RECESS

Roy Lichtenstein and giving modern art a second chance

By Jessica Williams | February 7, 2019

I used to hate modern art. This is an especially embarrassing fact for an art history major to admit.

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RECESS  |  CAMPUS

Behind the piano: Duke Dance accompanist Natalie Gilbert discusses music and innovation

By Kristi Sturgill | February 6, 2019

In Duke dance classes, Natalie Gilbert is not the ballerina. She’s the pink-haired musician perched on an extra cushion on a black piano bench in the glass cube at the front of the Rubenstein Arts Center.

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

Sundance 2019: 'Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile' glorifies serial killer Ted Bundy

By Miranda Gershoni | February 6, 2019

Our culture has always been fascinated by serial killers. Since the phenomenon solidified in the ‘70s, there has been no shortage of killers in cinema (see: "American Psycho," "My Friend Dahmer" or really any David Fincher film); there are even several best serial killer movies lists online. 

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

Recess roundup: 2019 Super Bowl ad superlatives

By Marco Decardenas | February 6, 2019

This Sunday, around 100 million viewers tuned in to watch Super Bowl LIII. But with such a low-scoring game, attention shifted away from the game towards the other game-day tradition: ads.

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RECESS  |  STAFF NOTE

A loss for words

By Sarah Derris | February 6, 2019

I’ve had to do an egregious amount of writing in the last few weeks. Not that much writing for Recess, admittedly, but writing for classes, internships, scholarships and the like.

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

Sundance 2019: Q&A with 'Bedlam' director Ken Rosenberg and BLM founder Patrisse Cullors

By Miranda Gershoni | January 30, 2019

Millions of Americans struggle with mental health-related illnesses every year, according to the National Alliance of Mental Illness, but many individuals are not fully aware of the workings of the mental health system. The haunting documentary, “Bedlam,” which just premiered at Sundance, marks a unique opportunity to shed light on this crisis to the masses. 

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

Sundance 2019: 'Honey Boy' showcases Shia LaBeouf's vulnerability

By Eva Hong | January 30, 2019

I only realized that “Honey Boy” is an autobiographical story of Shia LaBeouf’s own troubled childhood and chaotic famed life after I walked out of the theater. It is a habit of mine to refrain from reading reviews before seeing a film. 

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RECESS  |  CAMPUS

Franklin Humanities Institute talks combine breakfast and humanities research

By Joel Kohen | January 30, 2019

Among the many flyers posted on the hundreds of bulletin boards around the university, one acronym that could be mistaken for a party is actually a lecture series in the humanities: the John Hope Franklin Humanities Institute’s “tgiFHI” series. 

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

'Zama' and the ethics of representing colonialism

By Alizeh Sheikh | January 30, 2019

Listed by more than a few reputable publications as one of the best movies of the year, Lucrecia Martel’s “Zama” has received praise by the bucketful. The film was screened Jan. 14 at the Rubenstein Arts Center and was introduced by Dr. Keiji Kunigami, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Romance Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill. 

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

Hulu versus Netflix: Who did the Fyre Festival documentary best?

By Jack Rubenstein | January 30, 2019

Within days of each other, Netflix and Hulu released documentaries about the failed 2017 Fyre Festival, putting the calamitous event back in the news. Neither film is perfect, but after watching both, Netflix’s “Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened” is considerably better than Hulu’s “Fyre Fraud”.  

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

Backstreet's back: 'DNA' fails to live up to '90s nostalgia

By Kerry Rork | January 30, 2019

For years, late '90s nostalgia seemed to litter modern media, from a resurgence of butterfly hair clips and cargo pants to a new obsession over '90s brands like Tommy Hilfiger and Birkenstocks. This love for '90s culture has extended its grasp into the music industry through the newest Ariana Grande music video, “thank u, next,” filled with cult classic film allusions and artists like Iggy Azalea wearing “Clueless” outfits.

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

'On the Basis of Sex' explores the origins of the notorious RBG

By Zach Kronsberg | January 30, 2019

After the release of the documentary "RBG" last year, a new film explores the origins of current Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. 

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

'Glass' is a disappointing finale to the Shyamalan trilogy

By Don Gex | January 30, 2019

“Glass” begins three weeks after the events of “Split.” Kevin Wendell Crumb, the villain of "Split," is still on the loose and wreaking havoc on Philadelphia, abducting young girls and sacrificing them to his 24th dissociated personality, the Beast, in an attempt to show his strength to the world

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RECESS  |  STAFF NOTE

For the sake of keepsakes

By Christy Kuesel | January 30, 2019

I wouldn’t say I’m a hoarder. I’m a big proponent of tidiness (though perhaps not to Marie Kondo’s level), and I’ll clean my room well before turning to homework, or perhaps a pressing editor’s note I have to publish in a few hours. But over the last three years, I’ve made more and more room in my dorm to house smaller objects on desks and dressers, all meant to capture some snapshot of the college years. 

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RECESS  |  CAMPUS

Duke Performances director Aaron Greenwald departs after 12 year tenure

By Christy Kuesel | January 23, 2019

When Aaron Greenwald first came to Duke, Duke Performances was a newly formed arts organization creating local programming. Over the next 12 years, he transformed it into a world-class arts presenter. 

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RECESS

Growing up with Brecht

By Joel Kohen | January 23, 2019

When my parents moved to East Germany in the 1990s, Stalinist memorabilia still adorned many corners and offices. “Real socialism” had broken down a few years prior, but the bleak relicts of empty houses, gray skies and scarce infrastructure still made it a rather unwelcoming place

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

Golden Globes sticks to predictable wins and crowd favorites

By Sydny Long | January 23, 2019

The ceremony had been engineered to yield optimal levels of inoffensive fun. 

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RECESS  |  CAMPUS

Nasher symposium focuses on how technology is changing art history

By Kerry Rork | January 23, 2019

The 21st century technological evolution has promoted visualization and digitization for historical representation. As more materials become available to the public, the possibilities and opportunities for increasingly comprehensive research have grown, as evidenced by a recent Nasher event. 

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RECESS  |  CULTURE

Cheney biopic 'Vice' wastes stellar work from Christian Bale

By Jack Rubenstein | January 23, 2019

Everyone on “Vice"'s marketing team deserves a raise. I could not wait to see the movie, mostly due to a stellar trailer that mainly focuses on the conversation where George W. Bush asks Dick Cheney to be his Vice President. The scene is tense and captivating, but nothing else in the movie comes close to echoing its greatness.

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RECESS  |  STAFF NOTE

Looking back on 'Yu-Gi-Oh!'

By Alexandra Bateman | January 23, 2019

Our childhoods are ruled by borderline obsessions. At least, mine was. Often still indicative of my personality is my all-or-nothing approach to my interests. Either I loved something and would express that love at every opportunity, or I had no interest in it at all.