Theater

Theater of War: Aurora Theatre’s ‘Salomania’ explores sex, war and politics

Judge Darling (l. Kevin Clarke) watches as Noel Pemberton-Billing (r. Mark Anderson Phillips) presents Maud Allan (c. Madeline H.D. Brown) with a piece of harsh evidence against her.
David Allen/Courtesy
Judge Darling (l. Kevin Clarke) watches as Noel Pemberton-Billing (r. Mark Anderson Phillips) presents Maud Allan (c. Madeline H.D. Brown) with a piece of harsh evidence against her.

Poor Salome. The princess’s story, originally laid out in the New Testament books of Mark and Matthew has been pushed, pulled and altered to a hair-splitting, head-losing degree. The original story — about the stepdaughter of King Herod demanding the head of John the Baptist as payment for a sultry Read More…

Film & Television

beasts.foxsearchlight

‘Beasts’ brings magic to the South

Men, women and children parade through the streets of a swampy neighborhood, and homemade alcoholic beverages are consumed in unmarked bottles, the children burn Roman candles as they run. This community is called the Bathtub, and life is different here. First-time director Benh Zeitlin creates an expressive and signature film Read More…

Notes from the Field

Process to rename Downtown Berkeley street delayed

The Berkeley City Council unanimously voted at its meeting Tuesday night to delay changing the name of Downtown Berkeley street Harold Way to Dharma Way. After hearing concerns about the renaming process from a community member, the council referred the item to the city’s Public Works Commission for further review Read More…

Culture Shot

Free Music Fridays: Hoodie Allen

“I be doing it for free until I’m rich, God bless” – Hoodie Allen No one does indie rap quite like Hoodie Allen. I’m not normally a fan of either genre, but Hoodie, AKA Steven Markowitz, is one of my favorite artists and his mix tapes, Pep Rally (2010) and Read More…