At 92, Robert Friedman is still writing
Former Beacon writer Robert Friedman, 92, has traveled the world, interviewed celebrities and published seven books. His latest title, Wolf on the Trail, published last fall, revisits a familiar character from his previous novels, a detective and Auschwitz survivor. Friedman started writing almost seven decades ago. In 1953, he was drafted into the U.S. Army in preparation to join the ... READ MORE
Nostalgia takes center stage at Vagabond
In the art world, perspective is defined as the way an artist can make a scene feel intimate, vast, small, realistic. The resulting work can make a plain, flat space appear three-dimensional and rich in detail. Perspective is not only a tool of painters, but also writers. Take, for example, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Wendy Wasserstein and her work of art, The Heidi Chronicles,... READ MORE
Toby’s puts a new twist on Wizard of Oz
As we all know by now, Dorothy is not in Kansas anymore. Recent decades have revised Dorothy and Frank L. Baum’s fairytale series The Wizard of Oz. Diana Ross taught us to “ease on down the road” in the 1978 film The Wiz, and the 2003 Broadway musical Wicked presented a new take on good and evil that veers off from the original story and 1939 film. This season, Toby’s Dinner... READ MORE
The tricky art of grandparenting
The regular monthly meeting of the Grumpy Grandpa Group was called to order. We dispensed with the reading of the minutes and got straight to business. Everybody healthy? Grunts, grimaces, nods. Everybody rich? Snorts. Curses. Everybody happy with the world situation? Glares. Eye rolls. And everybody doing OK with family? Up spoke one of our charter members, a guy who has... READ MORE
Levine School of Music celebrates five decades
Last year Ruth Cogen and her friend Jackie Marlin had a moment of pride as they sat in the audience of the Kennedy Center. The star of Porgy and Bess was singer Alyson Cambridge, a former student at the Levine School of Music, founded in 1976 by Cogen, 90, Marlin, 94 and the late Diana Engel. “It was amazing. I had watched Alyson as a young girl taking lessons and singing, so it was ... READ MORE
A new nation: 1776 at Ford’s Theatre
For the American semiquincentennial, Ford’s Theatre is currently presenting the musical 1776, a witty take on events leading to America’s Declaration of Independence. The musical debuted on Broadway in 1969, winning three Tony Awards. The film came out in 1972, and the musical was revived on Broadway three times. Highly engaging and tuneful, the show provides insight into the... READ MORE
Artist illuminates Baltimore’s changes
For half a century, painter, gallery owner, muralist and mentor Minas Konsolas has helped both shape and reflect Baltimore’s creative spirit. The youngest of six children, he grew up on the Greek island of Karpathos in a village where making things — boats, tools, paintings — was simply part of daily life. His own talent emerged gradually and came fully into focus in 1976, when... READ MORE
Local poetry reading series marks 10 years
Poets, it’s said, are solitary people, but not in Howard County. On a given Tuesday evening in Columbia, you may stumble upon a gathering of poets reading their work aloud in a bookstore. That’s Wilde Readings, the county’s free literary reading series, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. Its co-founders, Laura Shovan, Linda Joy Burke and Ann Bracken, will read... READ MORE
At 75, Bill Irwin revels on stage again
Bill Irwin, a Ringling Brothers-trained clown and Tony Award-winning actor, has long been drawn to the works of the Irish playwright Samuel Beckett. With his one-man creation On Beckett, he draws you into that magic circle too. In his current venue at the Shakespeare Theatre Company, Irwin delivers a funny, engaging and deeply personal exploration that relies as much on clowning slapstick... READ MORE
On the road, Father didn’t always know best
If you had a father like mine, the following scene will spark memories. The family is out for a drive in the 1950s. Dad, of course, is behind the wheel. Some nearby motorist commits a sin —perhaps not signaling, perhaps not jackrabbiting away from a red light fast enough. And Dad would snort: “Women drivers!” Or, if my mother wasn’t there, something more pungent. His response... READ MORE
