Blog Archives
At Tribeca FF: Robert De Niro Honored, Documentary, ‘Kiss the Future’ Screens, Orange Skies Presage Climate Change’s Impact
It’s the opening of Tribeca Film Festival. Co-founders Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal are ready for anything, even the apocalyptic Canadian wildfires smoke billowing down from Nova Scotia and Quebec, that plumed and spread over the Northeast and New York City, raising the air quality alerts into the “hazardous” zone on June 7, 2023. This NYC condition is a throwback to the days of 1960s smog pollution. It is a terrible, noisome reminder of 9/11.
The man made terror of global warming is being answered by the earth’s revolt. It’s in the smell of the air and the toxic orange glow of the skies. It’s all along the Northeast coast and it’s wafting outward covering Pennsylvania, Ohio and the West, and is moving down to Virginia and the new la la land, Florida. These days are eerie and frightening because the atmosphere’s strangeness presages more to come.
Fossil fuels are very much in the pollution picture (the Biden administration just pulled a doozy with drilling joining craven Republicans in promoting global warming). The choice of dollars and toxic air over a clean environment and planet cooling isn’t a problem for corporate billionaires who have to make billions to pay politicians to keep the cycle going. Masochistically the money will be used to paper over theirs and their family’s coffins. The air they breathe will be unable to be purified, a condition they dismiss. This toxic air even of 400 wildfires burning to our North reminds one of the film Total Recall, of no oxygen and orange skies. That setting, which was Mars has become a reality on Earth.
Tribeca guests, who have frequently excoriated politicians for their derelict approach to global warming, COVID and other dire consequences for the species on the planet, now have one more outrage to use to make art. Without artists as activists, indeed, we would be in much worse shape. That is one of the themes of the documentary Kiss the Future, screening at its North American premiere at Tribeca. Artists as activists encapsulates one of the purposes of Tribeca Film Festival, which then and now uplifts New York City and artists who contribute their works submitting from all over the world.
The Festival kicked off with a pre-reception during which Mayor Eric Adams gave Robert De Niro a key to the city. He received praise for his work in lifting the spirits of New Yorkers during and after the dark days of 9/11 by establishing Tribeca Film Festival with his colleague Jane Rosenthal.
The great director and filmmaker Martin Scorsese honored his friend and fellow collaborator affirming Mayor Adams’ remarks about De Niro’s prodigious contributions. Guests included Mark Ruffalo, Debra Messing, Billy Porter, Patty Jenkins, Peter Coyote, Noah Centineo, Dianna Agron, Julian Schnabel, Piper Perabo, and New York Nico (many of them artists-activists).
After the reception, the much anticipated documentary Kiss the Future was the opening night screening. The documentary chronicles U2’s journey to perform a long-promised concert to the people of Sarajevo after the war in the Balkans. Producer Matt Damon attended the event along with Brendan Fraser, Jennifer Esposito, Noah Centineo and Adam Goldberg. Before the screening Tribeca Film Festival co-founders Robert De Niro and Jane Rosenthal were on hand to answer questions from the media.
Tony Awards. No Surprises as Tony’s Mirror Drama Desk Award Wins.
Patina Miller won the Tony for Best Performance of a Leading Actress in a Musical Revival. When she signed my program, I told her I believed she would win the Tony. Turns out I was right. She is probably still shocked and sooo happy over her win.
Pippin won the Tony for Best Musical Revival
The Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall hosted by Neil Patrick Harris held no surprises if you saw the Drama Desk Awards. The award wins echoed each other this year, as the winners of the Drama Desks and Tonys mirrored each other last year. It’s as if the separate award committees sat down with each other and agreed on the wins.
