“Clue” Makes for an Exuberant Evening
Photo by Brittany App Almost every seat was taken in Cal Poly’s Spanos Theatre on March 7 to see Clue: The Musical, a two-act raucous reenactment of the board…
“Sing Sing” Rides a Rollercoaster of Emotions and Expletives
Among the opening visuals of the movie Sing Sing, a bird perches on barbed wire looking into a peaceful prison yard. Aside from the wire, high walls, and guard towers,…
We Need More of Cabeza de Baca
Living in California we sometimes take for granted how fortunate we are to live in such a visually stunning and diverse state. The Mexican culture in particular is deeply ingrained…
Animated Shorts Are Creative, Obtuse
In the Shadow of the Cypress* The five animated short films nominated for this year’s Academy Awards, currently showing in a block at The SLO Film Center at the…
“Much Ado About Nothing” Is Delightful
Photos by Luis Escobar, Reflections Photography Studio When it comes to Shakespeare and his much-performed comedy Much Ado About Nothing, “I think he means to delight us—pure and simple,”…
“Guys on Ice” Is Warm and Funny
There’s something fishy going on at The Great American Melodrama, although what’s happening seems relegated to a place far, far away—somewhere in the chilly northern wilds of Wisconsin—not in the…
“Becoming Led Zeppelin” Is a Hit
The theatre was packed, no one could sit still, and everyone clapped at the end. Becoming Led Zeppelin was a long time coming: finally, a documentary about the origins of…
“Million Dollar” Winner at SLO Rep
It was KISS who famously sang “God gave rock and roll to you,” but I’m pretty sure they were mistaken. Now, after attending a tour-de-force presentation of Million Dollar Quartet…
“I’m Still Here” Is Both Moving and Informative
From the late 1960s to the early 1980s, Brazil was governed by a far-right military dictatorship. Rulers enforced strict censorship, reduced freedom of speech, and imprisoned, tortured, and killed many…
Brutal Breeds “The Brutalist”
The Brutalist—a three-part, three-and-a-half-hour film depicting the life of a Hungarian-Jewish immigrant architect—covers a lot of ground. It starts with his entry into the United States (fresh from the Holocaust),…