In 1996 the buzz on Broadway was all about “Rent,” a pioneering rock musical by Jonathan Larson that depicted a group of impoverished New York artists devastated by the AIDS epidemic. “Rent” won rave reviews, copped big awards, had a very long run, and has spawned a movie adaptation plus several national and international tours. […]

Contrary to an accusation disguised as an opinion, it is not my life’s mission to go into a restaurant looking for something wrong. Sure, I aim to sit with my back to the flow of the service-side of the operation. And yes, when possible, I prefer to make reservations to dine at the chef’s counter […]

Greater Portland Auditions The Blue Lobsters are welcoming new singers. Professional director, eclectic and fun. Rehearsals Saturday mornings in Portland; call Deb at 761-1741 for more. Exhibits “Picture This: The Art and Workings of Illustration Institute,” Portland Public Library, 5 Monument Square; on view to Dec. 23. Friday 10/28 “Mythic/Poetic,” 6-9 p.m. opening reception for solo exhibit by Ricardo […]

Falling leaves, falling temperatures and costume parties mark the end of October and Halloween. Appropriately, three of this week’s top items from southern Maine’s arts and entertainment offerings relate to Halloween and horrors, at least tangentially. An outstanding choice is “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike,” the Tony Award-winning comedy that opens Good Theater’s […]

Somewhere in the far reaches of this newspaper’s distribution radius lives a lovely, opinionated woman with a raspy telephone voice. She says she is this columnist’s biggest fan, and due to lack of competitive zealousness, I believe her. Of course, many kind (and not-so-kind) people have been in contact over the years, but none with […]

Greater Portland Auditions The Blue Lobsters are welcoming new singers. Professional director, eclectic and fun. Rehearsals Saturday mornings in Portland; call Deb at 761-1741 for more. Exhibits Friday 10/28 “Mythic/Poetic,” 6-9 p.m. opening reception for solo exhibit by Ricardo Osmondo Francis, Zero Station, 222 Anderson St., Portland, 347-7000, zerostation.com, through mid-December. “Up the Road/On the Water: Extended Views […]

The University of Southern Maine School of Music has a fall-winter-spring series of superb concerts by faculty and visiting artists, but none is so eagerly anticipated as Laura Kargul’s annual October appearance. Kargul is a virtuoso pianist who specializes in music of the Romantic period, and for this fall’s outing she’s chosen an intriguing title: […]

Impulse weekend dining (as in: “Hey! I’m dying for the honey walnut shrimp at Empire Chinese Kitchen on Congress Street”), especially during days of unseasonably warm weather, has become a bad idea. Forget the targeted destination of your craving. Unless you’re willing to roam the streets going from spot to spot, or make “hit redial” […]

Greater Portland Auditions The Blue Lobsters are welcoming new singers. Professional director, eclectic and fun. Rehearsals Saturday mornings in Portland; call Deb at 761-1741 for more. Exhibits Priscilla Stevens, Townsend Real Estate & Art Gallery, 553 Shore Road, Cape Elizabeth, plein air pastels, landscapes, through Oct. 15. “Up the Road/On the Water: Extended Views of Freeport,” oil […]

The sun slipped below the celestial equator more than two weeks ago, but the summer season lingers at Ogunquit Playhouse, where the grand finale of 2016 opened this past weekend. In 2015, “Million Dollar Quartet” broke box office records. Now it’s back for a 2016 reprise at the venue that bills itself as “America’s Foremost […]