Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896
April 25, 2024

Arts & Entertainment



COURTESY OF CLAIRE EDMONDS
Mehdi El-Hebil played Lewis in the Barnstormers production of Hirson and Schwartz’s Pippin.

Barnstormers bring their unique energy to Pippin

The Barnstormers premiered the first of six performances of their spring musical Pippin last Friday, April 6. The musical, written by Roger O. Hirson and Stephen Schwartz in 1972, tells the story of Pippin, the son of Charlemagne, who goes on a journey to find fulfillment in life. 


COURTESY OF KATHERINE LOGAN
Broken Social Scene is back on tour playing classics as well as new tracks.

Broken Social Scene puts on a solid show at Rams Head Live!

It was only when I noticed that I’d stumbled into the wrong line — I was waiting to get into Bleachers’ show at Power Plant Live! rather than Rams Head Live! — that I realized that the vibe at the show I was headed to, Broken Social Scene, might be a little different than I had anticipated. 


COURTESY OF CINDY LI
"Take A Chance" is one of many pieces featured in Charm City Stories. 

First issue of Charm City Stories makes its debut

Charm City Stories celebrated its first annual publication release on Friday in the Center for Visual Arts at the Mattin Center. The event was comprised of a live prose and poetry reading, the showing of a short film and an exhibition of two floors of artwork.


COURTESY OF CRAIG HANKIN
Tyler's forthcoming book, Fab 4 Mania, is a narrative of her trip to a Beatles concert in 1965.

Cartoonist Carol Tyler to speak at Hopkins

On April 16, the Center for Visual Arts will host award-winning cartoonist Carol Tyler at Arellano Theatre. Tyler’s visit to campus comes in advance of the publishing of her latest graphic novel Fab4 Mania, which will be released through Fantagraphics in June of this year. In anticipation of her upcoming visit, The News-Letter spoke to the artist, discussing her life, work and the confluence of the two. 



PUBLIC DOMAIN
The French company Louis Vuitton is one of the oldest fashion in the industry.

Virgil Abloh brings street wear to Louis Vuitton

Last week, Louis Vuitton announced Virgil Abloh, the founder of Off-White and creative partner of Kanye West, as the new artistic director of menswear following the departure of Kim Jones earlier this year. Although Abloh is best known for his work in the luxury streetwear scene, the French fashion house’s decision is not surprising. 


GABBOT/CC BY-SA 2.0
Steve Buscemi plays Nikita Khruschev in Iannucci’s The Death of Stalin.

Iannucci’s latest film brings light to a dark time

If you’re a fan of political satire, the era we currently find ourselves in is probably one that makes you laugh — but also worry. From the headlines to the tweets, you can’t help but wonder if the meta-aspect of it all is lost amongst the very people involved in it. After the rise of House Of Cards, the idea that those in charge of the government were Machiavellian became prevalent, particularly in the U.S. 


MARTIN KRAFT/CC BY-SA 3.0
German director Tom Tykwer is one of the co-creators of Babylon Berlin.

Babylon Berlin and the study of an interwar city

On Thursday, March 28, Samuel Spinner, an assistant professor in the Department of German and Romance Languages and Literature, held a screening and discussion centered on the first episode of the Netflix series Babylon Berlin. Spinner also discussed the class he will be teaching in the Fall 2018 semester, Berlin Between the Wars: Literature, Art, Music, Film.


COURTESY OF JESSE WU
Waverly's 32nd Street Farmer's Market offers a variety of delicious options to explore. 

Waverly’s 32nd Street Market offers local, flavorful options

With spring just around the corner and the good weather flowing in, I’ve been itching for a chance to get out of the library and off campus to do something exciting. I heard a local farmers’ market was going to host a Food, Art & Community Fest on March 31, so there I was, on a beautiful sunny Saturday, exploring the only way I know how: eating. 


COURTESY OF GAGE SKIDMORE/CC BY-SA 2.0
Comedian Rhea Butcher performed as part of the Freeze Peach Series. 

