A&E

French actress given lead in 'Da Vinci Code'

PARIS -- Winsome French actress Audrey Tautou of "Amelie" fame has been chosen to play Tom Hanks' partner in cracking "The Da Vinci Code" in the film adaptation of the best-selling novel, the newspaper Le Parisien reported Saturday.

Gala guests show appreciation of theater

Silver star balloons, glowing candles, glitter, pictures and play brochures adorned an upstairs room at the John Waldron Arts Center Saturday evening for the Bloomington Playwrights Project's 25th birthday party.

Amy Fortoul holds final show

IU alumnus Amy Fortoul will present her final performance of her autobiographical one-woman show "this IS my BODY" at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater, 114 E. Kirkwood Ave.. Proceeds from the show will support Fortoul's upcoming tour.

'Contact' opens Sunday at IU Auditorium

For one night, the IU Auditorium stage will transform into a storyteller's dream. The music of Richard Rogders and Lorenz Hart will mesh with pieces by Piotr Ilyitch Tchaikovsky and Georges Bizet to serve as background for three interpretative dance stories. "Contact" also features songs by Dean Martin, Robert Palmer and the Squirrel Nut Zippers.

BPP throws 25th birthday party

Twenty-five years ago, two young men created a venue for the arts, a safe place where they could perfect their craft and showcase their work. Saturday, these two men will be returning to Bloomington for the Silver Season Gala to celebrate 25 years of successful new works.

A runway in Ballantine

IU Auditorium fosters variety in shows

Acrobats, dancers and Broadway musicals will take to the IU Auditorium stage this semester. IU Auditorium Director Doug Booher said he hopes the season stuns and excites audiences throughout Bloomington and Indiana.

Around The Arts

Indiana Public Interest Research Group will hold a Tsunami Relief Benefit at 7 p.m. tonight at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. Performers will include Jenn Cristy, Paris, Salaam and Sophia Travis. All proceeds from the show will be donated to the American Red Cross to aid the Indian Ocean Relief Effort.

women discover inner author

Award-winning songwriter Beth Lodge-Rigal leans forward and with an excited voice, describes the "ripple effect" she hopes to initiate by teaching the Bloomington branch of classes called Women Writing for (a) Change.

Puppeteers of America president pulls strings in major Broadway productions

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Paul Mesner romps around his studio in shorts and tennis shoes, pointing out the special mouth hinges and weighted eye balls that go into making the perfect puppet.

Hemingway house sparks feud

KETCHUM, Idaho -- Ernest Hemingway's house near Sun Valley isn't exactly as he left it on the morning 44 years ago when he put a shotgun to his head and killed himself. But many artifacts remain from when the Pulitzer Prize-winning author called Idaho home.

Diversity festival celebrates MLK Day

Golden Globe selects this year's winning films

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. -- The Golden Globes set up an Academy Awards rematch between Hilary Swank and Annette Bening, while Jamie Foxx firmed up his Oscar front-runner status.

From New York to Australia: studying in Sydney

Studying abroad is a once-in-a-lifetime experience in which students have the opportunity to live and adapt to the lifestyle of another culture.

Theatre, dance hold hands

For the first time, two performance giants of this campus have "joined forces."

Emerging artists find voice in TV dramas

NEW YORK -- When Casey Stratton was a struggling singer-songwriter a few years ago, he had idealistic notions about artistic integrity.

Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt opens up about his songwriting

NEW YORK -- Stephin Merritt usually has a song cycling through his head

supplying creativity

Illustrator finds true calling in drawing animals

Lexington, Ill. -- If he never sold another one of his pieces, Ben Mehl would live life happy. That's how much the 29-year-old Lexington native loves his true calling.

Jackie O's paper wedding dress on exhibit

Chicago -- When John F. Kennedy and Jacqueline Bouvier married in September 1953, the nation was enchanted by the wedding, the couple and the young bride's off-the-shoulder gown. Now two artists have used paper to replicate the wedding dress in connection with an exhibit of her clothing, "Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years," currently at Chicago's Field Museum.