Saved or Destroyed 2000

The Actors Studio of New Jersey introduced 20for20, an affordability initiative offering 20 tickets at $20 each for productions at the Historic Dunellen Theatre, beginning with SWEENEY TODD, THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET.

See first look photos Chicago Shakespeare Theater's The Winter's Tale, now in performances through December 12. The production launches the company's Shakespeare Repertory alongside A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Vangeline, founder of Vangeline Theater and New York Butoh Institute, appears in the new music video for A PERFECT CIRCLE's song TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN. The band launches an extensive North American tour.

A weary Donte Coleman sits in his Western Addition family home that he’s just listed for sale. In this well constructed memory play, scenes from his childhood burst to life in SFBATCO’s homage to the golden age of 1950’s San Francisco’s Fillmore district. Local legend Daryl V. Jones is the elder Donte who’s struggling with abandoning his mother’s legacy and the only home he’s known. Who should receive the legacy of the district and its history in a thread woven through this piece.

Costume designer Suzette Guilot-Snider, who created TWISTED SISTER's iconic stage looks, will be inducted into the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame as the first costume designer to receive the honor.

Eric Branco's directorial debut SILENT PARTNER, starring Susan Heyward and Jeff Perry, will screen at the 30th Anniversary of Urbanworld in New York City on October 16, becoming the first feature film to receive an encore screening at the festival.

Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre announced a new Artist Pathway Series offering dance artists opportunities to develop and present work at its professional studio in Tribeca, including works-in-progress showings and a multi-day festival.

Neal Casal's second advance single from his forthcoming archival collection features 12 previously unreleased home recordings from the late singer-songwriter, restored from original analog tapes.

Bobby Weir released the previously unreleased studio recording "The Ground Don't Want Me," recorded during sessions for his 2016 solo album BLUE MOUNTAIN. A BLUE MOUNTAIN 2LP reissue is now available, with a 10th anniversary deluxe edition due later this year.

New York trio SOME DAYS ARE DARKER released the single 'NDRI' alongside a music video. The synth-driven alternative rock band explores themes of desire and destruction across goth, electronic, and noir influences.

THE SMASHING PUMPKINS contributed an original track to THE HUNGER GAMES: SUNRISE ON THE REAPING (THE ALBUM), reuniting with producer Butch Vig for their first collaboration since 1993's SIAMESE DREAM.

I knew as I was heading to Argenta Contemporary Theatre (ACT) that I was going to love their version of MISERY, but—OMG! What a deliciously intense night of theatre! We were laughing, gasping, shouting at the stage, and practically squirming in our seats during the very first preview performance.

Ensemble for These Times announced its 19th season program featuring world premieres by Alexander Malinas and Mary Bianco, Shostakovich selections in Yiddish, and new works by Andrea Casarrubios, David Garner, and Stella G. Gitelman Willoughby at Old First Concerts in San Francisco.

A new featurette for the drama CLEAN HANDS showcases Zach Braff and Esther McGregor's work on the film, which releases in select theaters and on demand based on a true story of addiction and recovery.

The Goodman Theatre's 22nd New Stages Festival will present four works-in-progress by contemporary playwrights, ranging from a kung fu rom-com to a new musical, with free ticketed performances in Chicago.

Irish Repertory Theatre will present four new play readings and a workshop performance featuring writers Chris Gethard, Hannah Khalil, and Eoin McAndrew, directed by Bailey Bass, Nicola Murphy Dubey, Kimberly Senior, and Keelie Sheridan.

Fans are starting a petition to get 'Box Five,' a cut song from The Phantom of the Opera originally performed by the opera managers in early workshops of the musical, to be added to the stage production in new TikTok videos.

The indie duo released the new single 'Slide' and announced additional music coming in the new year, following their late 2025 EP 01.

DIY punk and post-punk band Dead Air Network, featuring Pat A.V., Dave H., and Blanks 77 drummer Chad Phillips, releases new single drawing on decades of New Jersey punk history.

JENNIE contributes an original song to the STEPS soundtrack, the companion album to Netflix's animated comedy adventure. The soundtrack features four original songs written and produced by Justin Tranter, with vocals from Amanda Seyfried, Rose Gray, and Emei, plus score by Kris Bowers.

Former LATE NIGHT WITH DAVID LETTERMAN bandleader Paul Shaffer made quite a first impression on Ray Charles the first time they played together.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child has extended booking for its one-part production in London. Plus check out all new photos of the new cast in action here.

The Lone Tree Symphony Orchestra will present a seasonal concert featuring selections from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite and holiday favorites at the Lone Tree Arts Center in Colorado.

Canadian fiddlers Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy will perform at Columbus's Southern Theatre with their two eldest children, marking their return to the stage together.

