Tell us your favorite Chanukah-related memory, and win two tickets to see The MeshugaNutcracker in a movie theatre near you The Meshuganutcracker is a full-length musical comedy that features the wonderfully silly sensibilities of the folklore of Chelm a fictional town of fools underscored by an invigorating Klezmer-ized orchestration of Tchaikovsky's 'Nutcracker Suite,' including original lyrics that celebrate Chanukah.
- 12/6/2017
- by Contests - Broadway
- BroadwayWorld.com
"Fantasia" wasn't a huge hit when it was first released 75 years ago (on November 13, 1940).
Since then, however, over the course of multiple re-releases, the Disney feature has earned a reputation as a masterpiece for its blend of lushly recorded classical music and dazzling Technicolor animation. It eventually became a huge success in both theaters and on home video and spawned several sequels and spinoffs, not to mention parodies by other studios.
Still, as many times as you've enjoyed the ballet-dancing hippos or Mickey Mouse's botched attempt at using magic to shirk drudgery, there's a lot you may not know about "Fantasia." Read on, and watch out for those magic mushrooms.
1. The germ of the film began when Walt Disney bumped into legendary Philadelphia Orchestra conductor Leopold Stokowski (pictured) outside Chasen's restaurant in Hollywood. Disney told Stokowski of his idea to make one of his trademark "Silly Symphony" shorts out...
Since then, however, over the course of multiple re-releases, the Disney feature has earned a reputation as a masterpiece for its blend of lushly recorded classical music and dazzling Technicolor animation. It eventually became a huge success in both theaters and on home video and spawned several sequels and spinoffs, not to mention parodies by other studios.
Still, as many times as you've enjoyed the ballet-dancing hippos or Mickey Mouse's botched attempt at using magic to shirk drudgery, there's a lot you may not know about "Fantasia." Read on, and watch out for those magic mushrooms.
1. The germ of the film began when Walt Disney bumped into legendary Philadelphia Orchestra conductor Leopold Stokowski (pictured) outside Chasen's restaurant in Hollywood. Disney told Stokowski of his idea to make one of his trademark "Silly Symphony" shorts out...
- 11/12/2015
- by Gary Susman
- Moviefone
The concept of the work of art that is unappreciated by the masses immediately, but gains a passionate and overwhelming following decades later is almost as old as time itself. A book, or piece of music, or painting, or sculpture, or film is unveiled to an indifferent public, save a few devout fans, and is only revived once newer generations approach it with fresh eyes. So many films we now consider to be the greatest of all time were not as warmly received (if they were received warmly at all) upon their initial release. Some classics, such as Citizen Kane and Vertigo, benefit now primarily from home media releases, repeated airings on Turner Classic Movies, and the impassioned voices of critics and historians to emphasize to general audiences how important and daring and dramatically satisfying these films truly are. Then there are the films that received a second wind of...
- 2/6/2014
- by Josh Spiegel
- SoundOnSight
As you've probably figured out by now, I tend to gravitate toward the darkest, most evil music of every possible stripe. However, you may be shocked to your core to learn that I'm also a pretty big fan of the holiday season, and I still have fond memories of the Christmas carols my musically-inclined family played and sang throughout my early childhood. This presents a bit of a dilemma for irredeemably corrupted kids like us: how can we unite our passion for horror and extreme music with our nostalgia for warm and fuzzy holiday sing-alongs? Apparently J.J. Hrubovcak, bassist for the legendary death metal band Hate Eternal, was faced with the same conundrum... but he found a way to apply his diabolical skills to an original and totally twisted solution. The result is Death Metal Christmas: Hellish Renditions of Christmas Classics – which, as the old saying goes, is exactly what you think it is.
- 12/3/2013
- by Gregory Burkart
- FEARnet
London -- The London Philharmonic Orchestra is to showcase a selection of music from Walt Disney’s original Fantasia and Disney’s Fantasia 2000 at the Royal Albert Hall complete with extracts from the films in high definition. The one off concert, billed as a U.K. premiere of the animation footage and symphonic music is scheduled for Oct. 21. The show will include a selection of the repertoire from the original 1940 version of Fantasia and Fantasia 2000 including Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker Suite and Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. The music will be performed live while iconic moments from Disney’s footage -- including Mickey
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- 10/2/2012
- by Stuart Kemp
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Fantasia
Directed by Samuel Armstrong; James Algar; Bill Roberts and Paul Satterfield; Ben Sharpsteen and David Hand; Hamilton Luske, Jim Handley, and Ford Beebe; T. Hee and Norm Ferguson; & Wilfred Jackson
Starring Deems Taylor
A few weeks ago, I read a great article by Drew McWeeny of HitFix wherein, while describing how his two children responded to one of the first and most important Disney live-action films, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, he posed this question: are Disney movies automatically “for kids”? This is, unfortunately, a very common criticism levied by people who either should know better or don’t educate themselves on the history of film, let alone Disney films. You know what criticism I mean: “Oh, that’s just for kids.” “It’s a kids’ movie. Who cares?” Sometimes, when I nitpick some aspect of a Disney film, whether it’s live-action or animated, I hear that complaint. Why...
