Boston Harbor | The Sleepless Critic

REVIEW: Boston Lyric Opera unveils a spellbinding ‘Bluebeard’s Castle/Four Songs’

Posted on April 2, 2023 by The Sleepless Critic

As waves splash against the Flynn Cruiseport Boston, Boston Lyric Opera unleashed a chilling tale of seduction and secrets.

Ryan McKinny as Bluebeard in BLOs Bluebeards Castle Four Songs. PHOTO by Liza Voll

Conducted masterfully by David Angus and craftily stage directed by Anne Bogart, Boston Lyric Opera unearthed Bartok’s Bluebeard’s Castle/Four Songs for a limited engagement live and in person from March 22-26 at Flynn Cruiseport in South Boston’s Seaport District. The show was 90 minutes with no intermission and had some adult themes. Click here for more information and for what is next for Boston Lyric Opera.

Aunt Lydia (Caroline Worra) leads the handmaids through their prayers in Boston Lyric Opera’s production of “The Handmaid’s Tale,” ran through May 12, 2019. BLO.org. Photo by Liza Voll/Boston Lyric Opera

Lauded Stage Director Anne Bogart was behind the innovative transformation of Margaret Atwood’s harrowing dystopian novel, The Handmaid’s Tale, into an opera and presented that vision in glorious triumph while the hailed author sat in attendance. See more about that experience here. Anne Bogart’s riveting vision of Bluebeard’s Castle/Four Songs is another brilliant and dark reckoning in which with each astounding discovery, the plot thickens.

Naomi Louisa OConnell opens BLOs Bluebeards Castle Four Songs with an Alma Mahler song featuring pianist Yukiko Oba. PHOTO by Liza Voll.

Suspenseful, passionate, and deeply romantic, Bluebeard’s Castle/Four Songs heightens the emotional impact of the libretto with Alma Mahler’s multifarious Four Songs. Conducted zealously by David Angus with pianist Yukiko Oba, Four Songs as a companion piece which amplifies the magnitude of what Judith is about to see.

A mysterious and passionate tale, the real seduction behind Bluebeard’s Castle is the symbolism that results as Judith, Bluebeard’s new wife, longs to let light in and see more of his ancient castle. She desires to learn everything about Bluebeard, a man she has given everything up for including a fiancé. However, Bluebeard would rather leave well enough alone and enjoy the love they have found.

Bass-baritone Ryan McKinny as Bluebeard and mezzo-soprano Naomi Louisa O’Connell’s otherworldly and ascending vocals bring vitality and urgency to each phrase and as a duet, their blended vocals are an ethereal experience. O’Connell is stunning as willful and persistent Judith, her oceanic teal gown glimmering against her incandescent red hair as she proclaims her love and deepest wishes for Bluebeard and their future together. Boasting a thick gray beard, McKinny’s stately, rugged and romantic Bluebeard is equally persistent at first. It is fascinating to watch the duo in an impassioned verbal tug of war, their thrilling chemistry becoming more and more feverish with each request. McKinny and O’Connell also have a believable playfulness that round out their relationship and temporarily ease that mounting tension.

Judith Naomi Louisa OConnell and Bluebeard Ryan McKinny celebrate the castle garden in BLOs Bluebeards Castle Four Songs. PHOTO by Liza Voll

Trevor Bowen’s impeccable and deceptive costuming added an alluring mystique to the production with Bluebeard in velvety deep blue and purple lined with gold, Judith in aquatic teal and what seemed like dancers adorned in glittering and flowing, yet bridled garments which included Marissa Molinar, Aliza Franz, Olivia Moon, Sasha Peterson and Cassie Wang. Victoria L. Awkward does a wonderful job in keeping these clandestine individuals within this changing landscape in a perfect blend of subtlety, vulnerability and strength while Judith and Bluebeard remain at center stage.

Judith Naomi Louisa-OConnell comes to terms with her potential fate in BLOs Bluebeards Castle Four Songs. PHOTO by Liza Voll

Bogart’s spectacular staging alongside set designer Sara Brown plays a pivotal role in Bluebeard’s dark secrets and it is done with elegance and ingenuity. The vast and multi-layered kingdom is revealed in Bluebeard’s inky and lavish bedchambers in an inventive display of silk sheets as rippling rivers, a vast and boundless secret garden on a bed of roses, and mountains of peerless gold and jewels. With Brian H. Scott’s artful lighting creating shadowy and ominous tones with startling streaks of red, Bluebeard’s Castle/Four Songs was a foreboding tale of love, power, desire and the sacrifices one is willing to make for the truth.

