A&E

Music students practice to make perfect

Most non-musicians never really understand why practicing is such a central part of a musician's life. Some musicians can spend almost half the day playing their instruments. This is because musicians are on a quest for perfection, and practicing is the main tool they use to get there.

Real guns used in 'Assassins'

When you think of a big budget show, an elaborate set and costumes come to mind. "Assassins" has that. It also has real guns and a huge lighted that says "Kill a President."

Dance unraveled by faculty

When dance comes to mind, many think of freedom, not structure. Finding the process among that freedom was the focus for the lecture demonstration Tuesday by Laura Poole, Gwendolyn Hamm and Liz Shea, who are all professors of modern dance in the Department of Kinesiology.

Film becomes less costly, no less competitive

One camera, one stand, one mic, some creative lighting and three hours are all it takes to make a short film these days. Even a few years ago, such a project would have seemed impossible because of the cost and time directors would spend on it.

Around The Arts

At 4 p.m. today, the IU Art Museum will give audience members a chance to consider Shakespeare from different angles. "Shakespeare in Art, Music and Word" is a special Arts Week program that will bring together performers from the Indiana Shakespeare Festival and the Early Music Institute, IU Dramaturg Tom Shafer and Jenny McComas, the IU Art Museum curator of Western Art after 1800. Henry Fuseli's painting Prospero, Caliban and Miranda in Shakespeare's "The Tempest," Act 1, Scene 2 (ca. 1806-10), and James Fittler's print "Measure for Measure," Act 3, Scene 1 (1794), both in the IU Art Museum's collection, are the inspiration.

A Major Mission

Laura Farruggio is a woman on a mission. That mission is to make music business a major. Students can currently study the field through the Individualized Major Program at IU, a program designed for people determined to choose the precise flavor of their degree. These students can choose their own curriculum with the help of at least one sponsor.

Arts advocate recognized for life-long impact

At 77, Patricia Murphy Pizzo still has the energy to play baseball with her grandchildren in the backyard during their frequent visits. She has demonstrated that kind of energy throughout her career, said her daughter, Fiora Pizzo Alicea. Pizzo created the Friends of Art Bookshop 37 years ago, volunteering for 14 years there to generate numerous scholarships for fine arts students.

Exhibit focuses on the experience of travel

CHICAGO -- The world's first tourists were pilgrims and sages, traveling to sacred and important sites in search of enlightenment.

Excavation of ruins confirm Rome myth

ROME -- Legend has it that Rome was founded in 753 B.C. by Romulus and Remus, the twin sons of Mars, the god of war, who were suckled as infants by a she-wolf in the woods.

Grammys flow to Ray Charles

LOS ANGELES -- Ray Charles had a legendary career that defied categorization and influenced generations of artists, but he never had one of those blockbuster albums that many lesser artists have enjoyed.

HORROR

Friday night rolls around and you are at the local movie theater with a friend watching the latest horror movie. On screen is the image of a slaughtered victim lying on the ground, brains oozing from her head in a pool of blood. Glancing over at your friend, you see her nervously bouncing her knee up and down. Her palms are sweaty. Her mouth gapes open.

Jury of peers tough to find

SANTA MARIA, Calif. -- Attorneys in Michael Jackson's child-molestation trial are turning to the tough job of finding jurors who can judge the pop star not as a legend but as a defendant. Finding a jury of peers is a daunting task when the defendant lives in a storybook mansion with its own amusement park.

Central Park Opens 'Gates' to public

NEW YORK -- The biggest art project in New York City's history debuted Saturday in Central Park with the unfurling of saffron-colored fabric banners suspended in 16-foot-high frames, providing a splash of sunrise 26 years in the making.

Actor Ossie Davis remembered by stars, friends

NEW YORK -- The stars of Hollywood joined the people of Harlem to bid farewell Saturday to actor and activist Ossie Davis, filling a Manhattan church with laughter and tears as a parade of admirers recalled his integrity, courage and devotion to family. Friends, fans and family members crowded into the Riverside Church for the funeral, gazing at a video screen bearing his picture that was hung above an altar.

Umbrellas offer mode of expression, function

The art of the umbrella takes on many forms within the boundaries of a college campus. When the storm clouds congregate across the Hoosier horizon -- as is predicted several days this week -- students use many tactics for sheltering themselves and belongings from spring precipitation. Some students equip themselves with "practical" umbrellas built to last through several storms; other students adore "fashion" umbrellas designed to highlight their rainstorm outfit.

Panel explores enigma of creative process

The question might have evaded the two musicians, two writers and a visual artist had they not been sitting side by side comparing mediums. Instead, the strangers came together to dispel an enigma -- the enigma of the creative process.

Chicago hip-hop finds its stars in the underground scene

CHICAGO -- Before Kanye West and Twista shot to the top of the charts last year, their hometown's hip-hop scene was an unknown underground of artists with huge local followings but no quick route to the national stage.

Chicago playwright brings the 'HEAT'

Community members seeking shelter from the freezing winter chill can hibernate underneath the yellow-orange glow and warmth of stage lights. In celebration of Black History Month, the Bloomington Playwrights Project is performing the play "HEAT," written by Chicago-native Marsha Estell and directed by New York resident Anita Gonzalez, at 8 p.m., Thursday through Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday, until Feb. 26 at the BPP, 312 S. Washington St..

Velvet, rich color dominate runways, capture fall 2005

Artist plans to meet American for dinner

NEW YORK -- A phone message to the nation: Please call 510-872-7326, Marc Horowitz wants to meet you for dinner. Go ahead dial it. If he doesn't answer, just leave him a message. That's what thousands of people have done after seeing his number scrawled on a dry-erase board in a Crate & Barrel catalog photo last fall.