theartsdesk.com, first with arts reviews, news and interviews
theartsdesk |
We are bowled over! We knew that theartsdesk.com had plenty of supporters out there – we’ve always had a loyal readership of arts lovers and professionals alike – but the…
Helen Hawkins |
How much more can Jeremy Clarkson’s body take? The fifth season of his reality show about his Oxfordshire spread, Diddly Squat Farm and pendant pub, could have been borrowed from…
David Nice |
Bloomsday doesn't just celebrate James Joyce's odyssey through so many parts of Dublin that still teem with character; it's also putatively about the same 16 June 1904 when the…
Liz Thomson |
“I guess you could call it a lost album. I stumbled upon it in my vault at home. I’d forgotten about it completely,” explained Rodney Crowell as he geared up for the release of an…
Kieron Tyler |
Between June 1964 and September 1966, London-area R&B band Downliners Sect issued ten singles, one EP and three albums on EMI’s Columbia imprint. A lot of records. Especially…
David Nice |
The conundrum of five women, three of them men, is the same as it was in the last Serse I witnessed, in the more intimate surroundings of St Martin-in-the-Fields. Paula Murrihy…
Matt Wolf
O Glengarry, where is thy sting? That's likely to be one response to the bewildering Old Vic revival of David Mamet's defining (and remarkable) Glengarry Glen Ross, which I saw in…
Graham Rickson
Bach: The Complete Keyboard Concertos Mahan Esfahani (harpsichord/director), Britten Sinfonia, leader Jacqueline Shave (Hyperion)
Image…
Tim Cumming
Beginning with “The Ground Above” and closing with “Otherside”, there’s an ambient, otherwordly, disembodied feel to Beth Orton’s new album on Partisan Records, a follow-up to…
Rachel Halliburton
William Kentridge’s production of Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo marks a double début at Glyndebourne – neither the director nor the opera, considered by many to be the first proper example…
James Saynor
Nineteen-ninety-five was the dawn of the internet for most people, and the same year saw the release of the first Toy Story movie. Yet cyberspace and “tech” has rarely intruded…
Sarah Kent
Currently on show at the Barbican is a video that makes your hackles rise. Two “savages” are on display in a cage surrounded by punters who happily pay a dollar to pose for…
Aleks Sierz
The best playwrights create word magic – and when that happens, you can’t miss it. Other writers produce journalism, or teaching materials. Sadly, for me, Christine Bacon is one…
johncarvill
Fans of classic Hollywood movies are liable to suffer a stab of frustration these days, when polls or vox pops canvas people’s favourite films. Selections seem to skew towards the…
Hugh Barnes
In his fascinating but overlong and sometimes unfocussed ‘political life’ of James Joyce – the biographer himself died in 2021 so was perhaps unable to make the necessary cuts to…
Thomas H. Green
La Sécurité are a Montreal supergroup… kind of; in that all members are involved in other projects which have had local success. In the case of bassist Félix Bélisle’s outfit…
Jonathan Geddes
The World Cup is everywhere in Scotland these days, even among the country’s gigging venues. Rolled up Saltires were visible on the balconies of the O2 Academy, a reminder that…
Joe Muggs
Lots of international superstar DJs end up making cosmic and exploratory records when they tire of – as the late Andrew Weatherall, albeit with tongue firmly in cheek, put it…
India Lewis
Madfabulous, director Celyn Jones’ retelling of the true story of an heir who bankrupted a peerage, is a truly beautiful film – worth a watch if only for the excellent outfits…
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Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.
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tv
A cancer operation is just one of the trials ahead for Diddly Squat in a moving new season
Ten years later, the Euro-controversy still rages
Friendships tested to destruction in Catherine Shepherd's satirical drama
film
The evergreen animation franchise in a below-par new romp
Revived for Monroe's centenary, Billy Wilder's classic reminds us how great film can be
A visually pleasing film with a somewhat patchy plot
new music
Box-set tribute to the idiosyncratic - frequently fantastic - London R&B band
Reflective, poetic, instinctive songs of renewal and resilience
Snappy, there-and-gone set fired out of Montreal
classical
Baroque concertos, opera arias on solo horn and new music for contrabass flute
Subtle, introspective 'Harold in Italy' followed by over-punchy 'Symphonie fantastique'
Semi-staged version brings a heightened appreciation of the symphony's jostle of voices
opera
Paula Murrihy is a majestic Persian king, though the orchestra is more flouncy than fiery
William Kentridge's vision subtly blends his political experiences with mythology
Fine music-making illuminates Debussy's sinister blend of realism and romance
theatre
Fine theatre events ensure there's more to 16 June than Edwardian costumes
David Mamet's 1983 scorcher is problematically reinvented
New play about international aid is too finger wagging for its own good
dance
Much-appreciated words of commendation from readers and the cultural community
A company that is alive and kicking - literally
Double bill takes the Royal Ballet dancers to unusual new heights
comedy
Much-appreciated words of commendation from readers and the cultural community
Comic revisits her alma mater to talk politics
Absurdist comic's most personal show yet
books
Much-appreciated words of commendation from readers and the cultural community
Joyce lurks in the margins of his own biography in a detailed history of Irish politics
An enjoyable look at 'missingness' and how it affects the way we experience the world
visual arts
Much-appreciated words of commendation from readers and the cultural community
Celebrating chutzpah on a grand scale
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