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April 1, 2025

Arts & Entertainment

COURTESY OF EMA IWASAKI On Saturday, Nov. 9, the Peabody Concert Orchestra opened their show to tangible excitement at the Miriam A. Friedberg Concert Hall.

The Peabody Concert Orchestra captivates the audience with an unforgettable night of music

By EMA IWASAKI | November 17, 2024

The Peabody Concert Orchestra (PCO) displayed an exceptional performance on Saturday, Nov. 9 in the Miriam A. Friedberg Concert Hall. The excitement in the packed hall could be felt, especially as Dean of the Peabody Institute Fred Bronstein dedicated the opening of the annual PCO in memory of Steven Muller — former president of the Johns Hopkins University and the Johns Hopkins Hospital — who passed away in 2013. The program notes describes him as — “a visionary leader who reshaped and reinvigorated JHU during his long tenure as president.” 

JIYUN GUO / DESIGN & LAYOUT EDITOR This week’s picks include a new book by Haruki Murakami, an alternative album, a fresh take on classical music, two blockbusters and a documentary. 

To watch and watch for: Week of Nov. 18

By NOËL DA | November 17, 2024

Do you feel winter on its way yet? The Arts & Entertainment section is here with another list of media to make your next week a little more colorful. This week’s picks include a new book by Haruki Murakami, an alternative album, a fresh take on classical music, two blockbusters and a documentary. 

COURTESY OF CATHY WANG This week, Raphaël Feuillâtre performs at the Baltimore Museum of Art on Saturday, Nov. 16 at 3 p.m.

To watch and watch for: Week of Nov. 11

By TIMOTHY MCSHEA | November 11, 2024

Hello everyone and welcome back to our “To watch and watch for” series, where the Arts & Entertainment section compiles a list of all the upcoming films, TV shows, books, albums and live events happening on campus, in the wider Baltimore area and beyond. I’m excited for this new format we started, because it means I get to share even more new releases. This week was extremely hefty in the musical department, with plenty of big names like Jon Batiste, Gwen Stefani and Mary J. Blige, and the list of live events continues to grow as we get further into the semester.

Dominick D / CC BY-SA 2.0 Smile 2 borrows plot points and narrative strategies both from other established horror films and the original Smile, resulting in an obvious cash grab without artistic ambition.

Smile 2 is like an old, beloved dead dog

By RILEY STRAIT | November 10, 2024

You loved it in the beginning, but the older it got the messier it got, and you started feeling mad more than anything else, especially when you kept finding pee on the carpet, and in the very end, it died a rapid, out-of-left-field death caused by rabies: violent and hard to watch but harder to stop watching, and once it was over you wished none of it — the dog, the death — ever happened in the first place. Before you click away from this article or my editor can highlight and leave a comment for revision — “Rephrase for clarity” — let me tell you: I’m the first one to admit that my description is over-the-top, vying for attention, maybe not the best option and overall confusing, even if it does leave you with a visceral image.

RAWPIXEL.COM / CC0 PUBLIC DOMAIN Machine Girl's newest project fails to continue the duo's streak of decidedly noncommercial music, instead mellowing their abrasive style for a wider audience.

Machine Girl’s MG Ultra is an adrenaline-drenched soundtrack for modern paranoia

By EDWARD ZHU | November 7, 2024

Listening to Machine Girl can sometimes feel like being inserted headfirst into a meat grinder; it’s an unrelenting assault that leaves you strangely exhilarated but also satisfied. Their latest release, MG Ultra, which dropped earlier this month, strays slightly from their usual aesthetics, but still manages to deliver the sonic violence that unmistakably qualifies it as a Machine Girl album.

JAYDIXIT / CC BY-SA 4.0 Demi Moore stars in The Substance, a film directed by Coralie Fargeat that Guevara believes sparks an important conversation on women’s aging and beauty.  

The Substance is disturbingly ugly, but ultimately makes its point

By ALICIA GUEVARA | November 7, 2024

What if, somehow, scientists discovered a way for us to regain youth? What if suddenly, we had the means to not just feel younger, but actually become a younger version of ourselves again? Should we have this ability? And is there a cost to chasing this societal ideal of the perfect (read: young) woman?

