Last days for Ginny Ruffner's art at Renwick Gallery

Ginny Ruffner talks to a reporter at the Renwick Gallery, June 27, 2019. On the wall are devices guests may use to see Ms. Ruffner's flowers, plants, and nature's elements change and blossom/Photo by Patricia Leslie

A few days remain to see the show of Ginny Ruffner's works which will end Sunday at the Renwick Gallery.

Titled Reforestation of the Imagination made in collaboration with media artist Grant Kirkpatrick, the art is
as intricate and delightful as Ms. Ruffner, incorporating nature and all its beauty with sinewy limbs and colors to refresh and inspire.

Ginny Ruffner's art at the Renwick Gallery. The artist said these works have fiber glass bases with resin and sand, built over plywood skeletons. Two apprentices help her/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Sometimes known as a glass artist, Ms. Ruffner utilizes technology ("augmented reality") to make viewing experiences more rewarding. With a handheld device (available at the Renwick) or a smartphone held atop her sculptures, a viewer may see them blossom and grow, becoming elements of beauty and marvel. 

At the Renwick Gallery with Ginny Ruffner's display which reminds me of a spinning ballerina and her dancing shoes/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Ginny Ruffner, Grape Flower/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Ginny Ruffner, Blue Flower with Snakes. The white streaks at the bottom are reflections in the glass cover/Photo by Patricia Leslie

 

Ginny Ruffner at the Renwick Gallery, June 27, 2019. Her pink cane is an assist after she almost died from effects of a 1991 automobile crash/Photo by Patricia Leslie

Ginny Ruffner at the Renwick Gallery, June 27, 2019/Photo by Patricia Leslie

 At the opening of the  exhibition at the Renwick, Ms. Ruffner was present to tell a little of her background: She was born in Atlanta (1952) but grew up near Rock Hill, S.C. and attended the University of Georgia, earning a B.F.A. and a M.F.A. in drawing and painting (cum laude and summa cum laude).

She's now based in Seattle, the home of a 30-foot tall kinetic water she sculptured.  Another of her works is found at Seattle's Olympic Sculpture Park, one of 55 worldwide museums and galleries which boast Ms. Ruffner's works in their collections. 

The interactive Renwick show is another one to interest the whole family and watch colors and pieces change before you. (The Renwick cautions that children under age 12 must be accompanied by an adult.)

What: Reforestation of the Imagination by Ginny Ruffer with Grant Kirkpatrick. Michael Sherrill's Retrospective is in the adjacent galleries.
 
When: Now through January 5, 2020. The Renwick is open from 10 a.m.– 5:30 p.m. every day.

Where: The Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery, 1661 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20006, at the White House 17th Street block, adjacent to Blair House.

Admission: No charge

Metro stations: Farragut North or Farragut West

For more information: (202) 633-7970 (recorded) or (202) 633-2850

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Another 'Eureka!' show at Mosaic

It may be the D.C. debut, but it won't be the last of this show in D.C.


How does Ari Roth, Mosaic Theater's artistic director, land these riveting, modern tales before anyone else? 


Eureka Day is the progressives gone overboard.  A mirror from the left looking at (laughing at) themselves. (Conservatives will adore it!) 

It's hilarious. It's provoking, and it's another big hit at Mosaic.

Two men and three women make up the  "executive committee" of a liberal private high school in Berkeley, California (where else?). 

Never mind that public schools need all the attention and attendance they can get from wealthy liberal parents. (Think, the Clintons, the Obamas, and Sidwell Friends School; thank you very much, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter who sent their daughter, Amy, to public school when they occupied the White House.)

After all, these are our children for whom we should do the very best and who cares about anyone else? Ours simply must attend Eureka Day! Enough liberal thinking!

A new parent (Erica Chamblee) is the outlier at Eureka Day School who sits on the outside of the group watching the circus, waiting, an audience of one, representing us, the viewers.

Two others in the group, Eli (Elan Zafir) and Meiko (Regina Aquino) are having an affair, of course.  Where would any contemporary sensible production be without this de rigueur practice?

Dancing Don (Sam Lunay) moves with the best of them, trying to keep everything and everybody in line, to reach "consensus" and maybe, everything won't be so bad.

Suzanne (Lise Bruneau) is the antagonist with a correction for everything:  Please, they are not Egyptians; they are enslaved persons.  

Please! Here we use only gender-neutral or non-binary pronouns. Get with the program! 

