Ann Lemons Pollack
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The People’s Violin
The search for identity, a study of the past and dealing with Mom and Dad are mainstay subjects of theater. Especially Jewish theater. "The People's Violin," which deals with all of them, handles them mostly well in the New Jewish Theatre's production that opened last night at the Clayton High School Little Theatre, where it
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The White Ribbon
This is a scary movie. No, make that a very scary movie. "The White Ribbon," written and directed by German-born Michael Haneke, is set in a small German town shortly before the outbreak of World War I, a time when the rumbles of change marking the arrival of the 20th century were just beginning to
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44 Inch Chest
Macho gets highly manic in "44 Inch Chest," not a cinematic biography of Jayne Mansfield or Anna Nicole Smith but a tale of English would-be tough guys trying to make certain that a pal gets nasty revenge against the younger man who seduced his wife, not only into bed, but also out of their marriage.
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Franco
In the last quarter of the last century, it became quite the norm for the interiors of old industrial buildings to be remodeled for the installation of new, handsome businesses and residences. So Franco, with its sleek post-modern décor, located in an ancient baby carriage factory, seems unremarkable on that score. But many restaurateurs would
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H.M.S. Pinafore
The glorious Gilbert & Sullivan operetta, "H.M.S. Pinafore," sailed up the Mississippi yesterday, gathering "Showboat" and the Goldenrod show boat in its wake before it docked at the Touhill Performing Arts Center and added a perfect ending to a perfect early-spring day. NYGASP, or the New York Gilbert And Sullivan Players, is a group very
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The Shape of Things
Neil LaBute writes with savage, biting humor that is anything but funny to the person who is its target. It's dangerous humor, too, because he comes very close to exposing what's far below the surface, down where primal emotions churn like vicious undertow beneath the surface of what look like quiet seas. The play opened
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The Last Station
Leo Tolstoy was a genius, one of history's great writers. Sofya Tolstoy, his wife, is harder to describe, but she was married to him for 48 years, bore him 13 children — and made six hand-written copies of "War and Peace." The tale of the last days of his life, "The Last Station," which opens
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Oscar-Nominated Shorts
This being the run-up time to the Academy Awards, we're up to here with information and hype for the nominees. But we don't hear much about the films contending for short-subject honors, and we have only a brief opportunity to see them. Ten films are nominated, five with live actors and five that are animated.
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Royal Chinese BBQ
Whenever we discuss the Royal Chinese BBQ, always high on our where-to-go list for a quiet dinner, we smile at the ducks that greet customers upon entry. These ducks will never be taken for the AFLAC spokesduck. No, no, these hang glistening from a rod, awaiting diners’ pleasure. They always make us recall Chinatown in
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We are happy to see that the new location for Mai Lee is open. The lights are on, the neon OPEN sign is flashing, and folks are dining. For those who aren't familiar with the spot we're talking about, it's at Hanley and Eager Roads, right behind Best Buy. Parking in the garage opposite.