‘Equus’ at The Players’ Ring

Having grown up with horses, I learned early on not to trust those unpredictable beasts. While they are impressive and majestic creatures, they embody an earthy power that is both enchanting and terrifying. In fact, horses have always scared the shit out of me. And this is the mindset I took with me to see “Equus,” the new play at The Players’ Ring in Portsmouth.
Peter Schaffer’s story is set in a children’s mental health ward in England. The lead psychiatrist, Martin Dysart (Chris Walters), has been given a new case. It seems a teenage boy named Alan Strang (Dylan Schwartz-Wallach) stabbed out the eyes of several horses under his care. The boy is at first reluctant to share the reasons behind his disturbing act, but the truth eventually comes out.

Produced by Todd Hunter and directed by Joi Smith, the set for “Equus” is simple but effective. The use of unfinished wood creates a rustic, countrified setting. Scattered around the stage are hand tools, a few pieces of antique furniture and the doctor’s desk, which is simply a painted black box.

remodeled Currier shows NH artists

Out of an almost two-year remodeling project emerges a little gem of a museum—the new Currier Museum of Art. The improved museum in Manchester has some bright facets to show off. It has expanded its footprint by more than a third, adding 33,000 feet of gallery space and ancillaries. The renovations now enable the museum to host larger, nationally prominent shows, such as “Andy Warhol: Pop Politics,” which is coming in late September. 

The introduction of five new galleries also means Currier will be able to exhibit 50 percent more of its collection. The current exhibit, “Celebrating New Hampshire Artists,” contains just about every medium: painting, glass, sculpture, tableware, crafts, ceramics, fine art furniture, wood engraving, prints, silver gelatin and giclée photography. The work of New Hampshire artists will rotate through a gallery dedicated to this concept for the next six months.

by Charles Bukowski
307 pages, 1977, Black Sparrow Press

On Saturday, May 3, downtown Rochester will be overrun with Star Wars Storm Troopers. They won’t be there to extend the empire, but to participate in Free Comic Book Day, a national event organized locally by Jetpack Comics on Portland Street. The event, held on the first Saturday of May for the past seven years, is meant to get people excited about comics and introduce a wider audience to the craft by giving away free books.

The event started in California, where store- owner Joe Fields organized the first Free Comic Book Day. At Jetpack, doors will open at 9 a.m. on Saturday. A number of artists and writers will be on hand to sign comics and discuss their work. In addition to free comics, Jetpack will also give away posters, pins, buttons, bookmarks and other comic book swag.

Empire Pictures, 1985
starring: Peter Liapis, Lisa Pelikan, Michael Des Barres and Jack Nance
written and directed by: Luca Bercovici

rated R

Once you’ve gotten high and gone on a mind-bending odyssey to White Castle, the only place left to go for some extreme strangeness is Guantanamo Bay, a U.S. military prison camp that’s physically in Cuba but exists in a legal no-man’s-land, where the rules of the real world don’t apply. Throwing two high-strung stoners into the mix sounds like a recipe for some off-the-wall comedy, but “Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay” never really gets as weird as it should. There’s some pointed jabs at the war on terror and snipes at racial stereotypes amid all the dick and fart jokes, but the movie never gets as subversive as you might expect.

Ioka will woo the Seacoast indie-film crowd

“It is a great way to bring in a new demographic,” said Roger Detzler, owner of Exeter’s Ioka Theatre. He’s excited about a new arrangement between the Ioka and Emerging Pictures, an independent film distribution company.

Over the past couple of years, Detzler had noticed increasing public demand for a venue dedicated to independent films. He saw the trend as a steady source of revenue, but couldn’t conjure up an appropriate business solution.

When Emerging Pictures contacted him two years ago, he was at first reluctant to adopt such a “quirky business model.” The two sides conversed sporadically, but Detzler remained uninterested until he was certain that Emerging Pictures would steadily progress into “a more marketable product.”

It’s time for a roundup of recent CDs that have crossed my desk over the past few months, starting with a couple of discs from Boston-area artists who play locally with some frequency.

The Molenes pack bluegrass and twang into new disc

The album begins with an instrumental bluegrass jam titled “Redemption.” The introductory track weaves strains of banjo and mandolin into a driving, rockabilly drumbeat, knitting together a timeless sound that follows the roots of American music. As the tune begins to fade, amplified feedback drowns out the jam, making way for the country-rock guitar riff of “There’s a Sufferin’.”

It’s a striking transition, and one that might surprise fans of The Molenes’ first album, “This Car Is Big.” Emerging more than 18 months after the debut disc, “Songs of Sin and Redemption” wraps together all the rootsy elements that define The Molenes’ style, from blues to bluegrass, rock to rockabilly. The band will unveil its new effort with a CD release show at The Press Room on Saturday, May 3.

UNH’s Jeffrey Bolster rethinks our shamed maritime history

From the days when Native Americans paddled along the Piscataqua River and out to the Isles of Shoals on birch bark canoes, up through World War II, when the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard was churning out submarines faster than any other shipyard in the world, the Seacoast has enjoyed a rich culture around the construction of sea vessels. To this day, Portsmouth’s working seaport remains a vital part of the regional economy and identity.

