The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com Arts Wednesday, February 7, 2018 — 5A It’s hard not to fall in love with Jessica Williams (“The Incredible Jessica James”) and Phoebe Robinson (“Broad City”). The two best friends — both outspoken New York- based comedians who host the aptly titled podcast “2 Dope Queens” — not only have infectious personalities and a magnetic rapport, but are also intensely attuned to almost everything happening in pop culture. Whether it’s dishing about the latest Hollywood gossip, introducing new comics to the stage or illuminating issues important to Black women, Williams and Robinson have accrued a healthy amount of deserved attention through “2 Dope Queens.” And what better way to realize that potential than through a deliciously profane and immensely entertaining four- part HBO comedy special? Like “2 Dope Queens” the podcast, “2 Dope Queens” the HBO special gives Williams and Robinson a platform to talk about the timeliest topics, but also manages to finesse their chemistry just as effectively on-screen. Part of what makes the HBO adaptation of “2 Dope Queens” so successful is how much spirit Williams and Robinson fill within an hour. On their podcast, Williams and Robinson would spend the first few moments delivering some cheeky observational humor — usually about Bono or Beyoncé — before transitioning into the rest of the show, all of which is live and replete with celebrity interviews, stand- up sets from up-and-coming and established comedians or Williams and Robinson exchanging more witty, incisive banter. This structure works to their advantage visually as well; HBO’s cinematic production values bolster “2 Dope Queens”’s appeal — matching the queens’ brand of topical, niche humor with the iconic ornateness of the Kings Theatre and a colorful stage resembling a Brooklyn rooftop in the summer. The first part, “New York,” captures this aesthetic charm in its opening sketch, wherein a stubborn, oblivious attendant brushes off Williams and Robinson for not having tickets to their own show. As they Google themselves to confirm their identities, Williams and Robinson refer to this situation as “Black-on-Black aggression,” a phrase the two often jokingly use when making light of racial disparity within the Black community. Though very brief, the bit alone demonstrates Williams and Robinson’s comedic talent and timing, especially considering the former was a “Daily Show” correspondent and the latter has a healthy pedigree of sketch comedy experience. “New York” continues to enthrall, as Robinson and Williams welcome their audience with the same rowdy, high-ball energy they incorporate into their podcast. They invite a string of stand- up comics — Michelle Buteau (“Key and Peele”), Mark Normand (“Horace and Pete”) and Baron Vaughn (“Grace and Frankie”) — each of whom offers an equally dynamic and distinctive set of personal stories and observations on New York culture. Williams’s old boss Jon Stewart (“The Daily Show”) makes an appearance, his segment dedicated to discussing New York “moments” and taste- testing New York pizza, which wouldn’t be nearly as satisfying if it were just recorded. While “New York” has a stronger opening, the second episode, “Hair,” is centered on a more grounded issue — Black hair and the complex discourse surrounding it. “Hair” also includes a consistently funnier lineup of stand-up acts — Aparna Nancherla (“BoJack Horseman”), Rhea Butcher (“Take My Wife”) and Sheng Wang (“Fresh Off the Boat”) — and the unexpected arrival of fan favorite Sarah Jessica Parker (“Sex and the City”). Parker’s earnest attempt to learn more about Black hair from Robinson and Williams drives her segment away from being an awkward display of “white cluelessness” — an issue that Robinson and Williams discuss and exploit in their podcast, sometimes to a fault. For those familiar (and even unfamiliar) with “2 Dope Queens” as a podcast, the HBO special does an admirable job of bringing Robinson and Williams’s moxie to television, even if it doesn’t experiment with the podcast’s structural formula. The first two episodes are both fairly breezy for an hour, though they occasionally lag during extended jokes that lose steam pretty quickly. Still, “2 Dope Queens” remains a testament to Robinson and Williams as an unstoppable comedic duo, as pop culture commentators and as badass forces of nature. ‘2 Dope Queens’ podcast is matched by smart special SAM ROSENBERG Senior Arts Editor HBO COMMUNITY CULTURE REVIEW This weekend it was my turn to meet a stranger at a concert. In my defense, I didn’t sign up to do that. About a week ago, I had signed up to review the Estonian National Symphony concert at Hill Auditorium. I have always been a fan of conductor Neeme Järvi, particularly his recordings of the Sibelius symphonies and his performance of Pärt’s “Cantus for Benjamin Britten” from the BBC Proms. When emailing for my press ticket to the event, I assumed that I would be sitting in an upper balcony somewhere, presumably far away from the ticket-paying audience. After arriving at the concert, however, I was seated in a mostly empty row next to an elderly woman. I prepared as I usually do for a review, reading through the program with a pen and circling a couple of ideas that I might want to refer to later. After about five minutes of circling and reading, the woman next to me asked me what I was doing. Was I at this concert for a class, she asked? I briefly explained that I was a writer for The Michigan Daily. I tried to start a light conversation, asking if she was a fan of Järvi as I was. After talking for a bit the lights went down and the concert began. First on the program was Heino Eller’s “Homeland Tune,” the fifth movement from his “Five Pieces for String Orchestra.” Eller, I learned, is one of Estonia’s more famous composers, having been Arvo Pärt’s primary composition teacher. Järvi entered the stage to tremendous applause, obviously enjoying the cheers of a friendly crowd. He began the first piece almost immediately, the applause of the audience fading suddenly into the calm, chordal opening of “Homeland Tune.” While this piece was definitely not the most adventurous work on the program, it was a pleasant six-minute opening to the concert. The orchestra responded brilliantly to Järvi’s every move — the crescendos and decrescendos reaching incredibly expressive levels of subtlety. I found myself being drawn into a lull throughout the piece, easily losing myself in the fabric of