Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896
March 19, 2026 March 19, 2026 | Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896

Arts & Entertainment

DAVID OOMS/CC BY 2.0 Kenneth Branagh’s Death on the Nile is a remake of the 1978 film of the same name.

Death on the Nile is a fun time, but don’t expect to be blown away

By VAREN TALWAR | March 5, 2022

Movies can be great or they can be terrible, but in my experience, most are just adequate. These adequate ones might not affect us as deeply as the great one, or grant as much material for jokes as the terrible ones, but sometimes they can be precisely what we need: an escapist, fun ride. Keeping that in mind, I can’t think of a more appropriate adjective for Death on the Nile than just perfectly adequate.

DAVID SHANKBONE/CC BY 2.0 Kimi, starring Zoë Kravitz, critiques technology amid an increasingly corporate world.

A pandemic-era thriller, Kimi is a critique of surveillance capitalism

By JULIA ALUMBRO | March 1, 2022

2022 is Zoë Kravitz’s year for playing lead female roles in cinema. While most people are anticipating her appearance in The Batman this March, Kravitz has received a lot of praise for her performance in the new HBO Max thriller Kimi. The movie, which was released on Feb. 10, is set in a dystopian pandemic world where surveillance capitalism is at its peak.

COURTESY OF MADELEINE GRAY Muratore reviews Peabody Chamber Opera and Peabody Concert Orchestra’s performance of La Scala di Seta, noting the exceptional cast and inventive set designs.

The Peabody Institute’s production of La Scala di Seta injects newfound creativity into the celebrated Italian opera

By REBECCA MURATORE | February 25, 2022

After what has seemed like a never-ending dearth of live music and theater these past two years, live performances are finally returning. While livestreams and Zoom performances were certainly better than nothing, there really is nothing like sitting in an audience, watching a story come to life in the same room as you, feeling music reverberate throughout your body and just immersing yourself in a theatrical experience.

PUBLIC DOMAIN All four plays at the I-Show revolve around the setting of a cabin.

Witness Theater showcases wide range of student work

By RISHABH KUMAR | February 20, 2022

Witness Theater, the only student-written, directed and produced theater group on campus, held its Intersession Show last weekend. For this showcase, titled “Cabin Fever,” each story stayed on them by being set in a cabin, at least to some extent.

WILL 2037/CC BY-SA 4.0 Laura Kipnis’ new novel Love in the Time of Contagion: A Diagnosis is a mixed bag of witty commentary and stagnant ideas.

Love in the Time of Contagion explores the effects of quarantine on our relationships

By JULIA ALUMBRO | February 15, 2022

The pandemic has undoubtedly transformed our views of love and relationships. Many in coupledom have remained together despite the untimely arrival of COVID-19 and its spread worldwide, while others have scattered to explore connection through social networks. Nonetheless, quarantine left us with an endless amount of time to reflect on our emotional, romantic and intimate needs.

MICHELE LF/CC BY 4.0 Alumbro reviews the soundtrack of the hit show Euphoria midway through its second season.

A midseason look into the music of Euphoria

By JULIA ALUMBRO | February 6, 2022

It’s no surprise that the second season of Euphoria has nearly doubled its viewership from when it first premiered in June 2019. Presented with an alluring cast, the show has had a magnetizing effect on its target audience of young adults. The attractive cast, alongside some of the most iconic cosmetic choices, contributes to our fondness for the show. However, there’s one emblematic component that effectively captures its theme of transcendence: music.

COURTESY OF SOPHIA LIN Gilman Hall lights up as the Hopkins community celebrates the annual Lighting of the Quads.

Lighting of the Quads boosts school spirit amid close of fall semester

By KAILA GRISWOLD | December 6, 2021

Hundreds of students, staff and community members gathered on campus last Friday to attend Lighting of the Quads, a long-upheld Hopkins tradition. The event was sponsored by the Parents Fund, Hopkins Dining and the Office of Leadership Engagement and Experiential Development, and over 4,000 guests registered to attend.

ROSIE JANG/CARTOONS EDITOR Poet Melissa Lozada-Oliva’s new book Dreaming of You is a meditation on celebrity in modern times.

Melissa Lozada-Oliva’s Dreaming of You reimagines the ghost story

By SOPHIA PASALIS | November 19, 2021

Published by Astra Publishing House in late October, Melissa Lozada-Oliva’s new book Dreaming of You elevates the novel, demanding it be fun and grounded in pop culture. Named after the pop star Selena Quintanilla’s last album, the book follows the author (“Melissa”) as she resurrects the celebrity who died in 1995 into the present day. 

COURTESY OF MIN-SEO KIM Performers dance in pairs onstage at the 13th Annual Slam Showcase + Benefit Show: SLAMMIN’ INTO SPACE.

SLAM showcase stuns with hypnotic hip-hop performances

By MIN-SEO KIM | November 19, 2021

The SLAM Hip Hop Dance Group hosted the 13th Annual SLAM Showcase + Benefit: SLAMMIN’ INTO SPACE on Nov. 13. Ticket proceeds from the event went to the Young Audiences Arts for Learning, an arts education nonprofit. Around 300 people registered to attend the event on CampusGroups.

COURTESY OF RISHABH KUMAR King Claudius, played by Feuerstein-Mendik, kneels while Hamlet, played by Al-Kowsi, stands behind him.

The Barnstormers present Hamlet for the modern age as Fall Mainstage

By RISHABH KUMAR | November 13, 2021

Over the last weekend of October and the first weekend of November, the Barnstormers presented a rendition of Hamlet for the Fall Mainstage. It was the first live, in-person mainstage by the Barnstormers in two years and was an excellent return to the stage, making most of the Shakespearean classic while subtly bringing it to the modern age.

COURTESY OF JULIA ALUMBRO The Deja Vu Band performs onstage with a spooky setup on Halloween Eve.

Local Deja Vu Band impresses its Baltimore community

By JULIA ALUMBRO | November 4, 2021

Let me introduce you to a Baltimore-based funk band called Deja Vu. The band consists of five teens: Elek Yuhas (singer, guitarist); Isaac Chang (keys, trumpet, synthesizer); Roy’el Byrd (bass); Graham Hogan (drums); and Leo Hickman (mandolin, double bass). 

GLYN LOWE/CC BY 2.0 Daniel Craig goes out with a bang in his last turn as MI6 agent James Bond.

A genre-defying last hurrah, No Time to Die marks the end of a remarkable era

By SOPHIA LIN | October 21, 2021

There’s a certain mystique that follows a Bond film, one that holds a timelessness and universality of frankly uncommon proportions. Any attempts to characterize it often point to the flair, the gadgetry or, most likely, the untouchable coolness exuded by its titular character. Whatever it is, though, there’s no doubt — the newly released No Time to Die has it, and then some.

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