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Discover city’s artistic culture Detroit Passport to the Arts looks to build legacy in younger generations ALANA WALKER Contributing Writer Most non-profit arts organizations today face a similar situation: their regular patrons and supporters have aged, and new and young supporters are scarce. Detroit Passport to the Arts, an organization put on through a joint effort by Detroit Chamber Winds and Strings, Eisenhower Dance and the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, has a goal to give young patrons a taste of what the Detroitarea art scene has to offer. “In the arts, the audience is traditionally older,” Margo Strebig, Director of Communications at Detroit Chamber Winds and Strings said. “Our goal is to expose people to the arts and hope that they find some-
thing that they really like, and then begin to patronize the businesses themselves.” DP2A focuses on bringing people 45 years and under to the arts in hopes of continuing the legacy in Detroit. The first destination for DP2A is entitled “Structurally Sound: Reimage, Reuse and Recycle” presented by Detroit Chamber Winds & Strings. Saxophonist and Bassoonist Marcus Schoon will perform contemporary jazz works reimagined with standards and classics. The concert will take place at 3 p.m. on Sept. 15 at the Recycle Here! warehouse on Holden St. in Detroit. There will be an after party directly following the concert located behind the venue at the Lincoln Street Art Park for “passport” holders.
Other destinations will include the Michigan Opera Theatre’s production of La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi in November, a performance by the Eisenhower Dance Ensemble in December, a viewing of the 2014 Oscar nominated shorts at the Detroit Film Theatre in February, The Hilberry Theatre’s production of Moon Over Buffalo by Ken Ludwig in March, and a performance featuring pianist Louis Lortie at Orchestra Hall in May. Members enjoy private after parties after each event that include refreshments, entertainment and networking with other DP2A members. “It’s a fun atmosphere for people to interact, meet people, network, and maybe talk about the performance or experience that they just
had.” The group also visits separate additional “excursions” throughout the season; the first one being a performance by jazz musician Billy Cobham in October at the Music Hall, a production of Collected Stories by Donald Margulies at the Matrix Theatre in March, and a visit to the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival. The price for a season-long passport is $105 for students, $129 for those 45 and younger, and $250 for those over the age of 45. They also offer $500 patron passports, designed to help offset the cost of student memberships. To purchase a membership or for more information about Detroit Passport to the Arts, check out dp2a.org.
Not that ‘spectacular’ Ponsoldt creates unconsequential plot BRYAN GRECO Contributing Writer Sutter Keely (Miles Teller) is a high school senior who only has one goal: to live in the “now.” He parties often, and when he is not drinking at parties, he is drinking alone. After being dumped by his girlfriend (Brie Larson), Sutter drinks so heavily that he wakes up on his classmate Aimee Finicky’s (Shailene Woodley) front lawn. While Aimee may not seem like Sutter’s type (this will be hit over the head many times by Sutter’s best friend), the two connect immediately and change each other over the school year. The chemistry between Sutter and Aimee is very strong throughout the whole film and a lot of it feels unscripted and off the cuff. Director James Ponsoldt has a knack for making his characters feel very “real,” as evidenced by his 2012 film “Smashed.” In particular, a long tracking scene of the two talking and walking through the woods at a party is one of the best in the film; you can really see the characters start to fall for each other. But the strong chemistry isn’t enough to make this coming-of-age story stand out as much as it should. One major issue with the film is that Sutter is really the only character that fully develops. Aimee’s sole purpose of existence is to
assist Sutter from narrative story point A to B. But she clearly has problems of her own, most notably with her mother. Aimee does her mother’s paper route most mornings due to her late night partying, and her mother detests her wanting to go to college, but their whole relationship is shown off screen. Another issue in the film is the lack of consequences. This film does not need a moral Disney ribbon wrapped over it, but it starts to feel a little strange watching Sutter drink so often throughout the film with so little regrets plaguing his actions. Alcoholism is dealt with strongly throughout the film, while at the same time being completely ignored. A violent scene late in the film that resulted from Sutter’s drunk driving should call for a big change in his character, but the event is seemingly swept under the rug and forgotten about two scenes later. Even after almost failing high school and losing his job, his drinking continues. In the end, it’s not the reason for his selfrealization. The film works on many levels, but the narrative issues keep it from being a defining coming-of-age story. The direction makes it a head better than many other films in its genre, and the two leads are very fun to watch, even if the screenplay leaves a little more to be desired. “The Spectacular Now” is out in theatres nationwide. Rated R. 95 minutes.
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