Chris Curtis moderated the panel discussion following our Wildcard movie. Panel included filmmaker Feodor Pitcairn, Vicki Cornish, and Dan DenDanto
Historias Extraordinarias The Weather Underground Pachamama
Etta James
and The Roots Band
Wednesday, August 5 • 7:30pm
Tickets: $75; $60
The legendary Etta James, best known for her debut album, At Last, which became her signature song, has been performing for five decades, bridging the gap between rhythm and blues and rock and roll. Don’t miss her debut on The Music Hall stage!
“one of the biggest, most powerful voices in rhythm and blues” – nEW York TimEs
SERIES SPONSOR:
EVENING SPONSORS: LunaChics
The best concert experience in New England! Just Announced for October...
Tickets for both shows on sale to members Saturday, July 11, 2009 at noon. On sale to the public: Saturday, July 25, 2009 at noon.
GREAT BIG SEA
Friday, October 9 • 8pm • Tickets: $48; $35
The critically acclaimed Canadian Celtic rock band, known for engaging live performances and energetic rock interpretations of traditional folk songs, will flow into Portsmouth for a return engagement on The Music Hall’s stage.
“You only need to hear them once and they’re stuck in your head.” – nEW York TimEs
National Theatre of London HD Broadcast Series
EVENING SPONSOR:
KEB’ MO’ Wednesday, October 14 • 7:30pm
Tickets: $50; $38
Triple Grammy Award winner for Best Contemporary Blues albums, this latter-day blues master draws on rock, folk, pop, and jazz to create his up-to-date earthy and urbane Delta sound.
“His pieces are daydreams on the blues” – nEW York TimEs
One of the world’s leading theater producers of Shakespeare, international classic drama and contemporary playwrights is broadcasting live performances of plays in high definition onto cinema screens worldwide.
All’s Well That Ends Well
Thursday, October 1, 2009 • 7pm (seating at 6:30pm)
Set against a background of sexism, snobbery and a battle between the generations, Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well turns fairytale logic on its head. A wondrous, bittersweet story. Directed by Marianne Elliott, with Oliver Ford Davies, Clare Higgins, Conleth Hill, George Rainsford and Michelle Terry.
“wondrous revival... a fairytale for grown ups” - GuArdiAn
Nation
Sunday, January 31, 2010 • 2pm (seating at 1:30pm) Nation, based on a novel by fantasy/science fiction writer Terry Pratchett, adapted by Mark Ravenhill, directed by Melly Still. The novel was praised as “an absolutely sweet book, a story that is part Lord of the Flies and part Treasure Island, a moving and sweet young adult novel about science, superstition and decency.”
SERIES SPONSOR: Seatrade International
SERIES SPONSOR:
Coffee. Cake. Cocktails. Meet me in the Founders Lobby. Every ThursdaySaturday, 5:30midnight.
The Music Hall and the Seacoast Community
Historic Tours and Tall Ships
by Margaret talcott, Director of Strategic communications
at 12:30pm or 5pm
As we thought about the four Tall ships sailing into Portsmouth August 7- 9, we were reminded of the shipbuilding connection to the founding of The music Hall and thought we’d go backstage to speak to our historian Zhana morris about her Historic Tours: Who comes on The Music Hall’s Historic Tours and what do they come to see?
The majority are long-time patrons. In the summer months we get people less familiar, including tourists. Some are connected to theaters in their home community.
Where do you go on the tour?
The tour starts in our gorgeous Founders Lobby. It’s the newest space, but it also pays homage to all 135 years of the theater. From there we jump around through time, entering the upper lobby, which shows the changes made after the 1945 auction. From the balcony we see up close the dome restored to its 1878 splendor and the antique projectors still used in the production booth. Before heading backstage,
we take a closer look at the 1901 proscenium arch, which everyone loves. We finish backstage looking at the old stage workings which connect The Music Hall to ship building. There’s a universal connection between sailing and theater operation. The technology for both is the same.
What do tour-goers like best and what surprises them most?
The link to shipbuilding surprises a lot of people. In the Seacoast area many people feel connected to the ocean. I remind tour-goers backstage that it’s bad luck to whistle in the theater. The signals to lower and raise sets were traditionally given by boatswain whistles because many stagehands were off-duty sailors familiar with the system. Tour goers love this, and they get pretty quiet backstage when I show them how the rigging allows me to move scenery that weighs close to a ton with only one hand. We don’t use whistles today but the rigs and the memory remain.
