A man tells his friend he lost $27 in Wall Street. The friend replies that he read the stock market news in the paper and asks: “Who got it – Gould or Sage?” This was brave humor in 1900. Jay Gould and Russell Sage were well-known railroad executives at the time. The joke derives from a 1900 cartoon by Louis W. Dalrymple that suggests such powerful financiers controlled … [Read more...]
At Boca Museum, a rich retrospective of an overlooked American master
Aside from the surprising change in her painting style and her death at age 111, the most shocking aspect of Theresa Bernstein is that she painted from a hidden place. The fact that the artist was born in Poland, but insisted on being solely American, comes to light more than once throughout an exhibition at the Boca Raton Museum of Art that celebrates her long artistic … [Read more...]
‘Gabrielle’ a touching coming-of-age story
I challenge you to find even one false note in director Louise Archambault’s Gabrielle, a sweet but unsentimental drama selected by Canada as its entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the recent Oscars. Authenticity is paramount, and the film feels like a documentary most of the time. It’s a fictionalized account of a real-life choir group of developmentally disabled singers, … [Read more...]
Sundays: Age appropriate
By Myles Ludwig I’m on the verge of slinking past 70. And puzzled. I know life is different for me, but aside from the residual effects of certain old wounds I feel when I get out of bed in the morning, I’m not really sure how. Or even if I’m supposed to be sure. I know I passed one big speed bump a couple of years ago and now I’m driving cautiously through a leafy … [Read more...]
Sundays: Entering the Age of Age
By Myles Ludwig Need a new set of knees, a barely used stent to widen that two-lane blacktop to your heart into a six-lane turnpike complete with HOV lane, a turbo-charger for your conservative Golden Companion, or hot Pride Pursuit XL4 ATR scooter? How about a front wheel for your’99 Chevy Walker? Handgrips with neon plastic steamers for your high-speed Rollator or a new … [Read more...]
‘Carnage’ shows parents behaving badly, but still getting laughs
Like her earlier Tony Award-winning comedy Art, playwright Yasmina Reza again explores adults behaving childishly in God of Carnage, which took Broadway by storm in 2009 and looks likely to meet a similarly appreciative audience at Boca Raton’s Caldwell Theatre. After all, there is a universal joy in watching others try to maintain civility and failing miserably. As with her … [Read more...]
Boca Symphonia enters Age of Philippe
The French pianist Philippe Entremont was born in 1934 in Rheims, France, to two musicians, and found fame early, entering the Paris Conservatoire at 12 and winning first prizes in solfège, chamber music and piano performance by the time he was 15. He made his American debut in 1953, and has enjoyed a career as one of the world’s leading pianists, with numerous recordings and … [Read more...]