Word: cleverness
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1990-1999
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
This production marks the 40th anniversary of the Harvard-Radcliffe Gilbert & Sullivan players, and perhaps it is the collective club excitement that the polish of the show exudes. Down to the details of a sharp poster and a clever program which imitates the style of the operetta's 1879 debut, "The Pirates of Penzance" demonstrates a real love on the part of the participants. It's musical theater that does what it's supposed to: entertainment which immediately, and without cessation, entertains...
...stage direction. A constant, careful and oftentimes outrageous choreography of cast members supplements the humor of the script. Sir William Schwenck Gilbert's wit is very much couched in wordplay and innuendo, and Ingman creates--in effeminate prancing, mock-stealthy stalking and slapstick combat--a physical counterpart to the clever turns of phrases. While such physical comedy can compromise itself with too much zeal or too little precision, this seldom happens. The actors seem to understand the appropriate bounds for their movements and the script is never upstaged...
Although Close's portrayal should be enough to entertain older audiences, there are a few clever concepts thrown into the film. This version of "101 Dalmatians" has been updated to the nineties, so that Cruella is a fashion mogul with a large corporation and Roger designs video games. In the movie, Roger is working on a game featuring Dalmatians, but he cannot find the perfect villain for his creation until he meets De Vil, whose dementia serves as a twisted inspiration...
...political debate does not tell you much about the people involved. It rewards those who exude charisma and speak in eloquent turns of phrase, and it punishes those who may have brilliant ideas but less-than-clever ways of expressing them. So take this analysis of last night's Undergraduate Council debate with more than a few grains of salt. I am not endorsing any particular candidate but simply evaluating who came across best...
...curled up on my bed, eyes bloodshot and stomach growling, I steadily punch the keys on my laptop in order to make the next fellowship deadline. And then it hits me. I am back in my senior year of high school. The self-marketing blitz, the standardized tests, the clever essays, they all come rushing back to me. It seems like ages ago when we were all declaring to the world (or at least to our favorite colleges) that we were worthy, that all those Advanced Placements courses should count for something...