"The 15:17 Train To Paris" (movie critique)

THE 15:17 TRAIN TO PARIS
movie poster

A couple of weeks ago a Dear Friend and The Travelling Toe decided to see the new movie, "The 15:17 Train To Paris",  directed by Clint Eastwood.  The movie is based on true events and starred the young men who were the focus of the story.  It was based on the book they wrote with Jeffery E Stein, "The True Story Of A Terrorist, A Train And The Three American Heroes".  The three young men are Anthony Sadler, Alek Skarlatos, and Spencer Stone.  They played themselves in the movie 

A Terrorist, A Train, And Three
American Heroes
book

Here is just a short overview of the movie story line. 

The movie begins in Sacramento CA, where all three of the boys live.  They become friends as they are all sent to the principal's office way too many times.  They enjoy playing video games especially military games together. As they grow older each boy takes a different path, but they remain in contact via various technology outlets. Spencer always had a dream to be in the military.  He finally achieves his goal through hard work, determination over some set-backs and joins the Air Force.  With Spencer at an Air Force base in Texas, Alek in the Army in the Middle East and Anthony in college, they made plans to meet in Europe for a vacation and to see the sites.  When they decide to take the train to visit Paris, that is where the action takes place.  As the train makes it's way towards Paris, a terrorist, who has been hiding in one of the toilet's, bursts out with an assault rife and begins attacking passengers on the trains.  When Spencer sees the terrorist coming towards their train car, he jumps into action and subdues the terrorist.  Alek comes to help Spencer and knocks out the terrorist and Antony begins to help wounded passengers.  Needless to say, the three young men are all honored for their heroism on that day.

SPENCER STONE

ALEK SKARLATOS

ANTHONY SADLER

The Travelling Toe awards this movie one 3rd toe up with Stars and Stripes!

"This Random World" presented by Circle Theatre

THIS RANDOM WORLD
play program

A Dear Friend and The Travelling Toe attended the Saturday afternoon performance of "This Random World" at Circle Theatre, which is located in downtown Fort Worth.

The play was written by Steven Dietz.  He has written over 30 plays and has won numerous awards for his work.

STEVEN DIETZ
playwright

A description of the play from Circle Theatre's web site is as follows:

Each character’s journey overlaps one another, be it an ailing woman who plans one final trip, a daughter planning one great escape or a son falling prey to a prank gone wrong. This funny and intimate play explores the lives that may be happening just out of reach of our own. Does serendipity bring us together or is that only a myth?

cast
This Random World

Jovan Caamano

                                  Gary

Catherine D Dubord

                                  Claire

Desiree Fultz

                                  Beth Ward

Kyle Ignecz

                                 Tim Ward

Camille Monae

                                 Rhonda

Libby Villari

                                 Scottie Ward

Crystal Williams

                                 Bernadette

The play was 90 minutes and presented without an intermission. The stage was bare of any scenery allowing each of the stories to unfold as they moved from person to person.

We both found the play to be interesting and engaging. Mr. Dietz  wrapped up the stories at the end ensuring that play goers would understand how all the stories intertwined.

Circle Theatre

"Like A Billion Likes" presented by Stage West

LIKE A BILLION LIKES
play program

The Travelling Toe and two Dear Friends attended the Sunday matinee performance of "Like A Billion Likes" at Stage West in Fort Worth.

The author of this play, Erik Forrest Jackson, won Stage West's 2016 Southwest Playwright Contest for this play.  Mr.Jackson has a varied resume that includes adapting the TV series "Cheers" for a live stage event as well as "Breaking Up Is Hard To Do" that features the songs of Neil Sedaka.

Erik Forrest Jackson

Overview of the Play from Stage West's Web Site:

Misty Riggs is a nobody. No, really, she is - that’s an undisputed fact. But just as she’s starting sophomore year, she gets the notion she should try to stand out somehow before it’s too late. Misty’s gambit only cements her loserdom, and after one blow too many, she makes a final, desperate bid for glory - the terrible culmination of her burning desire to be recognized for something, anything, no matter how she achieves it.

The play was 90 minutes long without an intermission. It was an interesting play highlighting how far someone would go to obtain craved attention.

STAGE WEST
cast

Mikaela Krantz

                           Alix Benson

Delaney Milbourn

                          Misty Riggs

Aaron Roberts

                        Perry Segars

Dana Schultes

                         Colleen Benson

Evan Michael Woods

                         Jacey Collier

Stage West

February Symphonic Series with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra

FWSO program

The Travelling Toe and several Dear Friends attended the February symphonic concert presented by the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.

Miguel Harth-Bedoya, Musical Director, conducted the concert.

Miguel Harth-Bedoya

Following "The Star Spangled Banner", the orchestra performed music written by Franz Schubert.  The selection was the overture to "Alfonso and Estrella".  The score was completed in February, 1822.  The opera was never performed in Schubert's lifetime but the overture was performed numerous times before he passed

Franz Schubert
1797-1828

After a short pause, Maestro Harth-Bedoya returned to the stage accompanied by guest cello soloist Raphaela Gromes. The cello Ms. Gromes played is a 1855 Jean-Batiste Vuillaume instrument. She performed Robert Schumann's "Concerto for Cello and Orchestra in A Minor".  Wow!!  Raphaela was so impressive and the sounds that flowed from the cello were enchanting. The audience was most appreciative of her performance with prolonged applause.  Raphaela returned to the stage to play an encore for the audience with Alan Steele, FWSO Cello Principal. Oh wow...what an amazing duet! The title of the selection was not announced...rats!

