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Classical Music Sampler: May 2011

April 26, 2011
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The month’s international highlights include the Boston Modern Orchestra taking on the music of India, The Cantata Singers finishing up their homage to British composer Ralph Vaughn Williams, and Musica Sacra performing Flemish Choral Music of the High Renaissance. By Susan Miron. Sunday, May 1 @ 1:30 p.m. at MassArt’s Pozen Hall, Boston, MA. The…

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Coming Attractions in Theater: May 2011

April 26, 2011
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May is usually a so-so respite before the summer season revs up, but there’s some interesting productions popping up, including Propeller Theatre Company’s all-male versions of Shakespeare’s Richard III and The Comedy of Errors, Amy Brenneman’s autobiographical show Mouth Wide Open, and an opportunity to see J. M. Barrie take it on in the chin…

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Book Review — A Wilde Child Restored: Dorian Gray Uncensored

April 25, 2011
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Editor Nicholas Frankel is right to argue that familiarity with Oscar Wilde’s original manuscript of The Picture of Dorian Gray deepens its vision, suggesting that the 1891 novel is a far less morally reassuring tale than readers have thought. The Picture of Dorian Gray: An Annotated, Uncensored Edition by Oscar Wilde. Edited by Nicholas Frankel.…

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Movie Feature: Making Music for the “It” Girl

April 23, 2011
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It is really very much of its time and place, its particular moment in history. The social revolution of the 20s, the new freedoms for “modern” women, the flapper phenomenon, and the challenges to the class structure in urban 20th century America are among the issues in this 1927 silent comedy. By Bill Marx The…

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Movie Review: Civil War Crime and Punishment

April 23, 2011
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There is so much that could have gone right for The Conspirator that it seems such a waste that it doesn’t amount to more than it does. It’s a complicated and rich story of Civil War vengeance versus justice with very high stakes on the line. The Conspirator. Directed by Robert Redford. The cast includes…

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Book Review: A Cinematic Russian Winter (Updated)

April 21, 2011
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Russian Winter is part mystery and part love story, drawing on the (overly) familiar tropes of each: the missing jewels, the deceived lovers, and so on. The material is not original, but it is workable and proffers plenty of Hollywood glamor. Russian Winter by Daphne Kalotay. Harper Perennial, 496 pages, $14.99. By Nora Delany It…

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Book Review: An Authoritative Anthology of Modern Chinese Drama

April 18, 2011
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Minor translation issues aside, The Columbia Anthology of Modern Chinese Drama‘s excellent selection, colloquial and stage-friendly translations, and illuminating introduction undoubtedly make the volume the authoritative choice in teaching and reading modern Chinese drama for the foreseeable future. The Columbia Anthology of Modern Chinese Drama. Edited and with an introduction by Xiaomei Chen. Columbia University…

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Classical Music Review: Finally Joining the Cult of Tomsic

April 17, 2011
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The audience went wild; Chopin’s Ballades do that to people. Cheering broke out after Dubravka Tomsic played the second ballade, and by the fourth, which starts out quietly like a lullaby and builds up to an all-out, rhapsodic, virtuosic tour de force, the entire audience seemed smitten. Dubravka Tomsic. Presented by the Celebrity Series at…

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Book Review: The Fascinating Dribs and Drabs of Tennessee Williams’ Genius

April 16, 2011
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This volume of one-act plays may gather up the whiffs and dregs of Tennessee Williams’ achievement, but their flashes of brilliance are valuable reminders of an artist who kept at his craft, come hell and high water, critical as well as popular.

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Coming Attractions in Jazz: Late April 2011

April 15, 2011
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Carla Bley

Composer/pianist Carla Bley and bassist Steve Swallow visit NEC as artists-in-residence, Brazilian guitarist Filó Machado and violinist/oudist Simon Shaheen wrap up their residencies at Berklee, outstanding musicians raise funds for Boston’s homeless and to fight climate change, Club d’Elf releases a long-awaited new double CD, and you get your pick of a string of guitarists.

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