Directed by Samuel Armstrong; James Algar; Bill Roberts and Paul Satterfield; Ben Sharpsteen and David Hand; Hamilton Luske, Jim Handley, and Ford Beebe; T. Hee and Norm Ferguson; & Wilfred Jackson
Starring Deems Taylor
A few weeks ago, I read a great article by Drew McWeeny of HitFix wherein, while describing how his two children responded to one of the first and most important Disney live-action films, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, he posed this question: are Disney movies automatically “for kids”? This is, unfortunately, a very common criticism levied by people who either should know better or don’t educate themselves on the history of film, let alone Disney films. You know what criticism I mean: “Oh, that’s just for kids.” “It’s a kids’ movie. Who cares?” Sometimes, when I nitpick some aspect of a Disney film, whether it’s live-action or animated, I hear that complaint. Why...
- 4/14/2012
- by Josh Spiegel
- SoundOnSight
Disney animated films aren’t all sweetness and light. Here’s our list of the studio’s 11 darkest moments…
Despite the studio being synonymous with wholesome family fun, Disney’s animated classics are rife with dark and unsettling moments. The kind of moments where you can’t help but think, “Crikey, this is a bit intense for a kid’s film!”
These are the moments which prompt you to look back to your own childhood, and remember nights of disturbed sleep and those confused questions to parents like, “Simba’s dad will come back in the end won’t he mum?”
Some of these scenes are deliberately meant to be scary, some are uncharacteristically dreary, but some make the list purely due to their disturbing nature. Regardless of what makes such a scene so dark, there’s one thing that connects them: they are all among the most memorable in Disney’s impressive canon.
Despite the studio being synonymous with wholesome family fun, Disney’s animated classics are rife with dark and unsettling moments. The kind of moments where you can’t help but think, “Crikey, this is a bit intense for a kid’s film!”
These are the moments which prompt you to look back to your own childhood, and remember nights of disturbed sleep and those confused questions to parents like, “Simba’s dad will come back in the end won’t he mum?”
Some of these scenes are deliberately meant to be scary, some are uncharacteristically dreary, but some make the list purely due to their disturbing nature. Regardless of what makes such a scene so dark, there’s one thing that connects them: they are all among the most memorable in Disney’s impressive canon.
- 2/14/2012
- Den of Geek
There’s a group of films, I’ll call them “Unimpeachable Classics”, that show up constantly on critics’ best-film lists, films that have achieved canonical status despite serious flaws or being hopelessly dated. These films get canonized because they A) accurately embody a moment of zeitgeist, B) overflow with pathos, or C) have been so well-loved by past critics that modern ones (a cowardly lot) refuse to dethrone or declaim them. The “Unimpeachable Classic”, not to be confused with an actual classic film, is always overrated, but the individual films vary in quality. Some are good but not great (Chinatown, The Graduate), some are mediocre (Rebel Without a Cause, Ben Hur) and some are just plain bad (Gone With the Wind.)
Fantasia is definitely an “Unimpeachable Classic”, although it is one of the better examples from the list. A series of animations by Walt Disney set to and inspired by eight different classical music pieces,...
Fantasia is definitely an “Unimpeachable Classic”, although it is one of the better examples from the list. A series of animations by Walt Disney set to and inspired by eight different classical music pieces,...
- 1/6/2011
- by Willie Osterweil
- JustPressPlay.net
Whether or not you subscribe to the notion that Austin is the “live music capitol of the world,” there are certainly a staggering number of bands playing in town on any given night. Even with the sheer amount of great music this town has to offer, it’s hard to find a truly unique act that stands apart from seething masses of local bands. One band that has made their mark by crafting exceptionally original music is Austin’s own Invincible Czars.
Take one part Stravinsky, one part Van Halen, and one part Captain Beefheart – mix them together and listen while huffing on a rag soaked in ether, and you may be getting close to pinning down the band’s signature sound. Riff rock, classical music, loungey grooves, spacey klezmer, country shuffles, and circusy polka; the Czars blend genres seamlessly and send them all hurtling back in a frenetic, yet sophisticated arrangement.
Take one part Stravinsky, one part Van Halen, and one part Captain Beefheart – mix them together and listen while huffing on a rag soaked in ether, and you may be getting close to pinning down the band’s signature sound. Riff rock, classical music, loungey grooves, spacey klezmer, country shuffles, and circusy polka; the Czars blend genres seamlessly and send them all hurtling back in a frenetic, yet sophisticated arrangement.
- 12/2/2010
- by bret
- OriginalAlamo.com
No, not classic movies: classical movies. September is Classical Music Month, the origin of which probably ties in to the whole “back to school, back to seriousness” idea. Which is sort of silly, actually: just because classical music is has stood the test of time doesn’t mean it has to be solemn. In fact, for most of us under 60, our first exposure to classical music came before we ever knew what “classical music” meant, perhaps in the Bugs Bunny cartoons we slurped up with our Cheerios on Saturday mornings. The most famous of which is probably the best, and one still beloved because of its musical parodying: In 1957’s “What’s Opera, Doc?” Bugs and Elmer Fudd send up Wagnerian opera in gloriously comic style; the short has long been a favorite of fans and critics alike, and is the only Bugs Bunny cartoon in the National Film Registry.
- 9/28/2009
- by MaryAnn Johanson
- www.flickfilosopher.com
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