Broad Shoulders

Week 59: Chicago, IL

In years to come, people will be asking each other, "Where were you on the historic day that Barack Obama was sworn in as President?" For my part, I was watching the inauguration on a Jet Blue flight from New York to Chicago, and just as Obama stepped up to the podium to make his speech, the plane pulled into the gate and the screen went dark. It was only later that I was able to catch the speech on the internet. Chicago was jubilant on inauguration day, celebrating the elevation of their senator from Illinois. There was definitely a vibration of hopefulness in the air.

Chicago is one of America's great cities and I am grateful that we are here for two whole weeks, so I can get around and taste of its many delights. The place speaks to the city boy in me; it has everything a metropolis should have. It's noisy, dirty, ethnically and culturally diverse. It abounds with art and theatre and culture of all kinds; even the architectural landscape of the city is a work of art. The extreme cold of the Chicago winter has inhibited my wanderings somewhat. I love exploring a city by plopping myself down in a neighborhood and strolling, discovering both the famous sights and the hidden gems by simply losing myself along the streets and byways of a place. It's hard to do that with the icy wind of the Chicago winter whipping you in the face. Nevertheless, I am undaunted, and plan to see as much as I can while I am here.

Our opening here in the Windy City was smashing. Our ebullient first night house received us with great roars of laughter and cheers and applause; a warm way to welcome Richard Chamberlain into our production.
We celebrated the opening at a reception held at a swanky Chicago restaurant, Petterino's, where I posed for this shot with Richard. Our venue here in Chicago is the generically named but opulently beautiful Auditorium Theatre, a massive concert hall style venue of more than 4,000 seats. This national historic landmark was the crowning achievement of architects Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler, completed in 1880. It is a grand venue of gleaming gold, vaulted ceilings, beaux arts murals, intricate mosaics and jewel encrusted stained glass windows. Standing on the stage and looking out into the house the first time was quite breathtaking. The Auditorium is just one of a treasure trove of architectural marvels in Chicago; I visited the Chicago Cultural Center this week, housed in a magnificent beaux arts building erected in 1897 as the first Chicago Public Library.
Sumptuous materials used in the interior design include rare imported marbles, fine hardwood, stained-glass, and polished brass, as well as mosaics of Favrile glass, colored stone and mother-of-pearl. The building's most notable features are its spectacular stained-glass domes. The 38-foot dome in the Preston Bradley Hall in the south end of the building is the world's largest Tiffany stained-glass dome, valued at an estimated $35 million. The Cultural Center houses the Chicago Visitor's Center, as well as a theatre space and banqueting rooms for special events.




And then there is the Art Institute of Chicago. It is, quite simply, an astonishment. One of the great museums, on a par with the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, this institution houses an extraordinary collection of art and antiquities from all periods, but is especially known for its extensive Impressionists collection as well as a remarkable collection of American art. Some of the most famous and recognizable paintings in the world are in this museum, and for an art lover there is that tingling frisson of excitement when one stands before Grant Wood's American Gothic, or Edward Hopper's iconic Nighthawks, or perhaps the most well-loved and most visited piece in the museum, Seurat's masterpiece A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, which inspired Sondheim's musical "Sunday in the Park with George." The impact of seeing these famous works was not lost on me, but I of course went in search of my favorite periods in art, particularly the Italian Baroque.
While the museum does not own a Caravaggio, there is a remarkable gallery of artists from the Caravaggio school, including Manfredi and Baglione, represented by works with mythological or religious themes executed in that almost photographic vividness of light and shadow that characterizes the school. I guess I love these paintings because they are like theatrical tableaux, posed carefully and lit dramatically, yet full of earthy vitality. I wandered through the Renaissance and Medieval galleries and, as if emerging from a deep and austere winter into a vibrant and sun dappled spring, I emerged in the Impressionist wing, where the flowers, fresh faces and daring color schemes of such masters as Van Gogh, Monet and Renoir seem to dance off the walls. Amazing. To give a catalogue of the many wonders of this incredible museum would take forever. You must visit if you find yourself in Chicago. One special surprise for me was the gallery containing the Thorne Miniature Rooms.
These 68 tiny interiors were the brainchild of socialite Mrs. James Ward Thorne, an avid collector of miniatures who studied architecture and conceived this rather mad project of assembling these minute rooms, each representing a period in European and American Architecture and interior design. Between 1930 and 1942, she commissioned a team of artisans to build the tiny furnishings, construct the rooms with their elaborate moldings and ceiling murals, and even hand needlepoint the miniature rugs. These are by no means little doll house rooms, these are painstakingly accurate reproductions of real rooms--like the most elaborate and well constructed tiny set models you have ever seen. They are so detailed one could spend hours in this one gallery eyeballing these things. Talk about a hobby gone wild! My day at the Art Institute was overwhelming and highly enjoyable and I plan to go back once more before I leave Chicago; the museum allows non-flash photography and I want to return with my camera.

Segue to my visit to the Museum of Contemporary Photography, just a stone's throw down Michigan Avenue from the Art Institute. The current show explores the photography of artists who capture the every day life of the modern workplace, the office environment. The exhibit included the work of Karen Yama , who photographs the little still lifes made up of personal items that workers arrange in their cubicles to personalize them; she then keeps the detail of the photos and objects that make up these tableaux and manipulates the backgrounds, flattening them and enhancing the plastic, impersonal quality of the sterile office environment. There was an amusing film installation that featured four New York lawyers in their suits performing a strange expressionistic sort of dance piece by the elevators in their firm offices. It was funny and striking at the same time.
The main focus of the exhibit was the work of Michael Wolf, and his project "The Transparent City," in which he photographed the skyscraper landscapes of Chicago office buildings and also focused in, voyeuristically, on the people he captured through the many windows of these towering geometric structures. He has a keen eye for detail and a fascination with capturing small gestures and everyday objects. His work really spoke to me.

Ah, there are so many things I want to do before leaving Chicago--visit Navy Pier, stroll along the Magnificent Mile and take tea at the Drake Hotel... we shall see how much I get to.
Part of this week was about rehearsing with our new Lady of the Lake, Merle Dandridge, who replaces Esther Stilwell and joins us from the most recent Broadway company of "Spamalot." Merle has played leading roles in "Aida," "Rent," "Tarzan," and is also, I am told, an award winning video game actress. She is a stunning young lady with a soaring, effortless voice--I got to see her performance in the Broadway company when I went to see Clay Aiken, and I was impressed by her diva attitude and her thrilling vocals. While we will miss our dear Esther when she leaves us next week, it is good to know that she has such a talented successor.

So, more from Chicago next week, friends. Aside from sightseeing and meeting up with some old friends, I am also going to get to see a performance at the Goodman Theatre of "Desire Under the Elms," starring Brian Dennehy. Chi-town has so much to offer; two weeks is not nearly enough to do it all.