Itamar Moses’ Book Binds Two Countries in Everyday Experiences by Patricia L. Morin On tour from New York, Broadway SF bring us “The Band’s Visit,” a welcome respite from Complicated Conflicts and Covid. Based on Eran Kolirin’s screenplay for the 2007 Israeli film of the same title, the musical circles the world, bringing a…
Beth Wilmurt Revives Prophetic Musical Genius by Robert M. Gardner Song stylist and virtuoso keyboard artist Beth Wilmurt inhabits the skin of 60s folk icon Malvina Reynolds. She treats Reynolds with a sense of awe, but also exposes Reynolds’ conflicts. As Reynolds, Wilmurt appears alone in a recording booth struggling with rhythm and tempo. …
Millennial Notes Scott Denison Crafts a Delightful Dickensian World by Rachel Norby “A Christmas Carol” is everyone’s favorite holiday tradition. Charles Dickens’ classic Christmas tale applies to any time of year, and perhaps more acutely to this pandemic year. Dickens may have been writing about Victorian England, but his picture of poverty and suffering…
Martin Sherman Melds Comedy, Romance, Rebirth by Barry David Horwitz The central character of “Gently Down the Stream,” Beau, a 62-year-old gay man from New Orleans, played by the astounding Donald Currie, hypnotizes us with gentle reveries. Currie unveils Beau’s struggles with homophobia over decades—an entire history of gay oppression. As a world-weary ex-pat…