Crabcakes, Cornbread, And Performing Arts: Charleston's Varied Menu

A 19th century Italian opera reset in the mob underworld; an 18th century Italian farce à la Laurel and Hardy; a Brazilian folk dance company; and a documentary theatre piece exploring local Southern history and cultural identity.

An eclectic mix of presentations, but typical of the kind of fare that Spoleto Festival USA has been presenting each year since its founding in 1977 by opera composer Gian Carlo Menotti as the American counterpart to the Spoleto Festival in Italy. Now in its 25th anniversary season, and under the general direction of Nigel Redden, Spoleto USA has become one of the most innovative arts festivals in the States, and a permanent part of Charleston, S.C.'s landscape.

Riding into downtown Charleston from the airport the other weekend, I met two women—one from Cincinnati, the other from Memphis—who told me that their coming to Spoleto has been an annual pilgrimage, a way for them to stay in touch with the arts. (Spoleto USA has presented 91 world premieres, 86 U.S. premieres, and many of these productions have had a successful life afterwards.) Their opinion is representative of the tens of thousands of others who attend and consider the fest as part of the Southeast's cultural landscape. For this year's festival, which took place May 25-June 10, over 70,000 tickets were sold for the 40 or so events and 130 performances. The program, spanning opera, theatre, chamber and symphonic music, dance, jazz, and art exhibits, offered new works, and new productions of standards, in 12 downtown Charleston venues (all within walking distance of each other), plus other venues in the surrounding Low Country. I might add, too, that it's one of the only American arts festivals hosted by an entire city.

I spent two days in Charleston and saw four productions: Puccini's "Manon Lescaut," the Royal Shakespeare Company's take on Goldoni's "A Servant to Two Masters," Balé Folclórico da Bahia; and Ping Chong's "Secret Histories." But other Spoleto offerings presented earlier in the run included Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company; Spain's Companie Nacional de Danza; the Brenda Angiel Aerial Dance Company from Argentina; monologists David Sedaris, David Rakoff, and Kevin Kling; a new production of Purcell's "Dido and Aeneas," directed by Chen Shi-Zheng; "The Screens," based on Jean Genet's play and performed by Philip Glass and Foday Musa Suso; and jazz saxophonist Wayne Shorter.



I have to admit that my opera-going repertoire is not that grand, but shouldn't operas, like theatre, have characters that you can feel something for, understanding their motives whatever they may be?

I'll assume that the answer is "Yes, of course," but that wasn't the case in the version of Puccini's "Manon Lescaut" at this year's Spoleto. Director/designer Petrika Ionesco has updated the classic to a modern world of gangsters, hit men, pimps, and prostitutes. The sets are visually stunning—appropriately big, garish, sleazy, and sexy. The updated Manon is a dressed-to-kill nightclub singer who's on her way to a nunnery because her parents want to keep her away from the nightclub scene. She meets Des Grieux, a young but poor songwriter, and runs away with him. In the meantime, the rich Geronte, the "godfather" of the nightclub, lures Manon away from Des Grieux, enticing her with money and jewels. But then, not happy with the old man Geronte, she goes back to Des Grieux. (Old man? He's cast as young, virile, and drop-dead good looking. One has to ask why Manon would want to leave him to run off with a wimp like Des Grieux.) In order to punish her, Geronte sells her as a prostitute and banishes her to Louisiana where she dies in a desert (in Louisiana?), with Des Grieux dying right behind her.

I'm not making this up. This is Puccini's opera, which was adapted from Antoine-François Prevost's novel. Puccini took some liberties, and, obviously, so did Ionesco. In the press materials, Ionesco notes that Manon "embodies the modern woman." In what country, Mr. Ionesco? And how can anyone understand, let alone feel for, the main character, a self-absorbed "Material Girl"? Beats me.

Putting aside the storyline, the production values of this "Manon Lescaut" are top-notch. Every character sings to the hilt, but especially terrific were Peter Volpe as Geronte, and Franco Pomponi as Lescaut, Manon's brother, who are their characters. And Emmanuel Villaume's musical direction brings out the plush score in full force.



