During my visit to the Museum of the City of New York, there were a few exhibitions that caught my attention. One of them was the “You Are Here” exhibit that has multiple screens on the wall in which we can observe many scenes from different movies that have been filmed in New York city across time. This exhibit reaffirms the importance that New York has had not only for the United States but for the world as a whole regarding culture. Throughout movies, people from different parts of the world get to see how the city looks like and that is what makes them want to visit it. In…

In Giacomo Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, the opera stages an image of the Orient that reinforces differences between East and West. The character of Cio-Cio-San represents a stereotypical view of Asian women that Stuart Hall, through Edward Said’s theory of Orientalism, would describe as the “Other.” Cio-Cio-San’s portrayal aligns with the stereotype of the Eastern woman as submissive and devote, a figure who exists almost exclusively in relation to her Western lover, Lieutenant Pinkerton. This image is evident in the famous aria, “Un bel dì vedremo” where Cio-Cio-San expresses her unwavering belief that Pinkerton will return to her. Her faith and devotion illustrate the passive, patient figure that the West traditionally…

Suffs portrays the Women’s Suffrage in the early 20th century and the challenges they had to face in order to get the vote to vote. One of the main characteristics of this musical is that all the characters in it are interpreted by women. This decision could be as a way to compensate for all the years women were not allowed to have a voice in society by making the main focus in an important place such as Broadway. The choice of this cast could represent a way or reclamation but also an affirmation of the importance of women in the modern society. Considering all the challenges they overcame; the…

Although Hamilton arrived on Broadway almost a decade ago, it continues to be one of the most memorable shows, or in this case musicals, that have been presented on Broadway. Its relevance goes beyond the fact that it is about a founding father, but also because of its innovative ways of narrating a story. Introducing the musical genre of rap and diversifying the cast. One of the controversies Hamilton brough was the diversification of the cast and which overshadowed the narrative. Stuart Hall wrote, “Language is therefore the second system of representation involved in the overall process of constructing a meaning.” (Hall, p. 18). Even if the musical was composed…

In this sculpture called Curtain Call by Karon Davis we can see a ballet dancer. The artist sculpted a young woman on her knees and holding a bucket of red flowers which seem to be roses. The flowers stand out the most in the sculpture since it has a high contrast with the rest of it since the ballet dancer is all white but the roses. Also, she has a crown at the top of her head. The spectator might have a quick realization that the sculpture is a ballet dancer due to the characteristic skirt that ballet dancers wear. There is no other figure around the sculpture. Looking more…

The picture with the name Still Life with Three Puppies by the artist Paul Gauguin, at first instance, portrays some fruits in the foreground of it. As the image creates the sense of depth, three chalices are in the Middle ground of the picture and the. To complete the picture, Gauguin painted three puppies feeding on the same pot on the ground. In the painting there are three main elements, that depending on the spectator’s interpretation they could say that the puppies are at the top of the picture, or they are in background of the picture. Even though the main elements are highly notable, the painter also hid some…