Month: June 2011
At the very least, showing the triumph of reality over inane illusions of perfection doesn’t lead to particularly complex drama; it is sort of like picking off myopic dreamers in a barrel.
Read MoreThe Boston Early Music Festival is THE place for performers to be heard. And there are enough good programs, between the big Jordan Hall concerts, the two operas, a Family Day program, the mini-festivals for organ and keyboard, fringe concerts at at odd hours of the day and late night, for everyone.
Read MoreHow many painters were taught by Rembrandt? How big was his school? Well, that is a matter for debate — to echo Donald Rumsfeld, there are the known unknowns. Then there are the unknown unknowns
Read MoreFrench writer Jacques Jouet is a critic, playwright, novelist, and short story writer. His novella “Upstaged” is an ingenious comedy about theatrical transformation that runs with the notion that when art is live anything might go, that perhaps Pirandello’s six characters in search of an author didn’t go far enough and come up with a better play amongst themselves.
Read MoreIn India, dosas are cooked on a griddle in the street, as well as in restaurants and homes. As street food goes, the dosa gets high marks. It’s not junk, and it tastes great. The Dosa Factory in Central Square, subtitled “Indian Street Food,” is a hole-in-the-wall–not for an evening of food and talk. But that’s not what street food is. It’s a quick fix, and for these purposes, it’s about as good as it gets.
Read MoreYour reaction to PigPen Theatre Company’s “The Mountain Song” will depend on how much whimsical Americana you can stomach
Read MoreThis is adversarial criticism, with an eye on the martyred, fueled by grievances political and aesthetic — the return of the repressed as the comeuppance for the comfortable. No wonder Roberto Bolaño’s reviews garnered him fierce detractors as well as admirers.
Read MoreHonors for a Boston jazz institution and distinguished guests joining the Makanda Project highlight New England jazz in June, along with piano duos, CD releases, visitors from New Orleans and Senegal, and a genuine supergroup.
Read MoreThere are wonderful, beautiful things about The Tree of Life. But despite being innovative and important, despite inspiring awe, it envisions a kind of transcendent greatness that it itself does not quite embody. Tree of Life. Directed by Terrence Malick. By Taylor Adams. Nothing if not prophetic, director Terrence Malick quotes from The Book of…
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Arts Commentary: Can Criticism Be Too Positive Too Often?
How much do you really know about a critic if all you have on record is what he or she likes and why? At some point staying mum about the negative looks less like tenderhearted support or good manners and more like cowardice or a lack of seriousness. By Bill Marx The news that veteran,…
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