New Membership Benefits Coming Soon!
by laUreN leNoX, Membership Manager
Our crafty summer project in the Membership office is to create new and improved membership cards for all our valued members! PLUS -We are currently working to partner with as many local businesses as we can, to make your Music Hall membership even more ben eficial (and attractive!)
You will be able to show this card at even MORE local restaurants and merchants to receive discounts all over town! Look for your new card in the mail this fall, along with our list of participating venues! Many thanks to The Portsmouth Brewery & Rudi’s Portsmouth for their generous support of the new member ship card program. These cards will be made out of all recycled materials.
Membership Card
Behind the Scenes with Our Music Hall Projectionist
by Kat H leeN SolDat I, Director of Marketing
As we watch summerFilm and get ready for miFF
@ The music Hall, we thought about a key person who makes it all happen for us - our projectionist. kathleen soldati caught up with Elizabeth Antalek recently at the Hall to ask about how she got into this job and what she’s looking forward to the most in July and August...
Was it always a dream of yours to run movie projectors?
My becoming a projectionist was pure happenstance – I loved the experience of cinema but hadn’t really given much thought to what went on in the booth. It was a magical room, and magical light streamed out through its windows.
Did you sacrifice the magic when you learned how things worked?
Thankfully, no. If I lost anything by learning the mechanics – and I don’t think I did – having the opportunity to create an experience for others has been ample compensation. We show films that are worth seeing, and I enjoy sharing them. Especially when a film is well attended, the collective experience is palpable. I like to slip downstairs and watch a few minutes of film with the audience. You can feel people watching. And the beauty of light through film, all that color and luminosity – nothing compares.
You also work for the Telluride Film Festival?
Out in Colorado, yes, every Labor Day weekend. It’s a cinephile’s paradise, truly. Despite the many honored guests each year, it’s not about celebrity –it’s about art, and everyone from the editors to the archivists is recognized along the way. I feel lucky to be part of it – but in a way, it’s even more fun to come home again and show films for Telluride by the Sea. I love to see this community excited about film.
Are you looking forward to anything in particular in the July and August lineup? I’m looking forward to all of it. Every title has something to recommend it, and most of them are new to me. American Violet was a crowd-pleaser in Telluride last year, so I hope we’ll have a good house for that. revanche was one of my favorites at the festival, remarkable for its depth and direction. So, how did it actually happen that you ended up in this job?
I moved to New Hampshire, sight-unseen, for graduate school, and before I even knew how to say “Piscataqua” I was at The Music Hall watching movies. I was here so often that someone at concessions asked, “Are you the new projectionist?”
Without hesitation, I said, “Yes!” After that I was trained, and after that I was interviewed. It was all a bit topsy-turvy – but that just seems like proof that it was fated.
The new membership card design. our in house gnome works magic on membership cards.* * no gnomes were harmed in churning out new cards.
Elizabeth Antalek in the projection booth.
Historic Tours (Thursdays
- see schedule online) spotlight role of shipbuilders at The music Hall.
** Where’s our calendar? Since this issue covers July and August, please see our complete Summer calendar inside kor online at www.themusichall.org!
Six Films. Three Days. One Weekend Celebration of New Cinema. The latest international cinema fresh from their Colorado debuts at the Telluride Film Festival.
“beat our brethren in bigger metropolises to the cinematic punch!” – Port City Life
SPONSORS: BayRing Communications; Flygare, Schwarz & Closson, PLLC; Harbour Light Strategic Marketing; Isles of Shoals Steamship Company; Radici; Seatrade International, Inc.; Secure Planning, Inc.; Smuttynose Brewing Company; Veris Wealth Partners; New Hampshire Public Television; The Wire
Writers on a New England Stage
E.L. Doctorow
Wednesday, September 30, 2009 •7:30pm • Tickets: $13
One of America’s preeminent writers, the author of such epic works as ragtime, Billy Bathgate, and the March, joins us to discuss his new novel set in 20th century America, Homer and Langley “a national treasure.” – St. Loui S Po S t Di SPatCH
SERIES SPONSORS: Calypso Communications; Piscataqua Landscaping; Popovers & Galley Hatch Hospitality Group; RMC Research Corporation; Haunted Milk Design
The Second City
Friday, September 25, 2009 • 8pm • Tickets: $30, $23
The most famous brand in live comedy brings its spontaneous, topical and insightful hilarity. Watch for classic scenes from its 50-year archive, material ripped from the day’s headlines and trademark improvisation. Alumni include Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, Bill Murray. SPONSORS: Bottomline Technologies; Leone, McDonnell and Roberts, CPAs; The Portsmouth Brewery; WSCA-LP 106.1 FM
glass immersed in the music and imagery of the era,
7:30 for the original Woodstock film.
