2013 Reviews Archive Stories

After the final notes disappear from the Pikes Peak Center stage on Sunday afternoon, the 2012-2013 Colorado Springs Philharmonic season will have come to its end. It will be the conclusion of what I found to be the most exciting and artistically satisfying music making ever produced by this orchestra.

You don’t have to be an Ibsen scholar to recognize him in the shadowy melancholy of the Norwegian playwright’s “The Wild Duck,” a solid TheatreWorks production of a dusty work, which is in its final weekend.In this adaptation by David Eldridge, Gregors Werle (Jon Barker) returns to his wealthy father’s h

From the moment they appeared on the Packard Hall stage for second offering in the Colorado College Summer Music Festival’s pre-season “Intermezzo” series, everyone knew this was going to be a very special evening. On Wednesday, the Intersection Trio was expected to bring a pops mentality to the formal traditions of cha

Those of us who were fortunate enough to attend the Colorado Springs Philharmonic’s opening concert for the 2012-13 season will not be surprised to learn that Josep Caballé-Domenech’s new recordings of Respighi’s “Pines and Fountains of Rome” are intense and dramatic readings. They boldly and beautifully brin

We can make this quick: Buy this disc.“Brahms: Piano Quintet Op. 34, Clarinet Quintet Op. 115” is the alpha and omega from arguably the greatest composer of chamber music. In the “Piano Quintet” from 1864, Brahms finally conquered the challenge of dramatic unity in a major work, paving the way for his shatteri

We can make this quick: Buy this disc.“Brahms: Clarinet and Piano Quintets” is the alpha and omega from arguably the greatest composer of chamber music. In the “Piano Quintet” from 1864, Brahms finally conquered the challenge of dramatic unity in a major work, paving the way for his shattering first symphony.

It’s early Christmas Eve morning. A foursome of tennis has wound down and the Wyeth family hustles into their just-right home, laughing and teasing.It’s the calm before the storm.In Jon Robin Baitz’s “Other Desert Cities,” family is treacherous ground and all the Wyeths take a hit before it&r

NBC’s “Revolution,” which returns from a long hiatus on Monday, is a fun show. I like to think of it as “Hunger Games” light. There’s an arrow slinging female protagonist (newcomer Tracy Spiridakos), a booze swilling older mentor (“Twilight” vet Billy Burke), and an overzealous villain bent on worl

Title: Tomb RaiderFormat: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360Price: $49.99 – $59.99Publisher: Square EnixDeveloper: Crystal DynamicsESRB Rating: M (Mature 17+)The grade: A – What is it? A reboot of one of gaming’s most legendar

Title: “Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance”Format: PlayStation 3, Xbox 360Price: $59.99Publisher: KonamiDeveloper: Kojima Productions/Platinum GamesESRB Rating: M (Mature 17+)Grade: B  What is it?A gaming stalwart taken in a new

Don’t bother with the Kleenex. Make no study of the allegorical elements in the plot. Pay no heed to the integration of melody and motifs into the dramatic fabric. In fact, don’t do anything to prepare yourself for the Opera Theatre of the Rockies’ 15th anniversary production on Saturday night and Sunday afternoon.

Title: “Dead Space 3”Format: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360Price: $59.99Publisher: Electronic ArtsDeveloper: Visceral GamesESRB Rating: M (Mature 17+)The Grade: B+   What is it? The third in a series of first person shooters tha

Title: “Aliens: Colonial Marines”Format: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360Price: $49.99-$59.99Publisher: SEGADeveloper: Gearbox SoftwareESRB Rating: M (Mature 17+)The Grade: C– What is it? A video game continuation of the sci-fi

First, it was Springs Ensemble Theatre’s “The Lion in Winter.”  And then, the Fine Arts Center’s “Prelude to a Kiss.” Now, a collaboration between Theatre ‘d Art and the Star Bar Players offers up another play with a cinematic doppelganger, Ken Kesey’s “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s N

Local lovers of orchestral music have been on a glorious run of late. Under the leadership of music director Josep Caballé-Domenech, the Colorado Springs Philharmonic has reached a level of artistic excellence that few thought possible. Even before Caballé-Domenech took over in the 2010-2011 season, concerts have been disti

After a wait of well over two months, the Colorado Springs Philharmonic was back to its artistic bread and butter on Saturday night with "Wagner and Beethoven." The sold-out Pikes Peak Center house was clearly excited but the music would just have to wait a little longer. Communications director Nathan Willers took the stage and with the

History can make a rich backdrop for theatrical storytelling. From “Richard III” to “Zero Dark Thirty,” the best step beyond a re-enactment of events and outcomes and is to draw a trajectory from the people that made history live.James Goldman’s “The Lion in Winter,” strikes that balance deli

Led by the incisive baton of Colorado Springs Philharmonic music director Josep Caballé-Domenech, Spain has once again launched a mission to conquer the New World. And judging from the results of Monday night's concert, the usual suspects (George Gershwin and his cronies) have forever lost their control of the last night of the year.