Star City Blog

Famed Alloy Orchestra returns to The Ross

by Justin Senkbile

For over 20 years now, the Alloy Orchestra has been composing and performing their new scores for silent-era classics around the world. Though it's estimated that about three-fourths of all films made during that relatively brief period in film history have been lost forever, there are still a lot of amazing movies that have survived. And from Buster Keaton's “The General” to Dziga Vertov's “Man With a Movie Camera”, Alloy has composed scores for most of them.

They call themselves an orchestra, and live musical performance with movies is an old idea (an essential part of silent-era moviegoing, in fact, and the biggest source of employment for musicians in America until the depression). But there isn't much about The Alloy Orchestra that one could call “classical”. Made up of Terry Donahue, Ken Winokur and Roger Miler (co-founder of and guitarist for post-punk juggernauts Mission of Burma), Alloy composes and performs their distinctive, surprisingly versatile scores using what their website calls“an outrageous assemblage of peculiar objects”.

Of those objects, Donahue is responsible for accordion, musical saw, the occasional bit of vocals, and junk – a term used affectionately to describe the group's rather large rack of unusual bits and pieces of percussion. Winokur, the director of the group, plays clarinet and also dabbles with the junk, while Miller mans the synthesizer.

For the first of their two performances this year at The Ross, Alloy is performing their new score for Karl-Heinz Martin's rare “From Morning to Midnight”. I, unfortunately, am one of the many who have not yet been able to see the film. But from all accounts, its a first-rate German Expressionist freakout, one that supposedly exceeds even the gothic hallucinations of its famous cousin, “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari”.

Adapted from Georg Kaiser's play, “From Morning to Midnight” was apparently so unusual that German theaters refused to show it after its release in 1920. It was thought to be a bit too challenging for the average viewer; and the Nazis liked it even less when they showed up. An original negative was found in Tokyo in 1959, and was restored in 1987.

Their second performance will be alongside a compilation of silent shorts collected under the title “Wild and Weird”. Lively one-reel shorts were what film studios churned out most until feature-length movies took hold. Not only are all of these ten movies truly strange, they also provide an interesting look at the variety of subjects and styles in vogue at the time. From stop-motion animation to trick films to flat-out avant-garde exploration, there's a little bit of everything in this program.

The longest of the bunch is “The Cameraman's Revenge”, a marital infidelity tale performed impressively by reanimated bugs that lasts for about 13 minutes. There's also the alternately grotesque and funny “The Acrobatic Fly”, an early experiment with the extreme close up that, since it required so much light, produced a stark, high-contrast image and presumably a few fried flies. There's also a wonderfully creepy magic-trick movie called “The Red Spectre”, which additionally serves as a nice bit of kitsch just in time for Halloween.

There's an unforgettable thrill in seeing films in a theater with live musical accompaniment. No less than Roger Ebert, who's certainly seen this sort of thing a time or two, opines that Alloy is simply “the best in the world at accompanying silent films”. These two performances would qualify as unmissable events, even if the films weren't already so interesting in themselves.

The Alloy Orchestra performs alongside “From Morning to Midnight” on Wednesday, October 5^th, and “Wild and Weird” on Thursday, October 6^th. Both performances are at 7:30 pm at the Mary Reipma Ross Media Arts Center, 13^th and R streets.

Video Journal: TADA's "Big River" runs through O'Donnell Auditorium

By Ladd Wendelin

Float down the muddy waters of the Mississippi with a fully staged extravaganza featuring some of the best veteran actors and singers from TADA Production’s 10 year history plus the Lincoln Choral Artists in Big River in Concert, on stage at O'Donnell Auditorium (50th and Huntington) for 2 shows only - Friday, September 30 at 7:30 pm and Sunday, October 2 at 2:00 pm 
  
Big River is late country music legend Roger Miller’s musical adaptation of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain’s classic tale of a boy and a runaway slave making their way down the river while navigating across a uniquely American tapestry of unforgettable characters.