Conducted masterfully by David Angus and craftily stage directed by Anne Bogart, Boston Lyric Opera unearthed Bluebeard’s Castle/Four Songs for a limited engagement live and in person from March 22-26 at Flynn Cruiseport in Boston Harbor. Click here for more information and for what is next for Boston Lyric Opera.

REVIEW: Despite boat’s limited view of the band, sold-out 70s funk and disco ‘Booty Vortex’ boat cruise still made waves

Posted on September 2, 2018 by The Sleepless Critic

Taking off from Boston Harbor to Gilligan’s Island and Hawaii Five-O’s adventurous theme songs, this was one three hour tour that kept party cruisers on their feet. Plenty of sun poured into the boat as fans wore their shiny, disco best boarding the Mass Bay Lines off of Rowes Wharf boat to witness the annual return of the nine piece 70s Funk and Disco band, Booty Vortex on their sold-out 21+ Booty Boat cruise Sunday, August 26 at 4 p.m. The cruise offered a cash bar and various concessions. Click here to find out Booty Vortex’s full schedule as well as a closer look at their talented band members.

This particular Mass Bay Lines boat was not ideal for a concert cruise. The roof where the band played was completely covered and attendance at full capacity, which offered limited ways to see the band perform up close. Booty Vortex’s past performance on the Provincetown II provided an open floor plan and dance floor so attendees had more room to move and witness the band take the stage. However, the band’s upbeat tunes provided plenty of reasons why Booty Vortex has developed such a strong following.

Past performance on Provincetown II for Rock and Blues concert cruises.

Calling themselves Boston’s finest funk and disco band, Booty Vortex is indeed unconventional, full of character, and possesses a bit of a wild side. Their enthusiasm is infectious, their voices powerful, and their music, a collection of mostly 70s disco cover songs, are tailored for a truly devoted 70s and retro dance crowd.

From saxophone to keyboard player, Booty Vortex delivers a full retro, big band sound. Some of their lively sense of humor is found in their self-proclaimed group member names composed of Huggy Bear Jeremy D. Valadez on saxophone, Brass Tornado Mark Coronado as Manager and Trumpet player, Gold Fingah James Tootle as MD/Keys and Vocals, Minty Fresh Dave Burnett on Bass, E-Bop Erik Barnes on Guitar, Tiger Lily Eva Davenport as Media and Vocals, Pixie Stix Maureen Medieros on Percussion, Rufus Russell Bogartz on Trombone, and Papi Erick B. Cifuentes on Drums.

Full Booty Vortex band on Mass Bay Lines boat Photo credit Erin Frawley/Booty Vortex

The nine piece extravaganza has a unique style, their music not too hard or loud and songs range from danceable to at times, mellow. They charmed audiences with pop tunes and disco hits such as Hues Corporation’s Rock the Boat, Lakeside’s Fantastic Voyage, Patti Labelle’s Lady Marmalade, Alicia Bridges’ I Love the Night Life, Tavares’s Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel, A Taste of Honey’s Boogie Oogie Oogie, George Benson’s Give Me the Night, Donna Summer’s Bad Girls, The Trammps’s Disco Inferno, Rose Royce’s Car Wash, Bee Gees’s You Should Be Dancing, Hot Chocolate’s You Sexy Thing, Chic’s Freak Out, Dee-lite’s Groove is in the Heart, KC and the Sunshine Band’s Get Down Tonight and Shake Your Booty, prompting the crowd to sing along.

Photo courtesy of Jeanne Denizard

Under sunny skies with no need for a jacket, the Booty Boat cruise provided some of Boston’s most beautiful sights including the Boston Harbor Islands and a lovely and hazy view of the city. It was primarily a smooth ride, with just a few instances of rockiness.

Booty Vortex will next appear at the C-Note in Hull on September 8. Photo credit to Erin Frawley/Booty Vortex

Easing their way back to Rowe’s Wharf, Booty Vortex closed out the evening with Sister Sledge and Jade’s We are Family and Journey’s hit Don’t Stop Believing. Booty Vortex next takes the C-Note stage in Hull on September 8. Click here for more of their future tour dates around Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Follow them on Facebook and Twitter.