Culture

Why does everyone like East of Eden so much?

A beautiful book, written in a determinedly readable style, is bound to become popular, not to mention the endless power of nostalgia.
Books Abigail Riley -

The return of the surreal 

Mythical, dreamlike, phantasmagorical, and absurd: Surrealism, which took the art world by storm in...
Art Sylvie Quick -

Must theatre be so dire? Thoughts on the “unworthy scaffold”

If 'art est celare artem' (true art is to conceal art), then theatre is pretty poor art. You ain't fooling me into thinking that's a storm.
Culture Saul Grenfell -

Seasonal reads: On childhood hobbies, growing up, and guilt

Reconnecting with reading is something many people tend to do on a summer holiday,...
Books Elizabeth Gammaidoni -
Latest

On Geese and the Cult of the Fake Fan

Great statistics could be drawn up about how often men in Oxford will want to talk to me about Geese. 

Booksmaxxing and the illusion of being “disgustingly educated”

If you are as chronically online as I am, then it is more than likely that you will have come across the trend where...

Blood will have blood: Cross Keys Productions’ ‘Macbeth’

Shakespeare revivals must tread a fine line: too often they turn into one-actor vehicles or experiments, or shipwreck upon the squall of their adaptation.

SNL UK and British sketch comedy

SNL UK provides a ripe opportunity to explore our own distinct tradition of sketch comedy.

Twisted but funny: ‘The Birthday Party’ in review

CW: Rape What’s stuffier than a perfume shop and more packed than a Lego Store on opening day? It’s the Burton Taylor Studio, and no...

‘The Two Noble Kinsmen’ reviewed

One of the finest traditions of Oxford drama is the summer garden play. Freeing the frenetic energy of the dramatic societies from the limited...

Life on Earth: Art as armour in Mandel’s ‘Station Eleven’

The novel demonstrates how speculative fiction is a genre ultimately concerned with the relationship between the environment and the individual, between Earth and humanity.

Who gets to speak? The rise of the male podcast epidemic

I couldn’t help but notice, however, that one of the reasons for my disillusionment with the genre was likely the glaring gender imbalance, often when it came to the most successful, well-known podcasts.

The Devil is Sponsored by Dior: ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ in review

In the world of The Devil Wears Prada 2, there is one thing that could have never existed: The Devil Wears Prada.

Hidden Gems: ‘The Storytellers’ at Worcester College

From the first moments, The Storytellers feels unusually thoughtful, generous, and alive.

Toni Servillo shines in thoughtful assisted dying drama: ‘La Grazia’ in review

Does Big Tobacco sponsor Paolo Sorrentino’s films? Almost certainly not, but their money would be worse spent elsewhere.

Galliano for the masses (on the Zara sale rack)

The fashion world is mourning the loss of John Galliano. Not a literal death, but something closer to a fall from grace.

‘Oleanna’: An imperfect but gripping watch

Boulevard Productions’ Oleanna leaves something to be desired, but what it lacks in production value it more than compensates for in audacity; so much so that David Mamet would be proud

Internet Babies: Students of Subculture

There’s a certain kind of artist that I keep coming back to lately: artists who seem to know exactly what I want to hear...

May Morning

Smudged mascara and the curling of coffee steam. Small yawns and the shuffling of boots. Tangled hair plaited by the same girl from first-year,...

Sunday

That Sunday could arrive first-class, Wrapped in tissue and stickers with minimalist logo. Sent anonymously (from a fan?). It will be a crisp, sunblushed Sunday. The first in...

Hail Agnes full of grace: ‘Hamnet’ and the perfect mother figure

Buckley swept this year’s award season for her performance as Agnes in Hamnet, Chloé Zhao’s adaptation of the Maggie O’Farrell book of the same name.

Stubborn, devout, doomed: ‘The Anti-gone’ reviewed

When The Anti-gone begins, the only thing onstage is a lectern – stark in the harsh white light and terribly lonely – before Ismene (Kitty Brown) walks uncertainly down the aisle and stares, torn and lost, into the audience.

Something wicked this way comes: ‘Macbeth’ previewed

Arriving at Somerville College in its full summer pomp, Stanley Toyne and Cameron Spruce, the codirectors of Cross Keys Productions’ Macbeth, walked over with...

G for Georgian? LGBTQ+ representation in historical fiction

It is undeniable that LGBTQ+ representation in the media has become more positive in recent years.
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