Welcome!

Welcome to the new Audience Blog and welcome to the new 2009-2010 Louisville performing arts season! This is a going to be a fun way to create a conversation about and with our performing arts community. All the groups have planned spectacular shows and star-studded performances all year long. Get on stage with us, pick up the digital microphone and tell us your thoughts about upcoming shows and what you thought about past performances. We will also let you know what we thought as well as link you to important performing arts news and articles.

And while you are at here, register to win a pair of tickets to an upcoming performance from one of the Audience groups:  PNC Broadway Across America - Louisville, Louisville Orchestra, Kentucky Center Presents, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Louisville Ballet or Music Theatre Louisville. Audience will give away two tickets each month throughout the season, so you have twelve chances to win!

To start us off on a dialogue, I was musing about my favorite performance last year. Quickly, I realized that I couldn’t narrow it down to just one. So I tried to categorize into the best of the groups. Here’s my list:

While I loved most of Actors Theatre’s regular season, especially Glengarry Glen Ross, A Raisin in the Sun and Pride & Prejudice, my overall favorite was the Humana Festival production of Ameriville by Universes. The energy was frenetic – I have never seen actors work so hard on stage – and it was totally relevant. I would travel to see them again!

While I missed Wicked here because of the weather, I did see it in Chicago a couple of years ago, so I know it was wonderful and a real fan favorite. But choosing from the ones I did see, Spring Awakening was the best – great music, great dance and a real message. As a Cirque de Soleil lover, I have to say that Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy did not meet up to my expectations. 

In terms of dance, everyone says I missed one of the best dance experiences ever with Louisville Ballet’s Rite of Spring with Wendy Whelan. I was out of town that weekend, but those I know who attended praised the production. If you saw it, what did you think?

But I did mange to take in both nights of Kentucky Center Presents Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and I was totally blown away! I had seen the company perform over 25 years ago, and they are as fresh and exciting now as they were then. Those were two magical nights of dance creativity and innovation. 

Louisville Orchestra offers a wide range of musical options, and it would be near impossible to take in every performance unless you were one of the violinists, so I can’t choose favorites here. I adore Jorge Mester and love his presence on stage in the music he chose for last season, especially Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition and Holst’s The Planets.    

Please chime in and let me know what your favorites were and what you are looking forward to in this next season. Click on the calendar and browse through the months to see what a great year this is going to be!

Kay Tull