#Go See Elf the Musical at the Paramount Theatre

[memyselfandjen]

Go See Elf the Musical at the Paramount Theatre

Our home is filled with a bunch of blossoming theater lovers, and we as parents are happy to nurture that love every opportunity we get.  Living in the suburbs of Chicago makes it a little easier since there are always so many great shows to see.  It was extra exciting when we were asked to attend a performance of Elf The Musical this weekend at the Paramount Theatre in Aurora and share our thoughts.

Photo credit: Liz Lauren

Based on the hilarious 2003 Will Ferrell movie, Elf is one of those rare holiday shows that will have both kids and adults laughing, humming tunes like “A Christmas Song” and “Sparklejollytwinklejingley” for days.  If you’ve ever felt like you don’t belong, just be glad you’re not William “Buddy” Hobbes. When he was a baby, Buddy crawled into Santa’s sack of presents and was whisked away to the North Pole, where he lived as an elf for years. Buddy took joy in doing elf things, like making toys. But there was always something off. He towered over his fellow elves and just didn’t get cobbling. When Buddy learns he’s human, he goes in search of his father, a workaholic New York City publisher. Imagine Buddy’s horror when he finds out his real dad couldn’t care less about Christmas. But that won’t deter the infectiously cheerful wannabe elf from changing people’s hearts and minds.

Photo credit: Liz Lauren

I had NEVER SEEN THE MOVIE, so I had absolutely no idea what to expect. Although anything that was inspired by a Will Ferrel movie had me concerned about the humor level and my 9-year-old. While there are a few places that the humor is PG-13 (no swearing, just a few sexual innuendos) it seemed to go right over her head (our 12 and 14-year-old definitely caught it all).  The story is lovely, the staging and costumes are bright and festive, and the musical numbers are fun and easy to sign along with.  At no time were any of our kids bored or fidgety, which to me is the sign of a successful show that kids can attend!  It was a wonderful holiday show and I would strongly encourage everyone to head to the Paramount and check out Elf The Musical before it leaves on January 7th.

As an added bonus, members of the cast (Buddy, Jovi, Santa Claus, Mr. Hobbs, and the Macy’s Store Manager) all took a few minutes after their amazing performance to say “Hi” to the kids and take pictures.

Thanks to Kyle Adams, Samantha Pauly, Roger Mueller, Michael Accardo and Jonathan Butler-Duplessis!

Elf The Musical is at the Paramount Theatre in Aurora from now until January 7, 2018.  The Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in the heart of downtown Aurora, is the center for performing arts, entertainment and arts education in the second largest city in Illinois. The 1,888-seat Paramount Theatre is nationally renowned for the quality and caliber of its presentations, historic 1930s Art Deco beauty and superb acoustics.  And with a two-story Christmas tree in the center of Paramount’s lobby, thousands of sparkling lights adorning the banisters and carolers filling the air with song, Paramount has become the place where families head for unforgettable holiday experiences.

And we managed to snag a family holiday picture!

For more information on how to take your family to see Elf The Musical this holiday season at the Paramount Theatre (I highly recommend it!), you can check out the Paramount’s website, and make sure to follow them on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Disclosure:  This post was sponsored by Elf The Musical and the Paramount Theatre.  All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.

from Go See Elf the Musical at the Paramount Theatre

[perfectirishgifts]

25 Top Hotel Holiday Events

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25 Top Hotel Holiday Events

Toast the season from the Krug Carnotzet.

While the holidays will be different this year, they can still be jolly. Hotels have come up with a bevy of imaginative and festive activities, including video chats with Santa, private sleigh rides, jingle bell jogs and to-go kits with everything from gingerbread to s’mores.

Whether you plan to stay in or venture out on a staycation, these Forbes Travel Guide-approved hotel activities will fill your holiday with good cheer:

Pair Cheese and Champagne

Cozy up in The Dolder Grand’s Krug Carnotzet, a barrel-shaped pop-up private dining space on the terrace of the Zurich hotel’s Saltz restaurant. Then sip exquisite champagne and warm up with rich, gooey fondue while gazing out at the city.

Zoom with Santa Claus. Credit:

Virtually Visit with Santa

Since social distancing prevents kids from sitting on old St. Nick’s lap, The Houstonian Hotel, Club and Spa set up a video chat with Santa in its Houston ballroom (Dec. 12). The exchange is captured as a video keepsake for parents.

Decorate these oversized houses.

Go Big with Gingerbread

Build a gingerbread village at The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner. Decorate four massive gingerbread houses with icing and sweets while sipping hot chocolate and watching a private screening of your favorite holiday flick in the D.C. hotel’s new Ambassador Movie Theatre Room.

Get ski tips from an Olympian.

Ski with an Olympian

Madeline Hotel and Residences, Auberge Resorts Collection will put you on the slopes with Olympic skier Gus Kenworthy for an hour (Dec. 23-24). Afterward, stop by the Telluride hotel’s new Ski Recovery Lounge, which features Kenworthy’s favorite recovery rituals (like Hyperice and Normatec therapies) and his own cool-down playlist.

Savor more dining options in Deer Valley.

Dine in a Luxe Yurt

On Dec. 21, The St. Regis Deer Valley will debut Yurt Village, three yurts with mahogany latticework, plexiglass stargazing domes, windows overlooking the Wasatch Range and radiant heat. The luxe yurts, which seat eight, will serve lunch, après-ski and dinner.

Sip Fine Wine

The pandemic isn’t stopping the nation’s longest-running food and wine fest. Boston Harbor Hotel’s Boston Wine Festival (January-March) will offer virtual wine dinners Thursdays, and socially distant wine dinners Fridays and Saturdays spotlighting top wine and winemakers from around the world.

