Southern Bookman

Alan Bennett in annual diary remembers Jonathan Miller

Noted British playwright Alan Bennett in his latest diary in the London Review of Books pays homage to fellow "Beyond the Fringe" member Jonathan Miller.

For years, Bennett has brightened the new year with his annual chronicle of the previous 12 months, published in the LRB. Bennett's record of his life in 2019 runs in the LRB's Jan. 2 issue.

The polymath Miller, who died Nov. 27, excelled in medicine, the theater and television. He was especially known for his opera productions, and hosting the TV documentary "The Body in Question."

Rising from their college days at Oxford and Cambridge, Miller and Bennett joined Dudley Moore and Peter Cook in the satirical revue "Beyond the Fringe," which eventually played on Broadway.

Along with serene depictions of the London literary world and unhurried life in suburban Yorkshire, Bennett can be cutting in his views. An entry in his 2019 diary gives a chilly assessment of Miller.

"Ours was a not unrivalrous relationship, with neither particularly generous about the other's work," Bennett says. He confesses to never seeing one of Miller's operas, and suspects Miller never watched one of his plays.

Bennett ends on a warmer, regretful note. "Now that he's gone I feel remorse as well as sorrow. But, jokes apart, it was a question of survival. I needed to write. Jonathan needed one to listen."

The diaries increasingly chronicle Bennett's aging. This year's entries often reference Bennett lying on his couch or in bed, suffering from severe arthritis. He also gives an alarming account of a fall on his bicycle, from which he suffered bruises but no broken bones or head injuries.

A disturbing sign of Bennett's looming mortality is that the diary is much shorter this year; he missed several months during the spring and summer because of open-heart surgery.

With all of his suffering, the diary is again a treat of refined thinking, with references to obscure films, actors and British writers. The diaries reflect his cultured life in suburban Yorkshire, where he enjoys gardening, old houses and reading. Bennett's at times fussy writing reveals a disgust with conservative politics, an enjoyment of small town life and an appreciation for small pleasures.

His diaries mirror my own aging, giving me encouragement and comfort. I hope to read Bennett's annual missives for years to come.

Wyatt Prunty made Sewanee Writers Conference special

Sewanee Writers Conference founding director Wyatt Prunty is stepping aside after 30 years running the "summer camp for adults" with uncommon grace and professionalism.

Tributes to Wyatt in the Sewanee Review's current issue brought memories of my participation in the first two conferences, funded by a legacy from Tennessee Williams. A noted poet, critic and Sewanee professor, Wyatt made the conference a success from the start.

He was a genial, quiet presence at the conference's many social events. A generous host who kept the conference running smoothly, Wyatt rarely interjected himself into the mingling of poets, novelists, playwrights, agents and publishers. When he did, such as suddenly playing harmonica at a sing-along around the piano, or enlivening a conversation for a sunlit moment with an astute comment or observation before moving on to the next group, participants felt blessed. Those brief interactions made us feel as if he knew and cared about each of us.

The two-week midsummer stay at Sewanee's secluded mountain campus inspired a deep commitment to writing and literature. Sharing breakfast and dinner with luminaries like John Hollander, Howard Nemerov, Tim O'Brien, David Justice, Mona Van Duyn and Robert Stone made us feel part of a literary community. The workshops, individual tutorials and readings raised us to a higher artistic level.

I'll never forget Peter Taylor's courageous reading. Mr. Taylor, still recovering from a stroke, read from one of his marvelous stories. He at times got stuck on a word, but pressed on to the end. I'm honored to say that Mr. Taylor took a liking to me, inviting me to his house in Sewanee for a reception for writing conference faculty members. Talking with him and his wife and wonderful poet, Eleanor Ross Taylor, and intermingling with writers like Ernest Gaines, I thought i had gone to heaven without dying.

The writing conference co-existed with a gathering of high-school musicians. Walking to a workshop or lecture along one of the school's Gothic archways, a writer would come upon a young flutist or violinist practicing. Those brief interludes of music lifted our hearts with the joy and beauty of art.

Before saying farewell to Sewanee, we gathered in the school's magnificent chapel for the young musicians' final concert. They played on each side of us, their Bach and Mozart enveloping us. Such a gift from them as we returned to the world.

Linda Ronstadt documentary traces singer's meteoric career, heart-breaking loss of voice

Linda Ronstadt possessed the greatest range and versatility of any American singer.

The documentary "Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice" traces the singer's spectacular career and the heart-breaking loss of her glorious instrument because of Parkinson's Disease.

