Pianists who play solo concerts, even ones who have made their names in jazz, realize that they're best-served to have some classical acumen because of the inherent recital expectations of an unaccompanied atmosphere. In that regard, New York City-based Fred Hersch arrived at the Arts Garage in Delray Beach well-armed Friday night. The Cincinnati native, who turns 59 on … [Read more...]
Archives for October 2014
Wind quartets stand out at second PB Chamber Music Fest fall program
The composers of the so-called Boston School, with the exception of Leonard Bernstein, are not well-known today, which is unfortunately par for the course for American classical composition in general. But one good reason to know the music of at least one other of the Boston composers, Arthur Berger (1912-2003), could have been heard Saturday night at the Lighthouse ArtCenter … [Read more...]
2014-15 arts preview: The season in Miami art
By Michael Mills Situated, as it is, at the confluence of Caribbean and Latin American cultures, the greater Miami area can’t help being the epicenter of the South Florida art world. Broward and Palm Beach counties may have increasingly vibrant art communities of their own, but Miami-Dade has Art Basel/Miami Beach, as well as the Wynwood Arts District. Here are some expected … [Read more...]
Classic ‘Our Town’ beautifully realized at Dramaworks
By Dale King True to its promise to provide “theater to think about,” Palm Beach Dramaworks opened its 2014-2015 season this past weekend with Thornton Wilder’s unadorned but hauntingly personal play, Our Town. The play, written in 1938, is a delight to the ears and eyes, even though Wilder decreed there be no sets or props. A fine 20-member cast of veteran players and … [Read more...]
‘Men, Women and Children’ too preachy to deserve any likes
Earlier this year in this publication, I forgave Jason Reitman for Labor Day, because every great director delivers a clunker now and then. But after viewing his latest, Men, Women and Children, it seems evident that his Midas touch has turned to lead. Unlike Labor Day, however, Men, Women and Children is a movie of hulking ambition, an attempt to comprehend the 21st-century … [Read more...]
The View From Home 64: Bigfoot, Henry James, higher ed, an Everglades Western, and Hoffman’s last
Willow Creek: Comedian turned cult-film provocateur Bobcat Goldthwait directed this found-footage suspenser (Dark Sky Films, $29.98 Blu-ray, $24.98 DVD) in which Jim and Kelly (Bryce Johnson and Alexie Gilmore), a young, attractive and witty couple, attempt to retrace the treacherous steps of Roger Patterson and Robert Gimlin, who reportedly shot the country’s most-famous … [Read more...]
2014-15 arts preview: The season in Broward County art
By Michael Mills For years the Broward County art community has been eclipsed by Miami-Dade and even Palm Beach County, with their glitzy, high-profile events such as Art Basel Miami Beach and Art Palm Beach. Although Broward doesn’t have a Wynwood-style concentration of galleries and studios, it now has pockets of comparable art activity like FATVillage, North Beach, … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: Oct. 10-12
Theater: “Oh, earth, you’re too wonderful for anyone to realize you,” says Emily Webb in one of the more famous speeches from Thornton Wilder’s 1938 play Our Town. While current taste might find it too sentimental, Wilder’s play has never gone out of fashion, and it remains a classic of the American stage. Its story of nothing simpler than days in the life of a fictional New … [Read more...]
2014-15 arts preview: The season in theater
This will be another season of theater companies on the move, as a couple of Palm Beach County troupes invade Broward. Slow Burn expands to the Broward Center with a separate slate of shows from its productions in West Boca. Also helping to fill the Broward theater vacuum is Outré Theatre Co., which moves permanently in mid-season from Boca Raton to various black box spaces at … [Read more...]
‘Fallsburg’ a personal, poignant look back at Borscht Belt
By Dale King Gone, sadly, are the nostalgic “Borscht Belt” days when visitors to the Catskills used to roar with laughter at comedians named Red, Lenny, Rusty, Mort, Zero and Herschel, among others. Yes, even The Three Stooges and Joan Rivers. Delray Square Performing Arts Center partner Gary Waldman remembers that era well – because he lived it. He and his family were part … [Read more...]