If some people around you laugh a little too raucously at Bar Harbor Theatre’s production of “Art,” you can assume that they are the artists, actors and painters in the audience. You can further guess that they recognize something of themselves in the very insider language that Yasmina… Read More
PETER LOON, by Van Reid, Viking, New York, 298 pages, hardcover, $24.95. Edgecomb writer Van Reid takes a departure from chronicling the Victorian escapades of his Moosepath League to look at life in Maine shortly after the Revolutionary War. “Peter Loon” tells the story of… Read More
BROTHERS OF MORNING, by Martin Steingesser, Deerbrook Editions, Cumberland, 2002, 73 pages, $12. Coming to the end of Martin Steingesser’s new poetry collection, “Brothers of Morning,” I could almost smell the scent of the ripening warmth of Indian summer, that time of promise I remember… Read More
Scooby Doo has given new meaning to the term “dog years.” Debuting on the landmark “Scooby Doo, Where Are You?” in 1969, the Great Dane now would be 231 in human years (the Scooby Snacks must keep him young). Since that time, Scooby and the… Read More
BREWER – Sister Mary Ignatius has an answer for everything. She tends to skip over why God allows evil in the world, but the nun can explain everything else in Ten Bucks Theatre Company’s production of the dark comedy “Sister Mary Ignatius Explains It All for You.”… Read More
JOEL WHITE: BOATBUILDER, DESIGNER, SAILOR, by Bill Mayher and Maynard Bray, photographs by Benjamin Mendlowitz, Noah Publications, Brooklin, Maine. $60. Everyone with any interest in or affection for wooden boats will want this book. Those who love wooden boats will treasure it. As will every… Read More
GRADUATE! EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO SUCCEED AFTER COLLEGE, by Kristen M. Gustafson, Capital Books, Inc., 263 pages, $14.95 paper. When Kristen Gustafson got her first job after college in 1998, she was so excited about getting a real paycheck, compared to the $60 a week… Read More
Maria Testa’s father didn’t tell her much about his boyhood. Their family wasn’t the kind to sit around on a porch swing talking about the good old days. As it turns out, some of her father’s good old days weren’t so good. His father regularly… Read More
For years, Dick Wolf’s “Law & Order” series, especially the original, have been making a ratings killing with thinly veiled recreations of real-life cases. Producing a new series about real-life cases was a natural next step for Wolf. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var… Read More
Don’t be fooled, rock concerts are actually about two things: selling bottles of water and outrageously long lines at women’s restrooms. Too bad, too, because Tuesday night’s Incubus concert at the Cumberland County Civic Center belonged mostly to the lady fans. The Honda-sponsored tour is as close to… Read More
ORONO – Through some freak of PR nature, I ended up with two extra tickets to Tuesday’s Natalie Merchant show, so I started calling my friends. Strangely, each of them had an excuse: Too late. Too busy. Too tired. Too bad. googletag.cmd.push(function () { //… Read More
After a smash hit with the Oscar-winning “Shrek,” how does Dreamworks Pictures’ animation wing choose to keep its momentum going? Dreamworks honchos opted to go with “Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron.” Unfortunately, the ambitious film focusing on a wild mustang isn’t the runaway hit creatively… Read More
THE AMERICA’S TEST KITCHEN COOKBOOK, by the editors of Cook’s Illustrated magazine, Boston Common Press, 2002, 352 pages, $29.95. I regularly fill my kitchen with plumes of bad words. They can come blubbing from my mouth like lumps from a gravy boat after another bold… Read More
ALL WE HAVE IS NOW, by Robert Taylor, St. Martin’s Press, New York, 2002, $23.95. Written with such artless simplicity that it flows like a long letter to a good friend, this book, nevertheless, stays with you. There are no surprises. The author, a journalist… Read More
If you want gritty, street-level drama, David Simon is the person with whom to start. After all, Simon was a crime reporter for the Baltimore Sun for 13 years. His book, “Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets,” was the basis for NBC’s critically acclaimed… Read More
“There and Back Again” (Columbia) – Phil Lesh and Friends Phil Lesh has some pretty good friends. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) {… Read More
