MARY CONWAY revels in a powerful reminder that human lives are not defined by physical perfection
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Poetry
PAUL DONOVAN recommends the fine performances in this account of the pre-war meeting between the US president and the British king
TECLYN AROD relishes an intimate celebration of jazz improvisation that mixes local and national musicians
The missing sister, the vengeful WAG, cruise ship claustrophobia, and reanimated Avengers
Three great releases of lost concerts by Duke Ellington Orchestra, John Taylor & Stan Sulzman, and Joe Henderson
To rescue Kahlo from the clutches of the corporate art market, we need to acknowledge the overt and covert political dimensions of the work, demands GAVIN O’TOOLE
Fidelity
You were the leader of the revolution
With your olive-green uniform and cigar clamped in your mouth
(Thanks to you cigars are no longer sole preserve of the ruling class).
Ordinary women roll them on their thighs
And smoke them just like men
While over the factory loudspeaker love messages
Are read out for their fellow workers.
You gave up smoking a long time ago
But your flame has never been extinguished.
Your beard is now white and sparse
(The revolution looks different too)
But you’ll never have it shaved off.
Bearded men once dreamed of raising revolt on your island
And half the world rose up with them.
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