Month: March 2011

Visual Arts Review: Gaza in Photographs — Up Close and Personal

March 13, 2011
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Though unquestionably didactic, Skip Schiel’s images are also haunting glimpses of the perilous nature of life in Gaza. The photographs never feel invasive or forced; they simply capture moments of intimate truth between photographer and subject.

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Fuse Theater/Book Review: An Inspiring Defense Of Why Theater is Necessary

March 12, 2011
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In The Necessity of Theater, author Paul Woodruff makes way for wisdom as theater’s final gift. In his view, theater’s wisdom lies in its use of the mask, and that mask is the sine qua non of meaning. The mask must conceal, if only to reveal.   The Necessity of Theater: The Art of Watching…

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Music Review: Masterworks Chorale’s Inspiring Tribute to Music Director Allen Lannom

March 12, 2011
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The Masterworks Chorale sang better than I had ever heard them; perhaps they felt the sense of occasion—this was a piece that meant a great deal to Mr. Lannom, whose thoughts on the composition were featured in the program booklet. By Susan Miron Antonin Dvorák’s “Stabat Mater,” Op. 58, is a classic example of a…

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Jazz Review: Two Marvelous for Words — Fred Hersch and Jason Moran

March 11, 2011
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I cite the repertoire only to give you a sense of the breadth of the material Jason Moran and Fred Hersch built on. The glory of the evening was the complete integration of the two pianists’ musical thought.

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Theater Review: “DollHouse”: A Door Slams in Connecticut

March 11, 2011
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Dramatist Theresa Rebeck’s updated version of Ibsen’s play strengthens one key aspect of A Doll’s House—its picture of savage incomprehension between man and woman, which drives Ibsen’s call for independence and self-respect in a society that rewards complacency, greed, and childish role-playing. DollHouse by Theresa Rebeck. Based on A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen. Directed…

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Judicial Review #5: After the Hoopla — The MFA’s New Art of the Americas Wing

March 11, 2011
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Success assured? Critics and others discuss whether the MFA’s new wing, The Art of the Americas, lives up to the hype generated by the opening in the latest Judicial Review.

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Visual Arts: My Main Man Mani — A Persian Preacher Who Made Art and Founded a Religion

March 10, 2011
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I have a weakness for cosmic audacity. The history of religions, which I studied before art history, is full of examples that give me a deep inner thrill.

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Theater Review Roundup: Taking in London Stages

March 9, 2011
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Reviews of eight stage productions in London, with two terrific shows noted: American dramatist Bruce Norris’s powerful study of racial relations, Clybourne Park, and Alan Ayckbourn’s 1980 farce Season’s Greetings. Another winner on the West End, the critically acclaimed War Horse, comes to New York next week. By Joann Green Breuer Penelope by Enda Walsh…

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Coming Attractions in Jazz: Early March 2011

March 9, 2011
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[Update: Tomas Fujiwara’s Ryles gig is on Friday, March 11, not Sunday, March 13.] Mardi Gras and Carnaval promise warmer days ahead, two keyboard giants team up, Colombian jazz fusion comes to town, and the Boston Jewish Music Festival gathers a fascinating variety of performers.

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Judicial Review #4: What Is This Thing Called Food?

March 8, 2011
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What is a Judicial Review? It is a fresh approach to creating a conversational, critical space about the arts and culture. This is our fourth session, this time deliberating on the relationship between science and food. It could be foam or gel, popcorn cloud or liquid ham, in the hands of the chefs of avant-garde…

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