But American maritime history, which has its roots in northern New England, has long been rife with inaccuracies. That’s according to Portsmouth resident Jeffrey Bolster, who co-authored the recent book, “The Way of the Ship: America’s Maritime History Reenvisioned, 1600-2000.” According to Bolster, an associate professor of history at the University of New Hampshire, the canonical view of the nation’s maritime history has focused almost exclusively on oceanic ships, and not enough on the domestic ships that have crisscrossed the country’s lakes, rivers and coastlines for centuries. The historical focus on deep water ships and the U.S. Merchant Marine belies the fact that America’s shipping trade has thrived for centuries in the country’s interior.

issue of airport ownership sparks turbulence in Rochester

A couple of months ago, it appeared that Skyhaven Airport was about to land in the hands of the Pease Development Authority. The Rochester City Council had deadlocked on a vote in February to take over ownership of the small airport on Route 108, failing to reach a consensus by its March 1 deadline. With the idea of city ownership apparently sunk, the state was poised to hand over Skyhaven operations to the PDA on July 1. But then the Council changed its mind.

On April 15, the Council voted to undo its February vote and reconsider ownership of the airport. State Sen. Jackie Cilley (D-Barrington) quickly amended a bill before the N.H. House to extend the deadline for a city decision on Skyhaven. If approved, House Bill 1168 would give the Council until May 30 to commit to owning the airport. If the Council fails to make that commitment, the N.H. Department of Transportation will negotiate a lease for the PDA to take over airport operations on July 1.

Pontine performs ‘The Story of a Bad Boy’

In its day, “The Story of a Bad Boy” sparked a great deal of controversy, yet it has also been hailed as the work of a pioneering genius. Portsmouth’s Thomas Bailey Aldrich deviated from tradition when he published a semi-fictional account of his childhood in 1870. The content was unusual and risky, perking the curiosity of thousands of shocked readers.

Beginning on Friday, April 25, Pontine Theatre in Portsmouth will host an original adaptation of the revolutionary story. The events narrated in the book will be recreated by Greg Gathers and Margeurite Mathews, who have revised the content to fit the confines of a stage.

Gathers said adapting Aldrich’s book to the stage was easier than you might expect. The book is divided into stories about Aldrich’s childhood, narrated by the author as an adult. In the two-person performance, Gathers tackles the role of Aldrich, while Mathews portrays several other characters. At various points in the play, the pair uses 30-inch puppets, cutout illustrations, shadow puppets and projector video to recreate other characters and settings.

Used and unwanted books, CDs, DVDs, videos and audio books can now be donated to the Got Books program. The Portsmouth Recycling Center and Got Books program have united by putting a donation container behind the Recycling Center on 680 Peverly Hill Road. The intent is to collect and redistribute items no longer needed by local residents. 

by Peter Zheutlin, Citadel Press, 2007, 224 pages

It has all the elements of a tall tale: Two wealthy, Boston sugar merchants make a high-stakes, $10,000 bet, challenging an inexperienced young woman to ride a bicycle around the globe, starting with nothing but the clothes on her back. The cyclist is also tasked with earning $5,000, without accepting any charity, before returning to Boston in 15 months or less.

exploring the appeal of summer beers

Summer on the Seacoast is a fine mix of sultry heat, ocean breezes and tasty barbeques. It’s enough to make you thirsty—thirsty for beer. Beginning each spring, a number of local and regional breweries produce seasonal brews that offer relief from the heat while complementing the feel and flavors of summer.

On Thursday, April 24, Redhook Brewery in Portsmouth will host a summer release party for its seasonal beer, Sunrye. As if the dawning of summer isn’t reason enough to celebrate, the kickoff party commemorates the impending season with kegs of Sunrye, live reggae and free giveaways.

jazz singer Sheila Jordan reflects on a life in jazz

Billy Collins to headline Jazzmouth 2008

Film School joins Tiny Whales and Mosfet at Bourbon’s

When The Wire first caught up with Film School guitarist Dave Dupuis last week, he was in Baton Rouge, where he had been snacking on alligator meat prior to a show at a club called Spanish Moon. The next day, he and his four band mates were packed into their E350 Ford Super Duty van, on their way to New Orleans for another gig at a place called One Eyed Jacks. It was business as usual for Dupuis, who has been gigging and touring with various bands since the late 1990s. But this tour has a special twist: it will allow Dupuis to play a live show in his native New Hampshire for the first time in about 12 years. Film School will be at Bourbon’s in Portsmouth on Tuesday, April 29, along with local bands Mosfet and Tiny Whales.  

Filmways Pictures, 1981
starring: Brian Matthews, Leah Ayres, Brian Backer and
Lou David
directed by: Tony Maylam

rated R

To get a good idea of what to expect from the new break-up comedy “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” look no further than it’s star and writer, Jason Segel. A veteran of Judd Apatow’s televised “Freaks and Geeks” school, with a brief stint on “CSI,” you may have last noticed him as Seth Rogan’s towering slacker friend in “Knocked Up.” Like many of the men on Apatow’s crew, he comes across as a doughy, needy, ne’er do well, with a sly comic outlook and an undeniable attraction to smokin’-hot ladies. This movie is a lot like that.