I was intrigued but not impressed by the Orion Ensemble in their early days. Their unconventional mix of instruments–violin (Florentina Ramniceanu), viola (Marlise Klein), cello (Judy Stone), clarinet (Kathryne Pirtle), and piano (Diana Schmuck)–allowed for flexibility in repertoire, and their all-female lineup was something of a novelty a decade ago. But they didn’t always play […]
Tag: Vol. 32 No. 8
Issue of Nov. 21 – 27, 2002
Posted inArts & Culture
Music Notes: whoever makes the most noise wins
Growing up in quaint, historic Fairfield County, Connecticut, was awful, says Tim Aher. “I was alienated in this way that was so profound it couldn’t be reduced to some weird group-politics thing. So I spent a lot of time in my room woodshedding on the guitar and listening to metal.” In his senior year of […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Horse Country
Horse Country, Alchymia Theatre. Ever since Beckett’s Waiting for Godot opened in Paris in 1953, dozens of playwrights have attempted to comment on the emptiness of modern life by having characters hang out on desolate stages and talk on and on. A few of the brilliant ones–Harold Pinter, David Mamet, Tom Stoppard–have managed to both […]
Posted inNews & Politics
It Could Happen to You
Her license plate was stolen. She reported it. And then things got really bad.
Posted inArts & Culture
Over the River and Through the Woods
Over the River and Through the Woods, Attic Playhouse. Joe DiPietro’s comedy is so generic it should be preserved in a time capsule–a 1962 time capsule, that is, though the play opened off-Broadway in 1998. This story of a 29-year-old bachelor from Hoboken whose four grandparents oppose his relocation to Seattle hits all the buttons, […]
Posted inArts & Culture
The Altruists/The Altruists
The Altruists, Boxer Rebellion Theater, and The Altruists, Mary-Arrchie Theatre Company. Nicky Silver’s satirical look at the subculture of professional activism, now being offered in two productions, seems especially painful in light of recent political developments. Just what we need: a play that sets up a clique of crypto-rich kids as poster children for the […]
Posted inNews & Politics
Friendly. In a Take-the-Money-if-You-Know-What’s-Good-for-You Kind of Way./News Bites
Friendly. In a Take-the-Money-if-You-Know-What’s-Good-for-You Kind of Way. Once again someone has begged RedEye to cease and desist–and this time it’s not a media critic. A Los Angeles attorney says that if RedEye doesn’t disappear the Tribune Company will be socked with a trademark-infringement suit. It’s the name that has to go. Something about RedEye as […]
Posted inArts & Culture
MC Trachiotomy
If you’re not interested in feeling anything but confused, New Orleans’s MC Trachiotomy will rock your world. On …W/Love From Tahiti (Bulb) his sound collages are so crude you can practically hear the Scotch tape holding together his splices of drippy fox-trot music, hilariously lame slow-jam beats, and samples from The Jerk. The “melodies” are […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Polish Film Festival in America
The 14th annual Polish Film Festival in America, produced by the Society for Arts, continues Friday, November 22, through Saturday, November 30. Screenings are at the Society for Arts, 1112 N. Milwaukee. Tickets are $7; passes, available for $40 (five screenings) and $80 (twelve screenings), are good for all programs. For more information call 773-486-9612. […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Animal Lovers’ Project
Animal Lovers’ Project, Hundredth Monkey, at the Theatre Building Chicago, through December 1. This string of multimedia vignettes by Hundredth Monkey and artistic director Jesse Richards celebrates and mourns various interactions between animals and humans. Videotaped interviews with animal caretakers–pet rescuers, global conservationists, even a psychic–anchor the production while songs, percussion, and interpretive dance played […]
Posted inNews & Politics
Islam Against Ignorance
Amir Ali can’t wait for the world to rediscover its Islamic roots. He calls Abraham a great man for preparing the world for the prophet Muhammad. But around the 13th century, Ali says, someone brought hypocrisy into the mix and the prophet’s message got corrupted. Islam has had an image problem ever since. “We’re supposed […]
Posted inArts & Culture
In Print: talent, tragedy, and an inside-the-park grand slam
John Theodore was working as a news and sports producer at WGN when news of the death of former Cubs first baseman Eddie Waitkus came over the wire in the fall of 1972. As a student at the University of Illinois, Theodore had read Bernard Malamud’s 1952 novel The Natural, whose hero, Roy Hobbs, is […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Interview With the Assassin
I was the perfect sucker for this DV feature about the JFK assassination: writer-director Neil Burger, making his feature debut, presents his video as a docudrama about the late Walter Ohlinger, an elderly ex-marine who came forward in the late 90s claiming to have been the second gunman in Dealey Plaza, and while I was […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Dead Aim
Justin Hayford reviews Brett Neveu’s 2002 drama Eric LaRue at A Red Orchid Theatre.