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by Liza Weisstuch |
December 15, 2008
What’s so funny about Boston? We can think of a few things (and no,
we’re not talking about how early the T stops running, or
outoftowners’ sorry imitations of the local accent). But if we told
you in print, it wouldn’t be half as sidesplitting as what funny
folks will say tonight when they turn the Paradise Rock Club (967 Comm Ave, Boston, 617.562.8800) into a laughin at the Greater Boston Alternative Comedy Festival.
“If anybody would like to see comedians tell jokes about anything
besides relationships and cubicles, this is the event,” says Robbie
Roadsteamer, an organizer who’ll also perform. He’ll be joined by
Shane Mauss, winner of HBO’s Comedy Festival; Charlestown’s Walsh
Brothers; Chris Coxen; the Anderson Comedy Group; and Bethany Van
Delft. Expect everything you’ve been taught not to expect. Doors open
at 7 p.m. For tickets ($15), visit www.livenation.com.
...
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by Liza Weisstuch |
December 11, 2008
As rational and comforting as the five stages of grief identified by
Elizabeth Kübler-Ross may be, when it strikes, rationalization goes
out the window. We’ve known songs, books, and movies that strive to
capture the anguish and despair, but few have come close to Joan
Didion’s crystalline prose in her recent memoir, The Year of Magical Thinking,
which chronicled the way her world was upended when her longtime
husband and fellow scribe, John Gregory Dunne, died of a heart attack
at home and their daughter fell mysteriously ill. (In the time during
which she adapted the book into a one-woman play, their daughter died.)
But as she did in her essays on San Salvador decades ago, she again
shows us that casting a reporter’s eye on catastrophe helps the spirit
prevail. The Lyric Stage (140 Clarendon Street, Boston,
617.585.5680)
offers the New England premiere of this touching work. Local thespian
Nancy E. Carroll plays Didion. Get tickets ($25 to $50) at www.lyricstage.org or call the box office at 617.585.5678. ...
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by Liza Weisstuch |
December 11, 2008
Sleigh bells ring, but we’re not listening. Not to sound too
bah-humbug, but the whole
laughing-all-the-way/chestnuts-roasting/mommy-kissing-Santa-Claus thing
can get a little wearisome year after year. That’s why we’re always
grateful to Tony Williams of BalletRox for his annual Urban Nutcracker
extravaganza. Ain’t no Christmas Miracle like a Christmas miracle set
to the music of Duke Ellington. Williams, a vet of the Joffrey Ballet,
Boston Ballet, and others, infuses the holiday staple with a diverse
array of music and dance styles; his lively interpretation features
professional dancers, like Khalid Hill, an original performer in Bring in ’Da Noise, Bring in ’Da Funk, and about 75 local children. Watch as the Sugar Plum Fairies bring some rhythm and sass to John Hancock Hall (180 Berkeley Street, Boston). For tickets ($20 to $55) call 877.548.3237 or visit www.ticketfusion.com. ...
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by Liza Weisstuch |
November 24, 2008
Malcolm Gladwell had us at The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference.
We love staying on top of the latest trends, but he took the sport of
trend-spotting to a level of social science that makes more sense than
the revival of neon. When he wrote Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking, the New Yorker scribe secured his reputation as someone who’s equal parts intellectual Young Turk and screwball wit. Fast Company
put it best when the magazine proclaimed him “a rock star, a spiritual
leader, a stud.” Now the Harvard Book Store is bringing him to town to
discuss his latest volume, Outliers: The Story of Success. He’ll speak at the First Parish Church (3 Church Street, Cambridge) tonight at 7 p.m. Tickets are $5 and available in person or by phone at the Harvard Book Store (1256 Mass Ave, Cambridge, 617.661.1515). Blink and you’ll miss it.
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by Liza Weisstuch |
November 24, 2008
Ten years ago in October, Matthew Shepard, a gay college student, was
beaten and left for dead tied to a fence in Laramie, Wyoming. That
tragedy made him into something of a symbol of the victims of anti-gay
violence and the gross inequities that still exist in our country. His
martyrdom was solidified by Moises Kaufman, who led the NYC-based
Tectonic Theater Project as they created a stunning piece of theatrical
journalism based on numerous interviews they conducted with citizens of
Laramie. The show has been produced almost 5000 times. To mark the
decade that’s passed and the aftermath that still lingers, Bad Habit
Productions is staging The Laramie Project, which
features music by local musicians. Eight actors portray more than 70
characters discussing the brutal murder and its impact at the Plaza Black Box Theatre
(Boston Center for the Arts, 539 Tremont Street, Boston). Get tickets
($25; $15 for student-rush tickets at the box office two hours before
curtain) at www.bostontheatrescene.com or 617.933.8600....
