Top Wisconsin News for the Week of
February 1, 2010
Subscribe
The Wisconsin Arts Board has set up a listserve which will
provide you with a daily mailing of Wisconsin Arts News directly to your email
account. Anyone can subscribe to this list. To sign up for this feature, type in
your full email address in the box below.
Unsubscribe
Enter your full email address in the box below.
Portal Wisconsin
Have you entered your events on Portal? DO IT TODAY!
Poetry Out Loud State Finals to Take Place
March 13 “Wisconsin Arts Board is pleased to announce that the Poetry Out
Loud State Finals will take place in the Assembly Chambers of the State
Capitol Building at 1:00 PM, Saturday, March 13. The public is invited
to attend this competition. Jim Fleming of Wisconsin Public Radio will
serve as Emcee. Marilyn Taylor, Poet Laureate of Wisconsin; Fabu Brisco
Carter, Poet Laureate of Madison have graciously agreed to serve as
Judges for this event. Nine state regional champions will be reciting
three memorized poems each. The winner for the State of Wisconsin will
receive a check for $200 for personal use, a check for $500 for their
school library fund for poetry books, and free trip for them and a
chaperone to the National Finals in Washington, DC, April 25-27 where
over $50,000 in scholarships will be awarded. Questions may be directed
to Jacki Martindale, state coordinator, contact at
jmpmartindale@gmail.com or
608-318-0551.”
IN THE NEWS
Visual Arts/Museums
The Fatal X New Yorker Magazine “In this week’s column, I mention an alarming graph that shows a
comprehensive downward trend in generational participation in classical
music. Here is the graph, in all its scary glory. It comes from the
League of Orchestras’ Audience Demographic Research Review, using data
from the National Endowment for the Arts and a further analysis by the
McKinsey company. You can see clearly how various generations
experienced a bump in participation as they got older. The so-called
Generation X, however, has yet to exhibit an upward spike as it moves
into middle age. Every classical organization in America should print
out this graph, pin it on the bulletin board, and ponder what is to be
done. If the light-gray line doesn’t reverse direction in the next ten
years, those organizations may begin to fold.”
Commercials make news on Super Bowl Milwaukee Journal Sentinel “Mammoths are extinct. And like them, the statistical melting pot
delivered by the Super Bowl is an anomaly in an age when advertising
appeals to various niches in a demographically splintered society. "If
your objective is to sell more of something, it's not going to be
(achieved) with a Super Bowl ad," said Jim Pokrywczynski, associate
professor of advertising and public relations at Marquette University.
So, just what is the Super Bowl's value as an advertising delivery
system? You're looking at it.”
What Is Printmaking Today? Philadelphia Dares to Ask New York Times PHILADELPHIA — “The fine art of printmaking is not what it used to
be. To produce printed images using tools more sophisticated than
potatoes and rubber stamps once required the esoteric knowledge of an
alchemist and the manual skills of a surgeon. Today anyone with the
right software and a good color printer can make infinitely reproducible
images that are hard to distinguish from professionally made drawings,
paintings, montages, commercial illustrations and other sorts of
pictures. Which raises the question: What should a major, international
exhibition devoted to contemporary printmaking entail?”
Readers Respond to Giacometti Sale or “It’s My Money and I’ll Spend
What I Want To” New York Times “What is the value of art? Yesterday’s record-breaking sale of
“Walking Man I,” a bronze by Alberto Giacometti for $104.3 million with
fees, has revived the age-old question and our readers had plenty to say
about it. Most, like snesich from Seattle, were outraged that during a
recession an individual would pay such a huge sum for a sculpture. “Am I
the only one who finds it morally and ethically repugnant that an
‘unidentified telephone bidder’ has the disposable income to pay $92
million for a ‘work of art’ in a world where almost half of the human
race lacks decent drinking water and sanitation?”
Graffiti’s Story, From Vandalism to Art to Nostalgia
New York Times “Eric Felisbret stood by a chain-link fence, watching three men
spraying graffiti on a backyard wall in Upper Manhattan. One man smiled
and invited him over. Graffiti in New York City “You can go around the
corner and when you see a sign for a seamstress, go in the alley,” the
man said. “Or you can jump the fence, like we did.” Mr. Felisbret, 46,
chose the long way. Not that he is unused to fence-jumping. In the
1970s, that was one of his skills as a budding graffiti writer who stole
into subway yards. Using the nom de graf DEAL, he was part of the Crazy
Inside Artists, a legendary crew from East New York, Brooklyn. This
time, though, instead of wielding a spray can, he pulled out a camera
and took a quick snapshot of the artwork, done with the landlord’s
permission.”
Arts Education
State starts process to withhold millions in MPS funds Milwaukee Journal Sentinel “Wisconsin's superintendent of public instruction took the first step
Thursday toward withholding up to $175 million in federal funds from
Milwaukee Public Schools because of the district's failure to meet
yearly academic progress targets required under law. Superintendent Tony
Evers notified the district that he would eliminate all administrative
funds and defer all programmatic funds that MPS receives to serve
low-income children through the Title 1 program. But in an interview, he
said the notice wasn't final and that it indicated only his intent to
withhold funds if the district's compliance with its corrective action
plan didn't improve.”
Artist Screens Blue-Sky Documentaries for Potted Plants Wired “Conceptual artist Jonathon Keats begins screening films for potted
plants Thursday in a specially built “cineplex” in New York City.
Specifically, the flora will be seeing travel documentaries showing off
glorious European skies. Will the green cinematic scheme backfire when
the plants are too entertained to foresee their possible extinction?
“Our destruction of the environment is bad news for plants,” the
brain-teasing Keats, who also pens Wired’s Jargon Watch feature, said in
an e-mail interview with Wired.com “I think it’s only fair that shrubs
and trees know what’s happening, that they realize that the cataclysm
they’re experiencing locally is truly global in scope.”
No Brakes! - Risk and
the adolescent brain Slate “It's often said that adolescents are fearless and see themselves as
invulnerable, that they're irrational in how they reason and process
information, that they act with no logical basis for their decisions and
don't really understand risk. This is all a little true, but only to the
extent that it's true of everybody. People of all ages are bad at
assessing risk and making rational decisions. People of all ages
underestimate likely dangers and overestimate unlikely ones. That's why
Americans—who insist on their right to drive, use the phone, and eat at
the same time—are more afraid of being killed by dastardly foreigners
than by their neighbors or themselves. A series of recent studies has
demonstrated that the level of irrationality among adolescents and
adults is about the same, which means that we can no longer explain the
risky behavior of teenagers by telling ourselves that adolescents suffer
from some special inability to reason.”
Folk Arts/Folklife
Cabin fever? Duck into city's past Milwaukee Journal Sentinel “The temperature along the Gulf Coast right now sinks into the 40s or
lower. The cost of an airline ticket to 90-degree Rio de Janeiro? Around
$1,200. But maybe there is an escape vehicle that's not a car or a
plane, but a time machine. And in Milwaukee, time traveling is easy.
"Milwaukee is a great city for time travel," says John Gurda, historian
and author of such books as "The Making of Milwaukee." "In many places,
the physical landscape is just like my grandmother knew it. There's a
lot left." So set the Wayback Machine for the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s.
Here are some places in Our Town you can visit that still conjure the
feel of past decades.”
Media Arts
Underage drinking is focus of new Taproot videos The Republican Eagle “A series of three films focusing on underage drinking — including
binge drinking and drinking games — is being created by Linda Flanders
of Taproot Inc., Bay City. She received a $4,800 media arts grant from
the Wisconsin State Arts Board to help finance a collaboration with Rusk
County, Wis. That rural, north-central Wisconsin county is ranked among
the top three in Wisconsin with a serious underage drinking problem and
unemployment, Flanders said.”
Other
The Artful Manager: Weekly Summary ArtsJournal.com "Here are this week's posts to The Artful Manager, a weblog on the
business of arts & culture written by Andrew Taylor, Director of the
UW-Madison’s Bolz Center for Arts Administration and hosted by
ArtsJournal.com."
CURRENT EVENTS
Visual Arts/Museums
Judith Reidy's New Work in Art Bar Exhibition Judith Reidy Fine Art February 5 Reception
Through March 18
“Friday, February, 5, 2010, Judith along with other artists from the
Wisconsin Pastel Artist will be exhibiting their work in a show entitled
"Falling for You" at the Milwaukee Riverwest hot spot known as the Art
Bar. The exhibition which opens Friday, February 5, and continues until
March 18, 2010 will feature established and emerging pastel artists from
Wisconsin.”
Terrence James Coffman’s New Series "Rusted Hearts (Out on the
Mexican Border)
February 3
“The latest series of paintings from Terrence James Coffman. They are
about lost love, a lost relationship and new beginnings. This new work
is a challenge. The paintings are exciting, but because they contain
recognized forms I have to fight to keep spontaneity. Writing appears in
these paintings, words like forever, Rose, hearts and West are keys to
the nature of these works.”
Community Arts
Miniatures: Artists sought for collective gallery Door County Advocate March 1 Deadline
“A Sturgeon Bay photographer is seeking local artists who are ready to
make a footprint in Door County by forming an art collective. Kelly
Avenson is starting the Artist Boutique, whose mission is to combine the
efforts of a serious group of artists who produce a variety of art forms
and present their work to the public. All media and styles of art are
accpetable, from painting and drawing to three-dimensional work,
photography and graphic art. Current plans are to have a gallery on the
West Side of Sturgeon Bay. Space is limited, so interested artists
should submit a portfolio by March 1. For more information, call Avenson
at 559-0504 or e-mail kmavenson@yahoo.com.”
Single Tickets to Innovative Motion are available by phone only at
414-902-2103 Milwaukee Ballet February 11 - 14
“Discover the athleticism, strength and versatility of Milwaukee
Ballet’s dancers up close in the intimate Pabst Theater for this
performance of three abstract works. Salvatore Aiello’s Clowns and
Others, set to Sergei Prokofiev’s humorous piano score, features
vignettes of 10 clowns portraying human traits such as compassion, grief
and wonder. Luc Vanier’s world premiere explores the continued
collaboration between the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and
Milwaukee Ballet through his unique blend of movement and visual
imagery. Tim O'Donnell, the choreographer for the award-winning The
Games We Play at Genesis, Milwaukee Ballet’s 2009 international
choreographic competition, returns to Milwaukee to create a new work.”
Music
I Musici visits Friday Milwaukee Journal Sentinel February 5
“The Canadian chamber orchestra I Musici de Montreal will perform
Friday night at Wisconsin Lutheran College. Close The Canadian chamber
orchestra I Musici de Montreal, named one of the best recently by
Fanfare magazine, performs Friday night at Wisconsin Lutheran College.’
