Danielle Kurtzleben Now, here’s fodder for daydreams and late-night speculation: What would happen to the earth—and, more pointedly, to our massive infrastructure of buildings, bridges, subways, and sculptures—if the human race were to disappear? Author and University of Arizona journalism professor Alan Weisman has asked the question of everyone from geologists and paleontologists to art conservators and … Read more
Calling Mina Agossi a jazz singer is like calling Michael Jordan a basketball player; it’s technically true but woefully understated. Like the best singers, Agossi makes it abundantly clear that her voice is an instrument, whether she’s working with her own compositions, Ella Fitzgerald standards, or Jimi Hendrix covers (which she renders complete with raucous … Read more
If you happen to be wandering near the Walker some evening this month, do not be alarmed if you’re accosted by a young European wielding a video camera. This is merely part of the “War on Anonymity” waged by the Gob Squad, a performance art troupe whose members hail from the U.K. and Germany. One … Read more
There is Shakespearean language, with its grand soliloquies and sonnets. And then there is the language of David Mamet, who made his name by elevating everyday speech into an art form. This fall, The Jungle Theater brings those trademark machine-gun sentences, stutters, and profanities to the stage with Speed-the-Plow. . Jungle Artistic Director Bain Boehlke … Read more
The Minnesota Orchestra finishes its 2007 Sommerfest series with Puccini’s immensely popular La Bohème. The opera is a staple of classical music fans’ collections. But its arias and plotline also are familiar to the uninitiated; after all, Rent and Moulin Rouge are but two examples of popular modern takes on the tale. This production features … Read more