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The Best of Sangamon Auditorium:
2003-04 Season
By Emily
Chase
The Chieftains
Before the explosion of Riverdance,
Lord of the Dance and all the other neo-Celtic groups, Paddy
Moloney and his small group of dedicated Celtic musicians spread
the sound of the uilleannn pipes and bodhran across the world. In
January they brought that sound to Sangamon Auditorium.
Moloney has proved again and again
that while his is the granddaddy of Irish music he is flexible
enough to move with the times. In addition to his three regulars
he travels with a half dozen eminently talented young people like
brothers Jon and Nathan Pilatzke. Jon played fiddle and they both
danced in the kind of lower-body movement only style associated
with Irish dancing along with the two professional Irish dancers
accompanying the Chieftains. The Canadian Pilatzke brothers,
however, gave it the kind of reckless enjoyment associated with
Savion Glover in the tap dance world.
“Jesus Christ Superstar”
Critics often find an easy target
in Andrew Lloyd Webber; his productions are overblown, his
librettos historically inaccurate and his lyrics at times
ridiculous.
(True, Lloyd Webber writes only the
music, not the libretto or the lyrics but he does choose his
collaborators. He selected Tim Rice, a talented lyricist who
somehow wrote the abominable “Hosana, hey-sana, sana,
sana, ho, sana, hey, sana ho-sana.
J.C., J.C., won’t You die for me? Hosana-sana, hey, superstar!”
Yes, that is the song welcoming Jesus to Jerusalem.)
Anyway, Lloyd Webber is a success
for a reason and his “Jesus Christ Superstar” perfectly
illustrates how he can annoy and offend people with pop melodies
and sanctimonious drama while still engaging his audience. The
“diversitizing” of theater has its drawbacks but seeing an
African-American Jesus delivered a well-placed blow to
Christianity’s sense of northern-European superiority.
“JCS” is a powerful drama, as
emotional and though provoking as “The Passion of the Christ,” if
not as nauseating. Its performances in Springfield came just a
week or two before Lent and, to me at least, started the season of
introspection and spiritual exploration with a theatrical flair.
Hubbard Street Dance Chicago
Modern dance and mid-America often
do not gel and some aspects of Hubbard Street’s February 20
performance did not reach the audience.
The hilariously funny “Call the
Whole Thing Off” number, however, more than made up for the
disappointing finale “The 40s.” Two dancers explored their
dysfunctional relationship through the Gershwins’ “Let’s Call the
Whole Thing Off” and Mose Allison’s “Your Mind Is on Vacation.”
And, of course, the fabulous medley
of Rolling Stones’ songs “Rooster” erased all memory of the
pseudo-primitive “Diphthong.” “Rooster” showcased the male
dancers and featured such Stones’ classics as “Paint It Black,”
“Little Red Rooster,” “Lady Jane” and “Sympathy for the Devil.”
…and finally, a special mention:
“Les Misérables” & Student Affairs
Admittedly, the cast touring
Springfield October 21-26 was not the best I had ever seen and I
must admit grudgingly that Sangamon Auditorium is a touch too
small for the grandeur of “Les Misérables.”
The show makes the “Best” list,
however, thanks to an incredibly generous gift from the Office of
Student Affairs. Led by Vice-Chancellor Chris Miller, Student
Affairs arranged for students – with campus ID – to buy tickets to
the many of the performances for half price. Dozens of students
who otherwise could not have afforded the ticket or would not have
bothered were able to attend a performance of one of the greatest
musicals on earth.
In all honesty, the production of
“Les Misérables” that came to SA in October does not deserve to be
on this list; Student Affairs, however, deserves the gratitude of
all UIS students.
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