Robert Schumann
1810-1856

Raphaela Gromes
cello soloist

After a short intermission, orchestra members returned to the stage for the last selection, "Pictures At An Exhibition".  Modest Mussorgsky composed this music first for solo piano. It was later scored for a full orchestra and was premiered in Paris May,1923 to great acclaim. Ken Meltzer wrote on the program notes about the piece, "Mussorgsky's "pictures At An Exhibition" was the Russian composers' heartfelt memorial tribute to his friend, the visual artist, Viktor Hartmann".

Modest Mussorgsky
1839-1881

Life Is Better With Music and the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra!

Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra

"Chicago" presented at Bass Hall

CHICAGO
play program

The touring show of "Chicago" recently made a stop at Bass Hall.  The Travelling Toe has seen this musical several times, as well as the award winning movie, and could not pass up seeing it yet again.  The story and music never get old.

"Chicago" was first performed on June 3, 1975.  Fred Ebb and John Lander wrote the music and lyrics for the musical.  The renowned choreographer Bob Fosse, created the dance numbers.

Fred Ebb - lyrist
192 -2004

John Kander - composer
1927-

Bob Fosse - choreographer
1927-1987

The action takes place in 1920's Chicago, during the Jazz Age.  Velma Kelly, who works in vaudeville, murdered her husband and her sister....after all they deserved it as they were in bed together. Well, what else was a girl to do???  Velma is arrested and thrown into jail.  Then along comes Roxie Hart, married to a boring mechanic, Amos Hart, and dating a nightclub hustler.  When she finds him cheating on her...bam, bam...he's dead!  So Roxie is thrown into jail too. There Velma and Roxie make the acquaintance of the jail matron, "Mama" Morton.  As she tells it to the girls, "if you are good to Mama, Mama is good to you".  Both Velma and Roxie try to get hot-shot attorney Billy Flynn to take their cases. As Billy says about the newspapers and jurors, "give'em the old Razzle Dazzle".

Once again this fun and entertaining musical continues to capture all the excitement of the Roaring 20's before the Big Crash!

Bass Hall

"Peter Rabbit" (movie critique)

PETER RABBIT
movie poster

Normally The Travelling Toe by-passes animated movies, but having seen the previews for "Peter Rabbit" it looked interesting and funny. The movie combined animated creatures interacting with real people. Additionally, the animals were based of those beloved characters created by Beatrix Potter.

Beatrix Potter
1866-1943

The internet provides this overview of the movie:

Peter Rabbit and his three sisters -- Flopsy, Mopsy and Cotton-Tail -- enjoy spending their days in Mr. McGregor's vegetable garden. When one of McGregor's relatives suddenly moves in, he's less than thrilled to discover a family of rabbits in his new home. A battle of wills soon breaks out as the new owner hatches scheme after scheme to get rid of Peter -- a resourceful rabbit who proves to be a worthy and wily opponent.

The movie was indeed funny as the animals tried to get the best of the new Mr. McGregor.  Additionally, the excellent animation of the rabbits and other animals made them appear to be real!

CAST:

Rose Byrne
Bea

Domhall Gleeson
Thomas McGregor

voices for featured animals:

James Corden                

                                    Peter Rabbit

Elizabeth Debicki

                                    Mopsy

Margot Robbie

                                   Flopsy

Daisy Ridley

                                  Cotton-Tail

Sia

                                  Mrs Tiggy-Winkle

This was indeed a fun and silly movie.  But we needed a break from all the dark movies we had seen lately.

The Travelling Toe awards this movie 1 second toe up with a carrot to munch on while you watch the movie...or not!!

    

         

January FWSO Pops Concert

JANUARY FWSO PROGRAM

The January, 2018 Pops program with the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra was titled, "Let's Dance".  Guest Conductor, William Waldrop, lead the orchestra throughout the program.

The program began with a musical number played by the orchestra which was written by Leonard Bernstein, "Mambo" from "West Side Story".

Then the "Blue Danube Waltz" was played next and featured graceful dancers waltzing across the stage.  

Guest vocalist , Michel Lynche, sang "Sway" as a couple danced the tango. This pair of dancers were fabulous doing all those intricate moves that are part of a tango and not injuring each other. To close the first half, it was time for 1950's bop with a dance medley starting with  "Blue Suede Shoes" and ending with "Twistin' The Night Away". A couple bopped on stage and made all the dance moves look easy and a lot of fun.

After a short intermission, the orchestra opened the second half of the program with 
"Can-Can" from Offenbach's "Orpheus In The Underworld".

The audience was treated to more tango and swing dancing. Also, Ted Louis Levy, tap dancer extraordinaire, was a delight to watch as those happy feet of his tapped across the stage!

For the last number, Mr. Waldrop said, that the only dancing missing so far was Dirty Dancing and the orchestra started playing "I've Had The Time Of My Life".  All three pairs of dancers came on stage and danced to this famous song ending with amazing lifts similar to the one shown in the movie.

This was one of the best Pop concerts that The Travelling Toe has seen in a long time.  Beautiful music played by a world class symphony, excellent singers and exceptional dancers.  It was like being at "Dancing With The Stars" and "American Idol" all at one time!

Guest Vocalists:

Michael Lynche
Mamie Parris

Dancers:

Chandrae Roettig and Stephen Sayer
                                (waltz and shag dancers)

Forrest Walsh and Melissa Shahin
                                 (bop dancers)


Patricio Touceda and Sonya Tsekanovsky
                               (tango dancers)

Tap Dancer

Ted Louis Levy

Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra