Friday March 30, 2007 SGN.org |
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Volume 35 Issue 13 |
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Sunday, Oct 12, 2008
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Bits & Bytes |
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| Into Great Silence opens today at Varsity, CLO hosts Frank Sinatra musical salute, French cabaret, Pearl Django at Crepe | |
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by Milton W. Hamlin -
SGN A&E Writer The Emerald City's entertainment scene continues to offer the proverbial "something for everyone." An intriguing new documentary, Into Great Silence, opens today at the Varsity Theatre in the University District "for one week only," the popular Souvenirs d' Amour returns for an encore engagement on the cabaret series at Crepe de Paris, Pearl Django offers a "one night only" show next Saturday at the Crepe, and Civic Light Opera takes a trip down memory lane with its musical tribute to the songs made famous by Frank Sinatra. It's another great week for Seattle entertainment fans-and, of course, Bits&Bytes. Read on: INTO GREAT SILENCE OPENS TODAY AT VARSITY FOR ONE WEEK ONLY One of fastest growing area of cinema interest is the new, wide-spread appeal and box office success of documentaries. Long a field where major offerings went unshown in most film markets and unseen by most film fans, documentaries now have hot ticket status-even with the general public. Spelling bees, Antarctic penguins, the migration patterns of beautiful birds, crossword puzzle geeks, labor union issues, fast food concerns and global warming warnings are topics that have all packed theaters with new documentary fans. Into Great Silence, a new documentary by Philip Groning, is the latest film that could--and should--capture the attention of this growing cinema specialty audience. The behind the scenes story is worthy of its own telling. The German filmmaker became fascinated with the workings of the Grande Chartreuse, one of the world's most ascetic monasteries. In 1984, he contacted the proper authorities to request permission to film the daily lives of the monks in the "picture postcard French alps." He was told that the officials would get back to him. Sixteen years later (yes, 16 years!), the monastery replied and granted permission for the award-winning director to make his film. Groning decided to film the story of the monks without a film crew, without artificial light and to use no added sound or narration in the edited film. He used only his filmed footage, deciding not to use archival material. The finished film focuses only on the daily lives and prayers of the monks-there is no footage of the making and distributing of the Chartreuse liqueur which gives the monastery its financial footing. The lengthy film is a triumph of film making. Clicking it at over two and a half hours, the film is, as one friend noted, "a film festival film" for a select audience. Some of the snow filled scenes are incredible. Some of the religious structure of the monastery is, to be truthful, tedious. Some of the cinematography is deliciously tongue-in-cheek-one wonderful moment shows a monk through a nearly closed doorway. His arms are raised in some strange, prayer-like stance. Only when the action begins does the viewer find out that the monk is posed to ring the monastery bells in just a few seconds-he is simply standing with the bell rope in his hand waiting for the proper moment to summon his religious brothers to silent prayer. While the monks have a vow of near silence--no unnecessary talk or noise---the film is full of real life sounds. And visuals. As the order's collection of playful cats gather for dinner, the camera casually scans by a SUV parked in the garage. Later, a modern car jars the scene as it speeds into the monastery from the local village. Now and then, an airplane flies over the rustic stones of the buildings. A plastic water bottles is glimpsed sitting on a sink counter. A of a bowl of bananas and oranges adds strange tropical color to the dark scenes. The subtitles are another interesting touch. The inner-title cards are in German and now and then prayers in Latin. The subtitles are in French and then subtitled again in English. Talk about an international production&. The quiet, often meditative film is not without humor. A sledding scene of the younger monks is a visual and comic joy as they "sled" down snow covered hills on their traditional monk's robes. Into Great Silence is a wonderful, unique film that deserves to be seen on the big screen. It will not be the same on DVD or video. The Varsity offers recorded show time information at 781-5755. Be sure to check out the theater's Varsity Special-all seats are only $6.25 every Tuesday night SOUVENIRS D' AMOUR ENCORES AT CREPE, EXTENDS TO APRIL 28 The setting is perfect for the new cabaret show, Souvenirs d' Amour, returning tonight for a one month extension in the popular cabaret series at the Crepe de Paris restaurant in downtown Seattle in Rainier Square. In the entertaining musical revue, a newcomer, an African American jazz singer, challenges Paris' most celebrated cabaret chanteuse to see who will rule Gay Parisian nightlife. The show uses a late 1950's setting, giving the show some historic resonance-and a chance to fill the evening with some of the world's most famous French cabaret songs and American jazz standards. Mercedes Nicole plays the African American jazz singer who flees the 1950's racial attitudes of the U.S. while Fathia Atallah is the reigning French cabaret diva with a troubled career plateau to survive. Both singers have reportedly gained a great deal of confidence during the show's first month at the Crepe and their appealing performances have evidently strengthened considerably. Souvenirs d' Amour is offered as part of a dinner/theater package or on a "show only" basis. Complete details and ticket reservations are available at 623-4111. The show continues weekends through April 28. PEARL DJANGO PLANS 'ONE NIGHT ONLY' AT CREPE DE PARIS Pearl Django, the Seattle-based musical group that recreates the sounds of Paris' Hot Club of the 1920s and '30s, offers a "one night only" gig at Crepe de Paris next Saturday, April 7. Bits&Bytes is a big, big fan of the talented "Gypsy jazz and swing" quartet, which is often augmented by visiting musicians. This scribe last saw them at Jazz Alley where they packed the house with cheering fans. The single show at Crepe de Paris, with a very reasonable $10 cover charge, should be a sell out-plan ahead. Procrastinators--and you know who you are-take note. Ticket information and reservations are available at 623-4111. As usual, the popular restaurant offers the event as part of a dinner/theater package or on a "show only" ticket. CLO SALUTES SINATRA WITH MUSICAL MY WAY --AND DOZENS OF SONGS Civic Light Opera continues its 29th season with My Way-A Tribute To Frank Sinatra. The crowd-pleasing revue is really just a chance to gather together dozens and dozens of songs made famous by the legendary singer. Since the prolific crooner sang almost every song in the Great American Songbook at some point in his career, the show is a compilation of American's Top 40 Juke Box for nearly six decades. One interesting bit of narration noted that the singer often sang nearly a hundred songs in a busy week---between radio shows, public appearances, big band gigs, concert hall events, etc. CLO's cast of four is fine. Two voices are markedly better than the other two but no one is awkwardly weak. The songs are the show here-and what songs they are. Standards-like "The Way You Look Tonight," "Sunny Side Of The Street," "My Funny Valentine"--take the CLO crowd down memory lane. Songs introduced or made popular by Sinatra-"Strangers In The Night," "My Way," "High Hopes," "Young At Heart" and a dozen more-give insight into the range of "old blue eyes." The revue continues with three performances this weekend, closing after the Sunday matinee. Details and ticket reservations are available at 363-2809. Check it out. |
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