![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/itsnotaboutme.tv\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/org_img_1555024934_L-Debussy8.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo by Christopher Ash, as is the big one at the top of this page.<\/p><\/div>\n
This appears to be Hershey\u2019s most personal presentation ever, which he confirmed in his post-show Q-and-A. He usually acts out highlights from the lives and careers of each composer he\u2019s portraying in his Great Composers<\/em> series, but this time, he does something a bit different. He basically tells the story of\u00a0himself\u00a0<\/em>as a teenager in Paris, but he narrates that autobiography\u00a0as<\/em>\u00a0Debussy. And in-between, his \u201cDebussy\u201d tells his own<\/em> story, as well. It does<\/em> get a bit confusing, but the music is so stunning, and both bios so compelling, that I didn\u2019t mind. You just really have to pay attention to the narrative to decipher when he switches tales.<\/p>\n As usual for Felder\u00a0and\u00a0<\/em>The Wallis, (where this one-man show is currently being performed,) it\u2019s all pretty close to perfection.\u00a0A Paris Love Story<\/em>\u00a0features the perfect stage, set, projections, piano-playing, choice of musical pieces, and even background music.<\/p>\n Some people are just born to do what they do, and Hershey Felder is one of them. He\u2019s like an entertaining college professor, who uses storytelling to make it more interesting for his students. And he appears to be one of the most secure, confidant people I\u2019ve ever seen! In this<\/em> presentation, he even sings<\/em> a bit, which I never realized is yet one more of his plethora of talents.<\/p>\n That man writes, acts, plays the piano beautifully, (which he pours his heart and soul into,) speaks fluent French, and even designs. No fooling\u2014he designs his own sets!!! OMG. This one is lovely, and lets us know that it\u2019s Paris as soon as we lay eyes on it. He places his piano on a platform in the middle of a bridge across the Seine, complete with old-fashioned lamp lights.<\/p>\n The set. Photo by Karen Salkin.<\/p><\/div>\n I think the only two things that Hershey Felder did not do for this production of A Paris Love Story<\/em>\u00a0are direct it, (that honor belongs to Trevor Hay,) and design the fabulous projections, which Christopher Ash so gorgeously did. Ash gives us birds, bodies of water, and Parisian landmarks, such as the Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre, the Eiffel Tower, and Hotel Le Meurice. (My ears perked-up when \u201cDebussy\u201d said that that place has the most incredible hot chocolate. And then I remembered that was prior to 1918, but only after I had already checked-out its modern-day website! Foolish moi.)<\/p>\n Photo by Christopher Ash.<\/p><\/div>\n All<\/em> of Felder\u2019s piano playing is glorious and appreciated, but I was especially happy to not just have my ears treated to one of my favorite pieces,\u00a0the dream-like Prelude to the Afternoon of<\/em> a Faun<\/em>, but also to be reminded that it was written by Debussy! Prior to seeing A Paris Love Story<\/em>,\u00a0I could not have told you who composed it. Good thing I was not being asked that question on a quiz show! (That reminds me of that bit on\u00a0The Honeymooners<\/em> when\u00a0Ralph Kramden was going on a musical quiz show, and\u00a0Ed Norton, who was\u00a0helping him study, kept playing a bit of\u00a0Swanee River<\/em>\u00a0before all the songs, much to Ralph’s chagrin. And then the very\u00a0first question on the show was, “Who wrote Swanee River<\/em>?,” to which Ralph nervously answered, \u201cEd Norton?\u201d) [Note: Great reference, eh?\u00a0Prelude to the Afternoon of a Faun <\/em>and\u00a0The Honeymooners<\/em>\u00a0in the same paragraph! Where else but right here would\u00a0that<\/em>\u00a0happen?!]<\/p>\n Even if classical music is not your thing, you will still enjoy A Paris Love Story<\/em>. In his after-curtain talk on opening night, Hershey talked about how music affects us all. That\u2019s exactly what I was thinking about earlier that evening, when I heard Justin Timberlake\u2019s Rock Your Body<\/em> on the radio, to wake me up from my afternoon nap. So it really doesn’t matter what<\/em> style of music you\u2019re into\u2014it\u2019s really one of the most affecting mediums for everyone<\/em>. I heavily suggest you give this<\/em> show a try.<\/p>\n Photo by Christopher Ash<\/p><\/div>\n Just one warning for people (like me) who can\u2019t sit for a long while in a row. The program, (and the Wallis\u2019 website,) say that the production is only an hour and a half. But it\u2019s really more like an hour and forty minutes to begin with, and then Felder takes questions from the audience for another twenty minutes. So be prepared to be sitting for about two hours in a row. (If you have to leave after the curtain call, please make sure to get aisle seats, or sit in the back, so as to not disturb your fellow audience members.)<\/p>\n And here\u2019s a tip–if you like to see a pianist\u2019s hands, sit in the middle section, towards the left.<\/p>\n Hershey Felder: A Paris Love Story<\/em>\u00a0running through June 16, 2019<\/strong> HERSHEY FELDER: A PARIS LOVE STORY I first saw Hershey Felder perform as an old school composer years ago, when he did George Gershwin at the Geffen, and then again recently as Ludwig van Beethoven at the Wallis, where he now appears as Frenchman Claude Debussy, who brought the ethereal Claire de Lune into the<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a>
\n The Wallis\u00a0 9390 N. Santa Monica\u00a0Boulevard\u00a0 Beverly Hills\u00a0 310-746-4000\u00a0\u00a0www.thewallis.org<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"