For some time, civic boosters in St. Louis have been gearing up to do something
big to mark 2004 — the centennial of the Louisiana Purchase Exhibition, or World’s
Fair. They’re making quite a go of it even though recalling a time long ago
when the city was among the nation’s biggest and most vibrant places might be
a cause for depression rather than celebration.
The New Year begins with a New Year’s Eve party in Forest Park organized by
the civic group St. Louis 2004. The main, but not only, feature is an
enormous Ferris wheel that will light up the night sky with its radiant rotations.
For those of you hardy enough to brace against the elements high in the frosty
night sky, well, you’re welcome to it. Music, food, as well as the LUMA light
show will also be part of the family-friendly celebration. The best way to reach
Forest Park, located in the heart of the city and home to the Zoo, Art Museum
and other attractions, is by taking Interstate 64 (the locals call it Highway
40 after you cross the Poplar Street Bridge). Events marking the World’s Fair
centennial continue through the year; for more information, visit www.celebrate2004.org.
St. Louis has a new entertainment venue in town on the campus of the University
of Missouri-St. Louis. The Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center — named for the university’s former president — opened in the fall and continues
to receive some fine-tuning as its inaugural season moves along. The Touhill
presents a variety of performance events, including the remarkably entertaining
Chieftains on Jan. 21 and jazz great Wynton Marsalis and the Lincoln Center
Jazz Orchestra on Feb. 15. For those interested in explorations of 20th- and
21st-century composers, the Kronos Quartet visits the Touhill on March 31. To
get to the Touhill on the University of Missouri-St. Louis campus, take Interstate
70 and exit at Florissant Road. For more events and information, visit www.touhill.org.
(for more information, call 314-516-4949)
On the theater scene, the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis opens the New Year with Oscar Wilde’s fabulously funny and entertaining classic The Importance of Being Earnest. If this show will be akin to any of the Rep’s other Wildean productions, look for fantastic costumes and gaudy sets. You can also expect expert direction from John Going, who does those Irish lads, Shaw and Wilde, especially well. Earnest runs from Jan. 7-Feb. 6.
In the Rep’s more edgy studio theater, Yasmina Reza’s Life (x) 3 runs
from Jan. 21-Feb. 8. Reza wrote the funny and sophisticated comedy Art,
which made it to the Rep’s main stage a few years ago. Life (x) 3 follows
the calamities of a relationship after an unexpected knock comes on the door.
When this was performed in New York, the principals were played by Helen Hunt
and John Turturro. For more on the Rep’s season, go to www.repstl.org.
(130 Edgar Rd. in Webster Groves, 314-968-4925)
The Fabulous Fox Theatre, located in the revitalized Grand Center arts district just north of the Saint Louis University campus, brings in the touring shows, and two of the more intriguing hits appear this spring. From March 9-21 the touring production of Hairspray comes to town, the flamboyant musical that makes John Waters’ trash flick the toast of Broadway.
The dance phenomenon Movin’ Out comes to the Fox April 27-May 9, with
music by Billy Joel and choreography by Twyla Tharp. Twenty-six Joel tunes are
used to tell a story of American life, but mostly to provide a rhythm for Tharp’s
extraordinary dance movement. The Fox Web site is www.fabulousfox.com.
(527 N. Grand Blvd., 314-534-1111, box office is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Sat.,
noon-4 p.m. Sunday)
The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra just hired David Robertson as its
new music director. He is, as many expressed during his recent press blitz in
the city, “the real deal.” On April 25-26, Robertson conducts the orchestra
in Brahms’s Violin Concerto, with Vadim Repin as soloist, and Bruckner’s Symphony
No. 6. Come down and check him out. It will be a glimpse of the future for this
world-class organization. The Web site is www.slso.org.
(718 N. Grand Blvd., 314-534-1700, tickets $95-$10.)
At the Saint Louis Art Museum, two noteworthy exhibits conclude in
coming weeks. “German Art Now” (through Jan. 11) exhibits 40 works, including
16 recent acquisitions, by leading contemporary German painters. “Currents 90:
Neo Rauch” (through Feb. 15) is German painter Rauch’s first solo exhibit in
an American museum. (1 Fine Arts Dr. in Forest Park, 314-721-0072; admission
to the “German Art Now” exhibit is $10-$6; admission to the museum is free).
This article appears in Dec 18-24, 2003.