Get festive at Chatham Bars Inn.

Shake Up Holiday Libations

Step up your holiday entertaining with the help of Adam Couto, Chatham Bars Inn’s master mixologist. You’ll learn how to make eggnog and holiday grog during hands-on classes in the Cape Cod hotel’s new STARS Mixology Lounge throughout December.

Take a Jingle Jog

Although a canine isn’t required for Montage Palmetto Bluff’s Dec. 24 Jingle Bell Dog Jog 5K, it’s certainly more fun to have one (the South Carolina hotel will provide the bells). After the run, you’ll feel less guilty about indulging in Montage’s Cookie Pop Up Shop.

Send mail to Santa.

Write Letters to Santa

Children checking into Lotte New York Palace or The Towers will receive a postcard to write to Santa and drop into a special onsite mailbox. Later, a personalized response from Santa Claus will magically appear in their rooms.

Ride to Santa’s Workshop

Climb aboard a wagon to visit Santa’s workshop at Salamander Resort & Spa in Middleburg, Virginia, for a socially distanced photo op. After kids share their wishes, they’ll do a festive craft and then enjoy s’mores and hot cocoa at the fire pits.

Explore the terrain by snowshoe.

Embark on a Snowshoe Adventure

Starting in January, trek through the tranquil mountainside during a sunset snowshoe outing courtesy of The Lodge at Blue Sky, Auberge Resorts Collection in Park City. The final destination is a yurt, where mulled wine and fondue will warm you up.

Feed on Festive Flapjacks

Pendry San Diego adapted its annual Pancakes and Pajamas Brunch as a to-go kit, with cooked classic and red velvet pancakes, colorful toppings and a pair of children’s holiday pajamas from P.J. Salvage. Pre-order a kit here and pick it up Dec. 19 at Provisional Kitchen.

Do some yoga in the snow.

Do Some Snowga

Embrace Edgewood Tahoe’s wintry landscape with snowga in the Sierras. Take in the fresh mountain air and relax your mind as instructors take you through poses in an outdoor yoga experience on a patch of beachfront overlooking Lake Tahoe’s icy waters.

Partake in Après-Beach

Snowy destinations don’t have the corner on après experiences. The Ritz-Carlton, South Beach puts a Miami spin on it with Après Beach, a post-beach ritual with Veuve Clicquot and gourmet bites on the Starr Bar overlooking the Atlantic.

Dine in your own bubble.

Stay at a Hotel on Ice

Four Seasons Hotel Washington, D.C. transformed to a “Hotel on Ice,” with heated pop-up ice bubble domes on the patio of Bourbon Steak featuring spirits and champagnes by Moët Hennessy. Meanwhile, kids camp out in ice castles set up in their rooms.

Have a Fun DIY Holiday

Celebrate the season with Terranea Resort’s to-go activity kits. The Kids Club Family Gratitude Boxes is packed with arts and crafts, games, gratitude conversation cards and more. Or opt for the L.A. hotel’s other DIY kits with gingerbread houses, mandala painting, stargazing and s’mores to enjoy around one of the 228 onsite fireplaces.

Meet the man in red in the Santa Suite.

See Santa on the Beach

St. Nick is stopping in at Fairmont Mayakoba, Riviera Maya to visit with little ones in his own Santa Suite, a merry beachside dome. It’s complimentary to chat and take photos with the jolly old elf, but the hotel is collecting donations to aid the local community.

Throw a private Hanukkah celebration

Commemorate the Festival of Lights from the comfort of your accommodations at Ojai Valley Inn. The hotel will deliver a Hanukkah kit with an electric menorah, dreidels and chocolate gelt coins to kickstart your in-room holiday festivities.

Santa ditched the reindeer for a helicopter this year.

Celebrate Christmas Beachside

Forget white Christmases. Beachfront Grand Velas Los Cabos will mark Dec. 25 with Santa swooping in via helicopter, along with sandcastle competitions, cooking classes, sand bikes, an aromatherapy Spa Atelier workshop and private stargazing.

Enjoy a Private Concert

Commodore Perry Estate, Auberge Resorts Collection will grant concertgoers’ Christmas wish with a one-of-a-kind private experience in Austin’s iconic Paramount Theatre. Have a three-course dinner, cocktail experience and theater tour, followed by a screening of a vintage holiday movie or a musical performance.

Get into the holiday spirit in Houston.

Spend Time with Santa

At The Post Oak Hotel at Uptown Houston’s Holiday Workshop (Dec. 12-13), kids can decorate gingerbread houses, listen to carolers, have story time with Santa and nosh on light holiday bites while mom and dad hit the mimosa bar.

The hotel will send you out on a sleigh.

Go Sleigh Riding

Gallivant around Aspen in a horse-drawn carriage with a historian to explore the mining town and learn about its past. Hotel Jerome, Auberge Resorts Collection partnered with the Aspen Historical Society for the private sleigh rides.

Follow up skiing with a seafood spread.

Après-Ski in Tahoe

After day on the slopes and refueling at The Ritz-Carlton, Lake Tahoe’s sumptuous après-ski spread with Moët & Chandon, shrimp cocktail, crab and caviar, revive yourself at the spa with a Ponderosa Pine Winter Body Scrub. Pine bark treats sore muscles, and a creamy exfoliation with local pine salve soothes dry skin.

Create Art

Children are invited to create their own masterpieces at Four Seasons Hotel One Dalton Street, Boston. The hotel will send craft kits to the room, and the Trifecta Trolley will stop by to mix up a holiday-themed mocktail at your door. Parents can order adult libations from the trolley, too.