Tsk! Tsk! You really do need an education, don't you, to use those for recycled plates? They are not the right kind.

The script includes discussion about vaccinations.  To vaccinate or not?  Close the school?

The funniest part comes at the end of Act 1 when the committee leads a virtual meeting that parents may attend on Facebook. And do they ever. (Dylan Uremovich and Theodore J. H. Hulsker are in charge of projections.) Sling to the right of us, to the left, take that, and on and on producing regales of audience laughter, so much that who cares what the stage taskmasters are saying?


Eureka has its serious moments, too, but, thankfully, not as many as the humorous ones. (I just came to laugh, after all.  Vaccinations?  What vaccinations?  This is billed as a comedy.)

The music between scenes is divine.  The first act ends too quickly and the second finishes much too fast for it all to be over, meaning I wanted it to go on and on. 

The acting is superb, and the mannerisms drawn by Director Serge Seiden with such swooping and bending and looks, like those loved by audiences the world over.

Mar Cox and Thomas Nagata, the assistant stage manager, are also in the cast.   

Creative team members include Andrew Cohen, set; Brittany Shemuga, lights;Brandee Mathies, costumes; David Lamont Wilson, sound; Deborah C. Thomas, properties; Shirley Serotsky, dramaturg; Claudia Rosales Waters, intimacy consultant; and Aril E. Carter, stage manager

What:  Eureka Day by Jonathan Spector

When: Now through January 5, 2020, Monday, Dec. 30, and Thursday- Saturday at 8 p.m., Saturday and Sunday matinees, 3 p.m.

Where: Mosaic Theater Company, Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H Street NE, Washington, D.C. 20002

Getting there: Riding public transportation from Union Station on the streetcar is easy and free, if you can find the streetcar behind Union Station where signage to the streetcar is poor. Valet and parking options are available. 

Tickets start at $20. (Use discount code "2020" to get 20% off.)

Language: Adult

Duration: About two hours with one 15-minute intermission. 

Post-show discussions:  Dec. 30, Jan. 2, and Jan. 4.

Open-captioned performances: Jan. 3 and Jan. 4 (Call for time on Jan. 4.) 

For more information: Please call the box office (202-399-7993, ext. 2) or email boxoffice@atlasarts.org.

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boxoffice@atlasarts.org

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A delightful 'Charlie Brown Christmas' lands in Manassas

 Nick MacFarlane, left, is Charlie Brown and Trevor Nordike is Linus in Prince William Little Theatre's A Charlie Brown Christmas/Photo by Melissa Jo York-Tilley

It doesn’t matter that you may have seen A Charlie Brown Christmas 100 times on television because the live show now on stage in Manassas is 100 times better than any old TV version.

And there's just one more weekend to see it.

 The cast from Prince William Little Theatre's Charlie Brown Christmas/Photo by Melissa Jo York-Tilley

Produced by the Prince William Little Theatre, this Christmas special at the Hylton Performing Arts Center is a joyful holiday treat for families to share together in the spirit of the season.

The message never gets tiresome, the scenics are always refreshing, and the Manassas players present a hilarious, sad, and charming musical, sure to leave theatergoers (yes, even the Scrooge in the bunch) happy, especially with a surprise ending.

Any director (Chrissy Mastrangelo here) would be hard put to find actors more fitting for these main roles than Nick MacFarlane as Charlie Brown and Trevor Nordike who is Linus.

Prince William's slumping, stooped-shouldered Charlie Brown shuffles his feet across the stage, accompanied by his able-bodied lieutenant, Linus (comforted, of course, by his blue blanket) in Charlie Brown's quest to find the real meaning of Christmas.

To capture Charlie Brown's essence, it would seem that Director Mastrangelo required Mr. MacFarlane to watch hours of the real Charlie Brown, so reminiscent is Mr. MacFarlane of the cartoon character.


Not to be outdone by any competitor is the effervescent Lucy ((Kacie Brady), the dynamo psychiatrist who is always game for whatever aids her.

"You've been dumb before," she says to Charlie Brown, "but this time you've really done it!"

He sighs:  "Nobody sent me a Christmas card today. I know nobody likes me."


To which mean Violet (Bevin Hester) shouts at our star: "I didn't send you a Christmas card!"


With friends like these, is it any wonder that poor Charlie Brown lacks pep in his step?

All is not lost, however, among Peanuts gang members.