ERNIE’S ARK: Stories, by Monica Wood, Chronicle Books, San Francisco, 2002, 191 pages, $22.95. For author Carolyn Chute, the small Maine town is safe. That’s because it’s transparent. For better or worse, everyone knows everyone else. “They know you to the bone,” she writes in… Read More
PORTLAND – To have the Whitney, the Smithsonian and the Swope lend from their collections for “The Poetry Within: The Life and Work of William Thon” at the Portland Museum of Art is very nice. To see special works from private collections such as those… Read More
ELLSWORTH – The Grand Auditorium’s production of the lush musical “The Scarlet Pimpernel” dispels all doubts that amateur performers can conquer complex material often left to professional companies. The stars and supporting cast are the area’s best singers and actors, resulting in one of the most well-rounded and… Read More
ANGEL GABRIEL, The Elusive English Galleon: Its History and the Search for its Remains, by Warren C. Riess, 2001, 1797 House, Bristol, Maine, $15. This is a wistful little book, a surprising trait since it is about archaeology. Wistful and archaeology are two words not… Read More
“Food is a help/for all poets/take their meals/where and when/they find them.” – Kendall Merriam, “Comments on Chinese Poetry” googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length;… Read More
BANGOR – The best-known plays often are the hardest to do – especially if they’ve been preserved on film and turned into a hit television series. Neil Simon’s “The Odd Couple” is one of those plays. The story of two friends recovering from divorce who… Read More
IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER, by Julia Spencer-Fleming, 2002, Thomas Dunne Books, New York, 308 pages, hardcover, $23.95. Clare Fergusson has had a rough few weeks. She’s the new Episcopalian priest in the small upstate New York town of Millers Kill. The ancien regime that runs… Read More
PETTICOAT WHALERS: WHALING WIVES AT SEA, 1820-1920, by Joan Druett, illustrations by Ron Druett, University Press of New England, Hanover, N.H., 2001, paperback. In New England the word “whaling” triggers images of Nantucket, New Bedford and other regional whaling ports. But most often it is… Read More
Looking relaxed and impossibly young for his 53 years, singer-songwriter Jackson Browne served up generous and rich helpings from his 30-year recording career Monday night at the Maine Center for the Arts in Orono. Browne, on the second night of a 22-date tour, was in… Read More
The Wilderness From Chamberlain Farm: A Story of Hope for the American Wild, by Dean B. Bennett, Island Press, Washington, D.C.; $30. This comprehensive and so diligently researched history of Maine’s Allagash River and the lands around it would always be welcome. But given the… Read More
Conductor Uri Barnea got lucky when he was slotted to direct the final concert of the season for the Bangor Symphony Orchestra and faced a program of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 and Bach’s Orchestral Suite No. 3. What true-hearted musician wouldn’t want the challenge of lifting a baton… Read More
In theaters SPIDER-MAN. Directed by Sam Raimi. Written by David Koepp. 120 minutes. Rated PG-13. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice())… Read More
THE FORGOTTEN CONDITION OF THINGS, by Robert Froese, Flat Bay Press, Harrington, Me., 2002, $14. What a splendid surprise! Here comes this book from a small Maine publisher written by a fellow whose name has never turned up on anyone’s bestseller list and, guess what,… Read More
As the only community radio station in central Maine, WERU-FM finds itself trying to hold out against a deluge of commercial stations. So it’s only natural that the headliner for WERU’s 14th birthday party was Midnight Oil, the activist Aussie band that’s long been a… Read More
TASTE OF LAOS, by Daovone Xayavong, Snow Lion Graphics, Berkeley, Calif., 136 pages, $15.95. TASTE OF INDONESIA, by Helena Soedjak, Snow Lion Graphics, Berkeley, Calif., 136 pages, $16.95. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner =… Read More
When “Fuddy Meers,” now at Winterport Open Stage, begins with the theme song to “Sesame Street,” it’s a sure sign you’re not in Kansas anymore. You’re in the crazy, mixed-up fun house of David Lindsay-Abaire’s audacious comedy about a wacky family with a few secrets stuffed under the… Read More
