La La Land - WKTV Journal

James (Parker Hammond) with his “aunties” Aunt Sponge (Darla Carrier) and Aunt Spiker (TJ Clark.) (Studio3Twenty)

By Joanne Bailey-Boorsma
joanne@wktv.org

Loved “La La Land?” Thought the music in “Greatest Showman” was pretty cool? Then you might want to check out the Grand Rapids Civic Theatre’s upcoming production of “James and the Giant Peach,” which features the music of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, the musical duo behind the music of both “La La Land” and “The Greatest Showman.”

Check out Pasek and Paul singing “Floating Along” from “James and the Giant Peach.”

The Civic production opening April 26 and runs through May 5 with a special low sensory night performance set for May 1. The book is written by Timothy Allen McDonald who with Leslie Bricusse successfully developed “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” into a musical which is part of the Broadway Grand Rapids’ 2019-2020 season.

A Roald Dahl tale, “James and the Giant Peach” follows young orphan James who is forced to live with his wicked Aunt Spiker an dAunt Sponge. His new life of slavery takes a hopeful turn, however, in the form of an oversized peach, courtesy of mysterious spellbook.

The 2015 professional cast performing “Everywhere That You Are” from “James and the Giant Peach.”

“This production is filled with bright, full and catchy music,” said guest director Jolene Frankey. “The talented art includes actors of all ages from 10 to adults, and they sound amazing. It really is magical fun for the whole family.”

Tickets $12 – $20. For tickets, call 616-222-6650 or visit www.GRCT.org.

By Katelyn Kohane

“If you want to view paradise, simply look around and view it. Anything you want to, do it; want to change the world… there’s nothing to it.”

– Gene Wilder in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory

Last year I mentioned a little bit of history for the Oscars. So this year lets dive right into the night of glamor, which started with a great performance by Justin Timberlake.

They had many great presenters including a few from Star Wars including Felicity Jones (Jyn Erso) and Diego Luna (Cassian Andor). Some of the Avengers even “assembled” to present awards such as Chris Evans (Captain America), Scarlet Johnson (Black Widow), and Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury/ Mace Windu). Amy Adams (Lois Lane), Ben Affleck (Batman), and Matt Damon (Jason Bourne) also made an appearance.

The show had some great performances through out the night. Sting performed “The Empty Chair” from Jim: The James Foley Story. Auli’I Carvalno preformed “How Far Will I Go” from Moana. And Sara Bareilles performed Johi Mitchell’s “Both Sides” for the In Memoriam.

Emma Watson won for Best Actress for “La La Land”

Of course let’s not forget Jimmy Kimmel’s presence as host for the evening. He certainly had his own style for the night even though you could see a little of the Kimmel/ Damon feud throughout the event. However, I did find it funny when Damon tried to trip Kimmel and when Kimmel tried to play Damon off the stage with the orchestra.

The In Memoriam is always a nice touch for the evening and included Prince, Mary Tyler More, Gary Marshal, Gene Wilder, Kenny Baker, Debbie Reynolds, and Carrie Fisher. They even mentioned Bill Paxton who unfortunately passed away over the weekend.

Let’s talk the mishaps. There was Carvalno performance where she was hit in the head with a flag and she continued graciously. And of course, the biggest mishap of the Oscars was the mix up of the envelopes that were given to Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway. No one could believe what happened. The audience in attendance and I would dare say that everyone watching were stunned. You could see their faces drop while watching, however; I thought the cast of La La Land held their own and accepted the mix up with dignity.

And just like that another year has come and gone for the Oscars. And just in case you are wondering where to watch some of these great films, which are still in theaters, you can find them at the following cinemas: AMC Grand Rapids 18 (formerly Star Theater), which has both “La La Land” and “Moonlight.” Many of the Celebration! theaters including North, South and RiverTown are still showing “La La Land;” and Celebration! Woodland has a number of the Academy Award-winning and nominated films including “Fences,” “Moonlight,” “Manchester by the Sea,” “Moana,” and “The Salesman.”

Once again, the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, 2 W. Fulton St., will be featuring the Oscar Nominated Shorts series. There are two sets of documentaries, with Documentary A running through March 26 and Documentary B, which includes the 2017 Oscar winner “The White Helmets,” running through March 28. The animation series, which includes the 2017 winner “Piper,” and the live action series, which includes the 2017 winner “Sing,” will run through April 1. Check for showtimes at www.uica.org.

In Honor of Carrie Fisher (one of my favorites) “May the Force Be With You.”

The full list and the winners of the 89^th Academy Award are as follows:

Best Picture: Moonlight

Best Actor: Casey Affleck for Manchester by the Sea

Best Actress: Emma Stone for La La Land

Best Foreign Language Film: The Salesman by Asghar Farhadi

Best Animated Feature Film: Zootopia by Bryon Howard, Rich Moore, and Clark Spencer

Best Supporting Actor: Mahershala Ali for Moonlight

Best Supporting Actress: Viola Davis for Fences

Best Documentary Feature: O.J.:Made in America by Ezra Edelman, Caroline Waterlow

Best Director: Damien Chazelle for La La Land

Best Original Music Score: La La Land by Justin Hurwitz