I Wanna Hold Your Hand: 9th annual Rose Exposed goes virtual with six companies hitting the nail on the head in these pandemic times

There always is something soothing in the familiar pop strains of such Beatles classics as I Want to Hold Your Hand, the 1963 hit that truly brought the British quartet to its fame with American audiences. Unfortunately, when one washes and sanitizes their hands, the immediate impulse to touch, however, is constrained by social distancing … Read more

Presenting: Super Cat and Reptile Robot a bright, exuberant virtual addition to Plan-B Theatre’s superb FEST program

Never underestimate a child’s resourceful imagination. Cass, who is just shy of turning 10, becomes Super Cat. Cass’ best friend, Ray, who already has turned 10, is Reptile Robot. Together, they battle Captain Squid and Octo-Baby. During their sleepover, Cass and Ray learn a lot more from each other about what it really means to … Read more

Utah Museum of Fine Arts reopens to the public on Aug. 26; three exhibitions worthy of must-see status

After being closed for five and a half months, the Utah Museum of Fine Arts (UMFA) at The University of Utah will reopen to the public on Wednesday, Aug. 26. The museum will be open for three days each week, Wednesdays through Fridays, noon to 5 p.m. Seniors and high-risk visitors are invited to visit … Read more

Great Salt Lake Fringe 2020: Virtual format drew viewers from 48 states, 25 countries; four shows highlight adventurous enterprise

Adopting a complete virtual format, the Great Salt Lake Fringe Festival (GSLF) marked its sixth year with the schedule of 38 shows being viewed more than 5,000 times from 48 states and 25 countries. Many individual performers raised tips and donations and GSLF organizers say that, pending final confirmed figures, the amounts per show are comparable … Read more

Great Salt Lake Fringe 2020: Virtual format delivers smart concept shows, excellent performances

In Edinburgh, the birthplace of the Fringe festival concept in 1947, this year’s version has gone digital. “It’s hard to imagine a summer without the Fringe,” Shona McCarthy, Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society chief executive, said in a statement published online. “The explosion of creativity and community that the festival brings every year is unparalleled, and … Read more

Grace and beauty in a downtown underpass: OuterSpace concert sets high mark in Salt Lake City’s dance culture of impressive artistic entrepreneurship

One might never imagine that finding a tranquil sense of healing in the space of an underpass below 600 South and 600 West in downtown Salt Lake City is possible. Above this concrete open cave, cars rumble persistently on one of the city’s busiest interstate interchanges. Nearby, Union Pacific and Utah Railway trains pass by … Read more

Utah Film Center Damn These Heels 2020: Worthy selections include documentary Making Sweet Tea and romantic drama Unsound, along with wild indulgent horror treat of Thirst

This year’s film slate for the Utah Film Center’s 17th annual Damn These Heels Queer Film Festival captures the most diverse spectrum of queer voice presented in the festival’s history. Among them are the documentary Making Sweet Tea, directed by John L. Jackson, Jr. and Nora Gross, and the Australian narrative feature Unsound, directed by Ian Watson. … Read more

Utah Film Center Damn These Heels 2020: Fabulously campy, subversive Holy Trinity, exceptional documentary Pier Kids signal impressive generation of indie filmmakers

In recent years mainstream cinema has made queer stories and characters more visible but the current generation of independent queer filmmakers has refreshed the culture by opening up spaces to voices that previously had been discouraged, ignored and even ostracized. Two highly recommended films being featured in the Utah Film Center’s 17th annual Damn These Heels Queer … Read more

Utah Film Center Damn These Heels 2020: Dramatic narrative Song Lang from Vietnam, Breaking Fast rom-com about Muslim doctor marvelously entertaining queer cinema films

Two marvelously entertaining queer narrative films with emotionally mature perspectives representing unlikely lovers discovering each other — – one from Vietnam and the other an American film starring a Muslim doctor living in West Hollywood – are featured in the Utah Film Center’s 17th annual Damn These Heels Queer Film Festival. They are Song Lang, a feature-length … Read more

Utah Film Center Damn These Heels 2020: One Taxi Ride excels in demonstrating power of observational cinema for finding paths to deal with taboo, misunderstood subject of sexual violence

In his director’s statement, Singaporean filmmaker Mak Chun Kit notes that discussing the sexual assault of men is a taboo subject virtually everywhere in the world and even the concept of men being sexual violence victims outside a prison setting is often looked upon as a myth.   In One Taxi Ride, he presents the … Read more