One could seemingly throw a rock in any direction recently and hit a musical tribute act in South Florida. Which often doesn’t seem like a bad idea, especially when considering the numerous ones honoring artists and bands that are still actively recording and touring themselves. But New York City quartet The PreZence (www.facebook.com/ThePrezence), in offering “An Authentic … [Read more...]
Archives for May 2021
The World of Anna Sui: Star designer gets her own universe at Lauderdale museum
By Sandra Schulman Downtown New York City designer darling Anna Sui hit town at just the right time. Born in the suburbs of Detroit, Sui was drawn to New York’s cultural underground at an insanely creative time in the 1970s, where fashion, photography, art, music and design were all going out clubbing every night. She joined the party with her first collection in 1981, … [Read more...]
Dramaworks emerging from lockdown with robust 2021-22 season
Early last year, when the pandemic we have come to know as COVID-19 first hit, disrupting the nation’s live theaters, closing their doors and halting their seasons, Bill Hayes of Palm Beach Dramaworks did the opposite of almost every other non-profit stage company. “One thing I had noticed very early on is many non-profits were immediately soliciting for funds,” says the … [Read more...]
Glory of ancient Andean civilizations coming to Boca Museum in October
The great cultures of the Andes lasted for thousands of years high in the mountains of Peru before being brought down by Spanish invaders intent on conquest. It is a story that has been told many times to travelers who have visited the region, including Boca Raton Museum of Art director Irvin Lippman, who climbed to the ruins of the citadel of Machu Picchu in 1980 and found … [Read more...]
The art of the dazzle: Costume designer brings flair to Cornell exhibit
Costumes by award-winning costume designer Sean De Freitas are on display in the Cornell Art Museum in downtown Delray Beach, running through the summer. Filling two galleries with nine original and ornate costumes, this is an opportunity and respite from the year of COVID-19, says Cornell Art Museum director and curator Melanie Johanson. “His over-the-top designs bring … [Read more...]
‘Enfant Terrible’: Biopic of Fassbinder focuses on his evil, not his art
Of the three major postwar German filmmakers — Werner Herzog, Wim Wenders and Rainer Werner Fassbinder — the latter presents the most fecund material for a biopic. A gay man in a time when it was dangerous and transgressive to be one, Fassbinder was also a drug addict, an alcoholic and a workaholic, completing more than 40 films, two television series and 24 plays in less … [Read more...]
Old Masters influence new quarantine in Dennis show at Gavlak
By Sandra Schulman Locking down in an art studio is old hat for artists, so the quarantine imposed by COVID-19 was just more fuel for the creative fire. For artist Marc Dennis, who lives and works in Brooklyn, it was a time to look back to look at the now. In his hyper-realist style, he found inspiration not only in the images of the Old Masters such as Caravaggio and … [Read more...]
When creativity is all there is: Self-taught Florida artists fill fountain of originality
A period of self-examination surely transpired during the COVID-induced pause on doing business and might be responsible for art institutions’ renewed focus on racism, criminal justice, gender equality and immigration. In the case of Boca Raton Museum of Art, it has led to a spectacular celebration of diversity and inclusivity. You are welcome, says the self-taught … [Read more...]
Fine Delray Playhouse cast mounts touching ‘Steel Magnolias’
By Dale King Steel Magnolias is a fact-based story focusing on women, their inner fortitude, outward traits and inner abilities to handle humor, tragedy and all of life’s glitches, big and small. It focuses on a group of lady friends in a small Louisiana town who are not exactly Southern belles, but they sure know how to have a good time. The play, by Robert Harling and … [Read more...]
In ‘Percy vs. Goliath,’ film finds worthy fighter in Walken
The thing about Christopher Walken is that, like Nicolas Cage and other personality actors who have settled into comfortable self-parody, he always seems to be playing Christopher Walken. This perception is reinforced with every supporting role or cameo appearance in whatever example of disposable studio dross he can fit into his seriously insane working schedule, to the tune … [Read more...]