The Thirty Nine Steps

Last night my mom and I saw Alfred Hitchcock's The Thirty Nine Steps.  Incredibly clever and funny.  Highly recommended.  

Next Broadway show on my list will likely be Shrek the Musical (this summer when my sister and brother-in--law visit.

Good times

An evening with the Hirshfelds

The other night Serge and I had a glass of wine with Louise Hirshfeld, the widow of famous line-drawing artist Al Hirscfeld at her beautiful Upper Eastside home.  We met her at a BAM event sponsored by BofA in November, the kickoff benefit dinner for the Bridge Project.  She is a culturally involved socialite now actively involved in a foundation that promotes educational arts programs around the area.

At the dinner where we met, Serge and I sat in between Louise and Sam Mendes (the husband of Kate Winslet, winner of an Academy Award for American Beauty).  Louise was so charmed by Serge that she invited us both to tea at her home.  I agree with her, he is quite charming.  

Though I don't envy the four flights of steps, nor the effort it must take to keep the many bookshelves and artwork so well dusted, walking through her home was like being in a museum- an absolutely incredible experience.  We saw Al Hirschfeld's 4th floor studio and the barber's chair where he worked.  Serge and I both got a kick out of the sign on the bookshelf, "Remember, it was an actor who killed Lincoln."  

In addition to seeing a career-spanning collection of Al Hirschfeld's artwork and various other collections (including an entire wall devoted to a mural), I got to play on his daughter Nina's Steinway & Sons grand piano.  Nina is best known as the identity behind the name so cleverly integrated into all of her father's line drawings. 

It was a wonderful evening.  To put it in proper "tea" terms,  the evening was "delightful" :)

The Cherry Orchard at BAM

The performance yesterday was wonderful... intense but very moving.   Good thing I stashed tissues in my purse

Brooklyn Academy of Music.  I think this style is called "Warehouse Chic"

Bada bing bada BAM!

Tonight my favorite Russian is taking me to see another Russian cultural masterpiece, Anton Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard at BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music).  

The performance is part of a collaboration called The Bridge Project between BAM and London's Old Vic theater for performances of The Cherry Orchard and A Winter's Tale, directed by Sam Mendes (as in, Kate Winslet's husband, also won an Oscar for American Beauty).

It is sponsored by Bank of America, which is the primary reason we're able to go tonight.  Thanks BofA, and thank you Serge!  

On a tangent, the other day I got a call asking for a contribution to Carnegie Hall.  The caller and I had a very frank conversation, but I felt quite torn because going to Carnegie Hall itself was the splurge.  Nobody needs to go see a play when there is already so much uncertainty around job security etc, and it can definitely be hard to justify seeing a concert or a play for pleasure.  Yet arts and culture are probably the first budget to be slashed, so really, a recession is all the more reason to support the Arts.  

It is kind of win-win, in that case, if the act of going to see a performance is supporting the cause.  A monetary contribution does provide additional necessary resources, but it is not the only way to become involved.

A performance is creative and thought-provocative, engages you in your local community and is a very healthy reminder that there are more important (and optimistic) things out there than the bad news emanating out of the Wall Street Journal.   

In 10th grade English class, I think we read the play, The Cherry Orchard together.  BAM is America's oldest continuously operating performance theater and one of the preeminent performance centers in the world.  Not to mention tonight's event features a pretty thick roster of talent that will blow Mr. Clopton's 10th graders out of the water!