Emily Dickinson

Review: BBC PROMS: FIRST NIGHT OF THE PROMS 2026, Royal Albert Hall
by Franco Milazzo - Jul 18, 2026

If the Last Night is about waving Union Jacks until arms ache, the First Night had some of that feeling too — albeit a different flag. The Proms this time around will commemorate the 250th anniversary of United States declaring bye-bye to Blighty and plotting its own course into history. Before the strains of “Jerusalem” fade away for another year, the Royal Albert Hall will see both the LA Philharmonic and New York’s Met Orchestra take the stage and Marin Alsop will conduct a night of Leonard Bernstein and George Gershwin. Yuja Wang gives Samuel Barber’s Piano Concerto its first Proms outing on the Last Night, there are world premieres from Wynton Marsalis and Jessie Montgomery plus a centenary celebration of Miles Davis’ work.

REVIEW: The Festival d'Avignon Presents TRILOGIA CADELA FORÇA By Carolina Bianchi and Cara de Cavalo
by Wesley Doucette - Jul 16, 2026

Contrary to the place critics occupy in the cultural imagination, I dread the prospect of an artist reading a negative review I have written. I stand by my perceptions of the works I review, yet I also hold to Anton Ego's maxim in Pixar's Ratatouille: 'In the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so.'

REVIEW: The Festival d'Avignon Presents UMA LUZ CORDIAL By Carolina Bianchi and Cara de Cavalo
by Wesley Doucette - Jul 9, 2026

In his essay 'Problems of the Theatre,' German playwright Friedrich Dürrenmatt argues that poetry should be made with the stage, not merely written for it or placed on it.

Review: The Hilarious WILD NIGHTS: AN EMILY DICKINSON SLEEPOVER PLAY is Driven by Absurd Performances
by James Lindhorst - Jun 1, 2026

Wild Nights is inspired ridiculousness. It’s a fun romp of giddy, screaming, giggling teenage girls executing what they believe is the perfect sleepover. The directors and actors tap into this ensemble’s fearless ability to be comedically vulnerable and do what ever it takes to earn the audience’s laughs.

MISSOURI CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL to Return for 16th Season at The Sheldon
by A.A. Cristi - May 27, 2026

The Missouri Chamber Music Festival will present its 16th annual season at The Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis, featuring a world premiere by David Werfelman and performances by the Arianna String Quartet and Calyx Piano Trio.

Write Out Loud Will Host Three Programs Celebrating America's 250th Anniversary
by Stephi Wild - May 21, 2026

Write Out Loud will present three programs in San Diego marking the U.S. Semiquincentennial, including a story concert, a WWII letters reading co-produced with Scripps Ranch Theatre, and an NEA-funded American Literary Heroes showcase.

MISSOURI CHAMBER MUSIC FESTIVAL Will Return for 16th Annual Season at The Sheldon
by Stephi Wild - May 20, 2026

The Missouri Chamber Music Festival will present its 16th annual season at The Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis, featuring the Arianna String Quartet, Calyx Piano Trio, and a world premiere by David Werfelman.

CONCORDANCE: 150 YEARS OF CHARLES IVES Released By Owsley Stanley Foundation
by A.A. Cristi - Apr 17, 2026

Concordance: 150 Years of Charles Ives has been released by The Owsley Stanley Foundation. The album features historic and new recordings of Ives’s Concord Sonata. The release is available on CD.

More Than 1,700 Shows Added For Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2026
by Stephi Wild - Mar 31, 2026

A second batch of shows for this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe has been announced, bringing the current total number on sale for 2026 to 2,083. Learn more here!

Music Worcester Will Present I RISE: WOMEN IN SONG in May
by Stephi Wild - Mar 25, 2026

Music Worcester will present 'I RISE: WOMEN IN SONG' at Trinity Lutheran Church on May 8, featuring the Worcester Chorus Women’s Ensemble & Cantilena.

Documentary LOVE & HOPE & MAGIC: THE MAKING OF JINX, THE MUSICAL to Premiere in San Mateo
by A.A. Cristi - Mar 16, 2026

The documentary LOVE & HOPE & MAGIC: THE MAKING OF JINX, THE MUSICAL will premiere March 26 at the Bayside Performing Arts Center in San Mateo. Directed by Jeanne Barrett.

Mezzo-Soprano Joyce DiDonato to Return to Carnegie Hall for Public Master Classes
by Chloe Rabinowitz - Mar 10, 2026

Mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato will return to Carnegie Hall’s Resnick Education Wing for her popular series of master classes for young professional opera singers.

Review: The Best and the Rest of SPECTRUM 2026 at First Run Theatre
by James Lindhorst - Mar 8, 2026

This year’s Spectrum 2026, produced by First Run Theatre, was unique. The six-play festival featured four wittily written plays that stood on their own. Two were flat-out funny, one was a bit macabre, and Tortured Poets Department was beyond charming.

Guildford Choral to Perform MASS IN TIME OF WAR at Holy Trinity Church
by Stephi Wild - Mar 4, 2026

Local audiences are invited to experience an evening of choral and orchestral splendour as Guildford Choral returns to Holy Trinity Church in Guildford on Saturday 14th March 2026.

Write Out Loud Kicks Off AMERICAN LITERARY HEROES With Launch Party In Old Town
by Stephi Wild - Feb 26, 2026

Write Out Loud has announced American Literary Heroes, part of the Celebrating America250: Arts Projects Honoring the National Garden of American Heroes funded by the National Endowment for the Arts. 

Review: DiDonato Brings Dickinson Poems to Life through Brilliant Song Cycle by Puts at Carnegie
by Richard Sasanow - Feb 23, 2026

Though only a handful of Emily Dickinson’s hundreds of poems were published during her lifetime (more than 1700 others were found posthumously), she is best known as a risk-taking writer whose work straddled the line between the straightforward and the more abstract. Inaddition, she has long been an inspiration to composers who clearly found the music in her work. The most recent of these was heard at Carnegie Hall late last week in the local premiere of EMILY—NO PRISONER BE, a song cycle by Kevin Puts that looks long and deep into the eyes of the poet.

Danse Lumière To Present Pop-Up Ballet At City Center
by A.A. Cristi - Feb 17, 2026

Danse Lumière will present Pop Up Ballet at City Center, an evening of highlights from The James Joyce Ballet and other works by Artistic Director Kathryn Roszak, at Studio 5 at City Center, 131 West 55th Street.

LETTERS LIVE Returns To The Royal Albert Hall To Celebrate Earth Day
by Stephi Wild - Jan 28, 2026

The popular literary event, Letters Live, will return to the Royal Albert Hall on Wednesday 22 April, in support of climate charity Greenpeace. Learn more here!

Write Out Loud Receives $25K Grant From NEA For American Literary Heroes Project
by Stephi Wild - Jan 28, 2026

Write Out Loud is the recipient of a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) for Celebrating America250: Arts Projects Honoring the National Garden of American Heroes.

Carnegie Hall Unveils UNITED IN SOUND Festival 2026 Partner Events
by A.A. Cristi - Jan 21, 2026

Carnegie Hall has announced its schedule of partner events presented by leading cultural and academic institutions across New York City and beyond from February through July 2026 as part of the Hall's United in Sound: America at 250 festival.