Word: self
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...supposed to mean is liable to result in a throbbing headache and not much more. But the play succeeds by not taking itself too seriously—the play-within-a-play format allows the cast to repeatedly break the fourth wall, and they offer a touch of self-conscious humor that avoids any potential frustration with the production’s opaqueness. Maupassant (Philip Y. Gingerich ’13), installed among the audience members, occasionally cheers on, shouts at, and has conversations with those onstage, while the theater manager, as Leah sobs over the body of her dead...
...actors themselves, after a somewhat hesitant start which reflects the utter self-confidence required to say lines like “I heard my own name too late… I never got accustomed to it,” by-and-large settle into their roles. Ilker Oztop GSAS ’12 , in particular, stands out playing both Leah’s husband and her son. The hip-gyrating, dance routine that introduces the son exemplifies his performance, elevating the script’s ludicrous dialogue to even more absurd heights with a frenzied, hyperkinetic energy. Kerr, too, handles...
...enjoyment inflated out of proportion by my respect for his vigorous old age? Occasionally he’d falter a fraction, and I’d hastily scribble something like, “he’s mellowed; he’s not his former, razor-sharp self.” But this is too critical. His drumming rang with every ounce of his vast experience. Perhaps most telling was his playing during a bass solo. Haynes chose to pare his palette down to just one cymbal. Stripped bare with nowhere to hide, he shone with unobtrusive inventiveness, sending...
...single “Yeah!” from “Confessions,” but it certainly does have its strong points. Bonus track “More” is actually one of the album’s highlights, and its slick beats and self-assured air are certainly reminiscent of Usher’s past hits. Usher’s core aesthetic reamins intact: most songs feature strong electronic beats as well as an abundance of vocal and instrumental layering, and all of the production aspects assure that there is almost never a tired moment...
Usher manages to stretch out his thin inspiration for over an hour, and many of the tracks prove to be filler. While usually catchy, the lyrics aren’t good enough to bring this “self-confessional” album’s concept off of the ground. What Usher needs isn’t another album of so-called introspection to bring back the success of his past, but some new inventiveness in his career, something that “Raymond v. Raymond” fails to exhibit...