Category: So Little Time

Dancer/choreographer James Sewell
made his way back home to Minneapolis in 1993, after a long stint in
New York, bringing his company with him. Sewell began choreographing
ballets in 1982, while at the School of American Ballet, in New York. He went on to dance with ABT II, an apprentice company of the American Ballet Theater, and then as principal dancer for the Feld Ballet. Once hailed by The New York Times as "one of
American ballet’s best choreographers," James Sewell consistently
delivers innovative and exciting pieces. This month, the company delivers its Spring Program at The O’Shaughnessy, with two Twin Cities premieres choreographed by Sewell himself: Social Movements and If This Then What. Also on the program are Table Waltz, choreography by Penelope Freeh, and By the Gypsy River Banks, choreography by Sally Rousse.

The O’Shaughnessy, College of St. Catherine, 2004 Randolph Avenue, Saint Paul, 651-690-6700, $31.

Dressed in 1920s attire, George Clooney and Renee Zellwegger began their Leatherheads tour with an appearance at the old Depot, in downtown Duluth. Now, we finally get to see the film. Directed by Clooney himself, Leatherheads offers a comedic tribute to the early days of pro football. Determined to keep his team alive after they lose their sponsor, Dodge Connelly — played by Clooney — brings in a college football star, better known as a local war hero, to recapture the country’s attention. Zellwegger, who plays a budding journalist, suspicious of the war hero’s too-good-to-be-true tales, take it upon herself to defraud the team, but in doing so somehow manages to make both men fall hopelessly in love with her. How will Dodge keep his team alive and get the girl? Go and see.

AMC Southdale 16, 400 Southdale Center, Edina; 651-777-FILM.

The story is nothing new: a Mexican mother goes to America, Los Angeles to be precise, in search of a better life for her child, whom she leaves in Mexico under the care of her mother. It’s "real," if nothing else. And it’s touching, if you’re at all moved by a mother’s love and a child’s determination. Director Patricia Riggen brings us a heartwarming tale addressing the controversial issue of illegal immigration. But her focus on nine-year-old Carlitos, and his physical journey to reunite with his mother, makes Under the Same Moon a most precious tale.

Uptown Theatre, 2906 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis; 612-825-6006; $8.25 (seniors and children $5.75).

Most of us have heard of Milos Forman, or at least his films. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, adapted from Ken Kesey’s novel, won all five major Academy Awards in 1975. Hair, now a cult classic, was nominated for two Golden Globes. And Amadeus, about the life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, won eight — yes, eight — Oscars. Certainly Forman has met with great success since leaving Prague for the United States in 1968. But what we may not know about him are his accomplishments prior to that move.
Born Jan Tomás Forman, the Czech filmmaker lost his parents to a Nazi concentration camp, in Auschwitz no less. After studying film at the School of Cinema in Prague, Forman kicked off the Czech New Wave with a new style of comedy — dark and absurd comedy, presenting a satirical view of everyday life. Forman’s The Firemen’s Ball, a major film of the genre, remains a cult classic after more than three decades. This month, the Walker offers a retrospective of his work, from the 1960s to his latest film, Goya’s Ghost, which he both wrote and directed. Plus, meet the director himself on April 12th.

Walker Art Center, Cinema,1750 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis; 612-375-7600; $8 per film.

What separates the typical Disney flick from most operas is not just the animation or the language, but the ending, the resolution. True, not all operas end in tragedy (though most do), but even the happily-ever-afters come laden with sacrifice and cost-of-learning, so to speak. And let’s face it, someone usually dies.

This month, the Minnesota Opera brings us Anton Dvorak’s Rusalka, a beautiful Little Mermaid-like fairytale without the happy ending. Named after the Vysoka country estate (just south of Prague) in which Dvorak took residence in 1884 — with Rusalka Lake at its core — the Czech opera tells the story of a water nymph who falls in love with a prince. But in the world of opera, as in Shakespeare, two worlds colliding can only lead in tragedy — a tragedy, of course, made all too beautiful by Dvorak’s composition. A bit on the Wagnerian side perhaps, the music reinforces the "collision" by creating two entirely unique sound-worlds.

Conductor Robert Wood, stage director Eric Simonson, and choreographer Mathew Janczewski lead an illustrious cast in this Minnesota Opera performance, featuring the return of Minnesota native Kelly Kaduce in the title role, and Brandon Jovanovich as the Prince.

Ordway Center for the Performing Arts, 345 Washington St, St Paul, 651-224-4222; $20-$150.

"If Shaft was living in
southern California and he invited Bob Marley and Jimi Hendrix over
for dinner," reads their website bio, "Orange
County quartet QWIKSAND would make a groovy side-dish." What the California surf funk band fails to mention is the wonderful scent of salt and sun evoked by their music — so much needed in the land-locked Midwest as the winter lays its icy claws to rest. A jam band at heart, QWIKSAND serves up fun, melodic funk, interlaced with rap sessions reminiscent of the Spin Doctors. Though they’re often compared to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, QWIKSAND has actually developed a much smoother, perhaps even poppier, sound. Currently on tour promoting their new album, QWIKSAND delivers its Liquid Dream to the Fine Line. Joining them will be dEv JAna, The Limns, and The Rebelution.

