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Lewis Delivers Masterful Violin Concerto
It is not easy to compete with a Mozart symphony, which was also on the programme for the Austin Symphony concert last night, but Geneva Lewis’ performance of a violin concerto raised it to a level where they saw eye to eye. I use the word competition because Lewis, who has already several major awards, […]
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Does Kelly Ripa really ‘Tell All’ in her Book?
Review written by Dr. M. Emanuele For those who don’t watch daytime TV, Kelly Ripa has been the co-host of Live! for 20 years. She has been honored with six Daytime Entertainment Emmy® Awards for Outstanding Talk Show Host and 15 Daytime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show, with a win in the category […]
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The Art of Marta
On one of my trips to London this year I dined at the best Italian restaurant of all, La Mia Mama. It is a unique place in London, where all the chefs are mamas from Italy, who are brought over from Italy to cook their own regional dishes. Every few months, the roster switches to […]
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Civil War by Other Means
“Democracy was our civil religion. The last 6 or 7 years have shaken me because I’ve seen changes in our institutions, threats to our institutions and undermining of our institutions that I’d never thought I’d see.” Dr. Jeremi Suri was speaking for millions of American citizens, and many more millions around the world, when he […]
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Barber of Seville makes the cut in Austin
While hearing rarely-performed operas is always a treat, watching a famous opera is akin to comfort food. Austin Opera is serving up heaps of comfort food this week with two more performances of The Barber of Seville by Rossini, an old chestnut from 1816. It is in the Bel canto opera style, which literally means […]
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Columbus and the Apocalypse
The end of the world has been prophesied many times in the past centuries, but the world is still here. Thus it is appropriate that the subtitle of this book is The Apocalyptic Imagination. It is the lot of historians to read and write about absolute bilge-water, because that is what most of humanity has […]
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Epicurus in Rome
The Epicurean mantra was “avoid engaging in politics,’ which is good advice now as it was some 2,000 years ago. This book on how the philosophy of Epicurus was received and either accepted or rejected in the Roman Republic is the combined effort nine eminent scholars. In addition to them, the book is edited by […]
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Austin’s Next Mayor?
Will it be Celia Israel or Kirk Watson? Israel is a State Representative and Watson was mayor of Austin from 1997-2001. He then served three terms as a State Senator. Both made an appearance at the Texas Tribune Festival here in Austin. Here is a report on the positions they put forward for the future […]
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The Wreckers: Opera in Houston
A very rarely-performed English opera from 1906, The Wreckers is making a real splash now At Houston Grand Opera. I use the word ‘splash’ as a pun, as the opera deals with a small coastal community in Cornwall, England, whose sole source of sustenance and income derives from taking advantage of shipwrecks. Thus, the name […]
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HALLOWEEN: Midnight Monster Contest
Oil Can Harry’s, Austin’s most famous bar, hosted the first annual Midnight Monster contest on Halloween night. It was not just people dressed in costumes getting judged, but full performance art from some very dedicated people. Much more entertaining than walking along 6th street! The winner of the contest was an Austinite known only as […]