The Art of Summer
Even straitlaced symphony lovers can let loose this time of year. BY JAMES MCQUILLEN Navigate:
Summer Stage Events
Summer Dance Events
Summer again: time for fairs and festivals, time to let our hair down. Whether it's because we've been conditioned by end-of-school-giddiness in our formative years or because we're hepped up on vitamin D and recovering from Seasonal Affective Disorder, even the most staid and composed among us--classical music lovers, that is--tend to loosen up this time of year. People who normally wear serious faces and their Sunday best during the regular season think nothing of donning old khakis, reclining on the lawn and filling up on chardonnay and cheese before concerts on sultry summer evenings. The atmosphere among performers and audiences alike is markedly less formal than, say, the lobby of the Schnitz on a symphony night. In many places, however, programming standards are similarly relaxed, and no matter how breezy and untroubled the sun and fresh air make you feel, there's a limit to how many times you can listen to Eine Kleine Nachtmusik without screaming. Fortunately, the two best classical music festivals in this corner of the state, Chamber Music Northwest and the Oregon Bach Festival, are among the best on the continent, and their summer lineups are as good as anything you'll hear the rest of the year. As always, there is a mix of new and familiar faces at Chamber Music Northwest, which presents its 28th season this year. Returnees include David Shifrin, artistic director of the festival since 1980, pianists David Golub and Anne-Marie McDermott, flutist Ransom Wilson and string players Theodore Arm, Ida Kavafian, Paul Neubauer and Fred Sherry. Double-bassist Edgar Meyer, who recorded the wildly popular Appalachia Waltz last year with Yo-Yo Ma and Mark O'Connor, comes back as both performer and composer in residence; the West Coast première of his Quintet for Strings is on the program for July 23 and 24. Eliot Fisk, a guitarist of astonishing technical brilliance, will appear on a program that includes both Boccherini's popular Quintet for Guitar and Strings and the world première of American composer George Rochberg's Eden: Out of Time and Out of Space, a joint commission by CMNW and the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. This year's programs are more varied than last, now that the double commemoration of Schubert and Brahms is over (not that there was anything wrong with a heavy dose of both). The music spans four centuries, with a few forays into the baroque (Handel, Telemann and Boccherini) and a fair bit of Mozart--yes, that includes Eine Kleine Nachtmusik--alongside a thoughtfully chosen sampling of 19th- and 20th-century works. The highlight of the festival is the complete cycle of string quartets by Beethoven, played by five of the best quartets currently performing: The Orion begins the series on June 27, followed by the Vermeer, the Brentano, the Borromeo and the Emerson during the following four weeks (these won't be in order of composition--each ensemble will play from the early, middle and late groups). In conjunction with these concerts, composer and commentator Bruce Adolphe will present a series of mini-seminars on the cycle, with members of the Orion and Brentano quartets. Other promising programs include Schoenberg's seldom-performed chamber version of Mahler's towering Das Lied von der Erde, as well as the former's own Verklärte Nacht, a piece of dense romanticism for string sextet closer in spirit to Brahms than to the kind of music generally associated with the composer--Schoenberg for people who think they don't like Schoenberg. Chamber Music Northwest returns to Reed this year, with most of the concerts to be played in the new Kaul Auditorium. A word about this hall: It is a vast improvement, esthetically and otherwise, over the Commons, formerly used by both CMNW and the Reed Music Matinees, and the praise it has already won for its acoustics is richly deserved. Its major flaw is the movable seating, a large aluminum structure included in the design presumably to allow for a multiple-use space. It's basically a better-looking version of your high-school bleachers, and it's every bit as noisy; in fact, it seems to generate its own noise, and the bare acoustics don't help to conceal it. I don't want to be anywhere near it when the Portland Baroque Ensemble crowd, who are only slightly less rowdy than English soccer fans, get to stomping their feet next fall. Up the valley, Helmuth Rilling returns for the 29th Oregon Bach Festival in Eugene, the centerpiece of which was supposed to be the world première of a Mass by the Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki. According to a last-minute announcement, however, it will be a setting of the credo rather than a whole Mass. The one section may have grown into something much more monumental than Penderecki had anticipated, or perhaps he's planning on completing the Mass in similar fashion, which means he can milk the concept for another four or five years. Also this summer comes the return of the mesmerizing baritone Thomas Quasthoff, whose performance of Schubert's Winterreise was one of the best concerts of last year. David ShifrinOregon Bach Festival concerts are held primarily at the Silva and Beall concert halls of the Hult Center, at the University of Oregon in Eugene. For complete concert and ticket information call (541) 682-5000. Chamber Music Northwest concerts are held at Reed College and the Catlin Gabel School in Portland. For concert and ticket information call 223-3202. summer stage LOCAL PORTLAND INTERNATIONAL PERFORMANCE INSTITUTE AND FESTIVAL