“Community Development and the Arts” University of Wisconsin Marathon Campus February 11 “In 2008, local arts agencies across the
nation administered $858 million in funds for arts programming and
organizational support, indicating that not only is the visionary power of
the arts of vital importance to human society, but also the economic
engine, in terms of building community. How a group of people can
envision, articulate and create not just an arts community, but a human
community, where all people can live together and prosper through the
power of the arts is the topic of a panel discussion to be held at the
University of Wisconsin-Marathon County. “Community Development and the
Arts” will be discussed on Thursday, February 11, 2010 from 7:00 p.m. to
9:00 p.m. in the UWMC Theatre. Panelists will address the issues and then
take questions from the audience. The program is free and open to the
public. Moderator will be Linda Ware, emerita professor of English at
UWMC and a local arts activist. Featured presenters include: Maryo Ewell,
activist on the Colorado Council on the Arts; Erik Takeshita, senior
program officer, Minneapolis/St Paul office of the Local Initiatives
Support Corporation. Maryo Gard Ewell, daughter of Wisconsin arts legend
Robert Gard and author of a 50- year retrospective monograph published by
the Americans for the Arts, will speak on community development and the
arts. She will reference a study conducted by the Wisconsin Arts Board of
five Wisconsin towns that participated in a National Endowment for the
Arts Access Grant created to support the efforts of local arts agencies.
The “Fifty Tips” generated in this study, suggested by artists, arts
administrators, and the project directors, all indicate that arts
developers must articulate a thrilling vision of how the arts, using
locally-ready resources, can address fundamental questions and further the
cause of democracy to build communities of creative abundance. This event
is part of the “Building Community” series sponsored by the Wisconsin
Institute for Public Policy and Service (WIPPS), located on the UWMC
campus. For further information, contact Jean Greenwood, Program Associate
for the Wisconsin Institute for Public Policy and Service, (715) 261-6234,
jean.greenwood@uwc.edu
or Linda Ware, Panel Moderator and Emerita Professor of English, UWMC
linda.ware@uwc.edu”
ARTS DAY 2010 Arts Wisconsin March 3 SUPPORT ARTS AND ARTS
EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES FOR EVERYONE, EVERYWHERE IN WISCONSIN
Monona Terrace and
State Capitol, Madison
Pre-Arts Day workshops
on Tuesday, March 2
Contact: Anne Katz,
Arts Wisconsin 608 255 8316 or
akatz@artswisconsin.org
IN THE NEWS
Visual Arts/Museums
The Ultimate Wisco Art & Craft Fair
Directory Has Arrived CricketToes “There's no denying that one of the best
ways for many artisans to get their work noticed by members of the
general population is through annual fairs. Whether fine art or DIY
craft, jewelry or handmade furniture, a large percentage of folks who
attend each individual fair are not just there to browse--they're lookin'
to slap down some serious dough for the one, two, maybe even three
things that serenade them with the irresistible "Love Me, Buy Me" siren
song.”
Arts and Creativity in Education
Values Forged in College Predict Adult
Well-Being - New research finds a sense of purpose developed during
college years sticks with you and helps shape adult behavior. Miller-McCune “College isn’t just a place to learn
skills and obtain knowledge. It’s also a time of life when goals are set
and a vision of adulthood is shaped, new research suggests. (stockxchange.com)
For most students, college isn’t just a chance to learn skills and
obtain knowledge. It’s also a time of life when goals are set,
priorities are established, and a vision of adulthood is shaped. But
does the sense of purpose we feel as we leave school really stick with
us as the years go by? And does it influence the kind of adults we grow
into? Newly published research suggests the answers are yes and yes.”
The Junior Meritocracy - Should a child’s
fate be sealed by an exam he takes at the age of 4? Why
kindergarten-admission tests are worthless, at best. New York Magazine “Skylar Shafran, a turquoise headband on
her brunette head and a pink princess shirt on her string-bean frame, is
standing on a chair in her living room, shifting from left foot to
right. She has already gulped down a glass of orange juice and nibbled
on some crackers; she has also demonstrated, with extemporaneous grace,
the ability to pick up Hello Kitty markers with her toes. For more than
an hour, she has been answering questions to a mock version of an
intelligence test commonly known to New York parents as the ERB”
A few good nudes - Art schools are body
surfing, looking for models in all shapes, sizes, colors. Drawing
diverse forms makes a better artist. Philadelphia Inquirer “Lora McKenna needs bodies. She needs
big bodies and little bodies and old bodies and Asian and African
American bodies. And the University of the Arts model coordinator is
fairly shameless about approaching people about their bodies at
parties, on the street, and in class. "I met a woman at a party New
Year's Eve - she looked like a character from a Tim Burton film,"
McKenna said. "She was about 50, with hair down to her waist and maybe
she was 100 pounds. She was such a character, she'd be great to draw."
The general belief is that models for figure-drawing classes need to
have picture-perfect figures. But across the region, colleges and art
schools say they're in desperate need of different bodies to pose,
usually naked but not always, for figure-drawing, anatomy, and
animation classes.”
Wanted: Musicians, Singers, Artists,
Dancers and Actors Fox 47 and UW Platteville “Fox 47 and UW Platteville are teaming up
to spotlight talented high school students in the Arts. We are looking
for outstanding Musicians, Singers, Artists, Dancers and Actors. If you
know a student who excels in the Arts – go to Fox47.com and nominate
them for the Scholastic Arts Spotlight! Winners will be featured during
Fox 47’s hottest shows. ... including American Idol, House, Glee and So
You Think You Can Dance!! In addition - Fox 47 News at 9 will do a
feature length story on each monthly winner. We want to give these
artists the recognition they deserve! I thought that you may know some
high school students who excel in musicical, visual or performing arts.
We would love to showcase their talents on TV! Please feel free to
nominate these students, or even to just pass along the link so that
they may nominate themselves! The direct link is:
Folk Arts/Folklife
Bill Miller wins third Grammy Shawano Leader Reporter “A Grammy winner Sunday night has roots
right here in the Wolf River region, a connection he’s proud to share.
Bill Miller, a Shawano County native, won the Native American Music
category for “Spirit Wind North,” an album of flute music that backs the
praying and speaking of tribal elders. “This win is about the people and
where I grew up,” Miller said Wednesday. “I carried the Grammy for
Wisconsin and my hometown.” The award was his third Grammy win as a
songwriter and musician. He previously won for Best Native American
Music Album with “Cedar Dream Songs” in 2004 and “Sacred Ground — A
Tribute to Mother Earth” in 2005. Miller started playing guitar at the
age of 9. He realized at around 15 that he had a gift. Along with music,
he enjoyed art and painting. He recalled his mother Lenore saying, “Some
day God is going to open doors for you.” Miller, a 1973 graduate of
Shawano High School, is a member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Indian
tribe.”
Other
Strategy as Jazz vs. Symphony Harvard Business Review “I have had the privilege of spending a
lot of time as a strategic advisor and investor across the size spectrum
— from small early-growth companies to large Fortune 500 companies. The
basic tenets of growth strategies are common: establish a clear and
compelling vision; define a durable competitive advantage; and develop a
clear execution plan to make it happen. But the appropriate strategic
and operating philosophy should change during the phases of a company's
business-building process. This week, I'm going to discuss two
predominant modes for a firm to recognize: strategy as jazz and strategy
as symphony.”
Could the art market be undergoing a
fundamental restructuring? - 2010 will be a year of continued reshaping:
auctions will remain smaller and private sales will be preferred by many
collectors The Art Newspaper “In 2005, due to the timely convergence
of several factors, the art investment story started gaining traction. A
substantial increase in art prices sparked investment ambitions and led
outsiders to take note. An excess of global liquidity and the allure of
alternative investments combined to attract a new breed of buyer—the
“investor-collector” and the “speculative-collector”. Taking stock of
today’s art market, many observers are left asking (even in light of
some recent high profile prices at the end of 2009): were the
significant increases all hyperbole generated by a global asset bubble?
If art is truly uncorrelated, as many argue, why did prices and turnover
drop so precipitously during the financial market free-fall? And perhaps
most important of all, has the market finally hit bottom and started to
stabilise?”
WHEN YOU GO
Visual Arts/Museums
Author, painter Makoto Fujimura believes
creativity thrives amid diversity 77 Square February 4, 5 “Author, painter and arts advocate Makoto
Fujimura will bring his ideas on art and the intersection of ideas to
Madison in early February at two forums. In nature, an estuary is a
place where a river flows into an ocean. In these pockets, fresh water
and salt water mix to create some of the most diverse ecosystems in the
world. Author, painter and arts advocate Makoto Fujimura applies the
metaphor of an estuary to a place where creativity thrives, too. It is
where ideas collide, he claims, that great art is made.”
Milwaukee’s Eclectic Array of Artists -
Inspiring mix at Cedar, Elaine Erickson, Marian galleries Milwaukee Shepherd Express Various Sites
& Dates “Galleries throughout the city offer an
eclectic array of artists this week. This surprising mixture of
creativity begs to be seen at least once and will provide interesting
topics of conversation to help warm a February night. Above the Historic Third Ward Starbucks
on Water Street, Cedar Gallery provides an exhibition curated by former
gallery owners Jessica Steeber and Cassandra Smith in “Armoury @ The
Cedar Gallery.”
Haggerty Museum of Art’s Subjective Truth Milwaukee Shepherd Express Through April
18 “Through April 18 at the Haggerty Museum
of Art, the main gallery hosts three distinct photography exhibitions.
Presented separately, the three photographers’ series reveal that truth
is subjective. While the camera, an extension of the artist’s eye,
faithfully records what is immediately in front of it, each photographer
mediates the reality in front of the lens to create three very distinct
truths.”
KIDS ROCK! MADISON CHILDREN'S MUSEUM
BENEFIT Madison Verve February 6
“Madison's favorite family entertainers
team up to support the museum's education and outreach programming. In
addition to the all-star lineup, enjoy Ian's pizza, face painting, and
arts & crafts activities at one of the city's favorite live music
venues. The Laboratory Theater School House Rock will offer a preview
performance just for your eyes. Other performances include Kirsti's
Toddler Music All-Star Singalong, Ken Lonnquist and the Kenland Band,
Truly Remarkable Loon, The Madgadders and Kid'Oke: Live Karaoke with The
Gomers!”
Arts and Creativity in Education
GOODNIGHT MOON MIDWINTER CELEBRATION Madison Verve February 4 “Join host Susan Siman of WISC-TV and
Wisconsin Early Childhood Association as we highlight the remarkable
accomplishments of professionals who devote their lives to caring for
and educating our young ones. Enjoy hearty appetizers, wine, an
impressive silent auction, and entertainment. Proceeds from this event
will be used to expand WECA's mission of ensuring every child in
Wisconsin has the highest quality early learning experiences.”
BEAVER DAM: Youth art class is Saturday Beaver Dam Daily Citizen February 6 “The Beaver Dam Area Arts Association
welcomes guest artist Beth Luedtke this Saturdayto lead Youth Art from
10 a.m. to noon. This month’s projects will include weaving. BDAAA
encourages youth of all ages to attend the two-hour hands-on program at
the Seippel Center, 1605 N. Spring St. The cost is $3 per student to
cover supplies and snack. No RSVP is necessary.”
SCHOOL OF MADISON BALLET/MADISON YOUTH
CHOIRS OPEN HOUSE Madison Verve February 6 “Madison Youth Choirs and School of the
Madison Ballet are teaming for an Open House. Stop in to say hi, ask
questions and take a free trial class from either organization--or both!