In theaters THE SCORPION KING, directed by Chuck Russell, written by Stephen Sommers, William Osborne and David Hayter. 94 minutes. Rated PG-13. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0;… Read More
Something other than singing the blues was never really in the cards for Shemekia Copeland. She had a vague sense that she might like to go to school, be a psychiatrist, branch out into a profession unmarked by music. But being the daughter of the late bluesman Johnny… Read More
In theaters FRAILTY, directed by Bill Paxton, written by Brent Hanley. 100 minutes. Rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice())… Read More
You gotta love Irish music when you hear legendary balladeer Tommy Makem and his three sons – Shane, Conor and Rory – play for three hours at a venue as cavernous as the Maine Center for the Arts, in Orono, where the family foursome performed Saturday. In fact,… Read More
April is National Poetry Month. Sponsored by the Academy of American Poets, the monthlong series of events is intended to spur schools, libraries, publishers, booksellers and literary organizations around the country to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. In keeping with that tradition, Somesville poet… Read More
April is National Poetry Month. Sponsored by the Academy of American Poets, the monthlong series of events is intended to spur schools, libraries, publishers, booksellers and literary organizations around the country to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. In keeping with that tradition, Somesville poet… Read More
April is National Poetry Month. Sponsored by the Academy of American Poets, the monthlong series of events is intended to spur schools, libraries, publishers, booksellers and literary organizations around the country to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. In keeping with that tradition, Somesville poet… Read More
In theaters THE SWEETEST THING. Directed by Roger Kumble. Written by Nancy Pimental. 84 minutes. Rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) {… Read More
THE INTERRUPTED FOREST: A HISTORY OF MAINE’S WILDLANDS, by Neil Rolde. Tilbury House, Publishers. Gardiner, 2001, $20. Time present and time past googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0;… Read More
As Richard Pryor has shown, some of the best humor often comes from the comic’s pain. Margaret Cho proved she understands that concept in her 80-minute show Wednesday night at the Maine Center for the Arts in Orono. Her longtime eating disorders, the racism and… Read More
In theaters HIGH CRIMES, directed by Carl Franklin, written by Yuri Zeltser and Cary Bickley, based on the novel by Joseph Finder, 115 minutes, PG-13. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var… Read More
If ever a dance collaboration honored the marriage of movement and fantasy, it was Ballet Jorgen Canada and Hong Kong Ballet performing an adventurously crafted “Coppelia” on Monday at the Maine Center for the Arts in Orono. Under the direction of Swedish choreographer Bengt Jorgen, who is based… Read More
The plot of “Betrayal,” now running at Penobscot Theatre, is simple enough. Robert and Jerry are best friends. Robert and Emma are married. Jerry and Emma are lovers. The question of who is the betrayer and who is the betrayee are not, however, so simple to answer. This… Read More
It’s a great time to be a film-animation fan. First came Disney’s second coming, with “The Little Mermaid,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Lion King” and “Aladdin,” among others, including too many sequels and other lesser works. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes… Read More
“LANDINGS, LOGGING & LUMBERMEN: MEMORIES FROM ST. JOHN, ME., 1901-2001,” by Shirlee Connors-carlson, published by the author, Part I, 110 pages, $15; Part II, 24 pages, $7.50. New England is teeming with historians and folklorists, but did you ever meet a historian of folklore? Maybe… Read More
BANGOR – For the generations that still consider baseball the national pastime, the game remains serene yet full of emotions. It’s passion and pain, tribute and tradition, and mostly fun. Those emotions are the backdrop for “Baseball Songs Sports Heroes,” a CD recently released by… Read More
In theaters DEATH TO SMOOCHY, directed by Danny DeVito. Written by Adam Resnick. 109 minutes. Rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) {… Read More
