ARTS Pick: Of Mice and Men

John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men takes the stage at London’s National Theatre as part of its HD broadcast series. The play is a powerful and raw depiction of struggles during the Great Depression and the heart-wrenching bonds of friendship. James Franco and Chris O’Dowd step out of their comedic comfort zones to play two […]

ARTS Pick: The Oratorio Society’s Christmas at The Paramount

The longest running local community chorus returns for what has become an annual holiday highlight: The Oratorio Society’s Christmas at The Paramount. Celebrate with song as conductor Michael Slon (below) leads a program of classic favorites that soars to its highest point during an audience sing-along in this spirited seasonal event that joins area school […]

ARTS Pick: Ellis Paul

Over his 20-year career, singer-songwriter Ellis Paul has released 19 records, received 14 Boston Music awards (along with a slew of other honors and decorations) and played close to 200 shows per year across the globe. With a leading role in the folk revival of the ’90s, Paul is often compared to legendary predecessors Bob […]

ARTS Pick: The Country Christmas Show

Sarah White and Siân Richards are back with their annual songbird tradition, The Country Christmas Show. The angel voiced duo welcomes Peyton Tochterman to the tinseled stage for this year’s tribute to the season, as well as long-standing favorite Jim Waive and the Young Divorcees, who always rock our stocking’s off. And if we’re lucky, […]

Film review: Chris Rock comes close in Top Five

Top Five is not Chris Rock’s first time in the director’s chair, but it is the first time he’s seemed truly comfortable sitting there. For far too long, Rock’s film output has been a pale reflection of his fiery, fearless stand-up persona, consisting mostly of awkwardly paced PG-13 fare or misguided romantic farce. Not that […]

No despair: Live Arts soars with Les Misérables

I was 10 years old when I saw Les Misérables on Broadway, and my dislike of the show was immediate and intense. I wasn’t prepared for my total immersion into a world where destitute mothers became prostitutes, innocent men served on chain gangs and girls my age toiled barefoot in the streets. Oh, and then […]

Go forth and multiply: Sons of Bill sets out to conquer the world

James Wilson pulls out a copy of the new Sons of Bill record Love and Logic—on vinyl of course. “Do you have a record player? Listen to it straight through, sitting in the dark,” he said. Ha. Right. Good one. Should that be backwards or forwards? James, the Sons’ de facto frontman, is not laughing. […]

Return of the Sugar Plum Fairy: Charlottesville Ballet steps up in holiday tradition

When it comes to holiday traditions, some wait with bated breath for annual broadcasts of the 1964 stop motion animation classic, “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.” Others prefer rom-coms with predictably heartwarming plots. However, no December is complete without The Nutcracker. And though I’m still entranced by the 1977 version featuring the great Mikhail Baryshnikov, I […]