The colorful set opens with a "skating rink" where actors ably glide their sock skates to dance in circles with later action shifting to Snoopy's huge, lighted dog house.

And what a dog to steal the show!

This Snoopy (Katherine Blondin) can even make animal sounds.

A big snowball fight adds merriment. (What were those snowballs made of?)

To make the show even better is the live music on stage, lead by Justin Streletz who plays the piano and reminds us of all the melodies lying at the back of our minds. Chris Anderson is the drummer and an unnamed bassist add immense enjoyment to the production.

A Charlie Brown Christmas is a great way to introduce youngsters to the joys of live theatre while basking in togetherness of the moment with loved ones (including yourself).

Throughout the presentation youthful laughter flows from the audience, an indication that not only does this Christmas have an important theme, but it's fun, too.

Other members of the Peanuts gang are Lisa Arnold, Timothy Burhouse, Cana Jordan Wade, Darcy Heisey, Laura Castillo, and Lindsey Capuno.

Crew members include Hayley Katarina, assistant director; Jennifer Rodriguez, producer; Katie Morris, stage manager; Suzy Moorstein, costume designer; Michelle Matthews, sound; Nick Mastrangelo, set; Peter Ponzini, lighting; Jeanie Ingram, program, and Ms. Mastrangelo choreographs.

What:  A Charlie Brown Christmas by Charles M. Schulz, based on the television special by Bill Melendez and Lee Mendelson. Major sponsor: Mark Moorstein of Offit/Kurman

When:  Friday, Dec. 20, 8 p.m.; Saturday, Dec. 21, 7 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 21 and 22, 2 p.m.

Where:   Hylton Performing Arts Center, George Mason University,10960 George Mason Circle, Manassas, VA 20110

Admission:  $13 for 12 and younger; $17 for seniors, students, and active military; $20, general admission

For more information: Click here or call 703-993-7759, Tuesday – Saturday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.

patricialesli@gmail.com 

Movie review: 'Jojo Rabbit' is a sleeper hit!

It's one of the Year's Top 10!
 
The audience rates Jojo Rabbit at 95% on Rotten Tomatoes and the critics, 79% (ho hum), so you know it's got to be good since the audience is always right.

"Adolph" (Taika Waititi, the director) is the imaginary friend of "Jojo" (Roman Griffith Davis) in Jojo Rabbit

Easy prediction:  Jojo will make the Top 10 Oscar "Best Movies" list of 2019, practically assured by its inclusion in the Golden Globe nominations.

But Best Actor for a 12-year-old (Roman Griffith Davis)? Naaawwww....just call me ageist. 

What's required for admittance to Jojo is an open mind and tolerance since this is billed as a "black comedy," and that it is, folks. (Parent's warning: It's okay for mature tweens, but the story will be hard to follow for younger children.)

My Jewish friends may find the World War II Nazi Germany setting intolerable, but the negativity gradually collapses to opposition in Jojo, with its underlying theme which strengthens as the show progresses without becoming overbearing.
 
Jojo Rabbit has a horrid rabbit exchange, but this is a satire, and I know PETA would not let anything happen to a silly rabbit.  

Writer, director, "Polynesian Jew" Taika Waititi (who based Jojo on a story by Christine Leunens) has placed himself in a major role (an imaginary Adolph Hitler) who befriends "Jojo" (Master Davis), a member of Hitler's Youth Army. The lad is a bit uncertain what it all means, but there's a surprise in his attic which grows on him and becomes a life lesson.

In this blend of light sci-fi with a fabulous score (by Michael Giacchino), I can assure you no one will be bored.

Jojo has a ton of great actors but none better than Stephen Merchant as the despised straight-up German officer who, I hope, earns a Best Supporting Actor nomination. Just one look and a few wordless seconds with this awful person are all that are necessary for his persona as Mr. Evil to emerge.

A Best Supporting Actress nod will likely go to Tomasin McKenzie (who's only 19 years old herself, but never mind). The casting crew deserves a nomination for choosing the other knockouts who include Scarlett Johansson, Rebel Wilson, Sam Rockwell, and Archie Yates (a darling boy), among many.

With hate crimes on the rise, exacerbated by world leaders' ignorance, narcissism, self-righteousness, and ethnocentrism, the movie's message subtly undergirds the content which I hope leaves viewers with heightened sensitivities to better acceptance of those who may be different from you and from me. 

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