Five years ago, William Carpenter had anchored his sailboat in a calm cove off the coast of Maine. His family was onboard and they were enjoying a festive outdoor meal with another family. It was one of those glory days of summer, luxurious and quiet and windswept. Read More
If you could read his mind, what a tale his thoughts could tell. In almost 40 years of performing, Gordon Lightfoot has sung of heartache and romance, tradition and change, all in his inimitably resonant voice. The 63-year-old singer-songwriter shared the highlights of his works… Read More
In theaters PANIC ROOM, directed by David Fincher, written by David Koepp. 112 minutes. Rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if… Read More
The Grigorovich Ballet of Russia, which performed Thursday at the Maine Center for the Arts, has one thing to say to more progressive offshoots of traditional dance: Move over because we’re not done yet. On a national tour, the Grigorovich is presenting a lineup of traditional crowd pleasers… Read More
Somewhere in the first few minutes of hearing Leon Williams sing, you have a sense that time stops and the earth stands still. His baritone reaches out like a mighty invitation requesting your company for the evening. As if that weren’t powerful enough, Williams’ first song at an… Read More
In theaters SORORITY BOYS, directed by Wally Wolodarsky, written by Joe Jarvis and Greg Coolidge, 94 minutes, rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length;… Read More
TV comedy has a new face, and it’s that of a fuzzy brown rabbit. “Greg the Bunny,” debuting at 9:30 tonight, is a perfect fit on Fox. Like the best comedies of that network, it presents one man’s often-caustic vision, and it’s sure to offend… Read More
Who knew that the Supreme Court was such fertile dramatic ground that it would inspire not just one, but two midseason replacements? First on the docket was CBS’ “First Monday,” which has proved thuddingly executed despite having a strong cast. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define… Read More
“MARA’S STORIES: GLIMMERS IN THE DARKNESS,” by Gary Schmidt, 2001, Henry Holt & Co., New York, 149 pages, hardcover, $16.95. Some knowledge should run in the blood – only it doesn’t. Though my grandmother spent the 1930s coaxing relatives out of Austria, my son wasn’t… Read More
In theaters KANDAHAR. Written and directed by Mosen Makhmalbaf. 85 minutes. Not rated. In English and Farsi with English subtitles. Starts tonight, The Grand, Ellsworth. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var… Read More
“EVERYTHING’S EVENTUAL,” by Stephen King, Scribner, New York. 459 pages. $28 Of all the fiction writers whose works are assured a nonstop flight from the publishing house to the best-seller list, Stephen King may be the only one who consistently explores a variety of writing… Read More
ORONO – Meredith Crawford will tell you how much she likes Debussy, Tchaikovsky, De Berriot Mendelssohn – “anything that makes you go ‘ah, that is so pretty.'” The 15-year-old violinist delivered just that to nearly 4,000 youngsters Monday as soloist for three Bangor Symphony Orchestra… Read More
Starting tonight, Andy Richter will try to answer the eternal question: “Can a second banana make it on his own?” First Ed McMahon and now Paul Shaffer kept their night jobs while exploring other projects. But Richter left Conan O’Brien’s show in 2000 and hasn’t… Read More
Paul Phillips tells a story about being a young jazz student and hearing Stravinsky’s “The Firebird” for the first time. The crashing rhythms, the intensity, the rage, excitement and frank warmth of the piece changed Phillips on the spot into a classical musician. Fortunately for the Bangor Symphony… Read More
Back in December, the two teams many hoops observers thought were the two best in the state hooked up in a “meaningless” preseason exhibition game. After 32 hard-fought minutes and another four in overtime, Brunswick’s boys walked off the court with a 71-70 win over… Read More
MAINE CURIOSITIES: QUIRKY CHARACTERS, ROADSIDE ODDITIES & OTHER OFFBEAT STUFF, by Tim Sample and Steve Bither, The Globe Pequot Press, Guilford, Conn., 2002, 211 pages, $12.95. This book is a half-gallon jar of hard candies; you know, the round ones, each a different color. You… Read More
Editor’s Note: Christopher Smith’s columns will not appear next Monday and Friday, as he will be on vacation. In theaters googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length;… Read More
