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Asked about the job opening. She said she was the manageress. She told me her name was Astrid. And yes, she strode. She strode everywhere. That was how she moved through her life. Now she came up to me and said: “Yes, we’re looking for a bartender. Come by the lamp here on the bar, open your mouth.”

Janis Joplin was one of rock-and-roll's greatest icons. This musical tribute to her which has thrilled audiences across the country and around the world returns to the San Francisco Bay Area, where she earned her fame.

The 37th edition of the international Dance Festival in Berlin, called 'Tanz im August' took place in ten (10) locations in Berlin and introduced twenty (20) amazing contemporary dance companies from around the globe.

The Berlin Music Festival is honoring Luciano Berio on the occasion of his 100th birthday with eight concerts devoted to his work. His explorations of acoustic sound fused with electronics, his relentless push to test the technical and expressive limits of instruments, his inventive musical collage and dialogues between traditions are all being showcased. Pierre Boulez, whose centenary also falls this year, is likewise being celebrated.

Mother Play: A Play in Five Eviction by Paula Vogel is grating, harrowing, complex and difficult to endure. It is given a stunning, meticulously directed regional premiere at Shakespeare & Company. Members of the company, director Ariel Bock, and actress, Tamara Hickey, excel at executing this excruciatingly difficult play.

Imagine your life as a candle. The wax and the wick of the candle are your Jing, your essence.

The board of a private school in Berkeley, CA must make policy decisions following a mumps outbreak. Jonathan Spector's brilliant script reveals archetypes and arguments, and an exemplary cast enlivens the characters. The arguments concerning vaccinations are timely given the anti-vaxxing crusade of the current federal administration.

The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA), has announced its lineup of 2025–2026 exhibitions, including Of Light and Air: Winslow Homer in Watercolor, a rare display of light-sensitive works that opens November 2. I

Sylvia is an excellent play, being given a good, but not outstanding, production.

Olivier Meslay, the Hardymon Director of the Clark Art Institute, will step down from his leadership role in July 2026, concluding a decade of change and growth that has seen the Clark flourish in international stature and engagement. Meslay, a widely respected curator and art historian, will return to his native France to pursue a variety of independent projects.

The paintings on display are inspired by the epic poems The Odyssey, by Homer and Metamorphoses, by Ovid.  Geschwer’s idea that mythology, dreams, and art operate within the same language system is at the core of his imagery. In his images, Geschwer makes use of classical painting methods and an interior pictorial language, often integrating art history iconography and verbo-visual elements. The resulting mysterious compositions deliver to the viewer the underlying archetypal messages of antiquity.

 In these works, Caruso reminds us that beauty is not rare or remote – it is present all around us, waiting in the texture of a leaf or even in the smallest twig. His prints ask us to observe more closely, to trust our own senses, and to find meaning in quiet, unassuming details; if we are willing to look!  

Leroy employed young people as dishwashers, waitresses, and bartenders who were also writers, poets, photographers, painters, and dancers. He was generous and warm-hearted, one of those rare people who somehow hadn’t managed to forget what it meant to be young. In Paris those were years without credit cards; copy machines were rare; even telephones were hard to come by. Chez Haynes was a safe haven. And our dreams of Paris would surely come true.

The Berlin Philharmonic launched its 2025–26 season with a program that set Schumann, Zimmermann, and Brahms in conversation across a century of musical upheaval. Under Kirill Petrenko’s direction, the evening unfolded less like a sequence of works than  a drama in three acts.

The unlikely Santa Fe, New Mexico sets a remarkably high standard for tourism on many fronts. Exemplary visual arts, performing arts, museums, cuisine and restaurants, architecture, and festivals are just the beginning.

Ellen Miller Gallery opens the fall season with Tabitha Vevers: Flesh Memories, Remembered, the artist’s first solo exhibition with the gallery. Vevers began Flesh Memories during a residency at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts in 1993 and later expanded the series at the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown.

“Barrington Stage has been more than a workplace — it’s been a home, a family, and a true creative community,” said Charlie Siedenburg. “One of the great joys of my career has been shaping the narrative of BSC — celebrating its artists, championing its productions, and helping to tell the story of a theatre that has become such an essential part of the Berkshires."

Of mixed heritage Isamu Noguchi (1904-1988) endured a lifetime of rejection by his father, racism and adversity. To make a living the young sculptor created portraits of wealthy patrons. His single mother Léonie Gilmour, an American writer who edited much of Noguchi's work, did her best to encourage his decision to be an artist. Today he is regarded as among the finest of his generation. The Clark Art Institute is displaying 32 pieces as Isamu Noguchi: Landscapes of Time

Working-class Margie is fired from her job and desperately needs an income. She calls on Mike, now a successful doctor who she dated just before giving birth 30 ago and hasn't seen since. Unexpected clashes occur in this well-produced and riveting play.

The Boston Symphony opens its fall season with a free concert at Symphony Hall on September 17.

We started posting Dishwasher Dialogues about two thirds on. That ended last week. By popular demand we are now backtracking to the very beginning. This weekly column from Paris is one of our most read features. Everyone loves Paris.

Much of the spoken word flew over my head but the circus elements had the kids bounding up from their seats and the rafters shaking. It may have been, at least for me, the most entertaining fun I have enjoyed in a heck of a long time.

Gabrielle saw Judy as a fighter. She's a witch and also a pissed off teenager. It was Gabrielle's idea that a beast should attack Judy, who strangles it. She skins it with her teeth and takes its power (figure 4). “After blood-stained clothing was found, it was reported that Judy was killed by a beast. But in a fit of rage, she strangled it, gutted and skinned it with her teeth. Then she cooked it. She was stuffed with meat and took a nap.”

Twain was known for his satire, humor, and often darker view of mankind and its plights. The performance I saw talked about slavery and threats to democracy.

I had wanted to see Giant, starring John Lithgow, since it won rave reviews during a limited run at the Royal Court. Now it is in the West End (Broadway), and I hope it will come to NYC. Lithgow gives a stunning performance as Roald Dahl, the author of children’s books such as James and the Giant Peach, Matilda, and others.