London's Royal Shakespeare Company, along with the Young Vic Theatre Company, making their debut at Spoleto, presented Carlo Goldoni's "A Servant to Two Masters," a hit at the festival. Lee Hall's adaptation of this commedia play is hilarious, drawing allusions to Laurel and Hardy, Abbott and Costello, and the Marx Brothers alike, as well as adding bits on Anglo-American pop culture (Monica Lewinsky, the Beatles, free condoms, and lots more). But the centerpiece of the show is Jason Watkins as the servant Truffaldino. His body is loose and limber like a rubber band, his energy is boundless, and his antics are non-stop under Tim Supple's astute direction. But sometimes, there's too much of a good thing. Supple has the performers, especially Watkins, stretch just about every gag so that it's no longer quite so funny and the pace begins to drag—the opposite of what a slapstick farce is supposed to be all about. There's also too much lowbrow humor with below-the-belt physical gags—repeated over and over again.

But who am I to complain? The audience around me seemed to love every line and every minute of the show. Kudos to the entire cast for first-rate performances.



Charleston is one of the country's most historic cities and, over the past decade, the festival has paid tribute to its history through a variety of exhibitions. This year, a three-year program was launched called "Evoking History," linking up members of the community with experts in various fields to create works that reflect on Charleston's past and present. One of the three works was "Secret Histories," conceived, written, and directed by Ping Chong, and co-written by Talvin Wilks. In it, five Charleston-area women (not actors) of various descents relate their own life stories, reading from a script by Chong and Wilks, based on personal interviews with the women. The narratives were effectively interwoven, heightening the theatricality of the piece. Add to this Chong's clever and meaningful stage movements and multi-media backdrops, and "Secret Histories" was able to achieve what it set out to do: offering various perspectives on Charleston—and on human nature itself—in a compelling, passionate, and always fascinating approach. Perhaps the results of the piece were best summed up by the participants themselves in an after-play discussion: "Telling my story gave me power and energy"; "It was a healing process"; "It allowed me to validate myself"; "It was a release"; "I'm no longer ashamed to speak out."

By the way, Ping Chong has presented various versions of "Secret Histories" in cities across the country, including New York (Artists Space, 1992). But, according to Talvin Wilks, never before did the history of the city play such a significant role in the production's creation.

I may have missed some shows because I came to Charleston towards the end of the festival run, but I was lucky enough—which made it all worthwhile—to catch one of the three performances by the Balé Folclórico da Bahia, Brazil's only professional dance troupe.

Just hearing the sound of the conga drums made me start moving in my seat—and so it was, I think, for just about everyone that filled the huge Gaillard Auditorium that afternoon. The 32-member company of dancers, musicians, and singers performed a program that included Bahia folk dances of African origin inspired by slave dances, capoeira (a form of martial arts), samba, and the Carnival celebration. Each of the nine dances that made up the program was distinct from the others because of the costuming, music, choreography, and staging of each. The energetic and top-notch dancers were matched by the skills of the musicians, which not only included percussion (and lots of it), but horn, sax, and trumpet as well.

Walson Botelho founded the company in 1988 and is now its general director, with José Carlos Arandiba as artistic director. So enthusiastic were the dancers and audience alike that the dancers led audience members outside where the dancing continued. I'm hoping to see them in New York in the near future.

Piccolo Spoleto, which provides opportunities for local and regional artists, takes place at the same time as the international fest and was launched two years after its parent festival began. Too bad for me that I just didn't have the time to see any of the Piccolo events (and there were hundreds of them, but most had finished their run by the time I arrived, or were on at the same time as the shows that I was already scheduled to see), but if any of you have a Southern connection and would like to perform or present in Piccolo Spoleto 2002, application forms will be available in July. All application materials must be received in Charleston's Office of Cultural Affairs by Nov. 1, 2001 to be eligible. Call (843) 724-7305 to request an application, or access an online application at www.piccolospoleto.com. Mail all applications (even those sent electronically) to: Piccolo Spoleto 2002, City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs, 133 Church St., Charleston, S.C. 29401.



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Last year's Spoleto USA was marred by the Confederate flag issue, which made quite a number of performers drop out of the festival, including the Bill T. Jones Dance Company. There were protests and marches, and events were added to the festival to address the issue. Ticket sales were off. A "compromise" on the flag issue was reached only one week before Spoleto 2000 began. Though there were still some protesters this year, the return of Bill T. Jones to the festival was a positive note.

Another positive note was the announcement of a fundraising campaign designed to build an endowment. According to Spoleto Board Chairman William B. Hewitt, the endowment will allow the festival to take greater risks, plan for more commissions of new work and long-term projects, and improve the fees paid to artists. With all this in the making, Spoleto Festival USA is hoping to play an even bigger role in the country's cultural landscape.