Nicola Luisotti leads the Orchestra

Leaping Luisotti, or: The return of the hyperkinetic conductor

Guest conductor Nicola Luisotti opened his debut performance with the Philadelphia Orchestra with the hokiest of Stokowski's Bach transcriptions. More substance emerged in the Shostakovich Violin Concerto and Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade, but Luisotti's podium antics didn't enhance his otherwise straightforward readings.

Robert Zaller

Feb 04, 2012 · Articles · 6 minute read

Kander & Ebb's "Scottsboro Boys' by PTC (4th review)

Scottsboro, we have a problem

What do the Scottsboro boys have in common with Sacco, Vanzetti, Alfred Dreyfus and Neil Ferber? All were innocent victims of the justice system— and none of them was nearly as interesting as the heroes and villains of their respective cases.

Dan Rottenberg

Feb 01, 2012 · Articles · 6 minute read

Margaret Edson's "Wit' on Broadway

Triumph over cancer (with a little help from John Donne)

When a professor of metaphysical poetry encounters the ultimate metaphysical challenge, the result is a dazzling and unforgettably heroic struggle.

Carol Rocamora

Jan 31, 2012 · Articles · 4 minute read

Leila Josefowicz at the Perelman

Unexpected pleasures

From de Falla to John Adams, the violinist Leila Josefowicz explored the world beyond the standard repertoire. I ended up getting my biggest satisfactions from the three pieces I had least looked forward to.

Tom Purdom

Jan 31, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

Orchestra 2001 at Trinity Center

What inspires composers?

Orchestra 2001 ranged across the spectrum of modern musical styles, with the usual hits and misses, depending on your personal biases.

Tom Purdom

Jan 31, 2012 · Articles · 4 minute read

Zoe Strauss photos at the Art Museum (1st review)

Powerful, but not pretty

Conceptual artist and photographer Zoe Strauss takes an unflinching look at hard lives in tough times. She documents the struggle, but wherever she looks, she also finds humor, ironies, and truths about being human.

Martha Ledger

Jan 31, 2012 · Articles · 5 minute read

Headland's "Bachelorette,' by Luna

Lost generation, still losing

At a pre-wedding party, three single women fast approaching 30 chase down their sour grapes with pot, pills, and champagne. Notwithstanding its lack of plot, Bachelorette scores some perceptive points about the “happiness gap” suffered by young professional women who lack traditional families.

Jim Rutter

Jan 31, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

Phyllida Lloyd's "The Iron Lady'

The lioness in winter

Like Clint Eastwood's recent J. Edgar, Phyllida Lloyd's biopic of Margaret Thatcher tries to humanize a polarizing figure seen by many as a villain. This reviewer, who remembers admiring Thatcher's panache while hating her politics, remained unpersuaded despite Meryl Streep's finely crafted performance.

Robert Zaller

Jan 31, 2012 · Articles · 8 minute read

Peter Serkin at Curtis

A family affair at Curtis

Beethoven's sublime Diabelli Variations, one of the summits of Western art, capped Peter Serkin's benefit recital at the Curtis Institute, his alma mater. With family members both in attendance and on the program, it was in every sense a successful homecoming.

Robert Zaller

Jan 31, 2012 · Articles · 3 minute read

"Van Gogh Up Close' at the Art Museum (2nd review)

He saw with his eyes and his heart

“Van Gogh Up Close” reveals a brilliant artist who used every means at his disposal to stretch the limits of art in ways that anticipated future developments. More so than his contemporaries, Van Gogh recognized that we see (and artists paint) with everything that constitutes our experience in the world.

Victor L. Schermer

Jan 31, 2012 · Articles · 6 minute read