Out There was thrilled to be in the War Memorial Opera House for last Saturday night's performance of Spanish director Calixto Bieito's fabulously decadent "Carmen" for San Francisco Opera. This was the performance that was simulcast live for free at AT&T Park for an audience of tens of thousands. We'd love to know how all the sensational elements (SFO warned, "Please note: This production contains violence, nudity and suggestive behavior") looked up there on the big screen. On the opera house stage, it threw sparks.
Bare-chested ruffians, sleazy behavior, flashy costuming, a blowjob, a knifefight, boozing, smuggling, petty crime - Bieito's take on Bizet's eternally popular masterwork is the "Scarface" of powerhouse opera. Oh, and that's not even to mention the full-frontal male nudity that kicks off the third act. The cast, led by Irene Roberts as Carmen on Saturday night, and by Ginger Costa-Jackson for the final performance on Sunday, was fully committed to all the transgressions. And they all appeared in San Francisco Giants gear for their curtain calls, a generous nod to the crowd enjoying the show from the ballpark. More of this boisterously alive opera for the masses, please!
Up the Academy
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has done their proper outreach this year after taking deserved knocks last Oscar season for the lack of minorities among its members. Among the 683 film people invited to join the Academy was director Cheryl Dunye, whose 1996 feature debut "The Watermelon Woman" was the first feature-length narrative film written and directed by an out black lesbian about black lesbians. About time!
Also invited to the academy is gay Thai auteur Apichatpong Weerasethakul, director of "Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives," which won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival in 2010. Amazingly, AW is the first Thai ever to be asked to join the Academy. A related aside: The just-released Blu-ray of AW's latest film, "Cemetery of Splendor" (reviewed in last week's issue), also contains his hour-long "Mekong Hotel." That's a lot of vintage Weerasethakul on one disc.
A True Mensch
Last week, OT attended the opening of "Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition" at the Contemporary Jewish Museum/San Francisco, reviewed in this week's issue. We were delighted to find waiters, bartenders and support staff dressed up in droog drag, a la Alex DeLarge in "Clockwork Orange": Black derby, white jumpsuit, suspenders. That's the very costume that our perky pal Pepi rocked for whole decades of Halloween nights - plus the contrapuntal jockstrap, understandably missing from the CJM apparel.
The CJM seems to staff its openings with senior volunteers, such as the gentleman who checked us in at the entrance. When we self-identified, he responded, "Ah, I remember the name! And I remember the face!" From previous openings, or from reading our column? We don't know, but it didn't matter. "Welcome! I'm Xander !" His warm welcome put us in a right good mood for the rest of the night. If only all arts orgs treated us with such loving kindness! A midsummer night's dream.