School of Madison Ballet Open House is your chance to see or
organization up close. Tour our studios, talk to instructors, even take
a sample class! We offer professional instruction for dancers aged 2 to
adult and Madison's only Boys Class!”
Community Arts
'SOUP!' is on at PSA benefit Door County Advocate February 6
“Five hundred bowls, 500 diners — it all
adds up to “SOUP!” a soup-and-bread fundraiser taking place from 11
a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6, at the Peninsula School of Art in Fish
Creek. The fourth annual event is a benefit for Door County hunger
relief group Feed My People and youth outreach programs at the art
school. A $15 donation provides participants with an original bowl of
their choosing, handmade by children, families and other participants
over the past weeks, and unlimited servings of soups and breads courtesy
of local restaurants and volunteers.”
Folk Arts/Folklife
2ND ANNUAL GREAT MIDWESTERN BLUEGRASS
BASH Madison Verve February 6
“Featuring regional acts; Insomniac
Gypsy, Hillside Ramblers, Sweetgrass, and Past Blue Rhythym. Madisonians
are proud that the Majestic Theatre, with its state of the art sound
system will be hosting this year's event. For those who haven't yet had
the pleasure of attending, The Majestic is under new ownership and has
become a popular music venue for nationally touring acts.”
Fun, games - and the tent - back for Fish
Creek Winter Festival Door County Advocate February 6
Many of the usual games and other fun
events are on tap for this weekend’s 23rd annual Fish Creek Winter
Festival. But perhaps most important among the returnees is “the tent,”
back after a one-year absence. The large, outdoor, heated tent in Clark
Park, on the shores of the Fish Creek harbor, once again will host the
majority of the activities. Last year, activities and games were
scattered across the community.”
It's time for Winter Wine and Cherry Fest Door County Advocate February 6
“Escape the winter blues and discover the
fun Door County has to offer during its “quiet season” as Lautenbach’s
Orchard Country Winery and Market hosts its fifth annual Winter Wine and
Cherry Fest from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6.”
Literary
PMF joins The Big Read with Feb Fest
opening concert Door County Advocate February 20
“Peninsula Music Festival opens its
annual February Fest concert mini-season with a performance in
conjunction with the countywide “The Big Read.” The Big Read, now in its
third year in Door County, this year looks at “My Antonia,” Willa Cather
classic novel of immigrant life in the heartland of America in the
1800s. In the book, Antonia’s father is a Bohemian violinist.
Additionally, PMF staff discovered that there is a theme of music in all
of Cather’s novels.’
Media Arts
Festival of Films in French Returns to
UW-Milwaukee Milwaukee Shepherd Express February 6 - 7 “By many standards, the artist (Daniel
Auteuil) is successful, an acclaimed painter in Paris and man of many
mistresses; by those same lights, the gardener (Jean-Pierre Darroussin)
leads a narrowly circumscribed small-town life. When the artist returns
to that town and hires a hand to tend the yard of the house he
inherited, he recognizes the gardener as his long-lost childhood
companion in mischief. Once inseparable, their lives have long since
traveled on entirely different tracks.”
Performing Arts
Dance
LINES BALLET Madison Verve February 6
“A Madison audience favorite, Alonzo
King's LINES Ballet celebrates over 25 years of melding classical
Western ballet with a diverse set of cultural traditions. Described by
The New Yorker as being "hyperkinetic" and "exceptional," King's
visionary choreography continues to thrill viewers.”
PILOBOLUS DANCE THEATER Madison Verve February 9 “Ever-evolving and always surprising,
Pilobolus remains one of America's top dance companies.You might
remember them from their innovative performances in the 2007 Academy
Awards. Now in their 38th year, dancing is but one part of this
company's multifaceted talent. They are masters of acrobatics, theater
and mime; zany as the Marx Brothers and as clever as Houdini-poets who
convert their bodies into interlocking and interchangeable parts.”
A behind-the-scenes glimpse of Innovative Motion Third Coast Digest February 11
“The Milwaukee Ballet’s modern dance
performance, Innovative Motion, opens next Thursday, Feb. 11, with a
very special pre-performance event — Pints Before Pointe — that’s sure
to please both ballet aficionados and the ballet-curious alike.
ThirdCoast Digest will be there, and we hope you will too. For just $35,
you can meet the choreographers personally, plus enjoy free hors
d’ouevres, a cash bar and spins by RadioMilwaukee’s Marcus Doucette from
6 to 7 p.m. in the salon of the InterContinental Hotel, then take your
premium seat inside the adjacent Pabst Theater for the opening-night
performance. Current ticket holders get in to the special event for just
$10.”
Music
CHICK SINGER NIGHT Madison Verve February 4 “Chick Singer Night is part of an international showcase featuring
women singers of all genre's of music. Hosted by Beth Kille, guests
perform with "a smokin' house band!" Performers include Katelyn Adzima,
Ame Gravel-Sullivan, Stacey Thomas, Julia McConahay, and Sharona. "Are
you man enough?" segment features, Michael Tecku lead singer for Eden's
Empire.”
MSO PRESENTS ZUKERMAN & FORSYTH Madison Verve February 5 - 7 “Pinchas Zukerman and his wife, the brilliant cellist Amanda Forsyth,
bring you a sampling of exotically spiced selections, including Bruch's
Hebraic Kol Nidrei, Mozart's "Turkish" violin concerto and Saint-Saëns'
quintessentially French apéritif, The Muse and the Poet. The main course
will be Saint-Saëns' majestic Organ Symphony. Club 201 will rendezvous
on the rooftop at fresco for tasty treats and a sampling of special
signature cocktails following the performance.”
WILLY PORTER Madison Verve February 12 “"How To Rob A Bank," the latest release from esteemed
guitarist/singer-songwriter Willy Porter, showcases his continued growth
as a songwriter and recording artist. Porter offers a rich blend of salt
and sugar with tracks that move easily from rough-hewn electric edges
into soulful irony with equal aplomb. Jeff Giles of Popdose.com says,
"It's another solid entry in a discography full of them, and one of the
smarter, more durable albums of grown-up music we're likely to get this
year." Porter capitalizes on his experience as a seasoned live performer
on How To Rob A Bank. World-renowned guitarist Greg Koch had this to say
about Porter's new disc: "you get the same feeling listening to it as
you do from one of his solo gig's...that you are in the presence of
greatness..." Each song is a fresh cross-pollination of styles, genres
and musical forms.”
Theater
Waukesha Civic Opens ‘Crimes of the Heart’ - Also: ‘All’s Well That
Ends Well’ at Boulevard Theatre Milwaukee Shepherd Express February 5 – 21 and February 9 – March 14 “The last full month of winter opens with a pair of local productions
that explore the strange convolutions of human passion and the lengths
to which people will go to pursue happiness. On Feb. 5, Waukesha Civic
Theatre opens its production of Beth Henley’s 1980 dramatic comedy,
Crimes of the Heart. It’s the story of three adult sisters who reunite
in Mississippi and confront the dark paths along which their hearts have
led them. A larger-than-usual group auditioned for the show, resulting
in a very promising cast. Donna Daniels plays the oldest sister, Lenny,
who has been looking after their grandfather. Ruth Arnell plays the
middle sister, Meg, who has returned from Los Angeles after a faltering
singing career. Jenny Kosek plays the youngest sister, Babe, who shot
her husband because she “didn’t like his looks.” Mark Neufang will
direct the show.”
'Vagina Monologues' opens discussion for women Baraboo News Republic February 11 “Next Thursday, UW-Baraboo/Sauk County will celebrate women, their
sexuality and especially their anatomy as part of a national movement to
end gender violence worldwide. The stage of the campus’s R.G. Brown
Theatre will host its third production of “The Vagina Monologues,” the
play written by Eve Ensler in the late 1990s, based on her interviews
with women on their experience with relationships, sex and sexual
violence.”
Obama's budget proposals for arts institutions largely hold flat Washington Post “If Monday's White House budget proposal tells us anything, it's this:
These are tough fiscal times for an arts-loving president. Should the Obama
administration get its way, funding for the nation's major arts and cultural
institutions will stay largely flat, although a few organizations -- including
the Smithsonian Institution and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting --
will see increases over what the president requested last year.”
New public
sculpture connects Wausau and Cairo, Egypt Blog: PortalWisconsin.org “With a little help from some local friends, an Egyptian man's vision to
convey peace through public art recently became reality in Wausau. Moustafa
Saleh, a former exchange student at Wausau's Northcentral Technical College,
launched a community-wide campaign in 2008 to install a sculpture promoting
peace.”
IN THE NEWS
Visual Arts/Museums
Listen Up: Talking
Deaccessioning, On ArtOnAir - Rush Interactive Blog: Real Clear Arts -
Judith H. Dobrzynski on Culture “If you aren't tired of talking
about deaccessioning, or listening to others talk about it -- and I hope you
are not! -- please tune into to a program just posted on Rush Interactive on
ArtonAir.org. The show is hosted by Michael Rush (left), who was director of
the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis until last spring, when he was dismissed in
the mess over the university's plans to close the museum and sell its
collection. A couple of Fridays ago, he convened a very civil discussion on
the subject with writer/critic/curator Eleanor Heartney, Charles Desmarais,
deputy director of the Brooklyn Museum (the reward for posting comments on
this blog), and me.”
Arts and Creativity in
Education
Proposed state bill would target
phony degrees Wausau Daily Herald “A Wisconsin International
University could be forced to change its name. So might Heed University. And a
job applicant who recently tried to claim a phony degree from Madison Business
College could be criminally prosecuted. State lawmakers are considering a bill
that would crack down on the manufacture and use of phony academic credentials
in Wisconsin by criminalizing both practices. It would also prohibit
unauthorized schools from using the words "college," "university," "state" or
"Wisconsin" in their names.”
Teaching the pocketbook Sauk Prairie Eagle “The current financial crisis
from which the country is only beginning to emerge forced many Americans to
confront their buy-now-pay-later spending habits. Joel Chrisler is hoping his
students make wiser financial decisions. Chrisler teaches the personal finance
class Consumer Economics at the Sauk Prairie High School. “The class is not
required,” Chrisler said. “But I tell them when they walk in that this will be
one of the most practical courses you can take. While others prepare you for
college, this really prepares you for life.”
UW-Madison speaker critical of
Islam, draws Muslims' criticism Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Madison — “Listening to the
soft-spoken words of the Somali-born guest stood in stark contrast to the
ferocious debate the campus visitor brought with her to the University of
Wisconsin-Madison on Tuesday. Ayaan Hirsi Ali, an outspoken feminist who is
critical of Islam and its treatment of women, spoke to an overflowing crowd of
1,300 people as part of a lecture series. "We must use intelligence and reason
to confront what I perceive as one of the world's greatest inequalities - the
treatment of Muslim women," Hirsi Ali said at the event, which started late
because of airport-like security.”
