Last weekend, the Dunbar Baldwin Hughes Theater Company (DBH) performed School Girls; Or, the African Mean Girls Play. The play is inspired by the real-life story of Erica Nego, the Ghanaian representative for Miss Universe in 2011, and discourses of colorism and national representation that played out in Ghana based on her appearance.
On the cover of Australian singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett’s third studio album are nine blue paint splotches. The splotches, all various shades of blue, might be interpreted as a gesture to the album’s portrayal of different flavors of sadness or perhaps the raw emotion contained within these 10 songs.
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.
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.
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.
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).
Originally scheduled for release in November of 2020, Dune, directed by Denis Villeneuve, finally made its way to theaters last weekend after long, agonizing months of celebrity bait and advertisement.
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.
After a busy year of songwriting and technical setbacks due to the pandemic, James Blake finally released his fifth studio album, Friends That Break Your Heart, on Oct. 8. The album is a testament to his growth as an artist, moving from his post-dubstep/electronic era into modern genres of pop and R&B. With 12 songs and a run-time of 44 minutes, Blake takes us on a transformative journey exploring themes of grief, regret and heartbreak.
The University’s annual week-long festival, Hoptoberfest, ended on Friday, Oct. 8 with a concert featuring indie-pop star Zella Day. Sponsored by the Hopkins Parents Fund and run by a student group of the same name, Hoptoberfest celebrates the coming of Halloween and the fall. This year marked a return of the festival to an in-person format.
Last Friday, the Hopkins Stand-Up Comedy Club (SUCC) gave it their all at their first show of the season, “Stand-Up Comedy Show: The Bird Election.” Just before 9 p.m., audience members filled Arellano Theater, in search of an evening comedy fix.
In-person dance shows are back at Hopkins! On Friday, Oct. 1 Homewood Arts Programs hosted a dance showcase in Shriver Hall. Over 10 student dance groups were welcomed back to the stage by an audience filled with friends, family and faculty; more than 400 people registered for the event on Hopkins Groups. This show marked the first cumulative dance display of the school year, reaching maximum-capacity seating in accordance with COVID-19 guidelines.
“A good movie starts when you walk out of the theater.” Those are the words of legendary writer-director Paul Schrader, the man behind the screenplays of American greats such as Taxi Driver and Raging Bull. His latest directorial effort, completed in collaboration with Martin Scorsese, embraces that very idea — and amplifies it to a magnitude you cannot ignore.
With the legendary impact left behind by jazz singer Billie Holiday, it is only fitting that her native city continues to uphold her legacy and celebrate her music.
It's finally here. Kanye West has released Donda, an almost two-hour-long album that comes on the backs of three listening sessions, years of missed release dates, a failed bid to become president, a brewing feud with Drake and a very public divorce from Kim Kardashian.
If you’re anything like me, all of your social media (particularly TikTok) have been flooded for days with reactions to Amazon’s new Cinderella, starring Camila Cabello. You’ve likely already been exposed to some aspect of the film.
As the start of a new school year comes around, much seems to be shifting and evolving. A hesitant positivity is brimming in the air, with in-person classes, group gatherings and the like fueling progress back towards normalcy.
The Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA) hosted its 33rd Annual Culture Show on Friday, April 23 with the theme of “Connected from Afar.” Each year, the Culture Show gives student groups on campus the opportunity to share their cultural heritage through music and dance.
After a winding road of pandemic awards shows, the end of the 2021 film awards season is at last upon us. On April 25, the highly anticipated 93rd Academy Awards — also known as the Oscars — took place live and in-person at Union Station in Los Angeles.
A month ago, I wrote a review of the first episode of Disney+’s new premier Marvel Cinematic Universe intellectual property, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. In it, I expressed disappointment with the way that the series opened. I believed that the show might improve as it went along, but I argued that, in the first episode, the show just wasn’t all that good.