The best new midseason series isn’t on the networks, or even on much-acclaimed HBO. As hard as it may be to believe, the series is on FX, the cable channel whose only previous original entertainment programming was Howard Stern’s raunchy “Baywatch” send-up (and guilty pleasure)… Read More
Seventeenth century theatrical conventions can be tough on 21st century audiences used to fast-moving action films with undefined characters and underdeveloped plots. Tartuffe does not appear in the 400-year-old play that bears his name until after intermission – one full hour into the show. The… Read More
Although it probably doesn’t make Maine native David E. Kelley happy, tonight Fox begins its auditions for a replacement for his rapidly aging “Ally McBeal.” “The American Embassy,” its six-episode run debuting at 9, started out as “Emmy Brody,” named after its young, waifish protagonist. Read More
It was an evening of new beginnings at the premiere of Bangor Community Theatre’s musical “Jacob’s Folly” on Friday at the Maine Center for the Arts. Written by Machias author and lyricist John Dennis with music composed by John Haskell, the musical explores the consequences… Read More
In theaters THE TIME MACHINE, directed by Simon Wells. Written by John Logan, based on the novella by H.G. Wells. 96 minutes. Rated PG-13. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i… Read More
In theaters WE WERE SOLDIERS, written and directed by Randall Wallace, 138 minutes, rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice())… Read More
TV executives seem to be under the impression that Americans want more self-involved, young, pretty people. They certainly have their fingers on the pulse. UPN has even built a new hour tonight around this dubious presumption. One program is diverting, the other repelling. googletag.cmd.push(function ()… Read More
SHRINKING THE CAT, by Sue Hubbell, Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston, Mass., 2001, 175 pages, $25. In “Shrinking the Cat,” naturalist Sue Hubbell offers more of what her loyal readers have come to expect, and less. It’s a book that raises more questions than it answers… Read More
COFFINS, by Rodman Philbrick, Forge, New York, 2002, 319 pages, $23.95. For his latest novel, Kittery author Rodman Philbrick takes readers back to not just a dark time for the United States, but for one Maine family in particular. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot… Read More
Before he restored respectability to politics in the hit television series “The West Wing,” Aaron Sorkin wrote a play. He sold the movie rights to “A Few Good Men” before the play opened on Broadway to mixed reviews in 1989. The 1992 film, however, was the first in… Read More
Who says there’s nothing for families to do together anymore? It was a real family affair Thursday night as fathers and mothers, sons and daughters all gathered at the Bangor Auditorium for a little ’70s hard rock, as Blue Oyster Cult came to town. And… Read More
Does this sitcom concept sound familiar? Four Manhattan-based friends in their 30s regularly get together for catty chats about relationships. If you guessed “Sex in the City,” you’re on the right track. “Leap of Faith” is the creation of Jenny Bicks, Emmy and Golden Globe… Read More
ONE POTATO, TWO POTATO, by Roy Finamore with Molly Stevens, Houghton Mifflin Co., New York, 2002, 590 pages, $35. Taken at face value, the potato is far from the most attractive of vegetables. It’s blocky, knobbly and – vampirelike – prone to rapid degeneration when… Read More
A “Seinfeld” alumna has actually come up with an enjoyable starring vehicle. Get out! googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice()) {… Read More
The Turtle Island String Quartet, which performed Sunday at the Maine Center for the Arts in Orono, is the crossover group of all crossover groups. When this eclectic foursome was founded in 1986, the classically trained players not only swung between classical and jazz forms,… Read More
INTO WOODS, by Bill Roorbach, University of Notre Dame Press, Notre Dame, Ind., 2002, 177 pages. In “Into Woods,” Bill Roorbach has collected essays written over more than a decade. They encompass a time span much broader, however: from his teen-age years in Connecticut to… Read More
Music lovers found out the easy way Friday night that you can wait for spring – or you can bring in Buckwheat Zydeco and the Ils Sont Partis Band and let them melt the snow in a sizable chunk of Penobscot County. All the way… Read More
