The Soul of “Wit”

I first saw Cynthia Nixon on Broadway when she was a freshman at Barnard, playing the daughter of Jeremy Irons and Christine Baranski in Tom Stoppard’s play, The Real Thing. There was a lot of buzz about her being the real thing as an actress, but frankly I was underwhelmed and thought she was a little superficial and callow.  She’s gone on to an outstanding career, of course, and her riveting performance in the excellent new Manhattan Theatre Company production of Wit is anything but superficial and callow. Shows you what I know.

Nixon plays Vivian Bearing, a fiercely intellectual professor of metaphysical poetry, who undergoes a grueling, experimental treatment for Stage IV ovarian cancer. “Superficial and callow” might be words Professor Bearing would apply to her students, who find her standards unusually demanding. She is not one to suffer fools, but now, as she suffers from cancer, she tests the limits of her endurance as she once tested her students.

I saw Kathleen Chalfant’s legendary performance Off Broadway in 1999. I saw Emma Thompson’s Emmy-nominated performance in the HBO movie, directed by Mike Nichols. I saw my wife, Sheila Sheffield, triumph in the role in a regional production on Long Island. Vivian is one of those beautifully written characters who allow actresses to rise to the occasion, and Cynthia Nixon surely does. She so thoroughly immerses herself in the role that there is no trace of Miranda, her glamorous character from Sex and the City.

“I am a force!” Vivian declares at one point, but she is dealing with an insidious power beyond her control. As an authority on John Donne, she has explicated his sonnet, “Death Be Not Proud,” but as death closes in, her pride crumbles. At the mercy not only of the disease but the research ambitions of her doctors, she pleads, “Now is the time for kindness,” a quality she hasn’t been known for, and finally she retreats to child-like helplessness.

I should note that the entire cast, under Lynne Meadow’s intelligent and fluent direction, is excellent. Two scenes are particularly moving. In one, Vivian and her sympathetic nurse, played by Carra Patterson, share a popsicle and the reality of her situation. In the other, near the end, Vivian’s mentor, Professor E.M. Ashford, played by Susan Bertish, crawls into Vivian’s bed and reads The Runaway Bunny to her.

Early in the play, Vivian defines “wit” as something which stimulates one’s intellectual capacity. This play, amazingly the only published work of Margaret Edson (who wrote it at the age of 30, won a Pulitzer Prize for it, and currently teaches sixth-grade social studies in Atlanta), has plenty of wit, both in that sense and in its sense of humor. It manages to move both our heads and our hearts. That is an achievement to cherish, and so is this production. Don’t miss it!

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Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing

With three weeks to go until Valentine’s day, it might not be a bad time to put pen to paper, yes, pen to paper. In honor of National Handwriting day, we are playing songs about love letters and asking when was the last time you wrote or received one, and we don’t mean a text.

 

Want to know what we played?

1. “Tear Stained Letter” – Johnny Cash, American IV

2. “Love Letters” – Julie London, The Very Best of Julie London

3. “P.S. I Love You” – Billie Holiday, Jazz Masters

4. “I’m Gonna Sit Right Down (And Write a Letter)” – Nat King Cole, Very Best of Nat King Cole

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Dragon Days

The year of the dragon officially begins today, marking the start of the Chinese New Year. Since it is the end of something old and the start of something new, today’s Question of the Day is about new beginnings. Send us in songs about starting over or new beginnings!

If you would like to take part in one of the many NYC activities, here’s one link to get you started:

http://gonyc.about.com/cs/holidays/a/chinesenewyear.htm

Here is today’s Question of the Day:

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Spacey Rocks As Richard III

“Now is the winter of our discontent.” It could be the slogan of an election year, but, of course, it’s the opening line of Shakespeare’s Richard III, which is playing at the BAM Harvey Theatre through March 4 in a production directed by Sam Mendes and starring Kevin Spacey. It’s the last season of the three-year Bridge Project collaboration between BAM and the Old Vic in London, and it’s a full-throttle finale.

From the moment Kevin Spacey utters those words directly to the audience we’re drawn in as accessories to his ruthless machinations to assume the throne of England. No one does menace better than Spacey, but his performance as the “foul, bunch-back’d toad” runs the gamut from sly humor to violent anger. He is repellent and fanatical, yet fascinating. It’s a monumental, exhausting achievement that would make him a frontrunner for a TONY if BAM productions were eligible.

