There is a lot to unpeel in Christina Kallas’ Paris Is in Harlem. Screening as part of the 2022 Slamdance Film festival, this emotionally powerful and crisply paced film uses the cultural tapestry of Harlem as the backdrop for exploring multiculturalism. Structured like a jazz composition this fine example of socially conscious cinema piles layers […]
Although he cut his teeth in the minimalist traditions of Steve Reich and John Cage, John Adams has established himself as an American composer whose genre-bending classical pieces and operas (Nixon in China, The Death of Klinghoffer, Doctor Atomic) have made him the country’s most prolific composer. Creating a body of work rooted in language […]
Although he did not achieve great success during his lifetime, Vincent Van Gogh’s popularity became unparalleled in the decades after his death. Since his death in relative poverty in 1890, his works are now worth millions and featured in museums, private collections, and exhibitions around the world and Immortalized in popular culture through prints, posters, […]
At a time when the world is struggling to get back on its feet The Roots are here to show us the way. Their uncanny ability to tap toes and lift spirits through their music, an unpredictable mélange of soul, rock, funk, and rap, has made them one of the most innovate collectives of the […]
At a time when many companies are coming out of the pandemic, Opera Theatre of St. Louis is turning on the lights. While the last year has been challenging for opera, theater groups and arts organizations, it also has sparked a creative resourcefulness that has resulted in powerful new works. OTSL’s New Works, Bold Voices […]
It’s hard to move on when you can’t stop looking back. This is especially true for Elle, the center figure in the tragic La voix humaine. Based on a play by Jean Cocteau, Francis Poulenc’s scarcely performed opera about love, life, loss and death is eerily relevant in the time of a global pandemic. Unofficially […]
William Grant Still may not be as well known to casual opera fans as Verdi or Rossini, but he should be. An arranger for W.C. Handy and composer of over 200 operas, ballets, and symphonies, he is considered the dean of African American composers. Every bit as prolific as Duke Ellington or Terence Blanchard, Still’s […]
The parallels between Gianni Schicchi’s premiere in 1918 and its placement as the opener for Opera Theatre of St. Louis’ new season are striking. Then, as now, the world found itself struggling with a pandemic, political tension, economic hardship, and of course, widespread divisiveness. Back then, just as now, things seemed dire. But once again, […]
With live performances coming to a grinding halt, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra found itself in the same precarious position and thousands of other arts organizations across the country as they sought ways to connect with audiences in a world filled with separation and isolation The orchestra’s answer was to let the music be the […]
For actors, the very notion of a final performance fills them with dread. Riding off into the sunset is not easy and the adulation of interacting with an audience is something that is direly missed. This is especially true for Dan Moran and Chris Jones, two veterans of films and stage whose careers have been […]
