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Archive for the ‘Theatre’ Category

The Best Show in Miami

Sunday, February 21st, 2010

In Los Angeles, there’s a home above Hollywood built in the early 20th Century that’s a private club for magicians.  It’s known as the Magic Castle, and features five unique performances a night of magic and comedy.  It’s a place all magicians revere, and a place the public loves to come — if they can find a magician to give them a ticket to get into the exclusive club.  If you don’t have a coupon from a magician, or are at least accompanied by a magician, you don’t go inside.  However, on the other side of the country, in Miami, Florida, you’ll find magic and comedy available just by going on line and purchasing a ticket.  Known as one of the best shows in Miami, it’s Kevin & Caruso’s Magic and Comedy Show.

Augustine “Gus” Caruso and Kevin Jeffrey met each other in school and began doing street performances, later giving way to the Magic and Comedy Show.  Caruso is known for his choreography and constantly changing costumes that he constructs from scratch.  He maintains over 100 costumes and headdresses, all meticulous in detail.  Kevin has worked in magic for over fifteen years and has performed all over the globe his mix of comedy and magic.  Most magicians, by the way, also work in comedy, as its one of the best ways to disarm your audience, relaxing them enough to make the illusion seem perfect.  Raised in Reno, Nevada, his gravitation to show business seems almost an instinctive thing to happen.  He’s constantly putting together new shows.  Like any artist, he considers his work not quite finished, everything a work in progress.

The two performers work out of the Collins Avenue Theater, an intimate venue of only 220 seats and a entrance way that’s hidden.  The little theater has been used for stars of the past who wanted to perform privately for VIPs and officials of the city.  There’s rumors that this place was once a movie house, once a strip club, and who knows what else in-between.  Today, though, it’s the proud home of magic, mystery, and comedy.  All you need do is come to Miami and its fine hotels and reserve a ticket for, as the site proclaims, one of the best shows in Miami.

Ancient Comedy and Tragedy of Rome

Friday, February 19th, 2010

One of the great things about Rome is its history and significance throughout the centuries. It is one of the oldest cities in the world and certainly ranks among the oldest in the Western world. There are various aspects of the city and society that are reflected in this though it is extremely easy to see in the architecture and art, which represents the greatest artists and architects in world through various time periods. Another historical aspect of Rome that is often extremely enticing to tourists is the dramatic and theatrical history that is associated with it. Seeing one of the ancient Roman plays live and in the city is a great experience for many of the guests in hotels in Rome. And while the ancient works of the Greek and Roman playwrights are often confused and combined into one period and genre, they are in fact two distinct periods of culture and drama, though it is true that Rome borrowed many of the stories and plays from the Greeks, this is a fundamental aspect of all societies throughout history. And there is now denying that the Romans made the theatre and mythology of the time all their own, regardless of where some of the stories may have originated.

One of the signifying differences between Greek and Roman tragedy is the fact that the Greeks did not display major violence on the stage and the Romans loved it. The gruesome details of some of the gory events in Greek plays would occur offstage while the Romans would bring it on in full force. This is a sensational difference that may intrigue some of the audience members at a contemporary performance. And while productions can and will do whatever they want, you can be relatively sure you’ll see more gore from a Roman play than from a Greek. Seneca and Plautus are the two most well known of the Roman playwrights though they were working and living centuries apart. Plautus is well known for his comedies and is believed to have lived between 254 and 184 BC while Seneca is know more for his tragedies and was working much later and in a different social and political environment in the first century AD.

Musical Theatre Tradition of New York

Monday, December 28th, 2009

One of the things you are least likely to hear about New York is that there is never anything to do there. In fact, most people are more concerned with doing everything that was on their agenda prior to their visit. And while touring everything in the city or experiencing all it has to offer in a single trip is generally impossible, one of the things on many people’s agenda that will definitely happen is attending a Broadway play. Broadway is the icon for the American theatre tradition and is also well known across the globe for its quality of productions and bringing new works into the international scene. It is often considered to be equivalent of the West End in London, which is England’s iconic theatre area.

One of the things Broadway has always been known and loved for is the spectacular musicals that are produced on its stages. Theatres like the Shubert and Winter Garden take on mythical status in the nation’s theatre tradition and represent the ambitions and dreams of young artists from around the world. The theatre district in New York includes more than the Broadway theatres and is often referred to as the Great White Way. The actual district is colossal in significance and symbolic importance though it is located on a relative small strip in Manhattan. It extends from 53rd to 42nd street and is between 6th and 8th Avenues.

And while many great dramatic and comedic plays have been and continue to be produced on the New York stage, Broadway is legendary for its great musicals. Names like Stephen Sondheim, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Rodgers and Hammerstein are part of the nation’s collective consciousness and their shows have highlighted many aspects of our lives. Guests in a New York Cheap hotel have always and will continue to visit the city and enjoy one or more of its great theatrical offerings.