Review: The Little Prince “tames” Rep audiences with good storytelling, acting, direction, and stage design
By Patsy Isenberg The stage version of “The Little Prince,” written by Rick Cummins and John Scoullar based on the beloved children’s book by French author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, closed Dec. 23 after a successful run at the Flint Repertory Theater. The Rep’s execution of the endearing play, with only four characters, featured deft direction, excellent acting, evocative set design, and haunting sound...
Commentary: People’s health comes first–fighting the Lead and Copper Rule is shameful
[This op-ed was originally published in the Detroit Free Press; reprinted with permission] By Ridgway White The most important function of government is to protect the safety and well-being of citizens. That’s why it’s disheartening to learn some southeast Michigan cities and the utilities that serve them are trying to thwart Michigan’s new Lead and Copper Rule. Instead of suing to block implementation of the rule, they should put...
Jacky King laid to rest: Flint loses a genuine hero
by Harold C. Ford “Get out there and make a damn difference.” –Jacky King, Dec. 2017, STAND Magazine The greater Flint area, the Beecher community in particular, lost a genuine hero on Dec. 13, 2018 with the passing of Jacky King. King, 65, succumbed to a year-long battle with brain cancer. Community activist, entrepreneur, Hall of Fame martial artist, urban farmer, Mt. Morris Township trustee, and mentor to thousands of...
Commentary: Should the Lame Duck be a dead duck?
By Paul Rozycki In the past, the so-called “lame duck” session was a time when the state legislature met in the last weeks of the year, before the newly elected members took office. They took care of relatively modest issues, final adjustments to the budget and other end-of-the-year issues. However, in recent years the lame duck session has become a time when a large number of controversial bills are rushed through the lawmaking maze...
Village Life: 85 tubas and a corny sing-a-long one secret to holiday cheer
By Jan Worth-Nelson Let’s face it–you can’t not smile when singing “Jingle Bells” with 85 tubas as your back-up group. I love Tuba Christmas, in all its kitschy Baby Jesus/Virgin Mary/Hark the Heralds/Deck the Halls tradition, staged every mid-December in the atrium of the Flint Farmers’ Market. The gaudy brass of the sensually fat horns reflects all the other colors around it. The booming bass...
Commentary: A “blue wave,” a “pink wave,” and a few mid-term surprises
By Paul Rozycki Last month’s midterm election may have been the most intense and energetic in recent memory, and when it was all said and done the results revealed several new directions to our politics, highlighting the strong reaction to Donald Trump, and the divisions in today’s politics. Midterm elections are usually rather low-key predicable affairs, where the party out of power gains a few seats in the Congress, and a modest...
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