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Off-Broadway Review: ON THE SPOT: AN IMPROVISED MUSICAL EXPERIENCE
HITS THE SPOT As someone who has logged many hours crawling up 10th Avenue in a Megabus, the bright purple-and-white Y2K-esque signage of Yotel has always been intriguing landmark. Since I am not a European tourist, I thought I would never have the opportunity to experience whatever wonders lay beyond its blocky bubble letters and…
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DVD Review: MAFIOSA (MHz Releasing)
A SERIES YOU CAN’T REFUSE For certain, we in America are well-acquainted with the Sicilian-born gangster clans first labeled The Black Hand (in the late 19th century), then La Cosa Nostra, and finally simplified as the Mafia. We’ve seen them in films and novels and theater. But most of us are not acquainted with the…
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CD Review: RAMEAU: LE TEMPLE DE LA GLORIE (Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, Nicholas McGegan)
ORIGINAL OPERA SHOULD BE SEEN, NOT JUST HEARD I suspected even before opening this new recording that there was trouble ahead on what should have been a fascinating effort. The “world premiere recording” of the “original 1745 version” of Jean-Philippe Rameau’s Le Temple de la Gloire is a must for the collector (and you know…
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Film Review: ROUNDERS (directed by John Dahl)
ROUNDERS Watching a game of poker has always been appealing. When it comes to films based on poker, Rounders always appears at the top of the list. The 1998 movie focuses on two guys who travel throughout the country looking for high-stakes poker games in hopes of winning a significant amount of money to settle…
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CD Review: LIFE (Igor Levit, solo piano)
LIFE-AFFIRMING Along with Daniil Trifonov, pianist Igor Levit’s concerts and CDs must recall what it first felt like to encounter Gilels and Richter, two other super-talented Russian pianists who brought excitement to classical music. When I saw Igor Levit live, one of the most striking aspects for this sensitive and strong pianist was the fascinating combination of…
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DVD Review: NEANDERTHAL (PBS)
NEXT TIME SOMEONE CALLS YOU NEANDERTHAL, TAKE IT AS A COMPLIMENT How fascinating to learn that just about anyone not directly descended from sub-Saharan Africa has anywhere from 1-4% Neanderthal in their DNA. (As luck would have it, I have three percent – who knew?!) And just who were these cousins to Homo Sapiens (us,…
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Dance Preview: THE GREAT TAMER (Dimitris Papaioannou at Royce Hall, UCLA)
A CREATOR WHO CAN’T BE TAMED Dimitris Papaioannou, who uses the human body to create vignettes brimming with humor, horror, circus-like stunts and optical illusions, has conceived, visualized, and directed The Great Tamer, a visually stunning and surreal pageant that grapples with the meaning of life, the mystery of death, time, destruction and reconstruction. This surrealistic and…
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DVD Review: CAíN (Seasons 1 & 2/MHz Releasing)
RAISING CAíN Set in the port city of Marseilles, France, this captivating series, here in two seasons (2012 and 2014) — with four more seasons to come on DVD — uses an able-bodied actor, Bruno Debrandt, to play a homicide detective who was shot and crippled while chasing a suspect, and now lives — and…
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Off-Broadway Review: WICKED CLONE, OR HOW TO DEAL WITH THE EVIL: THE CINEMA MUSICAL (Indiggo Twins at the John Cullum Theatre)
SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY CLONES It’s hard to react to the details of this show with anything but resigned bemusement. So, while some of what I’m about to say may sound like I hated Wicked Clone, let me be clear: It’s top-to-bottom insane, and I loved every minute of it. (Well, every minute might be…
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Film Review: ROMA (directed by Alfonso Cuarón )
Y TU ROMA TAMBIEN Written, directed, photographed, and edited by Alfonso Cuarón (Y Tu Mamá También, Gravity) Roma is not only one of the best films of the year but the decade. There are so many things that I want to say about it, but I won’t hesitate to call it an artistic masterpiece. You…
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Chicago Theater Review: LA RUTA (Steppenwolf)
