Paula FarmerFilm
The trailer and premise of the movie Puzzle might lead potential audiences to think this is a typical, predictable romantic tale of an unlikely and forbidden pairing, but Puzzle, a feature directorial debut for Marc Turtletaub who is known for producing Little Miss Sunshine and Loving is neither typical or ...
Michael Wade SimpsonDanceSanta Fe,
This was the year of “Me-Too” in the dance world as well as the film industry. Peter Martins stepped down after 30 years as Ballet Master in Chief of the New York City Ballet on January 1. Five dancers, male as well as female, came forward to make accusations about ...
Josh BaxtTheaterSan Diego,
Neil Simon’s Barefoot in the Park is an amusing time capsule from the early 1960s – the clothing, the technology, the barely restrained longing for martinis and whiskey. Don Draper could walk in at any moment. In the wrong hands, it could play like a diorama at the Natural History ...
Michael McDonaghMusicSan Francisco,
You're alone in your room and hear music.You're sitting in a room with other people and hear this same music. But does this change how you hear that music? These are just some of the questions which Philip Glass' piano music provoked when I heard it played on a concert ...
Emily S. MendelTheaterSan Francisco,
Despite a slow and inflated start, the West Coast premiere of “Everybody” at Cal Shakes, by award-winning playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (“An Octoroon”) closes with a strong finish that resonates deeply and lingers in one’s thoughts.
“Everybody” is a 90-minute, one-act, contemporary adaptation of a 15th century English allegorical ...
Emily S. MendelTheaterBerkeley,
National Book Award finalist Christina García, author of six novels, including the satirical, “King of Cuba,” from which this play is adapted, attended its world premiere opening at Berkeley’s Central Works on July 21, 2018. Unfortunately, novels, even well-regarded novels like García’s, do not always translate well to the theatre. ...
Emily S. MendelTheaterBerkeley,
One of the more remarkable aspects of the bold and engaging “White” is that James Ijames’ inspiration for the play is taken from a real event — a white male artist hired African-American actresses to present his works as their own, causing a brouhaha at the ...
David E. MorenoDanceSan Francisco,
“Is something true, just because you remember it?”
“Still Standing” is as much a happening as it is a site-specific work. Shaped by the walls of San Francisco’s landmark Victorian, Hass-Lilienthal House—and the creative corridors of director and choreographer Joe Goode’s mind. The piece is ...
Lewis WhittingtonDancePhiladelphia,
BalletX danced to a sold out house at the Wilma Theater July 11, the opening of a two-week run of their Summer Series of premieres- one by Matthew Neenan and new collaborations with choreographers Penny Saunders and Andrew McNicol. The run marks the final performances by two of longtime favorite ...
David E. MorenoFilm
At a time when so many of our cultural icons are falling from grace, and those holding onto their laurels often lack dignity and vision, comes a slew of documentaries on those positive role models whose lives inspire and affirm culture. From “RBG”, the heroic life of Supreme Court ...