Rosewood Miramar Beach will feel like home for the holidays.

Admire Bright Holiday Lights

Have a winter getaway at Rosewood Miramar Beach with the Home Sweet Miramar Package, and you’ll get a signature suite with a full-sized tree and decorating kit, an in-suite dinner, customized stockings and family pajamas, and use of the house car for a tour through the area’s best holiday light displays.

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[weekendwarriorblog]

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND November 8, 2019 – DOCTOR SLEEP, MIDWAY, LAST CHRISTMAS, MARRIAGE STORY and more

Well, last weekend was a thing, wasn’t it? The movie I liked the most didn’t do great, the movie I really wasn’t into did better than expected, and Terminator: Dark Fate? Yeah, that’s the end of that franchise… hopefully?

This week, there’s some good, some bad and some okay to decent. I’m probably under embargo on the two bad movies so you’ll just have to guess which is which.

Actually, I already reviewed Mike Flanagan’s DOCTOR SLEEP (Warner Bros.) over at The Beat, and my review of Roland Emmerich’s MIDWAY (Lionsgate) will probably havegone up over there by the time you’ve read this. That just leaves Universal’s holiday rom-com LAST CHRISTMAS and Paramount’s PLAYING WITH FIRE.

Doctor Sleepis the latest Stephen King adaptation, this one based on his 2013 novel that is a sequel to The Shining, the movie starring Ewan McGregor as the older Danny Torrance, Rebecca Ferguson as “Rose the Hat” and newcomer Kyliegh Curran as Abra Stone, a young girl with powers who turns to Danny to help her face Rose and her gang of roving power vampires. As you can read in my review, this one isn’t so bad, and if you’re a fan of The Shining, there’s stuff for you to enjoy even though it’s not nearly as scary.

Not sure what more I can say about Midway, other than it’s Emmerich’s version of the WWII Pacific battle with a mostly-male cast that includes Woody Harrelson, Patrick Wilson, Aaron Eckhart, Randy Quaid and many more, most of whom have done better work. Basically, I wasn’t a fan, and I’m not sure how well it will do even with Monday being Veterans Day. I’ll be curious to see how others feel about the movie.

Also, not much to say about Playing with Fire other than its John Cena doing a family comedy with director Andy Fickman, Kegan Michael-Key, John Leguizamo, the wonderful Judy Greer, and honestly, I doubt anyone who might read this column would have any interest. Put it this way, it’s no Instant Family, one of my favorite movies from last year.

In many ways, my favorite movie of the weekend is Last Christmas, directed by Paul Feig from Bridesmaids and Ghostbusters, which is indeed based loosely on the George Michael song of the same name, but it brings together Emilia Clarke with Henry Golding from Crazy Rich Asians, as well as Michelle Yeoh from Crazy Rich Asians, and Emma Thompson, who co-wrote the film.

I’ll have an interview with Feig over at Next Best Picture very soon, but here’s my short review…

Mini-Review: You know you have to be doing something right if you make a Christmas rom-com that’s able to get a Jew into the Christmas spirit while watching your movie even before Halloween, but that’s the case with this great collaboration between Paul Feig with Emma Thompson.

I’m not sure what I was expecting, but I was definitely surprised by how much I liked Emilia Clarke in the role of a fuck-up who can’t seem to find a regular living place since her roommates keep kicking her out. She works at a Christmas shop in London’s busy market owned by Michelle Yeoh, who is lovingly known as “Santa.” One night, her character Kate encounters a handsome and mysterious young man named Tom (Henry Golding), and the two become friends and then get closer.

It’s pretty amazing to see Clarke doing something we really haven’t seen her do before and that’s being funny, but she also sings in the movie and has a nature that some might deem “Manic Pixie Dream Girl”-ish. In fact, she plays an elf. (rimshot) It’s hard not to think of Zooey Deschanel in Elf as you watch Clarke spend time in her work costume but Kate is very likable and nothing like Clark’s previous roles. Golding is as charming and handsome as ever, making him come across like the new Hugh Grant, but their scenes together propel Last Christmas into a place where you really feel for both of them.

There are aspects to Last Christmas that are predictable, including a twist that’s literally spoiled in the first few minutes of the movie, but the movie is just so enjoyable overall that this can be forgiven. Even if you’re the worst Scrooge about the holidays, it’s hard not to enjoy all of the Christmas spirit permeating this movie, particularly Yeoh’s character, but it also finds a way to make you feel good about helping others during the holidays, something that I hope rubs off on anyone who sees this.

Basically, Last Christmas is a romantic comedy that’s actually romantic and very funny, as well as a great way to kick-off the holiday movie season! It’s taken some time, but Love Actually finally has a worthy successor.

Rating: 8/10

You can read more about the new wide releases over at The Beat.

LOCAL FESTIVALS

The big festival hitting New York this weekend, today in fact, is this year’s installation of DOC-NYC, which boasts 300 films and events circulating around the world of documentary filmmaking, including many World Premieres, as well as screenings of some of the year’s biggest commercial and critical hits in terms of docs.

