Entertainment
Lookingglass Alice – High Flying, Adored
After two Covid-19 inspired delays, Lookingglass Alice is once again high flying, adored at the Lookingglass Theatre to the enjoyment of everyone. This glorious and highly imaginative production has quickly become the hallmark of their artistic brand. Stunning, entertaining, empowering and compelling, this gem of a show is a fest for the eyes and a treat for the family. Blending elements from Lewis Carroll Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through The Lookingglass stories, the aerial artistry and strength of the performers will awe. A circus infused production, choreographer Sylvia Hernandez-DiStasi’s work on hoops, bungee cords, ropes and an extra-tall unicycle brings joy to all who attend. With director David Catlin at the helm, this masterful production is nothing but smooth sailing.
While this particular Alice is on her own journey to adulthood, she navigates a literal life-sized chessboard centerstage, only advancing forward after she comes in contact with, and more importantly learns a lesson from, a wide array of quirky characters. Alternating the role of the titular character, Lindsey Noel Whiting and Molly Hernandez are both adept at reciting their lines while also backflipping, mid-air, over the captivated audience. They both personify the requisite childhood innocence necessary for the character while demonstrating powerful acts of adult physical strength. Just as astute and athletically capable as their male counterparts, you will marvel at the sheer power of the performers.
As the Cheshire Cat, actor Adeoye climbs, jumps, flips and plunges across the entire two story stage with ease, utilizing only his strong arms as his safeguard. His broad, mischievous, toothy grin, equal parts devilish and playful. Michael Rodriquez Cintra a charming, frantic and frenetic White Rabbit. The real scene stealer, Kareen Bandealy, as the larger than life Red Queen. The two-story tall crimson costume made for quite the visual as the imposing imperial chewed all of the surrounding scenery with aplomb. Rounding out the cast, Samuel Taylor bringing comedic confidence to his roles as author and narrator, Dodgson, and the whimsical White Knight. Adeoye, Bandealy and Cintra also double as the familiar characters, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum, Humpty Dumpty, the Caterpillar and the White Queen, with hilarious results.
The fun clearly continued off the stage as well. Mara Blumenfeld’s rainbow bright and winsome costuming, impressed from start to finish. Daniel S. Ostling’s set design, from an endless onslaught of flying chairs to a giant ball of yarn, was an unending array of imagination on display. Christine A. Binder’s lighting added drama, ambiance as well as the literal squares of the life-sized chessboard, of which Alice was an unwitting pawn. This highly artistic journey through the looking glass is a thoroughly absorbing quest which titillates all the senses.
A proven delight for all ages, Lookingglass Alice is back, as bold, unique, stunning and delightful as ever. This wild ride, with a solid female protagonist, will inspire, empower and embolden. My recommendation is to journey through the rabbit hole as often as you can. Not exclusively for children, maybe more for the child at heart, this exciting ride keeps getting better with age. Now in its fifth incarnation in twenty years, this Aliceis the stick by which all other Lookingglass productions are measured. It’s no surprise this venue even took its name from the imaginative tale. With Broadway in Chicago currently mounting a jaw-droppingly fantastic production of Six The Musical and the Lookingglass remounting its fabulous Alice, the Windy City stages are set for a summer of girl power and I wouldn’t want it any other way.
Lookingglass Alice is now playing at the Lookingglass Theatre through July 31, 2022.
Stephen Best
The 2023 67th Drama Desk Awards, honoring artistic excellence on Broadway, Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway, will take place on June 6 at Sardi’s Restaurant. Today the winners were announced.
