Arts

Theater

‘The Rocky Horror Show’ is a joy ride at Central Square Theater

By Nate Hall | November 15

Every year, around Halloween, audiences pack into theaters to see “The Rocky Horror Show” (1975). Richard O’Brien’s musical, beloved by generations of fans who attend both live performances and screenings of the film, is known for its cult following. Audiences often play an important role in the show, calling out lines and sometimes shouting ad-lib responses to performers. If you’ve ever seen “Rocky Horror,” you’ve witnessed this infectious energy. It’s no different at Central Square Theater’s production of “Rocky Horror,” running now through Nov. 26 in Cambridge.

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Columns

Confessions of a Cooking Fanatic: Thanksgiving for the project manager

By Elizabeth Foster | November 15

I must confess that while I adore cooking, I am a computer science major. I don’t see cooking as a future career. I do, however, see a career with enough of a work-life balance and extraneous funds for exploring cooking as a hobby. But I argue that there is much overlap between these two interests. As a software engineer, I am constantly breaking down big problems into smaller, more manageable problems. As a project manager, I perform the same tasks but further consider timelines and resource allocation. And as an amateur cook, I am breaking down the most notable meal of the year in the same way.

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Arts

The buildup to ‘Voir Dire,’ Earl Sweatshirt and the Alchemist’s long-awaited secret collaboration

By Elsa Madsen | November 14

Since 2019, the Alchemist has been taunting his followers with claims that he and Earl Sweatshirt existed on YouTube under a fake name and that the two had been releasing music right under the noses of listeners. Anticipation was high as eager fans awaited for the two to publicly release their collaboration. 

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Columns

Tok the Talk: TikTok’s influence on the fashion industry

By Annika Pillai | November 14

“Is that Shein?” I found myself asking that on a Sunday afternoon, holding an overpriced coffee in one hand and two shopping bags from the two previous thrift stores my friends and I had just hit up in the other. We had spontaneously decided to stop at a nearby Goodwill to try our luck one last time. I was right: Behind a vintage, very heavily worn camisole lay a Shein bolero (a fancy name for a cropped jacket). 

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Arts

Pop icon Kesha returns to the spotlight at MGM Music Hall with The Only Love Tour

By Chase Pantezzi | November 13

Kesha is one of the most recognizable stars of the last fifteen years. After her feature on Flo Rida’s “Right Round” (2009) and the release of her debut album “Animal” (2010), she skyrocketed to fame, defining the soundtrack of many Gen Z children. Kesha performed at the MGM Music Hall on Nov. 1 as a part of her “The Only Love Tour,” which the Daily attended.

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Columns

I Can’t Think Straight: Red, white and royal BS

By Cole Reese | November 13

Here’s the thing: Gay love is not easy. There’s no TV meet-cute where your hands accidentally touch as you reach for the same bag of kale in the grocery store. There’s Grindr, and Tinder, and an endless cycle of feeling bad about yourself because it feels like everyone is hotter than you and you’re never going to find that perfect movie romance. Maybe this is what straight people go through all the time. Honestly, it must suck to have so much idealized romance shoved in your face. That’s exactly what it felt like to watch Amazon’s “Red, White & Royal Blue” (2023) as a gay man.

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Columns

Compost in the Daylight: Lonely echoes?

By Sadie Leite | November 13

Every time I bring friends to my lake house, I drive them to a corner of the lake — where there are no houses lining the dark green edge — and scream bloody murder.

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Music

Weekender: Beth Bahia Cohen wants us to understand traditional music, each other

By Abbie Klein | November 9

Beth Bahia Cohen, a local musician, faculty member in the Tufts music department and assistant professor at Berklee College, has dedicated her life to the learning and teaching of violin styles across the world. On top of these goals, Cohen teaches violin traditions of the world in private lessons to students at Tufts. The Daily sat down with her on Oct. 22 to learn her story.

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Music

Abraham Alexander talks vulnerability in music ahead of his Saturday show

By Matthew Winkler | November 9

Soul folk artist Abraham Alexander will be performing in Boston in the Red Room at Cafe 939 on Saturday. His tour kicked off on Oct. 15 in support of his debut album “SEA/SONS” (2023), which released on April 14 to critical acclaim and reflects back on his life experiences that led him to today.

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Arts

‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ can’t decide what it wants to be

By Joy Bedford | November 9

An initial glimpse into “Five Nights at Freddy’s” (2023) doesn’t look positive: A Blumhouse-produced adaptation of a 2014 indie video game, the film has been stuck in various stages of production for eight years. Under the surface, however, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” gives new viewers and longtime game series fans a truly unusual experience. Not fully divorced from the game’s extensive and mysterious lore nor fully attached to it, “Five Nights at Freddy’s” attempts to make the in-between work. As far as whether it works — well, that all depends on how willing viewers are to follow its wild shifts in tone through the end.