Former boyfriend J.D. Souther and fellow pop stars Emmylou Harris, Don Henley, Jackson Browne, Bonnie Raitt, Dolly Parton and others praise Ronstadt for her supple voice and daring career. We hear from record magnate David Geffen, and former manager Peter Asher. They recall a woman who overcame a lack of confidence in her early days to forge a career that moved far beyond the boundaries of pop music.

Video clips show Ronstadt's performances as a beautiful, mesmerizing young woman. She often starts a song quietly, then stuns the audience with the full force of her voice. Like Aretha Franklin, Ronstadt displays unlimited reserves of power.

The most poignant tribute comes from Kevin Kline, Ronstadt's co-star in the Broadway revival of Gilbert and Sullivan's "The Pirates of Penzance." Kline remembers being moved to tears by hearing Ronstadt's flawless bel-canto voice at the musical's first rehearsal. Scenes of her operetta performance will make musical lovers wish she'd starred in more theatrical productions.

Unlike singer-songwriters like Joni Mitchell, Ronstadt was a throwback to an earlier era when artists such as Frank Sinatra and Peggy Lee interpreted songs written by others.

Ronstadt's voice, larger than other rock stars', pushed songs like "Blue Bayou" and "When Will I Be Loved" to new heights. Reviving American-songbook standards in an album arranged by Nelson Riddle, Ronstadt found her true calling. Later, Ronstadt honored her heritage by recording classic Mexican songs.

Countering record company executives' demands that she stick with hit-proven pop songs, Ronstadt's American Songbook and Mexican albums were best-sellers.

In moving beyond rock and folk, Ronstadt brought her audience to a new musical sophistication and appreciation for jazz, country, Broadway musicals and ethnic music.

The film ends with a heart-breaking scene of Ronstadt struggling with her depleted voice to sing along with her nephew on a Mexican folk song.

Now, the voice that once soared to the highest musical registers can barely rise above a whisper. Ronstadt accepts the loss without regret or bitterness, grateful for the time she was touched by God.

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving

It's time to give thanks for our blessings.

This year has dealt me highs and lows. Here are a few snapshots from my 2019 album.

Eight days in the hospital. I'm thankful for the doctors and nurses who helped me feel better again.

A trip to New York City to see Jeff Daniels' masterful performance as Atticus Finch in Aaron Sorkin's theater adaptation of Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird."

The Miro show at the MOMA, before the museum closed to receive a new look. Miro's stance against Fascism in the 1930s gives us courage to resist Trump and the GOP's assaults on truth and human dignity. I was overwhelmed by Picasso's "Guernica" when I first visited MOMA nearly 50 years ago. I'm looking forward to visiting yet another new MOMA.

Trips to Portugal and Amelia Island, Fla., two places where rivers join the Atlantic Ocean. Both are threatened by rising sea levels and the crush of tourism. Like distant cousins, they are battling to preserve their proud cultures.

The Braves' rush to the pennant. Joe Burrow and the Tigers. Anne-Marie and I getting together with our children Sara, Luke and Ruthie in Nashville, Tenn. Learning to play Joni Mitchell's "Both Sides Now" on the piano.

We'll soon turn the calendar to another year, which looms as one of history's crossroads. The personal decisions of millions will determine whether the nation follows the course of freedom or an American totalitarianism.

No matter what happens, truth and beauty eventually will prevail.

 

Wendell Pierce receives accolades for Willy Loman performance in London production of "Death of a Salesman"

Wendell Pierce says playing Willy Loman is like scaling a mountain each night.

The New Orleans native is receiving accolades for his portrayal of Loman in Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman" at Piccadilly Theater in London's West End. The production originated at the Old Vic.

In an interview in Sunday's New York Times, Pierce called the role America's Hamlet, acknowledging the notable group of American actors who've played the part.

Pierce, known for performances in HBO's "The Wire" and "Treme," the hit TV show "Suits" and numerous movies, is an accomplished theatrical actor. During his career, he's appeared in plays by August Wilson, Shakespeare and Chekhov. Pierce hopes to add Othello and King Lear to his Loman role, he told the Times.

An all-black cast plays Loman's family in the West End production, which brings new dimensions to Miller's play, Pierce said. A black family struggling with middle-class aspirations has parallels to Loman's Jewish family.

After Hurricane Katrina destroyed Pierce's childhood home in New Orleans' Ponchartrain Park neighborhood, Pierce launched efforts to rebuild the community. He also received praise for his production of "Waiting for Godot," which brought healing to the city after Katrina's devastation.

Pierce's triumphant performance as Willy Loman brings him to the top tier of American actors.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Farewell, Harold Bloom

Harold Bloom cashed in on middle-class Americans' hunger for literary culture.

