THE CRADLE WILL ROCK—80 YEARS LATER PART 2
MARC BLITZSTEIN’S The Cradle Will Rock was inspired by U.S. labor unrest of the 1930s. However, its story and the tale of its 1937 production are timely today. Blitzstein’s The … Continue reading
THE CRADLE WILL ROCK—80 YEARS LATER PART 1
AMERICAN COMPOSER Marc Blitzstein’s 1937 The Cradle Will Rock was a product of the Depression and yet it resonates with today’s less than tranquil times. Originally part of the government’s … Continue reading
CHIHULY’S BRIDGE OF GLASS
THIS IS a tale of an artist who overcame significant adversity through entrepreneurial spirit. And, with his help, of a city that overcame significant environmental adversity through art. In retrospect, … Continue reading
THE MAN WHO WOULD BE—AND WAS—KING PART 2
THE YEAR 1810 was a busy one for Napoleon, for Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte (Napoleon’s appointed Prince of Portecorvo), and for King Charles XIII of Sweden. Emperor Napoleon’s goal of conquering … Continue reading
THE MAN WHO WOULD BE—AND WAS—KING PART 1
WITH HOMAGE to Rudyard Kipling’s The Man Who Would Be King, 1888, here’s a tale of Frenchman Jean-Baptiste Jules Bernadotte who actually became Sweden’s King Charles XIV John. It’s a … Continue reading
MAGIC POSTERS FROM TASCHEN
THERE WAS a time several years back when my grandson Carter was interested in magic. My singular influence in this activity was teaching him how to palm the pea in … Continue reading
THE SCIOTO SCANDAL PART 2
YESTERDAY HERE at SimanaitisSays, I shared Part 1 describing the Scioto Scandal, a scam taking place in the young United States during its first decade. It involved immigrants getting cheated, … Continue reading
THE SCIOTO SCANDAL PART 1
THERE’S A LONG history of immigrants to the U.S. getting scammed. And I’ve just learned of a spectacular example, the Scioto Scandal described in Bruce Berkowitz’s Playfair: The True Story … Continue reading
TWO MORE ARCHITECTURAL FAVS
I DONT’ KNOW much about architecture, but I know what I like. In particular, I’ve already celebrated three favorites here at SimanaitisSays: Katsura Rikyu, an imperial villa near Kyoto, Japan, … Continue reading
OPERA FOR OUR TIMES
THE ANCIENT Greeks found catharsis and comfort in their theater. And so it can be in opera for our times. I offer three examples “as timely as today’s headlines.” Revenge … Continue reading
