Selecting the top performances of the year in and around Sacramento has always been a most difficult task, made even more so by our attempt to rank them from one to ten. For the year just passed, we count a full two dozen noteworthy performances and productions, all of which could easily be included in a top ten list.
So, let’s understand from the outset that this list, as would be true for any observer’s list, is wholly and completely subjective, even arbitrary when it comes to distinguishing number one from number two or number ten from number eleven. But since we only note ten, let’s start by acknowledging those that didn’t quite make the cut.
The following list comprises the “honorable mentions” for 2010:
The Dresden Staatskapelle Orchestra’s October concert at the Mondavi Center (on the campus of U.C. Davis;
The Music Circus production of “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” in August;
The Vienna Boys Choir’s February concert at Mondavi;
The Moscow State Radio Symphony’s March concert at Mondavi;
The Music Circus production of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” in July;
The Broadway touring production of “Rent” at the Community Center Theater in February;
The Russian National Orchestra’s February concert at Mondavi;
The Sacramento Choral Society’s “Stained Glass Series” concert in June (at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament);
The Saint Louis Symphony’s April concert at Mondavi;
The Paul Taylor Dance Company’s November performance at Mondavi;
Vladimir Feltsman’s April piano recital at Mondavi;
The San Francisco Symphony’s October concert at Mondavi;
The Capital Stage production of “Hunter Gatherers” in June (on the stage of the Delta King Riverboat); and,
The season-long production of “Shear Madness” at the Cosmopolitan Cabaret.
And now for the top ten performances of the year. As is our custom, we’ll go from tenth to first.
10. “42nd Street” – This fully enjoyable and completely satisfying Music Circus production included great dancing (led by Melissa Lone) and sparkling direction by Charley Repole.
9. Dianne Reeves – This magnificent jazz singer’s October concert at Mondavi featured a wide range of styles as she was backed by a first-rate band.
8. The Delfaeyo Marsalis Octet – Performing with an excellent 8-piece ensemble in Mondavi’s Studio Center, this Marsalis brother led a tour de force display of virtuosity by the entire band.
7. The Sacramento Philharmonic – Under the direction of conductor Michael Morgan, this orchestra achieved near perfection in October at the Community Center Theater, in a concert that included one of the best interpretations of Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony we’ve ever heard.
6. “Spamalot” – The Music Circus production of this Monty Python creation was a hoot, imaginatively directed by Glenn Casale to accentuate the bawdy humor without detracting from the surprisingly good music.
5. Ornette Coleman – The legendary innovator (now 80 years old) of “free jazz” played his sax with a quartet that improvised around his set pieces in a surprisingly accessible concert at Mondavi in November.
4. Arlo Guthrie – Another legend, this one from the folk genre, Guthrie put his whole family (15 in all) on display in a feel-good concert that was top-notch for both artistic excellence and pure entertainment value.
3. “The Seasons Project” – Leading the 15-member Venice Baroque Orchestra in a November Mondavi concert, violinist Robert McDuffie went from rock star, as soloist for the Vivaldi “Four Seasons” concertos, to classical virtuoso, for “The American Four Seasons,” a newly created concerto by Philip Glass.
2. Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers – Displaying a wide range of impressive talent (banjo player, songwriter, singer and, of course, stand-up comedian), Mr. Martin shared the stage with an excellent quintet in an October blue grass concert at Mondavi that may have been the best attended and most widely acclaimed performance in the nine-year history of the venue.
1. Sonny Rollins – The “Colossus” returned to Mondavi in May as he approached his 80th birthday and played as if he were half that age, delivering a non-stop barrage of great sax solos (backed by an excellent quartet) in a two-hour concert. The man is truly incomparable, a living legend who is still at the top of his game.
In sum, it was a great year for jazz performances (Rollins, Coleman, Marsalis, Reeves), symphony performances (Sacramento’s Philharmonic, Dresden Staatskapelle, Moscow State Radio Symphony, Russian National Orchestra, Saint Louis Symphony, San Francisco Symphony), individual stars (Steve Martin, Robert McDuffie, Arlo Guthrie, Vladimir Feltsman), plays and musicals (four from the Music Circus, “Rent,” “Hunter Gatherers,” “Shear Madness”), and choral and dance recitals (Vienna Boys Choir, Sacramento Choral Society, Paul Taylor Dance Company).
May the new year be as bountiful.