"Frost/Nixon"

Director Ron Howard in the mix of celebrity and politics

Director Ron Howard discussed his endorsement of Barack Obama during a Q&A with Rolling Stone film critic Peter Travers following a screening of "Frost/Nixon" Friday, Oct. 24 at a fundraiser for Pelham Picture House in Pelham, N.Y. Howard endorsed Obama in Internet ads as his Opie character from "The Andy Griffith Show" with Griffith and as Richie from "Happy Days" with Henry Winkler as the Fonz.

Howard told Travers a bit sheepishly that he always thought celebrities should stay out of politics, but it was the first time in his "50 years in show business," he said, that "I felt strongly that an endorsement was worth doing."

The 1977 post-Watergate interviews between TV host David Frost and the disgraced president Richard Nixon "changed the relationship between politics and journalism forever, says "Frost/Nixon" p.r. The film, adapted for the screen from Peter Morgan's Broadway play, is a dramatic retelling of the story of how the lightweight British talk show host was able to elicit an apology from president for his abuse of power. Frank Langella and Michael Sheen reprise their roles as Nixon and Frost in the film.

Howard said he was "riveted" by the original interviews. "I was looking for clarity," he said. Seeing the play with his wife in London, he knew immediately that he wanted to make the film. Luckily for him, he said, Universal agreed with Howard and his "indie model" for "Frost/Nixon."

Howard said that after the Watergate scandal, people thought the abuse of executive power would never happen again. "It resonates today," he said. "That's the dramatic link."

Both Frost and Nixon's reputations were on the line with the interviews. Each thought he could manipulate the medium of TV for his own benefit. Frost, who put up his own money for the interviews, hoped the “get” would result in “a cascade of candor” from the president and would lend him journalistic legitimacy.
Nixon hoped a soft interview could help rehabilitate his image as a statesman and gain sympathy from the American people.

Howard's challenge was to make the material visual, he said. He did this by letting secondary characters get their viewpoints across, enabling viewers to “connect emotionally” with the film. He also wanted spontaneity, which he achieved by letting the actors improvise, which "liberated" them and "broke up what they were used to.”

Langella caused a fuss when he asked to be called “Mr. President” on the set. The resulting tension created an unease which carried over into filming and shows on screen in the Nixon character. Langella was not doing an impersonation, Howard said, but he masterfully incorporates Nixon’s physical and vocal mannerisms which helped him develop the character.

Sheen, who played Tony Blair in Morgan's film “The Queen,” plays the ingratiating jet-setting playboy Frost with the right blend of insecurity and bravado.

Frost recognized “the reductive power of the closeup,” Howard said. A defeated Nixon’s facial expressions captured on camera in the last interview were more eloquent than anything Americans had heard.

“Frost utilized the medium to its greatest effect in a democracy,” Howard said.

For more about the movie, see www.frost/nixon.net.

'Arjuna's Dilemma' - Next Wave in Opera

I must confess. Learning that Douglas Cuomo wrote the theme music to "Sex and the City" inspired me to catch an Aug. 22 preview performance of his opera-oratorio "Arjuna's Dilemma." What could Cuomo, who created such an iconic and memorable theme, do for the Bhagavad Gita, the ancient Sanskrit text? He's created a hypnotically beautiful work by blending eastern and western musical traditions in a masterful way, creating a powerful piece as indelible in its own way as his other acclaimed work. The bold combination of Indian classical music, Bollywood pop, jazz and Gregorian chant worked together in a suprisingly cohesive way. The 70-minute opera features an Indian singer, a Western tenor and a female chorus, along with 12 instrumentalists, including tablas and a jazz saxophone.

Produced by Music-Theatre Group, "Arjuna's Dilemma" had preview performances Aug. 22-24 at Purchase College. It will premiere Nov. 5, 7 and 8 at BAM Next Wave Festival in Brooklyn. The opera tells the story of the great warrior prince Arjuna, who, on the eve of civil war, is faced with a great moral and spiritual conflict: On the opposing side of the battlefield, he is faced with members of his own family and community. He asks for guidance from his charioteer Krishna, who has not revealed himself as the great Hindu god. Through the musical conversation as Krishna gradually reveals to the warrior the duality of the universe, Arjuna grows in self-knowledge.

The cast featured Tonny Boutte as Arjuna, Humayun Kahn as Krishna and John Kelly as the Scribe. Bob Franceschini was saxophone soloist. Badal Roy played the tablas.

The instrumentalists, on stage during the production, were dressed East meets East Village by designer Gabriel Berry in shades of saffron, orange and red.

The image of a rope fraying to the breaking point projected on a screen was metaphoric to me of the universal, of the many separate strands that wind together, to make the whole.

With "Arjuna's Dilemma," Cuomo draws from his diverse influences and experiences to create a noteworthy opera, one that will one day find its place in the contemporary repertoire.

Catch the Next Wave in Brooklyn.

'The Country Girl' or Can This Play Be Saved?