The Yale professor and prolific author of best-selling books on Shakespeare and other great Western writers died Monday at age 89 in a New Haven hospital, according to a New York Times front-page obituary.

Like Clifton Fadiman, Mortimer Adler and the Harvard "Great Books" collection, Bloom sought to impart literary knowledge to average readers. While previous workers in the trade published great-book editions for home libraries, Bloom attracted those who wanted literary wisdom without reading the books. Dwight MacDonald called the earnest desire for self-improvement "middle brow."

With his wild hair, hound-dog eyes and portly figure, Bloom was a living academic charicature. Reveling in his resemblance to the comic actor Zero Mostel, Bloom was known for his florid lectures, among Yale's most popular.

A few of Bloom's female students. including author Naomi Wolf, accused him of sexual impropriety, which he denied. Wolf said he placed a hand on her thigh.

From his perch at Yale, Bloom defended the white-male-dominated Western canon, mostly British and American. He issued thunderclaps against ethnic and women writers, whom he disparaged as the "school of resentment."

In one of his controversial books, he found that a woman at King Solomon's court had written the Jewish bible. He also claimed that Shakespeare had "invented the human," or formed the modern consciousness.

Bloom possessed a photographic memory and could recite all of Shakespeare, Romantic poetry, "Paradise Lost" and "The Fairie Queen,"according to the Times. That seems more insane than laudatory.

A literary factory, Bloom also edited a number of critical books on American and British authors, handy tools for English teachers and students.

As a critic, he ruined several writers' reputations, including Robert Lowell's. The poet's standing has rebounded in recent years.

Many who picked up Bloom's books seeking a guide to literature were left mystified. His Yale colleague, the poet John Hollander, criticized Bloom for his unclear writing, according to the Times. Bloom was notorious for using obscure literary terms.

Bloom made his mark with "The Anxiety of Influence," a ground-breaking book that asserted that young writers seek to overthrow their literary forebears through misreading their works. That was a blow against the prevailing New Criticism, which focused on texts without examining their historical and biographical contexts.

Some considered Bloom a charlatan. His unmistakable Bloomian style of bombast and encyclopedic knowledge intimidated many readers who bought his missives. Many undoubtedly were inspired to go on and read the books, using him as a guide. He began a mini-boom in Shakespeare studies issued by other academics, which continues unabated.

He championed the traditional Western book culture as elite schools like Yale instituted programs in gender studies, film, TV and even cartoons. His pronouncements were the dying cries of a a long-established literary hegemony. That his literary elitism produced so many best-sellers is amazing. In the age of Twitter-short attention spans, such success is unlikely to be duplicated.

 

 

 

 

 

How dark "Oklahoma" revival gave country flavor to "People Will Say We're in Love"

The "Oklahoma" revival now on Broadway gives a darker, stripped down interpretation of Rodgers and Hammerstein's classic musical.

New York Times theater critic Jesse Green in Sunday's Times analyzes how the new production changed "People Will Say We're in Love" from an operatta confection to sultry country-influenced love song.

In the new show, Curly strums a guitar as he serenades Laurie, shifting from the light-opera style made famous through the years by such stars as Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones and Hugh Jackman and Josefina Gabrielle.

Portraying Curly, Damon Daunno at one haunting moment in the new rendering breaks into a Hank Williams-reminiscent yodel. As Laurie, Rebecca Naomi Jones shimmers close to Daunno in a sultry, seductive dance, a radical shift from the coy and mocking performances of  Jones and Gabrielle.

Without bogging down in technicalities, Green analyzes how the revival directed by Daniel Fish changed the song's flavor. Music director Nathan Koci replaced the traditional theater pit orchestra with an on-stage ensemble that plays country string instruments.

In a treat for those with some understanding of musical theory, Green analyzes how Koci changed the song's key and voice styling. With all of the changes, one of Rodgers and Hammerstein's most beautiful songs keeps its essence.

The Broadway revival has resulted in a new cast recording. A separate Times article traces the history of "Oklahoma" cast recordings. The first was Decca Records' pioneering effort in 1943, recorded on multiple 78s.

I'm looking forward to hearing the revival cast's new interpretations of standards like "Surrey With the Fringe on The Top" and the sweeping theme "Oklahoma."

After years as one of those Rodgers and Hart acolytes, I gained new appreciation for Hammerstein's collaboration with Rodgers by hearing Blossom Dearie's jazzy and seductive recording of "Surrey With the Fringe on the Top."

