Oscar Brockett, 1923-2010, by Michael Barnes

Published by the Austin Statesman, November 8:

Oscar Brockett, 1923-2010

By michael barnes

Oscar Brockett, the world’s foremost theater historian and a former University of Texas professor, died early Sunday morning after suffering a massive stroke late Saturday.

Brockett, 87, leaves behind hundreds of former students and colleagues around the world, as well as a daughter, Francesca Brockett, and her husband, Dr. James Pedicano of Austin.

“(He) was an absolute giant in the field of theater history,” said Doug Dempster, dean of the UT College of Fine Arts. “He defined it in many ways. His name is synonymous with the field across several continents. He was a prolific, meticulous scholar into the very last year of his long career. He leaves a legacy that will last as long again as his long life.”

In 1968, Brockett wrote “History of the Theatre.” It has since been translated into dozens of languages, including a suppressed version in Farsi. It is now in its 10th edition and has passed through the hands of almost every American theater student for four decades.

Read full text at Statesman.com . . . .

Arts Reporting: Andrew Cannata Profiled by Michael Barnes

The Statesman's Michael Barnes profiles Andrew Cannata, who opens this week in John and Jen by Penfold Theatre, in Barnes' "Out and About" social blog:

That Voice: the Arrival of Andrew Cannata
by Michael Barnes, January 31, 2010

Within the relatively cozy world of Austin musical theater, a male voice like Andrew Cannata’s comes along once in a generation or so. Joe York’s warm, booming baritone made its first mark in the 1980s. Stephen Michael Miller’s delicate tenor glided onto the scene in the 1990s.

Cannata, 23, a recent graduate of St. Edward’s University, impressed Zilker Summer Musical audiences as a junior TV writer in “My Favorite Year,” amused Zach crowds playing a Boy Scout perfectionist in “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” He also scored major roles in “Parade,” “Little Shop of Horrors” and “On the Town.”

Yet it was his performance last season as the romantic lead in the classic musical, “The Pajama Game,” that elicited unprecedented raves and an Austin Critics Table nomination for Outstanding Singer. Under the tutelage of music and stage director Michael McKelvey, Cannata has smoothed out the breaks in his blooming tenor and has relaxed into a natural acting style.”

announcement: John and Jen by Penfold Theatre at the Hideout Theatre, February 4 - 21

Read full text at Barnes' "Out and About" blog for the Statesman . . . .

Profile of Bonnie Cullum by Michael Barnes, Austin Statesman

Statesman social blogger Michael Barnes publishes on the Arts 360 "Out and About" blog a May 21 profile of Bonnie Cullum, artistic director of the Vortex Repertory theatre.

Click to read on-line profile of Bonnie Cullum.

Michael Barnes and Bardology, April 25

ALT passes along in its entirety an April 25 entry made by Statesman social columnist Michael Barnes in his "Seeing Things" blog:


Austin360 blogs > Out & About > Archives > 2009 > April > 25 > Entry

Too much Bardology?

By Michael Barnes | Saturday, April 25, 2009, 06:25 PM

The Austin Shakespeare Festival has improved almost every year that I’ve witnessed its evolution. It’s still a mid-size arts group looking for a secure identity, but with veteran Ann Ciccolella at the helm, one assumes the classical company is headed down the right road.

Earlier this week, I attempted to attend ASF’s gala at the Curtain Theatre. That’s gamer/cosmonaut Richard Garriott’s Elizabethan theater out on Lake Austin. (Oh, how I wish they’d build one in Zilker Park. It’s sweet, if rough.)

So, following multiple events, I arrived after the core social part of the evening. Almost everyone was assembled in the theater for performance. OK. I figured I’ll wait out a couple of key scenes from “Romeo and Juliet,” catching the cool breeze and visiting with some folks outside the “Wooden O.”

Well, ASF was smack in the middle of performing an entire act of the tragedy. Come again? At a gala? That’s supposed to be social time. Entertainment heightens the occasion, but it should not overwhelm it.

I’m a Bard buff as much as anyone else, but, after offering my respects, I departed for my next social event. Hope to catch up with “R&J” when it opens in May.