The recipe for The Music Hall’s latest signature series is deliciously simple: take one part social mixer and combine with an equal part art happening, pour into the Founders Lobby and let the fun begin! It’s your chance to get up-close-and-personal with art and art-makers, bringing them down from the stage or the big screen and into the intimacy of a cocktail lounge. Once each month, from 5 till 7pm; $2 cover charge, free to Music Hall members.
VOLUNTEER ORIENTATION: First Tuesday of each month, 5:30-7pm
Photo by Gary Langley/Blind Dog Photography
WOODSTOCK
Solo (Souleymane Sy Savane) is a Senegalese taxi driver whose latest fare, a despondent old Southerner named William (Red West), mysteriously offers big money to be driven to a mountain peak.
The original, starring Fay Wray, Robert Armstrong, Bruce Cabot and Frank Reicher. With breakthrough special effects for 1933, King Kong is one of the
Julia Roberts is ex-CIA, Clive Owen is former MI6, Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson are rival CEOs in this slick, comic caper film of corporate espionage and “who’s conning whom?” Tony Gilroy directs.
Renowned English video artist Steve McQueen's feature film debut brings a visceral intensity to his retelling of the hunger strike instigated by Bobby Sands and several other detained Irish Republican Army members in the early 1980s. (NR,
World-premiere at Sundance, 2009. An epic dramatic thriller written and directed by Student Academy Award winner Cary Fukunaga in his feature debut about the promise of life in America. Subtitled. (R, 96 mins, Mex, 2009)
Acclaimed documentarian Sergey Dvortsevoy's
Director Kevin Macdonald moves from documentaries and The Last King of Scotland to this gripping political thriller. The all-star cast features Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Helen Mirren & Jeff Daniels. (PG13, 127 mins,
Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress and Supporting Actress along with countless other awards and nominations. Vivien Leigh, Leslie Howard, Olivia de Havilland and Clark Gable star in Victor Fleming’s Civil War classic. (NR, 238 mins, US, 1939)
The highly acclaimed biopic of former Italian Prime Minister, Giulio Andreotti. The narration spans the period from the seventh election of Andreotti as PM until the trial in which he was accused of collusion with the Mafia. Subtitled (NR,
mins,
2008) Francis Ford Coppola's Vietnam epic, restored and updated with 49 additional minutes of footage. Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall and Dennis Hopper lead the top-notch cast.
Shining a spotlight on the racial profiling practices of a corrupt district attorney in a rural Texas town, Director Tim Disney’s film features a nuanced performance from Alfre Woodard as well as from newcomer, Nicole Behaire.
Adapted from
Coward, Jessica Biel, Colin Firth and Kristin Scott Thomas star in this
MIFF @ the music hall the maine international film festival in portsmouth
Eight films. Seminars. Guests. Summer Fun! Friday, July 17 – Sunday, July 19
Portsmouth Loves Film! Original, smart, deep. It’s the Maine International Film Festival (MIFF) – a rare jewel in the world of American film festivals. For 12 years, MIFF has brought its vision of film and culture to as wide an audience as possible in Waterville, Maine. Now, MIFF travels to Portsmouth!
Friday, July 17
7pm CAROUSEL and RESTORING CINEMASCOPE 55 (7minutes)
Set on the northern New England seacoast, this wondrous turn-of-the-century musical fantasy has been restored by Martin Scorsese’s Film Foundation. Shirley Jones and Gordon MacRae star in this lustrous, emotionally complex tale, with Rodgers and Hammerstein’s memorable score. USA, 1956, 35mm, 128 minutes, English.
