‘The Wiz’ at Berkeley Playhouse proves energetic, soulful yet surprisingly flat

Retelling of family classic 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' fails to excite

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Ken Levin/Courtesy

It’s hard to think of any story that would lend itself to a theater or film adaptation better than the story told in L. Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.” Its stirring adventure, fantastical environments and dynamic characters seem to demand visual representation. Indeed, several successful screen and stage Read More…

This week in arts

Film This Friday afternoon, at 3 p.m., the Berkeley Art Museum is hosting Film Forward, a colloquium on the state of film education, curation and criticism. Prominent Bay Area film personalities will be on the panel, including independent filmmakers Tiffany Shlain (“Connected”) and Barry Jenkins (“Medicine for Melancholy”), film journalists Read More…