Koci's new arrangements of "Oklahoma" songs will open the music to new artistic interpretations. A country or pop duo will surely follow Koci's path and record "People Will Say We're in Love."

 

 

 

Headed back to New York City

Gearing up for a weekend trip to New York City, my longtime love.

The city has changed dramatically through the years, while its energy and frantic chaos remain the same.

As The New York Times documented in a special section recently, the Manhattan skyline looks far different now then it did even five years ago.

Resembling War of the Worlds aliens, monstrous skyscrapers have risen, blighting street life below. The soaring towers' owners, Mideastern and Eastern Europe billionaires, buy the high-rise apartments as money-laundering vehicles. The ghostly units above the clouds mostly stay vacant. Below the buildings' shadows, small retailers flee, leaving empty storefronts even on Fifth Avenue.

New York's soul shines at the New York Public Library,the Frick, Broadway and off Broadway theaters, the Morgan, the Museum of Modern Art and other places. They too are beset by plans and new directions, while their essence survives.

With rising seas, dominance of the ultra-rich and destruction of the middle class, the city's future looks troubled. At certain moments, when the light softens at Central Park or the curtain rises on a new show, New York's magic feels eternal.

 

Tony Awards fall flat

Watching college baseball, I missed much of the Tony Awards Sunday night. The few musical numbers I caught lumbered with the worst excesses of Broadway, making me glad that I'd mostly remained at the ballpark.

The lackluster and disjointed Tonys show did have the surprise of "Hadestown" winning seven more awards than "To Kill a Mockingbird."

On a night where "Network's" Bryan Cranston beat out "To Kill a Mockingbird's" Jeff Daniels for the aging white male leading man award, "Hadestown" dominated the musical field. It looked more interesting than productions based on Cher, the Temptations, Tootisie and Bettlejuice.

The legendary Elaine May's wry and gracious acceptance speech for her best leading actress award increased my desire to see her performance in Kenneth Lonergan's "The Waverly Gallery." But then I discovered the play had already closed.

I liked host James Corden's collection of jackets, but his cloying, overeager performance wore out its appeal. After mocking the Tonys' low TV ratings in a promising opening production number, he generated more groans than laughs. Corden should remain in the steppes of late night TV.

Oh well, Broadway is booming, according to The New York Times, and the "Hadestown" bonanza and best play recognition for Jez Butterworth's "The Ferryman" indicated an approval for imaginative theater over commercial, crowd-pleasing productions.

Too bad that Broadway couldn't put on a better show for its shrinking national TV audience.

 

Glenda Jackson's "King Lear" on Broadway to close early

The Broadway production of "King Lear" starring Glenda Jackson will close a month early.

Producer Scott Rudin announced that the show at the Cort Theater will have its final performance on June 9, The New York Times reported. The production had been scheduled to end on July 7.

The closure comes a year after the 83-year-old Jackson won her first Tony Award, given for her performance in Edward Albee's "Three Women."

First appearing on Broadway in the 1960s production of "Marat/Sade," the two-time Academy Award winner Jackson has been a favorite of New York critics and audiences.

Even Jackson's immense star power couldn't save a troubled production. Director Sam Gold's innovative interpretation of Shakespeare's 400-year-old tragedy received mixed reviews.

Nor did Jackson draw raves for her portrayal of Lear. She shockingly failed to receive a Tony nomination, with Ruth Wilson's dual performance as the Fool and Cordelia receiving the production's sole nomination.

Wilson's work fulfills a fascinating theory by some scholars that Shakespeare saw the characters as the same person. Both possess a pure love for the mentally failing king, and confront him with searing but healing truth.

London audiences were more receptive to a woman playing Shakespeare's most complex role. Jackson was lauded for her performance as the tormented king in director Deborah Warner's hit production at the Old Vic.

Lear is riven by masculine conflicts of pride, loss of authority and the waning of strength and sexual potency. I assume that Jackson portrays Lear as a primarily male figure, "every inch a king." The gender shouldn't matter. What counts is acting ability.

Gender is one of Shakespeare's major obsessions. Until the era of Charles II, boys played female roles. In "As You Like It" and other plays,women disguise themselves as men, exploring the comedy that rises from the confusion of mixed identities. Rather than radical, Jackson's performance continues Shakespeare traditions.

Shakespeare tragedies have been popular on Broadway, even in the recent past. Gold's production sounds difficult for audience comprehension, but the chance to see a great actress perform the theater's greatest role should be irresistible for theater-goers. The fizzling of Lear on Broadway is a troubling sign of cultural deterioration and the desire for unchallenging escapist entertainment.