Also featured are The Lincoln Choral Artists (formally Lincoln Civic Choir) who will kick off their 32nd season with this collaboration. The group was founded in 1979 and is an adult community choir of 50 to 60 singers from Lincoln and the surrounding areas. They have also collaborated with the Nebraska Wesleyan University Choir and Lincoln’s Symphony Orchestra in concerts at the Lied Center and other performance venues.  

The musical will also mark TADA's Artistic Director Robert D. Rook's 20th year of directing and will be dedicated to former NWU president John White. A special presentation to former NWU theatre director Henry H. Blanke will also take place during the performance.

For reservations call 402-438-TADA (8232) or on-line at www.tadaproductions.info All tickets for this special event are only $18. Check or cash only.

Theater critic Ladd Wendelin dropped by rehearsals this week to chat with director Robert D. Rook, music director Cris Rook, Steven Rich, and Cork Ramer. See and hear some of the sights and sounds of Big River in Concert below:

 

 

 

 

Award-winning documentary "Bag It" at Meadowlark Coffee October 1st

Community leaders at Open Harvest Co-op Grocery and Meadowlark Coffee and Espresso are hosting a screening of the new, award-winning environmental documentary Bag It at Meadowlark Coffee at 1624 South Street on Saturday, October 1st.

Bag It follows “everyman” Jeb Berrier as he tries to make sense of our dependence on plastic bags. Although his quest starts out small, Jeb soon learns that the problem extends past landfills to oceans, rivers and ultimately human health.

The average American uses about 500 plastic bags each year, for about twelve minutes each. This single-use mentality has led to the formation of a floating island of plastic debris in the Pacific Ocean more than twice the size of Texas.

The film explores these issues and identifies how our daily reliance on plastic threatens not only waterways and marine life, but human health, too. Two of the most common plastic additives are endocrine disruptors, which have been shown to link to cancer, diabetes, autism, attention deficit disorder, obesity and infertility.

Open Harvest Co-op Grocery and Meadowlark Coffee recognize the importance of reducing single-use plastics for the safety of our community and environment.

Screening Date: Saturday, October 1, 2011
Screening Time: 7pm
Screening Location: 1624 South Street
Admission/Suggested Donation: FREE

This event is open to the public.

 

!Women Art Revolution Opening at The Ross

An entertaining and revelatory “secret history” of Feminist Art, opening at The Ross on Friday, October 7, !WOMEN ART REVOLUTION deftly illuminates this under-explored movement through conversations, observations, archival footage and works of visionary artists, historians, curators and critics.

“By the end of the film, you'll be searching out the work of Judy Chicago, Sheila de Bretteville, Faith Ringgold, Miranda July and the Guerrilla Girls, among many others,” according to G. Allen Johnson, film critic for the San Francisco Chronicle.

Film Critic Melissa Anderson writes in the Village Voice, “!WOMEN ART REVOLUTION moves briskly, unfolding as one lively sit-down after another with artists, scholars, and curators who established themselves at the height of second-wave feminism.”

“Anyone seeking a dialectic, of course, can look elsewhere, but Hershman Leeson's film is a valuable resource on a movement whose issues remain relevant,” opines John Anderson in Variety.

!WOMEN ART REVOLUTION is showing at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center on Friday, October 7 through Thursday, October 13.  Show times are available at www.TheRoss.org, by consulting your newspaper, or by calling the MRRMAC film information line at 402.472.5353.

This program is being presented with the support of the Nebraska Arts Council and the Nebraska Cultural Endowment.

Starting from its roots in 1960s antiwar and civil rights protests, !WOMEN ART REVOLUTION details major developments in women’s art through the 1970s and explores how the tenacity and courage of these pioneering artists resulted in what is now widely regarded as the most significant art movement of the late 20th century.