Wait. Don't leave the theater. "The Country Girl," directed by Mike Nichols and now playing at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre on Broadway, gets better in the second act. During Act 1 we're left wondering why the three lead characters don't connect with each other and whether or not we should care if they do. In Act 2 playwright Clifford Odets makes things clearer, and we have a better understanding of the characters and their motivations. The actors have warmed up a bit by then, too, and breathe a little life into the production.

Frank Elgin (Morgan Freeman) is a washed up alcoholic actor. He and his wife Georgie (Frances McDormand) have a longtime co-dependent relationship. Georgie might have had a drinking problem first, but now she's the one waiting up nights, making the coffee and throwing away the beer bottles. And if you want to get to Frank, you have to go through Georgie.

Oh, and there's that dead child that keeps getting mentioned.

Bernie Dodd (Peter Gallagher) is an idealistic director, a man passionate about the theater, who believes Frank still has the magic and wants him for the lead role in a new play trying out in Boston.

Freeman, generally a satisfying actor, seems to be underplaying the role. There's no desperation in his Frank, and Freeman doesn't make us believe Frank was ever a great actor.

McDormand is a bit wooden and comes across more as a tight-lipped school marm than a life-hardened woman who started out as a fresh, naive country girl. We never really find out how this country girl ended up in a life in the theater. There isn't much chemistry between the two actors, which has nothing to do with the interracial casting.

Gallagher brings a bit of life and energy to the production in his character, and he does have some chemistry with McDormand.

The play asks, can this marriage be saved? Will Frank be able to keep on the wagon and take on the role? Is Georgie really a supportive helpmate or is she part of Frank's problem? Will Frank and Georgie stay together? And during the second act, we begin to care. When Frank becomes ill during the dress rehearsal and sips a high-proof cough syrup, the tension builds. It's not looking good. He's still fumbling his lines. Can he pull it off? We're rooting for him.

The generally good supporting cast includes Remy Auberjonois as the sympathetic playwright and Chip Zien as the hardball producer. Anna Camp, after a drab set and dreary costumes, was as refreshing sight as the ingenue in a fluffy pink dress.

'Port Authority' in Pleasantville

It wasn't just the 80-degree temperature in the airless auditorium that had women fanning themselves with their programs. John Gallagher Jr. (Tony Award "Spring Awakening") and Brian d'Arcy James (Tony-nominated, "Cashmere Mafia") turned up the heat with their performances in an open rehearsal of Conor McPherson's "Port Authority" for the Atlantic Theater Company at the Rosenthal JCC in Pleasantville on April 12.

McPherson, author of "The Seafarer," tells the story of three ordinary Dubliners through interconnected monologues. Gallagher plays Kevin, a young man desperate to begin his life and move out of the comfort of his parents' home. James plays Dermot, a middle-aged, alcoholic loser who lands a fabulous job through a case of mistaken identity. Jim Norton, who originated the role of Joe in Dublin, did not take part in this rehearsal. He plays a widower making the best of his life in a retirement home. Director Henry Wishcamper said the playwright's description is "three men summoned by God to tell the truth." McPherson's keen observations strike at the heart of each generation's hopes and dreams. The playwright tells his story of failure, loss and love with humor and compassion.

Gallagher and James both have a good grasp on their characters and manage convincing Dublin accents. Gallagher said he practiced for his audition by listening to an interview with "Once" actor Glen Hansard on YouTube over and over. The actors have been working with a dialect coach. Their performances had me engrossed, and I left wanting to see the final product. "Port Authority" opens April 30 in Chelsea at the Linda Gross Theater, 336 W. 20th St., http://www.atlantictheater.org/. Call 212-279-4200 for tickets.

Although this is the last production for this season, don't miss Anna Becker's next Insights and Revelations Series at the Rosenthal JCC (http://www.thedeependproductions.org/). Champagne and raspberry sorbet and a chance to meet the actors are a refreshing post-performance treat.

The Great White (Plains) Way

New York actors have been riding the rails to Westchester lately, with good reason. Executive director Jack Batman's new productions at the White Plains Performing Arts Center have drawn good buzz, and hopes are that a permanent repertory company is waiting in the wings!

Robert Cuccioli ("Jekyll & Hyde") gave a memorable performance in an overall excellent production of "Man of La Mancha" in December. Cuccioli's girlfriend Laila Robins, pale and ethereally beautiful, was there to support him, sitting orchestra center on opening night. Luke Yankee, son of the late, great actress Eileen Heckart, directed the show.

Composer Stephen Flaherty showed up on opening night for the concert version of "Ragtime" in February which featured a stirring Jerry Dixon ("Five Guys Named Moe") as Coalhouse Walker Jr. Dixon switched to the director's chair in March for "Ain't Misbehavin'," the supremely sassy Fats Waller musical revue. The crown jewel in a stellar cast was Anastacia McCleskey ("Tarzan"), who knocked everyone's socks off with powerful vocals and stage presence.

Dixon's partner Mario Cantone ("Sex and the City" and Broadway's "Laugh Whore") was there on several nights with a coterie of pals to cheer on his man.

Coming up April 24 at the White Plains Performing Arts Center is "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying."

Wonder who'll be reverse commuting on Metro North for that?