Oddly, tonight’s Opening Night is Daniel Roher’s Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and the Band, which was also the opening night gala of TIFF this year. I still haven’t seen it. Closing night is the NYC premiere of Ebs Burnough’s The Capote Tapes, which I also haven’t seen. The festival is giving Visionary Tribute Lifetime Achievement awards to Michael Apted, who will screen the latest in his ongoing doc series, 63 Up, as well as to Martin Scorsese, whose Netflix film Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story will screen. I actually haven’t seen too many movies in this year’s festival just cause I’ve been busy with other things, but I have seen Joe Berlinger’s The Longest Wave about windsurfer icon Robby Naish and Keith Fulton and Lou Pepe’s He Dreams of Giants, a great follow-up to Lost in La Mancha, which follows Terry Gilliam’s efforts to finally make The Man Who Killed Don Quixote. Other movies include the World Premiere of Beth B’s Lydia Lunch: The War is Never Over on Saturday night, the NYC Premieres of Oren Jacoby’s On Broadway, Beth Kopple’s Desert One, Kristof Bilsen’s Mother plus many more. (On top of that, my own group, the Critics Choice Association will be announcing its own Critics Choice Documentary Awards this Sunday.)

LIMITED RELEASES

There are two can’t-miss movies this weekend, the first of them being Noah Baumbach’s latest Marriage Story, which in my opinion is the best film he’s made in his entire career, and that’s saying something. This one stars Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson as a couple going through a divorce, and if this sounds familiar, it might be since Baumbach’s 2005 movie The Squid and The Whale was also about a divorce, that of his parents. It’s hard not to think that at least some of Marriage Story might be based on Baumbach’s own divorce from actor Jennifer Jason Leigh as Driver plays a theater director and Johansson plays an actor who appears in many of his plays. The real sticking point is their 6-year-old son and the fact that Johansson’s character wants to put him in school in California where she has an upcoming job, but his father, who is about to bring his play to Broadway without his wife, wants him in New York. At first, the couple plan on divorcing without lawyers and remaining friends, but as lawyers are brought on board – played by Laura Dern, Alan Alda and Ray Liotta – things just get more vicious. Not only is this one of Baumbach’s best-realized screenplay but the performances he gets out of his cast are indelible, particularly Driver and Johansson who have a number of highly charged scenes together, including one that’s absolutely unforgettable. It’s easily one of the best movies of the year, and it will be very much in the awards race. Marriage Story opens on Wednesday (today!) in New York – at the City Cinemas (formerly the Paris Theatre) and IFC Center – in L.A. and a few other cities. It won’t debut on Netflix until December 6.

Another movie that definitely needs to be seen is HONEY BOY (NEON), written by and starring Shia LaBeouf and directed by Alma Har’el, who has previously directed documentaries and music videos. It’s loosely based on some of LaBeouf’s own experiences as a child actor dealing with a turbulent relationship with his father with Noah Jupe from A Quiet Place and next week’s Ford vs. Ferrari playing the young actor “Otis Lort” who later in life (played by Lucas Hedges) is dealing with the repercussions of an alcoholic father, played by LaBeaouf, apparently based on his own father? It’s a really amazing film that obviously was extremely cathartic for LaBeouf to write while he was going through his own rehab therapy, plus he also has singer FKA twigs making her feature film debut as an amorous neighbor of Otis who lives at the motel where he stays with his father. I’m not going to say too much more about the film other than it’s extremely powerful and emotional

There are a couple decent docs opening this weekend, the one I recommend first and foremost being Roger Ross Williams’ THE APOLLO, which will open at the Metrographafter opening this year’s Tribeca Film Festival. It’s an amazing look at the landmark Harlem theater that’s made so many careers over the years from performers like Aretha Franklin and James Brown, combining amazing archival footage with new interviews.

I haven’t gotten around to seeing Lauren Greenfield’s new documentaryThe Kingmaker (Showtime), which will open at the Quad Cinema in New York before it airs on Showtime, but this one is about the political career of Imelda Marcos, the Philippines’ first lady who became almost more famous than her President husband Ferdinand, mainly for her collection of shoes.

Samuel Bathrick’s doc 16 Bars opens at New York’s Village East Cinema and in L.A. next Friday. It follows Arrested Development’s “Speech” Thomas as he works with in mates in a Virginia jail to write and record original music as part of their rehabilitation.

Netflix is also releasing Despicable Me co-creator Sergio Pablos’ animated film Klaus in theaters this Friday in advance of its worldwide streaming debut on Netflix on November 15. It features Jason Schwartzmann as the voice of Jesper, a spoiled rich kid son of the postmaster who is sent to a frozen island in the Arctic circle where he finds allies in a local schoolteacher (voiced by Rashida Jones) and meets a mysterious carpenter named Klaus (voiced by J.K. Simmons).

Opening at New York’s Cinema Village is Joel Souza’s CROWN VIC (Screen Media) starring Thomas Jane as a veteran cop with Luke Kleintank (also in Midway) as his rookie cop who are looking for a missing girl and hunting two cop killers in Los Angeles. It also stars Bridge Moynihan.

Nicolas Cage stars in PRIMAL (Lionsgate) as Frank Walsh, a hunter and collector of rare and exotic animals who catches a rare white jaguar, except that the ship taking his cargo also includes a political assassin being sent to the U.S. who breaks free and lets the jaguar loose. So this is like Life of Pi only with more Nicolas Cage? It also stars Famke Janssen, Kevin Durand and Michael Imperioli and opens in select cities asnd On Demand.

Similarly, Danger Close (Saban Films) will be in theatrs, On Demand and Digital, this one starring Travis Fimmel (Warcraft) as Major Harry Smith in Kriv Stenders’ war movie, written by Stuart Beattie. It follows Smith as he takes a group of 108 young soldiers from Australia and New Zealand into the Battle of Long tan against 2,500 Viet Cong soldiers. I guess this is an alternative to Midway for Veterans’ Day?