Community Arts
Out of work, 10 take sales gig
for the Big Gig Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
“For four decades, Summerfest
has given people an excuse to put on a pair of flip-flops and dance away their
worries. In these tough economic times, the festival has offered a somewhat
different form of relief, giving unemployed sales reps a reason to don their
business suits and go to work. Looking to reverse a 38% drop in its group
sales - bulk tickets sold to area companies - Milwaukee World Festival Inc.
recruited a 10-member team of sellers looking for jobs and sent them out
making cold calls on businesses.”
Media Arts
Durand native produces, stars in
online show Eau Claire Leader-Telegram “People might know Paul Prissel
as the criminal prosecutor in the Los Angeles County district attorney's
office. What people don't know is that the Durand native also stars and is the
executive producer of the new online TV show "Chapin Circle." Prissel and his
wife, Michele Palermo, launched "Chapin Circle" in October. "I said, 'How
about a Web series?' " Palermo said. "All the cast members are our friends. In
fact, Paul plays the role of my husband." Prissel, 46, graduated from UW-Eau
Claire in 1986. He then earned a master's degree from Harvard University. He
and Palermo have been married 10 years.”
Performing Arts
Music
Lake Delton singer releases CD,
sees Grammys, premiere Wisconsin Dells Events “While most people in the area
who watched Saturday night’s Grammy Awards show were at home, Nathaniel
Blumberg, of Lake Delton, was attending a VIP showing of the Grammys in
Chicago’s Hard Rock Cafe. He said only people involved in the music industry –
including producers, artists and recording agents – were in attendance.
Blumberg, who was a member of the Grammy-U program while in college, was
allowed to rejoin the professional music association after he said he "was
grilled on the phone for 20 minutes." He could have renewed his membership
after leaving college, but did not and had to plead his case again for
admittance. He hopes membership will help him promote himself as a
professional singer and songwriter.”
Theater
Our view: Cheers for La Crosse
Community Theatre La Crosse Tribune “The drama at La Crosse
Community Theatre is back where it belongs: on the stage. And if opening
weekend of the company's latest production, "Driving Miss Daisy," is any
indication, the theater has put the many distractions of December - the firing
of its artistic director, uproar among volunteers, the premature closure of a
show, the rehiring of that artistic director, the departure of its executive
director - behind it.”
Other
A useful question about
nonprofit status Blog: The Artful Manager “I'm pleased to notice a new
blogger among the ArtsJournal crew, James Undercofler, who recently joined the
faculty at Drexel University's Arts Administration program after an
illustrious career in symphonies, conservatories, and cultural nonprofits. His
State of the Art blog will focus on the particular challenges of the nonprofit
structure in supporting and advancing artistic intent. And his opening
question sets the tone for that essential conversation:”
WHEN YOU GO
Visual Arts/Museums
Registration begins for 45th
annual Spring Art Show Chippewa Herald Ongoing “Artist registration for the
45th annual Chippewa Herald Spring Art Show has begun. The show is planned for
Sunday, April 11 through Thursday, April 22 at the Heyde Center for the Arts,
3 S. High St., Chippewa Falls. It is co-sponsored by The Chippewa Herald and
the Chippewa Valley Cultural Association.” Fill out a registration form and
get full details at
http://www.chippewa.com/Artshow/artshowformgood.html.
Gallery Night in Downtown Racine
and Help Raise Relief Funds for Haiti Racine Arts Museum February 6 “Gallery Night has become one of
Racine's premier events, drawing hundreds of art lovers to Downtown Racine.
Come Downtown and enjoy the 13 galleries along Sixth Street, Wisconsin Avenue,
and Main Street as they present their unique displays of fine art. Taking
place during February Gallery Night is a Silent Auction featuring various art
pieces at participating galleries to help raise funds for relief efforts for
the people affected by the earthquake in Haiti. Stop by RAM to place your bid
on a package, valued at over $115. Please join us supporting this worthy
cause. Gallery Night is a free event, open to the public. Maps detailing the
gallery locations and exhibits are available at”
Rebecca Venn’s Secret Gardens
Blog: ExposeKenosha February 19 ““Be Exposed!” is proud to
announce that award-winning visual artist Rebecca Venn will be among the
featured artists at their debut show. Rebecca was born in Owensboro, Kentucky.
She graduated with a BA from Brescia College, Owensboro, Kentucky in 1969, and
concluded early in her studies that the human figure was her primary interest.
As her undergraduate education offered little in this area, she undertook a
long period of self-directed study in figurative drawing and painting. Ms.
Venn has taught life studio at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside and
various life drawing workshops. She is a member of Wisconsin Visual Artists,
MARN, AHA! and is represented at Artists’ Gallery, Racine, Wisconsin, Seebeck
Gallery, Kenosha, Wisconsin, and The Norman Lasiter Gallery in Palm Springs
California; her work is included in a number of private collections. Her
studio is located in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Most recently, her work is being
showcased at Carolyn’s Coffee Connection as part of the “Secret Gardens”
exhibition.”
HORICON: Art exhibit planned at
marsh Beaver Dam Daily Citizen February 13 – March 12 “The Horicon Marsh International
Education Center announced the newest art exhibit to be displayed from Feb. 13
through March 12. Local artist Kelly Preuss will open “Realistic Wildlife
Creations” exhibit with a presentation and reception on Feb. 13,, from 1 to 3
p.m. in the lower level of the education center.”
Arts and Creativity in
Education
Middle Level Motion presents
competition show Feb. 8 Sauk Prairie Eagle February 8 “Middle Level Motion will
present its competition show for area residents and family at 7 p.m. Feb. 8 at
the River Arts Center in Prairie du Sac. The Sauk Prairie Middle School show
choir is in its 13th year of existence. The group consists of 79 seventh and
eighth graders and is directed by Dennis Kahn and Jeff Williams. Kris Pickar,
a Sauk Prairie grad, is its choreographer. She is a professional dancer,
teacher and choreographer.”
StageQ Looking for Volunteers
Who Can Paint! StageQ February 6 – 7 “We will be building and painting
sets for Sappho in Love again next weekend, and you're invited to come help!
The dates and times are: Saturday, February 6 at 10:00 am. We'll convene at
our rehearsal space at 148 E Wilson Street to pick up the set pieces, and then
head over to the Bartell for the actual build. So, if you want to help at
10:00, join us at E Wilson Street. If you just want to help with painting and
building, join us at the Bartell Theatre starting at 11:00 am. Sunday,
February 7 at 10:00 am. Again, we'll be at the Bartell Theatre all day. If you
can wield a hammer, screwdriver, exacto knife or paintbrush, we'd love to have
you join us. The Bartell is located at 113 E Mifflin Street. Please come to
the back door of the theater, since the front doors will be locked. Please
drop me a note if you can help. Although if you're free at the last minute and
can help anyway, just come on by! And thanks!”
Folk Arts/Folklife
Lend support to camo quilt
project Feb. 13 Chippewa Herald February 13 “Show your support for soldiers
serving in Iraq and Afghanistan by lending a hand to a Camo Quilt Project
workshop from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 13 at the Stanley Fire Hall.”
Media Arts
Allamakee County to shine on
CMT's "Singing Bee" La Crosse Tribune February 5 WAUKON, Iowa — “Local elections
didn’t stir up as much excitement in Waukon as a former mayor’s trip to
Hollywood and his upcoming appearance on Country Music Television’s “The
Singing Bee.” Dwight Jones, Waukon mayor from 2000 to 2008, was selected
during a Nov. 7 taping of the karaoke-style show and will appear on the CMT
show at 8 p.m. Friday.”
Performing Arts
Music
Two Irish music groups will
perform at Heyde Center Chippewa Herald February 5 “The communication manager of an
overseas Irish Consulate told me that in the U.S. midwest alone over 19
million people claimed to have some level of Irish ancestry. This is pretty
amazing from a country with a current population of only 4.2 million people
(6.2 million if you include Northern Ireland). For those with Irish ancestry
or those who simply love Irish music, the Chippewa Valley Cultural Association
will welcome two Irish groups to the Heyde Center for the Arts in February and
March.”
Theater
'Whirled News' an interactive
performance Eau Claire Regional Arts
Center February 4 “With an unsteady economy and
natural disasters testing society's limits, it's hard to enjoy watching the
news. But "Whirled News Tonight," an improvisational show that satirizes
current events, is changing the way people think about the world. With 12 cast
members, "Whirled News" is an interactive performance in which the audience
picks what will be discussed, said Jason Chin, creator and producer of the
show.”
20 years later, play is still
relevant Ashland Daily News February 5 - 6 “Twenty years ago, actress Jan
Lee and writer Dew Harding sat together in Harding’s Washburn kitchen and
talked about transforming some of Harding’s short stories into drama. The
result, “Clarisse & Friends,” is still funny, still relevant, and is being
performed Feb. 5-7 at the Theater of the Woods in Shell Lake. “Clarisse”
debuted at Lake Superior Big Top Chauauqua in 1990, in a one-night-only
performance in which Lee performed all seven monologues in the show. With
only a few updates to the script, Lee is again taking on the challenging
performance.”
Madison theater survives and
thrives after a devastating year Staging a comeback The Isthmus “When the Madison Repertory
Theatre closed its doors for the last time in March 2009, a veritable Greek
chorus wailed that this was the end of professional theater in our fair city.
After 40 years of providing the area with topnotch productions, the Rep
succumbed to a combination of failed finances and artistic miscalculations;
its contract with Overture Center, to whom it was heavily in debt, was not
renewed. The end was not entirely unpredictable, given that the effects of
economic malaise were being felt far and wide, and many believed the Rep's
demise was the harbinger of more sorrow to come.”
Coming up in Madison: As
spring pokes its frozen nose over the horizon, here are some upcoming
productions that might help to thaw your winter blues:
February 12 – 27 StageQ is producing Sappho in
Love, described as a comedy about the "slippery terrain of lesbian romance."
Any play that features the goddesses of Olympus can't be all bad.
February 1 – March 19 Madison Theatre Guild dips its
toe into the waters of political intrigue with Two Rooms, which will run in
repertory with Meg (Feb. 25-March 13), a play about the only daughter of Sir
Thomas More.
February 26 – March 13 University Theatre kicks off
its year with Narukami — The Thunder God (Feb. 26-March 13), a mystical
Japanese tale told in classic kabuki style.
March 20 Forward Theater Company
presents a staged reading of KIRITSIS (March 20), David Schanker's winning
script from the 2009 Wisconsin Wrights Playwriting contest. If you like to
watch the creative process, come by and see art in the making. One night only.
April 10 - 18 Children's Theater of Madison
will stage Narnia (April 10-18), a musical adaptation of C.S. Lewis' beloved
fable The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Should be suitable for adults,
too.
April 16 – May 1 Mercury Players Theatre offers
Mercury Rising: A New Play Competition (April 16-May 1), featuring eight
15-minute original comedies.
April 23- May 30 Broom Street Theater presents
Multiple O: The Second Coming (April 23-May 30), a sequel (of sorts) to the
uneven but entertaining sex romp Multiple O. The play will further explore
adventures in polyamory. (Look it up.)
