Things could get interesting when the English and Theater departments at the U of M embark on a joint investigation of Suzan-Lori Parks’s oeuvre. This Pulitzer- and MacArthur Genius Grant-winning playwright boasts a body of work that’s rich in poetics and historic awareness, yet audacious enough to confront issues of emotional brutality head-on. (In other … Read more
One of the most literate, thoughtful choreographers in town, Stuart Pimsler presents a double bill of protest art late in the month. Ways to Behold, a world premiere with accompaniment by spoken-word artist Tiyo Siyolo, juxtaposes the realities of a U.S.-initiated—yet somehow invisible—war overseas with the comforts of daily life on our own shores. Sentry … Read more
Bob Mould hits town at his old First Avenue stomping grounds (March 5) with a resplendent new disc, District Line, that mixes an occasional electronic dance tune with the molten pop-rock … Two substantial (as in deep and dense) jazz bands for the price of one are on the docket when both Ravi Coltrane and … Read more
For those who prefer the hunks in the big hats and tight jeans, well, it’s time you learned it ain’t the meat in a man’s voice, it’s the motion. And even at age seventy-six, the pipes of The Possum will have you moving with him into chasms of loneliness and epiphanies of grace and gratitude … Read more
This odd but spectacular double-header pairs two veteran singer/songwriters from opposite sides of the emotional spectrum. At one end is the naively optimistic Jonathan Richman, known for his playful and charmingly inane simplicity. Even if he doesn’t dive into his classic songbook from his days with the Modern Lovers, he can draw upon nearly thirty … Read more
One of the last things you expect out of Maceo Parker is a new wrinkle, and that’s OK: As the saxophonist for the Godfather of Soul, he’s the man who blew the horn that popped the sweat out of James Brown’s pores. He went on to play with two of Brown’s most renowned heirs to … Read more
Flynn’s debut about growing up in 1970s San Francisco with a paranoid schizophrenic mother sounds like the sort of overwrought therapy masquerading as literature we’ve been inundated with for years—but it’s actually as convincing as it is harrowing, and is ultimately a beautiful testament to the remarkable resilience of children and the power of imagination … Read more
Charles Baxter, whom we’re happy to once again claim as a local (he recently returned from a long exile in Ann Arbor) has been at it for twenty-five years now, and his body of work—which includes novels, short stories, poetry, and essays—has gained both a national reputation and a cult following. His novel The Feast … Read more
This is apparently what we’ve come to: In an age when we’re reminded on an almost daily basis that nobody reads books anymore, one of the biggest celebrities in publishing is a guy who designs book jackets. That, of course, would be Chip Kidd, the graphic designer with a classic quarterback’s name. You’d think maybe … Read more
Not since the Brontës bulled their way to prominence in nineteenth-century Duluth has the flyover cultural set seen a distaff literary dynasty—or, quite honestly, any sort of literary dynasty—the likes of the Erdrich sisters. By now everybody knows Louise (independent bookstore owner and author of the award-winning Love Medicine and all sorts of other critically … Read more