Poster Sophie Desmarais
Sophie Desmarais stars as a young conductor in 'Days of Happiness.'
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Birge's Picks

Classical MSPIFF!

Time for another Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival (MSPIFF). With hundreds of titles screening Thursday to April 25, you’ll want to plan ahead. Here are three highlights, with links to trailers and dates:

  • Maestra (not Maestro): Classical music fans were captivated by Bradley Cooper’s biopic of maestro Leonard Bernstein. Now a new documentary called Maestra profiles five female conductors in France’s La Maestra conducting competition. Judges participating include Marin Alsop (a Bernstein protégé) and Deborah Borda, the recently announced Performance Today Classical Woman of the Year.

  • Days of Happiness: A fictional drama about a conductor named Emma, a shining star in Quebec’s classical music scene. Her father is also her agent and controls her every move. Then Naëlle, a cellist and single mother, enters the picture and Emma sees a new world unfold.

  • Mad About the Boy: The Noel Coward Story: Coward grew up in poverty to become a world-famous wit, playwright, composer, producer, actor and singer who gave the world Mad Dogs and Englishman and Blithe Spirit.

Remember to get popcorn, and see you at the MSPIFF!

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