Springsteen forced to cancel
In unwelcome but not exactly unforeseen news, Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band have postponed Tuesday’s concert at MVP Arena in Albany.
It’s the third show to be canceled due to illness in the past week, following postponements of performances last week in Columbis, Ohio, and Sunday night at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.
So far, there is no official word about which member of the band is ill. When COVID -19 infections sidelined individual E Street players during previous parts of the tour, the concerts were held.
Tuesday night’s show in Albany would have been Springsteen’s first scheduled show at the arena in more than six years.
Concertgoers are asked to hold onto their tickets for a future date as Springteen’s team works to reschedule the Albany show.
Getting to the arena Tuesday could have posed problems for the band and concertgoers: A coastal storm is expected to move into the Capital Region on Monday, potentially dropping more than a foot of heavy snow on eastern upstate New York.
The 73-year-old rocker is on his first tour with the E Street Band in six years. He’ll play shows in Europe during the spring and summer before returning to the U.S. for stadium concerts in the late summer and fall.
One band member who is definitely not responsible for the postponement is drummer Max Weinberg, who took advantage of what would have been a break day for the tour to perform a Saturday night benefit with his own band in Lake Placid for the New York Ski Educational Foundation.
Weinberg was once a property owner in the North Country community. — Mike Goodwin/ Times Union
Industry gathers for Oscars at dinner
The night before the Oscars, many of Hollywood’s biggest stars were not early to bed before the show. They were instead chatting the night away, martinis and champagne in hand, at the storied Polo Lounge in The Beverly Hills Hotel for the annual Chanel and Charles Finch dinner, an invite that’s even harder to get than a seat at the Academy Awards.
The patio where the likes of Clark Gable and Darryl Zanuck once dined was filled with the industry’s brightest talents, many of whom were dressed head to toe in Chanel, including Kristen Stewart, Marion Cotillard, Nicole Kidman and Camila Morrone.
On the red carpet, Kidman and Stewart ran to one another to catch up, hugging and posing for photographers.
“It’s been so long,” Kidman
said.
Cotillard would join in moments later. Later on the patio, Kidman, emerging from a conversation with Idris Elba, could be seen embracing Ariana Debose as Tessa Thompson spoke with best actress nominee Andrea Riseborough.
Elsewhere there was a meeting of Spider-mans as Andrew Garfield approached Tobey Maguire, who was sipping one of the spot’s iconic martinis.
“You! You!” Maguire said, as Garfield went in for a hug. They then turned to speak to “The Whale” director Darren Aronofsky.
Several feet behind them, Jonathan Majors was deep in conversation with Riz Ahmed, while best supporting actress nominee Kerry Condon tried and failed to get a drink from the bar that had closed down in an attempt to coax the chatty celebrities into the dining room.
Inside, they were treated to a performance by “The White Lotus” actor Beatrice Grannò.
Other attendees included Michael B. Jordan, Danielle Deadwyler,
Hugh Grant, Brie Larson, Sigourney Weaver, Vicky Krieps, Minnie Driver, Patty Jenkins, Sarah Polley, Lily James, David O. Russell, Jerry Bruckheimer, Sofia Boutella and Ted Sarandos.
Morrone, star of “Daisy Jones & The Six,” has been going to the event for several years and said it’s one of her favorites.
“It’s like a really glamorous sleepover,” Morrone said. “I just love it here. I love to see all of the people who work in the entertainment industry who are being honored tomorrow. You’re in a room with like really artistic and incredible humans, so you just soak it all in. And I’ve won some pretty incredible Chanel pieces over the past few years here.”
For actor Whitney Peak, who is the new new face of Chanel’s Coco Mademoiselle fragrance, the event was a chance to speak to some of her favorite filmmakers.