“Jay Kelly” Mixes a Little Comedy, a Lot of Drama
Photo courtesy of Netflix Can a good film be based on an empty character? The answer can be found in Jay Kelly, a new movie written by Noah Baumbach…
Don’t Worry, Be Happy—“It’s Only a Play”
It’s Only a Play, running for five performances only this weekend, November 20-23, at The Studio of Performing Arts in Grover Beach, is only one of playwright Terrence McNally’s many…
Orchestra Novo Syncs with Buster Keaton
The plucking of strings intermingle with the high-pitched sounds of wind instruments echoing on stage. Audience members, dressed in flapper dresses and fedoras, crowd the Harold J. Miossi Cultural and…
“Holiday Extravaganza” Brings Joy and Laughter
Joyous singing. The warmth of a fire and of a fateful fairytale ending. Comical bits featuring mistletoe, memories, and misunderstood holiday song lyrics. What else could you ask for on…
“Frozen” Sparkles at PCPA
Photos by Mark Velasquez When I was 13, I watched the movie Frozen with my sister as soon as it hit theatres. Naturally, as the younger sibling, I wore…
Is “The Man from Earth” Telling the Truth?
If you’ve seen the promos for the play currently being staged at the Cambria Center for the Arts Theatre, then you’re familiar with the question they pose: What would you…
“After All” Is All About Family
Thomas Wolfe's novel famously advises You Can't Go Home Again. Ellen Sharpe seems determined to prove him wrong. Ellen is going nowhere fast. She fled the hardscrabble rural life of…
“Bugonia” Critiques Savage State of Humanity
One of my professors once told us there had been three major shocks to the human race: Copernicus shattered our fantasy by telling us that we are not at the…
This Isn’t Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”
Photos courtesy of Netflix Over two hundred years after its original publication, Mary Shelley’s iconic novel Frankenstein has been adapted by Guillermo del Toro into a film. For those…
Shao and Friends Demonstrate World-Class Artistry
For her farewell concert as this year’s Festival Mozaic Artist in Residence, cellist Sophie Shao teamed up with pianist Amy I-Lin Cheng and violinist Carmit Zori to take the audience…