reviews
West Side Stories, including the latest Steven Spielberg and Tony Kushner film
December 20, 2021Recorded just days after West Side Story opened on Broadway in September 1957, Columbia Records producer Goddard Lieberson’s brilliant original Broadway cast recording was my first acquaintance with Leonard Bernstein’s musical score for the updated version...
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The Toronto International Film Festival and the world
November 10, 2021One of the most revolutionary films at TIFF this year was Tug of War from the relatively unknown autonomous region of Zanzibar. There’s never been a major movie from this island that lies just off the...
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‘The Children’: Play tackles generational responsibility
November 10, 2021“The moral dilemma is: what world are we leaving to our children?”
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New vocal CDs address big social issues: Attention, stocking stuffers!
November 8, 2021In the wake of George Floyd, and still amidst the climate crisis, Covid, the lingering sulfurous odor of Trumpism, and so much more, musical artists are stepping up with new releases reflecting deep concerns about the...
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‘Fire Shut Up in My Bones’: First Black composer at Metropolitan Opera
October 29, 2021History was made at New York City’s world-famous Metropolitan Opera when it opened the season on September 27 with its first work written by a Black composer, jazz musician, and well-known scorer of many Spike Lee...
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