USA fitness to Speakeasy fitness. Still poorly managed.

Speakeasy fitness now, it was USA fitness before.  My experience with both were unsatisfactory due to poor management.  Here are the circumstances:

1.  After I did all the required paperwork to cancel my membership, USA fitness continued to deduct monthly due on my bank account.  Evidently, the person I met to cancel my membership did not file the paperwork properly, so billing was not aware of my cancellation.  I have to return to the gym and show my proof of cancellation which was a big hassle.

2.  Last year, I tried to join Speakeasy fitness because I saw a great yearly rate.  I went to the gym to join and pay but they told me that the rate advertised in their website is wrong and needs updating.  I was required to pay a higher fee.  I tried emailing the manager about it, but I never got any response.

3.  This year, I eventually rejoined Speakeasy fitness because I saw that they have a great yearly rate again.  I paid my yearly membership fee in full and avoided giving them any credit card or bank information.  Lately I have to give them my phone number because my ID card was malfunctioning.  As it turns out, they could not locate my membership because the staff entered a wrong phone number.  Super annoying.

4.  There is a leg press machine that is broken for at least 4 weeks now.  How long does it take to have that repaired?  And on many occasions, the solitary water fountain would be broken too, and it took an unreasonable amount of time to get it fixed.

5.  Several weeks ago, the elevator was under maintenance.  Let it be said that the only access to the gym floor from the garage was via the elevator.  Otherwise, we have to walk out to the street and enter the gym front door.  Why can they have the elevator maintenance done when the gym is close as to not disrupt customer access to the gym floor from the garage?

6.  Every time it rains, the ceiling leaks into the gym floor.  Granting that it rarely rains in southern California, it should be fixed permanently.

These are my real experience with this poorly manage gym located in panorama city.

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.

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.

Hamilton, cancelled by COVID 19

Today would have been the day I finally get to see Hamilton on stage.  But alas it was not meant to be.  Covid 19 pandemic forced Pantages Theatre to cancel the performance for today.

I won't say I am terribly disappointed.  After all I already saw Hamilton in YouTube and firestick.  Seeing it again on stage would have been a moot point I suppose.  The thought of sitting in close proximity of others in a crowded theater is not very comforting.  I will only feel at ease again in a theater after I get vaccinated or have acquired immunity.  Also I got to save $72 in the process.  Maybe I will still get to see it in the future.  Never say never in this case.

May I say that although I thought the show was brilliantly written and staged, I can't totally get onboard with some of the rapping in the songs.  I am just not a fan of rapping in general.  Despite that, I must say that there were several songs that I really liked namely "The Schuyler sisters", "helpless", "You'll be back", "Take a Break" and "One last time".  Those were catchy songs that I can hum to all day.    On top of the rapping that was a bit of a mood killer for me, the lack of a big dance number did not help.  On the other hand I did get some history lesson from the show.

Many have been raving about Hamilton that my expectations were just simply elevated.  So I was a bit let down.  I will give this a 3.5 stars out of 5.

Frozen at the Pantages

I got to watch Frozen, the hit broadway musical 2 weeks ago at the Pantages.  I was not sure how to feel before seeing it.  I know I liked the animated original version Disney released but I was not sure if I will end up liking the stage version too.

Let me first off say that it was very entertaining!  The songs that we loved are of course in the show and they have added new songs.  Frankly, I feel luke warm on the new songs.  Perhaps I just need to hear it more to develop a liking.  There were 3 musical numbers that I particularly enjoyed.

Of course the "Let It Go" number was to be expected as a hit.  I honestly did not know how they would create a stage version of the magic Elsa did to build the ice castle.  And may I say it turned out very realistic.  The costume transformation from Elsa's normal dress to the bedazzled sequined light blue dress was a big crowd-pleaser.   It brought "OOHH" and "AAHHH" from the crowd along with enthusiastic applause.

