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Album
Major Arcana by Speedy Ortiz
Northampton-based Sadie Dupuis’ bedroom-project-turned-band has been up to some big things this past year...
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Actor
Alex Pollock
You might not know him yet, but we have a hunch you’ll be hearing big things about Alex Pollock very soon...
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Artist
Elizabeth Alexander
Creating lush yet delicate sculptures, installations and collages from found objects and meticulously cut paper, Elizabeth Alexander has shown her work everywhere...
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Band
Tigerman WOAH!
This burly, bearded band of free-wheelin’ Americana rockers—who never met a party they didn’t like or a stage they couldn’t own—have been popping up everywhere...
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Classical Event
Boston Symphony Orchestra’s Salome
As the closing notes of Salome echoed throughout Symphony Hall in March, the audience rose to its feet in a roaring standing ovation...
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Comedy Club
Improv Asylum
Tucked away amid the hustle and bustle of Hanover Street, Improv Asylum is easy to overlook...
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Dance Event
Boston Ballet’s “Night of Stars”
A kickoff to the acclaimed company’s 50th season, Boston Ballet’s first free outdoor installment of its annual “Night of Stars” event drew an estimated 55,000 people...
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DJ
Frank White
A longtime fixture on Boston’s nightlife circuit, White is the kind of DJ who moves effortlessly among scenes and genres...
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Exhibit
She Who Tells a Story: Women Photographers from Iran and the Arab World at the MFA
Challenging Western stereotypes of Middle Eastern women, this Kristen Gresh-curated exhibit spotlighted approximately 100 photos and two videos by a dozen artists...
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Gallery
Samsøn
Samsøn Projects turned 10 this year, but its South End art space still operates like a boundary-busting upstart...
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Hottest Ticket
Boston Calling
A major outdoor music festival in Boston’s city center? When people first caught wind of May 2013’s inaugural Boston Calling...
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Karaoke
Courtside
Courtside Karaoke happens every Thursday, Friday and Saturday in the sprawling back room of a dingy dive where wizened drinkers hold court at the bar...
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Launchpad
Brighton Music Hall
If you want proximity to a band about to blow up, catch a show at Brighton Music Hall...
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Nonfiction Book by a Local Author
Book of Ages: The Life and Opinions of Jane Franklin by Jill Lepore
Harvard professor and New Yorker staff writer Jill Lepore adds another item to her impressive resume...
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Novel by a Local Author
The Weirdness by Jeremy P. Bushnell
Northeastern professor Jeremy P. Bushnell’s debut novel is a quirky, wildly entertaining commentary on the state of the struggling young writer...
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Radio Show (Streaming)
This Is 617 on Vanya Radio
When WFNX folded last year, Boston lost a platform for promising local bands...
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Radio Show (Terrestrial)
Matty in the Morning on Kiss 108
The Top 40 hits that Kiss 108 spins in steady rotation aren’t unique to the airwaves, but the station’s long-beloved Matty in the Morning show certainly is...
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Record Label
Run for Cover Records
In case you haven’t heard, there’s an emo revival (well, another one) happening as we speak, and Boston-based label Run for Cover is at its forefront...
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Rock Club
The Sinclair
The Sinclair has been open for a little more than a year, but it took less time than that to establish itself as the best thing going in this town’s music scene...
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Theater Company
Speakeasy Stage Company
If one were to visit Boston’s official Theater District—and stop there—one might think big-ticket, nationally touring productions like The Lion King are all we’ve got...
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Theater Production
A.R.T.’s All the Way
A three-hour play about Lyndon B. Johnson’s presidency does not sound like a premise for a rousing theater experience...