really mattered and what really played as if it mattered, was the progress the major characters taught themselves.

A Singer’s Notes 141: A New Leader for Bach at New Year’s, and some Favorite Memories from 2017

March 14, 2018March 14, 2018Keith Kibler

Many remarkable performances, a few have stayed in my ear. Principally among them are the beautiful singing of Dominique Labelle with Aston Magna. This marvelous artist has an inborn purity to her singing which requires no special treatment. She has a stillness, in her demeanor and singing, which is second to none. I would happily hear her sing every day.

Kate Henning's The Last Wife by WAM: Nehassaiu deGannes as Kate, John Madden as Henry VIII, David Joseph as Thom.

A Singer’s Notes 140: The Last Wife, by Kate Hennig; directed by Kelly Galvin – WAM Theatre at Shakespeare & Co.’s Bernstein Theater

November 8, 2017November 8, 2017Keith Kibler

I have been a fan of Kelly Galvin ever since her wonderful performance as Madame de Tourvel in Dangerous Liaisons with Shakespeare and Company, years ago. The detail alone in Ms. Galvin’s performance was stunning. Even more impressive now is her direction of Kate Hennig’s The Last Wife, produced by WAM Theatre in Shakespeare and Company’s Bernstein Theatre. The simple set focused our attention—a simple backdrop, a pull-out bed with ample drawers.

Amy Hayes, Richard Howe, Sarah Corey in "Broadway Bound"

A Singer’s Notes 139: Neil Simon’s Broadway Bound at the Oldcastle

October 6, 2017October 6, 2017Keith Kibler

Another excellent evening in the Oldcastle Theatre in Bennington. A uniformly fine and balanced cast riveted my attention in Neil Simon’s Broadway Bound. The cast expressed the shape of this play with uncanny skill. I can imagine it seeming long, but not with these wonderful players.