Artscape

This week’s episode of Artscape features an interview and studio session with Providence-based “hot jazz” band Paper Moon. Morning Edition host Luis Hernandez talked with guitarists John Birt and Dylan Harley, who describe the band’s music as a kind of time travel back to the sounds of early jazz and artists like Django Reinhardt. The post Studio Session: Providence hot jazz collective Paper Moon...

“La Broa’ (Broad Street)” is a new, original production inspired by the stories of Latinos in Rhode Island, collected through local oral history project Nuestras Raices. The show takes place at the fictional Doña Rosa’s Market on La Broa’, where we hear the stories of Latino immigrants from Providence and Central Falls. Morning Edition host Luis Hernandez spoke with the director of the play, Tatya...

For Artscape this week, we have a wrap up of a few of the holiday season favorites from three local theater companies and one ballet, each offering a fresh take on a familiar holiday classic. The post Holiday favorites with a few twists from local theaters appeared first on TPR: The Public's Radio .

When it comes to support for Israel, there is a growing difference between young Jews and the older generations. And that difference is apparent in the new documentary, “Israelism.” The film follows two young people, Simone Zimmerman and Eitan, who doesn’t share his last name. In it, we see how they grew up with a view of Israel that doesn’t fit what they experience when they go there. For this we...

In his first interview since the Star Store closed abruptly in August, Chancellor Mark Fuller told our reporter Ben Berke that he does not see a pathway for moving the university’s art school back into downtown New Bedford. The post Interview: UMass Dartmouth chancellor sees slim chance of returning to Star Store appeared first on TPR: The Public's Radio .

When you take a dip in the ocean, there have likely been times when you got wrapped up in some seaweed. It might feel a little icky or annoying. But, seaweed has played an important role in our lives on many different levels. There’s an exhibit on now at the New Bedford Whaling Museum called “A Singularly Marine & Fabulous Produce: The Cultures of Seaweed.” Morning host Luis Hernandez talked...

The play by Martin McDonagh is a dark comedy-thriller set in the mid-60s in the north of England and takes place just as capital punishment is banned in the U.K. How will the nation's "second-best hangman" adjust? The post Delightful gallows humor in ‘Hangmen’ at The Gamm Theatre appeared first on TPR: The Public's Radio .

Tsugumi Maki is the new director of the RISD Museum. Morning Host Luis Hernandez talked with Maki about her vision for the institution. "Museums are at a crossroads," she said. "There are so many museums that are becoming less and less relevant to people and audiences. And what we need to do as institutions is to create opportunities for people to come where they feel like they belong in a museum...

Karin Sprague and her team of stone carvers create hand-made monuments and grave markers with hammers and chisels. But the gravestones are more than just a way to remember a loved one, they are works of art. The post Karin Sprague creates gravestones that are works of art and comfort appeared first on TPR: The Public's Radio .

Umberto Crenca is a co-founder of nonprofit community arts organization AS220. He’s also been active as an artist in Providence for decades. WaterFire Arts Center is now showing his series of paintings called “Divine Providence.” Artscape producer James Baumgartner visited the space to talk with Crenca about his work. The post Artist Umberto Crenca elevates the commonplace in the neighborhoods of...

Before Jontavious Willis became a Grammy-nominated blues artist, taken under the wing of elder bluesmen like Taj Mahal and Keb’ Mo’, he grew up in rural Georgia singing gospel in church. This week on Artscape, in a conversation with producer James Baumgartner, Willis said it was the connection to gospel that first sparked his interest in the blues. The post The gospel roots behind Jontavious Willi...

This week on Artscape, two plays: a conversation with the playwright of “2216: The Remix of a Global Experiment,” making its worldwide debut at the Wilbury Theatre, and a review of “Becky Nurse of Salem,” a dark comedy now playing at Trinity Rep. The post Plays from Trinity and Wilbury reexamine the past and imagine the future appeared first on TPR: The Public's Radio .

Lily Henley is a vocalist and fiddle player who performs songs in Ladino, a language of the Sephardic Jewish people. She’s playing Thursday, Sept. 28 at Community College of Rhode Island. Artscape producer James Baumgartner talked with her about her music. The post Lily Henley’s new album combines her love of fiddle music and the Ladino language appeared first on TPR: The Public's Radio .