the work. Next was Brahms’s “Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor,” a tricky but rewarding piece. It opened with a long introduction from the orchestra, the winds and brass having entered the stage after the first performance. Garrick Ohlsson, the piano soloist for the evening, demonstrated his interpretative ability during the slower portions of the first movement. The slower passages were captivating; Ohlsson’s ability to give repeated phrases new meanings was incredible. The cadenza in the second movement was absolutely stunning. At one point, it felt as if time itself was slowing down. The third movement was seamless too, the energy from the opening passages seeming to fade over the entire movement into the slow ending. Ohlsson’s performance was met with almost instantaneous applause. As a quick encore, he played Rachmaninoff’s “Prelude in C-sharp, Op. 3 No. 2.” This most famous of all Rachmaninoff’s preludes was neither too rushed nor too slow, Ohlsson’s incredibly engaging way of playing repeated pieces breathing new life into the work. This was met with two more rounds of applause, the audience begging for another encore. During the intermission, I talked with the woman sitting to my right. She is an alumni of both the undergraduate and graduate programs here at the University and has been living in Ann Arbor ever since. We talked a bit about the University Musical Society and the tremendous growth it underwent while she lived in Ann Arbor. She explained that she was from the Detroit area and that she had gone home to study the week before finals her freshman year. The night before her final, as she prepared to go to sleep, her dad came to ask her where her final was the next morning. After explaining that her final was in Haven Hall, her dad had unbelievable news: Haven TV REVIEW Just in time for the release of the “Black Panther” soundtrack this Friday (which looks amazing), Ken- drick Lamar and SZA have shared the music video for their newest collaboration “All The Stars,” an airy single off the film’s soundtrack. Framed by an electronic dance beat and soaring vocals, the song bold- ly declares the grandeur that can be found in love and per- severance. It’s a song meant for royalty, perfectly match- ing the narrative of “Black Panther,” which is centered around African nobility. The music video fits the film’s premise to an even stronger degree. The first shot depicts a regal Lamar standing on a boat, buoyed by a sea of waving hands; the strength of his posture makes him appear carved out of stone, a position of fortitude that he maintains as the pre-chorus of “Love, let’s talk about love / Is it anything and everything you hoped for?” leads him into the open embrace of a matriarchal figure. Her stature is sur- real; larger-than-life, she looms over Lamar, protecting within the folds of her robe a crowd of children. The hue of each of their crimson hats adds to the overall splendor, and Lamar cuts a path to the group’s center like Moses parting the Red Sea. As SZA takes over the chorus, we are taken to the heavens, zooming in on a depiction of Africa made entirely out of stars until the outline is magnified to abstraction until there is only SZA dancing amid the swirling nebula of space, as she croons “All the stars are closer.” This music video glows. Each individual featured is costumed in bright colors and striking patterns, and their backdrops are equally vibrant: electric blue jungles and intricate gold throne rooms. “All The Stars” honors the beauty in love, in ancestry and, most importantly, in the many complexities of a cul- tural heritage that has often been diminished by stereo- types and generalization. - Shima Sadaghiyani, Daily Music Editor MUSIC VIDEO REVIEW: SZA & KENDRICK LAMAR IN ‘ALL THE STARS’ “All The Stars” Kendrick Lamar and SZA Aftermath Records AFTERMATH RECORDS “2 Dope Queens” HBO 4-part special Fridays @ 11:30 p.m. Hall had burned down earlier that night! The next day, after arriving back on campus, she learned that it was true. Haven Hall was destroyed in a fire on Jun. 6, 1950. She took her final in Hill Auditorium, leaning on clipboards in the first rows of the audience as her professor paced the stage. At this point, it was time for the second half of the program to begin, and though I had many questions about the fire and her experiences at the University, I turned and applauded as the orchestra re-entered the stage. This was Eduard Tubin’s “Symphony No. 5 in B Minor,” a roaring work for full orchestra featuring two timpanists placed on opposite ends of the back portion of the stage. Tubin is another composer who I was not familiar with, though I soon learned that he was another famous Estonian composer. He had fled the Soviet Union in 1944 and resided in Sweden for most of his life. This work was full of quick, aggressive passages — particularly in the brass. The biting sound of the bass trombone and the muted rotary valve flugelhorns was quite frightening, as were the thundering sounds of two timpanis playing loudly in unison. It was a captivating, almost frenetic work, and it demonstrated the orchestra’s ability to navigate fast music with ease. As the second round of applause began, the woman sitting next to me waved goodbye. It was past 10:00, she explained, and she had to get home. Her sudden arrival felt like the proper ending to the entire evening: The works of unfamiliar composers paired with my accidentally meeting a friendly stranger, the eclectic peculiarity of the repertoire on the concert paired with the peculiarity of my experience and the odd familiarity of the music paired with the friendly nature of this charming woman. It reminded me to constantly be open to new experiences. Though I knew nothing before that concert of Estonian composers or Estonian classical music, I have two new pieces to listen to and become familiar with. And though I knew little about the history of Haven Hall and Hill Auditorium before that concert, I have an interesting story to tell now of a first-hand account of the University’s history. Backstage Pass: Estonian Symphony with a stranger Sammy Sussman makes a friend and gets a history lesson During the intermission, I talked with the woman sitting to my right. She is an alumni of both the undergraduate and graduate programs here at the University Though I knew nothing before that concert of Estonian composers or Estonian classical music, I have two new pieces to listen to and become familiar with SAMMY SUSSMAN Daily Arts Writer