Word: miltonic
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Dates: during 1990-1999
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...Sunday October 26, the Handel and Haydn Society, under the direction of Christopher Hogwood, presented the second of two performances of their season opener, Handel's L'Allegro, Il Penseroso ed Il Moderato. This 1740 work combines excerpts from two Milton poems, L'Allegro and Il Penseroso, with original poetry by Handel's librettist Charles Jennens, the Il Moderato, set to what is essentially orchestral accompaniment...
...concerto grossos serve as overtures to the first and second parts, the D minor, Op. 6 No. 10 and the G major, Op. 6 No. 1 respectively. The exceptional soloists gave performances worthy of Hogwood's illustrious direction, perhaps even of Milton himself. Especially notable were sopranos Sharon Baker and Lisa Saffer, whose powerful voices captured both the light, lilting passages of L'Allegro and the "grave music," as Handel termed it, of Il Penseroso. Christine Brandes, also soprano, however, sounded a bit too bright and overharsh at times. Tenor Alan Bennett and bass David Thomas also demonstrated impressive talent...
...Joanna E. Siegel, former assistant professor of maternal and child health at SPH; Stephen G. Pauker, vice chair of the department of medicine at Tufts University; Marc J. Lallemant, former visiting scientist in the department of cancer biology at SPH; Harvey V. Feinberg '67, provost of Harvard University and Milton C. Weinstein, Kaiser professor of health policy and management and biostatistics...
Before you can say "Bill and Ted's Excellent Faustian Adventure," Reeves and his bombshell wife (Charlize Theron) are off to that "modern Babylon," the Big Apple. Pacino, as John Milton (wink wink, nudge nudge), the head of the firm, offers Kevin the case of his life--along with the requisite women, money, and freedom that comes from "never having to say that you're sorry." Kevin begins to neglect his wife, who soon senses that something is terribly wrong with this apparently picture-perfect firm. Satanic hijinks ensue, climaxing in a Darth Vader/Luke Skywalker-style confrontation between Reeves...
Hackford offers some dazzling visuals, including an artificial lake on top of a skyscraper and a chilling shot of Keanu Reeves walking out of a hospital to find all of Manhattan empty. Milton's penthouse exudes an atmosphere of slick, menacing, kinky-campy decadence--it's Hugh Hefner meets the Marquis de Sade. Hackford is smart enough not to let the cinematography get in the way of Pacino: as Milton, the actor is his own special effect. And when the actual special effects--including a wall sculpture that comes to swarming, slithery life--do appear, they pale in comparison...