VIDEO OF THE DAY
Lemonade (Note:
Run time is 35:57)
After a 37 year-old copywriter is laid off from a large ad-agency in 2008,
he starts a blog for other unemployed ad professionals. Once the site
launched, he decided to create a promotional video featuring the faces and
stories of other laid-off execs.
Tuesday, 2/2
IN THE NEWS
Visual Arts/Museums
Art in Bars
Bay View Compass “As a bar or restaurant, featuring different artists’ works every few
months provides both an advertising opportunity and a change of scenery to
regular patrons. It’s a low-cost way to stay artistically current and create
a supportive feeling of community.But a few area bars take an opposite yet
equally rewarding approach, displaying permanent art pieces that take up
large swaths of wall space. While installed or painted at an initial cost to
the businesses, the pieces also attract a following, mostly by word of
mouth. In addition, the large pieces, made by local artists, often create or
contribute to the atmosphere of the bar.”
Warhol Magic Cube, Hirst Skull T-Shirt Are for Sale on Web Shop
Bloomberg “If you need a Damien Hirst diamond- skull T-shirt or a Grayson Perry
silk scarf that reads “unpopular culture,” you’re in luck. CultureLabel, an
online one-stop-shop offering items from 75 museums, is opening for business
with the backing of U.K. politicians who see it as a tool for museums’
survival. The offerings range from the Hirst eye-catcher (30 pounds or $49)
to an Andy Warhol magic cube (9.99 pounds) to a necklace shaped like
Salvador Dali’s moustache (23 pounds). The silk scarf is 44 pounds. The
priciest item -- an Anish Kapoor limited-edition print (from the Whitechapel
Gallery) -- costs 4,700 pounds.”
Arts and Creativity in Education
Opinion: Hirsi Ali lecture will only breed fear - Hirsi Ali's antagonistic
rhetoric will not benefit the university's religious conversation.
Daily Cardinal “When I was asked for my opinion, I explained that Islam was like a
mental cage. At first, when you open the door, the caged bird stays inside:
it is frightened. It has internalized its imprisonment. It takes time for
the bird to escape, even after someone has opened the doors to its cage.” –Ayaan
Hirsi Ali In an e-mail sent to the UW Muslim Students Association (MSA) on
behalf of Dean of Students Lori Berquam regarding the Wisconsin Union
Directorate’s Distinguished Lecture Series (DLS) committee’s decision to
bring controversial anti-Islam writer and speaker Ayaan Hirsi Ali, author of
“Infidel,” it was claimed that “the campus does not support the
marginalizing or stigmatizing of any groups. Rather, we hope that these
kinds of events promote dialogue in an effort to grow and learn.”
Opinion: Playing to Learn
The New York Times “The Obama administration is planning some big changes to how we measure
the success or failure of schools and how we apportion federal money based
on those assessments. It’s great that the administration is trying to
undertake reforms, but if we want to make sure all children learn, we will
need to overhaul the curriculum itself. Our current educational approach —
and the testing that is driving it — is completely at odds with what
scientists understand about how children develop during the elementary
school years and has led to a curriculum that is strangling children and
teachers alike.”
Twenty One
Blog: Association of Teaching Artists
“Sometimes, I have twenty questions. For instance, how is a TA supposed to
live on 5 part-time after-school gigs in 3 different boroughs that each pay
$50/hour twice a week when the train costs $90 month and the average one
bedroom is $2500, and you can't be in two places at once?”
Community Arts
A Life Remembered: Haubrich had a lifelong love affair with music
Kenosha News “Each Monday, the Kenosha News takes a look at the life of a Kenosha
County resident who recently died. We share with you, through the memories
of family and friends, a life remembered. Music and faith were twin banners
in the life of Herbert Haubrich, who was a drum major at Kenosha High School
before becoming a musician, working for famous Pentecostal evangelist Aimee
Semple McPherson during the Great Depression. “He was pretty young — 17 or
18 years old — when he traveled along with her,” his youngest son Todd
Haubrich said. His lifelong love affair with music led Herbert to teach
students the xylophone and violin and perform as a tympanist with the
Kenosha Symphony Orchestra for 40 years.”
Literary
Who will save us?
Seth’s Blog (Seth Godin) “Who will save book publishing? What will save the newspapers? What
means 'save'? If by save you mean, "what will keep things just as they are?"
then the answer is nothing will. It's over.”
Macmillan’s Amazon Beatdown Proves Content Is King
Wired “Amazon may have created the market for online book sales and fueled the
growth of e-books with its Kindle device. But to the publisher Macmillan,
Amazon is just another retailer who wants to resell Macmillan’s books. The
companies’ squabbling over book pricing this past weekend was an annoyance
to consumers and an affront to Macmillan’s authors, who saw their books
yanked from the Amazon store and sales grind to a halt. In the long run,
however, Macmillan’s success in bending Amazon to its will represents a
tipping point in the book industry — a shift in power from online
distributors to content owners, who after all, have an effective “monopoly”
on every product in their catalogs.”
Amazon Don’t Need Your Stinkin’ Books (Updated; Actually, We Do)
Wired (Update, 1/31 8:35 pm): Amazon has capitulated to Macmillan’s demands
that it allow flexible pricing for its books, backing off from a ban of the
house’s list when the publisher demanded what it has now received. “We want
you to know that ultimately, however, we will have to capitulate and accept
Macmillan’s terms because Macmillan has a monopoly over their own titles,
and we will want to offer them to you even at prices we believe are
needlessly high for e-books,” Amazon said in a Kindle forum.
Locally made Avatar iPhone app
Blog: The Daily Shakedown, VolumeOne “Chuck Gamble – the Chippewa Falls artist who runs Lucky Radish Studio –
is at it again. Last year, he released what could very well be the Chippewa
Valley’s first locally made iPhone app, the funky and fun Slide-a-ma-jig.
And now he and some West Coast buddies at a company called Spinapse have
created Avatrivia - an iPhone-delivered, Avatar-based trivia game that tests
your knowledge of the film’s fictional world of Pandora, as well as “the
subtle nuances of the film.” They say you don’t even need to speak Na’vi to
play.”
Ten Chimneys Goes to Hollywood
BizTimes Nonprofit Weekly “Sean Malone, President of Ten Chimneys Foundation in Milwaukee, was at
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for the grand opening of
“Star Quality: The World of Noël Coward,” running January 23 through April
18 at The Academy – during the prestigious “Oscars slot.”
A Little Chip Designed by Apple Itself
New York Times SAN FRANCISCO — “Sure, the screen is nice. But the iPad’s most important
component, at least for Apple’s future, may be the A4, the fingernail-size
chip at the tablet’s heart. With the A4, Apple has taken another step toward
challenging the norms of the mobile device industry. Device makers typically
buy their primary chips from specialized microprocessor companies. But for
the iPad, Apple chose to design its own — creating unique bonds between the
chip and Apple’s software.”
What the iPad Means for the Future of Computing
Wired “When I picked up my iPhone over the weekend, I had an epiphany. I was
using the LinkedIn app to confirm an invitation to connect, and it hit me:
This is the future of mobile computing, the mobile web — the mobile
experience.”
Hacking for Fun and Profit in China’s Underworld
New York Times CHANGSHA, China — “With a few quick keystrokes, a computer hacker who
goes by the code name Majia calls up a screen displaying his latest victims.
“Here’s a list of the people who’ve been infected with my Trojan horse,” he
says, working from a dingy apartment on the outskirts of this city in
central China. “They don’t even know what’s happened.”
YouTube’s Take From Movie Rentals: $10,709.16
New York Times “By the measures of the movie rental market, YouTube’s first foray into
the business of charging users to stream full length feature films was
hardly a runaway success. YouTube said last month that it would dip its toes
into the digital movie rental business with five independent films tied to
the Sundance Film Festival. The company said the five films, which were
available for 10 days, received a combined 2,684 views. At $3.99 per rental,
YouTube first foray into the business netted $10,709.16.”
Performing Arts
Theater
Former 'Boston Legal' actor Mentell dies in Iowa County crash
77 Square “An artist and actor who co-starred on the ABC television series “Boston
Legal” was found dead Monday morning near his wrecked Jeep in rural Iowa
County, the Iowa County Sheriff’s Department reported. The 2005 Jeep of
Justin M. Mentell, 27, of Waukegan, Ill., was found down a steep embankment
off Highway 39, near Moscow Road north of Blanchardville. Someone saw the
car while driving along Moscow Road, the only spot from which the wrecked
car was visible, said Chief Deputy Jon Pepper.’
Other
Building Audience
Diversity Through Social Networking – Part One
Blog: Technology in the Arts
“When I was working in the trenches of a theatre company in the Midwest
about a year and a half ago, the arts orgs in town got together to have a
round-table discussion about social networking. At the time, I had grown my
theatre’s social networking from mere presence to full-blown strategy and
was seeing our friend numbers grow exponentially. I was proud of my Facebook
page and our (at that time) fledgling Twitter site, but the MySpace page was
the real shining star of the bunch, with almost twice as many friends as the
Facebook page and three times as many as Twitter. Most intriguingly the
people on MySpace didn’t feel like the people on the other networks at the
time. They were much more diverse in terms of race and age. They didn’t have
a professional feel like Linked-In or Twitter (in some cases). It was a
network open to everyone, one that didn’t start as a “gated community”
catering exclusively to historically white colleges and universities like
Facebook. Best of all, they were asking questions through private messages
that indicated that they hadn’t heard of the theatre or weren’t sure how to
get information on shows.”
If You Can Order
at Starbucks, You Can Ask for a Gift
Blog: Board Life Matters “It seems I always hear the same response from board members when I ask
why they’re reluctant to ask for a contribution: they are unsure of what to
say. They seem to believe there is a magic set of words that all board
members should know. If anyone out there knows those words: share them with
me, please! ….I didn’t think so. But never fear. While waiting in line at
my local Starbucks recently, I realized that asking for a gift is very much
like placing an order with your local Barista. I know, this is a little off
the beaten path, but stay with me here….”
12 Questions that Lead to a Better Fundraising Story
Blog: Network for Good “Who Do You Truly Represent? It's easy to tell the story of the clients
you serve -- especially in 2010, if you have a flip video camera, a social
media platform and a few juicy questions to ask. Unfortunately, it's much
harder to tell a story with which your donors can identify. Let's be honest:
Storytelling often gets muddled when it comes to the fundraising process.
While you're judged by your impact on beneficiaries, it's ultimately your
donors that must buy into your story. There's the secret to really great
fundraising: If you can put yourself in the shoes of your donor, your
financial appeal stands a much greater chance of success. Remember that
donors are increasingly cynical, suspicious and exhausted. That's why you
need to speak in a more thoughtful manner. Here are a total of 12 questions
to help you reinforce the emotional connection and the perceived value of
your work.”
Nonprofits and Copyrights: What You Need to Know
Blog: Blue Avocado “There are two things to worry about with copyrights: protecting
original material that your organization has created, and making sure that
your organization isn't improperly using material that someone else owns.
Blue Avocado asked copyright attorney Kate Spelman to help us with these
issues, and she generously gave all of us her expertise and time.”
Who will save us?