Just the highligts are repeated here, of the Best Musical, Best Musical Revival, Best Play, Best Play Revival and the Actor awards. I’m thrilled for the Kinky Boots win for Best Original Musical and Cindi Lauper’s score win for Kinky Boots. I’m glad it won over Mathilda which I didn’t think was as great as it was touted to be when I saw it. I have yet to see the production of Kinky Boots, but will get tickets as soon as possible. Billy Porter now has a Tony to add to his Drama Desk Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical. The trailer posted online with him dressed in drag is a show stopping number and looks like a deserved win. He, as many of the performers did, thanked his family and God for sustaining him throughout to bring him to the stage and the wins.
Pippin won for Best Musical Revival. I’m thrilled. See my review of Pippin here! I predicted wins for Andrea Martin (Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical Revival) Diane Paulus (Best Director for Musical Revival) and Patina Miller (Best Performance by an Actress in a Musical Revival). I am so thrilled because I had the opportunity to tell Andrea Martin and Patina Miller that I hope they won because they were fabulous. Their wins bring viability and credibility to their careers and will most probably sky-rocket them to other roles in film or Broadway. I’m absolutely joyous for them. They and Diane Paulus so deserve it for their efforts.
Cicely Tyson (Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play ) received the Tony to go with her Drama Desk for her incredible, moving performance in A Trip to Bountiful. She was absolutely stunning and heart-wrenching. Judith Light received a Tony to go with her Drama Desk for her humorous character portrayal in The Assembled Parties. Likewise, Tracey Letts (Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play) won the Tony, adding to his award shelf that already holds a Drama Desk and other awards for his performance of George in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? The play’s director, Pam MacKinnon, also won the Tony as she did the Drama Desk.
Courtney B. Vance from Lucky Guy by Nora Ephron brought home the Tony for Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play. He was excellent, though I did want Tony Shalhoub to win in that category for Golden Boy. Shalhoub’s portrayal of the father (too bad it was so early in the season) was exceptional; he was dynamic and powerful in his soft-spoken, loving, nuanced portrayal. His was a pivotal character, the conscience and the theme of Odets’ play. He brought together the elements brilliantly in a living, vital performance. It was a shame he didn’t win; he was breathtaking. Vance, though fine, didn’t do it for me, where Hanks, actually, was touching and wonderful…enhancing Ephron’s somewhat lackluster characterization of McAlary. (See my review.) If not for Hanks, the play would have been a yawn. But Letts was the favorite and I unfortunately missed this supposedly iconic Virginia Woolf. After all the nominations, Matilda did receive a win for Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical (Gabriel Ebert). For me, it was a toss up between Terrance Mann (Pippin) and Ebert, but I didn’t see the other performances, so I can’t say. I did think that Ebert was pushing for laughs as was Mann…both comedic roles. Comedy is very, very hard to do well.
The finest remarks in the evening were delivered by Tracey Letts as he thanked the ATW. He said something to the effect that the others in the category were not his competitors, they were his peers. He was absolutely correct: Tom Hanks (Lucky Guy) David Hyde Pierce (Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike) Nathan Lane (The Nance) and Tom Sturridge (Orphans)? I saw each production and there is absolutely no way I would have been able to select from these. Of course, I did not see Letts. And the Best Play? Christopher Durang’s Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike. What can I say? I loved it and of the four nominees, it was my favorite.
As a show, The Tony Awards was better than the Oscars which lasts forever in its own self-indulgent mode. But then I only watched two hours of The Tonys while I was online doing other things. It is how I watch TV, if I watch it at all, which is extremely seldom. I prefer streaming or the interactivity of social or mobile. The more alive, the better. That is why I love theater, but am annoyed that they have not entered the Social Media age of living, breathing interactivity during performances. They (the theater police) don’t trust the rabble to not throw things, I guess.
Don’t they understand about Macros flash settings and texting and silent mode on mobile? Don’t they get it that interactivity from fans IS THE BEST PROMOTION AND ADVERTISING OUT THERE FOR A BROADWAY SHOW? Maybe not. NASA gets it. They have Tweet teams. A play is a potential TWEET TEAM LAUNCH ON SOCIAL Yawn. I’m waiting for them to “get it.” It may take years.
CAROLE DI TOSTI 