At Birdland, the Party Hosts a New Cast of Characters
‘Cast Party’ may be more carefully curated now, but it still has room for a young Peruvian crooner, multiple singers named Ava, and a mandolin-and-ukulele prodigy.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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Mr. Friedwald writes about music and popular culture for The New York Sun and other publications. The host of the radio show ‘Sing! Sing! Sing!’ on San Diego KSDS on Saturday mornings, he also is the author of 10 books. He has written more than 600 liner notes for compact discs, received 11 Grammy nominations, and appears frequently on television and in documentaries.
‘Cast Party’ may be more carefully curated now, but it still has room for a young Peruvian crooner, multiple singers named Ava, and a mandolin-and-ukulele prodigy.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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Dave Green’s picture is the greatest manifestation of the Looney Tunes characters in the last 60 years because it stays true to the cartoon canon.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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One of the few occasions people on the extremes of the left and right could get together in the same space was at a Dolly Parton concert.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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An Israeli jazz guitarist bridges the Cuban and Brazilian worlds of Afro-Latin jazz.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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It’s Alive!’ eschews pigs, bunnies, and the Disney or Warner Bros. mainstream, focusing instead on animation’s margins without sacrificing visual richness.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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Rare musical gems and fully staged crowd-pleasers make OLO an unmissable annual event.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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Events honoring the legendary late crooner showcased his deep cuts, most notably ‘Firefly,’ a punchy, fast-moving, two-beat tongue-twister of a tune.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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The cast is unchanged in the latest webslinger picture, but it’s the darkest and most serious entry in the Marvel franchise.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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The singer-actress returned to her cabaret roots with a provocative set that ranged from Sabrina Carpenter and Cyndi Lauper to Richard Rodgers.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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With trademark perversity, Anita O’Day never read her own autobiography, yet James Gavin’s new book unflinchingly captures the celebrated jazz singer.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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A remake of the 2016 animated blockbuster is the most successful of Disney’s ‘photorealistic’ adaptations so far.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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A Gershwin pastiche, which proved a Broadway hit in the 1990s, gets triumphantly revived at Goodspeed Opera House.
By WILL FRIEDWALD
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