Michael Griggs is the unsung hero of Portland's theater community. Each year, against all odds, he puts together an international theater festival that in quality and scope rivals any similar festival of its kind. This year is no exception. Writer/actor Rick Najera will be here to perform his acclaimed one-man show The Pain of the Macho. More importantly, the brilliant Polish company Wierszalin returns to town with two productions, The Dybbuk and Doctor Felix. (Steffen Silvis) PIPIF at various locations, 725-8500 or (800) 547-8887 ext. 8500. July 6-Aug. 2. THE EDGE: THE NORTHWEST REGIONAL PUPPETRY FESTIVAL
Following the international performance festival, Portland plays host to some of the leading puppeteers currently working in theater. The Wierszalen company will again appear, along with the Oregon Shadow Theater, Thistle Theater, Tim Giugni and Martin P. Robinson. (SS) The Northwest Regional Puppetry Festival at Lewis & Clark College, 0615 SW Palatine Hill Road, 357-0679. Aug. 7-9. REGIONAL OREGON SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL
Along with Henry IV, Part One and The Comedy of Errors, Ashland offers a rare chance to see Cymbeline. Penny Metropulos' production of A Midsummer Night's Dream has also been receiving very good word-of-mouth. William Bloodgood's design (honored with a picture in the current number of American Theater Magazine) clearly emphasizes the word dream. (SS) The Angus Bowmer Theater, Ashland, (541) 482-4331. Through Nov. 1. INTIMAN THEATER
Seattle's Intiman Theater offers two plays worth trekking north for: Moisés Kaufman's stunning Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde and Mark Hampton and Mary Louise Wilson's witty stab at Diana Vreeland, Full Gallop. (SS) Seattle Center, The Intiman Theater, 305 Harrison St., Seattle, Wash., (206) 269-1900. Gross Indecency closes July 5; Full Gallop closes July 12. $20-$32. INTERNATIONAL EDINBURGH INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL
Along with the equally renowned Fringe Festival, Edinburgh's International Festival makes the capital of Scotland the center of the theatrical universe each summer. Three productions are particularly worth the trip: Peter Stein directing Botho Strauss in Die Ahnlichen at the King's Theater; Belgian wünderkindIvo van Hove presenting his version of O'Neill's More Stately Mansions and Camus' Caligula. Go. (SS) Edinburgh International Festival, 21 Market St., Edinburgh, Scotland, (011-44) 131-473-2001. Edinburgh Fringe Festival, 180 High St., Edinburgh, Scotland, (011-44) 131-226-5257. Aug. 16-Sept. 5. summer dance SCHOOL OF OREGON BALLET THEATER'S ANNUAL PERFORMANCE
Russian, flamenco and modern influences flavor these annual performances. Don't think this is just some average amateur dance recital; OBT's 250 students are polished and professional. Josie Moseley, whose lovely ballet Quiet Stories was a regular season highlight, has choreographed a new work for the show.(Brooke DeNisco) Newmark Theater, 1111 SW Broadway, 222-5538. 7 pm Tuesday and Wednesday, June 16-17. $15. VIVIANA & COMPANY
Spring fever gets bumped up a few notches when Viviana Orbeck's local troupe of flamenco dancers pulsates with Venezuelan singer/songwriter Irene Farrera. The dancers are always ornately turned out, and accompanied by a live guitarist and percussionist. The company will perform full ensemble works including the Cuban-influenced Guajira and Spanish Soleares. (BD) Portland Community College Sylvania Campus, Forum Theater, 12000 SW 49th Ave., 246-1142. 8 pm Saturday, June 20. $12. NOT FULLY MYSELF
Seven of the region's most respected experimental choreographers--Kristy Edmunds, James Canfield, Gregg Bielemeier, Mary Oslund, Drew Pisarra, Stephanie Skura and Josie Moseley--have all created new pieces for the same dancer, Linda K. Johnson. Johnson, who founded Conduit with Oslund, has spent the past year focusing on performing rather than choreographing. Besides giving her the workout of a lifetime, Johnson's solo show emphasizes the subtle nuances different choreographers can create. (BD) Portland State University, Lincoln Hall, 1620 SW Park Ave., 246-1142. 8 pm Thursday-Saturday, June 25-27. $15. HOMOWO
Several world-class Ghanaian dancers and musicians reside in Portland and perform year-round, but for one weekend in August they're joined by international troupes, storytellers, artisans and chefs. The Homowo Festival originated in Ghana and offers a tremendous range of dancing along with all the other activities. The casual and celebratory nature of the festival makes it an ideal place to bring kids. (BD) 288-3025. Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 15-16. Price and location TBA. |
