So, it turns out there is a window of opportunity to make a sequel to a popular ‘R’ rated movie. Based on the abysmal performance of the latest Sin City, that window is a little less than 10 years. I’d like to tell you that, by being one of the few that held out hope […]

Resident Artist Paula Wing writes program notes for almost all Soulpepper productions. I always read them but I usually forget them the moment I finish. Her notes on A Tender Thing, however, are not quickly forgettable but rather remarkably personal and lovely. She talks about the power of hearing familiar words in a new context […]

 

When I first became aware of the concept behind the first Purge film, I was intrigued. I believed that the idea of a free-for-all crime night would serve well for a horror or action film. At least, that was before I learned that the entire picture was going to be confined inside one house. While […]

 

Caryl Churchill is one of my favorite female playwrights to read. I find her work almost unmanageable onstage because of her feminist tilt and unforgiveable agenda. With that lens, I attended Bad Habit Production’s Top Girls, Churchill’s most iconic and arguably best work, featuring a strong ensemble of Boston’s top female actresses. While the play’s […]

One word can accurately sum up my thoughts during the Graceland finale, and now, after digesting the finale: why?! Another acceptable word is: what? Major spoilers ahead. The root of a lot of problems with the finale (and the season overall) can be found in this interview with Jeff Eastin, the executive producer. Two things […]

New Repertory Theatre presented a Special Encore Extension of their hit production of Imagining Madoff. I couldn’t imagine myself not seeing it for the first time, the second time around. Written by Deborah Margolin, the play explores the intensely intimate (but fictional) encounter between Ponzi-schemer Bernie Madoff and fictitious Jewish Solomon Galkin. The result is […]

 

Director Richard LaGravenese did right by Jason Robert Brown and his off-Broadway masterpiece The Last Five Years. From casting to small script additions to keeping Hollywood out of it and presenting the original songs and structure fully in tact, LaGravenese made a lot of smart calls that make The Last Five Years a beautiful film. […]

Hidden in the middle of a quiet, tree-lined street in Cambridge, there lies a secret gem of artistic work. Touch Art Gallery, an intimate gallery of contemporary international artwork, specializes as a haven for Iranian art and culture. Lush and bewitching paintings line the hall walls and provide a backdrop for lectures, film screenings, and, […]