That time of year

Wind from the Sea, Andrew Wyeth
That time of year thou mayst in me behold
When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
Bare ruined choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.
In me thou see’st the twilight of such day
As after sunset fadeth from the west;
Which by and by black night doth take away,
Death’s second self, that seals up all in rest.
That time of year thou mayst in me behold, William Shakespeare

Turkey Pond, Andrew Wyeth
That is no country for old men. The young
In one another’s arms, birds in the trees
—Those dying generations—at their song
The salmon-falls, the mackerel-crowded seas,
Fish, flesh, or fowl commend all summer long
Whatever is begotten, born, and dies.
Caught in that sensual music all neglect
Monuments of unaging intellect.
 

An aged man is but a paltry thing,
A tattered coat upon a stick…

 
-Sailing to Byzantium, William Butler Yeats

A SparkNotes Hamlet, with a (hopefully) more colorful review

I was not the only person in the darkened theater to breathe an inward sigh of relief when Jude Law took the stage. His daughter had been born the night before, so there had been some uncertainty as to whether the star of Hamlet would indeed be playing Hamlet. He was, and the show went on at the Broadhurst Theater, which is hosting a limited run of this successful London production, to general applause and more than a few chuckles. Chuckles and Hamlet might not seem to go together, and please do not be led to think that director Michael Grandage is exploring the humorous side of Shakespeare’s tragedy.

Continued here on Blogcritics.

Ravels in Review Friday Plus Banana

It’s been a while since I did this, so check out a bounty of ravels below. Happy Friday!

  • A mention of moi? Tres cool.
  • King Lear outdoors courtesy of NY Classical Theater

*It gets stars because I like it best. (Don’t tell the others.)