Longtime Charlotteans know Lawrence Toppman from the 40+ years he spent as a critic at The Charlotte Observer. Now, he writes reviews for The Charlotte Ledger several times a month in a column called "Larry At Large."

The Ledger has a partnership with The Sharon at South Park retirement community and hosted a Q&A session in December 2024 for residents. Toppman shared his experiences as an arts critic, how he approaches his reviews and what he’s learned along the way. He also answers residents’ pressing questions, like how he decides what things to review, his opposition to most Charlotte standing ovations, and if he ever regretted a review or wishes to take one back. (Hint: The review was for a popular sci-fi film in the 1970s.)

He also discusses his opinions on a wide range of movies, including "Ghost," "Moana," "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

His conversation with Ledger managing editor Cristina Bolling and Sharon residents was so good, we turned the recording into a podcast to share with you. Enjoy!

This is a recording of Lawrence Toppman’s talk at The Sharon on December 2, 2024.

You can find out more about The Charlotte Ledger at TheCharlotteLedger.com.

The Charlotte Ledger Podcast is produced by Lindsey Banks.

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