STREAMING AND CABLE

Debuting on Netflix is Luke Snellin’s holiday rom-com Let It Snow, starring Isabela Moner (Dora and the Lost City of Gold), Odeya Rush, Shameik Moore and Liv Hewson as a group of high school seniors in a Midwestern town who are snowbound on Christmas Eve. It’s based on a book by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle.

REPERTORY

Let’s get to some old(er) movies, starting with the Metrograph in New York, who begins a series with filmmaker Noah Baumbach in Residence in conjunction with the release of Baumbach’s latest and greatest, Marriage Story. Besides screening Baumbach’s own 1995 film Kicking and Screaming, 2005’s The Squid and the Whale and 2007’s Margot at the Wedding, Baumbach will present screenings of Spike Lee’s Crooklyn (1994) on Saturday, Eric Rohmer’s Pauline at the Beach (1983), which inspired Margot with more movies to come between now and November 22. The Metrograph also continues its Welcome To Metrograph: Redux series with Shunji Iwai’s 2001 film All About Lily Chou-Chouon Thursday and again on Saturday. This weekend’s Playtime: Family Matinees is Steven Spielberg’s 1981 classic Raiders of the Lost Ark, while Late Nites at Metrograph  will screen Bong Joon-wo’s The Host on Thursday through Sunday, way too late for this old man. You’ll also have another opportunity to see Hitchcock’s 1971 thriller Frenzy on Thursday night.

TheFilm Forumwill be screening Yasujirô Ozu’s 1957 film Tokyo Twilight in a new 4k restoration starting Friday, as well as bringing back his 1953 film Tokyo Story, as well, continuing from the Shatamachi series which ends Thursday. The Forum is also screening Henry King’s 1949 movie Twelve O’Clock a few more times this weekend, and on Sunday and Monday, it will screen Rowland Brown’s 1933 film Blood Money. This weekend’s Film Forum Jr. is George Lucas’ American Graffiti.

The IFC Center is gonna be pretty busy with Doc-NYC (see above) but its Waverly Midnights: Spy Games offering will be Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) and Late Night Favorites: Autumn 2019 will screen Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange (one of my favorites).

Opening at the Quad on Friday is a 4k 20thAnniversary restoration of Joan Micklin Silver’s A Fish in the Bathtub, starring real-life husband-wife comedy duo Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. The 1999 comedy from the director of Hester Street and Crossing Delancey is about a woman who finally had enough with her stubborn husband so she moves in with her married son (played by Mark Ruffalo!!!), driving him crazy enough to convince his sister (Jane Adams) to try to repair the relationship.

The Roxy Cinema will be screening Valley Girlo n Weds and  Alan Parker’s 1984 film Birdy on Thursday, both starring Nicolas Cage, and the 1979 film Draculastarring Frank Langella on Saturday.

Uptown at Film at Lincoln Center, they’re kicking off a short series called Jessica Hausner: The Miracle Worker, including a sneak preview of her sci-fi thriller Little Joe, and showing her earlier films Amour Fou, Hotel,Lourdes, Lovely Ritaand a bunch of shorts.

MOMA continues Modern Matinees: Iris Barry’s History of Film and Vision Statement: Early Directorial Works, the latter showing Sebastian Silva’s The Maidon Wednesday evening, Jane Campion’s The Piano on Thursday, Debra Granik’s Down to the Bone on Friday, John Cassavetes’ Shadows(1959) on Saturday and Kelly Reichardt’s Old Joy (2006) on Sunday, as well as Cristian Mungiu’s 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days.

The Alamo Drafthouse in Brooklyn will show Tom Hanks’ The ‘Burbs on Thursday night in conjunction with Rotten Tomatoes, then next Monday’s Fist City is America Ninja 2: the Confrontation from 1987, Terror Tuesday is one of my favorites, Final Destination 3 (2006) and Weird Wednesday is the 1984 film Decoder.

Out in Astoria, the Museum of the Moving Image will screen Paul Verhoeven’s Starship Troopers (1997) on Saturday as part of its ongoing “No Joke: Absurd Comedy as Political Reality” series. Friday night, its showing Godfrey Reggio’s 1982 classic Koyaanisqatsi, introduced by Ramell Ross as part of his “Some Other Lives of Time: Subjective Spaces for Nonfiction” series. I have no idea what that means. MOMI is also showing Vassilis Douvilis’ The Homecoming as part of “Always on Sunday: Greek Film Series,” which apparently has returned after a six-month hiatus.

Out in L.A., Tarantino’s New Beverly has been showing double features of Jackie Brown with Lewis Teague’s 1980 film Alligator, and no, I don’t know the connection either. Friday’s horror matinee is David Cronenberg’s The Brood while the midnight movies are Pulp Fiction on Friday night and Maniac Cop 3: Badge of Silence on Saturday night. The Kiddee Matinee is one of my faves, The 7th Voyage of Sinbad and then Monday’s matinee is James Mangold’s Cop Land, starring Sylvester Stallone. Next Tuesday’s wacky triple feature is Stunts, Walking the Edge and The Kinky Coches and the Pom-Pom Pussycats. Now THAT is what I call a triple feature...

The Egyptian Theatre is showing Martin Scorsese’s The Irishman in a limited engagement but on Saturday, it will show Raoul Levy’s Hail, Mafia! (1965) as part of “Joe Dante’s 16mm Spotlight” with Mr. Dante in person. Over at the Aero, they’re having a series called “All the Right Stuff: The Artistry of Phillip Kaufman with the director in person and double features of Raiders of the Lost Arkand The Wanderers on Friday, Invasion of the Body Snatchers/The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid on Saturday and The Unbearable Lightness of Being on Sunday (with Juliette Binoche)!