For more than forty years, filmmaker Lynn Hershman Leeson (Teknolust, Strange Culture) has collected a plethora of interviews with her contemporaries—and shaped them into an intimate portrayal of their fight to break down barriers facing women both in the art world and society at large. With a rousing score by Sleater-Kinney’s Carrie Brownstein, !W.A.R. features Miranda July, The Guerilla Girls, Yvonne Rainer, Judy Chicago, Marina Abramovic, Yoko Ono, Cindy Sherman, Barbara Kruger, B. Ruby Rich, Ingrid Sischy, Carolee Schneemann, Miriam Schapiro, Marcia Tucker and countless other groundbreaking figures.

2011 Lincoln Arts Festival Saturday & Sunday 9/24-25

Ready to "Fall for Art" Again?  Artists from all over the nation are hoping you are...

Artists from 17 states, including both coasts and a great selection from our own region are eager to show you their latest work. They'll be in the west parking lot at SouthPointe Pavilions this September 24th and 25th. Show hours are the same as last year, Saturday from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Sunday from 10:00 AM till 5:00 PM. We're moving into our second decade with new food vendors, great music, and an expanded Patron Sponsor program. We've got a great mix of disciplines and you WILL find a lot of things you like.

The Huskers will be in Wyoming so you'll have plenty of opportunity to shop for some new art for your life. Some past favorites will be there, including Wendell Turner with his amazing palm trees and Jonathon Stopper with jewelry to die for. And some new friends, like our emerging artist this year, Katie Frisch with her exquisite books and fabric works. It seems like we never lack for painters with a new take on things, and this year is no exception. Ben Schuh will reinterpret portraits for you, and Karen Heuton will once again dazzle you with her large scale landscapes. Come enjoy the festival, just because it really is a festival, but stay for the artists and savor their new works.

The Patron Sponsor Program: Everyone Wins!

For several years now we have been building our Patron Sponsor Program because everyone who comes in contact with it loves it. Lets say you're someone who loves arts festivals in general and, quite likely, ours specifically and you think that it's likely you'll spend $100 or more. Have we got a deal for you.

Pay us $125, and $25 of that goes to supporting the work of the Lincoln Arts Council. The remaining $100 is yours to spend at the festival. That in itself is a good deal, but only the beginning. At 9:30 AM on Saturday morning we'll serve you a breakfast, with live music and a chance to meet and mingle with many of your friends and fellow art lovers. For more fun, a raffle will distribute door prizes of art from this year's artists. All this is for Patron Sponsors only. (Okay, the Mayor will also be there and a number of luminaries in the Lincoln art scene.) More...

Give a little, Get a LOT!!

The Lincoln Arts Festival is just around the corner and we are calling out to all of you who would like to lend a hand in helping make this year's arts festival be the best yet! Last year more than 10,000 attended this remarkable event! We need your help have yet another fun, clean and successful festival! If interested in volunteering between September 23-25, please email Mollie at mollie@artscene.org.

Click here to see how you can lend a helping hand.

Music! Dancing! (Okay, not so much dancing.)

Of course it's fine if you do dance, we'll enjoy the show.

We know a festival isn't a festival without music, which is why we are lining up a great group of musicians to keep things lively. The FabTones, the Toasted Ponies, the Vince Learned Project and a number of other groups will keep your feet tapping at the entertainment pavilion. Food and drink to quench your thirst and tables and chairs to rest your feet will keep the entertainment tent a welcoming place.

Over by the children's tent you'll find Jim King once again charming the socks off the little ones. We have to admit that sometimes the adult crowd that gathered to watch Jim's young audience dance exceeded the crowd in the entertainment tent. It's all musical fun to make your experience at the Lincoln Arts Festival very good time.

