Monday, December 17, 2012
Theater The Best of Performance in 2012
Posted by Dan Callahan and Henry Stewart on Mon, Dec 17, 2012 at 5:00 AM
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15. Philharmonic 360
At this Park Avenue Armory concert, the New York Philharmonic spread out around the room, making music that was, without amplification, both live and in stereo—and that forever changed the way we think about sound's relation to space.
14. Einstein on the Beach
This rare revival at BAM of Philip Glass's punishing five-hour intermission-less opera was difficult to sit through, but in hindsight it was a mind-blowing extravaganza of music and theater. Also, to have successfully endured it also confers serious bragging rights.
13. In Masks Outrageous and Austere
This Culture Project production of Tennessee Williams's last play, which had never been produced before, was a labor of love for all concerned, and it closed far too soon. At its center was a fabulously layered, old-time Actors Studio star-turn by Shirley Knight, who found the beating heart within this difficult material.
12. Scott McClanahan at Franklin Park
The West Virginia short story writer doesn't read his work—he performs it, turning short fiction into a religious experience, a sermon with singing and dancing. His return appearance at Franklin Park exceeded sky-high expectations.
11. The Caretaker
The revival at BAM of Harold Pinter's classic, essentially a struggle between three mad men to determine who is craziest, was most notable for Jonathan Pryce's performance, for which he developed a repertoire of verbal and physical tics uncannily familiar to anyone who has ever jumped on an apparently empty subway car during rush hour.
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