Just after dawn a few weeks ago, my wife, CherÃ, drove me to the Indianapolis airport. At the Hertz lot, I kissed her goodbye and went inside to rent a minivan. In the parking lot, I wiped the morning dew off the windshield, popped Harlan Coben’s latest pageturner into the CD player, and cranked up the volume. Stopping only twice for combined food/gas/bio breaks, I drove 700 miles through the rich farmland of Indiana and Ohio, across a corner of…
A few days ago in this blog, I mentioned Daniel S. Burt’s book “The Drama 100: A Ranking of the Greatest Plays of All Time.”
While we can all agree that such a list is highly subjective, we can probably…
Yes, “Rent” — the movie — already played movie theaters (and didn’t do particularly well). But now it looks like it’s getting another shot. Not a second run of the film, though. This will be a from-the-stage performance of the hit…
1500 movie screens across the country will be upgraded to 3-D. So announced Regal Entertainment Group on Tuesday.
What was once a gimmick, now looks to be the standard for future moviegoing. This summer’s “Journey to the Center of the Earth”…
So TV’s “Dancing with the Stars” has another winner.
Hooray.
I caught some of the finals last night without having seen the rest of the series. And having been to Dance Kaleidoscope’s season ending performance Sunday, I’m curious as to whether the huge…
Two books I’m in the midst of reading combine to raise questions about the future of art and audiences.
The first, “Against Happiness,” posits that our society’s increased emphasis on smoothing over the rough edges of life (through pharmaceuticals and…
For me, the weekend included a local premier at Theatre on the Square, a popular revival at Beef & Boards and a mix of old and new with Dance Kaleidoscope. Plus a stroll through the Broad Ripple…
This weekend marks the unofficial launch of the summer art fair season, with the Broad Ripple Art Fair sure to attract mobs to the Indianapolis Art Center grounds (weather cooperating, of course).
I’m a fan of BRAF and its end-of-summer-IMA-bookend,…
Last night at Sotheby’s auction house in New York, a 1976 angst-infused triptych by Francis Bacon sold for $86.3 million. Apparently that’s the highest price ever paid at auction for a piece of contemporary art.
My instinct was to ask…
Few artists in history have changed the rules the way Robert Rauschenberg, who died Monday at age 82, did.
By incorporating found objects (a pillow, a stuffed goat…) into his paintings, Rauschenberg challenged contemporary art and artists to connect their work…
Readers of the New York Times received their “Summer Stages” preview in Sunday’s Arts & Leisure section.
The annual piece offers a rundown of what’s happening around the country in Dance, Theater, Pop/Jazz and Classical Music. And while the Cleveland and…
A while back, I had lunch with my friend John. As is our wont, we talked about politics, religion, our families, joys, frustrations. When the subject turned to work, John told me he’s trying a new approach to fund raising and “friend-raising” for his small not-for-profit cancer agency. He’s cutting out the big, time-consuming special event and simply inviting people in for a one-hour introduction to medically under-served cancer patients and how his organization helps. I told him I’d like…
It was a low-key weekend for me, with my only arts stop being a visit to Fountain Square for Primary Colours’ Allotropy event–which I may get to in a later blog.
Okay, I also watched “Lucky You,” the terrible Drew Barrymore/Eric Bana poker romance…
The big news on Broadway in the 2003-2004 season was the Tony-Award battle between mega-musical “Wicked” and where-did-that-come-from upstart “Avenue Q.”
(For an up close and personal look at the development of both shows, check out the documentary “ShowBusiness,” which…
A while back, I was asked by a charitable foundation if I’d be willing to be part of a silent auction package at a fund-raising dinner. The prize? The highest bidder would join me on one of my reviewing assignments….
One of Indy’s most notable writers, Dan Barden, earned national acclaim for his book “John Wayne: a novel,” published in 1997 by Random House. He’s also penned essays for such publications as GQ and Details, teaches creative writing at Butler…
Last night I caught a sneak preview of “Speed Racer,” the would-be summer blockbuster from the makers of “The Matrix.”
This overlong adaptation of the cheesy kids show of yesteryear has a cool color palate, a lead performance from Emile Hirsch…
This Thursday, the folks behind Saxony, the latest let’s-make-a-town-from-scratch in Hamilton County, will be dedicating a new sculpture by Bloomington artist Dale Enochs. The piece will be a prominent part of the 725-acre housing/office/retail community.
About a year ago, on a previous trip to NYC, I happened to be in town with a free Sunday evening. That’s usually not the most happening time in any town, but I knew there had to be something outstanding…
So I’ve been away from town for a few days and had to skip the weekend arts and entertainment activity in Indy.
So what did I miss?
Were you at Clowes Hall for Indianapolis Opera’s “Tales of Hoffman”? Catch the new comic…