 

Kudos to the City of Lincoln for Paving Over the 8th Street Railroad Tracks

By Dennis Kornbluh

On August 17th I wrote about how the Raised Railroad Tracks on South 8th Street are a Danger to Cyclists. A couple of days ago I noticed that the hazard had been eliminated.  The city's solution was to pave over the tracks, and the end result is a huge improvement in bicycling safety for those who ride this popular corridor that leads to and from the Haymarket.

As much as I'd like to take the credit for highlighting the issue, it's very likely that the wheels were already in motion to fix the problem.  I happened to witness two bicycle accidents in two trips to the Haymarket Farmer's Market this summer, but there were many more.  I have heard multiple accounts about accidents in this location since I wrote about the problem last month. I suspect that the numbers were alarming enough to bring the issue to the attention of city officials a while ago.

Kudos to the City of Lincoln for addressing this problem.  It's heartening to see government act responsibly on an important matter of public safety.

MOVIE REVIEW: Big Oil Versus Little People in “The Pipe”

by Justin Senkbile

Risteard O'Domhnaill's “The Pipe” takes place almost entirely on the shores of Rossport, a small fishing village in northwest Ireland. But it seems destined to speak pretty directly to Americans, and perhaps Nebraskans in particular. Besides the BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico , which still feels strikingly fresh, the headlines across our state regarding the proposed Keystone XL pipeline are nearly impossible to avoid.

Eight-years in the making, O'Domhnaill's film follows several of Rossport's residents – principally Pat O'Donnell, who emerges as the hero – as they fight against the building of a Shell oil pipeline that would endanger the land and waters they depend on, and could potentially be violating European law.

Since Shell's infinite pocketbook lets them plug on undeterred, the major drama comes from the fact that these fighting citizens seem only to be flailing. But they're either unaware of or unconcerned about that - no amount of infighting, police interference or silence from the unknowable corporation seems able to dampen their resolve.

The opening titles state that Shell refused to participate in the film. So for most of the picture their existence is pretty abstract, represented only conceptually in the first half, like a rumored storm, and then by their massive, black pipe-laying ship in the last half. You'd think they could've at least chosen a less war-like vessel for their grand entrance.

Several public figures have spoken out against our pipeline, but the population of Rossport, as depicted in the film, is virtually on its own. The entire police force seems to have been mobilized against them. Ostensibly, the cops are there to keep things from getting out of hand - which none of these weatherbeaten family men and women seem intent on doing - but they look and act like Shell security guards. In fact, later on in the film, their reflective yellow neon vests make it almost impossible to differentiate the the cops from the oil company men.

O'Domhnaill's images of this green and misty section of Ireland are stunning, and really give the impression that this is rarefied, sacred ground. Which only adds to the blood boiling outrage this real-life David and Goliath tale elicits so well. No matter where you're from, “The Pipe” is an effective, hard-hitting bit of cine-journalism, but for Nebraskans it may feel more like a call to action.

“The Pipe” is playing at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center, 13^th and R streets, through September 29.

 

Nebraska's "Good" Sandwich

By Dennis Kornbluh

I received an email from the publisher of a website called good.is, a trendy eZine that has some great material (OK, I'm a little jealous). They are soliciting opinions about each state's "GOOD" sandwich, which they define as "not just...the most famous sandwich from your state---we're looking for the sandwiches with the most historical or cultural significance, ones that can be assembled from local ingredients, and ones that support local independent businesses".  

My first thought was "What a silly question." One sandwich for a state this large and diverse?  And historically significant to whom?  I don't think Native Americans ate sandwiches, and neither did the pioneers, to my knowledge.  Besides, the other states really have a leg up on Nebraska in the sandwich department. Who can compete with New Jersey's submarine sandwiches, Pennsylvania's Philly cheese steaks, or New York's pizza? [I eat my pizza folded in half, so that makes it a sandwich.] Massachusetts has grinders, the Southern states have their "po boys", and on and on.

Being Cornhuskers, shouldn't we have a corn sandwich of some kind? Perhaps the closest thing is a corndog, but it would be a stretch to call food on a stick a sandwich. So the question remains: What does Nebraska have in the way of a historically significant sandwich?

