Michael McKeever and Laura Turnbull in Distracted.By Hap ErsteinWith two parts wisecracks and one part wisdom, Lisa Loomer has aimed her word processor at some of contemporary life’s intriguing social issues.She has illuminated our views on employing Third World nannies (Living Out), body modification rituals (The Waiting Room) and efforts to become … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: April 16-21
Network of Stoppages, by Leora Klaymer Stewart.Art: In time for Earth Day, the Ann Norton Sculpture Gardens is opening an exhibit of works compiled from “recycled, reused and found objects.”Executive Director Cynthia Palmieri selected artists who would be willing to consider the site’s unique location and its natural materials as well as the limitation that a historic home … [Read more...]
Theater feature: For Palm Beach County theaters, a light haul at the Carbonells
Robert Creighton recreates a number from Cagney!,an award-winner Monday night for Florida Stage.(Photo by Tony Schreiber) By Hap Erstein If you are looking for Carbonell statuettes today, look southward. Monday evening’s 34th annual Carbonell Awards ceremony was a low-key, well-produced event that tilted strongly towards theaters in Miami-Dade County. In fact, to two theater … [Read more...]
ArtsBuzz: Boca native’s film of Nepali rebels screens at Delray fest before HBO
Kiran Deol discovered the subject of her first film while studying at Harvard University. “I learned the statistic that 40 percent of the rebel army in Nepal's fighting forces were women,” says Deol, a 2001 graduate of Spanish River High School in Boca Raton. “That statistic had my jaw on the floor. So the idea of showcasing the story of a woman that showed women as agents of … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: March 19-21
Untitled, by Anthony Calicchio.Art: You don’t have to go to art school to be an artist, or even be working at it all the time. Such is the case with Anthony Calicchio, who finds his inspiration in his culinary education and background as a second-generation restaurateur. In Café Frankie, he fashions masterful dishes with his basting brush, and the bistro’s walls are adorned … [Read more...]
Theater review: Caldwell stumbles with unfunny take on Jekyll and Hyde
Amy Elane Anderson, Wynn Harmon and Tom Wahlin Chemical Imbalance.By Hap ErsteinAfter a string of recent successes, Boca Raton’s Caldwell Theatre has stumbled badly with its current production, Chemical Imbalance, a spoof of Victorian theater conventions in general and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde specifically.Artistic director Clive Cholerton’s introductory remarks make it clear … [Read more...]
Theater feature: The Hapsters, 2009 edition
Marcus Bellamy and Holly Shunkeyin Vices: A Love Story.(Photo by Sean Lawson)By Hap ErsteinProducers, who will accept any award, covet them. Actors, who probably do not realize they are rarely complimentary, list them in their program bios. What are they? The annual Hapster Awards, given for achievement -- usually “dubious" -- in theater during the past year.So here are the … [Read more...]
Theater reviews: Brice, greed, and graphic novels
Marya Grandy as Fanny Brice. By Hap ErsteinThe Maltz Jupiter Theatre opens its subscription season with a world premiere musical biography of Ziegfeld Follies comedy star, Fanny Brice. Of course, there already is a perfectly good show about Brice, 1964’s Funny Girl, but it is rarely revived, in part because of its elaborate production numbers and in part because of the … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: Nov. 13-17
Reclining Pepper, by Barry Seidman.Art: Tonight will be a busy one for art openings from Jupiter down to Boca Raton, and Barry Seidman will be part of several of them.The fine art photographer will exhibit images from six of his different series --Beached, Bloomers, Drinks, Art-chi-textures, Hot Peppers and Smoke -- at the Palm Beach Yacht Club tonight and Saturday. His … [Read more...]
Theater review: ‘Sunday’ concert version succeeds at Caldwell
The cast of Sunday in the Park With George, in rehearsal.By Jan Engoren Clive Cholerton, the new artistic director of the Caldwell Theatre in Boca Raton, is nothing if not a risk-taker.If the first two shows he’s produced – including the world premiere of an extraordinary melding of dance and song called Vices: A Love Story – didn’t make that point, his new one surely does: a … [Read more...]