Gossip Central

The Illusionists: Magic of the Holidays at the Neil Simon Theater: If You Can Believe

 “Do you believe in real magic?” Many must, as the line to enter the Neil Simon theater wrapped around the block—whole families-- for a recent performance of The Illusionists. This yearly holiday themed event features a rotating troupe of internationally acclaimed magicians, a crowd pleaser as it cajoles the audience with comedy and Vegas styled pageantry.

Provocatively dubbed “The Trickster,” British Paul Dabek leads off, carrying enormous ribboned boxes down the aisle, challenging a father and daughter plucked from their seats to compete. Winning, the girl gets to wave a wand triggering a gauzy opening number, the magicians parading and introduced, until the Taiwanese “Manipulator,” Eric Chien makes cards and coins appear and disappear.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Goes on Tour: Move Over Bob Hope

In its third season, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is as charming as ever, in her stride, performing stand up for the troops. In the episode shown at the premiere this week at MoMA, Mrs. Maisel greets a sea of men commenting on never having seen this much khaki before. In the military of course, clothes do not make the man, but for Midge, clad in a cocktail frock with just enough flesh tones visible, camouflage, and other earth tones become the butt of humor as she turns her back to show a bright red bow. A funny bit yes! The four hundred extras laugh uproariously.

The show continues with a Shirelles-type girl group, and a Johnny Mathis-style front man in a shark skin, skin-tight suit. The sound is familiar if you remember 1960, and Nat King Cole and the period hits. As we moved to the after party at the Plaza Hotel, we met composer Curtis Moore and his writing partner Thomas Mizer who crafted this sound for the show. Detail perfection, which we’ve come to expect from this hit, extends to its every aspect! When Amy Sherman-Palladino introduced, calling their work genius, she laughed at her hyperbole—but, we are now witnessing the smooth operations of a well-oiled machine.

Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig Mix It Up at the Gotham Awards

 Traditionally, the IFP Gotham Awards kicks off the film awards season. As celebrations go, this decidedly downtown dinner, sponsored by Robert Hall Winery, brings together New York’s movie making elite while honoring lower budget fare in Oscar-like categories. This year, I wanted to coin a category of my own, Best Speech, to be given to Olivia Wilde for her encomium to her "Richard Jewell" co-star Sam Rockwell, awarded one of Gotham’s four Lifetime Tributes. Wilde referred to the Academy Award winner for last year’s “Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri” as “Sammy.” Yes, he’s definitely a Sammy she said later, lifting the train of her flowing white gown to prevent tripping as guests exited Cipriani Wall Street for the night.

David Amram: Celebrating Greenwich Village at the Museum of the City of New York

Photo: Regina Weinreich

At 89, David Amram is not slowing down. Celebrating his birthday at the Museum of the City of New York, and an exhibition of Fred McDarragh’s iconic photos from Greenwich Village back in the day, Amram, as times nicknamed “jamram,” led a jazz quintet: a brilliant Vic Juris on guitar, Rene Hart on bass, Kevin Twigg on drums and glockenspiel, Elliot Peper on bongos, and his son Adam Amram on congas. Plus guests: Paquito D’Rivera, Lea DeLaria, Martha Redbone, and Tom Chapin. Yes, the evening evoked the village’s storied past with songs from Pete Seeger and others. Looking out to the packed audience, Amram welcomed younger folk, and to those older than he, he quipped, “You shouldn’t be out so late.”

The Edge of Democracy: Contenders at MoMA/ DOCNYC

Amidst the shit storm of impeachment inquiry of the president Spike Lee calls “Agent Orange,” noting heavy toxins, the documentary The Edge of Democracy tells a political history set in Brazil, juxtaposed with the personal story of the director Petra Costa’s family. This relentless political drama can be seen as a cautionary tale, or just a grim look at what our world endures today as lies gain stature, dignity falls away, and everywhere, the people lose. At a special screening at MoMA, part of the current Contenders series auguring awards ahead, Lee introduced the film to a packed crowd. Most chilling in Brazil’s case, deposed officials refused to step down claiming corruption, the equivalent of “fake news.”

Dark Waters: Todd Haynes’ Drama of Dirty Industry

Out of the blue comes Dark Waters, Todd Haynes’ new film based on his star, Mark Ruffalo’s environmental passions. Fear of the water depicted in this legal procedural is not because of sharks, but because of industry, specifically the story of Dupont’s deliberate poisoning of landfill resulting in the death of animals and cancer in humans. The film did not take the conventional festival circuit, and, unlike the saturated colors of  movies Carol or Mildred Pierce, takes director Haynes into a dark mood and commercial genre; he handles it well crafting drama from a ripped from-the-headlines scandal, focusing on the tireless efforts of a corporate lawyer, Rob Bilott, whose firm sides with industry.

Meeting up with Bilett at the Lincoln Restaurant this week, at the movie’s premiere, we learned how the story is not yet over, with lawsuits accruing beyond the film’s final frame. But, as the film suggests, is it too late? The lethal chemical was also an ingredient of Teflon, a household brand, and everyone alive has ingested some amount.

Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards: Let the Prize Season Begin!

Longtime documentarian Frederick Wiseman was on a roll. First celebrated this week as a NYPL Literary Lion, he was then honored with the Critics’ Choice Documentary Lifetime Achievement Award redubbed for the late D. A. Pennebaker. With this renaming, Chris Hegedus, Pennebaker’s film and life partner for 43 years presented the statue to Frederick Wiseman noting his achievement in avoiding the usual devices such as voiceovers and talking heads, just turning his lens on a subject. And Wiseman especially admired Pennebaker: “He had fun making movies, and so do I.”

No one seemed to be having more fun at BRIC than pint-sized sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer, the subject of this year’s documentary, Ask Dr. Ruth. “I’m presenting shorts,” she announced proudly. “Even if that is because I’m short, just remember, size does not matter.”

The New York Public Library’s Literary Lions Gala by the Book

A bookish night at the New York Public Library, the Literary Lions gala celebrates writers. Charlie Rose attended, and was ensconced in conversation as pigs in blankets were passed. Jean Doumanian confessed to hating long cocktail hours, but the gabfest went on for a while. Writers do have stories. Julie Taymor is finishing her film on Gloria Steinem, and Gay Talese, ever the dapper gadabout, said he went out to screenings and book events galore, even stepping out to a pub to watch television, if nothing else was on his social calendar.

Niccolo Paganini’s Violins and a Night of Pink Martini

Stradivarius comes to mind when you think of special violins, but Niccolo Paganini preferred the strings of Guarneri Del Gesu. This week, in honor of the virtuoso’s 237^th birthday, his ancestor Maria Elena Paganini orchestrated a huge celebration, ushered in with cocktails at Ascent Lounge overlooking Central Park featuring a performance by some extraordinary players, music director Edmond Fokker van Crayestein, Elly Suh, Kevin Zhu, Sabrina-Vivian Hopcker, and followed by a spectacular concert at Carnegie Hall. But the violins were the special guests, each one valued at roughly $10 million. Undaunted by their luxe value, the violinists took their instruments in stride: “They must be played.”

Me Too, Megyn Kelly, and Bombshell

The women in the Roger Ailes story are fierce, ambitious blonds, at least those in the forefront of the movie Bombshell, a truthful account of the demise of the Fox News CEO: Truthful, because, at a recent screening of Bombshell, many close to the story of how Gretchen Carlson refused to compromise in her lawsuit against Ailes cheered at the recognition of the scandal depicted just the way they remembered it.