Outstanding Play: “Leopoldstadt,” by Tom Stoppard
Outstanding Musical: “Some Like it Hot”
Outstanding Revival of a Play: “The Piano Lesson”
Outstanding Revival of a Musical: “Parade”
Outstanding Lead Performance in a Play: Jessica Chastain, “A Doll’s House” and Sean Hayes, “Good Night, Oscar”
Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical: Annaleigh Ashford, “Sweeney Todd”
and J. Harrison Ghee, “Some Like it Hot”
Outstanding Featured Performance in a Play: Miriam Silverman, “The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window,” Brooklyn Academy of Music and Brandon Uranowitz, “Leopoldstadt”
Outstanding Featured Performance in a Musical: Kevin Del Aguila, “Some Like it Hot” and Alex Newell, “Shucked”
Outstanding Direction of a Play: Max Webster, “Life of Pi”
Outstanding Direction of a Musical: Thomas Kail, “Sweeney Todd”
Outstanding Choreography: Casey Nicholaw, “Some Like it Hot”
Outstanding Music: Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally, “Shucked”
Outstanding Lyrics: Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman, “Some Like it Hot”
Outstanding Book of a Musical: Matthew López and Amber Ruffin, “Some Like it Hot”
Outstanding Orchestrations: Charlie Rosen and Bryan Carter, “Some Like it Hot”
Outstanding Music in a Play: Suzan-Lori Parks, “Plays for the Plague Year,” The Public Theater
Outstanding Scenic Design of a Play: Tim Hatley, “Life of Pi”
Outstanding Scenic Design of a Musical: Beowulf Boritt, “New York, New York”
Outstanding Costume Design of a Play: Emilio Sosa, “Ain’t No Mo’”
Outstanding Costume Design of a Musical: Gregg Barnes, “Some Like it Hot”
Outstanding Lighting Design of a Play: Natasha Chivers and Willie Williams (video), “Prima Facie”
Outstanding Lighting Design of a Musical: Natasha Katz, “Sweeney Todd”
Outstanding Projection and Video Design: Andrzej Goulding, “Life of Pi”
Outstanding Sound Design of a Play: Ben & Max Ringham, “A Doll’s House”
Outstanding Sound Design of a Musical: Scott Lehrer and Alex Neumann, “Into the Woods”
Outstanding Wig and Hair: Mia M. Neal, “Ain’t No Mo’”
Outstanding Solo Performance: Jodie Comer, “Prima Facie”
Unique Theatrical Experience: “Peter Pan Goes Wrong”
Outstanding Fight Choreography: B.H. Barry, “Camelot”
Outstanding Adaptation: “A Doll’s House,” by Amy Herzog
Outstanding Puppetry: Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell, “Life of Pi”
Shows with multiple wins
Some Like It Hot: 8
Life of Pi: 4
A Doll’s House: 3
Sweeney Todd: 3
Ain’t No Mo’: 2
Leopoldstadt: 2
Prima Facie: 2
Shucked: 2
Special Awards
Harold Prince Lifetime Achievement Award
Stephen McKinley Henderson has been bringing in-depth, gripping portrayals of memorable characters to the stage for over four decades. With his return to Broadway this season as Pops in “Between Riverside and Crazy,” which the Drama Desk previously nominated in 2015, this year’s Harold Prince Lifetime Achievement Award marks Henderson’s role in this powerful production as a celebration of his brilliant career.
Ensemble Award
The cast of Soho Rep’s “Public Obscenities” – Tashnuva Anan, Abrar Haque, Golam Sarwar Harun, Gargi Mukherjee, NaFis, Jakeem Dante Powell, and Debashis Roy Chowdhury – embodied the transnational world of Shayok Misha Chowdhury’s bilingual play with memorable authenticity, remarkable specificity, and extraordinary warmth.
Sam Norkin Off-Broadway Award
From his standout performance in american (tele)visions, to writing and performing the autobiographical “Dark Disabled Stories,” Ryan J. Haddad’s work this season has expanded on and interrogated what the idea of “accessibility” really means. Whether riding a shopping cart like a throne, or relating his experiences on a “gay, pink bus,” Haddad shared with audiences an unabashed queer fabulosity that was both unforgettable and deeply human.
On Sunday look for a brand new charcuterie of Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford in Sweeney Todd.. I loved the new production, and it’s two leads.
G.H. Harding
FAMILY’S A BITCH-THE END OF SUCCESSION — Sunday’s finale of Succession (HBO) was a mixed bag. I’ll be honest: At first I thought the finale was totally underwhelming, but after some additional thought and reading some other excellent reviews, I’ve come to the point where I now believe it was, pure and simple, how it had to end.
Joss Stone
None more so than Joss Stone on “I Put A Spell On You.” What a voice. I’m amazed she’s not bigger; very Janis Joplin.
Gary Clark
Also, Gary Clark delivered a blistering, amazing performance on Stevie Wonder’s “Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers.” No question that he’s the next guitar-wizard. Here they both are: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvO2_noxaXQ and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QO2BLAXveVo …
The Flash
I watched all 9 seasons of the CW’s The Flash and the first 5 were pretty terrific. The remaining ones got poorer and poorer as the original cast disappeared one by one. Grant Gustin, The Flash, was there the whole time, but their finale last week was terribly confusing – save for a song by Tony Award winner Jesse L. Martin (for Rent) – a key member of the original cast. The last two seasons had a myriad of costumed villains, some from the comic, some not, but just wildly messed up. The CW was sold to Nexstar last year and big changes are in their future. Sad … and, CNN is reporting that Universal Music is close to snapping up the rights to the Queen-catalog for $1 billion-plus. Good for them.
