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Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

Emerson College’s only independent, student-run newspaper since 1947

The Berkeley Beacon

LIVING ARTS

From left to right: Maria San Filippo, Sarah Secunda, and Cristina Kotz Cornejo. (Ryan Yau / Beacon Staff)

Eight months after Bright Lights, the screening room remains important for discourse

By Ryan Yau, Living Arts Editor / April 9, 2025

On Tuesday, VMA Presents programmed a special advanced screening of three short films by faculty members, which featured women-centric films about issues...

(Courtesy of Michelle Carpenter)

NFTs explained for liberal arts students: Pellas Art Gallery welcomes women in blockchain

By Bryan Liu, Managing Editor / April 9, 2025

NFTs are misunderstood. For most, they’re just money. For others, they’re overrated. But for one night at the Pellas Art Gallery on 73 Newbury Street...

Illustration by Rachel Choi

Review: Mumford and Sons shows their restless heart with ‘Rushmere’

By Danielle Bartholet, Kasteel Well Staff Writer / April 9, 2025

“For years we’ve been secretly dreaming,” the caption read on Mumford and Sons’ January Instagram post, announcing a new and long awaited album...

(Courtesy of the Huntington Theatre Company)

‘Don’t Eat The Mangos’ arrives at the Huntington

By Hannah Hughes, Staff Writer / April 2, 2025

“Don’t Eat The Mangos,” takes the stage at the Huntington on April 3. It’s a story of dark secrets, wicked humor, and honest truths, all with a...

Annalisa Hansford holding "Romanticization of Ghosts and Grief" at the Grolier Poetry Book Shop. (Courtesy of Annalisa Hansford)

‘Romanticization of Ghosts and Grief’: Finding community through poetry

By Ryan Yau, Living Arts Editor / April 2, 2025

Most people cringe at the musings of their 14-year-old selves. Annalisa Hansford, a senior writing, literature, and publishing student, gains constant...

Lily Monday performing at the 2024 ComEx! (Courtesy of Christopher Griswold-Jenkins)

ComEx! is the funniest thing happening this weekend

By Ryan Yau, Living Arts Editor / April 2, 2025

This Friday and Saturday, the sixth annual Comedy Extravaganza, or ComEx!, will be held in the Greene Theater of the Tufte Performance and Production Center....

(Illustration by Kellyn Taylor)

Looking for a sweet treat? Madeleine’s Candy Shop opens in the South End

By Allison Po, Beacon Correspondent / March 26, 2025

Soft lighting and fish decor peek through the storefront. The ambiance is warm and whimsy.  This is Madeleine's Candy Shop, the perfect place for anyone...

From left to right: Ioana Jucan, Tushar Mathew, and Leonie Bradbury. (Courtesy of Zubin Stillings)

All about Emerson Contemporary’s latest AI exhibition

By Ryan Yau, Living Arts Editor / March 26, 2025

While writers, illustrators, and artists have cowered in fear for the past two years, theatermakers have felt safe from the threat of generative AI. In...

Tommy Richman performs at the Paradise Rock Club (Courtesy Grahame White)

Review: Tommy Richman runs it back with electric Boston show

By Charlie Desjardins, Beacon Contributor / March 26, 2025

Just as quickly as he was embraced, he was forgotten.  Virginia singer-rapper Tommy Richman, who mere months ago had the musical world in a headlock...

This year’s cast of the Queer Voices Festival (Courtesy Maggie Hall)

Boston Queer Voices Festival amplifies LGBTQ+ voices with a triumphant second year

By Fiona McMahon, Magazine Editor / March 26, 2025

“I think I’m gonna try heroin,” says Ernie, a middle-aged dad eating leftover food beside his son’s gravestone. To his right, a young man mourns...

Teddy Abrams conducts the BSO in Symphonic Dances from "West Side Story" (Courtesy Hilary Scott)

Boston Symphony Orchestra serves up Tchaikovsky, Bernstein, and Tilson Thomas

By Max Ardrey, Dept. Living Arts Editor / March 19, 2025

Let’s see if you’ve heard this one: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Leonard Bernstein all walk into a bar… The result, which...

Courtesy of Jack Karnatz

Neal Francis explores connection, adulthood, and the groove on ‘Return to Zero’

By Sam Shipman, Kasteel Well Staff Writer / March 19, 2025

The moment Neal Francis began his interview with The Beacon, he said hello before taking a moment to light incense. Dressed in a slick jumpsuit that could...

Talia Suskauer and Max Chernin in the National Tour of PARADE, photo by Joan Marcus

Review: ‘Parade’ marches into the Colonial, telling a story that is still timely today

By Hannah Hughes, Staff Writer / March 19, 2025

The Tony Award-winning revival of Jason Robert Brown’s musical “Parade” marched into Emerson’s Colonial Theater on March 11.  “Parade”...

Shana Figueroa (left) on the set of "Forever War." (Courtesy of Shana Figueroa)

After 20 years in the Air Force, Shana Figueroa serves her creative dreams

By Ryan Yau, Living Arts Editor / March 19, 2025

What do you do when you’re stuck losing over and over again? The film “Forever War” opens with John, a veteran soldier who receives a mysterious...

(Hannah Hughes / Beacon Staff)

Spring is here, and Spring is Queer at Fenway’s Time Out Market

By Hannah Hughes, Staff Writer / March 6, 2025

Time Out Market in Fenway was filled with more than just delicious food on Friday. The food hall hosted a Spring is Queer event, the first in a series...

Wendy Montero serves up a bread bowl on the dining hall's Mardi Gras night. (Max Ardrey / Beacon Staff)

Bourbon Street or Boylston Street? Mardi Gras makes its way to Emerson DH

By Max Ardrey, Dept. Living Arts Editor / March 6, 2025

Despite being 1,500 miles away from New Orleans, Emerson students could smell Mardi Gras on Boylston Street as the aroma from Cajun-inspired dishes wafted...

Kirsten Johnson sits next to an audience member during a post-screening Q&A of "Dick Johnson is Dead." (Fiona McMahon / Beacon Staff)

Documentarian Kirsten Johnson gets up close and personal with the VMA department

By Ryan Yau, Living Arts Editor / March 6, 2025

Documentary filmmaker and cinematographer Kirsten Johnson, whose 2016 documentary “Cameraperson” is widely shown in 100-level Emerson film courses,...

Jules Grace (center) and Berklee Valencia students jam out on a Spanish beach. (Courtesy Birdie Nelson)

Jules Grace bids farewell to adolescence with debut album ‘Diaries & Daydreams’

By Max Ardrey, Dept. Living Arts Editor / February 26, 2025

Before hitting the record button, there are a couple things Jules Grace has to do first.  “We have to turn the heater and the furnace off, so it’s...

Courtesy of Skylar Watkins.

The Revivalists frontman and new dad David Shaw reflects on his solo career

By Sam Shipman, Kasteel Well Staff Writer / February 26, 2025

As frontman for The Revivalists, David Shaw has been crushing live shows for over fifteen years, selling out large venues with their unforgettable indie...

Daniel Kish and Anna Stoianova perform Swan Lake at the Emerson Colonial Theatre. (Courtesy of Grand Kyiv Ballet)

Grand Kyiv Ballet dazzles the stage with Swan Lake

By Allison Po and Hannah Woods / February 26, 2025

The elegant and rhythmic performance of Swan Lake graced the stage of the Emerson Colonial Theatre with dancers of The Grand Kyiv Ballet, a Ukranian ballet...