Category: Arts

PREVIEW: Beauty and the Beast

Laura Dzubay Leave a comment

I’ve been Google-Searching Beauty and the Beast on a regular basis for about four months now, and if the conversation among my friends is anything to go by, I haven’t been alone. Judging by the trailer, Disney has pulled out all the stops this time with special effects, an all-star cast, the company’s first openly gay character, and classic musical numbers redone by the likes of John Legend and Ariana Grande. Everyone knows the story of Belle – the smart, ambitious girl who sings about leaving her provincial town, who sacrifices herself to save her father, who learns to see past the Beast’s rough exterior. But that won’t stop any of us from wanting to see it again on the big screen.

And of course, it doesn’t hurt that I’m automatically down for anything that even remotely involves Emma Watson.

The movie will be showing in theaters nationwide (including the RAVE in Ann Arbor), starting this Friday, March 17th.

PREVIEW: The Vagina Monologues

Phillip Wachowiak Leave a comment

For the past five years, the group Students for Choice has put on the Vagina Monologues at U of M. In case you don’t know, the choice is a live performance of Eve Ensler’s play of the same name. As you can probably tell, vaginas will be mentioned often, and in detail.

From the event page:

TVM raises awareness about the violence against women and girls, celebrates women’s sexuality, and talks about experiences excluded from the dominant narrative.

When: Friday, March 17 and Saturday, March 18 from 8:00-10:00 PM
Where: Rackham Auditorium.
Cost: $5 in Advance and $10 at the door
All ticket proceeds go to SafeHouse Center and V-Day.

Also feel free to like and explore the UofM Vagina Monologues Page!

 

PREVIEW: Kidd Pivot and Electric Company Theatre

Allie Scholten Leave a comment

The name Kidd Pivot and the Electric Company itself intrigued me enough as I flipped through UMS performances. Unless you speak German (I don’t), the title Betroffenheit does not give away any hints as to what the performance consists of. A German expression meaning deep-rooted shock and bewilderment, the performance combines theater and dance to explore the experiences of tragedy and loss. While it appears to be deep, dark, and eerie, comment after comment on the show’s previous performances contains the repeated message of the show’s compelling, powerful, and life-changing qualities.  While I’ve fought through my background knowledge in theater performances to find anything to compare the looks of Betroffenheit to, I’ve come up blank. Betroffenheit appears to be like no other performance I’ve (and possibly you, unless you’re adventurous with your theater) ever seen before. 

March 17 and 18, 8 pm

Power Center

Students: $12, Adults: $26-$46

PREVIEW: Snarky Puppy

kschubring Leave a comment

If you watched the Grammys this year, perhaps you noticed that a band with a peculiar name was awarded “Best Contemporary Instrumental Album”––for the second  year in a row.

In 2004, Michael League formed Snarky Puppy with his friends at the University of North Texas, which is known for its outsdanding jazz program. 13 years later, the group boasts three Grammys, a Jazz Group of the Year Award from Down Beat Magazine, and a packed touring schedule. The group is known for their funky grooves, inspired improvisations, and unique instrumentation, as they fuze together pop, rock, R&B, and jazz influences. League himself called his group “a pop band that improvises a lot, without vocals.”

Snarky Puppy will perform in Hill Auditorium this Thursday, March 16 at 7:30pm. Buy your tickets here now!

Get a taste of Snarky Puppy’s sound here:

PREVIEW: RC Player’s Marie Antoinette

Allie Scholten Leave a comment

While delving into the world of American playwright David Ajmi’s Marie Antoinette, it is evident this revisionist history comes from the growing oeuvre of theater-meets-pop-culture. Labeled a “tragicomic satire”, it turns its French Revolution-era subject into a mirror for today’s political climate. Put on by the RC Players, I am interested to see how they will take Ajmi’s work and run with it, not only with the script, but with any potential set and costumes (though that’s possibly due to the cotton-candy spectrum of the Sofia Coppola film coming to mind). With the potential to invigorate (or infect, depending on your historical tastes) the continually-analyzed figure of Marie Antoinette with the self-absorbed pop culture of today, I’m excited to see how vain and indulgent their Marie can become to create the biting satire that humbly reminds us we haven’t distanced ourselves too much from the past two-hundred-fifty years.

March 17 & 18, 8pm

Keene Theater, East Quad

Free

Image c/o the American Repertory Theater’s 2012 production of Marie Antoinette

REVIEW: Beethoven’s “Missa Solemnis”

brynel Leave a comment

On Saturday night I had the pleasure of experiencing my first full Beethoven piece!  I expected to be yawning half of the time as the singers and orchestra droned on and on.  But there was SO MUCH talent spewing out of the UMS Choral Union and the Ann Arbor Symphony that I was captivated the entire time!

Beethoven’s “Missa Solemnis” was written about his spiritual awakening towards the end of his life, and according to the UMS website, he spent more time working on this piece than any others.  Conductor Scott Hanoian brought “Missa Solemnis” back to life in UMS after 40 years!  Not to mention, the soloists Erin Wall (soprano), Kelley O’Connor (alto), Matthew Plenk (tenor), and Nathan Stark (bass) were incredible!

More information on Betthoven’s “Missa Solemnis” can be found at http://ums.org/performance/beethovens-missa-solemnis/.