Film: The Academy Awards nominations were announced on Thursday and the following day, Mustang, France’s entry in the Best Foreign Language Film category opened locally. Actually, it is a co-production of France and Turkey, the story of five young, coltish girls from a seaside Turkish village whose stern grandmother is intent on keeping them virginal until she is able to marry … [Read more...]
Talented cast makes for fine ‘Fantasticks’ at Broward Stage Door
By Dale King Broward Stage Door Theatre in Margate opens its 2015-2016 season with the musical, The Fantasticks, a touching and tender tale mixed with comic touches and some whimsical characters. Overall, the show is fun and entertaining, featuring talented players with excellent voices. They seem to revel in the occasional silliness and a scene of mystical reverie that … [Read more...]
Gallery crawl: Three happening spots in West Palm Beach
By Sandra Schulman A brilliant — in more ways than one — new art installation will be beaming into downtown West Palm Beach from June 4 to July 4 nightly from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. on the Great Lawn. Designed by artist Jen Lewin and presented by the city of West Palm Beach Art in Public Places (AIPP) Program, this concentric, temporary interactive art installment is comprised of … [Read more...]
Master Chorale ends season with engaging concert of Bach, colleagues
Choosing unusual repertoire is something that many listeners and critics desperately want the performing organizations they follow to try now and again, but it sometimes comes with a price. Often, things seem to be chosen because they are particular favorites of a conductor or soloist, or perhaps something less well-known than a composer’s other, really famous work. But … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: April 10-12
Books: For some reason, Palm Beach County has never had a books festival all its own, despite examples to the south in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Key West, but that changes Saturday. At the Norton Museum in West Palm Beach, the one-day festival will include talks from a number of prominent writers and a little bit of celebrity juice. Actor Alan Cumming, whose searing … [Read more...]
Violinist Goulding, composer Zhou team for ACO world premiere
Caroline Goulding is sitting in Finouk, a café on the Grabenstrasse in the picturesque German town of Kronberg im Taunus, near Frankfurt. The young American violinist is there in late March with her recital partner, German pianist Danae Dörken, and they’re on their way to rehearsal for concerts next month in Bautzen and Berlin as well as prepping for a recording session. But … [Read more...]
Our drug policy and its costs, scrupulously researched
The war on drugs has spawned more crime, violence, addiction and suffering — the exact opposite of what was intended. That is the theme of this provocative and timely book by British author Johann Hari, who spent three years researching the subject. In 1914, Congress banned the sale of heroin and cocaine, although doctors could continue to prescribe these drugs. But that … [Read more...]
Superb Nielsen, dazzling soloist highlights for Danish orchestra
It was a night of rising stars and a visit from some terrific out-of-town guests, and one of the biggest beneficiaries was an underrated great composer. The Danish National Symphony Orchestra came to Miami’s Knight Concert Hall on Saturday night in the middle of its American tour, bringing the young Australian violinist Ray Chen and the Romanian conductor Cristian Măcelaru … [Read more...]
Youthful Parker Quartet dazzles in Flagler opener
Running out of superlatives to describe the Parker Quartet is a hazard music critics must face after hearing their excellent performances. Tuesday saw them at The Flagler Museum at Whitehall in its music series season opener, which was sold out. Is it any wonder the public takes a liking to them after experiencing the ho-hum attitude presented by some of the older established … [Read more...]
Weekend arts picks: Dec. 19-21
Music: The Symphonia Boca Raton has a busy season ahead of it, and it begins tonight and this weekend with three performances of Baroque music led by David Kim, concertmaster of the Philadelphia Orchestra. He’ll lead a performance of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons on a program that also includes the Double Violin Concerto of Bach (with violinist Mei Mei Luo) and the Christmas Concerto … [Read more...]