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The Dartmouth
December 11, 2025 | Latest Issue
The Dartmouth
Arts
Arts

Masterpiece: The portrait of Beatrice Cenci, the muse and the myth

By Isabelle Blank | February 26, 2019

Just as contemporary crowds flock to the Louvre today to catch a glimpse of DaVinci’s “Mona Lisa,” during the 19th century, there was one painting that stood out amidst all the rest as the most captivating work of the “Grand Tour.” The artwork, falsely identified as Guido Reni’s 1599 portrait of Beatrice Cenci attracted visitors from all around the globe and spawned numerous copies. Writers such as Charles Dickens, Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville all documented their journey to Rome to see the painting.

Arts

A Cinematic Review of 2018: Ten great films and five flops

By Sebastian Wurzrainer | February 26, 2019

The Oscars may have come and gone, but I’m still not quite ready to embrace the new cinematic year. So, as a final send-off, it seems fitting to reflect on the best and worst films that 2018 had to offer. A couple of caveats before I begin, though: 1) Rather than organizing these films into a meaningless ranking, I’ve arranged them alphabetically. However, I have bolded the titles of the best film and the worst film of 2018 (in my humble opinion). 2) There are plenty of films from 2018 that I would have loved to see but haven’t gotten a chance to, largely due to accessibility issues. If you don’t see one of your favorite films from last year on this list, assume that I wanted to see it, didn’t get the chance to and would have included it on this list if I had. That last part is total wishful thinking, but it will keep everyone marginally happy. As a disclaimer, I did see all the Best Picture nominees. 

Arts

John Keats’ poetry mixes lush lyricism with social commentary

By Courtney McKee | February 22, 2019

Tomorrow is the 198th anniversary of John Keats’ early death at age 25 from tuberculosis. Keats, one of the most prominent Romantic poets of the 19th century, wrote lyrical meditations on many themes, including nature, love, beauty and death, arguably the most famous of which are his odes “To Autumn,” “Ode on a Grecian Urn” and “Ode to a Nightingale.” Criticized in its time for its frivolity, Keats’ poetry soon became widely recognized for its mastery of poetic forms, delicate evocations of the natural world and heartfelt representations of love and loss. 

Arts

Slam poetry breathes new life into the age-old topic of love

By Mia Nelson | February 21, 2019

Slam is a venue away from the traditional stuffiness of poetry, which is why it makes sense that the most fertile ground for slam is on the Internet. Both slam and YouTube are young, fresh and inviting to younger generations. The account Button Poetry compiles the most promising and innovative slam poets from the most respected competitions into one accessible platform. 

Arts

Review: ‘The Green Book’ doesn’t leave a mark as an artistic work

By Willem Gerrish | February 19, 2019

After a two-decade career spent directing lighthearted comedy films with his brother Bobby, Peter Farrelly has struck out on his own to co-write and direct “Green Book,” a comedy-drama about the relationship between notable black pianist Dr. Don Shirley and his driver for a tour of the American South, Tony “Lip” Vallelonga.

Arts

Student Spotlight: Will Maresco ’19 lights up the theater stage

By Shera Bhala | February 19, 2019

Every theater production involves a great amount of behind-the-scenes work. Will Maresco ’19 is a theater major with minors in digital arts and engineering, who finds his passion in lighting, sound and stage design. He designs for many student productions with his skilled and wide-ranging talents.  

Arts

This year's Oscar-nominated shorts have surprising depth

By Joyce Lee | February 15, 2019

Last Saturday, I went to watch the Hopkins Center’s screening of the collection of Oscar-nominated live-action short films without a clue of what I was getting into. I hadn’t looked up any of the films before my viewing, and in my innocence, I assumed that the brevity of the shorts meant they would toe the line between light-hearted and meaningful. They would not be too dark or bleak, I assured myself, before the lights went dim and the title card for the first short appeared on the screen.

Reviews

‘Roma’ captures the mundanity of daily life but lacks emotion

By Veronica Winham | February 14, 2019

As a film, Roma is not the most exciting, nor the most interesting. There’s so much in this movie that forces the viewer to confront a brutal reality, rather than escaping into another world. I personally found it hard to sit through over two hours of this film, which juxtaposes the difficult issues of sexism, poverty and racism in a stark storyline where monumental events are interspersed with images of the protagonist, Cleo (Yalitza Aparicio) , living her daily life as an indigenous live-in maid for a middle-class family in Mexico City. 

Music

Leonard Cohen’s ‘You Want it Darker’ inspires beyond the grave

By Madison Wilson | February 14, 2019

Cohen is well known for his hits like “Suzanne” and “Hallelujah,” but I’ve always felt deeply connected to his final album, “You Want it Darker.” Released 19 days before Cohen’s death, there’s a cheerful sadness running through the work. I remember listening to “You Want it Darker” while running in the New Hampshire forest, wondering if Cohen believed in God or despised him, or both.

Arts

Review: ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’ is a nostalgic debut novel

By Florida Huff | February 12, 2019

When I first read the description for “Where the Crawdads Sing” by Delia Owens, I was suffering from homesickness and desperate for a taste of my southern roots. Set in the Outer Banks of North Carolina from the 1940s through the 1960s, “Where the Crawdads Sing” checked all my boxes for the perfect winterim novel: historical fiction, female-centered narrative and a way to satisfy my craving for home. 

Monik Walters was a member of the "Chicago" cast in 2016.
Arts

Student Spotlight: Monik Walters ’19 leads in the arts on campus

By Courtney McKee | February 7, 2019

Monik Walters ’19 wears many hats. As student body president, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People at Dartmouth, leader of the Dartmouth Alliance for Children of Color, Hopkins Center curatorial fellow, a member of Ujima and choreographer for D-Step, Walters has made an impact on various spaces on campus, especially in the arts. 

Arts

Review: ‘Fyre’ explores the consequences of willful ignorance

By Willem Gerrish | February 5, 2019

It was one of the greatest marketing campaigns of all time: a pristine launch video showing supermodels swimming in bikinis on an island once owned by Pablo Escobar, a series of cryptic orange tiles posted online by celebrities and Instagram influencers, and the promise of an immersive music experience in the Bahamas called Fyre Festival. In reality, it was an utter disaster; gourmet meals became two slices of cheese on soggy bread, luxury villas became disaster-relief tents, and Fyre Festival became a colossal failure of the millennial age.

Arts

Review: ‘Brooklyn Nine-Nine’ reveals the goodness of humanity

By Joyce Lee | February 5, 2019

There was a moment of collective solidarity on the Internet — which is really rare, considering it’s the Internet — when Fox announced the cancellation of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” in May of 2018. Fans of the show, from Lin Manuel-Miranda to Guillermo del Toro, all tweeted their outrage, leading to the show’s resurrection at NBC a mere 31 hours after the announcement of its cancellation. 

Arts

Dartmouth Idol semi-finals showcase student voices on campus

By Veronica Winham | February 1, 2019

On Feb. 1, 22 Dartmouth singers will take the stage in the Spaulding Auditorium and showcase their talents in the Dartmouth Idol semi-finals. Currently in its 12th year and already sold out, Dartmouth Idol provides collegiate students with a unique opportunity to perform songs for the Hanover community, as well as compete for cash prizes and a demo recording. 

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