Review

CD Reviews: James Brawn’s Beethoven Odyssey (volumes 1 and 2) and In Recital (MSR Records)

May 12, 2014
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In a world populated by talented pianists, James Brawn is a standout. He’s not just a virtuoso, but also a probing, thoughtful musician with strong, creative programming instincts.

Dance Review: Boston Ballet’s “Pricked” — Building Blocks

May 12, 2014
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Carrying cacti around the stage in boxes and placing them on their heads and in predictably suggestive positions, the Boston Ballet dancers looked like they were having a blast

Film Review: “The Lunchbox” — One of the Year’s Best Films

May 12, 2014
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The Lunchbox is that rare film experience that stays with you, makes you think about its multi-layered, subtle performances and storyline, and forces you to see it again.

Theater Review: “On the Verge” — Linguistic Playfulness to a Fault

May 12, 2014
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The conceit of “On the Verge” is fascinating, inviting us, as all first rate speculative or science fiction does, to see our past through different lenses.

Book Review: “The Democratic Surround” — Exploring the Makings of Mass Experience

May 10, 2014
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Fred Turner’s counterintuitive and subtle argument in The Democratic Surround draws a direct line between the design of museum exhibitions and the Be-Ins of the Summer of Love.

CD Review: Swans — “To Be Kind” is Some Kind of a Masterpiece

May 10, 2014
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I love an album that ends with a bang – and The Swans’ To Be Kind ends with four.

Concert Review: Two Operas About Mythic Women from Harpist Deborah Henson-Conant

May 9, 2014
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The value of these two superb “operas” is learning where harpist Deborah Henson-Conant was musically (and emotionally) in the early ’80s.

Visual Arts Review: Italian Futurism — The Future That Wasn’t

May 9, 2014
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Futurism, as the Italian proponents conceived of it, ended up not having much of a future. But its practitioners had some good days at the beginning.

Theater Review: “Good Television” and “Sila” — The Struggle to Remain Human

May 8, 2014
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It is encouraging to see new plays that tackle substantial social problems.

Theater Review: “Icarus” in the Dust Bowl

May 8, 2014
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Icarus proffers plenty of spectacle and talent, but the show only recycles a story we’ve seen countless times on stage and screen.

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