Special Projects

Review: ‘The Nutcracker’ loses its footing this season

Upon entering the Wortham Center for the annual holiday show, there is an unmistakable anticipatory energy in the air, accompanying their signature Christmas tree and bubbly mingling between well-dressed patrons. “The Nutcracker” is undeniably a holiday favorite for audience members, but their excitement for the show may be misguided. Despite the show’s remarkable popularity, the Houston Ballet’s production falls short of the original’s charm.

Review: ‘Glass Onion’ sharpens and heightens the original’s subversive whodunnit formula

The original “Knives Out” is one of the few mid-budget movies in recent years to become a household name, and for good reason. It’s an engaging whodunnit with a cast of intriguing characters, smart subversions of the mystery formula, and sharp political commentary. “Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery” does all of this again, opting to use the success of the original to go big. The quaint house from the first film has been exchanged for an island, the mystery on display is much more audacious and striking and writer/director Rian Johnson’s commentary on wealth’s role in our society has been amplified and brought to center stage. However, the decision to heighten and expand the scope of the film in no way lessened my experience — “Glass Onion” is consistently hilarious and captivating, trading out some of the quaint mannerisms of the first film in favor of more bombastic moments.

Review: ‘The Family’ is an exciting and messy exploration of the dissolution of BROCKHAMPTON

Most bands do their farewells together, with all of the members contributing to a final goodbye. BROCKHAMPTON is not like most bands. Instead, they opted for a Kevin Abstract solo project that reflects on the band’s history and how they broke up. Dirty laundry is aired and personal encounters are recounted for listeners from the perspective of Kevin Abstract, the member who started the group. While this singular topic can seem cumbersome at times, the album succeeds in creating intriguing sounds and styles to shove the listener into Abstract’s mindset at the end of his journey with BROCKHAMPTON.

Review: ‘TM’ fails to hold interest despite some good tracks

BROCKHAMPTON’s final album, “The Family,” came out the morning of Nov. 17. While this was technically their last recorded album, in a move reminiscent of the flip-flopping of The Beatles’ “Abbey Road” and “Let It Be,” a surprise album, “TM,” came out later that night. Unlike “The Family,” which is essentially a Kevin Abstract solo album, “TM” features the full group and was recorded in early 2021 before being completed by band member Matt Champion as executive producer.

Review: ‘Disenchanted’ fails to rekindle the original’s magic

What happens after happily ever after? Fifteen years after Giselle’s fairytale ending, the princess returns to Andalasia to finally answer this question with the long-awaited sequel “Disenchanted,” released Nov. 16 on Disney+. But, even with the return of fan-favorite stars like Amy Adams and Patrick Dempsey, it was still not enough to conjure up another satisfying ending for the franchise. 

Three Films to Look Out for from the Houston Cinema Arts Festival

The Houston Cinema Arts Festival wrapped up two weeks ago on Nov. 16, and I was fortunate enough to see a great set of films throughout the week. The festival highlighted both local and global cinema, featured films of nearly every genre and placed the spotlight on diverse perspectives and underrepresented filmmakers. Here are three of my favorite movies I saw during the festival and that you should look out for when they release in theaters or elsewhere.

Holiday concerts that sleigh

While campus studies for finals, a capella groups on campus are studying their sheet music in addition to hitting the books, rehearsing and preparing for end of the year performances during the last week of classes and into finals.

Rice Riyaaz reflects on team bond, prepares for Dhamaka show

Each week, the members of Rice Riyaaz spend hours rehearsing and perfecting their every dance move. Riyaaz is Rice’s premier co-ed Bollywood fusion dance team that competes in national circuits. Their hard work will culminate in their performance at Dhamaka, a showcase organized by the Rice South Asian Society, at the Grand Hall on Dec. 4 from 5 to 8 p.m.

Writer Anna Meriano talks youth literature, community

Since facing her first bout of writer’s block when scribbling down a story in kindergarten, Anna Meriano said she knew she wanted to be a writer. A Martel College (‘13) alumna, Meriano has watched those childhood dreams come to life as a middle-grade and young adult author published by HarperCollins and Penguin Random House. After writing fantasy stories about a family of brujas running a fictional Texas bakery and tales of girls finding belonging on their local quadball team, Meriano understands the power of children’s literature in shaping youth perspectives and works to share diverse stories of family, adolescence and friendship. 

Poets explore intersectional identities

On Nov. 18, The Department of Modern and Classical Studies hosted a poetry reading with two award-winning writers: multi-genre writer Leslie Contreras Schwartz (’02) and poet Benjamin Garcia. Having known Schwartz when she was a student at Rice, Aranda invited her, and then she invited her colleague Garcia.

WBB knocks off A&M for best start in program history

College Station was full of upsets over the holiday weekend as the women’s basketball team capped off the weekend by upsetting Texas A&M University 66-58. The victory pushed the Owls’ record to 6-0, earning them the best start in program history. 

Rice in line for bowl due to academics despite UNT loss, 5-7 record

It looks like Rice football’s intellectual brutality is finally paying off. The Owls appeared to miss out on the postseason when their 21-17 loss to the University of North Texas on Saturday left them at 5-7 for the season, one win shy of the threshold for bowl eligibility. However, losses by a pair of 5-6 teams later that night guaranteed there wouldn’t be enough six-win teams to fill all 41 bowl games. The remaining spots will now go to the 5-7 teams with the highest Academic Progress Rate – a metric that measures the academic performance of a school’s student athletes. Rice had the highest APR of any five-win team, and is now in line for their first postseason berth since 2014, assuming they accept.

Dancing in December: Volleyball a 5-seed in NCAA tournament after winning conference

For the fifth season in a row, Rice is playing volleyball in December. On Sunday, the No. 20 Owls were announced as a No. 5 seed in the quarter of the bracket hosted by the University of Louisville when the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball committee announced the NCAA tournament field. The Owls will start off tournament play in the Waco regional against the University of Colorado on Dec. 1. After receiving their bid, head coach Genny Volpe said that the team is excited and ready to compete.

Karlgaard’s dilemma: Bloomgren is the cause of progress, stagnation

When Rice moves to the American Athletic Conference next season, they’ll be one of three teams in the AAC named the Owls. If they opt to change their nickname to avoid confusion, might I suggest the Tortoises. The Owl football team has religiously followed the “slow-and-steady” model since head coach Mike Bloomgren took the helm in 2018, adding one win each year, with the exception of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

Holidays Puzzles from the Backpage!

Campus responds to Houston’s city-wide boil water notice

Due to a power outage at the East Water Purification Plant on Nov. 27 that led to water pressure dropping, Houston’s main water system was under a boil water notice beginning late Sunday until Tuesday morning. The Rice crisis management team sent out an email alert saying that all buildings east of Alumni Drive, including all of the residential colleges and the Rice Memorial Center, are serviced by the campus well and were not affected by the boil water requirement. However, buildings west of Alumni Drive, such as the Barbara and David Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center, were impacted.

Ph.D. program to implement minimum stipend

Rice recently established a minimum yearly Ph.D. stipend of $32,000 that will go into effect July 1. 

Owl Pep Band plays its first games this basketball season

The Owl Pep Band, which was introduced in September, debuted this basketball season. In previous years, the Marching Owl Band typically played at these games. 

Rice signs collaboration agreement with university in India

Rice signed an agreement with the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur  on Nov. 14, marking a collaboration between the institutions for research, teaching and training. 

Fizz app bubbles with controversy amid popularity

Fizz, an anonymous social media platform created by two Stanford University dropouts and currently catered to universities, launched at Rice on Aug. 27 and has since generated mixed reactions amongst the student population.