Friday Morning Roundup

THE PASSING OF THE FONZ: How does an actor take over an iconic role that is closely associated with someone else? That’s a question that Joey Sorge has had to answer. He plays Fonzi in the touring production of Happy Days: A New Musical currently camped at the Music Hall at Fair Park. Something that’s certainly helped Sorge is advice from the Original Fonze, Henry Winkler. Winkler told Sorge, “I will tell you this: When the Fonze dances, he doesn’t move.” Check out the video above for more on what it takes to play the king of cool.

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE?: The only thing American about the finals of the Cliburn Competition is the setting. Don’t get me wrong – the competitors from Europe and Asia are more than welcome on the Bass Hall stage. They’ve certainly earned it. But why is the American presence at the Cliburn diminishing? That is the question the Fort Worth Star-Telegram asked in a recent story. As it turns out, the Cliburn is just a symptom of a larger classical music issue.

QUOTABLE: “I love to be onstage. I like to think about what kind of personality my Munchkin has so I can make the right poses.”

Virgina Dollins, 13, one of a group of local kids playing Munchkins in Dallas Summer Musical’s The Wizard of Oz beginning Tuesday. Click here to read what other area Munchkins had to say about their roles to The Dallas Morning News.

Tom Hendricks

Home Field Advantage? Hardly.
The real question is why doesn’t the Fort Worth media cover the classical music artists in this area. Same for the Dallas media.
I’ve been composing classical style music for decades – and its almost all melody – not the cacophony of the usual neophyte composers. I have friends that are composing and performing wonderful music in this format too.
What coverage have any of us gotten in the local press? Nothing. So if you want to blame anyone, blame the image in your mirror.
Time for a fair and open media.
Stephen Becker

Tom,
I’ve got to disagree on this one. Whether or not the DFW media covers local classical artists has nothing to do with the fact that competitors from other countries are dominating classical music. Are they better because their hometown newspapers cover them? I hardly think so. I have a hard time believing that a 5-year-old Evgeni Bozhanov picked up a copy the Rousse Daily News in Bulgaria and decided to put in an extra hour of practice.
My personal opinion is that they are better in part because classical music is valued in their culture more broadly than it is here.
Tom Hendricks

Talent is valued more there than here by their media.
That is,as you say not everything, but it doesn’t help to have a local media that goes out of their way to promote Hollywood and ignore their own talented musicians.
I’ve had run ins with WRR the CITY OWNED STATION, because they too refuse to play compositions from local composers – the usual excuse is that is all atonal – which is nonsense and has been for decades.
Until the local media supports local arts – until our daily even has a full time reporter covering local arts – until those who worship Hollywood leave and go there – until the city owned WRR cares for local composers – until Dallas cares enough about the Cliburn to show the concerts on TV – I doubt we’ll even know if we have anyone in town able to compete.