Seth’s Blog (Seth Godin) “Who will save book publishing? What will save the newspapers? What
means 'save'? If by save you mean, "what will keep things just as they are?"
then the answer is nothing will. It's over.”
WHEN YOU GO
Visual Arts/Museums
Opening and closing this week
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Openings
"Wisconsin Visual Artist Show" at the Schauer Center (Hartford) on
Feb. 5 "Boy Scouts of America 100th Anniversary" at the Waukesha County
Museum on Feb. 5 “Spatial City: The Architecture of Idealism” at UWM Inova/Kenilworth
on Feb. 5
"Scholastic Art Awards" at the Milwaukee Art Museum on
Feb. 6
Closings
“Cuban Artists’ Books and Prints: 1985-2008” at the Latino Arts Gallery
on Feb. 5
Sofia Arnold, Paula Swaydan Grebel, and Nick Olson at the Tory Folliard
Gallery on Feb. 6
“Young at Heart” at the Stanford Art Gallery and Studios (Menomonee
Falls) on Feb. 7 Denis Sargent & Michael Velliquette at the Wisconsin Academy of
Sciences, Arts and
Letters (Madison) on Feb. 7
Capturing nature’s soul
Reception February 5
Through February 28 “Artist Mark Ellena, an observer of the world — traveled the world —
then came back home to his Illinois roots to work and to paint. A Rockford
native, Ellena has lived in Leaf River, Ill. for about 15 years and owns and
operates Leaf River Landscaping and Nurseries, he said. Ellena also lived
and worked in Europe and San Francisco and he worked at Anderson Gardens in
Rockford for 10 years, he said.”
Neighborhood
Perspectives – Two Painters Survey the Famikliar Post Card Announcement
February 8 Artist talk
Through March 5 “DeRicci Gallery, 1000 Edgewood College Dr., Edgewood College,
Madison, WI February 8- March 5, Paintings by Cynthia Quinn & John Ribble”
Local gallery helps Haitian relief effort
BizTimes Nonprofit Weekly
Through April 10 “The David Barnett Gallery, located at 1041 E. State St. in
Milwaukee, has opened its Hot Art Exhibition. The exhibit features a
collection of art from warm climate areas like Haiti, Mexico, New Guinea,
Cuba, Egypt, Indonesia, Latin America and Africa. As an expanded effort to
raise funds for the Red Cross’s Haitian Disaster Relief, the exhibit will
showcase the state’s largest private collection of Haitian art, and will
donate 20 percent of all its Haitian art sales to the earthquake relief
effort. “The need in Haiti is overbearing. This is the least that we can do
to help. Haitian art is the only cultural thing that connects us to people
in the news,” said David Barnett, owner of the David Barnett Gallery.
Barnett started collecting Haitian art nearly forty years ago, and had
planned to show case the Hot Art exhibit nearly six months ago.”
RAM highlights glass collection in exhibit
Racine Journal Times
Through June 6 RACINE — “To celebrate Therman Statom’s glass installation in its
Windows on Fifth Street space, the Racine Art Museum has curated an
exhibition of highlights from its contemporary studio glass collection
titled “A Glass Act: First Rate Glass from RAM’s Collection.” It will be on
exhibit through June 6 at the museum, 441 Main St.’
Arts and Creativity in Education
First Stage Children's Theater Launches its Annual Multi-Cultural School
Assembly Tour
Brookfield Now
February 1 – March 5 “First Stage Children’s Theater is pleased to continue its tradition
of providing a Multi-Cultural School Assembly Tour for area schools. This
program is designed to aid educators in providing arts experiences for their
students, as well as to provide a forum for multi-cultural awareness. Past
tours have celebrated African American, Native American, Latino, Hmong,
German American, Irish American and Jewish cultures. First Stage presents
TOMÁS AND THE LIBRARY LADY for this year’s tour, which will perform at over
30 schools in the southeastern Wisconsin region February 1 through March 5.”
Community Arts
Haiti
Relief Benefit
The Isthmus
February 2 “The Caribbean Association of Madison and the African Association of
Madison are co-hosting a community benefit to raise funds to assist the
people of Haiti. The event will be held on Tuesday February 2, 2010 at the
Cardinal Bar on E. Wilson Street. The event which commences at 5:30 p.m.
Caribbean and African music, poetry, lecture and reflections on Haiti is to
show our solidarity with the people of Haiti.”
Performing Arts
Dance
Winterdances: Identity
UW-Milwaukee Department of Dance, Mainstage Theatre
February 4 – 7 “Winterdances: Identity will feature the premiere of alumna Suniti
Dernovsek’s “Always Merry and Bright.” Dernovsek is the first Dance New Work
Award winner. Shell M. Benjamin, Ferne Bronson, Ed Burgess and Simone Ferro
look at an array of cultural inspirations in their exploration of race and
identity.”
A behind-the-scenes glimpse of Innovative Motion
Third Coast Digest
February 11 “Dancers and clowns … The two are the same. Each wears a mask on his
soul.” —Salvatore Aiello The Milwaukee Ballet’s modern dance performance,
Innovative Motion, opens Feb. 11 with a very special pre-performance event —
Pints Before Pointe — that’s sure to please both ballet aficionados and the
ballet-curious alike. ThirdCoast Digest will be there, and we hope you will
too. For just $35, you can meet the choreographers personally, plus enjoy
free hors d’ouevres, a cash bar and spins by Radio Milwaukee’s Marcus
Doucette from 6 to 7 p.m. in the salon of the InterContinental Hotel, then
take your premium seat inside the adjacent Pabst Theater for the opening
night performance.’
Music
Matt Wilson Quartet
The Isthmus
February 4 “Surrounded By Reality Presents the Matt Wilson Quartet with generous
support from the Madison Music Collective “The drummer Matt Wilson is an
ambassador of good feeling, and with “That’s Gonna Leave a Mark” (Palmetto),
he doubled down on this band’s commitment to rugged post-bop populism.”
Hollywood Pops! February 6,
7:30pm at Fox Cities P.A.C.
Fox Valley Symphony
February 6 Who is your favorite character in your favorite movie? For us, the
best character in any movie is the soundtrack! The music becomes the driving
force behind any great screen classic and can heighten our emotions and
bring back memories instantly. That's why this concert truly has something
for everyone. In the first half you will hear Hollywood classics like When
You Wish Upon a Star, That's Entertainment, the theme from "Exodus" and
Hurray for Hollywood, arranged by Maury Laws with vocals by Mary Schmidt and
John Stangel of the White Heron Chorale. Next up are new favorites from Lord
of the Rings, Star Wars and Harry Potter. And our conductor may have
something else planned to get the audience involved!
Young musicians have chance to be heard
Gaxette Extra
Submission Deadline: February 7, 14, 21
Competition Dates: February 27, March 6, 13 WALWORTH — “A network of musicians is giving emerging singers and
songwriters a chance to shine on a real-life stage. The Midwest Artist
Network, which last spring produced a regional talent competition for adult
singers and this spring is producing a similar talent competition for young
singers, rapidly is taking hold in the area, said Mark and Gretch Hladish,
the force behind the network. The Walworth couple perhaps best known for
their cabaret-style shows at Millie’s Restaurants & Shopping Village in
Delavan Township believe the network offers up-and-coming musicians the
opportunity to realize their dream of making it in the music industry.”
Presenters
That’ll be the day the music dies
Scene
February 20 Don McLean immortalized it in his epic song “American Pie” as “The
Day the Music Died.” The day in question is Feb. 3, 1959. The event – the
early morning crash of a small airplane just outside of Clear Lake, Iowa.
In addition to the 21-year-old pilot, three rock ‘n’ rollers – Ritchie
Valens, J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson and Buddy Holly – who had just
played the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake were killed on their way to Moorhead,
Minn., the next stop on the 25-city Winter Dance Party tour. But Milwaukee
musician Mark Shurilla isn’t about to let the music die.”
Planets align for musical odyssey
Scene
February 27 “He never could get over the fact that his “series of mood pieces,”
as he referred to his 1916 composition The Planets, overshadowed everything
else he did un until his death in 1934. Even though The Planets propelled
him to the upper echelon of classical composers (i.e., those whose works are
performed and embraced by the public), it bothered him that his 15 other
orchestral works, 13 operas, seven chamber works, five band pieces, three
ballets and many other musical compositions were largely rejected by
contemporary critics and the public.’
Theater
Where
There’s Will There’s a Relative
Falls Patio Players
February 5 – 14 “Sam Price, a wealthy entrepreneur, has passed away. With the corpse
in the bedroom, his immediate family members have gathered to discuss their
inheritance, a meeting that descends into acrimony over the division of
property. They learn that Sam has left his entire estate to the church, a
discovery that results in them reluctantly seeking the advice of a person
they deem to be of unsavory moral character.”
Love’s Lost and Found, Grant
Park Players
South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center
February 5 – 14 The Grant Park Players present three romantic comedy one-acts, just
in time for Valentine’s Day. Showtime 7:30 p.m. with a 4 p.m. Sunday matinée.
The Magician’s
Nephew
Cardinal Stritch Theatre
February 7 – 14 “A highly theatrical adaptation of a C.S. Lewis classic, The
Magician’s Nephew recounts the adventures of Young Digory and his friend
Polly through mythical kingdoms and enchanted lands, including Narnia, the
land of the great lion, the evil witch and talking animals.”
Love’s Labours
Won (or, All’s Well that Ends Well)
Boulevard Ensemble Studio Theatre
February 9 – 14 This rare bittersweet romance tells the tale of a physician’s
daughter, Helena, who is deeply in love with the fickle, aloof Bertram.
Bertram, the son of the Countess of Rossillion, is far above Helena in
social status and is immeasurably beyond her reach romantically. Helena can
either accept her restricted social standing (and a life of spinsterhood) or
she must discover a way to simultaneously lift herself up from her
less-than-noble status, achieve social mobility and win Bertram’s
unresponsive heart.
VIDEO OF THE DAY
JK Rowling: The fringe benefits of failure Harvard University, Ted.com “At her Harvard University commencement speech, "Harry Potter" author JK
Rowling offers some powerful, heartening advice to dreamers and overachievers,
including one hard-won lesson that she deems "worth more than any qualification
I ever earned.”
MONDAY, 2/1
IN THE NEWS
Visual Arts/Museums
Michael Kaiser: Where Are the Arts Important?
Huffington Report “As I was preparing for my "Arts in Crisis" tour stops in a series of
southern states I was reflecting on the claims of too many politicians that
the arts are the province of the elite in big coastal cities like New York
and Los Angeles. This is used as an excuse for denigrating public support
for the arts, and by extension, the arts themselves. The argument goes that
investing in the arts only affects a very small, very rich, and very
concentrated segment of our population.”
