Tuning In
by Sally Stone
©2001 King Features Synd., Inc.
On Dec. 26 (check local listings) Julie Andrews hosts PBS’s Great Performances presentation of the Royal Ballet’s "The Nutcracker." This version is closer to its Germanic roots and offers a new insight into why the mysterious Herr Drosselmeyer set the story of an enchanting young girl and an enchanted boy in motion in the first place.
Julie Andrews is also one of the honorees of "The Kennedy Center Honors: A Celebration of the Performing Arts," airing on CBS Dec. 26 with Walter Cronkite hosting. Other honorees are pianist Van Cliburn, music producer and composer Quincy Jones, actor Jack Nicholson and singer Luciano Pavarotti.
Back on Oct. 21, 2000, theater history was made when an audience sat down in the Denver Center Theater for the Performing Arts to watch the opening performance of the Trojan War dramatic epic, "Tantalus," written by John Barton. Ten hours later, the curtain dropped. On Dec. 30 (check local listings) the PBS series, "Stage on Screen" airs "Tantalus: Behind the Mask," showing the real-life drama that went on backstage during the turbulent six-month rehearsal period. The gods on Olympus would have loved all the ire and rancor that raged between and among the actors, writers, et al.
DIAL TONES: Last time I chatted with Dyan Cannon about her NBC series, "Three Sisters," she said, "I hope they keep us on. It’s funny and filled with love, and makes people feel good. And when people feel good, they make other people feel good, and the good feeling keeps going." Obviously, the Peacock agrees, because it just extended the "Three Sisters" stay in its nest for at least another six episodes.
ABC also feels good these days. The web won the non-pay-TV rights to air "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone" at some date down the line. ABC will also air the Potter sequel, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets," due for theatrical release in November 2002.
