Month: November 2017

REMEMBER…. KANOPY?

Or…As the NY Times article says..”.A  night at the theater from your couch!”

Remember my post on kanopy a few weeks ago…   Alright, Mr. DeMille,   ?  Well there was  an Interesting article  in the Arts section of the Times recently  not only about  kanopy, but also other streaming services   including Broadway HD and PBS.   Some free, like kanopy, some not.

 From the Times  Arts section (Nov 21,2017) by Elizabeth  Vincentelli

“Another fairly recent arrival on the streaming scene is kanopy, which is free with a public-library card in 200 systems nationwide. A big chunk of bandwidth is occupied by Shakespeare telecasts the BBC produced in the 1970s and ’80s with a dizzying array of star (or not-yet-star) actors. We’re talking Helen Mirren in “As You Like It” and a 1981 “Othello” with Anthony Hopkins as the title character (this wouldn’t fly anymore) facing Bob Hoskins’s Iago. I was happy to rewatch my favorite Lady Macbeth, Jane Lapotaire, whom I had discovered when that BBC production was shown in France way back when. Offerings of more recent vintage include a “Julius Caesar” transposed by the director Gregory Doran to the Arab Spring.

Just as good are the documentaries, especially a 1990 interview with the performance artist Karen Finley; a chat with Martha Wilson, founder of the experimental performance space Franklin Furnace; and an illuminating exploration of “Hamlet” with David Tennant, Simon Russell Beale and Ben

 Whishaw. For me, though, the biggest find was “Theater of War,” about the 2006 production of “Mother Courage and Her Children,” starring Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline, at the Delacorte Theater, with rehearsal footage and a step-by-step breakdown of the production’s evolution.”

The Delacorte Theater in Central Park… Love this City!

KAY’S NOTES:

Important to know:  For the full article on streaming services  go to the link below…  I highly recommend the read.    Elizabeth(author)  says you can crinkle candy wrappers whenever you want;  I say, no one will care if :you dig into that popcorn and  pop a bottle of bubbly!

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/20/theater/theater-streaming-services-cennarium-broadwayhd.html

Disclaimer: I try for correct info on my posts, but no guarantees people

“Well, one does want a hint of color”*

Or..How a play, a bus trip, and a piece of attire  can make for an interesting fall evening!

I was riding home on the bus from Lincoln Center sitting in the “elderly” section, when an elegant couple dressed in traditional NY colors of black and black, came on  and joined us.  They were  laughing and continued to laugh all the way across town. When  the couple across from them got up to leave, the woman looked down and  said, “I like your red socks.” I hadn’t noticed them before  but, along with everyone else in our section, we also   looked down and smiled  at the bright red socks in his shiny well-polished black shoes.  The comment sent the couple into gales of laughter. (Inside joke?)  It appeared they had been out to dinner as  red-socked man was  holding one of those ubiquitous restaurant bags, probably with  leftovers.  Couldn’t help but wonder was it for them to snack on later   or for their dog?

Now speaking of animals… (nice segue,  if I say so myself) I was on the   bus after seeing Lincoln Center Theater’s production of The Wolves.   A good interesting   play about a high school girls’ soccer team at the Mitzi Newhouse Theater.  (See Kay’s Notes  for more  on the play and the playwright.)

 While  I was waiting for the bus after the play,  some of the young  cast went by and shouted, “Thanks for coming, hope you liked it!” as they saw us in the queue  holding our  PLAYBILL with its yellow logo.

Seeing the bus  approaching,  I got ready to step up those steep stairs, Metro card in hand with  my red sweater  under my black cape. (BTW, I was freezing, it was a cold windy night)     And behind me came  the laughing  well-dressed couple,  and the rest, as they say, is history.

 Interesting happenings…happen all the time in this City.

Men's Chaps Ribbed Crew Socks, Size: 7-12, Red

 For more than a hint of color…Central Park in the fall is gorgeous!

Love this City! 

KAY’S NOTES:

IMPORTANT TO KNOW:  From LCT’s website…about the playwright and the play:  Last season a young playwright, Sarah DeLappe, brought her debut play, THE WOLVES, to New York and it became something of a phenomenon. It was a finalist for the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Drama; the production won an Obie Ensemble Award; it won a special Drama Desk Award for its acting ensemble, and was nominated for Lucille Lortel and Drama League awards for Best Play, as well as for the Outer Critics’ Circle John Gassner Award for Outstanding New American Play.  At its most straightforward, THE WOLVES is a fly-on-the-wall look at a girls’ high school soccer team as they go through their warm-ups. Beyond the surface, though, is the thoughtful and eloquent way Ms. DeLappe delineates each of the young women in the space of 90 minutes and six scenes.

GOOD TO KNOW: Lincoln Center Theater membership link and remember tickets for MY FAIR LADY now on sale  opening in Spring 2018, a production by Lincoln Center Theater.      http://www.lct.org/membership/

*Fun to know: The line I used to intro this post came from Nathan Lane’s character in   the movie The Birdcage. In the scene he came out  in a suit (not his character’s usual attire)  and    when he crossed his legs..voilà…  pink socks!  Hence, one of the favorite quotes from the film.    If you’ve seen the movie you know the scene, if not you’re missing a really funny and touching movie.

Image result for The Birdcage The cast with  Nathan Lane and Robin Williams   is one of my favorites. I’ve seen it many times, know the lines and still laugh out loud …I think I’ll watch it again soon.

Disclaimer: I try for correct info on my posts, but no guarantees people

 

 

 

 

 

“Alright, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my closeup!”*

Or…where to find those  movies you always wanted to see or have seen  but wanted to see again without leaving the comforts of your cozy home?

.

It’s kanopy baby, a new free service offered by many public libraries.

“kanopy offers a broad selection of more than 30,000 feature films, documentaries, foreign language and more. “ from the NYPL website.

I was reading my favorite newspaper and saw that not only is the New York Public Library offering free streaming from kanopy but so are many libraries across the country.  Then the  email hit my inbox from  the NYPL officially  announcing this new free service available to its members.     Really true, libraries are definitely not just about books any more.  Check out your library to see if they have it…if not, see if they’ll get it. (BTW did you ever return that overdue book?)

Have your popcorn ready and something good to drink, and find a movie you wanted to see that’s  not in the theaters, not on Netflix or any other streaming thingy, but maybe, just maybe,  there it will be FREE  from your local library. And really good news, you don’t have to leave your domicile- just sign up – and let it stream right to your living room, den, bedroom or whatever!

KAY’S NOTES: 

Important to know:  If you’re not already a member of your library (tsk tsk) do it and then subscribe to kanopy.    Check out their website or the NYPL website  for more info:  https://www.kanopystreaming.com/  https://www.nypl.org/

Good to know:    NYPL members – get ten selections a month.  Your library system may vary.  Now depending on your city/town – library funding is usually thru our  taxes.  So OK – maybe not totally free – but close enough.   Right?  No direct cost to join or use.
FYI – some universities and colleges also offer this service to students and alumni.

Image result

Fun to know: * For those who have not seen the movie or the Broadway show…or just too young (probably no one that reads my blog) to know… it’s that famous line from SUNSET BOULEVARD  that Norma Desmond (aka Gloria Swanson, 1950 movie  and Glenn Close, musical, first run 1994) says so dramatically.  “Alright, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my closeup!”

Photo of Sunset Boulevard  poster courtesy of  Posterazzi. 

Disclaimer: I try for correct info on my posts, but no guarantees people