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If there is
any need for me to tell you who Billy Crystal
is… then you either don’t get
out much, or don’t take in too many
movies or TV. My first introduction to Crystal
was many, many years ago when he starred
as Jodie Dallas in “Soap.” Over
the years, Crystal has become an icon of
comedy in almost every media. He has won
numerous awards for his work on television,
movies and even as an author. He is undoubtedly
one of the best hosts the Academy Awards
has ever had. The only area he hadn’t
conquered was Broadway. Then in 2004, he
took to the Broadway stage with his autobiographical
one-man show, “700 Sundays”
for which he won a coveted Tony Award.
After closing on Broadway, Crystal took
“700” Sundays” on the
road to Toronto, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco,
and Los Angeles. He followed up this mini-tour
with shows in Sydney and Melbourne Australia,
for which he received the 2007 Helpmann
Award for Best Special Event. Crystal has
now embarked on another short tour, which
will bring him to only six cities, Dallas
being the third on the list.
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My wife and I attended opening night of “700
Sundays” and Dallas’ beautiful new
Winspear Opera House, and quite honestly didn’t
know what to expect. I knew that it would be more
than just an elongated stand-up comedy act, but
was not prepared for the emotional roller coaster
that Crystal took us on.
“700 Sundays”, as I mentioned is
an autobiographical show that chronicles Crystal’s
early years growing up in Long Beach. On the stage
is a re-creation of the house that he lived in
with his family, complete with three large windows
serving as screens. This I found appropriate as
they served as ‘windows’ into Crystal’s
past, alternately showing photos, newspaper clippings
and unbelievable home movies taken by his father
so many years ago. As the show begins, we were
treated to some wonderful jazz music (which is
important to the story) and several old movie
clips. Then, in a flash Crystal walked out of
the ‘front door’ and immediately started
into the rapid fire story of his life.
Being that Crystal is such a gifted storyteller,
he of course infused most of his tale with wonderful
enthusiasm as he paced the stage. The audience
spent most of the show laughing to the point of
bringing the roof down. But it wasn’t just
the laughter that made “700 Sundays”
such a wonderful experience… it was the
tears as well. Crystal talked so lovingly of his
family, especially about his parents, so that
when he got to the part about his father passing
away suddenly when he was 15, there wasn’t
a dry eye in the house. I could feel the pain
he was feeling up on that stage, even after so
many years. If he was totally acting, then he
is a hell of an actor. Hearing this part of his
life affected me greatly as I had also lost my
father suddenly at 15, so I could relate.
Where the show also made such an incredible impact
was in learning about how his father and uncle
were instrumental to bringing jazz to the masses
from their little corner of New York. The list
of jazz greats who befriended his family, visited
his house, and even came to his father’s
funeral was absolutely astounding. The simple
fact that at 5 years old, Crystal walked to a
movie theater with Billie Holiday and sat on her
lap to watch his first movie, “Shane,”
completely blew me away. I was still talking about
that on the way home from the theater. What an
amazing life he had up until the time he was 15.
Of course, after that everything went downhill.
The second half of the show dealt with his long
road to recovery and acceptance of his loss. Still
infused with tremendous humor, Crystal walked
us through his later years of walking around carrying
his anger like a boulder, but explained how every
experience… ‘the cards he was dealt’
as it were… made him the man he is today.
“700 Sundays” exceeded every expectation
I had about seeing Billy Crystal. He touched every
emotional nerve I have and any respect that I
had for him previously has grown tenfold. Seeing
this show was a once in a lifetime experience.
(I would like to add that the Winspear Opera
House, being brand spanking, new added greatly
to the experience of seeing this show. The venue
is beautiful, the seats are comfortable and the
sound is pristine. From what I could tell, there
is not a bad seat in the house. I’m looking
forward to many, many years of entertainment at
the Winspear. My hat’s off to its designers
and management. Fantastic job guys!)
Where:
Winspear Opera House
2100 Ross Avenue, Suite 650
Dallas, Texas 75201
Phone: 214.954.9925 administration
Box Office: 214.880.0202
Fax: 214.954.9936
When:
November 17 – 22, 2009
http://www.dallasperformingarts.org/tickets/production.aspx?performanceNumber=4146
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