Thoughts Day by Day

Here's a confession.  I avoid Halloween.  I'm never in the Halloween spirit (no pun intended.)  So after work I went to the movies, then did my food shopping before heading home after the sun had set and the Trick-or-Treaters were all gone.  It is not that I'm too cheap to buy candy (I had a large bag ready just in case) - but I hate the idea of answering the door bell every five minutes all evening long.  Bah Humbug! (or whatever is its Halloween equivalent). I went to see "St. Vincent" starring Bill Murray.  Murray played a bitter, nasty old curmudgeon - probably only because Jack Nicholson, who is usually cast in this type of role, was not available.  It is the type of role the late, great Art Carney could do in his sleep.  The title character, Vincent, is a lying, foul mouthed, drunken, chain-smoking, cheating gambler, with no apparent redeeming features, down on his luck and owing money to the bank, to the nursing home that cares for his ...

So here are the absolute worst moments of the 2014 mid-term elections. 1) The " Sean Maloney is a Phony Baloney " campaign.  I do not live in the New York 18th Congressional District and I know virtually nothing about candidate Sean Maloney and his opponent Nan Hayworth except what I hear on this TV commercial which is repeated endlessly night after night.  Would I vote for someone who resorts to 2nd grade level name calling as a strategy to win a seat in the United States House of Representatives?  Of course NOT!  Just based on this infantile TV commercial I would NOT vote for Nan Hayworth.  And I apologize to 2nd graders everywhere.  I don't really believe they would resort to this juvenile tactic even if they were running for 2nd grade class president.  Worst TV commercial ever.   Score 1 for the Democrats.  2)  The " Businesses and Corporations Do Not Create Jobs " statement.  I am shocked at Hillary Clinton.  This is t...

I love traveling into New York City to meet friends, go out for dinner, visit museums and especially to go to concerts or to see New York theater.  It is insane to drive into Manhattan what with the cost of gasoline, tunnel and bridge tolls and the exorbitant parking fees.  The train and Subway is the only sane solution. But I am sick of the Long Island Railroad.  The rail cars are filthy.  Sticky floors, littered and sticky seats.  Are the cars ever cleaned?  If there are rules about bringing drink (alcoholic or non-alcoholic) or food onboard the train those rules are not enforced.  If there are rules about litter and noise - those rules are also not enforced.  The 1-hour 15-minute commute from Ronkonkoma to Pennsylvania Station is a horrible experience.  The view from the dirty railcar windows is one of 50 miles of litter strewn along the tracks.  Why don't they clean their own tracks?  The Ronkonkoma line, ...

Thrilling.   Simply one of the very best plays and productions I have ever seen.  First of all, you can give this production the Tony Awards today for Set Design, Lighting Design, Sound Design, Best Play and Best Direction.  And possibly Best Choreography.  Why wait until June?  A young actor named Alex Sharp played the leading role of Christopher Boone and was on stage for every minute of this almost 3 hour play.  He gave a brilliant and sensitive performance, mesmerizing and charismatic.  The entire cast was excellent (Francesca Faridany as  Christopher's teacher, Ian Barford as the father, Enid Graham as the mother, Helen Carey as the neighbor).   It was true in every detail to Mark Haddon's terrific novel. The geometrically designed boxed  stage was a representation of the confines of Christopher's world and his mind.  The story and play are told in the first person - from the perspective of a 1...

How did I miss this musical when Hugh Jackman played Peter Allen on Broadway?   It is one of the best 'jukebox musicals' I've seen.   Great songs from Peter Allen and a compelling story about a great talent who struggled to reach stardom and died of AIDS just as he grabbed the golden ring.  I feel this musical's book is every bit as strong as that of "Jersey Boys".  Theatre Three in Port Jefferson created a great production.  I cannot imagine it was any better on Broadway except that this production lacks Hugh Jackman.  Steve McCoy, a regular at Theatre Three, played Peter Allen. To his credit he is a great singer and an energetic, credible actor.  But despite the makeup and wig it is obvious he is about 20 years too old for this part and a bit too overweight.  Throughout the performance he kept adjusting the toupee he was wearing to make himself look younger - and it was quite annoying.  The rest of the cast was perfectly chosen ...

This will be a short review - for a short play.  "Disgraced" runs 83 minutes without intermission.  It is the 2013 Pulitzer Prize winner for drama.  I never lost interest for a second during those 83 minutes - it was quite spellbinding as it tackled many 'taboo' subject matters: Islamaphobia, Anti-Semitism, self-identify, duplicity, ethnic prejudice, self-hatred and Affirmative Action.  Yes, that is a lot of hot topics for 83 minutes. "Disgraced" is about the drive for upward mobility among non-white Americans when they believe success requires them to "act White"; to hide and even denounce their family ethnic history, customs, name and identify.  I could identify with some of what was addressed, but learning to be American with an Italian last name is quite different from learning to be American with a non-White complexion or coming from a non-Christian tradition.  This is a play that may require a 2nd or 3rd viewing for me to completely diges...