Opinion
93 results
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BSR Behind the Scenes: Why do we need arts criticism?
Going backstage at BSR: The truth about reviewing
In our experience, some people opine that the critics are just dragging the cultural scene down—especially when a review is mixed or negative. But is that true? Not at all. Alaina Johns explains in this BSR Behind the Scenes editorial.
Editorials
6 minute read
Remembering Stan and Jan Berenstain, the Philly artists who created the Berenstain Bears
The makers of America’s favorite bear family
Stanley Melvin Berenstain met Janice Marian Grant when they were both studying art in Philadelphia—ostensibly to join the army, but their career took a very different turn. Emily Zarevich considers.
Essays
3 minute read
BSR Behind the Scenes: What does public relations have to do with arts journalism?
Going backstage at BSR: The PR connection
What does arts journalism have to do with PR? As arts writers and editors, we often work closely with PR people. How do we collaborate? And what are the boundaries between our roles? Alaina Johns explains in this BSR Behind the Scenes editorial.
Editorials
7 minute read
As a mom, daughter, and freelancer, I'm good at juggling (figuratively). But can I really catch and let go?
This is not a metaphor
Writer Anndee Hochman is used to toggling through life: her mom, her family, her home, her work. So when life got grim, she decided to try juggling for real. How do you learn to catch and let go?
Essays
5 minute read
A closer look at depictions of domestic violence in Gunnar Montana’s BLACK WOOD
What does it mean to empower survivors?
BLACK WOOD, the latest from Gunnar Montana Productions, is an immersive, creepy, atmospheric experience perfect for spooky season. But we shouldn’t view it without talking about the violence it depicts. Alaina Johns considers.
Editorials
6 minute read
Coming of age with Sinéad
We need Sinéad O’Connor’s spirit more than ever
When Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer heard about Sinéad O’Connor’s death this summer, she became her 21-year-old self, sustained against harassment and injustice by a singular voice.
Essays
4 minute read
Prison, hospital, burger joint, cathedral: does art transcend the space it’s in?
Art on the horizon
When art isn’t created for any particular site, how does it relate to the space where it’s exhibited, whether it’s a gallery, a prison, or a house of worship? Treacy Ziegler considers secular art in sacred places.
Essays
5 minute read
No house lasts forever, including our own bodies. We keep moving as long as we can.
Good-enough bones
While Anndee Hochman faces treatment for osteoporosis, she remembers the different homes we live in, from our bones to our houses, and everything we’ll do to keep them standing.
Essays
5 minute read
My therapist broke up with me—and I don’t know how I feel about that.
Trials and terminations
Fredricka R. Maister felt grateful to find a therapist when she needed one most at the height of the pandemic. Their relationship wasn’t perfect, but should it have ended the way it did?
Essays
5 minute read
What grieving the Eagles loss taught me about how to come home
It’s a Philly thing
Heather Joelle Boneparth says the Eagles’s Super Bowl loss felt heavier than it should have: more grief was lurking, but also a new understanding of home, with a Philly flair.
Essays
6 minute read