Off-Broadway, The
Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey,
written and performed by James
Lescene, directed by Tony
Speciale, at the Westside Theatre, is a
one man show,with Lescene playing a dozen
characters. He begins as a detective in a
small town in New Jersey, searching for a
missing, flamboyant youth. Playing male and
female small town citizens, he gives a
remarkable performance.
The 49th Mostly Mozart Festival opened
with an all Mozart program.
It began with a brief Overture
to Des Schauspieldirektor ("The
Impresario"), and concluded with the
three movement Symphony
No. 34 in C major, K.388. Before the
intermission, Emanuel
Ax was
the soloist in Piano
Concerto No. 14 in E-flat major, K.449.
He gave a splendid performance, revealing
great dexterity and enthusiasm. It was
delightful. After the intermission, Erin
Morley performed
two concert arias, Vorrei
spiegarvi, oh Dio! and No,
che non sei capace, that Mozart wrote
for another composer's opera to be sung by
his sister-in-law. Morley displayed a strong
voice, and interpreted the difficult second
aria with aplomb. She received a well
deserved ovation. The festival has begun on
a high note.
MoMA is presenting Glorious
Technicolor: From George Eastman House and
Beyond June 5-August 5. Lady in the Dark, by Mitchell
Leisen, USA, 1944, stars Ginger
Rogers as
the editor of a fashion magazine. She is
suffering mental depression, and the
highlight of the film are her three dream
sequences. In the final one, she sings The
Saga of Jenny, from the musical, on
which the film is based. It is a wonderful
song, and she performs it excellently.
Otherwise, it is a weak film, about her
having to make a decision to marry one of
two men. She ends up making a surprising
choice.
Artists and Models,
by Frank
Tashlin, USA, 1955, stars Dean
Martin and Jerry
Lewis. I have never seen a Martin and
Lewis film before. I believe it is an
acquired taste. I do not have it. Dean
Martin is good looking and sings well. Jerry
Lewis makes weird faces, and engages in a
lot of physical activity. None of which is
funny. The film is silly, and the plot makes
very little sense. Martin is a painter, and
Lewis is a writer obsessed with comic books.
He dreams about the stories and says them
out loud repeatedly. It is annoying and
irritating. I guess one must be French to
appreciate Jerry Lewis.
MoMA presented Mexico at Midnight:
Film Noir from Mexican Cinema's Golden Age
July 23-29. Crepusculo (Twilight),
by Julio Bracho,
Mexico, 1945, stars Arturo
de Cordova as
a surgeon in love with the wife (Gloria
Marin) of his best friend. It is a slow
moving, psychological drama, that maintains
the viewer's attention. When Cordova is
forced to perform surgery on a brain injury
his friend suffers, we await the result.
Again, Cordova has a beautiful co-star
Marin, a joy to watch.
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En La Palma de tu mano (In
the Palm of Your Hand), by Roberto
Gavaldon, Mexico, 1951, is another film
starring Arturo
de Cordova. This time, he is a fake
clairvoyant attempting to steal money from a
wealthy widow (Leticia
Palma). There are many plot turns in this
fascinating tale, which holds the audience's
interest. As usual, his co-star is quite
attractive, and, in this case, quite devious.
La Otra (The
Other One), by Roberto
Gavaldon, Mexico, 1946, stars Dolores
del Rio, playing
two roles as a poor manicurist with a wealthy
twin sister. When she murders and replaces her
sister, it brings her tragic consequences. It is
a wonderful film. I saw del Rio make her stage
debut in 1958 in Mexico City in Oscar
Wildes's Lady
Windermere's Fan. She was wonderful. I met
her and photographed her backstage at the
Metropolitan Opera, when she attended Manon
Lescaut, starring Placido
Domingo. I sent her the photo, which she
returned, with a lovely dedication. She was a
beautiful lady.
La Noche Avanza (Night
Falls), by Roberto
Gavaldon. Mexico, 1952, stars another famous
Mexican film star, Pedro
Armendariz, as a leading jai alai player,
who is arrogant and proud, and treats women like
dirt. He double-crosses a gangster when he
agrees to lose a game, but goes on to win, and
then receives his comeuppance in this exciting
film. Almendariz is superb in a repulsive role.
Que Dios me perdone (May
God Forgive Me), by Tito
Davison, Mexico, 1948, is the second film in
the series, starring Maria
Felix. She plays a mysterious European
refugee (a Sephardic Jew) in Mexico, during
World War II. Unfortunately, like the first filmLa
Diosa arrollada (The
Kneeling Goddess) four years later, it is
overlong, and the plot is confusing, and totally
unbelievable. In one scene, she, again, sings in
a nightclub leaning on a piano, and,
fortunately, does not dance. She handles that
song well. Trying to explain the convoluted
story would take too much time. She marries a
wealthy middle aged widower. She is forced to
have an affair with a blackmailer, who drowns
her husband. He also dies with him in Lake
Patzcuaro. And to compound the tragedy, she
learns that her only daughter died in a
concentration camp.
Distinto amanecer (Another
Dawn), by Julio
Bracho, Mexico, 1943, stars Pedro
Armendariz as
an idealistic union activist, with incriminating
evidence against the government. During a long
night, he is pursued by gangsters, representing
the corrupt Governor of the state. He,
accidentally meets a former university friend (Andrea
Palma) from fifteen years ago, as he hides
in a cinema. She is unhappily married, and
decides to help him. Their adventures form the
plot of the film
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