I thought of the Runza sandwich, which is certainly unique, and might be considered emblematic of Nebraska, given that their stores are scattered all across the state. But the focus of this exercise seems to be on small, independent businesses rather than chains, so that's out.  

I'm a big fan of Maggie's "Avocado Melt", which is a wrap, and yes, that's also a sandwich, in my book (see definition below). It's made from fresh local ingredients (except the avocadoes, which are fresh, but not local, I presume), and they do support local independent businesses (the farms they buy from). But is it historically significant? I don't see how, but perhaps I can be enlightened.

Then I discovered something quite unexpected: there is evidence that the Reuben sandwich may have been invented in Omaha.   There's a plausible alternate theory that it was invented in New York, but New Yorker's already lay claim to so many food inventions, I hope they'll humbly concede this sliver of culinary history to Nebraska.

But I'm not sure that historical significance alone settles the question.  How local are the ingredients of a Reuben sandwich likely to be? We could make the necessary corned beef and pastrami here at home, given our many cattle ranches.   We could also grow the cabbage to make sauerkraut.  But do we make swiss cheese in Nebraska?  We have Farmstead First, an artisan cheese maker in Raymond, but I think the odds are much better that swiss cheese would come from Wisconsin or elsewhere.  Even so, for lack of a better candidate, let's call the Reuben a plausible choice for the GOOD Nebraska sandwich.

Definition of a Sandwich

The folks at good.is also want to know how we define a "sandwich", so I'll offer an opinion on that electrifying question, as well.

The way I see it, a sandwich must be "finger food", i.e. you must be able to eat it using nothing but your hands and without getting terribly messy.  The sandwich probably became popular because of its convenience, especially for the working class, who prefer to avoid utensils while simultaenously eating, driving,  and texting.

A sandwich is not a dessert, so an ice cream sandwich really isn't a sandwich, to my way of thinking.

Sandwiches are typically eaten for lunch, but there are breakfast sandwiches (e.g. egg and cheese on a roll), dinner sandwiches (e.g. cheeseburger), and midnight snack sandwiches (all varieties).  I realize that this may be controversial, but I think pizza is a kind of sandwich.  When you make a pizza, you just happen to be baking the bread along with the other ingredients.  A sandwich does not require two slices of bread, or, in fact, any bread at all. You may use a tortilla, pita, pancake or other edible wrap.  By this definition, a burrito is a sandwich, as is a spring roll, an egg roll, and a tostada.  I would even call Korean Bulgogi (seasoned meat wrapped in lettuce) a sandwich.

I think that should settle the two important questions put to us by our friends at good.is.  Feel free to chime in with your two cents.

MOVIE REVIEW: “The Names of Love” and the Meaning of Names

by Justin Senkbile

“The Names of Love” is the title given to director Michel Leclerc's second feature for its release to English speaking audiences. And it's appropriate enough for a movie that organizes politics, immigration and the like around a centerpiece of a fiery romance. But the original French title, “Le noms de gens”, which translates roughly to “The Names of People”, feels much more on point.

After all, the film starts off with its protagonist, Arthur Martin (Jacques Gamblin), delivering to the camera a droll, fretful monologue on the commonness of his name. It turns out that isn't even really his family name (Martin seemed a safer choice than Cohen during the German occupation), but before we learn that we meet Baya Benmahmoud (Sara Forestier). She's of French and Algerian descent, but everyone thinks Benmahmoud is a Brazilian name.

Baya, as Arthur will eventually go on to describe her, is “too liberated”. Aggressively sexual and impulsive, the only thing she seems to know for sure is that the majority of the French population are fascists, a word she throws around pretty loosely, and yet another of the many loaded “names” Leclerc constantly keeps his eye on. Her politics are black and white (“they have to be”, as she says), but everything else is up for grabs.

