AI generated men. So realistic.

 

Harry Potter and the cursed child

 

I have been yearning to see this play ever since it came out.  It was just a matter of logistics on going to New York or San Francisco to watch the 2 parts show.  Well I never made it to NYC or SF.  Then finally the production decided to bring it to LA.  And it was the one part condensed revised version too!  So I would not miss this opportunity and got me a ticket along with my 2 friends.   

The show would be a much better movie I say.  (If JK Rowling acquiesce to it).  Why?  Well the fast pace changes of scenes can be confusing if one has not read the book.  The magic CGI effects would be much more visually thrilling too as a movie.  Although it was amusing enough to see magic being portrayed on stage, it just does not compare the what movie magic can do.  The english accent of the actors were not convincing or authentic enough to my ears.  And I feel the actor play Scopius Malfoy was OA (over acting).  So that was distracting.  All in all it was not a disappointing show for me.  I would give it a 3 stars out of 5.

Hamilton

 

 So I finally saw Hamilton live after seeing it in TV.  I don't think my opinion changed about it since my first review.  The music was brilliantly written and arranged.  At least some of it.  The stage production was visually appealing.  I say its a must see at least once.

No tears for Gaza

Some Americans and some in the Democratic Party are protesting against the suffering and death in Gaza because of the Israeli retaliatory attacks.  While I sympathize with the innocent Gazans during this war, it is hard for me to be truly sympathetic for them as a group.  Why?  For starters, they are not truly innocent in all of these conflicts.  The Palestinians of Gaza ousted the PLO and installed Hamas as their government.  And who initiated the war?  It was Hamas who initially attacked Israel on October 7. Hamas killed and kidnapped the Israeli.   And now that Israel fought back and showed their military superiority against Hamas, the Gazan cries being the victim.  And if they want an end to the conflict, why won't Hamas return all the hostages for cease fire?  And if Hamas truly cared for their citizens, why would they use Hospitals as human shields?  Hamas is an evil organization who only cared for the destruction of Israel.  And the Gazan who installed them in power are complicit to their crimes.  So this is why I can't sympathize with the Gazan during this conflict.  I do want this war to end and everybody in that region live their lives peacefully.  It is now up to Hamas to return the hostages because frankly, they do not have the upper hand.

The new revival of Company by Sondheim

 

I have been looking forward to see this new revival of Sondheim's Company since I heard about it in TV.  This revival was rewritten to change the lead Bobby to a female Bobbie.  Hence some of the characters were also switched to the other gender.  One notable switch of gender was Amie changing to Jamie.  Amie and Paul were a heterosexual couple in the original Company.  It is now a gay couple Jamie and Paul.  All these changes were necessary because the struggles of the original 35 yo unmarried straight male (Bobby) 50 years ago seems unrealistic to the current social situation.  Bobby's social struggles are now more apt for a 35 yo unmarried woman.  Some lyrics of some songs were also tweaked. All these changes added to my curiosity to watch this revival. And since I took the initiative to listen to the music weeks prior to watching the show live, it only added to my anticipation. And boy it did not disappoint.  Love the singing, the acting and the production.  Everybody were superb.  I even did not mind the drawn out talking comedic portion of the show that at times I thought was unnecessary.

I would give this a 4.5 stars out of 5. 

Peter Pan

 

I saw Peter Pan at the Pantages last month.  I thought it would be visually appealing for my hearing impaired mother so I brought her along.  And I decided to finally watch this now because Peter Pan is played by an actual boy/man.  I just couldn't get myself to watch a woman playing Peter Pan as it was done before.  Nolan Almeida played our Peter Pan and he was up to the mark.  He was boyish looking enough to play the part and he hit all the notes of the songs he sang.  The production quality was indeed visually diverting.  The dance numbers were not superb but entertaining enough.  Oh and may I mention that Cody Garcia who play Captain Hook was amusing that his acting borders on the flamboyant.  Some of the songs are memorable too.  I might have to listen to the songs again to fully appreciate them.

All in all a worthwhile outing to the theatre.  3 stars out of 5.

May the 4th be with you.

 

It's gonna be MAY

Flamenco Show at El Cid

 

Kool & the Gang at the Hollywood Bowl