9:30pm Opening Night Reception in Founders Lobby (open to all pass holders and Carousel ticket holders)
Saturday, July 18
10:30am-11:30am Seminar: A New Century – A New Activism with Mark Rudd in Founders Lobby (open to all pass holders and Weather Underground ticket holders)
Mark Rudd to introduce films, lead post-film discussion and sign his new book 12pm-1:45pm THE WEATHER UNDERGROUND and CLEAR GLASSES (USA, 2008, 4 minutes, English)
Mark Rudd, political activist, math professor and author of a new autobiography was one of the leaders of the ‘60s student rebellion at Columbia University, later a fugitive with the Weathermen and Weather Underground, which sought to overthrow the US government. The first film is a riveting and thought provoking chronicle of the ‘60s while Clear Glasses is a ruefully funny meditation on an artifact of the era. A memorable afternoon, as Rudd shares his unique perspective on how best to accomplish social change. USA, 2003, 35mm, 93 minutes, English, narrated by Lili Taylor.
3:30pm-5pm GHOST BIRD
The true story of an allegedly extinct giant woodpecker, a small Arkansas town hoping to reverse its misfortunes, and the tireless odyssey of birdwatchers and scientists searching for (and refusing to accept the demise of) the Holy Grail of birds, the elusive Ivory-billed woodpecker. Then, scientists from Cornell announced that it had been found…but had it? “comic, mesmerizing and deeply poignant” - Hot Docs. USA, 2009, 85 minutes, English.
6pm-7:45pm PACHAMAMA (EL REGALO DE LA PACHAMAMA)
In Bolivia, 13 year old Kunturi for the first time accompanies his father as he leads a llama caravan along the ancient salt route in the Andes. An ethnographic road movie with a big heart and eye for beauty. “portrays a vanishing way of life yet emerges as a delightful celebration of it.” - Variety. Bolivia/Japan/USA, 2008, 35mm, 104 minutes, in Quechura (Spanish & Aimara) with English subtitles
Karen Young (actress) and Alexander Berberich (director) introduce and lead post-film discussion
8:45pm-10:30pm BONNE ANNEE (HAPPY NEW YEAR)
It’s New Year’s Eve in an unnamed Latin American city where two hit men ponder their lives in this stylish and unconventional thriller. The film uses a series of beautifully composed, continuous Hitchcockian “long take” shots. Alexander Berberich’s feature debut spotlights a radiant Karen Young, a dazzling leading lady in The Sopranos, Heading South and Heat Costa Rica, 2008, Digital Projection, 105 minutes, English.
11am-12:20pm 1st part (80min); 12:35pm-1:55pm 2nd part (80min); 2:10pm-3:35pm 3rd part (85min)
A cinematic discovery! Roaring, riveting four-hour film spins the dazzling story of three men on idiosyncratic, mysterious quests that lead in unexpected directions. An adventurous experiment in storytelling…a grand tapestry of mysteries. Argentina, 2009, 245 minutes, Spanish with English subtitles.
Post film discussion with director George Kachadorian and producer and subject Courtney Bent
4:30pm-6pm SHOOTING BEAUTY: EVERYONE DESERVES A SHOT
From the Durham, NH Emmy-nominated filmmaker, this documentary shows aspiring fashion photographer Courtney Bent as she discovers a hidden world of beauty at a center for people with significant disabilities, who she provides with newly invented cameras. An eye-opening story about romance, daring, loss, laughter. USA, 2008, Digital Projection, 62 minutes, English.
PLAYING WITH I AM A MAN: FROM MEMPHIS, A LESSON IN LIFE (Memphis, USA, 2008, Digital Projection, 27 minutes, English) 1968. After the slaying of Martin Luther King, thousands of African-American men are marching through the streets of Memphis, with signs reading, ‘I Am a Man.’ We meet one of the original protestors and hear the stories of seemingly insurmountable adversity. More than history, a lesson in life.
7:45pm CE QU’IL FAUT POUR VIVRE (THE NECESSITIES OF LIFE)
A finely observed and beautifully filmed story of cross-cultural connection based on the tuberculosis epidemic that broke out in the Inuit population of far northern Canada in the 1940s and ‘50s. Natar Ungalaaq of The Fast Runner stars as a stricken man, diagnosed with TB who lands in Quebec City for two year treatment. Canada, 2008, 35mm, 103 minutes, French and Inuktitut with English subtitles.
Ticket Info: Passes and individual tickets are on sale now at The Music Hall Box Office. Call (603) 436-2400 or buy online at www.themusichall.org.
