The BSR Weekly Arts and Culture Roundup, January 23-29, 2025
CultureFest!, Good Mother Myths, and more
Kicking off the Lunar New Year with Penn Museum, getting crafty at Art Star, and dispelling Good Mother Myths. Kyle V. Hiller rounds up the week.
Previews
3 minute read
FringeArts and Ninth Planet present Arielle Julia Brown’s fallawayinto: Corridors of Rememory
A beacon of possibility
FringeArts and Ninth Planet present Arielle Julia Brown’s fallawayinto: Corridors of Rememory, a word premiere multimedia play that honors the life and legacy of Donna Nicole Booker. Kiran Pandey previews.
Previews
2 minute read
BSR Classical Interludes, more in January 2025
Tunes to keep you warm
Music from familiar names, and a different kind of Curtain Call, are all in tow to close out the month of January and move into February. Gail Obenreder previews.
Previews
4 minute read
Living in America today feels like having a mental illness. Here’s how to protect your sanity.
Symptoms of humanity
Coping with fear of disasters, irrational thoughts, constant crisis, and crushing sadness is just an ordinary day in America. Folks who have been in psychiatric treatment have always known how this feels. Alaina Johns has survival tips.
Editorials
6 minute read
The Philadelphia Museum of Art presents Naoto Fukasawa: Things in Themselves
A world-renowned designer gets his first major US solo show at the PMA
Naoto Fukusawa is one of the world's most sought-after designers, and the PMA hosts his first major solo exhibition in the US, featuring a range of irresistibly practical objects. Pamela J. Forsythe reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read
The Good Mother Myth: Unlearning Our Bad Ideas About How to Be a Good Mom, by Nancy Reddy
The poetry behind parenting
Local poet Nancy Reddy’s new book promises refreshing perspectives around parenting and an opportunity to unlearn outdated practices and notions. Jill Brooke previews.
Previews
3 minute read
The African American Museum in Philadelphia presents Shaheed Rucker: (re)Covering the Iconic
Reimaging Jet magazine covers with Black Philly-area icons
AAMP continues to lead the Philly area in showcasing Black art with Shaheed Rucker: (re)Covering the Iconic, featuring notable portraits in the striking style of vintage mid-century media. An Nichols reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read
Walnut Street Theatre presents Alfred Uhry’s Driving Miss Daisy
Not much has changed
With an uneven production of a politically limp script, Walnut Street Theatre continues its commitment to institutional whiteness with Driving Miss Daisy. nat čermák reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read
Philadelphia Orchestra open rehearsals take music-lovers of all ages behind the scenes of the symphony
A symphonic sneak peek
What goes on as the Philadelphia Orchestra, under the
direction of Yannick Nézet-Séguin, prepares for a performance of Mahler’s Symphony
No. 9? Linda Holt visits to learn more about a program that brings donors
and students together behind the scenes.
Features
6 minute read
The analog revolution is happening at Passyunk Avenue’s Philly Typewriter
Why is Philly the world’s best city for a typewriter company?
Bryan Kravitz and Bill Rhoda never thought their South Philly typewriter shop would thrive in the 21st century, but it did, especially after the pandemic pause brought a surge of new customers hungry for tactile technologies. Erin Dohony visits.
Features
6 minute read
Ten questions for everyone at this week’s Sixers arena press conference
BSR has questions for City Council, our reigning billionaires, and YOU
After more than two years of painful controversy over a proposed arena on the edge of Philly’s Chinatown and a massive legislative package, the Philadelphia 76ers joined hands with Comcast and walked away. We have questions.
Alaina Johnsand Kyle V. Hiller
Editorials
3 minute read
Morton Contemporary presents We Are All Doing Time
Illustrating America’s mass incarceration crisis
Morton Contemporary’s new exhibition provides a glimpse into the criminal justice system through the art of six local artists who have experienced it. Kimberly Haas previews.
Previews
4 minute read
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Also on BSR
The BSR Weekly Arts and Culture Roundup, January 16-22, 2025
Celebrating MLK Day and more this week
Celebrating Martin Luther King Jr with events around the city, and plenty of shows, performances, and exhibits to choose from this week. Kyle V. Hiller rounds up.
Previews
6 minute read
Variant 6 presents RE/IMAGINE
A rare of night secular music for voice and organ
Philly vocal ensemble Variant 6 explored the classic combination of voice and organ, though with a rare focus on secular music, including a world premiere by Benjamin C.S. Boyle, who was in attendance. Gail Obenreder reviews.
Reviews
5 minute read
Ensemble Arts Philly and the Shubert Organization present MJ the Musical
A Dangerous look back
MJ the Musical, celebrating Michael Jackson’s music in a story about preparations for his Dangerous World Tour in the early 1990s, opts for a polished, estate-approved narrative that leaves Jackson’s life unexplored. Josh Herren reviews.
Reviews
2 minute read
BSR Classical Interludes, January 2025
Concerts to start off the year
Music from East Passyunk Opera Project, Ama Deus Chamber Orchestra, Symphony in C, and more to open the new year in the Philly area. Gail Obenreder previews.
Previews
3 minute read
The BSR Weekly Arts and Culture Roundup, January 9-15, 2025
Apple Picking with Eve, Love Notes 4 Philly, and Chevalier
Bringing in the new year with more laughs from Lady Laughs, a collage workshop at the PMA, multimedia film screenings, and more. Kyle V. Hiller rounds up.
Previews
3 minute read
Councilmember Rue Landau and Creative Philadelphia present Transcending Uncertainty: Art Endures at Home in Philadelphia
Honoring the UArts community with a new exhibition at City Hall
City Councilmember Rue Landau and Creative Philadelphia teamed up to honor the UArts community with a special exhibition, free to view at City Hall through January 25, 2025. An Nichols visits.
Reviews
8 minute read
The Museum for Art in Wood presents La Famiglia
Family trees
With this exhibition at the Museum for Art in Wood, turned-wood figures by artist Mark Sfirri explore likeness and difference, ancestry and environment, asking how family takes root. Anndee Hochman reviews.
Reviews
4 minute read
The BSR January 2025 repertory film roundup
Dinner in America, Glen or Glenda, and more
Kicking off the new year with punk rockers, Glen or Glenda, and a classic documentary about war criminals in costume. Stephen Silver rounds up.
Previews
4 minute read
The Fabric Workshop and Museum presents Soft/Cover
Celebrating 50 years of FWM Artists-in-Residence
The Fabric Workshop and Museum marks 50 years of its Artists-in-Residence program with this survey of intriguing multi-media works from the 1970s to the present. Pamela J. Forsythe reviews.
Reviews
5 minute read
Looking for that next great book to read? Here are the editor's 2024 favorites.
Build your reading list with help from BSR
Alaina Johns is not going to rate her favorite 2024 reads, but she will offer you some micro-reviews, so you can figure out if you’d like to read them, too! Everyone is different, and books are individuals, too.
Editorials
13 minute read