Ann Lemons Pollack
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October Country
This is as sad a film as I have seen in many years, and the fact that it is a documentary about a scarred, dysfunctional, angry and apathetic family makes "October Country" that much sadder. Directed and filmed by Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher, it covers a year–from Halloween to Halloween–with Mosher's own family. They
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Laughter on the 23rd Floor
Even when Neil Simon is not at his best, he writes better comedy than most playwrights, and a splendid cast delivers the laughs with delightfully on-the-mark timing. The result is a broad and very funny production by the New Jewish Theatre of his "Laughter on the 23rd Floor," a softly focused remembrance of his youthful
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Mother and Child
There are moments when "Mother and Child" has the aroma of soap, but most of the time, Rodrigo Garcia's movie is a gripping tale that views how habits–for good or ill–move from one generation to the next. A talented cast gives the film more strength, with excellent work from a witchy Naomi Watts as an
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Dancing Across Borders
Anne Bass is a wealthy woman. Immensely wealthy, mainly because of a huge divorce settlement from Texas oil billionaire Sid Bass, she has given generously to many arts organization, primarily those involving dance. On a trip to Angkor Wat in 2000, she was convinced to attend a dance recital by the Wat Bo School in
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Paul Manno’s Cafe
Paul Manno told us on our last visit that he’s never advertised. Since the move from downtown some 20 years ago, it’s true, as far as we can recall. It’s all been word of mouth and media reviews, plus superb meals, to produce the business that keeps the place busy even on weeknights. The unassuming
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Big River
Adam Shonkwiler lists five dialects among his skills on his Internet resume. None of them came close to the one he used last night as Huckleberry Finn in "Big River," the Roger Miller musical that opened the 2010 season for Stages St. Louis at the Robert Reim Theatre in the Kirkwood Civic Center. What did
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Eugene Onegin
The entire range of Russian drama, from high ideals to low deceit, from love everlasting, where "ever" lasts about 20 minutes, to deepest perfidy, whose effects last forever, comes across the Opera Theatre of St. Louis in "Eugene Onegin," which opened last night at the Loretto-Hilton Center. It's another dramatic success, lifted by some glorious
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Hamlet
The calendar wants us to wait a few weeks, but we had our own Magical Midsummer Night in Forest Park last night. A glorious full moon, ideal temperatures for sitting in the Shakespeare Glen on Art Hill, passionate performances on the stage and maybe some under the trees and out of sight as well. It
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Daddy Longlegs
Joshua and Benny Safdie write and direct films with an attitude–and a deep understanding–which comes from the fact that they are brothers, and that they are dealing with their own lives. Their feature, "Daddy Longlegs," previously titled and released as "Go Get Some Rosemary," opens today as part of the Webster Film Series, with nightly
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The Marriage of Figaro
One of the longest-lasting and best-loved operas in the canon, with performances a constant since 1786, "The Marriage of Figaro" opened the Opera Theatre of St. Louis season last night at the Loretto-Hilton Center with a dazzling production. It will be repeated eight times through June 26. It's a slightly unusual "Figaro" in its political