The year is winding down, midterms are nearly over and that elusive handful of truly spring weather weeks in Maryland is peeking through the clouds. The allure of the sun and the Beach nearly manages to distract from the looming threat of finals, but in spite of future stress, perhaps we can pre-game our end-of-the-semester celebration a little earlier with these forthcoming selections.
If you’re a regular reader of our beloved Arts and Entertainment Section, you’ll remember the recent Throwback Thursday on the ancient cave paintings of the Chauvet Caves. In 2010, the Chauvet Caves featured in renowned German director Werner Herzog’s 3D documentary Cave of the Forgotten Dreams, which is being released in 6k restoration this Friday. While it may be impossible for a great many of us to ever see the Chauvet Caves in person, this 6k restoration not only brings the images of its walls to you, but it promises 3D effect, highlighting every crevice and divot. Look for this movie that looks back at the beginnings of art in a theatre near you on April 24!
In the spirit of looking back, the end of the year prompts many of us to begin reflecting on the 2025-2026 school year. How have we transformed, freshmen into sophomores, and have we fashioned ourselves into something ready for the broader world, graduating seniors? Yongyu Chen’s debut poem collection Perennial Counterpart, which explores themes of “memory, nostalgia, and identity,” might be the perfect read for our reflective time. The collection “balances conceptual density with a yearning lyricism” and releases this Tuesday on April 21!
Following this bittersweet note, Noah Kahan’s fourth album The Great Divide promises songs of old memories and summer days with track titles like “End of August” and “We Go Way Back.” The album’s title track, released at the end of January, sends out a raw, heartfelt message to an old friend many years after their relationship has faded. If the end of the school year promises some bittersweet things for you, check out The Great Divide when it releases this Friday on April 24.
But don’t let all this reflecting get you down, because spring is also a time for celebration and living in the moment. As you might have seen all over Sidechat, Instagram or our very own The News-Letter, Gunna will be headlining our annual Spring Fair Concert this Saturday, April 25. Known for albums such as Drip or Drown 2 and DS4EVER, Gunna’s rap music has topped Billboard charts since his debut in 2016. If he isn’t in your rotation already, then tune in, because tickets drop this Monday at 12 p.m.!
To watch:
- American Youngboy, directed by Nico Ballesteros — April 22
- Nikki Glaser: Good Girl, directed by Hamish Hamilton — April 24
- Michael, directed by Antoine Fuqua — April 24
- Cave of Forgotten Dreams, directed by Werner Herzog — April 24
- Omaha, directed by Cole Webley — April 24
To read:
- Working Nature: A History of the Energy Economy, written by Daniela Russ — April 21
- Lidie: The Further Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton: A Novel, written by Jane Smiley — April 21
- No Way Home, written by T. C. Boyle — April 21
- Afternoon Hours of the Hermet, written by Patrick Cottrell — April 21
- Perennial Counterpart, written by Yongyu Chen — April 21
To listen:
- Wishbone (Deluxe), by Conan Gray — April 24
- Kehlani, by Kehlani — April 24
- The Great Divide, by Noah Kahan — April 24
- Toy With Me, by Meghan Trainor — April 24
- Under My Umbrella, by Miss Grit — April 24
Live events:
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Love and Family in Palestinian Cinema screening: 'The Time That Remains' — April 20, 6–8 p.m. at Gilman 50
- This event is free.
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Spring Fair Concert: Gunna — April 25, 8 p.m. at the Ralph S. O’Connor Recreation Center
- This event is free and requires registration.
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The Joshua Ringel Memorial Reading: Cornelius Eady — April 26, 2–4 p.m. at the Baltimore Museum of Art
- This event is free and requires registration.
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I'm Gonna Let It Shine: Praise, Power, and Protest in Black Musical Traditions — April 26, 3–5 p.m. at the St. James Episcopal Church
- This event is free and requires registration.
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Shriver Hall Concert Series: Steven Isserlis, Cello and Connie Shih, Piano — April 26, 5:30–7:30 p.m. at the Shriver Hall Auditorium
- This event is free and requires registration.