Unless you’re a student of English history, it can be a challenge sorting out the family trees and loyalties of the characters. Mendes makes it a little easier by using supertitles to identify the character we’re about to witness in many scenes. The stage is raked and framed by doors, which allow for quick entrances and exits and keep the action flowing. The action is accented by a steady drumbeat, supplied by both professional percussionists and actors playing drums onstage, which creates a sense of mounting inexorability and doom. (“I’m steeped so deep in blood by now that one sin has to follow the next,” says Richard.)

As is so often the case, the British-American cast is uneven. Two standouts are Chuk Iwuji as Richard’s ally, the Duke of Buckingham, who later turns against him (with fatal consequences), and Hayden Gwynne, as Queen Elizabeth, the widow of Richard’s older brother, Edward IV. They are involved in two of the best scenes, which combine masterful stagecraft and acting.

In the first, a political rally near the end of the first act, Buckingham charismatically whips up the crowd to beseech Richard to accept the crown, while a video close up of Richard, offstage supposedly in prayer, shows how disingenuous his reluctance really is. In the second, Richard goes head to head with Elizabeth, attempting with sweet talk and threats to get her support in wooing her young daughter, but she never backs down.

I’m not sure how historically accurate Shakespeare is (whether Richard was even a cripple), but he created one of the theater’s all-time great roles, which has a way of resonating with current events. I’ve seen Olivier portray him on film. I’ve seen Peter Dinklage (the remarkable dwarf actor who’s won awards for The Station Agent and Game of Thrones) do it at The Public. I’ve even seen a memorable all-female production at The Globe Theater in London. Yet I don’t think any of them were better than Spacey’s all-in performance, which leaves both him and the audience drained at the end. How he can do it six times a week is beyond me. It’s almost three and a half hours long, but worth every minute.

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Colloquial Confusion

Let’s face it, many times we listen to a song and think that we know exactly what the artist is talking about. But then we learn that what we  thought was right couldn’t have been more wrong! Artist’s are clever with their lyrics, often hiding a much deeper meaning behind simple lyrics. So for today’s Question of the Day, we want you to send us a song that took you far too long to figure out its true meaning!

Here is today’s Question of the Day playlist:

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“I’m Strong to the Finish Because I Eat My Spinach!”


Popeye first appeared in the funny pages 82 years ago today, so we are celebrating his birthday with a healthy serving of spinach. Send us your songs featuring spinach or other fruits and veggies in today’s QOTD.

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I Have a Dream

Yesterday marked the 83rd birth date of Martin Luther King, Jr. His dream is on our minds in today’s FUV Question of the Day.  Share your thoughts here, and share a song to keep the dream alive.

You can read Mavis Staples’ thoughts here:

http://www.spinner.com/2012/01/13/mavis-staples-civil-rights-mlk-jr/

Here is today’s Question of the Day:

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Resisting the Urge

Temptation

Claudia’s having a tough time keeping her resolutions- what a shock!- so we’re making a playlist to keep us all motivated. Send us songs that keep you pumped up or help you resist temptation in the New Year!
Musical Inspiration to morning@wfuv.org

Some Musical Motivation:

1.”Temptation” -Diana Krall, The Girl In The Other Room

2.”Refusing Temptation” -Rhett Miller, Rhett Miller

3. “I’ll Raise And Fall With You” -Louden Wainwright, Strange Weirdos

4. “Accentuate the Positive” -Dr. John, Dr. John Anthology

5. “Move On Up” -Curtis Mayfield, Curtis

 

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A Collaboration of Art

We’ve got a lot of love for museums and music alike, and with today being the anniversary of the first public museum, we’re asking for your favorite mix of music and art; concerts in museums, etc. Share your stories and songs with us at morning@wfuv.org

NYC is no stranger to mixing these art forms, check on the Naked Soul series at the Rubin Museum of Art:

http://www.rmanyc.org/pages/load/192

1. “Radio Operator” -Rosanne Cash, Black Cadillac 

2. “Lillian Egypt” -Josh Ritter, The Animal Years

3. “Hollow Love” -James Maddock, Sunrise on Avenue C

4. “Red Dress” -Susan Weller, Kickin The Bee Hive

5. “Tootie Ma Is A Big Fine Thing” -Medeski, Martin and Wood, Indirecto

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In Celebration of the Organ

Laurens Hammond, inventor of the Hammond B3 organ was born today, January 11, 1895. Today in the QOTD we’re looking for songs with great organ pieces!

1. “Green Onions” -Booker T & the MGs,  Green Onions

2. “Gimme Some Lovin” -Spencer Davis Group, The Best of Steve Winwood

3. “Stormy Monday” -Lee Michaels, Lee Michaels

4. “Whiter Shade of Pale” -Procol Harum, Whiter Shade of Pale

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