Nan (Zwicker) Wallschlaeger, Artist
of the Month
Press Release- Rountree Gallery “Throughout the month of February, Rountree Gallery’s Artist of the
Month display at Clare Bank in Platteville will be featuring the artwork
collection of Nan (Zwicker) Wallschlaeger. Nan has always had an
appreciation for fine art and enjoyed some sort of creative outlet. She
received her formal training in Art at UW-Stevens Point in 1968-72 with an
emphasis in textiles. After college she began working in a related field,
but quickly changed career paths with the birth of her son and with the
opportunity for a more interesting and lucrative career at Lands' End. After
her retirement in May of 2008, she started oil painting to further satisfy
that creative need and for sheer enjoyment.”
Do we take art a little too seriously?
The Age “PERHAPS it's because my brain is still on holidays and I'm more
inclined to laze around, wander up the street, and generally while away my
days unproductively than to take art, culture and its consequences - or
anything else for that matter - too seriously. Art is often discussed in
reverent tones , we invest in it, create daunting palaces for it. In the
scale of reverence, it sits ever so slightly below death and religion. A
quick look at my email in-box and you could be forgiven for thinking that
art galleries are the new cathedrals, that every artist has an epic
backstory, and every show needs to be hyped-up like an Oscar nominee. But is
art itself really all that serious?”
Four Men, a Counter and Soon, Revolution
New York Times GREENSBORO, N.C. — The sign still says “F. W. Woolworth Co.” in bright
gold letters running across the building on South Elm Street, just as it did
50 years ago. And within that two-story structure, the same stainless steel
dumbwaiters and commercial appliances line the mirrored walls. The lunch
counter, which includes a bowling-alley-long tabletop that must dwarf any
currently in use, is largely intact; the original chrome and vinyl chairs
are still mounted in the floor. This site is an authentic, half-century-old
relic, a remnant of the mundane, the insignificant, the quaint.”
Arts and Creativity in Education
Doyle loses
on Milwaukee schools, wins on rail
GM Today MADISON – “Appearing to lose his push to give the mayor of Milwaukee
control of the city's schools exemplifies how difficult Gov. Jim Doyle's
final year in office may be. Doyle could never get traction for the idea
with Milwaukee Democrats in the Legislature, which led to the Assembly
adjourning on Thursday a special session the governor called specifically to
pass the bill.”
Shawano repeats as UWGB jazz champion
Shawano Leader GREEN BAY — “Christopher Kent thought this might be a rebuilding year
for the Shawano High School Jazz Band. Wow, was he wrong. Shawano impressed
judges and onlookers at the 40th annual UW-Green Bay Jazz Festival Saturday,
powering through a three-song set en route to the event co-championship. By
virtue of their first-place finish, Shawano earned the right to serve as
opening act for UWGB’s evening concert at the Weidner Center. “A great start
to our competitive season,’’ said Kent, in his 18th year directing Shawano
bands. “And it’s a great reward to warm up in a real ‘green room,’ then open
a concert in a venue like the Weidner.’’
Relief is just a flick away
UWM Post “In these tough economic times, Friday nights out have become yet
another strain on our wallets. This is especially true for college students
who have to worry about paying for school, textbooks, gas, insurance, rent,
etc. Capricious spending is not always in our vocabulary. Yet it is still
possible to have a nice time and forget, even if just for an hour or two,
our financial and academic obligations. Here’s a look at three of the area’s
best theaters where students can get the best bang for their buck:”
Obama to Seek Sweeping Change in ‘No Child’ Law
New York Times The Obama administration is proposing a sweeping overhaul of President
Bush’s signature education law, No Child Left Behind, and will call for
broad changes in how schools are judged to be succeeding or failing, as well
as for the elimination of the law’s 2014 deadline for bringing every
American child to academic proficiency.
Arts: Charles
Clary’s Massive Paper Cuts
Wired “Artist Charles Clary says he wants his constructions to appear
ever-expanding — overwhelming exhibition spaces like replicating viruses or
reverberating sound waves. Inspired by microorganisms, anthills, and
auditory phenomena, he layers colored paper to build up the variegated
textures and sinewy shapes of his room-sized installations.”
Back to School, as an Adjunct
New York Times IN this time of job insecurity, the question may have occurred to you:
Should you consider part-time teaching as a way to improve your finances and
expand your career opportunities? Becoming a teacher can be rigorous and
time-consuming, but at the college level, part-time teaching is a realistic
option for some professionals.”
Genetics Web Sites Win Online Award
New York Times “Two Web sites created at the University of Utah were awarded the
Science Prize for Online Resources in Education for "providing an excellent
source of new material while educating a hugely diverse audience of users."
Community Arts
Wausau's
Grand Theater Hosts Haiti Relief Concert
WSAW-TV Wausau “Hollywood celebrities had their chance, and now the Wausau community's
using music to raise money to help Haiti's earthquake survivors."Everyone is
trying to do something, that just speaks volumes about the people in this
community and the folks in Wausau," says Rev. Phillip Schneider.
Wisconsinites continue to open their hearts and their wallets for the people
of haiti. Sunday evening hundreds of people gathered at Wausau's Grand
Theater, to hear from a Singer/Songwriter who's done missionary work in
Haiti for almost 20 years.”
Literary
Bunny Berigan history
soon to be Web friendly
Beaver Dam Daily Citizen “The Fox Lake Public Library has been awarded a Library Services and
Technology Act grant to work with the University of Wisconsin Digital
Collection Center to digitize part of the collection of Bunny Berigan
materials. These materials are held in the Harriett O’Connell Historical
Room, located in the lower level of the library. The materials to be
digitized will relate to Bunny’s early life and career. LSTA is a federal
program that has been in existence in various forms and with various
priorities since 1956. The grant money comes to the Wisconsin Department of
Public Instruction, Division for Libraries, Technology, and Community
Learning, which in turn describes the federal LSTA program in Wisconsin.”
Reaching Holden Caulfield’s Grandchildren
New York Times “Reading J.D. Salinger’s “The Catcher in the Rye” was a rite of passage
for generations of teenagers who saw in Holden Caulfield, the high school
truant, an enemy of adult phoniness and hypocrisy. The novel, as Charles
McGrath wrote in Mr. Salinger’s obituary, attained cult status in mid-20th
century America for its portrayal of adolescence and “its fierce if
alienated sense of morality and distrust of the adult world.” Does “Catcher
in the Rye” resonate with teenagers today? Does the Holden Caulfield version
of alienation speak to a generation connected on Facebook?”
J.D. Salinger,
Recluse of Cornish, Dies
Valley News Cornish – “J.D. Salinger was grateful for the “protective envelope” he
was given by neighbors here, his wife, Colleen Salinger, said yesterday.
“Cornish is a truly remarkable place. This beautiful spot afforded my
husband a place of awayness from the world. The people of this town
protected him and his right to his privacy for many years.’
At Amazon, Giving in to Demands
New York Times “After a weekend of brinksmanship, Amazon.com on Sunday surrendered to a
publisher and agreed to raise prices on some electronic books. Amazon
shocked the publishing world late last week by removing direct access to the
Kindle editions as well as printed books from Macmillan, one of the
country’s six largest publishers, which had said it planned to begin setting
higher consumer prices for e-books. Until now, Amazon has set e-book prices
itself, with $9.99 as the default for new releases and best sellers.”
Media Arts
Sundance
2010 award winners
WKOW-TV Madison PARK CITY, Utah (WKOW) – “Top honors at the Sundance Film Festival went
to two American films, "Winter's Bone" and "Restrepo." "Winter's Bone" is an
Ozark Mountains drama about a 17-year-old uncovering the fate of her father
among criminal clans in the mountains. It earned the grand jury prize for
American dramas. "Restrepo" won the U.S. documentary prize. It chronicles
the lives of American platoon fighting in Afghanistan.”
For Gamers, the iPhone Is a Player
New York Times “Quick, name the fastest-growing video game platform. Wii? PlayStation?
DS? Try the iPhone.”
VoIP Over 3G Comes to the Iphone-And Maybe Even the iPad
New York Times “Yesterday's iPad launch continues to dominate the tech news today.
Besides announcing the iPad, however, Apple also quietly announced a major
change to its iPhone policies yesterday: Apple now allows developers to use
a 3G connection to make VoIP calls. The first application to make use of
this is iCall (iTunes link), but chances are that Skype, Truphone and other
VoIP providers are already working on updated iPhone apps as well.”
Is the Day of Tiny Ads Finally Here?
New York Times “Every year around this time, a few brave forecasters declare that
advertising on mobile devices is poised to become the next big thing in
marketing. And every year, the results disappoint. But this year, with
technology powerhouses like Apple and Google introducing whole new mobile
devices and buying up ad firms specializing in the small screen, the
forecasts may finally be right.”
Karen Schmeer, Documentary Film Editor, Killed in Hit-and-Run Accident
New York Times “Karen Schmeer, a film editor whose work includes “The Fog of War,” died
Friday in Manhattan, after she was run down by a car when crossing a street,
the police said. She was 39. A principal collaborator with the director
Errol Morris, she edited the Academy Award-winning portrait of Robert
McNamara, the former defense secretary, in 2003, and 1997’s “Fast, Cheap and
Out of Control.” She also edited the 2005 Sydney Pollack film, “Sketches of
Frank Gehry,” and “Sergio,” a documentary directed by Greg Barker, for which
Ms. Schmeer won an editing award at the Sundance Film Festival in 2009.”
Performing Arts
Music
In
Tandem, Chamber Orchestra make engrossing music together
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel “With risk comes the possibility of reward. For the Milwaukee Chamber
Orchestra and In Tandem Theatre, Sunday afternoon's performance of
Stravinsky's "L'histoire du Soldat" ("A Soldier's Tale") involved several
layers of risk: The two organizations had never worked together before, they
were each venturing into each other's worlds, and the piece is just plain
tough to perform.”
Montreal ensemble was star of Bright Star season
La Crosse Tribune “Classical music can be a hard sell on Viterbo University’s Bright Star
Season, but it’s often a classical ensemble that is the bright star in the
lineup. I Musici de Montreal, a 15-member Canadian chamber string orchestra,
is this season’s brightest star so far with simply a sensational all-Russian
masterpiece concert Sunday in Viterbo’s Fine Arts Center Main Theatre. I
feel sad for those who missed this concert because it featured one of the
world’s great string ensembles playing some of the most beloved music.”
The path to success is no longer labeled - Hunting for a record deal won't
cut it anymore. Modern bands are focusing more on the Internet, looking for
film soundtrack opportunities and piggy-backing album sales on designer
T-shirts.
Los Angeles Times “The Troubadour, awash on a recent night in indigo light and chiming
guitars, doesn't look all that different than it did in the 1970s, when
music history plugged in to the club's stage amps and earned the tiny West
Hollywood venue the audacity to relentlessly advertise itself as "the
world-famous Troubadour." The description still fits but, well, the world
isn't as big as it used to be, not for the recording industry or the young
musicians who come to Los Angeles with dreams of gold and platinum. There's
an odd postwar feeling these days in some music-industry circles, a sense
that the revolutionary front of the Digital Age knocked down all the
familiar structures but forgot to build lasting new ones. At the same time,
others see a ragged charm and wide-open opportunity in this new order.”