Then there was the diverting "In Summer" musical number by Olaf.  It was just pure genius how they created Olaf on stage.  It was not a man inside the Olaf costume but a man behind the Olaf puppet.  So the actor controlled the movement of Olaf and he sings/talks while moving Olaf's mouth.  There was no attempt to hide the actor behind the puppet Olaf.  He was dress in white snow outfit and his face was producing the same expressions as the Olaf puppet.  It was just fun to see.

The third musical number that I found quite delightful was the "Love Is an Open Door" song by Anna and Hans.  It helped that Hans was so handsome and princely.  It was at times comical but it did not take away from the delightfulness of the number.  There was some light dancing and good singing to the tenderness of the song.   I almost believed that it was really the beginning of young love.

I would have love this show more if it was not for the unorthodox casting the production decided to do.  The production made Kristoff as a black man.  I wanted to see Kristoff on stage to somewhat look like the Kristoff on the animated version.  The production also changed the lyrics of the song "Fixer Upper" by taking away any reference to Kristoff's blond hair.   Our Kristoff was a good actor and he sang/danced well so it was not a deal breaker in the end.

I do applaud that the production opened the door to ethnic actors but I am just not a big fan of blind casting.  If I watch King and I, I want to see an Asian King of Siam.  Not Yul Brynner.  If I watch Color Purple, I want to see black characters.  I do not care to see Lea Salonga, an Asian actress, to play Eponine in Les Miserables.  Eponine was a French woman and she ought to be a white woman.  I suppose I just could not let it go.

In summary, an amusing magical show and a successful transformation of a much beloved animated story to stage.  I give it 4 stars out of 5.

First hand Frenemy experience

My theater enthusiast friends have given me one account on Broadway Tony Award winner Lea Salonga.  They said that Lea is not the friendliest toward filipino who waited at stage doors after watching her perform.  Yet Lea is friendly and animated enough with Americans.  So my friends dubbed her the "Frenemy".  They love her for her talent and yet hates her for how she treated them.  Hence a friend and an enemy, frenemy.

I thought this account of Lea is at the very least intriguing.   I was not yet prepared to form a hard opinion of her based on this account.  After all, I have admired Lea since she snagged the role of Kim in the West End production of Miss Saigon.  Then when the show was brought to Broadway, she also played Kim garnering her a Tony Award for best actress in a musical.  She also won the best actress in the Laurence Olivier Award in London.  So her talent and singing prowess is not to be question.  I have listened to her sing on my own copy of Miss Saigon soundtrack countless of times that I could sing along pretty much 80% of the track.  Needless to say I was a big fan.

I was a big fan enough that when my friends invited me to travel to NYC to watch her on her new musical Allegiance, I jumped into the chance to see her perform first hand. But it was not meant to be since she was absent during the show that I saw.  It was her understudy that I saw.  So I was sorely disappointed.

When another chance came up to see her perform in person, I took it.  My friends invited me again to see her perform in Once on This Island.  Finally I saw her live and indeed her talent and singing did not disappoint.  On a side note, I did not care for the musical but seeing Lea live did not dampen my mood.  Now came the moment to meet her at the stage door.  True enough, she was aloof towards me, a Filipino fan ,yet animated towards the American fan.  So I guess my friends' account of her when they met her before was accurate.  She is not friendly to Filipinos.  Now I can form my own opinion of her on closer acquaintance.  For my friends, she is still the Frenemy, but to me she is just the enemy.  Ever since that day, I have sworn never again to patronize her shows.  I will not fly to NYC just to see her.  Even if she has a show in LA, I will not go see it.  No need wasting my money on her.

School of Rock at the Pantages

Ever since I saw the Tony performance of Andrew Lloyd Weber's School of Rock, I was hooked.  I wanted to see it.  When I went to NY, I did not watch it because I know it will be shown at the Pantages here in LA.

