West Michigan's Arts & Entertainment Guide
Review: ‘Newsies’ goes leaps and bounds beyond its source material
Written by Marin Heinritz | Thursday, 17 August 2017 15:57 |The Barn Theatre’s Newsies is everything a musical should be — and more than one might expect. It’s a wonderful vehicle for the very talented ensemble cast who’ve been hard at work all summer long, and yet they enthusiastically leap, twirl, tap, sing their hearts out, and otherwise powerfully tell a fictionalized account of the newsboy strike of 1899 — a tale very much worth telling.
Staging a Change: The life of Fred Sebulske, Grand Rapids’ godfather of theater
Written by Kayla Tucker | Thursday, 03 August 2017 15:02 |Hate letters. State government threats. Mayoral involvement. Armed police in the theater. Fred Sebulske had no idea what he would one day be getting himself into when he founded Actors’ Theatre Grand Rapids in 1980, or even when the group decided to stage one specific show in 2003.
For the Love of Theater: A new documentary will cover the history of Grand Rapids theater
Written by Kayla Tucker | Thursday, 03 August 2017 15:00 |Two Grand Rapids natives are returning to their roots, telling the story of their city’s theatrical history and the power of community theater.
Extra! Extra! Sing All About It: Cult-classic musical 'Newsies' arrives at Barn Theatre
Written by Jane Simons | Thursday, 03 August 2017 14:57 |Corrupt business practices and unions may not be the subject matter most audiences expect from a Disney production, but that’s exactly what they’ll witness during the Barn Theatre’s performances of Disney’s Newsies.
Acting Up: Actors’ Theatre Grand Rapids announces 36th season
Written by Kayla Tucker | Thursday, 03 August 2017 14:48 |This fall, Actors’ Theatre Grand Rapids will kick off its 2017-18 season with The Nether, the first of five shows running through May 2018.
Theater Remixed: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead subverts the norm in more ways than one
Written by Kayla Tucker | Thursday, 03 August 2017 14:41 |This month, Heritage Theater is serving up Hamlet with a twist. “It tells the rest of the story, if you will,” said Director Krista Pennington.
Atlantic Arias: Rhea Olivaccé leads a life of music
Written by Jane Simons | Thursday, 03 August 2017 14:32 |The tranquil smile Rhea Olivaccé wears as she sings an aria masks the sweat equity she puts in before every performance.
In Plain Sight: Plein air painters take to the lakes, fields and gardens of West Michigan
Written by Marla R. Miller | Thursday, 03 August 2017 14:27 |After French impressionist painters like Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro and Pierre-Auguste Renoir made the technique famous more than a century and a half ago, plein air painting has been enjoying a resurgence in recent years.
Object Permanence: How art museums shape their permanent collection displays
Written by Marla R. Miller | Thursday, 03 August 2017 14:15 |In an epic example of creating a unique exhibit from the permanent collection, Muskegon Museum of Art’s "Edward S. Curtis: The North American Indian" encompasses more than 80 percent of its gallery space.
Masters of Mariachi: The oldest existing mariachi band in the world is playing with Grand Rapids Symphony
Written by Samara Napolitan | Thursday, 03 August 2017 13:11 |It’s common to see people dancing and singing along at Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán shows. According to Julio Martinez, a harpist who has performed with the band for 22 years, it’s also not out of the ordinary for audience members to cry. The range of emotion Mariachi Vargas elicits is the result of a masterful balance between 120 years of tradition and innovation within their art form.
