Only an incurable optimist like Jerry Herman would write that “The best of times is now,” as he did in his enduring hit musical, La Cage aux Folles. He wrote it in 1983, in the midst of the Reagan administration, as the AIDS epidemic was on the increase. That’s how much of an optimist he is. The song appears in the first gay-themed musical to hit Broadway, a number that … [Read more...]
Letter From Paris: The accidental flâneuse
By Chloe Elder In 21st-century society, the onetime symbol of Paris, the flâneur, is nearly extinct. In its native city, the numbers are dangerously low. Conservation efforts have done little to protect those who remain in the wild and all attempts to breed in captivity have been futile. And awkward. The flâneur is one who strolls, wanders, and traverses the city streets … [Read more...]