Every electrifying minute of the Endicott Repertory Dance Ensemble production of Armations: Anthropocene, presented in late April at Tia’s Black Box Theater at the Walter J. Manninen Center for the Arts, was a sensory experience, professionally executed, and laden with layers of intellectual content. The production explored the Anthropocene epoch, the geological period characterized by the dominant influence of human activity on climate and the planet’s ecosystems. With dance, visual art, lighting and sound, the production addressed the interrelationship of humanity, the role of technology in our lives, and the future of the natural world. A tall order, no doubt about it, but successfully realized because every element was carefully thought through, resulting in a unified performance that showcased an outstanding corps of young dancers, all students at Endicott College. The … [Read more...] about ENDICOTT REPERTORY DANCE ENSEMBLE’S ARMATIONS: ANTHROPOCENE AN IMMERSIVE PERFORMANCE
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EVEN BETTER THAN 2017: VENICE BIENNALE 2019
VENICE, ITALY, MAY 8, 2019 -- Venice has bested its last biennale. This morning, at the press opening, Ralph Rugoff, director of the Hayward Gallery in London since 2006, spoke along with Paolo Baratta, president of the Biennale de Venezia and the director of Swatch, about the biennale. Even more than the theme of the 2017 biennale, which announced “Arte Viva” and made sure there were no barriers to crossing borders, Rugoff’s message was right on, and important. Responding to politics around the world, he said, “In art, there is no simple truth — there is a complexity of voices — a double format and a plurality of voices.” But then, he went on even further, saying that, “each artist’s voice must also be a plurality.” This plurality was demonstrated in Rugoff’s decision to locate some artists’ work in both venues of the Biennale: the Arsenale and the Giardini. I asked him what dictated … [Read more...] about EVEN BETTER THAN 2017: VENICE BIENNALE 2019
PLANS FOR MMAS ARTS CENTER AT GREAT WOODS ANNOUNCED
Ken Butler, executive director of Mass Music & Arts Society, and his board of directors, encourage us to give financially to the expansion plans for an art complex envisioned for a property that they own directly across the street from the Xfinity Center. The destination will be called “MMAS Arts Center at Great Woods.” It will be a multi-faceted arts facility and will include a state-of-the-art Theater, well-equipped classrooms for theater, dance and music training, a banquet facility and several galleries. Beautifully situated, the three-acre land parcel abuts Norton Reservoir. World class outdoor sculptures will be sited throughout its landscape and the building’s facade will be embellished with murals to intensify this emerging art center’s sense of place. Many interesting videos concerning fundraising populate the “Support Us” section of the MMAS website: … [Read more...] about PLANS FOR MMAS ARTS CENTER AT GREAT WOODS ANNOUNCED
REVIEW: INDECENT AT THE HUNTINGTON AVENUE THEATRE
The original author of “Indecent,” now playing at the Huntington Avenue Theatre through May 25, was a poet living in a small village in Poland in the first decade of the last century. Sholem Asch was newly married, young and hopeful that he had the talent to express himself not only in a few volumes of respectable verse but on the wider stage of drama, thereby impressing a larger audience with the passions that stirred his soul. The birth then, of “Indecent” came not in English but in Yiddish. It was a drama titled “Got fun Nekome,” which translates to the melodramatic “God of Vengeance” starring a strong-minded Jewish father and brothel entrepreneur who was determined to marry his daughter to a learned and pious Jew in order to capture a higher social status than the one which bubbled so profitably, but, let’s face it, meanly, tucked away in the basement of his mansion. The … [Read more...] about REVIEW: INDECENT AT THE HUNTINGTON AVENUE THEATRE
POTTERY INVITATIONAL THIS WEEKEND AT WORCESTER CENTER FOR CRAFTS; GALLERY STORE BOWL SHOW CONTINUES THROUGH JUNE 15
The always highly anticipated annual Pottery Invitational, featuring 19 artists representing the East Coast from Maine to North Carolina and curated by Jerilyn Virden (Vermont) and Sarah Heimann (New Hampshire), takes place May 3 through 5 at the Worcester Center for Crafts. This show opens with a ticketed “Epicurean Evening” event on Friday at 5:30 p.m. The $50 ticket gives attendees “first dibs on the art, a handmade ceramic bowl by our Artists in Residence, a beer tasting with Castle Island Brewery co. and tapas from Wooden Noodles.” Throughout the rest of the weekend, doors are open Friday from 7 p.m.-8:30 p.m.; Saturday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday from 11ß a.m.-4 p.m. Admission is free. This year’s participating artists are Lisa Naples (Doylestown, PA); Ronan Kyle Peterson (Chapel Hill, NC); Kyla Toomey (Waltham, MA); Brenda Quinn (Ossining, NY); Tom O’Malley (Forestdale, … [Read more...] about POTTERY INVITATIONAL THIS WEEKEND AT WORCESTER CENTER FOR CRAFTS; GALLERY STORE BOWL SHOW CONTINUES THROUGH JUNE 15
THE COLOR OF SPRING: GREEN MEMBERS’ EXHIBITION AT BRICKBOTTOM
The color green is one of healing, growth and renewal. It is the color of plants, youth, good luck, camouflage, money and even envy. After a long winter, Brickbottom Gallery’s new exhibit “GREEN” invites viewers into their white wall gallery fully immersed in the color green through the artwork on the walls. Developing and established artists showcase their work together, providing their own interpretations and visions about this color that surrounds our everyday lives. Many reach towards nature for inspiration, crafting their pieces with various materials. As spring brings rain to the New England area, this exhibit provides a small retreat to feed our creativity and imaginations. On three vertical canvases, Pauline Lim’s acrylic and gold metal leaf painting, “Leave No Trace,” carries viewers atop forests dabbled with lime and olive greens. In the first canvas, a small girl in a red … [Read more...] about THE COLOR OF SPRING: GREEN MEMBERS’ EXHIBITION AT BRICKBOTTOM