A RUTA WAKENING A play can be a cry for help — against a persistent peril, a former and future danger, a mindset that makes heartbreak. La Ruta, a Steppenwolf Theatre world premiere by Isaac Gomez, is all these and more. This 95-minute protest play both exalts and eulogizes Las Descomicidas, the disappeared Mexican women who…
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Dance & Music Preview: HUBBARD STREET DANCE CHICAGO & THIRD COAST PERCUSSION (The Wallis)
HUBBA-HUBBA-HUBBARD As one of the world’s most important contemporary dance companies, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago encompasses a vast array of techniques and forms, as well as an understanding of abstract artistry and the emotional nuances of movement. With an exuberant, athletic, and innovative repertoire, Hubbard Street presents performances that inspire, yes, but also challenge how…
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Los Angeles Music Preview: DECK THE HALL HOLIDAY CONCERTS, 2018 (Disney Hall)
EVERYTHING YOU NEED IN ONE DECKED-OUT HALL The Los Angeles Philharmonic’s  Deck the Hall  Holiday Concerts  at Disney Hall are just around the corner, and the variety this year is awesome. Be  enchanted by the ever-popular  Holiday Sing-Along (Dec. 22 at 11:30am and 2:30pm), hosted this year by Melissa Peterman, who wows us every year at the Sing-A-Long Sound of…
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Film Review: THE GAMBLER (directed by Rupert Wyatt)
A GOOD GAMBLE Remade from the 1974 film, The Gambler (2014) is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. Wholly different than the original, it sure has the needed charisma to do that. Made under the direction of excellent filmmaker Rupert Wyatt, the script was reportedly offered to many top directors, including Martin Scorsese….
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Film Review: MARY POPPINS RETURNS (directed by Rob Marshall)
NOT SUCH A JOLLY HOLIDAY It may be sacrilege to slam an American classic — or rather, a made-to-be-foolproof sequel based on a classic film — but I’ll take my chances. While watching Mary Poppins Returns I found myself fidgety — which I knew could mean only one thing: I was bored. Very, very bored. This isn’t…
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Theater Review: LOVE ACTUALLY LIVE (The Wallis)
ACTUALLY MAGICAL I didn’t have any idea what to expect from this hybrid theatrical invention. It employs scenes from the beloved Richard Curtis film Love Actually, live musicians (who often arrive onstage as characters), and stage actors who act out some of the scenes and then sing songs from the soundtrack as well as a…
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CD Preview: MICHAEL LONGORIA: MERRY CHRISTMAS DARLING (Broadway Records)
LET YOUR HEARTH BE GAY Celebrate the holiday season with Broadway Records first Christmas album, Michael Longoria: Merry Christmas Darling. Best known for his star turn on Broadway as Frankie Valli in Jersey Boys, he has amassed 15 numbers for this romantic holiday album with a throwback 60s vibe but a modern man-to-man sensibility. His original Christmas…
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Theater Review: A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM (Chicago Shakespeare)
A SPORADIC DREAM There’s an epiphany near the end of Shakespeare’s celebration A Midsummer Night’s Dream when the mixed-up quartet of wayward lovers who’ve been confoundedly mashed up over the course of a long July night discover they’re awake! They jump for joy over the unearned deliverance. It’s an absolutely natural response to the very complex “dream” from…
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Off-Broadway Review: BITTER GREENS (59E59)
A BITTER PILL TO SWALLOW It is said that every playwright’s first play needs to be about themselves before they are able to move onto more expansive material. This maxim seems to hold true for Clea DeCrane’s Bitter Greens, now playing at 59E59, which covers the well-trod territory of privileged post-collegiate angst with skill, if…
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Tour Theater Review: CIRQUE DREAMS HOLIDAZE (Chicago Theatre)
IT’LL LEAVE YOU DAZED AND CIRQUE-FUSED Neil Goldberg has a fine formula for his fantastic franchise. His eleven Cirque Dreams spectaculars feature ever-changing processions of dazzling celebrants strutting to seasonal songs, amazing acrobatics, kaleidoscopic set pieces, and a charming touch of audience participation. With five troupes performing in 40 venues, Cirque Dreams Holidaze is a very busy…
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