8 p.m. (QWIKSAND goes on at 10:30 p.m.), Fine Line Music Café, 318 1st Ave. N., Minneapolis; 612-338-8100; $3, or go here for a free ticket.

In January, the New York Times reported labor abuses in Chinese factories.  "’I work on the plastic molding machine from 6 in the morning to 6 at
night,’ said Xu Wenquan, a tiny, baby-faced 16-year-old whose hands
were covered with blisters."

At the end of last year, a Gap scandal revealed child-labor abuses in India.

Around the world, an estimated 350 million children continue to sacrifice their childhood, their health, and their education working in exploitative and unsafe conditions.

While we may read the headlines and stay abreast of the current conditions across the globe, the distance, perhaps, makes it all too easy to dismiss the harsh realities our children endure. 

Leave it to a physician/photographer to bring it home. 

Taking it upon himself to expose one of the world’s greatest injustices, David Parker has traveled the world, with camera in hand, photographing children laboring in Bolivian tin mines, Indian sweatshops, Nepal brick factories, Mexican garbage dumps, and the list goes on.

With his new book, Before Their Time: The World of Child Labor — a collection of these photos — due out this month, Parker will be exhibiting his photos at the Nina Bliese Gallery from March 31st through May 2nd. Join him for the opening reception (and book signing) on April 10th, from 5-8 p.m.

Lloyd’s last album, Sangam, was nothing more than a
saxophone wankfest through a thicket of beats, laden with faux spirituality
that was too pretentious (or perhaps too profound). But the 70-year-old sensei may be the most staid
and least creative member of his band in Rabo
de Nube, his latest live quartet album (something Lloyd used to do regularly
four decades ago). The fusillade-oriented approach
drummer Eric Harland used in tandem with tabla player Zakir Hussain
on Sangam is more effectively propulsive (like Billy Kilson sounded
in Holland’s band) coupled with bassist Ruben Rogers. Harland steals
the show on "Prometheus," supporting Lloyd with a plush density
of beats that, like gusts of wind in sails, carries instead of shoves
the rhythm. Rogers complements him with enthusiasm and delivers noteworthy
solos on the first three songs to boot.

But the best thing about
Rabo is how well pianist Jason Moran fits in, and enriches, Lloyd’s
somewhat ethereal aesthetic. His glancing harmonies on "Prometheus"
and inspired blues turn on "Migration of Spirit" are the prelude
for his two-part tour de force on "Booker’s Garden." His first
solo begins regally, but just when it appears headed for cocktail piano
clichés, Moran drops in some slightly dissonant, modal phrases, then
winds the pace down to a near-standstill, his elegiac moments of near-silence
(the piece is a Lloyd’s tribute to the late trumpeter Booker Little)
slightly upturned at the end. His second solo is the pinnacle of
Rabo, an audacious juggling of the offhand funk and boogie woogie
(built up from single-note vamps) you might expect from Jaki Byard,
and the sort of spectral leaps and resonant flurries that characterize
the work of former Lloyd pianists Keith Jarrett and Brad Mehldau, and
Harland’s superb accompaniment is pomade, glistening the luster.

Lloyd varies between tenor,
flute, and, for "Ramanujan," taragato, on which he sounds like Coltrane
playing soprano sax. I’ve generally preferred it when he harkens to
his Memphis roots or otherwise plays straight ahead, so his lively variation
on "Sweet Georgia Brown" (entitled "Sweet Georgia Bright") is
a favorite, along with the lone cover song of the concert, a closing
rendition of the title track by Silvio Rodriguez that makes for a soft,
lyrical landing.

Blade’s ensemble seems heavily
influenced by his membership in Wayne Shorter’s magnificent but overtly
cerebral quartet, which isn’t always a good thing. The frequently
lethargic pace and finely crafted harmonic and melodic nuances occasionally
feel like music that must be listened to for your own good, like a meal
fortified with fiber but not very tasty. Praise be, then, to bust-outs
like Melvin Butler’s gnarly tenor saxophone solo on "Return of the
Prodigal Son," which also benefits from guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel,
whose tone and groove are reminiscent of Skunk Baxter on "Reeling
In The Years." Like the rest of the disc, the title track is a hit-and-miss
magnum opus, which does take advantage of Blade’s masterful ability
to turn the temperature up and down as a timekeeper. There are some
things here I’ll want to revisit: Myron Walden’s bass clarinet
on "Rubylou’s Lullaby;" the way "Most Precious One (Prodigy)"
apes The Bad Plus, of all people; the found-beauty of "Improvisation,"
with its pump organ undertow; and the slow build and crescendo of the
closer, "Omni." But there’s not enough sugar or caffeine to make
it addictive in the slightest.