This hour-plus of insidious, challenging weirdness lands its punch squarely in the gut.
Read More »Jon Sobel
Theater Review (NYC Off-Broadway): ‘The Golden Bride’ – National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene Revives a Classic 1920s Operetta
Lovingly reconstructed, this aspirational-fantasy story of Russian shtetl Jews emigrating to America is a fascinating period piece of great historical and cultural interest, as well as a robustly acted and brilliantly sung spectacle of theatrical joy.
Read More »Theater Review (NYC): ‘How to Get Into Buildings’ by Trish Harnetiaux
New Georges' experiment in "exploded view" theater is more of an implosion.
Read More »Music Review: Nirvana – ‘Nirvana’ (New Digital and First Vinyl Editions of ‘Best Of’ Collection)
Nirvana's studio output was so limited that a best-of collection seems almost beside the point – if you were a fan, you have the albums, or at least the last two, and if you're a completist you'd want one of the box sets. Still, 'Nirvana' has sold millions worldwide, and now is a good time to get it in any number of new formats, of which Universal has given us a dizzying variety.
Read More »Theater Review (NYC Off-Broadway): ‘A Wilder Christmas’ – Two One-Act Plays by Thornton Wilder
If you know Thornton Wilder only from 'Our Town' and perhaps 'The Skin of Our Teeth,' the two one-act plays comprising the Peccadillo Theater Company's new production may feel both familiar and strange.
Read More »Language Matters in Life and Business: Gun Rhetoric Control
In sloganeering, clarity must come first.
Read More »Theater Review (NYC): ‘The Bellagio Fountain Has Been Known to Make Me Cry’ by Renee Philippi
Concrete Temple Theatre's new one-act is a well-played Southern gothic in the vein of Tennessee Williams with a magic-realism edge.
Read More »Product Review: The Republic of Tea – Various Tea Varieties
Milk Oolong is a type of Chinese oolong with an aroma and flavor combination that suggests cream, and even, to me, a hint of milk chocolate. After a couple of sips, my palate had adapted to it; after a cup, I was a convert.
Read More »Concert Review: ‘De Noailles Bal Masqué’ – Music of Poulenc and Mark Applebaum (NYC, 12/2/15)
When we think of Surrealism, we think of poetry and visual art, not music. But a surreal evening came to pass nonetheless the other night at the Baryshnikov Arts Center.
Read More »Concert Review: ‘With You Armenia’ – Armenian and Russian Music with Mischa Maisky, Lily Maisky, Alissa Margulis and Elena Lisitsian (NYC, Nov. 30, 2015)
Four musicians including world-famous cellist Mischa Maisky gathered for a concert commemorating the 100th anniversary of the start of the Armenian genocide. Music by Russian and Armenian composers made up a program that asserted the power of art to challenge cruelty and violence.
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