Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, written in 1879, has a long and storied production history. Fearing audience outrage, directors of some early productions ended the show with Nora peeking her head back inside the drawing room–so as to gaze playfully upon her husband Torvald after defiantly slamming out of the room. Then, in the 1980s, … Read more
The presidential campaign of George McGovern in 1972 marked the high point–and apparently the end point–of humane idealism in American politics, and this documentary details that incredible grassroots campaign. Well, Richard Nixon won the fight, but this film captures a brief moment when people believed America could be a country the whole world could admire. … Read more
It’s getting harder and harder to get into the University of Minnesota. Fortunately for choreographer Merce Cunningham, he’s getting his U of M degree–albeit an honorary one–without going through the application process, let alone putting in the miles-long hikes between classes. At eighty-six years old, he’s probably glad about that. This month, Cunningham will be … Read more
Screenwriter William Broyles Jr. had his work cut out for him: molding a story from Anthony Swafford’s nearly plotless account of being a Marine sniper in Operation Desert Storm, working with characters that come and go like catnap dreams, and then living with Swafford’s argument that all war films are pro-war ads for young men, … Read more
Yoakam seems like an odd choice for a suburban club that has papered the town with sleek urban ads featuring chic young partiers. But we’re game: Yoakam’s latest recording, Blame the Vain, is pretty kicking. Eighteen albums down the line, and he still refuses to put out generic, compromised Nashville noise. Instead, he calls on … Read more
Romance, love triangles, the older man/younger woman syndrome… didn’t we get enough of all this with Sex and the City? Maybe so, but they’re offered up with some engaging insights (and affectionate jabs at L.A.) in Steve Martin’s adaptation of his 2000 novella. The days grind by for the broke, lonely department store salesgirl Mirabelle … Read more
Sometimes, disaster strikes in just the right way. The phenomenal guitarist Django Reinhardt honed his dazzling gypsy jazz style while recovering from a fire that lost him the use of two of his fingers (and nearly cost him his leg). The two-fingered playing style he developed actually improved on his already astonishingly speedy and complex … Read more
I know that some people commute many more miles to work than I do and they don’t seem at all put out by it. But to me sometimes it feels like I work in a whole other state or even galaxy. I contemplate the frequent flyer miles I’ve accumulated. I gas up, load the car … Read more
One of our favorite newer bands hooks up with a few of its esteemed forebears from the local scene, for what is perhaps the most anticipated of the Guest Session Sunday concerts. Those puckish young men in their blue tracksuits, who’ve been criminally forced to drop the “Olympic” and play simply as the Hopefuls, will … Read more
A soaring and reflective composition by the American composer Stephen Paulus (who has a role in our profile of Libby Larsen, his friend and colleague), the world premiere of this oratorio features mezzo-soprano Christina Baldwin, soprano Norah Long, and the Basilica Cathedral Chorus. Expect a heady and deeply emotional performance in an inspiring space, presented … Read more