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Columns

The Power of the Pen: The talks go on

By Odessa Gaines | November 9

Editor’s note: This article was written before SAG-AFTRA and studios reached a tentative agreement to end the actors strike. SAG-AFTRA and studios met again on Monday to negotiate on contracts regarding actor residual payments and the use of AI to recreate actor likeness in future productions. As always, the biggest point of discussion has been the studios’ desire to use AI. Big studios proposed their “last, best and final offer” to reuse AI scans of deceased actors without needing to ask for the consent of the actors guild or the deceased actors’ estates. The studios also proposed to pay a one-time fee to secure AI scans of living actors who make more than the minimum earnings in the guild; however, SAG demands that studios compensate these actors for every use of their likenesses.

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Arts

Creative Currency: The politics of supporting arts education in public schools

By Natalie Olech | November 8

In the American school system, it is easy to notice the emphasis placed on ‘traditional’ subjects: math, English, science, history and language. Of course, there’s a decent number of people that will continue to study these fields throughout their lives and careers, but what about those that are passionate about art or music? Does public education often disregard these paths, and is there more value to arts education than federal funding currently supports?

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Arts

‘Sweeney Todd’ is a killer first production for Arrow Street Arts

By Nate Hall and Odessa Gaines | November 8

Greater Boston recently welcomed a new performance space to its theatre scene: Arrow Street Arts in Cambridge, on the outskirts of Harvard Square. The venue was previously home to Oberon, a popular stage for fringe and experimental performances, owned by the American Repertory Theater. Since Oberon closed its doors in the winter of 2021, 2 Arrow St. has been vacant — that is, until Cambridge theatre company Moonbox Productions took up residence in the theatre this year. Their first production was an ambitious reimagining of Stephen Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” (1979) directed by Ryan Mardesich.

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Columns

Attack of the B-Movies: New York’s crime-riddled ‘Bad Lieutenant’

By Ethan Essner | November 8

When we take a step back and look at how cinema depicted sprawling urban metropolises in the 1970s through the 1990s, we can uncover significant traits. For one, films started to look into the setting as much less of a backdrop and more of a character in itself. Films like Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing” (1989) and John Carpenter’s “Escape from New York” (1981) are prominent examples from this era featuring New York City. These movies transcended their genres as they shaped the city around them into storytelling devices in bold new ways. More esoteric showings of this same style are incorporated in almost every work by B-Movie icon Abel Ferrara. “Ms .45” (1981), “King of New York” (1990) and — arguably his magnum opus — “Bad Lieutenant” (1992) are prime examples of how big cities and their cinematic facades can be reshaped like Play-Doh to fashion some of the most crafty narrative concertos.

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Viewpoint

‘I Won’t Back Down’: A brief history of American campaign music

By Nate Hall | November 7

“9 to 5” (1980). “High Hopes” (2018). “Y.M.C.A.” (1978). What do these songs have in common?They’ve all been used as campaign songs in recent U.S. presidential races. While the music a candidate chooses to play as they walk onstage for a campaign event may seem like a trivial detail, it can play a major role in defining the tone of their campaign.

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Columns

Compost in the Daylight: Small-town ghosts

By Sadie Leite | November 6

“I’m here with my friends at the graveyard.” One of my favorite books growing up wasNeil Gaiman’s “The Graveyard Book” (2008). It’s about a boy named Nobody Owens who is raised by ghosts in a graveyard after his entire family is murdered.

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Theater

Marie Antoinette: The price of womanhood

By Odessa Gaines | November 3

“Marie Antoinette” (2012), written by David Adjmi, is a theatrical retelling of the life and death of the infamous queen who led France up until its revolution. The Tufts Department of Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies’ production follows Marie’s life as her reputation becomes ruined and the French citizens turn on the royal family.

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Arts

Hey Hollywood Reporter, you forgot some shows

By Ryan Fairfield | November 3

On Oct. 4, The Hollywood Reporter released its “50 Best TV Shows of the 21st Century (So Far).” THR restricted the list to English-language shows that aired episodes after Dec. 31, 1999. Some of the shows on this list are pleasant surprises, like “Avatar: The Last Airbender” ...

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Columns

Inside the MFA: What’s on view?

By Claire Wood | November 3

With over 500,000 works of art throughout the Museum of Fine Arts, navigating the galleries can be overwhelming. Luckily, the MFA is divided into several collections, making the viewing experience more digestible. The MFA has 13 collection areas in total. They are as follows: Art of Africa ...

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Columns

The Power of the Pen: Becoming a screenwriter is really f---ing hard

By Odessa Gaines | November 2

One fun fact about myself: I love to write. Maybe that’s not a surprise considering this is an article for my weekly column — but it’s true. Novels, short stories, articles — I love to write them all. And recently, I have started to fall in love with writing for film, partially because of this column and partially because of my screenwriting class.

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