Leisure

Reviews and think pieces on music, movies, art, and theater.

Leisure

Filmmaker Ien Chi wants to “make empathy sexy”

By creating a space for the expression of anger and honoring it, people can find the value in exploring emotions that might not be perceived as “good.”

By April 14, 2023

Leisure

National Gallery gives Philip Guston’s work a new sense of urgency

Aptly entitled Philip Guston Now, his work aims to process trauma in a world wracked by war, polarization, and racial hatred, which feels as eerily relevant today as it did decades ago.

By April 14, 2023

Leisure

Concert preview: Theo Kandel is bringing folk sincerity to DC’s Songbyrd on April 19

Despite claiming numerous influences from the 1970s, Kandel isn’t just writing your grandparents’ folk music.

By April 14, 2023

Features

Here I Am is filled with ancestors and living history

“We’re continuously walking on graves. The earth itself is somebody’s grave,” Mélisande Short-Colomb (CAS ’21) recalled her father’s words while standing on the stage in Gaston Hall, during the inaugural... Read more

By April 11, 2023

Leisure

Step into Kali Uchis’ fantasy garden on Red Moon in Venus

Her third studio album, Red Moon in Venus (2023), is the most mesmerizing yet.

By April 10, 2023

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Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is fun for normal people, too!

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Amongst Thieves is a hilarious fantasy heist movie that satisfies both lifelong D&D fans and those who know nothing about the game.

By and April 7, 2023

Leisure

Concert Preview: Russian New Wave band Molchat Doma is bringing their hopeful message to 9:30 Club

In line with their anti-imperialist view of Russia, their concerts transport the audience to an underground show in late-’80s Moscow.

By April 5, 2023

Leisure

Lana Del Rey takes the sad girls to church in Did you know that there’s a tunnel under Ocean Blvd

While a tunnel under Ocean Boulevard suggests a hidden complexity to the physical plane, the album also demonstrates an added layer of complexity in its production.

By April 3, 2023

Leisure

Tiffany Day brings the party to her fans with “The Gratitude Tour”

Aptly named, these 19 shows are an ode to Day’s fans, with a setlist showcasing her artistic evolution as she’s steadily grown in popularity.

By March 30, 2023

Leisure

10,000 gecs: So many gecs, so little time

In 10,000 gecs (2023), Laura Les and Dylan Brady take their maximalist and absurdist sound to a whole new level.

By March 30, 2023

Leisure

Miley Cyrus’ Endless Summer Vacation is right on time for you to ditch that spring fling

When Cyrus released her eighth studio album Endless Summer Vacation, it was no surprise that it displayed the star’s many powerful facets as an artist—be it as a popstar, balladeer, or soulful rockstar.

By March 29, 2023

Leisure

Outer Banks’ Madison Bailey and Madelyn Cline want you to embrace the Pogue life

We had the opportunity to speak with Madelyn Cline and Madison Bailey about season three, their experiences filming over the course of the pandemic, and their meteoric rise to fame in the process. 

By March 26, 2023

Leisure

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania has too much goop

Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania (2023) fails on nearly every front where its predecessors triumph. 

By March 26, 2023

Leisure

Wistful and witchy, Weyes Blood hypnotizes audiences at 9:30 Club

Mering conveys her message through a grand, sonically sweeping, soulful aesthetic that transports the listener into a cavernous cathedral.

By March 25, 2023

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“A Season of Sondheim”: Signature Theatre’s Pacific Overtures pays homage to Japanese theatrical traditions

Signature Theatre’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s Pacific Overtures handles its complex subject matter sensitively, but never with kid gloves.

By March 25, 2023

Features

HUGHLANDER demonstrates vulnerability on demo nights.

Through reckoning with grief, Malachi Quarles (CAS ’23) who releases music under the alias HUGHLANDER produced his latest album, demo nights.

By and March 24, 2023

Leisure

Miguel Wilson is reinventing wedding fashion—because it’s his day, too 

With a philosophy of activism through fashion, designer and philanthropist Miguel Wilson has challenged the boundaries of men’s formalwear.

By and March 24, 2023

Leisure

This Is Why is the raging return of rock royalty

This Is Why is the explosive yet polished result of six years’ worth of pent-up emotion.

By March 4, 2023

Leisure

Margaret Cho is angry—and you should be, too

We spoke with Cho ahead of her upcoming appearance at the Warner Theater, and she discussed the many sources of inspiration that fuel her work.

By and March 3, 2023

Leisure

Ai Yo!: Jenny Wu’s exhibit brings new energy to Morton Fine Art

Wu’s creative combination of painting and sculpture makes her work quite the treat to see in person.

By March 2, 2023