The Friday midnight at Landmark’s Nuart Theater is the anime classic Akira.

Next week, James Mangold’s Ford vs. Ferrari takes on Elizabeth Banks’ Charlie’s Angels and Bill Condon’s The Good Liar, starring Ian McKellen and Helen Mirren.

[thefederalistfreestyle]

If “The Phantom of the Opera” and “Hamilton” got into a fight, who would win? The Reagan-era stalwart or the upstart hip-hop musical forged in the era of Obama? We’re going to find out in the 2017-2018 season of Broadway at the Paramount, the Seattle branch of Broadway Across America, which brings high-profile touring shows to dozens of cities across the country. This season’s offerings have collected enough Tony Awards to sink a cruise ship: “The Sound of Music” (Sept. 6-11); “Disney’s Aladdin” (Oct. 12-29); “The Bodyguard,” starring R&B singer Deborah Cox (Nov. 14-19); “ELF the Musical” (Dec. 5-10); “The Book of Mormon,” returning to Seattle after three sold-out runs between 2013 and 2015 (Jan. 2-14); “Hamilton,” which also won a Pulitzer Prize and makes its Seattle premiere (Feb. 13-March 18, 2018); “Love Never Dies,” Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 2010 sequel to “The Phantom of the Opera” (May 8-13, 2018); “Les Misérables” (June 6-17, 2018); and “The Phantom of the Opera” (Aug. 8-19, 2018). Season subscriptions go on sale Jan. 9 and start at $233 — but tickets to “The Book of Mormon” and “Phantom of the Opera” aren’t included. Those require additional, add-on purchases, each around $50. (See Seattle Theatre Group’s website — stgpresents.org — for more details.) [. . .]

‘Hamilton’ and ‘Phantom’ — Broadway at the Paramount announces new season (The Seattle Times)

[showbizchicago]

Paramount Theatre is excited to tune up for its rollicking 2017-18 Broadway Series opener Million Dollar Quartet, the wildly popular rock and roll musical that played more than 2,500 performances in Chicago.

Travel back in time to Memphis’s Sun Records recording studio on December 4, 1956, when Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins played together their first and only time and created an explosive album that has yet to be matched. Million Dollar Quartet tells that story with all the raw energy and monumental talent everyone has come to expect from these music giants.

Paramount Artistic Director Jim Corti, the man responsible for the past two Jeff Award-winning Best Musicals (Large), Les Misérables and West Side Story, will stage Paramount’s rockin’ opener.

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Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Broadway Series opener Million Dollar Quartet features (from left) Adam Wesley Brown as Carl Perkins. Performances are September 13-October 29, 2017 at the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. Tickets and information: ParamountAurora.com or (630) 896-6666. Credit: Liz Lauren

Chicago set designer Kevin Depinet has recreated Sam Phillips’s original Sun Records studio in Memphis – where Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins played together their first and only time on December 4, 1956 – for Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Broadway Series opener Million Dollar Quartet. Costume design is by Sally Dolembo and lighting design is by Jesse Klug. Performances are September 13-October 29, 2017 at the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. Tickets and information: ParamountAurora.com or (630) 896-6666. Credit: Liz Lauren

Great Balls of Fire! Gavin Rohrer plays Jerry Lee Lewis in Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Broadway Series opener Million Dollar Quartet, playing September 13-October 29, 2017 at the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. Tickets and information: ParamountAurora.com or (630) 896-6666. Credit: Liz Lauren

(from left) Adam Wesley Brown plays Carl Perkins, Kavan Hashemian plays Elvis Presley and Bill Scott Sheets is Johnny Cash in Million Dollar Quartet, Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Broadway Series opener. Performances are September 13-October 29, 2017 at the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. Tickets and information: ParamountAurora.com or (630) 896-6666. Credit: Liz Lauren

Kavan Hashemian plays Elvis Presley and Adam Wesley Brown (right) is Carl Perkins in Million Dollar Quartet, Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Broadway Series opener. Performances are September 13-October 29, 2017 at the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. Tickets and information: ParamountAurora.com or (630) 896-6666. Credit: Liz Lauren

Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Broadway Series opener Million Dollar Quartet features (from left) Courtney Mack as Dyanne, Adam Wesley Brown as Carl Perkins, Kavan Hashemian as Elvis Presley and Bill Scott Sheets as Johnny Cash. Performances are September 13-October 29, 2017 at the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. Tickets and information: ParamountAurora.com or (630) 896-6666. Credit: Liz Lauren

Nicholas Harazin plays “the father of rock and roll,” Sam Phillips, seen here under the classic image of Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash shot at Phillips’s Sun Records studio on December 4, 1956, in Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Broadway Series opener Million Dollar Quartet. Performances are September 13-October 29, 2017 at the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. Tickets and information: ParamountAurora.com or (630) 896-6666. Credit: Liz Lauren

Bill Scott Sheets plays Johnny Cash in Million Dollar Quartet, Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Broadway Series opener. Performances are September 13-October 29, 2017 at the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. Tickets and information: ParamountAurora.com or (630) 896-6666. Credit: Liz Lauren

Chicago Set designer Kevin Depinet has recreated Sam Phillips’s original Sun Records studio in Memphis – where Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins played together their first and only time on December 4, 1956 – for Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Broadway Series opener Million Dollar Quartet. Costume design is by Sally Dolembo and lighting design is by Jesse Klug. Performances are September 13-October 29, 2017 at the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, IL. Tickets and information: ParamountAurora.com or (630) 896-6666. Credit: Liz Lauren

Playing the Quartet are Adam Wesley Brown as Carl Perkins, Kavan Hashemian as Elvis Presley, Gavin Rohrer as Jerry Lee Lewis and Bill Scott Sheets as Johnny Cash, with Nicholas Harazin as Sam Phillips, Zach Lentino as Brother Jay, Courtney Mack as Dyanne and Scott Simon as Fluke.