In theaters QUEEN OF THE DAMNED, directed by Michael Rymer, written by Scott Abbott and Michael Petroni, based on “The Vampire Chronicles” by Anne Rice. 101 minutes. Rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner… Read More
Editor’s Note: Starting at 6:30 tonight., Bangor Daily News film critic Christopher Smith will occasionally review films nationally for E! Entertainment Television’s “E! News Daily” show (Channel 55 in the Bangor viewing market). The reviews will be repeated through the weekend and at 7, 7:30, 8 and 8:30… Read More
CROSSING, by Philip Booth, illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline, 18 pages, Candlewick Press, Cambridge, Mass., $16.95. There’s been a great deal of excitement in recent months about the resumption of train service between Portland and Boston. In a serendipitous piece of synchronicity, just as rail travel… Read More
MOUNT DESERT – Do you like a great sound when you drive? Take a look at XM Satellite Radio. XM offers 100 channels of music, news from CNN and the BBC, and comedy. More than 30 channels are commercial-free with music in every category imaginable,… Read More
In theaters CROSSROADS, directed by Tamra Davis, written by Shonda Rhimes. 90 minutes. Rated PG-13. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if (isMobileDevice())… Read More
In theaters ROLLERBALL, directed by John McTiernan, written by Larry Ferguson and John Pogue, based on the short story and screenplay by William Harrison, 98 minutes, rated PG-13. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner =… Read More
Bill T. Jones, the dancer and choreographer, was once frightened of music by Beethoven. Then he met the Orion String Quartet, which, it would stand to reason, might have been somewhat shy about dance. Together, movement met music and the refreshing outcome is a joint creative spectacle between… Read More
TEMPTATIONS: IGNITING THE PLEASURE AND POWER OF APHRODISIACS, by Ellen and Michael Albertson, Simon & Schuster, New York, 2002, 334 pages, $14. It should be no surprise to anyone that food and sex are often so closely linked. After all, eating and intercourse are almost… Read More
ORONO – When their feet had stopped stomping, the Gaelforce Irish Dance Sensation on Saturday night had left the near-capacity crowd at the Maine Center for the Arts on its feet. Here and there across the packed auditorium, a child could be seen bobbing up… Read More
SOMESVILLE – In “Out on the Deep Blue,” 19 writers take readers on a first-person odyssey through the commercial fishing industry, from sea-urchin diving in the waters off Maine to winter crabbing in the Bering Sea. Five of those authors with Maine ties – John… Read More
The London City Opera production of “The Merry Widow,” which was performed endearingly Thursday at the Maine Center for the Arts, may have reminded some audience members of operas by Richard Strauss. Others may have been thinking of operettas by Gilbert and Sullivan. But the score by Franz… Read More
In theaters LANTANA, directed by Ray Lawrence, written by Andrew Bovell, based on his stage play “Speaking in Tongues,” 120 minutes, rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i =… Read More
When you think of Super Bowl Sunday, what’s more of a natural fit than … Chinese acrobats? Well, maybe not. But the sellout crowd Sunday at the Maine Center for the Arts in Orono didn’t mind, as the New Shanghai Circus kept everybody amazed for… Read More
In theaters BIRTHDAY GIRL. Directed by Jez Butterworth. Written by Tom and Jez Butterworth. 93 minutes. Rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++)… Read More
Editor’s Note: In Sound Advice, the first Saturday of every month, veteran NEWS entertainment writer Dale McGarrigle reviews new rock, pop, alternative, country, folk or blues albums. Different NEWS writers contribute reviews from other musical genres. “Rock Steady” (Interscope) – No Doubt googletag.cmd.push(function () {… Read More
In theaters GOSFORD PARK, directed by Robert Altman, written by Julian Fellowes, 137 minutes, rated R. googletag.cmd.push(function () { // Define Slot var slot_sizes = [[300,250]]; var new_slot_sizes = []; var has_banner = false; for (var i = 0; i < slot_sizes.length; i++) { if… Read More
“City Confidential,” airing tonight at 10 on A&E, looks at an eerie time in Bangor’s not-too-recent past – the murder of pediatric neurologist John Malmstrom. “City Confidential: Bad Medicine in Bangor” is a fairly in-depth examination of the case, from the violent slaying of the… Read More