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Fuse Film Review: The “Hunger Games” Sequel — Better Than The First Time Around

November 22, 2013
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Jennifer Lawrence has blossomed into a charismatic screen presence in her gala return as Katniss, the beloved bow-and-arrow heroine of “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.”

Classical Music CD Reviews: Lang Lang plays Prokofiev and Bartók (Sony Classical), Philadelphia Orchestra plays Stravinsky (Deutsche Grammophon)

November 21, 2013
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So we’ve got a mixed bag. If you get this Lang Lang disc, it should be for the Bartók, but not the Prokofiev: as things stand, the competition there simply blows Lang out of the water.

Visual Arts Review: “Maus” and More — Art Spiegelman at the Jewish Museum

November 21, 2013
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Art Spiegelman believes that “MAD” magazine was more subversive for his generation of protesters than either marijuana or LSD. It certainly radicalized him.

Classical Music CD Reviews: Bach’s St. Matthew Passion and Early Classical Opera

November 20, 2013
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Two discs released by Harmonia Mundi benefit from the dramatic flair of conductor René Jacobs.

Visual Arts Book Review: Looking at Paintings Beyond the Comfort Zone

November 20, 2013
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Daniel Arasse’s method has been defined by his students as “looking, [taking] pleasure and [being] imprudent.” Any and every detail of a work of art can serve as his starting point.

Concert Review: Joshua Bell at Symphony Hall

November 19, 2013
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Violinist Joshua Bell and pianist Sam Haywood delivered a highly entertaining and substantive (if too short) Sunday afternoon recital.

Rock Album Review: Beady Eye — “BE” Good?

November 19, 2013
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At its best, “BE” is an adventurous album, which automatically makes it an improvement over Beady Eye’s 2011 debut.

CD Review: Death Grips — Hands On the Modern Moment

November 18, 2013
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Hopefully, Death Grips can keep finding new ways to convey contemporary dissonance, because as it stands now they have produced four of the most important musical works of the 21st Century.

Film Commentary: A Contrarian View of “12 Years a Slave”

November 17, 2013
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Why haven’t more movies been made about American slavery? Hollywood studio racism is certainly a prime factor; but even for determined anti-racists, there’s also the aesthetic problem of creating a compelling film drama.

Dance Review: The Stephen Petronio Company — Creating Fascinating Structures of Dance

November 17, 2013
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I was mesmerized by the coherence of the shifting patterns, their ideas so clearly presented, even though the work by no means provided more than a suggestion of a story.

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