It was an unusual night for San Diego and its symphony orchestra. The heavy rains of hurricane Rachel were headed our way, and rather than the usual short concert opener, Music Director and Conductor Rafael Payare jumped right into the compelling urgency of Aram Khachaturian’s violin concerto. It seemed appropriate, though a coincidence. Concert programs are scheduled long before the daily weather report. Khachaturian’s Violin Concerto Khachaturian was born in Armenia but spent most of his life in Russia, and I’ve tended to associate him with Prokofiev, Shostakovich and other Russians who became popular in American concert halls in the mid-20th century. Since I hadn’t heard the concerto in years, I listened to James Ehnes’s version of it the day before the concert, and Russian still seemed the right take. The composer worked with the legendary Russian violinist David Oistrakh to create a challenge for soloists. Armenian violinist Sergey Khachatryan passed the test. It was an exciting performance that changed my view of the work. His fiery opening had horse hairs flying off his bow before he got through the first four bars, and a crying vibrato in the concerto’s exotic softer moments clinched it. Armenia was more of an influence than Russia. Khachatryan’s approach made other interpretations seem almost polite. Payare and his musicians were all in with the violinist on ferocity. Following his lead, as percussion hammered rhythms the brass section blazed forcefully and clear in the hall’s fine acoustics. The pause was longer than usual following the first movement as the conductor applied a handkerchief to his heated brow while composing himself for the sensuous warmth of the second movement’s opening. Strings provided the Andante's rich warmth, and woodwinds a lighter contrast. Principal Clarinet Sheryl Rank’s gentle decoration and mirroring of the soloist’s mainline were especially appealing in calmer moments. The finale turns to lighthearted joy with a spritely waltzing theme in a major key. The lyrical second theme of the first movement returns briefly before brass and percussion voice a triumphantly optimistic conclusion; the sun was out after the storm. San Diego Symphony often has its musicians make the usual brief pre-concert announcements about cell phones, fire exits, and so on. Tuba Principal Aaron Mccalla’s had the mic on this evening, and after comparing the opening concerto to a hurricane, he observed that the ocean waves Rachel caused were like the waves of sound in Bruckner’s symphony. Bruckner’s Ninth Other great symphonists bring crescendos to well-defined climaxes. Bruckner constantly climbs toward what feels like a peak or just short of it, only to fall back into a trough of quieter, more thoughtful sounds. He does it over and over again in a wave pattern, as though searching for something he can’t quite find. Until a few years ago, I found that strange, and was unsure of how he meant listeners to feel. But I now believe it represents his religious fervor, and indeed, he dedicated his ninth 'to the beloved God' and sought musical perfection. Constant revision of prior works is a related characteristic. He’d been working on the ninth for nine years when he died, having completed three movements and sketched a fourth. Because of poor health, he was convinced the ninth would be his last symphony. It was, and he did not complete it partly because he was also revising his first, second, third, and eighth symphonies. No wonder conductors sometimes have trouble deciding which versions to use. Well-meaning followers have made it even more difficult by revising the composer’s orchestrations. The main options for the ninth are one of the completed three movement scores or one of many with a fourth movement based on the composer’s detailed sketch. There’s no doubt he wanted a fourth, but most conductors opt for three, as did Payare. He led the frequently performed Orel version of Bruckner’s last score as edited in 2000 by musicologist Benjamin-Gunnar Cohrs. Are the revisions done? I doubt it. An AI generated fourth movement is probably in the works. Bruckner makes even greater demands on the brass section than Khachaturian, and his unfinished ninth, nearly an hour long, calls for eight horns and a tuba in addition to the usual trumpets and trombones. Payare showed no mercy. An ex-horn player, he clearly glories in the way his brass section fills the hall. Demanding its best, and loudest, he rises en pointe and thrusts his arms toward heaven, the musical goal for both him and the devoutly religious Anton Bruckner. The first movement is labelled “Solemn, Mysterious.” It’s the lengthiest, with long sections of soft contemplation in the strings and woodwinds repeatedly interrupted by sudden drum rolls and brass calls. Swelling strings have a beautiful second theme which reappears briefly in the final movement. Payare brought the movement to an end with loud and commanding brass. The second and shortest movement is a scherzo. It begins with delicate pizzicato strings soon dismissed when the full orchestra unexpectedly interjects by pounding on a single note before the brass again takes command. The delicate-brutal pattern is repeated until the brass section finally says with determination, “enough of that” to end the movement. The third movement is marked “slow and solemn,” but again the brass section has its say, and here, as throughout the performance, Bruckner’s many abrupt and sudden transitions from fortissimo to pianissimo and back were smooth and effective. The symphony’s peak is reached with trumpet calls, clearly written in praise of God and thrilling under Payare’s baton. The movement ends with what seems Bruckner’s quiet acceptance of impending death. I understand why most conductors choose to leave it there, but Bruckner kept working on a final movement after completing the third and left extensive notes. I doubt we've seen the last attempt to complete his vision. If there is a heaven, he's already done that himself and revised it several times.