Carnal Letters: UMS's No Safety Net series closed with two Rachel Mars plays that explore the expression of desire

Wed, 02/08/2023 - 10:30am by strattonl

If there’s one common thematic thread between British theater artist Rachel Mars’ two shows, Our Carnal Hearts and Your Sexts Are Shit: Older Better Letters, it’s desire and the ways in which it’s expressed.

Searching for the Right Words: Julia Cho's award-winning "The Language Archive" makes its Michigan debut at Theatre Nova

Tue, 01/31/2023 - 9:15am by christopherporter

When Julia Cho read about dying languages, she wondered if losing a language meant something larger—losing a whole way of looking at the world.

"Are we not drawn onward to new erA" Encourages Understanding the Climate Crisis From an Unconventional Perspective

Tue, 01/24/2023 - 12:30pm by strattonl

Selina Thompson's “salt: dispersed” is a powerful document of her monologue retracing the transatlantic slave route forced on her ancestors

Thu, 01/19/2023 - 9:30am by christopherporter

In 2016, Selina Thompson, an interdisciplinary artist based in Birmingham, England, went on a journey to retrace the path of her ancestors. That path was that of the transatlantic slave trade.

Ann Arbor Civic Theatre's take on "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time" is a mystery that explores a spectrum of emotions and relationships

Mon, 01/02/2023 - 9:00am by christopherporter

Cassie Mann was a fan of Mark Haddon’s best-selling novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and was excited when Simon Stephens' stage version became a hit in London and New York.

AADL 2022 Staff Picks: Homepage

Mon, 12/19/2022 - 8:05am by christopherporter

Don't ever write a year-in-review intro before you've had lunch. See below for reasons:

2022 is Pulp’s sixth year of compiling a delectable list of Ann Arbor District Library staff picks, featuring a smorgasbord of media to review and devour. With an insatiable hunger for books, films, TV shows, podcasts, music, and more, our AADL staffer suggestions will whet your appetite for anything you may have missed in 2022—or from previous years.

Fraught reunions with old friends are at the core of Penny Seat's "First Snow"

Thu, 12/08/2022 - 1:45pm by christopherporter

The prospect of seeing friends from high school, after a years-long separation, always feels fraught. Will it be awkward? Will they judge you? Will you judge them? What will you talk about? Will you somehow ruin perfectly contained, long-packed-away memories?

A modern Marion takes the lead in U-M’s "The Heart of Robin Hood"

Mon, 12/05/2022 - 8:30am by christopherporter

The legend of Robin Hood has been told for centuries. In the usual version, he is a nobleman who has been forced from his estate. He gathers a band of “merry men” who are dedicated to robbing from the rich and giving to the desperately poor.

U-M Gilbert and Sullivan Society celebrates its 75th anniversary with pirates, policemen, and paleontologists

Wed, 11/30/2022 - 2:45pm by christopherporter

With cat-like tread, a rollicking band of pirates will step upon the stage from December 8-11 as they have done about every four years since 1949 when the two-year-old University of Michigan Gilbert and Sullivan Society (UMGASS) gave its first performance of The Pirates of Penzance.

Encore Theatre's “A Christmas Story: The Musical" sings the praises of the classic film

Tue, 11/29/2022 - 2:15pm by christopherporter

A stage musical based on a beloved film classic—like, say, A Christmas Story: The Musical, now being staged at Dexter’s Encore Theatre—can be a double-edged sword.