ARTS
1930s Scotland in the Black Box Theatre
By ANASTASIA WILDS | Oct. 24, 2019You may have heard a few Scottish accents if you passed by the Black Box Theatre this week. But they weren’t all real.
Arts
ARTS
RuPaul’s drag queens ‘save the galaxy’
By VINDHYA BURUGUPALLI and ISABELLA FORTUNATO | Oct. 21, 2019Sophia Scime didn’t want a new car for her sweet 16. She wanted tickets to RuPaul’s “Werq the World Tour.” The Buffalo high schooler’s birthday got a little more fierce when she was invited on stage by hostess Asia O’Hara to take part in a game during the show. Even though Scime didn’t win the contest, she left the stage smiling, knowing it was a birthday gift she would never forget.
ARTS
Haunting Halloween music picks
By ALEX WHETHAM , ISABELLA FORTUNATO and JUSTIN WOODMANCY | Oct. 20, 2019The Halloween season consists of cutesy costumes, silly jack-o-lanterns and enough candy to induce a sugar coma, but what makes this time of year so interesting and unique is its underlying theme of terror. People get their kicks out of being scared s--tless and especially during Halloween. Why else would so many people come together every year to watch possession-infested films and visit haunted houses? Music around this time of year shouldn’t be any different, it should scare the hell out of you, too.
ARTS
Artist spotlight: Easy Life
By BRENTON J. BLANCHET | Oct. 16, 2019Brockhampton’s Kevin Abstract may follow Easy Life on Instagram, but the band still isn’t sure if he’s a fan yet. To be fair, he probably heard the horn section in their track “Nightmares” –– along with roughly 10 million other people –– and hit the follow button.
ARTS
Zodiaque prepares for ‘versatile’ fall performances
By JULIANNA TRACEY | Oct. 16, 2019Versatility matters. Zodiaque Dance Company’s artistic director Kerry Ring know this. And she wants her students to know, too. Zodiaque, the long-running and highly praised on-campus dance company made up of 25 dance majors, is hosting its fall performance on the Center for the Arts Drama Stage from Thursday to Sunday. The company is known for its stylistic versatility and Ring wants the phrase “versatility matters” to be the main focus in every Zodiaque performance, every year.
ARTS
Cosplay artform brings UB students together
By ANASTASIA WILDS | Oct. 16, 2019When Jennifer Dudzinski started her freshman year at UB, she had one friend and a casual interest in cosplay –– an artform where people create and wear costumes of characters from movies, books, video games and other forms of media. After her friend persuaded her to join the UB Cosplay Club, Dudzinski, who had no prior experience making costumes, says she fell in love.
ARTS
'Halloweentown' hits
By JULIANNA TRACEY | Oct. 13, 2019As spooky season descends upon us, more people have been getting in the mood for Halloween movies, with one of the most popular franchises being Disney’s “Halloweentown.” “Halloweentown” has defined many of our childhoods. But with several sequels, it is time to answer the age-old question: Which is the best “Halloweentown” movie?
ARTS
Young the Giant brings high energy to indie rock Fall Fest
By JULIANNA TRACEY and REILLY MULLEN | Oct. 13, 2019Fall Fest was Verzache’s first time performing for a live crowd. Ever. And although Young the Giant has performed at UB before, Saturday was the first time students bowed at the lead singer’s feet. The night of firsts wasn’t shaky, however, as fans and newcomers alike put on a stellar indie-themed Student Association Fall Fest at the Center for the Arts.
ARTS
Fall Fest playlist: A quick guide to Young the Giant and Verzache
By ALEX WHETHAM | Oct. 9, 2019The Fall Fest Concert Series continues Saturday with its “Indie-Rock Showcase,” the second show of the three-part series. Rockers Young the Giant –– who headlined Spring Fest 2015 –– will headline the show as relaxed crooner Verzache opens the show. To get hyped up for fest, here’s a list of seven songs (three by Verzache and four by Young the Giant) to familiarize yourself with before heading to the Center for the Arts Saturday night.
ARTS
From ghosts to 1980s China: The best upcoming video games
By ANASTASIA WILDS | Oct. 9, 2019Video games can be a welcome distraction from university life, whether you game alone or with friends. Some people turn to the classics: Mario Kart, Dark Souls, Halo. But for those who are bored of their usual gaming go-tos, some interesting titles are hitting shelves soon.
