Lois Weisberg Throws a Party
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Weisberg and her minions have done quite a job preparing for this confab. In addition to the PR firms’ free labor, they have amassed more than $300,000 in corporate underwriting and untold thousands more in noncash contributions; United Airlines, for example, is donating a large number of airline tickets. Deputy commissioner Pat Matsumoto rang up her friend photographer Archie Lieberman and chose for the official conference poster his cluttered photograph of an Oak Street Beach crowd. The Department of Cultural Affairs recently mailed out a newsletter that talks about how Chicago is rolling out the red carpet: a gala reception at Navy Pier hosted by Daley and an Italian night at the Art Institute are among the many social events tied to the affair.
What, you may wonder, will be the business of this get-together? After the preconference conclaves on issues ranging from economic development to public health to urban redevelopment (and yes, one seminar on cultural exchange), the delegates will ponder “the world in transition.” Also on the agenda are a series of talks on the Americas and a meeting to address “Africa: The Experience and the Challenge.” Will these talks yield any information of value? Will the conference, as one public relations executive put it, “help position Chicago as a global city”?
Those seeking some sign that the American musical has been rejuvenated won’t find it in Book of the Night, a costly failure receiving its world premiere at the Goodman Theatre. The show, a collection of loosely connected glimpses of people looking for love or salvation in the big city, was developed at the Goodman under the supervision of Robert Falls; he put the piece through a workshop last year before opting to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on a mainstage production. Composed by Louis Rosen and Thom Bishop and directed by Falls, the final product is 90 minutes of unsuccessful attempts at character development and loud songs that mostly sound the same, with five minutes of melody tossed in at the very end. In his review, Tribune entertainment editor Richard Christiansen typically tried to have it both ways, talking about the Goodman’s “remarkable accomplishment” before mentioning such flaws as the musical lulls. Book of the Night should serve as a reminder that considerable talent and lots of money can’t make up for the absence of a good story or any memorable music.