GOODFON / CC BY-NC 4.0 Guo highlights that the authentic and compelling relationship in We Live in Time is a refreshing departure from the traditional rom-com genre. 

We Live in Time and love without regret

By JIYUN GUO | November 7, 2024

A new take on the love story ended prematurely by illness, We Live in Time gives us a realistic and bittersweet view of what it means to love without regrets. Its genuine interactions and nonlinear plot create a relationship that’s beautiful because of the characters’ efforts toward each other, rather than their tragic premise.

JIYUN GUO / DESIGN & LAYOUT EDITOR This week’s picks includes a book of letters by Oliver Sacks and the Hopkins Theater’s production of Passage!

To watch and watch for: Week of Nov. 4

By NOËL DA | November 3, 2024

Hello and welcome! It’s time for another week of new media. Whether you’re on the lookout for inspiration, entertainment or both, the Arts & Entertainment section is here with our list of fresh recommendations.

RAPH_PH / CC BY 2.0 Zhu describes that although Tyler, the Creator's latest project, Chromakopia, lacks the innovation suggested by the promotional material, the album’s vulnerability and introspection is refreshing. 

Tyler, the Creator’s Chromakopia prioritizes introspection over innovation

By EDWARD ZHU | October 29, 2024

The rollout for Chromakopia — a series of dystopian, auteurist videos set to abrasive musical snippets — felt like deceptive advertising...There is a disconnect between the album’s industrially-tinged, barren aesthetic framing and its actual lyrical themes. On first listen, I found myself questioning: Why the mask, the military-inspired imagery and the shipping containers?  

COURTESY OF LAVANYA GUPTA The cast of The Barnstormers' production of Twelfth Night, imitating the famous photo of the 2012 Public Theater production featuring Anne Hathaway. From left to right: Katherine Budinger as Countess Olivia, Emma Peralta as Viola and Ander Diez as Duke Orsino.

Art Deco Shakespeare: The Barnstormers' performance of Twelfth Night

By TIMOTHY MCSHEA | October 29, 2024

For their Fall 2024 show, Hopkins’ longest-standing theater company, The Barnstormers, performed one of Shakespeare’s most performed plays, the romantic comedy Twelfth Night. I made sure to attend their first performance on Oct. 24, which had a sparse crowd — likely due to it being on a Thursday — but an energetic atmosphere. 

COURTESY OF JIMMY JOE ROCHE Still frame from Jimmy Joe Roche's Manger, which is an adaptation of the Book of Genesis. 

Film and Media Studies Faculty Showcase highlights four labors of love

By JIYUN GUO | October 28, 2024

On Oct. 13 from 2—4 p.m., four faculty filmmakers from the Film and Media Studies department screened their work... The event highlighted the presenters’ labors of love, with a program that featured the following works: unravelling by Susan Leslie Mann and John Bright Mann, Manger by Jimmy Joe Roche, Turf Valley by Adam Rodgers and Tom Ventimiglia, and I’m Not Your Monster by Karen Yasinsky. 

RUI DO ROSARIO / DESIGN & LAYOUT EDITOR Picks for this week include Chromakopia by Tyler, The Creator, The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins, Juror #2 by Clint Eastwood and Fountains of Rome and La Mer performed by the BSO and the Aaron Diehl Trio on Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m.

To watch and watch for: Week of Oct. 27

By TIMOTHY MCSHEA | October 27, 2024

Whether your Halloweekend just passed, or for some reason you’re celebrating in November (weird choice), there are plenty of new releases and events which will soothe your soul — perhaps enough to reinhabit your body. 

PRINTERVAL / CC BY-NC 4.0 Lizzy McAlpine’s most recent release, Older (and Wiser) contains several emotional deluxe tracks that complement the original release. 

Older (and Wiser): a musical reflection on growing up

By SPRUHA DEO | October 26, 2024

Lizzy McAlpine’s most recent release, Older (and Wiser) won me over before I even listened to it. I cannot emphasize how much I love a good — or bad — pun, and deluxe albums with witty titles are my guilty pleasures (see: guts (spilled) by Olivia Rodrigo and Call Me If You Get Lost: The Estate Sale by Tyler, the Creator).

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