ARTS
Art around town
By JULIANNA TRACEY | Oct. 6, 2019Buffalo is home to some of the greatest outdoor fall activities. But you’re not really a Buffalonian if you can’t enjoy the great indoors, too. For those of us who enjoy a nice thermostat and even nicer art pieces, Buffalo offers plenty of art galleries to weather through the rainy –– and soon to be snowy –– days.
ARTS
Four women speak their truths through UB Art Gallery
By AMAL ELHELW | Oct. 2, 2019Women were not allowed into art school until the late 1800s. Almost 200 years later, UB’s Department of Art created an exhibit to help give women in art a voice.
ARTS
Relatable raps: Rapper and former UB student Dom Brown talks about his music and family
By JULIANNA TRACEY | Sep. 29, 2019Dom Brown was nervous the week leading up to his Canalside performance. The rapper was preparing to perform in front of 8-10,000 people at his biggest concert yet.
ARTS
The grapevine
By JULIANNA TRACEY | Sep. 29, 2019The transition to fall means a lot of things for students in Buffalo. The weather is getting colder, classes are getting harder and students are getting understandably stressed. But the cooler weather doesn’t mean the Buffalo music scene is cooling down any time soon.
ARTS
Students perform first children’s theater production at UB
By ANASTASIA WILDS | Sep. 29, 2019Coloring pages and Dr. Seuss books covered tables outside of the Katharine Cornell Theatre Friday, as children and families waited in line to see the first-ever UB-led performance from an iconic cat. UB students performed a theater production of Dr. Seuss’s “The Cat in the Hat” at the theater on Sept. 27-28 as part of the Department of Theatre and Dance’s annual Student Directed Series. The series gives students the opportunity to produce and direct a show on their own and this production was the first-ever children’s theater production at UB, based on the 1957 children’s book of the same name by Dr. Seuss.
ARTS
Throwing SHAED: Budding group SHAED discusses rise to fame and Buffalo show in exclusive interview
By REILLY MULLEN | Sep. 25, 2019SHAED hasn’t quite hit household name recognition yet, but that may not last much longer. The D.C.-based electro-pop group’s new single, “Trampoline,” overtook Billie Eilish’s “Bury a Friend” for the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Alternative Radio chart this summer. With a musical style that BlackBook described as “infectious, magnetic charisma,” the group’s elaborate sound design, whimsical tone and deeply meaningful lyrics leave listeners craving more.
ARTS
Soulful sounds
By JULIANNA TRACEY | Sep. 22, 2019Temara Cross, the vice president of UB Gospel Choir, says she believes gospel music is not exclusive to a specific race. And she doesn’t think it’s exclusive to a set of skills or someone’s faith, either.
ARTS
UB’s fall performance radar
By JULIANNA TRACEY | Sep. 22, 2019At the beginning of the semester, it’s hard to know all of the entertainment opportunities the Buffalo area can offer. And for some students, it can be difficult to make it downtown to enjoy a play or musical performance. But excellent performances may be closer than students think.
ARTS
Nashville-bound: Buffalo-native Eric Van Houten chases his country music dream
By BRITTANY GORNY | Sep. 22, 2019Country singer Eric Van Houton didn’t always want to play country music. It wasn’t until he was asked to play country one day –– and went home to listen to Ketih Urban’s 2002 record “Golden Road” for four days straight –– that he realized his passion.
ARTS
Haley Reinhart talks Anderson .Paak, “Lo-Fi Soul” and October show
By BRENTON J. BLANCHET | Sep. 22, 2019There’s something magical about Haley Reinhart’s aura. It’s in her ‘60s appeal, it’s in her free-spirited live shows and it’s in her band, which once included the now Grammy-winning hip-hop heavyweight Anderson .Paak. Reinhart, quite like her former drummer-turned-performer extraordinaire, has evolved her sound over her career. Her new record, “Lo-Fi Soul,” is a coverless call to the ‘60s, full of organs, lovely backing harmonies and vocal effects that carry the record throughout. Unlike her previous effort, “What’s That Sound,” Reinhart’s originals run her latest and feel straight out of The Monkees’ or The Doors’ organ-heavy catalog. It’s vintage, but it’s her.