Rhea Butcher delivers a great set at The Creative Alliance

The Creative Alliance hosted stand-up comic Rhea Butcher as part of their Freeze Peach Series on Friday, March 30. The Freeze Peach Series is designed to feature comics whose content helps fight silence and censorship of underrepresented voices, both on- and off-stage. Butcher’s comedy centers around their experience as a queer non-binary person growing up in the Midwest, so they were an obvious choice to headline an LGBTQ-focused show.


COURTESY OF ABBY JOHNSON
J-Street U sponsored a performance of "The Forbidden Conversation" by Gili Getz on campus. 

Gili Getz delves into the “forbidden conversation”

On Tuesday, March 27, J Street U invited actor and photographer Gili Getz to perform his autobiographical one-man performance, The Forbidden Conversation. The “forbidden conversation,” as Getz refers to it, is one that is not only forbidden from happening, but is also one that has been banned from even being talked about. 



COURTESY OF HOLLY TICE
Julia Zimmerman debuted "Present at Peabody" at the Peabody Library. 

New exhibit showcases talented student artists

On Friday, March 30, Hopkins junior Julia Zimmerman debuted a new contemporary art exhibit titled Present at Peabody. Zimmerman curated the site-specific exhibit with funding from an Andrew W. Mellon Arts Innovation Grant. 


PUBLIC DOMAIN
MICA hosted the second of their three Grad Shows this past Saturday .

MICA students assemble an impressive showcase

The Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) Grad Show 2018 II held its opening reception on Saturday, March 24, at the MICA campus. The show is the second of three for the Spring/Summer season of 2018, which will feature the work of a total of more than 150 graduate students. 


 GENEVIEVE/CC BY 2.0 
The film’s director Greg Berlanti is known for his work on Dawson’s Creek.

Love, Simon is a fun take on the rom-com genre

I have to admit, I was a little nervous going into Love, Simon. I’m admittedly not the biggest fan of the rom-com genre, but my sense of cautious optimism was further amplified by my worry that the protagonist’s coming out story would be oversimplified or even reduced to the extent that the story might as well have not even been about queer-identifying characters.


SWIMFINFAN/CC BY-SA 2.0
St. Louis rapper Smino collaborated with producer Sango on “Khlorine” and rapper Tobi Lou on “Troop.”

Six new songs to get you through the late winter drudgery

While there haven’t been too many great albums released recently, there have been a lot of great singles. So, here are some of my favorite songs that haven’t gotten enough exposure. The first song is “Life,” by Saba, the rapper who was once featured on Chance the Rapper’s song “Everybody’s Something,” from the latter’s Acid Rap mixtape. 


CHRIS/CC BY-SA 2.0
Musician George Ezra is well known in the UK for his debut album Wanted on Voyage.

George Ezra continues success with his second studio album

After releasing two EPs, Did You Hear the Rain? and Cassy O’ in November of 2013 and April of 2014 respectively, English singer-songwriter George Ezra rose to fame with his hit single, “Budapest.” The song reached the top 10 in several countries around the world and reached number one in another five. 


TYRESEHASABRAIN/CC BY-SA 4.0
Earl Sweatshirt is one of the featured acts at this year’s Spring Fair. 

The brief history of Earl Sweatshirt

Earl Sweatshirt is the most underrated rapper in the game. In my opinion, he is the best contemporary rapper. Luckily for us, the Spring Fair team somehow got one of the most reclusive and quiet rappers to come and bless us with a performance. In expectation of his upcoming concert, here is a short introduction to the most talented man you’ve never listened to.


THE COME UP SHOW/ CC BY 2.5
Miguel brought his tour promoting the album War & Leisure to Baltimore . 

R&B singer Miguel puts on an energetic show

Over our spring break, Baltimore had the opportunity to host the R&B singer Miguel at the Modell Performing Arts Center at The Lyric as part of his War & Leisure tour. The concert had the snowstorm that saw the shutdown of most of the City, from stores to schools, as its backdrop. 


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