Malick's "The Tree of Life'

Adam without Eve: Terrence Malick returns to Eden

The Tree of Life, though flawed and at times exasperating, is Terrence Malick's most beautiful and humanly realized film since Days of Heaven, and a work that will be studied for many years to come. But it shows too the limits of a filmmaker whose vision, though deeply and rewardingly poetic, is stuck in adolescence and the rituals of male bonding and conflict.

Robert Zaller

Jun 28, 2011 · Articles · 9 minute read

"Great American Trailer Park Musical'

Scratch and sniff

This energetic show exploits the lifestyle of trashy, low-class denizens of a trailer park in a way that elicits laughs from urban audiences. Still, the enterprise hovers between uncomfortable glorification and superciliousness.

Steve Cohen

Jun 28, 2011 · Articles · 2 minute read

"Dan Rottenberg Is Thinking About Raping You'

A political affair

Cara Blouin's satire of Dan Rottenberg's views on sex abuse is witty fun. But she's preaching to her own younger generation here. Our parents hold views that are sincere and well intended too. Who among my contemporaries will reach across the generation gap to converse with them?

Madeline Schaefer

Jun 28, 2011 · Articles · 7 minute read

The Crossing's 'Month of Moderns'

Kile Smith's music for the stoic heart

Kile Smith may be more comfortable with Christian texts, but his foray into Stoic philosophy displays all the inventive expressiveness that marks his Christian works.

Tom Purdom

Jun 28, 2011 · Articles · 3 minute read

"Out of Order' at Chestnut Hill Gallery

Quality and camaraderie: Four friends

Four well-known artists, with little in common beside their intensity and their mutual friendship, sit wondrously well together at this innovative exhibit.

Caroline Dunlop Millett

Jun 21, 2011 · Articles · 1 minute read

Finding the 'new' in Shakespeare

Macbeth is dead. Now what?

The Royal Shakespeare Company is finding the “new” in Shakespeare in a variety of compelling, captivating ways. If you think you've seen it all when it comes to The Bard, you'll have many surprises in store.

Carol Rocamora

Jun 20, 2011 · Articles · 6 minute read

Chestnut Street Singers: American songs

New voices in town

A new chamber chorus satisfies the four basic requirements of good a cappella choral music: Strong voices, good harmony, close coordination, and astute selections.

Tom Purdom

Jun 20, 2011 · Articles · 2 minute read

London theater roundup— II

London summer: Rare birds among the revivals

This is a summer of revivals in London; it's also odd how many of these productions require American accents. But some rare birds— from Odets to Mamet— brighten this revival flock even if they demonstrate clearly why they're rarely revived.

Toby Zinman

Jun 20, 2011 · Articles · 8 minute read

Black domestics on stage

You've come a long way, Mammy

Hattie McDaniel said she'd rather make $700 a week playing a maid than $7 a week being one. Today actresses like Opal Alladin enjoy the luxury of portraying maids with genuine character.

Jackie Schifalacqua

Jun 16, 2011 · Articles · 3 minute read

Russian and African dancers: A common thread

Africa's ‘Soviet ballet'

Russia and the West African nation of Guinea are two countries with little in common. Yet as I learned first-hand, their mutual passion for dance, and their approach to training dancers, share remarkable similarities.

Rebecca Davis

Jun 14, 2011 · Articles · 5 minute read