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by Liza Weisstuch |
November 24, 2008
If
it looks like a Styrofoam cup and it squishes like a Styrofoam cup,
it’s a Styrofoam cup, right? We thought so, too; then we saw the Tara Donovan exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Art (100
Northern Avenue, Boston, 617.478.3100) and we haven’t been able to look
at everyday objects the same way since. With those Styrofoam cups, for
instance, Donovan constructed a suspended, dramatic biomorphic,
bubble-like sculpture. Buttons are the building blocks of a coral
reef-like landscape that appears to have been inspired by a Bahamas
snorkeling bender. There are also waist-high block-like sculptures, one
of incalculable numbers of pins and another of toothpicks. So
innovative and poetic is Donovan’s work that she scored the coveted
MacArthur “genius” grant just before the show opened at the ICA in
October. See the stuff you throw out transformed into dazzling
compositions. It’s included with your admission ticket ($12; $10 for
students and seniors) to the museum. ...
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by Staff@Night |
November 14, 2008
InsideOut: The Museum School Art Sale (formerly known as the
December Sale) has a new name, but its goal is the same: to showcase
the work of Boston’s talented artists and raise funds for Museum School
scholarships to help put other aspiring artists through school. It’s
also a great place for fledgling art collectors to pick up some unique,
locally produced pieces. The sale runs November 19 through 23 (noon to
8 p.m. Wednesday through Thursday; noon to 6 p.m. Friday through
Sunday) on the first floor of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
(230 the Fenway, Boston, 617.369.3204), with a kick-off celebration
from 5 to 8 p.m. on November 19. Admission to this rotating show of
more than 4000 pieces — including everything from paintings,
photographs, and prints to jewelry and sculpture — is free; a $50
purchase at the sale gets you same-day complimentary admission for two
to the MFA. ...
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by Liza Weisstuch |
November 14, 2008
We’ve never spent an entire night in the Museum of Fine Arts
(465 Huntington Avenue, Boston, 617.267.9300), so we can’t tell you
about any ancient Egyptian ghosts or bronze ballerina sculptures that
pirouette to life when the doors are locked. But there is one long-held
secret we can reveal: the MFA has one of America’s earliest,
historically significant collection of photos. Most were shot by
legendary photographers, but they’re often packed away in storage. This
month, however, that secret is a cause for public excitement as the
museum unveils its new Herb Ritts Gallery, which will be dedicated to
the art of the camera. The inaugural exhibit, “Photographic Figures,”
focuses on about 75 works by a veritable all-star team of sharp
shooters, including Man Ray, Alfred Stieglitz, Lee Friedlander, and
Ritts himself. Photo-journalism, surrealism, modernism, landscapes, and
nudes are just a few of the picture-perfect themes on display. You’ll
be camera-ready with admission to the MFA ($17; $15 for students over
18). ...
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by Liza Weisstuch |
November 14, 2008
Long before there was Xbox and Wii, there was Atari and Game Boy. Given
the countless hours you played Ms. Pac Man, Space Invaders, and Super
Mario Brothers, the electronic blips, beeps, and crescendos provided
what could loosely be classified as the soundtrack of your life. Now
Tommy Tallarico, who’s recognized in the Guinness Book of World Records
for his vast repertory of compositions for video games, has created Video Games Live, which comes to the Citi Performing Arts Center
(270 Tremont Street, Boston, 617.482.9393) tonight. The symphonic
concert meets music event for drum-and-bass-heads meets light show
features orchestras and choirs performing some tunes you’re sure to
recognize in ways you never could have imagined. Think: Mozart at the
arcade. Score your tickets ($35.50 to $65) at www.citicenter.org, or
call 866.348.9738. ...
