Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896
April 25, 2025
April 25, 2025 | Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896

arts





COURTESY OF AMELIA ISAACS
Eric Puchner read at the local coffee-shop/bookstore Bird in Hand.

Professor Eric Puchner discusses his latest work

On March 1, 2018, Hopkins Writing Seminars Professor Eric Puchner read from his new collection of short stories, Last Day on Earth, spoke with host Nate Brown, and answered questions from Brown and the audience. The event was held from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Ivy Bookshop in Bird in Hand. 


Oscars 2018 Reactions

The News-Letter's contributors and staff offer some of their thoughts on the 2018 Oscars.



COURTESY OF AMELIA ISAACS
Spencer Finch’s installation Moon Dust will remain at the BMA until 2024.

Spencer Finch’s Moon Dust lands at the BMA

I really don’t think that you can capture the feeling of standing under an array of 417 light bulbs, perfectly placed and descending over your head. I think that there’s something intrinsically magical and romantic about the piece, inherent in the fact that it’s depicting moon dust and the oxymoronic nature of using light bulbs to depict the moon.


Lando Chill proves R&B is far from dead

We are in a new phase of R&B, where experimentalism and innovation are in vogue. A great example of this is Lando Chill’s collaboration with producer Lasso, māyā. maia. mayu — one of the smoothest records I’ve heard this year.


COURTESY JESSE WU
Holy Frijoles, a Hampden institution, closed briefly after a fire in 2016 but celebrated its reopening this month.

Hampden neighborhood hotspot Holy Frijoles re-opens its doors

Overall, I’d say the food’s nothing to rave about, but the events and the pinball make this place worth checking out if you’re in the area. If I’m in Hampden and want to get my stomach full while also keeping my wallet full, I’d definitely drop by again.


MANFRED WERNER (TSUI)/CC BY-SA 4.0
Kenneth Lonegran won an Academy Award in 2016 for his film Manchester by the Sea.

Kenneth Lonegran’s This is Our Youth comes to Homewood

While the characters are not entirely likeable as people, the strong skills of the three actors, all with extensive acting experience, create an undeniable atmosphere of empathy. We may not want these characters as our friends, but we do care about their lives and what will become of them. 


SIEBBI/CC BY-SA 3.0
Natalie Portman stars in director Alex Garlands latest film, Annihilation.

Annihilation evocatively blends beauty and terror

Annihilation is one of the most beautifully terrifying science fiction films I’ve seen in the past eight years. It’s wonderfully acted and benefits from the deft hand of someone that has directed more than one film.


EISTRETER/CC BY-SA 3.0
The rose is a common trope in the TV show The Bachelor. which is now in its twenty second season.

Why do audiences love the The Bachelor so much?

I prided myself for a long time on never watching The Bachelor. For some reason, not watching that show made me feel like a better person, like I didn’t need to sink down to the level of trashy TV and getting involved in the lives of people I didn’t know.


PUBLIC DOMAIN
This portrait shows actor Ira Aldridge dressed for his role in Othello.

Red Velvet explores the legacy of Ira Aldridge

It is deeply compelling to observe Aldridge as he grapples with a role previously reserved for white men and the implications that come with it: critics who utilize explicit racial terminology to discuss his performance, fatal fissures in his longtime friendship with the flawed LaPorte, and his fellow cast members who awkwardly and haltingly attempt to understand Aldridge’s experiences. 


GAGE SKIDMORE/CC BY-SA 2.0
Black Panther has grossed $361 million since its release on Feb. 16.

Marvel’s Black Panther is more than just a superhero film

I’m just going to get this out of the way right now: Black Panther is a really good movie — incredibly good. You should definitely go see it. It is a thought-provoking essay on racial issues with a wonderful cast. It is a philosophical tale about the ways that we interact with our culture and our past and whether or not those traditions should be preserved moving into the future. 


COURTESY OF KENNY SUN/CC BY-SA 2.0
Car Seat Headrest's Will Toledo successfully reworked Twin Fantasy. 

Car Seat Headrest Successfully Re-records Album

The muted bass that introduces “My Boy” is slow, delicate and groovy. Within two minutes, there is a flood of biting guitars and Will Toledo, the lead singer, is wailing into the microphone. This is the prototype for the usual Car Seat Headrest song.


COURTESY OF GIOVANNA MOLINA
Witness Theater’s Intersession Showcase celebrates the work of students.

Witness Theater debuts an eclectic showcase

Witness Theater presented their Intersession showcase, Welcome to Our House — produced by junior Sarah Linton and stage managed by freshman Dominique Dickey — in the Mattin Center’s Swirnow Theater this weekend. The show featured a diverse collection of four student-directed and written one-act plays. 


COURTESY OF GAGE SKIDMORE/CC BY-SA 2.0
Michael B Jordan delivers a compelling performance as Killmonger. 

Killmonger is Marvel's most nuanced villain yet

If you’re a fan of superhero movies, odds are you’ve noticed that the villains are often not particularly interesting or challenging to the hero’s way of thought. They are kinda just there to kick start the plot and be a punching bag.




STEVEN PISANO / CC BY 2.0
Alsarah & the Nubatones was formed by Sudanese-American musician Alsarah in 2010.

Alsarah & the Nubatones tour Baltimore venues

The rhythmic beats of Alsarah & the Nubatones echoed through the basement of St. Matthews Church on Thursday, Feb. 15. The East African retro-pop group, currently based in Brooklyn, performed for a small yet engaged crowd as part of their tour of Baltimore sponsored by the Creative Alliance. 


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