“Mr. Burns, a Post Electric Play” is on now at the Contemporary Theater Company in Wakefield, Rhode Island. It's a 2012 play written by Anne Washburn with music by Michael Friedman. For Artscape this week, producer James Baumgartner and morning host Luis Hernandez give you their review of the show. The post Apocalypse survivors reimagine ‘Simpsons’ episode in latest show from Contempor...

For Artscape this week, producer James Baumgartner spoke with local singer and harmonium player Mohitosh Talukder Taposh. The post Taposh shares his love of Bengali music with the world appeared first on TPR: The Public's Radio .

A new bronze statue will be unveiled this weekend honoring Edward M. Bannister, an African-American artist who lived in Providence in the late 19th century and was one of the founders of the Providence Art Club. Artscape producer James Baumgartner talked with members of the Bannister Community Art Project, who helped make the statue a reality. The post Edward Bannister, 19th-century Black artist,...

Charlestown, Rhode Island is hosting the Rhythm and Roots Festival this weekend, with more than 20 acts across three days of music. The lineup includes Trombone Shorty, Greensky Bluegrass, the Revelers, and Tuba Skinny from New Orleans, who play music inspired by early jazz and blues of the 1920s and 30s. Artscape producer James Baumgartner and editor Mareva Lindo talked with Erika Lewis, who play...

Ira Cohen, a bookseller and art model who kept a literary spirit alive in a tough New England seaport, died this January at 70 years old after a brief illness. Cohen was the focus of what turned out to be the last show UMass Dartmouth exhibited at its gallery in downtown New Bedford before the university abruptly closes its campus there at the end of the month. For this week’s Artscape, South Coas...

UMass-Dartmouth will be closing its arts school at the Star Store in downtown New Bedford, and relocating all classes and studios to the state university’s main campus in Dartmouth. The school's chancellor, Mark Fuller, announced the closure in an email to faculty on Monday, less than two weeks before the start of the school year. The post Why is UMass-Dartmouth leaving the Star Store and how will...

A new art exhibit at Brown University’s Ruth J. Simmons Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice explores a landscape of spiritual and physical freedom through the lens of history. The post Artist explores ‘intimate bond of freedom and green’ at Simmons Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice appeared first on TPR: The Public's Radio .

The Kingston Chamber Music Festival marks its 35th season this year with seven concerts of music from across the centuries. The final three concerts are this weekend. Artscape producer James Baumgartner talked with composer Tina Davidson, whose work “I Hear the Mermaids Singing” will be featured on Sunday. The post You can ‘Hear the Mermaids Singing’ at the Kingston Chamber Music Festival this wee...

Originally built in 1929, the Providence National Bank Building was demolished in 2005 to make way for a residential tower that was never built. All that's left now is an empty facade – one brick wall on Weybosset Street propped up by steel struts. Instead of windows, the facade has five panels that feature a new mural every year. This year’s mural, "Parade" was painted by Michelle Perez. It featu...

Edie Fake was first known for his work in comics and zines. Then in the mid-aughts he started creating architectural drawings of real and imagined LGBTQ spaces in Chicago featuring bright colors, crisp lines and geometric designs. Now you can see Fake’s “On The Wall,” an all-encompassing room at Providence College. Artscape Producer James Baumgartner talked with the exhibit’s curator, Jamilee Lacy...

The 2023 Providence Biennial for Contemporary Art opens Thursday, July 13, at the WaterFire Arts Center in Providence. It’s a combination of two exhibits with nearly 50 artists, almost all from the Providence area. Artscape producer James Baumgartner has this preview. The post Local artists celebrate cultural heritage, commemorate the mundane at Providence Biennial for Contemporary Art appeared fi...

The Newport Classical Music Festival opened its 54th season earlier this week, and there are several concerts this weekend. Artscape producer James Baumgartner talked with festival director Gillian Friedman Fox for a preview of a few of the concerts. The post Concerts at the Breakers and free music in the park at Newport Classical Music Festival appeared first on TPR: The Public's Radio .