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by Liza Weisstuch |
November 14, 2008
The ragtag bunch of guys that gathers in a dingy Dublin home in Conor McPherson’s The Seafarer is
there to celebrate Christmas Eve just like everyone else celebrates it:
drinking. And that’s about as traditional as this crew gets. As the
evening wears on and the scruffy lads sink deeper into a whisky-soaked
haze, a poker game of epic proportions take place and one among the
group reveals what we’ll call an otherworldly identity. The stakes go
through the roof. With McPherson’s penchant for incisive language and
psychological evisceration, this dark holiday from hell sparkles like
tinsel. The Speakeasy Stage Company is presenting the Boston premiere at the Calderwood Pavilion
(Boston Center for the Arts, 527 Tremont Street, Boston, 617.933.8600.)
For tickets ($14 to $50), call 617.933.8600 or visit
www.speakeasystage.com....
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by Liza Weisstuch |
November 03, 2008
 Chicago-based artist Juan Angel Chavez is not only a visionary, he’s what we’d call a soundary, too. The “Speaker Project” he created at MassArt
(621 Huntington Avenue, Boston. 617.879.7333) is a room-size
installation. At the center is a colossal sculpture constructed of
found objects including billboards, glass bottles, wood panels, and
traffic cones. Look closely and it’s like a speaker of a scale that
belongs on a pimp-mobile the size of Fenway Park. Listen closely and
you’ll hear that it behaves like one, too. The sculpture can fit a
five-person ensemble, and up to 250 people can fit in the room.
Performers of all sorts — DJs, spoken-word artists, jazz musicians,
rock bands, and others — are making appearances in the structure. It
may be the coolest thing to happen to music since the iPod. Explore the
soundscape; the trip is free. For more info and show listings, visit speakerproject.livejournal.com. ...
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by Shaula Clark |
November 03, 2008
It’s a long way to tipperary, but not the Boston Irish film festival
When
he first launched the Boston Irish Film Festival in 1999, fest director
(and ex-Dubliner) Peter Flynn had no idea that his humble screening
series would grow into an annual two-week extravaganza boasting a
Magners sponsorship (it’s now called the Magners Irish Film Festival),
world premieres, and such marquee celebrities as Aidan Quinn and
Gabriel Byrne. Flynn gives us the lowdown on this year’s festival,
taking place November 13 through 24 (see www.irishfilmfestival.com for
details). ...
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by Liza Weisstuch |
October 17, 2008
If Quentin Tarantino, the Coen Brothers, and Sean O’Casey teamed up to
write a play, it might not be as gruesome and sidesplitting as The Lieutenant of Inishmore.
Martin McDonagh’s award-winning bloodbath essentially chronicles the
emotional roller coaster that is the daily grind of being a terrorist
in a remote, rural Irish town. The troubles all start when two of the
primary sadistic brute’s sidekicks find his pet kitty dead. The rage
and frantic scheming it triggers will make any Halloween fright fest
look like a stroll on the beach. And there’s Irish wit, too. Catch the
New England premiere at the New Repertory Theatre (Arsenal
Center for the Arts, 321 Arsenal Street, Watertown, 617.923.8487).
Tickets ($35 to $55; $13 student rush) are available at www.newrep.org or 617.923.8487. ...
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by Shaula Clark |
October 17, 2008
Stairway to hell For acne-ridden high-school wallflowers, one word was enough to inspire terror: prom. Apparently, the folks at the Coolidge Corner Theatre
(290 Harvard Street, Brookline, 617.734.2500) can commiserate, hence
their decision to devote their annual 12hour frightflick marathon to
the horrors of the annual soirée. The crown jewel in this gory tiara
will be Prom Night, the 1980 classic starring Jamie Lee Curtis. On
October 31 at 11 p.m., undead emcee extraordinaire J. Cannibal and his
busty Black Cat Burlesque girls will kick off the evening with “awkward
prom awesomeness” galore. We’ve got chills already. ...
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by Liza Weisstuch |
October 17, 2008
We feel no shame in telling you that, regardless of Tom Brady’s sorry condition, we cannot wait for the
Super Bowl. But there’s a long, bleak winter between now and February 1, and we have to get our clever
commercial fix before then. Thank goodness for the annual engagement of British Advertising Films at the
Museum of Fine Arts (465 Huntington Avenue, Boston, 617.369.3306). We hear David Beckham makes a
cameo in one, and a gorilla with a penchant for percussion shows up in another. (We should introduce him
to a little pink drumming bunny we know.) What are they trying to sell? Figuring it out is part of the fun of a
good advert. All we can tell you is that you’ll see a whole bunch of them for the low, low ticket price of $10
($8/students and seniors). Hurry! It’s an offer you can’t refuse! Check www.mfa.org/film for show times. ...
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