Presentations: It's all in the knees

RADA, a world-famous acting school, has trained Anthony Hopkins, Alan Rickman and Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Add to that list Boss Class host Andrew Palmer. In this episode, he gets tips on how to be a better public speaker.
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The Guardian

5 days ago

• The Guardian

Al Pacino becomes first film star to meet Pope Leo XIV

Al Pacino has become the first major celebrity to have an official audience with the newly elected pope. The actor, 85, met the pontiff at the Vatican on Monday. He is currently in Italy shooting a film about car moguls the Maserati brothers. After the pair's introduction, the film's producer, Andrea Iervolino, wrote: 'We are honoured to announce that this morning His Holiness Pope Leo XIV received in a private audience at the Holy See a delegation from the film Maserati: The Brothers, including Oscar winner actor Al Pacino and the film's producer Andrea Iervolino. 'The meeting was a moment of profound spiritual and cultural inspiration, centred around shared values that lie at the heart of both the Catholic church and the film: family unity, love, compassion and the importance of contributing to the common good.' The statement continued: 'These values, which Pope Leo XIV has consistently emphasised in his recent messages to the world, resonate deeply with the story of the Maserati brothers: a family whose legacy was built not only on innovation and excellence but on profound mutual respect, solidarity and a shared vision.' A photograph shared with Variety shows Iervolino presenting the pontiff with a commemorative model car in a glass case, as Pacino looks on. In the film, Pacino plays businessman Vincenzo Vaccaro, an early investor in the company. Also starring are Anthony Hopkins, Andy Garcia and Jessica Alba. Pacino was raised Catholic by his Italian parents in 1940s New York but his faith was tested when he was revived by paramedics while suffering from Covid in 2020. 'I believe I experienced death that day,' wrote Pacino in his 2024 memoir, Sonny Boy. 'I returned, and I can tell you there was nothing out there. It's over. You're here, then you're not.' On Sunday, the pope addressed the crowd by video at the White Sox ballpark in Chicago at a mass in his honour. Born in Illinois and a longtime resident of Chicago, the pope is known to be a fan of the baseball team.

Time Out

11-06-2025

• Time Out

Rada is "Chanta": one role, a thousand faces, and an uncomfortable mirror

Agustín Aristarán, better known as Rada, can be described with grand adjectives like "multifaceted," "restless," "eclectic," or "chameleonic." Or, simply put, he's talented. Very talented. And very hardworking, too. Every night, he embodies Julio Ballesteros, a recently deceased man who, from his coffin, revisits different stages of his life. All of them share a common thread... Julio is a chanta. The quintessential Argentine "chanta" who acts cocky in any situation, underestimates others, always has a biting retort, and thinks he knows it all. The challenge? In a relentless acting marathon, Rada interprets him in rewind, from his death to when he's just a fetus in his mother's womb, passing through adulthood, adolescence, and childhood. And in this frantic backward journey, he revisits his history and his miseries. Rada defines Julio as "a nasty old man, who, as he tells his life story, you realize why he ended up alone." When asked if he identifies with him in any way, he responds with a resounding NO. "Rada defines Julio as 'a nasty old man who, as he tells his life story, you realize why he ended up alone'" How was he built? It involved a lot of work: from the characterization, physicality, and the different inflections in his voice at various points in his life. I found him alongside director Marcelo Caballero, with whom I had worked previously, and we have a very nice, shared way of working. How was the creative process, given that it's a play by Cohn/Duprat, who have a more audiovisual language? Fortunately, the authors gave us a lot of freedom, as it was a piece with a strong audiovisual imprint, and adapting it for the theater required significant changes. We were able to play, change, rework, and propose. You might also be interested in: The best plays on Corrientes Street With cynical monologues laden with irony, Julio reviews his life and exposes prejudices, customs, and hypocrisies that reveal both his own and others' miseries, decadence, ambition, and opportunism. It's a play that makes the audience uncomfortable. Does that influence your portrayal? It's a very vibrant piece that changes—not in its structure, because it has a very significant script, set design, music, and lighting—but it does change from performance to performance, according to what I feel from the audience. "It's a piece that changes from performance to performance, according to what I feel from the audience" Rada confesses that every project he embarks on is a challenge, but Chanta, in particular, tests him every night with a very complex script combined with rapid and powerful changes. He jokes, "I've been surfing it very well." When defining himself, he asserts that his essence remains that of the magician from his beginnings, and that in Chanta, he uses magical resources to go on stage and embody this multifaceted character. And just as he lives Julio's frenetic journey on stage, when the lights dim, the curtain falls, and he becomes Agustín again, his life imitates art. He rushes from Corrientes Street to the filming of the third installment of Envidiosa, then to the shooting of Parque Lezama with Campanella, and after that, to the imminent premiere of his TV show with Mario Pergolini. And as if by a magic trick, he continues to display his dedication and talent in every project he undertakes.

Economist

10-06-2025

• Economist

Xiaolu Guo on love, art and how the Chinese psyche has changed

One of the Chinese diaspora's most celebrated artists grew up poor but surrounded by literature and art. After a string of books in her native language Xiaolu Guo found her creativity constrained. In London she began writing and making films in English —most recently a reworking of 'Moby Dick'. After half a life inside China and half outside, she has illuminating views on art, love, youth and womanhood. Rosie Blau, a former China correspondent for The Economist and a co-host of 'The Intelligence', our daily news podcast, visits Ms Guo at her home. They explore the author's formative years, her bewildering move to the West and her thoughts on Chinese art and society today.