So I did go with my mom.  I thought the children singing and playing musical instruments will amuse her.  She was after all diverted by the talents of the children in Sound of Music and Annie.  The children were indeed very talented but I was not sure if mom was entertained.  I, on the other hand, was not that entertained.  I am not exactly sure why.  Perhaps it was because I really only liked the "You're in the Band" musical number.  "Stick It to the Man" number was fun too but the other musical numbers were pretty forgettable.  The guy who played Dewey (Rob Colletti) was not as handsome as the Broadway actor at the Tony.  He was chunkier.  So perhaps that may have turned me off a bit.  Don't get me wrong.  He was talented by I just did not relate to him.  All the children played their parts beautifully but not enough to make me go "wow".

I will give this 3 stars.  Somewhere in the middle.

Rick Astley - Beautiful Life (Official Video)

New Rick Astley song.  Might I say it is quite catchy!

Shen Yun At CSUN

So I finally saw Shen Yun at the Center for the Performing Arts at CSUN.  I have planned on seeing it ever since I saw the advertisement in TV.  And since it was brought back to Northridge, I thought I should see it while it is so convenient for me.

I pretty much expected beautiful Chinese dancing in beautiful costumes.  What I was not expecting was the way the show was set up.  It was divided into several vignettes with the emcee coming out to introduce the number each time.  There were two emcees.  One spoke mandarin Chinese while the other translated it to English.  Some numbers had stories while others were just dances of a particular period and its people. 

I especially liked the "Han Dynasty Sleeves", The Hmong Ethnic Dance- In the Mountains", "Elegance in the Middle Kingdom", " Lofty Spirits on the Grasslands", "Soaring Handkerchiefs" and "Ladies of the Qing Dynasty" dance numbers.  The dancing were colorful, playful and a novelty to watch.

There were some numbers that I thought were just plain boring.  I did not like the "Heaven Awaits" baritone number, the "Ancient Melody" ehru number and the "Coming to Pass" soprano number. 

Then there was a number that I thought was just political.  "Unprecedented Crime" was a political dance story that reflected events in China. I do not care!

It was said that Shen Yun do update their programs periodically.  So when it comes back for another tour in So Cal, it will be a new program.  I probably will not watch it again even with the new program.  Once is enough for this show.

Aladdin the Musical

"Very Campy but loads of fun!"  "Fabulous and a feast to the senses." 

Those were what I text my friend when she asked how the show was.  Indeed it was just a fun fun fun show.  The genie was hilarious.  The dancing was spectacular and the costumes were vibrantly scintillating.

There were a few pragmatic changes they did on the stage musical.  For one, instead of a parrot side kick for Jafar, they had a portly short guy.  And instead of Abu the monkey, Aladdin had 3 friends.  Of course they added more songs but the beloved songs from the Animation were there and were an absolute crowd pleaser.

We had the understudy Clinton Greenspan for Aladdin and he was very good.  I have no complaints at all.  It was as if he was playing the role since Broadway.  I did not care much for the Princess Jasmine actress Isabella McCalla.  There was something about her singing that did not really resonate with me.  It was not that she was out of tune or did not hit the notes...  I dunno...  Michael James Scott as the Genie was just hysterical.  He almost was "gay" funny.  His jokes had some pop culture reference like the Black Panther Wakanda salute.  Jonathan Weir as Jafar was just a lovable villain.  You know he is a villain but somehow you can't just hate him. 

I have one minor misgiving about the show.  I would have like to see a more spectacular theater production for the "A Whole New World" number.  Yeah it was nice to see Jasmin and Aladdin swinging back and forth while riding the "magic carpet" but I wished they had done a more eye catching trick. 

I would definitely watch his again if given the opportunity. Even more so since I missed about 2 minutes of the production number of "Friend Like Me" because my bladder just needed some release.  I give it a 4.5 stars out of 5. 

Spongbob Squarepants in Broadway

I got a last minute ticket for this show.  My friends said the review was good and I was just too curious to pass it by. 

This was a fun show.  If you watch Spongebob cartoon, you will enjoy this more.  All the main characters in the cartoon were in the show.  The story was simple and comical.  It was very akin to a story line of the cartoon.  There were many children in the audience obviously and suprisingly, they were behaved.

Ethan Slater was a very good spongebob.  His voice was superb.  Danny Skinner and Lilli Cooper as Patrick Star and Sandy Cheeks respectively were also very good.  In fact all the cast were very good in portraying the characters they played.

