In the heart of one of the country’s reddest states, it might surprise more than a few that some of the Utah Enlightenment’s finest arts organizations are putting substance behind the talk about diversity and inclusion. Women have pioneered two of the nation’s longest running contemporary dance institutions. The state’s arts and museums division was … Read more
NOVA CHAMBER MUSIC SERIES’ ODYSSEY With Odyssey, its most recent Gallery Series concert, NOVA Chamber Music Series once again flexed its perfectly tuned muscles, by curating intellectually inspiring music from two Pulitzer Prize winning composers: the Israeli-born Shulamit Ran (1949-) and Steve Reich (1936-), who unquestionably has influenced the direction of American classical music more … Read more
Among the healthiest and most encouraging developments in the performing arts world is how artists consciously draw themselves closer to their audiences. It’s a development that emancipates the artist from the cult of perfectionism and mysticism, where candid expressions about doubts and uncertainties in taking creative risks are welcomed. Likewise, audiences begin to see the … Read more
In 2002, Cédric Pescia was 26 when he won the gold medal in the international competition of The Gina Bachauer International Piano Foundation. It was the first and only competition Pescia, a dual citizen of France and Switzerland, in which he participated. He had shied away from the competitive performance arena, assuming that everyone else … Read more
When Supa Modo, the award-winning feature-length narrative film from Kenyan director Likarion Wainaina, opens the Utah Film Center’s Tumbleweeds Film Festival for Children and Youth on Friday (March 1, 7:30 p.m., The City Library auditorium), Wainaina will be in attendance. As mentioned in the festival preview last week at The Utah Review, Supa Modo sets … Read more
Wendy Burger is as definitive a character could be for the young person living in the remote hinterlands of a state like Utah who finds the empowering comfort zone of the theater as the perfect home for a budding confidence in her sexual identity. She is the lead character in Julie Jensen’s 2003 play Wait!, … Read more
Emilie, the vivacious host of Dead People Live!, the fictional television show at the center of An Evening with Two Awful Men, the latest premiere of Plan-B Theatre Company, adapts immediately to the constant curveballs tossed about in Elaine Jarvik’s boffo script. There never is just one motto (always pithy and wry) for Dead People … Read more
The eighth presentation of the Utah Film Center’s Tumbleweeds Film Festival for Children and Youth from March 1-3 brings in a slate of Utah premieres including films from Swaziland, Kenya, two from Iran and another from the Ladakh region of India. Twelve of the 13 feature-length films are exclusively from outside the U.S. while the … Read more
Reflections, the most recent NOVA Chamber Music Series concert, eloquently conveyed its theme in a cohesive, imaginative way that any artistic director should envy. Throughout the season, Madeline Adkins, NOVA’s music director, has expanded upon the organization’s unique branding for programming concerts with themes that elucidate new dimensions of music appreciation. Adkins, the Utah Symphony … Read more
There is an appropriate and gratifying takeaway from Bekah Brunstetter’s comedic play The Cake, which the Salt Lake Acting Company (SLAC) is giving its Utah premiere in a well-acted, polished production. While many anticipated the U.S. Supreme Court to make a momentous decision last summer in the Masterpiece Cakeshop case involving a baker in Colorado … Read more