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The holiday season is here but that doesn’t mean class and training has to fall by the wayside. Take the time to explore before end-of-year activities sweep you away. We’ve gathered information on what’s going on this week for you to stay on track and keep working towards those goals. Performances Ballet Hispanico presents Espiritu Vivo, Bury Me Standing, and Con Brazos Abiertos at the Apollo Theater Dec. 1–2. These three inspiring works reflect on the migrant experience, the tragedy of marginalization, and the resilience and triumph of the human spirit. Liz Gerring Dance Company will be performing Horizon at The Joyce Nov. 30–Dec. 3. This work, performed by seven dancers, focuses on the idea of density and appears as a constantly shifting universe of activity. The Martha Graham Company will perform Appalachian Spring as part of their special holiday performance Dec 1–2. As one of Graham’s most celebrated works,...

With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options — not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves — we’ve taken it upon ourselves to highlight the titles that have recently hit platforms. Every week, one will be able to see the cream of the crop (or perhaps some simply interesting picks) of streaming titles (new and old) across platforms such as Netflix, iTunes, Amazon, and more (note: U.S. only). Check out our rundown for this week’s selections below.

Aquarius (Kleber Mendonça Filho)

The staggeringly accomplished debut feature by Brazilian critic-turned-director Kleber Mendonça Filho, Neighboring Sounds, announced the arrival of a remarkable new talent in international cinema. Clearly recognizable as the work of the same director, Mendonça’s equally assertive follow-up, Aquarius, establishes his authorial voice as well as his place as one of the most eloquent filmic commentators on the contemporary state of Brazilian society. – Giovanni M.

15 years ago today was a beautiful day for U2 fans: On October 30, 2000, their album “All That You Can’t Leave Behind” hit record store shelves. It was the U2’s 10th studio album and was largely considered a glorious return to form for the Irish band, following the mixed reception of their 1997 album, “Pop.” Among the successful singles on U2’s first album of the 2000s were “Elevation,” “Walk On” and “Beautiful Day.” Guitarist the Edge said of the album in the book “U2 by U2,” “‘All That You Can’t Leave Behind’ was an album that acknowledged our own past, which we had never really done before…. I was playing the Gibson Explorer. This was really the sound of U2, the sound we had made our own and then abandoned as far back as ‘War.’” He also points out plenty that was fresh and new for the band with the album,...

In his 30-year career as a composer, Carter Burwell’s film scores have run the veritable cinematic gamut. From composing for Spike Jonze (Being John Malkovich, Adaptation., Where the Wild Things Are) to his work being the best parts of the Twilight saga, Burwell’s résumé is sporadic and unconventional, even for a man who makes film music for a living — it’s fitting, given his less-than-conventional roots as a cartoonist for The Harvard Lampoon and later as a vagrant New York punk rocker. Undoubtedly, Burwell’s become best known for the his collaborations with Joel and Ethan Coen. Last week, Sound on Sight ranked the films of the Coen Brothers, so what better way to take over The Big Score than with a similarly themed meditation on their work with Burwell? As much as the Coens’ filmography is defined by their trademark cynicism and wit, Burwell’s compositions are...

The Library of Congress has announced that 25 films will be added to the National Film Registry. New this year were Pulp Fiction, Roger & Me, The Right Stuff, The Magnificent Seven, and Forbidden Planet. Not immune to the Saving Mr. Banks press campaign, Mary Poppins also made the cut. You can read the full list below and drink some sugar-laden medicine as a tribute (ideally something non-drowsy).Bless Their Little Hearts (1984)                     Brandy in the Wilderness (1971) Cicero March (1966) Daughter of Dawn (1920) Decasia (2002) Ella Cinders (1926) Forbidden Planet (1956) Gilda (1946) The Hole (1962) Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) King of Jazz (1930) The Lunch Date (1989) The Magnificent Seven (1960) Martha Graham Early Dance Films (Heretic, 1931; Frontier, 1936; Lamentation, 1943; Appalachian Spring, 1944) Mary Poppins (1964) Men and Dust (1940) Midnight (1939) Notes on the Port of St. Francis (1951) Pulp...

When I was growing up, New York 's best (now long-defunct) classical radio station, Wncn, played only American composers' music each Fourth of July. With the classical world dominated by Europeans, this was a welcome and educational corrective. In the history of American music, independence wasn't achieved until the 20th century; 19th century composers such as John Knowles Paine and George Whitefield Chadwick studied in Europe and blatantly imitated European models. Listening to their music "blind," few would guess they were Americans. There was Revolutionary War-era vocal writer William Billings, but his originality was more a lack of proper technique. Continuing Wncn's tradition, here's a look at true American classical. music. 

There is a bit of chauvinism in this article, as "American" here refers not to all the Americas (North, Central, and South) but rather the colloquial usage in the United States to mean that country's residents (hence, the Mexican Carlos Chavez,...

It’s that time of the week when you want to sit back, relax a bit and throw on something new and exciting. Well, you’ve come to the right place. It’s the second week in this Hulu Plus excursion, and I’ve had a blast with it. A lot of Daily Show, Colbert Report and Kitchen Nightmares intake in the last week. I can’t help but love my politically minded comedy and angry chef shows. But I digress.

This last week there was a ton of new content from Criterion put onto Hulu Plus. A wonderful array of films and a ton of supplemental material from certain films, which I will yet again break down for all of you, and the links will be within, so you don’t even have to search for them. We here at the Criterion Cast aim to please.

When the first...

Modern dancer/choreographer Pearl Lang has died, aged 87.

Lang, who took over a string of roles from dance pioneer Martha Graham, passed away on Tuesday in Manhattan, New York after suffering a heart attack while recuperating from hip surgery.

After concluding her studies at the University of Chicago, Lang moved to New York in 1941, when she was accepted into the Martha Graham Dance Company and created parts in several of its productions. She later took over Graham's own role in works including El Penitente, Appalachian Spring, Letter to the World and Clytemnestra.

Lang was a member of the company until 1952, when she founded the Pearl Lang Dance Theater.

In addition to her contributions to modern dance, she performed in several musicals throughout the 1940s and '50s, including One Touch of Venus, Carousel, Finian's Rainbow, Allegro and a revival of Peer Gynt, starring Academy Award-nominated actor John Garfield.

Lang also choreographed for the Dutch National Ballet, the Boston Ballet and the Batsheva Dance Company of Israel, and taught dance at prestigious universities including Yale, the Juilliard School and the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance, where she last taught in December.

She is survived by her husband, actor Joseph Wiseman, two nieces and a nephew.