Biggest Haul at Grammys Goes to Beyoncé
New York Times LOS ANGELES — Affirming her role as one of the reigning queens of pop
music, Beyoncé was the top winner at the 52nd annual Grammy Awards on Sunday
night, taking six prizes, including song of the year for her inescapable hit
“Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It).”
Michael Jackson Tribute a Standout in Grammy Telecast
New York Times “The 52nd annual Grammy Awards placed good intentions at the core of the
show, with a Michael Jackson tribute that was also a protest: “Earth Song.”
It was another thank-you from a music business that continues to owe Jackson
more gratitude, now for being the best-selling act of 2009. His poised son
Prince, accepting his father’s latest Grammy, said his “message was simple:
love,” adding, “We will continue to spread his message and help the world.”
Theater
Theater community shows support for stabbing victims
UWM Post “The Alchemist Theater in Bay View was filled to the brim last Friday as
friends, family, and members of Milwaukee’s theater community came out to
show their support for Andrew Voss and Jason Waszak, victims of a violent
stabbing incident that occurred on Saturday, Jan. 23. Voss was the leading
man in Adam Rapp’s Red Light Winter, a production from the local upstart
theater company Youngblood. The play was extremely well received, and the
first three shows had already sold out. After the Saturday night show,
Waszak and Voss were at the home of a mutual friend on the East Side, when a
roommate came home. Reportedly upset about the party in his home, this
37-year-old man allegedly took a kitchen knife, and sliced Waszak across his
shoulder, chest, and pinky finger, and stabbed Voss in the abdomen.”
Monday Profile: Elwood puts lifetime of stage experience into North Side
theater
La Crosse Tribune “On a snowy January afternoon, the old church at the corner of Logan and
Avon on La Crosse’s North Side is quiet. But at night, the former North
Presbyterian Church comes alive with laughter, music and applause. No longer
a church, it has been reinvented and given new life as The Muse Theatre,
where actors breathe life into characters who populate the small stage. And
the person behind this reinvention is Vicki Elwood.”
Pasadena Playhouse to Shut Down
New York Times The Pasadena Playhouse, the state theater of California, is scheduled to
close its doors on Feb. 7, after the final performance of “Camelot,” because
of deep debt. The entire staff of 37 was laid off on Thursday. “We firmly
believe it would be irresponsible to continue to operate in the same
financial patterns of the past,” Stephen Eich, the executive director of the
playhouse, said in a statement, adding that the theater will explore
bankruptcy as well as financial reorganization. The playhouse, which was
founded in 1917 and has closed and filed for bankruptcy before because of
financial troubles, has been the staging ground for many hits, including
“Looped,” starring Valerie Harper as Tallulah Bankhead, which is scheduled
to start previews at the Lyceum on Broadway this month.”
Other
Easy = True
How ‘cognitive fluency’ shapes what we believe, how we invest, and who will
become a
supermodel
Boston Globe “One of the hottest topics in psychology today is something called
“cognitive fluency.” Cognitive fluency is simply a measure of how easy it is
to think about something, and it turns out that people prefer things that
are easy to think about to those that are hard. On the face of it, it’s a
rather intuitive idea. But psychologists are only beginning to uncover the
surprising extent to which fluency guides our thinking, and in situations
where we have no idea it is at work. Psychologists have determined, for
example, that shares in companies with easy-to-pronounce names do indeed
significantly outperform those with hard-to-pronounce names.”
WHEN YOU GO
Visual Arts/Museums
Art
City: Street Seen
Mary Louise Schumacher Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Through April 25 “City streets, during and after World War II, had a sense of
formality and occasion. Sidewalks were places to participate in humanity,
the metropolis a place of scale and permanence. Men wore hand-tailored suits
and fedoras, women corsages and silk stockings with straight seams. But the
beautiful garments, the cheery and earnest product slogans seen from store
front windows, the glittering marquee lights were like costumes and props,
part of a collective make-believe that made everything feel right and
unchanged. “Street Seen,” an exhibition that opens to museum members today
and to the public on Saturday at the Milwaukee Art Museum, is an in-depth
look at the work of six photographers whose work captured the inexorable
unease that permeated American culture at a time when so much about the
world suddenly seemed untrue.”
Eight Counties
John Michael Kohler Art Museum
Through March 21 This spring, the Arts Center will host Eight Counties, an extensive
juried exhibition celebrating the breadth of art created in east-central
Wisconsin. Showcasing works in all media including photography, painting,
drawing, printmaking, ceramics, woodworking, metals, textiles, glass, and
mixed media, this exhibition is the twelfth in a series of surveys devoted
to highlighting the talents of our region’s exciting artists.
Wondering where to drive this weekend? Try Kohler Arts Center
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel “The John Michael Kohler Arts Center has just opened "Eight Counties," a
juried showcase of what is supposed to be some of the best art being made in
central and eastern Wisconsin today. More than 500 artists vied for
inclusion in the exhibit, which features about 100 artists.”
Arts and Creativity in Education
Union Art Gallery shows off naturally
UWM Post
Through February 28 “Art literally popped out of the walls of the UW-Milwaukee Union Art
Gallery Friday Jan. 29 at the meet and greet with internationally known
artists Roxanne Jackson and Kako Ueda. As though walking through a real life
pop-up book, hand crafted clay sculptures along with hand cut paper pieces
exploded from the walls, and graced the floor. Both artists focus on
physical and human nature in abstract and inventive ways, while sharing
mutual interest in how they were born out of nature, yet are constantly
being influenced and modified by culture.”
Street Pulse and WISPIRG to team up for talent show to benefit homeless in
Madison
Daily Card
February 4 “Members of the Madison homeless community will have the opportunity
to take their talents to the stage in the first ever Street Pulse/WISPIRG
talent show Thursday. The event will be held in the Great Hall of Memorial
Union. Entertainment will begin at 7 p.m., with a free meal for homeless
performers at 6:30 p.m. WISPIRG has partnered with the cooperative to help
promote the talent show.”
Folk Arts/Folklife
School Spotlight: Students' artful creatures will be featured at Verona
library
Wisconsin State Journal This Spring VERONA – “The children's section of the Verona Public Library will
become more fantastical this spring with the addition of sculptures created
by Badger Ridge Middle School students. The eighth-grade students have been
busy making papier-mache sculptures of creatures such as a unicorn and a
polka-dotted sea monster to be placed near a castle in the library. Even
common animals like a cat, a hippo and a dragonfly became more whimsical
with bright paint and vibrant patterns.”
Literary
UW to host controversial author who rejects Islam
Wisconsin State Journal
February 2 “When Ayaan Hirsi Ali's name was first mentioned as a possible
speaker at UW-Madison this semester, she was rejected as too controversial.
But, ultimately, a student committee voted to bring the outspoken critic of
Islam and author of "Infidel" to Madison, despite concerns by the Muslim
Student Association. Hirsi Ali will speak at the Wisconsin Union Theater on
Tuesday as part of the Distinguished Lecture Series.”
Media Arts
Festival of Films in French at UWM
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
February 14 “The 13th annual Festival of Films in French returns to the
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Union from Friday through Feb. 14. The
festival includes films never released commercially in the United States,
including "Conversations With My Gardener" (2007), with Daniel Auteuil as a
man who hires a childhood friend to restore the garden in his family's
rundown manor. It shows at 8 p.m. Friday and 9 p.m. Saturday. Other
highlights include "A Secret" (2007) at 5 p.m. Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday,
with Mathieu Almaric as a man who revisits his family's heritage during
World War II; and "Being Jewish in France" (2007), a documentary shown in
two parts at 3 p.m. Sunday and Feb. 14.”
Performing Arts
Dance
Winterdances warms UWM Mainstage
UWM Post
February 4 “The Peck School of the Arts Department of Dance at UW-Milwaukee will
continue its Race and Identity season with Winterdances: Identity, beginning
this Thursday, Feb. 4 at the UWM Mainstage Theatre. The show features
choreographic work by UWM faculty Ed Burgess, Ferne Bronson and Simone
Ferro. Additionally, there will be new work from Museum of Fine Arts
candidate Shell Benjamin, and guest artist Suniti Dernovsek, from Portland,
Oregon.”
Music
Spring concert preview
UWM Post
Various Sites & Dates “Before we get into speculation about what acts will be playing at
Milwaukee’s new music festival and Summerfest this year (Hint: Radiohead is
never going to happen), let’s turn our attention to the three downtown
venues that provide worthwhile entertainment year round. With a ton of show
announcements pouring out every week, here are five events that we recommend
checking out this spring.”
Skylight whips up charming, frothy 'Figaro'
Miklwaukee Journal Sentinel
Through February 14 “Deception, subterfuge, concealed identities, hapless schemes,
mistaken identities and lots of music - "The Marriage of Figaro" has got it
all. The Skylight Opera Theater's production of Mozart's comic opera that
opened this weekend captures the silliness and froth of the tale and
delivers it with some lovely singing. The plot is a not-so-simple
boy-loves-girl arrangement. She loves him and they plan to marry, but not
until they can extricate themselves from the schemes of their employer and
the entanglements of virtually everyone around them.”
Valentine's Day house
concert
Madison Bach Musicians
February 14 Dear Friends, We will have a Valentine’s Day concert here in the
newly remodeled house! The acoustics are wonderful! I’ll play music on four
different keyboard instruments: Bach and Handel on the 17th-century Flemish
harpsichord; Frescobaldi on the 17th-century Italian harpsichord; Mozart,
Schubert, and Haydn on the 18th-century fortepiano; Chopin and some American
favorites on the 19th-century parlor grand piano. Then we’ll have treats and
refreshments in our new kitchen. The date is Sunday, February 14, from 3-5
pm. Our address is 5729 Forsythia Place in Madison WI 53705. Seating is
limited to 35. Admission is $30. Reservations are required. To hold seats,
please reply email or call (608) 238-6092.
Theater
Next
Act's 'Purgatorio' is gut-wrenching drama
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Through February 21 “Imagine beginning eternity in a cell-like room with the person you
hurt most - and who hurt you most - while you were alive. The door is
unlocked and you're free to leave, on one condition: You must first truly
forgive and be forgiven by the other person in the room. Chilean writer
Ariel Dorfman has been exploring increasingly complex versions of this
premise for almost 40 years, but none of them is as dense as his 2005 play,
"Purgatorio."
French connection: Play sends up Francophiles
77 Square
February 12 “Parlez-vous Francais? In "La Colonie," a new musical by local artist
Ritt Deitz, Quebec invades Wisconsin and everyone must learn to speak
French, whether they like it or not. Deitz's satirical play pokes fun at
snooty Francophiles and Quebecois culture, and will be performed entirely in
French at a staged reading on Feb. 12 in the Hemsley Theatre in Vilas Hall.
Deitz, a filmmaker and amateur musician, is the director of the Professional
French Masters Program at UW-Madison.”
WAB Wisconsin Arts News is a free service of the Wisconsin Arts Board, the state agency responsible for the support and development of the arts in Wisconsin. These articles are from a variety of
sources and, therefore, do not necessarily reflect the views of the Arts Board.
Despite our best efforts, links may fail without warning since each news source posts and archives its articles differently. We apologize for any inconvenience.
Fax: 608/267-0380