The production team is Kory Danielson, music director; Trent Stork, associate director; Ethan Deppe, associate music director; Kevin Depinet, scenic design; Sally Dolembo, costume design; Jesse Klug, lighting design; Adam Rosenthal, sound designer; Katie Cordts, wig, hair and makeup design; Amanda Relaford, properties design; Susan Gosdick, dialect coach; Maggie O’Donnell, stage manager; and Matthew McMullen, assistant stage manager.

Don’t miss Paramount’s high-spirited, nostalgic new take on the three-time Tony Award nominated musical, featuring some of the biggest and best songs of all time like “Peace in the Valley,” “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Folsom Prison Blues,” “I Walk the Line,” “Hound Dog” and “Great Balls of Fire.”

Previews start September 13. \Performances continue through October 29: Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Thursday at 7 p.m.; Friday at 8 p.m.;Saturday at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.; and Sunday at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. Single tickets are $36 to $64. Million Dollar Quartet is rated PG.

But hold on, there’s still time to include Million Dollar Quartet in Paramount’s “Buy Two Shows, Get Two Shows Free” 2017-18 Broadway subscription offer. For less than the cost of a ticket to one show downtown, patrons can see three more Broadway-quality musicals: Elf The Musical (November 22–January 7), Cabaret (February 7–March 18) and Once (April 25-June 3). Four-play packages start as low as $72. The rewards are ample – four amazing, Broadway-quality musicals, at one of the most majestic theaters in the Midwest.

The Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in downtown Aurora, is surrounded by affordable parking and a variety of restaurants for pre- or post-show dining. For subscriptions and single tickets, visit ParamountAurora.com, call (630) 896-6666, or stop by the Paramount box office Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and two hours prior to evening performances.

Behind the scenes: Paramount’s Million Dollar Quartet

There was no plan for Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins to record together on December 4, 1956. But as fate would have it, their impromptu jam session left behind a historic and mind-blowing album. The evening begins in the Sun Records recording studio in Memphis. Up and comer Jerry Lee Lewis is recording songs with rockabilly king Carl Perkins when the iconic Elvis Presley stops by with his girlfriend. The not-quite-yet-guitar-god Johnny Cash is there to pay a visit to music manager Sam Phillips. Throw them all together, and you have one of the most unexpected, unprecedented and unforgettable musical moments in history. It was the first and only time they played together and, through their musical genius, created an explosive album that has yet to be matched.

Colin Escott and Floyd Mutrux wrote the book for Million Dollar Quartet based on Mutrux’s original concept and direction. The Chicago production ran from 2008 to 2016 and became the third longest-running show in Chicago theater history. Critics called it “the most exuberant theatrical event,” “dazzling from first beat to last” and “the best live rock ‘n’ roll show I have ever seen.”

Fast forward to the kick off of Chicago’s 2017-18 theater season, featuring Paramount’s talented lead cast for Million Dollar Quartet. Adam Wesley Brown (Jerry Lee Lewis) played Eamon in Once on Broadway, has numerous regional credits and has been seen on local stages including Lookingglass and Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Kavan Hashemian (Elvis Presley) began performing his Elvis tribute at age three. Today he performs all over the world, including in London where he won the title of “The World’s #1 Rock N Roll Elvis” on BBC-TV. Gavin Rohrer (Jerry Lee Lewis) is fresh from playing the role at Lyric Theatre in Oklahoma City, where Broadwayworld.com raved “his piano skills are unrivaled, and his brash certainty provides some of the funniest moments of the night.” Bill Scott Sheets (Johnny Cash) just played the “Man in Black” at Berkshire Theatre Group in Massachusetts. Berkshire Fine Arts wrote “particularly strong was Bill Sheets, whose voice and delivery were sublime.”

“Icons Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash were southern, rockabilly country boys before they were discovered by Sam Phillips, the young, upstart record producer and owner of Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee. Their purely by chance meeting for the first and only time on Dec. 4, 1956, is a seminal moment in the birth of Rock ‘N’ Roll,” said Paramount Artistic Director Jim Corti.

“The show, exploring the connections of these four to their music and each other, is full of intriguing surprises and is not only a fascinating, short history but a full scale, no holds barred, in-your-face jam session of the kind of music that grabbed hold of our youth culture back then and hasn’t let go ever since,” Corti added. “From our Chicago and national talent pool, we’ve assembled a dynamite cast; you won’t believe your eyes and ears! There’ll be a whole lot of shakin’ goin’ on, all live, all on the Paramount stage, all made in Aurora!”

Jim Corti (director) was hired in 2011 to be the first-ever artistic director in the Paramount’s 80+ year history. He was instrumental in launching Paramount’s inaugural Broadway Series and directed and choreographed Paramount’s first self-produced Broadway Series show My Fair Lady, which played to rave reviews. Corti’s 2013 Paramount production of Fiddler on the Roof was a smash hit, and his Miss Saigonwas the only musical to make the Chicago Tribune’s Top Ten Shows of 2013. Rent in 2014 was a critical and box office success, followed by consecutive productions of The Who’s Tommy and Les Misérables, which collectively garnered five Jeff Awards for Paramount in its first year of eligibility, including Best Production – Musical – Large for Les Misérables and Best Director – Musical for Corti. He also staged Paramount’s 2015-16 opener Oklahoma! and closer West Side Story, Paramount’s second-consecutive Jeff Award winning Best Musical. Last season, Corti directed memorable productions of Mamma Mia! and Sweeney Todd. Before Paramount, Corti was a seasoned Broadway veteran, appearing in the New York casts of Ragtime, A Chorus Line and Candide and national tours of Urinetown, Cabaret and Bob Fosse’s Dancin’. Career highlights over three decades include being the only director in Chicago to have two productions at the same time in theChicago Tribune’s list of 10 Best Shows in 2009 – Drury Lane’s Cabaret and Writers Theatre’s Oh, Coward!. He remains the sole honoree to have garnered a Jeff Award as an actor (in Marriott’s Grand Hotel), a choreographer (Drury Lane’s Singin’ in the Rain) and director (Paramount’s Les Misérables, Drury Lane’sSweet Charity and Northlight’s Blues in the Night).

