After a bit of a hiatus from "doing fun things" to restore our energy levels and our bank account from our Hawaiian adventures, we decided it was time to return to fun! We cancelled our 3rd consecutive weekend of ordering in food and watching movie marathons in our PJs and opted for something that required us to shower, getting dressed, and venture out into the world. So Saturday afternoon, we cleaned up and headed out for dinner, theater and dessert. We started at Kura Kura (we'd been there before during Chinese New year...for Japanese food...and visited the sister shop below, Kura, on a subsequent visit), as the theater is in Chinatown. Kura didn't disappoint. We ordered a salmon avocado roll, Wagyu beef tartare, a dragon roll (cucumber, avocado, cream cheese topped with eel), takoyaki (fried octopus balls topped with bonito - fish flakes), and a spicy tuna roll...it's dangerous when you're ordering on the iPad and can add to your order at on a whim! All were delicious.
After dinner, we headed over to the historic Capitol Theatre. When I say historic, it actually has a very colorful history...the building itself was built in 1892 to house markets. In 1916, the space was converted for a circus; the conversion included a 12 metre-wide water tank for seals and polar bears with a hydraulically controlled cover that was used as a circus ring when the pool wasn't in use (the tank is still there today, covered by the new floor). 10 years later, it was converted again, this time into a grand atmospheric theater with sculptural replicas and architectural props adorning the space and a high, blue-painted ceiling where points of light could be made to look like the night sky. As the economy took a turn for the worse, the theater became run down and was slated for demolition by the end of the '70's, but was saved in '81 by the Heritage Council and restored to the tune of $30 million. Tunnels once used for the circus animals are now dressing rooms. The space definitely has a lot of character.
Apologies for the awful image quality - we used Pickle's phone and it didn't perform all too well in low light. (Although, some of it could be user error - this is a .gif made from the 20-some odd photos Pickle took while showing me where the camera is as I accidentally held my finger on the burst setting...) |
We were at the Capitol Theatre for a performance of Les Misérables. The Australian cast has previously toured Melbourne and Perth. They have been in Sydney since March, and are about to close here to move on to Brisbane, so we wanted to be sure to catch this show while we could. My first experience with this iconic musical was while I was student teaching during my senior year of college. The high school I was at was one of the first in the nation to perform the musical, as the school edition was released in 2002 for Victor Hugo's (the author of the novel upon which the play is based) bicentenary. I played oboe and English horn in the pit orchestra. The production was like no other high school musical I'd ever witnessed before (or since). The budget was shocking, the talent was jawdropping, and I was hooked. When I attended my first professional performance of the musical, I was actually fairly disappointed that Fantine didn't quite measure up to what I'd expected after the amazing performance given by the high school senior who starred in that high school production. Perhaps that's always how it goes when you fall in love with a stage production - it's sometimes hard for subsequent performances to measure up to the highlights of your first experience.
This performance was Cameron Mackintosh’s "new" version, and it had its pros and cons for me. Gone is the turntable stage, which obviously made it difficult to tour with previous productions - while I appreciated the novelty of the old stage, I didn't miss it. I loved the fresh effects - they brought the experience up to date without going overboard and turning it into some modern spectacle. Crashing waves were projected on a scrim in the first scene as convicts rowed the boat; full backdrop projections were used to provide perspective and depth as Jean Valjean navigated the Paris sewers, dragging Marius to safety after the fall of the barricade. Similar effects were employed for Javert's dramatic end - the only time I questioned whether I cared for the updated technical infusions. The score was beautiful in terms of instrumentation. The only complaint I have really is that, in some points, it just seemed so hurried....to the point where I wasn't sure if the concern was for audience attention span or because the cast and crew had somewhere more important to get to. I get it - Les Mis is not exactly succinct - at 3 hours, I'm sure it runs overly long for some, but I'd honestly rather see less critical and momentous numbers cut entirely than to experience a rush-through of moments that need time and space to achieve their full emotional impact. It was alarmingly rushed at times, to an extreme where the opening scene felt like a first-time conductor double-timing tempos out of nervousness. Overall though, it was a great show and the talent did it justice. Javert and Eponine, in particular stood out to me in this cast, and the woman playing the innkeeper's wife was fantastic in the role. It was Pickle's first time seeing Les Mis, and he really enjoyed it. (Luckily, I'd given him an overview of the synopsis before we went, as I think the pacing would have made it even more difficult to follow for someone unfamiliar, and strangely - maybe this is an Australian thing? - there was no Playbill.) All in all, it was a great show, and I'm glad we had the opportunity to see it.
This performance was Cameron Mackintosh’s "new" version, and it had its pros and cons for me. Gone is the turntable stage, which obviously made it difficult to tour with previous productions - while I appreciated the novelty of the old stage, I didn't miss it. I loved the fresh effects - they brought the experience up to date without going overboard and turning it into some modern spectacle. Crashing waves were projected on a scrim in the first scene as convicts rowed the boat; full backdrop projections were used to provide perspective and depth as Jean Valjean navigated the Paris sewers, dragging Marius to safety after the fall of the barricade. Similar effects were employed for Javert's dramatic end - the only time I questioned whether I cared for the updated technical infusions. The score was beautiful in terms of instrumentation. The only complaint I have really is that, in some points, it just seemed so hurried....to the point where I wasn't sure if the concern was for audience attention span or because the cast and crew had somewhere more important to get to. I get it - Les Mis is not exactly succinct - at 3 hours, I'm sure it runs overly long for some, but I'd honestly rather see less critical and momentous numbers cut entirely than to experience a rush-through of moments that need time and space to achieve their full emotional impact. It was alarmingly rushed at times, to an extreme where the opening scene felt like a first-time conductor double-timing tempos out of nervousness. Overall though, it was a great show and the talent did it justice. Javert and Eponine, in particular stood out to me in this cast, and the woman playing the innkeeper's wife was fantastic in the role. It was Pickle's first time seeing Les Mis, and he really enjoyed it. (Luckily, I'd given him an overview of the synopsis before we went, as I think the pacing would have made it even more difficult to follow for someone unfamiliar, and strangely - maybe this is an Australian thing? - there was no Playbill.) All in all, it was a great show, and I'm glad we had the opportunity to see it.
After the show, we stopped off at a nearby ice creamery called Passionflower for a fun and funky sundae of sorts. Ours - the "Superstar"- consisted of three scoops of ice cream: black sesame, sticky rice and taro, accompanied by crushed peanuts and homemade black sesame milky rice balls. It was a tasty way to top off the evening...
Gotta go now - our Indian food just arrived from Curry Belly (our new favorite place for Palak Paneer and Butter Chicken!) and we're watching Les Misérables tonight because neither of us has seen the movie. I guess perhaps we postponed, more than cancelled, our PJ-order-in-movie time... ;) Enjoy your weekend! -JL |