The songs were entertaining enough but nothing to write home about.  The set was visually appealing but required a little imagination.  Costumes were nothing impractical and enough to identify the characters.

I was perhaps a little tired so I did not enjoy this as much if I was alert.  3.5 stars out of 5.

Hello, Dolly!

Let me just start by saying that this is now my number one favorite show.  And it is all because of Bette Midler.  She was phenomenal, fantastic, awesome, great, fabulous and any other superlatives you can think of.  Everytime she steps out on stage, the crowd claps with gusto.  David Hyde Pierce was also very good.  And let me not forget to mention that I also loved Gavin Creel.  In fact every cast members were very good.

The iconic songs were a great hit.  Love the "Before the Parade Passes by" and "Hello, Dolly" songs of course.  There was never a dull moment in fact.  I cried not because I was sad.  I cried because I was overwhelmed with happiness in some of the numbers.  The dance productions were super diverting.  The sets and costumes were all riveting.

Watch this show!!!  6 stars out of 5!

Once on this Island

So my friends invited me again to join them in NYC to see Once on this Island with Lea Salonga and Alex Newell in it.  So I jumped in partly because I wanted to see Lea and Alex and partly because I have not seen my friends for over a year now.  A reunion was overdue.

The reunion part was a huge success and joy.  Unfortunately I could not say the same with Once on this Island.  It was OK I guessed. The songs were herald by my friends a very catchy but I was underwhelmed.  I must admit the song "Mama will provide" was catchy and upbeat.  I liked it but the other songs were wanting.  I was in fact sleepy on some of the slow songs.

The voices of the actors were good and broadway quality indeed.  Special mention to Lea's voice.  It was full and bitch she still got it.  Alex also delivered a broadway worthy belt on her number.

It was a theatre in the the round which was interesting.  They had real sands in the middle.  All of the seats were relatively "good" seats.  We sat at the very last row but we were still close enough.

Lea and Alex were the saving graces so I give this a 3 stars out of 5. 

PS.  the photos were taken prior to the start of the show.  the cast were doing odd things.

Ranking the Grandslams of Tennis for 2017

Now that the Slams of 2017 Tennis are over, I will give my ranking of the best slams to the worst and the reasoning behind my ranking.

1.  Australian Open.  By far the Australian Open was the best slam of 2017.  For starters, Serena reigned supreme despite being pregnant.  And the runner up was sister Venus.  Then for the Men's side, Roger edged Rafa in the finals.  I could not hoped for a better result.  The Bryan Brother would have done better than being the runner up but this was their best result for 2017.

2.  Wimbledon.  Wimbledon ranked second because Roger won the Gentlemen's trophy.  Cilic was the runner up.  Although Venus was only the runner up for the Ladies' side, I did not mind that much that Muguruza won.

3.  French Open.  Roland Garros is third place since Rafa won the title and Stan Wawrinka was the runner up.  And as far as the women side is concern, I do not care for Ostapenko winning it over Halep.

4.  US Open.  US Open came last in my list despite being my home slam.  Rafa winning was the only redeeming result for this slam.  I do not care for Anderson as the runner up.  And the women side was also a yawn.  Slone Stephen edging Madison Keys was not exciting for me at all.

There you go.  Let us see how 2018 will turn out.

Pinnacles National Park

Pinnacles National Park is one of the more recent park to join the National Park System.  I am not sure if this was the reason for its lack of parking spaces to visitors.  At least it was the case when we visited it during Memorial Day weekend.  We accessed the west side of the park so I can't say if the east entrance where the visitor center is located has ample parking spaces.  We hiked the Balconies Trail to the Balconies Cave.  The cave itself was small and some of the access area are very narrow.  Definitely not for the obese population.  On the other end of the cave was the main entrance that leads to the Balconies Cliffs Trail.  The view of the mountain was more spectacular in this portion of the hike although more taxing because of the ascending and descending trails.  This visit just wet my appetite for the east side of the park someday.