Top Picks: PBS's 'Chita Rivera: A Lot of Livin鈥� to Do,' Ian Ethan Case's 'Run Toward the Mountains,' and more
'Mozart in the Jungle' actor Gael聽Garc铆a Bernal takes the baton in real life,聽Peter Case鈥檚 'HWY 62'聽plays like a John Steinbeck novel set to music, and more top picks.
'Mozart in the Jungle' actor Gael聽Garc铆a Bernal takes the baton in real life,聽Peter Case鈥檚 'HWY 62'聽plays like a John Steinbeck novel set to music, and more top picks.
Musical theater
Broadway legend Chita Rivera has done a lot of livin鈥� onstage. The Tony Award winner electrified audiences in such hits as 鈥淲est Side Story,鈥� 鈥淐hicago,鈥� and 鈥淏ye Bye Birdie.鈥� And she鈥檚 not done yet. PBS鈥檚 鈥淕reat Performances鈥� spotlights Rivera鈥檚 talent in a program that features archival clips as well as recent interviews with directors, choreographers, and actors. Chita Rivera: A Lot of Livin鈥� to Do airs Nov. 6 at 9 p.m. ET.
Maestro to 鈥楳aestro鈥�
In a page from the book of life imitating art, Gael Garc铆a Bernal, who plays Rodrigo De Souza in Mozart in the Jungle, took the baton from Los Angeles Philharmonic director Gustavo Dudamel to conduct at the Hollywood Bowl earlier this month. It was captured on film for the Season 2 opener for the Amazon series (coming January 2016) in which the New York Symphony goes on strike, and Rodrigo heads west. A short video of Dudamel coaching Bernal prepped the live audience for the surprise. Check it out at http://bit.ly/MozartBowl.
Acoustic forte
Few musicians tackle the challenging double-necked guitar, and perhaps few have done it with the intellectual intensity and skill of Ian Ethan Case. (He鈥檚 also the brother of Monitor staff writer Christa Case Bryant.) Case鈥檚 inventive multilayered compositions are like nothing you鈥檝e heard before. His new album, Run Toward the Mountains, is both meditative and commanding. See and hear for yourself at http://bit.ly/RunTowardtheMountains.
Lonesome highway
Peter Case鈥檚 HWY 62 plays like a John Steinbeck novel set to music. The troubadour, who has spent his four-decade career driving cross country between gigs, sings about everyday Americans weathering the Great Recession. In 鈥淲ater From a Stone,鈥� Case laments, 鈥淭he landlord鈥檚 mad, but it don鈥檛 make sense/ they鈥檙e clearing out tenants and raising the rents.鈥� Case鈥檚 hooks and pop choruses galvanize country blues songs such as 鈥淣ew Mexico鈥� (featuring Ben Harper) and 鈥淧elican Bay.鈥澛�
Dances with cello
Talk about a match made in culture heaven. Misty Copeland, who recently became the first female African-American principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre, and genre-defying cellist Yo-Yo Ma recently teamed up on 鈥淭he Late Show with Stephen Colbert.鈥� Check out their fluid collaboration at http://bit.ly/colbertmusic.