Recently I went to the Accessories Council happy hour, hosted by its Media-based president Karen Giberson at Steven Lagos’ airy Northern Liberties showroom. For nearly 50 years, Lagos’ venerable jewelry collection has defined the Philadelphia’s upper echelon working woman aesthetic.
The Lagos Fizz diamond circle pendant.Lagos
Fizz collection released last fall. Designed by Lagos’ daughter, Kate, Fizz is fashioned to look like Champagne bubbles and the 20-piece grouping of earrings, bracelets, necklaces, and rings sparkle as such. They can be worn at night with all black or during the day with a favorite pastel duster and jeans.
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Little figurines at Roberto Lugo’s ‘crib’ at the Clay Studio
Roberto Lugo’s new show, “American Crib,” at the Clay Studio, is a small but inviting show that offers viewers a chance to sit for a spell and enjoy a cup of tea in a living room that represents his Puerto Rican family’s roots in Kensington. When I stopped by recently, someone was strumming on Lugo’s grandfather’s cuatro while sitting on a brown couch with cinder blocks for legs, which Lugo designed after his grandparents’ plastic-covered furniture.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>As a fellow Boricua, I was psyched to see a dominoes table, too; it immediately made me wish I had brought my family along so we could throw down. (Nobody can beat my dad and me, except maybe my brother, who is annoyingly good.)
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Shelves of figurines by Philadelphia ceramic artist Roberto Lugo on view in “American Crib” at the Clay Studio through July 5.Rosa Cartagena
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>These little guys were so delightful and nostalgic, yet fresh and funny.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>“American Crib: What’s Happening?”, running through July 5 at The Clay Studio, 1425 N American St., Philadelphia, 215-925-3453 or theclaystudio.org.
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Kevin Morby played the Non-COMMvention on May 6. His album ‘Little Wide Open’ will be released May 15 and he returns to Philly to play Union Transfer with his band on June 9.Chantal Anderson
Seeing Kevin Morby live for the first time at Non-COMM
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>This past week, it brought over two dozen acts to West Philly to hawk their wares in front of non-commercial radio programmers, who were even able to be served adult beverages, now that World Stage — the former World Cafe Live — has regained its liquor license.
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they’ll play with Japanese Breakfast on July 17.
xpn.org and broadcast on the radio, so if you cut out early, you can listen on the way home.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>Morby is in my wheelhouse in a lot of ways. He’s a Dylan-ish songwriter with a touch of a sneer in his vocal delivery, part of a formidable indie rock power couple with formerly Philadelphian songwriter Katie Crutchfield of Waxahatchee. (They’re expecting their first child in August.)
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a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>That Non-COMM gig was the first Morby had ever played with the terrific band backing him up on a tour, which will crisscross the country before coming back to Philly in June.
Bruce Springsteen song — and “Javelin,” came alive on stage with more musicality and drama than I expected, aided by players like saxophonist/conga player Cochemea Gastelum and keyboard player/violinist Camellia Hartman. All that, and Fantastic Cat sounded terrific on the radio on the way home, too.
plays Union Transfer on June 9.
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Video still from Arthur Jafa’s “Love is the Message, The Message is Death” (2016)Courtesy of Arthur Jafa and Gladstone
Arthur Jafa’s brilliance at the Barnes
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>Kanye West’s “Ultralight Beam” plays over as filmmaker and visual artist Arthur Jafa puts together images of Black lives across decades — seemingly disparate images cobbled from archives, home videos, blurry cell phone footage, news, films, police dashcams all come together to tell the story of Black lives and the unending volley of racist violence they have faced and survived for centuries.
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“radical, anti-American ideologies.”
Filmmaker and visual artist Arthur Jafa whose “Love is the Message, The Message is Death” is now playing at the Barnes FoundationCourtesy of Arthur Jafa and Gladstone
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>Then there are streams of unknown faces. Nothing and no one is identified but everything we see is all too familiar: the violence, the loss, and the pain but also the joy that runs through the agile bodies of ballroom dancers, the radiant brilliance of Black scholars like Martine Syms and Hortense Spillers, the genius of artists like Jimi Hendrix and Charles Burnett, and the lightness of the unnamed boy who jumps into the air in a slow motion shot.
BlackStar founder Maori Karmael Holmes. It is at once an ode, a dirge, and a manifesto, forcing the viewer to bear witness and plead accountability.
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“Don’t Cash Crop My Cornrows: A Crash Discourse on Black Culture” stayed on in my mind, pricking my insides like a fishbone stuck in my throat:
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>“Freedom Dreams,” also featuring films by David Hartt, Garrett Bradley, Ja’Tovia Gary, and Tourmaline, runs through Aug. 9 at the Barnes Foundation, 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, barnesfoundation.org
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Beatrice Jona Affron leading the Philadelphia Ballet Orchestra in Prokofiev’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’ Thursday night at the Academy of Music.Allie Ippolito / For The Inquirer
Hearing ballet in ‘Romeo and Juliet’
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>It should never be taken for granted that Philadelphia Ballet uses a live orchestra, and there it was in the Academy of Music pit this week for the world premiere of Juliano Nunes’ Romeo and Juliet set to Prokofiev’s most gorgeous score.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>The production with sets and costumes by Youssef Hotait puts center stage a giant storybook with turning pages. Dancers dance before it, suggesting characters that have escaped from a pop-up book.
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Beatrice Jona Affron, the musicians etched beautiful characterizations. Lithe was the music depicting young Juliet and her nurse, with superb solo lines from oboe and trumpet. Harp, flute, and pizzicato strings melded into an eerie backdrop at the ball.
a]:text-blue-mid [&>a]:no-underline [&>a]:hover:shadow-lightmode px-4 font-medium”>Philadelphia Ballet’s “Romeo and Juliet” continues at the Academy of Music with two performances on Saturday and one on Sunday. philadelphiaballet.org, 215-893-1999.
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I cover classical music and the arts with an emphasis on the business of the arts and the life of the city.
I’m The Inquirer’s Pop Music Critic. I cover Philly music makers of all genres, spotlighting local acts on the rise, telling stories from throughout the city’s rich music history, and reviewing big-name touring acts when they come to town.
I write about arts, entertainment, and culture in Philly, covering everything from movies, TV, theater, and museums to local artists and fascinating art mysteries.
As a columnist, I write about gender, race, fashion, culture and wellness. I share my personal take on the way we live and how we style our lives.