Arthur on the other hand, though a committed man of the left, is far from reactionary. He comes from a home where nearly everything important goes left unsaid and confronted. And sexual repression is the least of it: his grandparents who died at Auschwitz have, thanks to years of systematic though well-intentioned omission, been virtually wiped from the family's collective memory by the time he's an adult.

The two do come together, as all unlikely movie couples do. And their romance, which the film traces, is a mix of the rapturous and the downright impossible. Gamblin and Forestier's chemistry is never entirely believable, but the actors so fully inhabit their respective roles that it never really needs to be.

Politics and sex course through the film with equal intensity, but at its most basic level it's a quick, smart and effective comedy. From Arthur's above-mentioned opening remarks to the sheer speed, size and weight of the film, even down to the shellfish, “The Names of Love” owes quite a bit to Woody Allen's 1977 masterpiece, “Annie Hall”.

So what's in a name? Everything and nothing, as “The Names of Love” asserts. It's the kind of sweeping paradox that only the French (and our favorite neurotic New Yorker) could make so charmingly, bitterly sweet.

“The Names of Love” is playing at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center, 13^th and R streets, through September 29.

 

Acclaimed Author, Poet to Take The Helm of UNL's Prairie Schooner

The Prairie Schooner, the quarterly literary magazine published at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln for the past 85 years, is charting a new course under the direction of its new editor, Kwame Dawes.

This fall, Dawes assumed the role as Glenna Luschei Editor of the magazine. The editorship is endowed thanks to a generous gift from Glenna Luschei, a UNL alumna and former Prairie Schooner editorial assistant. In 2001, Luschei endowed Prairie Schooner in perpetuity through the University of Nebraska Foundation. Besides the editorship, the gift supports special editorial projects and annual awards recognizing outstanding contributions to the magazine.

“I just thought this was a fantastic opportunity,” Dawes said of his new role. “To take over a journal of the prestige, tradition and reputation of Prairie Schooner was an exciting idea to me.”

Dawes also joined the faculty as a Chancellor’s Professor and professor of English

He said he aims to uphold the magazine’s tradition and strict code of ethics that guide judging for the magazine’s annual prizes. But he also looks to expand readership, attract more international writers to submit their work and incorporate more translated works. Efforts are already under way to revamp the magazine’s website and blog system.

Dawes most recently was a Distinguished Poet in Residence and professor of English at the University of South Carolina, where he taught since 1992.

He is the author of 19 poetry collections, three works of fiction, several books of literary criticism and aesthetics, four anthologies, and several produced plays. He also has several other forthcoming projects.

He reported on the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake in Haiti and contributed poems and other writings to the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, which earlier this year won the National Press Club Joan Friedenberg Award for Online Journalism. His recent released poetry collection, “Wheels,” includes some of those poems. That work also has been featured on PBS’ “NewsHour” and in USA Today.

His list of accomplishments includes an Emmy Award. He received the honor in 2009 for LiveLoveHope.com, his multimedia documentary project on HIV/AIDS in Jamaica.

He maintains many roles within the literary world. He is the programming director of the Calabash International Literary Festival, which is held annually in Jamaica. He also is the associate poetry editor of Peepal Tree Press, the leading publisher of Caribbean literature today, and he has served as an editor for a number of journals and book series.

He has an extensive record of publication, a diverse set of experiences and a global perspective that will aid him in his new role, said Susan Belasco, chair of the English Department.

“We are thrilled to welcome Kwame Dawes -- a citizen of the world -- who brings his extraordinary creativity and leadership to Prairie Schooner,” Belasco said. “Professor Dawes will build on the success of Prairie Schooner and attract new and emerging writers from all over the globe.”

Dawes succeeded Hilda Raz, who retired in 2010. Raz, who began teaching at UNL in the 1960s, became the editor of the Prairie Schooner in 1987 and founded the Prairie Schooner Book Prizes in poetry and short fiction.