[See also “Opinion: Governor’s Proposal to Legalize Recreational Cannabis – A Self-Inflicted Wound”, Jan 16, 2019] Gov. Gina Raimondo will soon formally propose to legalize recreational use of cannabis, citing pressure from legalization already accomplished in Massachusetts, Maine and Vermont; and from legalization widely regarded as imminent in Connecticut, New York and New Jersey. Norman Birenbaum, of […]
Newport Playhouse deploys an obviously talented cast in their production of A Doublewide, Texas, Christmas who struggle valiantly to elevate a script from the writing team billing themselves as “Jones, Hope, Wooten” – actually Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten – who collectively have authored nearly two dozen plays that possess all the humor, charm, and […]
The most significant change affecting the ordinary person in the last few decades has been the volume and immediacy of information. Almost every one of us voluntarily carries a smart phone now, which generates a record of everywhere we have been every few minutes, going back months or years. We voluntarily install apps that promise […]
The 1946 Frank Capra film It’s a Wonderful Life has become such a beloved classic that nearly everyone has seen it at least once and knows the story, so I’m going to assume that “spoilers” are impossible in describing the stage musical by the Community Players at Jenks Auditorium in Pawtucket. If you’ve somehow managed […]
Although Rhode Island General Laws (§ 5-23-2) allow licenses for businesses to operate on most holidays, “No license shall be issued on December 25 of any year or on Thanksgiving Day” except to specially exempt types of businesses including pharmacies, small groceries, bakeries and video rental stores. Because of this, Rhode Island is believed to be […]
Molière seems truly modern despite having lived in France in the 1600s: His sharp satire was aimed at superstition and hypocrisy, attracting criticism from religious authorities and the entrenched nobility. Careful never to direct his satire against the monarchy, Molière was protected by the Duke of Orléans, who was the brother of King Louis XIV, […]
We feel neglected at the Motif office because, despite the recent highly publicized series of bombs sent through the postal mail to critics of Donald Trump, we never got one. Now, with the arrest of Cesar Altieri Sayoc Jr., also known as Cesar Altieri Randazzo, a 56-year-old Florida man who was literally living in a […]
The Providence Street Art Festival was held at the downtown skating rink on Oct 20, 2018. Photos by Cristina Berrios […]
Referendum ballot questions rarely fail voter approval in Rhode Island, and they rarely attract much controversy or attention. Unlike many other states with initiative provisions that have allowed voters to bypass their legislatures to, for example, legalize recreational use of cannabis, RI has no mechanism for circumventing the General Assembly. As a result, almost all […]
Mixed Magic Theatre takes on a substantial challenge in dramatizing the two most well-known short stories by Zora Neale Hurston, “Sweat” and “The Gilded Six-Bits.” Characterized by subtle word play, idiomatic dialect, puns and heavy-handed biblical allusions, Hurston’s fiction has generally not translated well to the stage. Mixed Magic wisely inserts Hurston as a character, […]