Queen
Disney had it previously, but Queen’s music is more popular than ever before. It’s a real shame Freddie is not her to share in it. If you wondered the record for the biggest previously was for Bruce Springsteen’s catalog at $500 million.
We love the nightlife!
Frederick Anderson Resort 2024 Fashion Show Featuring Natasha Bedingfield at Nebula in New York, NY on May 24, 2023. (Photo by David Warren /Sipa USA)
The thrill of old-school New York City energy came out swinging in a glorious way last week during Frederick Anderson’s 2024 Resort collection presentation.
Frederick Anderson Resort 2024 Fashion Show Featuring Natasha Bedingfield at Nebula in New York, NY on May 24, 2023 with Nicole Miller and Mayor Eric Adams. (Photo by David Warren /Sipa USA)
On May 24, pop sensation Natasha Bedingfield opened up the beautiful runway at the fantastic hotspot Nebula in Midtown Manhattan. Wearing a bold crochet dress by the designer, the music matched her luxurious look and set the tone for an electric night.
Frederick Anderson and Natasha Bedingfield at Frederick Anderson Resort 2024 Fashion Show Featuring Natasha Bedingfield at Nebula in New York, NY on May 24, 2023. (Photo by David Warren /SipaUSA)
The 33-look collection was seen by a chic and notable group of uptown clients and downtown personalities including Mayor Eric Adams, Nebula owner Richie Romero, Nicole Miller, Peter Som, Young Paris, Consuelo Vanderbilt Costin and Janna Bullock amongst well-heeled crowd.
Photos by David Warren
It was not so many moons ago that online payments on major eCommerce were either by debit or credit card. Plenty of people had a PayPal account, but this was primarily used for peer-to-peer transactions or to buy goods won at auction on eBay. Card transactions needed the user to undergo an additional verification step to prove they were the cardholder, but it was all a relatively unsophisticated system.
PayPal had been created as a stand-alone company at the dawn of the dotcom boom and had been a wholly owned subsidiary of eBay in 2002. However, in 2015 eBay spun off PayPal, and while the companies retained close working ties, both companies were free to find new partners.
For eBay, this meant they could offer customers the chance to complete purchases using new digital payment providers. As a result, PayPal became an option at major online checkouts, from high street stores to travel agents and online casinos. People liked using PayPal as it was quick, easy, and secure; their email address was all they needed to remember.
While PayPal might have been the original fintech company, by the time eBay sold it, there were other operators in the space. For example, Apple launched its digital wallet, ApplePay, in 2014. At the time, for most people, it was just an app that came with the latest phone, but most people carried on using their plastic cards. Google first introduced a digital payment service in 2013 and their Google Wallet in 2018. The Google Pay app, which is now installed on millions of Android phones, was introduced in 2020.
Increasing numbers of people now use fintech solutions when making online payments. Fintech comes in many guises but essentially refers to the use of technology to change our relationship with financial products and services. For example, Starling is an internet-based bank that is accessed via an app on mobile phones. While Internet banking had been around for a considerable time when it launched, the process was slow and cumbersome and required users to verify their identity through a card reader. Starling’s app enabled customers to make payments directly without needing a reader and notified them of all transactions in and out of their accounts. The central banks now offer a similar service through their apps, and we accept this as standard.
With all the advances in internet banking, eWallets, and digital payments, having access to a bank account is not even a requirement anymore in order to make online payments. This is where a service like Boku comes into its own.
Boku is a mobile processing system that allows customers to buy digital goods and services without a bank account. The services are charged to their mobile phone bill; no credit card or bank account is needed. It is a convenient and popular payment method for online content, including games and entertainment. There are even an increasing number of online casinos that accept Boku, like NetBet and MrQ. Players just need their mobile number to use the service and do not need to download a specific app or anything.
Another enormous revolution in how we pay online is the growth in Buy Now Pay Later services. Klarna was the name that brought this way of paying to our attention. However, there are multiple operators now in this market, including PayPal Pay in 4 and ApplePay Later. In 2022 more than seventeen million people had used BNPL services. It is particularly popular with 18–34-year-olds, where sixteen percent of this age group uses this payment method.
The use of BNPL in the UK and worldwide in general is on the increase, as can be seen when comparing year-on-year figures. For example, the figure from 2022 was almost double 2021’s eight million people.
The same goes for the use of fintech apps. Fintech app installation was up two percent in 2022, and payment and banking apps account for more than ninety percent of those installs. If these numbers are any indication of the future of fintech, we should brace ourselves for even more groundbreaking innovation and changes to how we pay online.
Photo by Andre Taissin on Unsplash
And The Winners of The 2023 Drama Desk Awards Are ………
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