Kory Danielson (music director) is coming back for his 11th consecutive musical at the Paramount, after serving as co-music director and associate conductor with Tom Vendafreddo on Jesus Christ Superstar, and assistant music director and associate conductor for Sweeney Todd-The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Mamma Mia!, West Side Story, Hairspray – The Broadway Musical, A Christmas Story – The Musical, Oklahoma!, Les Misérables and The Who’s Tommy. Other Chicago credits includeAssassins, The Full Monty, Loving Repeating, Heathers, Tomorrow Morning (Kokandy Productions); Passion(2014 Jeff Award for Outstanding Music Direction), Smokey Joe’s Cafe (Theo Ubique); How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (Porchlight Music Theatre); Hedwig, Wedding Singer (Haven Theatre); andZanna, Don’t!, Lucky Stiff, Triumph of Love (The Music Theatre Company). Danielson has also worked with Drury Lane, Broadway in Chicago, Chicago Children’s Theatre, Bailiwick and Hell in a Handbag.

Paramount’s 2017-18 Broadway Series is sponsored by BMO Harris Bank and The Dunham Fund. Broadway Series Orchestra Sponsor is Rush-Copley Medical Center. Broadway Series Lighting Sponsor is ComEd. Broadway Series Costume Sponsor is Gerald Kia. Million Dollar Quartet is also sponsored by Asbury Gardens.

More about Paramount Theatre’s 2017-18 Season

In addition to Paramount’s Broadway Series, Paramount’s 2017-18 season also includes Tim Allen (August 18), 60s music favorite The Happy Together Tour (August 25), Unforgettable: Falling in Love with Nat King Cole (November 5) featuring Evan Tyrone Martin (Jesus in Paramount’s 2017 smash hit Jesus Christ Superstar), comedian and impersonator Frank Caliendo (November 10), The Second City’s Non-Denominational Christmas Show (December 1-23 in the Copley Theatre), Las Vegas’s #1 ventriloquist Terry Fator (January 20), the incredible magic of Penn & Teller (March 23), Chicago’s own Jersey boys Under the Streetlamp (March 24), country star and American Idol winner Scotty McCreery (March 25), late night comedy legend Jay Leno (April 13), Judy Garland: Come Rain or Come Shine featuring Angela Ingersoll (June 10) and the world’s #1 Bee Gees tribute band Stayin’ Alive (June 15).

For subscriptions, single tickets or more information, go to ParamountAurora.com, call

(630) 896-6666, or stop by the Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora.

About the Paramount Theatre

The Paramount Theatre (ParamountAurora.com) is the center for performing arts, entertainment and arts education in Aurora, the second largest city in Illinois. Named “One of Chicago’s Top 10 Attended Theatres” by the League of Chicago Theatres, the 1,888-seat Paramount, located in downtown Aurora at23 E. Galena Blvd., is nationally renowned for the quality and caliber of its presentations, superb acoustics and historic beauty.

The Paramount opened on September 3, 1931. Designed by renowned theater architects C.W. and George L. Rapp, the theater captures a unique Venetian setting with a 1930s art deco influence. The first air-conditioned building outside of Chicago, the Paramount offered a variety of entertainment, including “talking pictures,” vaudeville, concerts and circus performances for over 40 years. In 1976, the Aurora Civic Center Authority (ACCA) purchased the Paramount, closed the theater for restoration and returned the Paramount to its original grandeur. The Paramount Arts Centre reopened in 1978, offering a variety of theatrical, musical, comedy, dance and family programming. In 2006, a 12,000-square-foot, two-story Grand Gallery lobby was added, with a new, state-of-the-art box office, café and art gallery.

Today, the Paramount self-produces its own Broadway Series, presents an eclectic array of comedy, music, dance and family shows, and on most Mondays, screens a classic movie.

The Paramount Theatre is one of three live performance venues programmed and managed by the ACCA, which also oversees the Paramount’s “sister” stage, the intimate, 173-seat Copley Theatre located directly across the street from the Paramount at 8 E. Galena Blvd., as well as RiverEdge Park, downtown Aurora’s summer outdoor concert venue.

The Paramount Theatre continues to expand its artistic and institutional boundaries under the guidance of Tim Rater, President and CEO, Aurora Civic Center Authority; Jim Corti, Artistic Director, Paramount Theatre; a dedicated Board of Trustees and a devoted staff of live theatre and music professionals. For tickets and information, go to ParamountAurora.com or call (630) 896-6666.

PARAMOUNT THEATRE 2017-18 BROADWAY OPENER MILLION DOLLAR QUARTET Plays Through Oct 29 Paramount Theatre is excited to tune up for its rollicking 2017-18 Broadway Series opener Million Dollar Quartet, the wildly popular rock and roll musical that played more than 2,500 performances in Chicago.