All That Jazz
When Ariel Alexander stands to play a solo on her saxophone, she's surprisingly small, both in stature and presence. She doesn't throw her head back when she plays, and her cheeks don't flush red or balloon out as the solo crescendos.
When Ariel Alexander stands to play a solo on her saxophone, she's surprisingly small, both in stature and presence. She doesn't throw her head back when she plays, and her cheeks don't flush red or balloon out as the solo crescendos.
FREETOWN, Sierra Leone -- Actor Michael Douglas wrapped up a trip to war-ravaged Sierra Leone on Wednesday, checking out vast stockpiles of surrendered arms and talking with victims of the ruthless 10-year conflict. LONDON -- Madonna has complained to Britain's press watchdog about a magazine article claiming she was pregnant, the Press Complaints Commission said Wednesday. NEW YORK -- Bass vocalist Jerome Hines, who spent 41 years performing at the Metropolitan Opera, more than any other principal singer in its history, has died. He was 81.
NEW YORK -- For their new Showtime series, Penn and Teller chose a title that proclaimed their skepticism for such things as weight-loss products, feng shui and creationism; for end-of-the-world forecasts and the purity claims by bottled-water marketers; for ESP, sex aids and "second-hand smoke." Of course, the title they arrived at -- a more graphic version of "poppycock" -- isn't usually found in a family newspaper. No matter. Viewers up for a weekly dose of artful debunking are urged to watch what will here be designated "Penn & Teller: (Poppycock)!" "We're gonna hunt down as many purveyors of (poppycock) as we can," pledged Penn Jillette (the tall, pony-tailed one) when the series began its 13-episode run two weeks ago.
NEW YORK -- The threatened war with Iraq has politicized the nation's poets, starting at the very top. In comments rarely heard from a sitting U.S. poet laureate, Billy Collins has publicly declared his opposition to war and says he finds it increasingly difficult to keep politics out of his official job as a literary advocate. While at least three of Collins' predecessors also have stated their opposition to war, an incumbent laureate usually sticks to art for art's sake. Poets laureate are not political appointees; the selection is made by the Librarian of Congress, a post currently held by James H.
LONDON -- Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey will soon be named the new artistic director of the Old Vic Theater, a newspaper reported.
BOSTON -- Actress Jane Fonda withdrew her $12.5 million donation to the Harvard Graduate School of Education, derailing plans to establish a research center to study gender in education.
MOSCOW -- What does the stern-faced commander in chief of a million-strong army have in common with a self-effacing elf from a popular children's film? Nothing -- except perhaps a longish nose, piercing eyes and a certain indefinable similarity.
CHICAGO -- Paul Freeman calls it "preaching the gospel of symphonic diversity." Freeman, the musical director of the Chicago Sinfonietta, sees the midsize orchestra he helped start in 1987 as more than a chance to pursue musical excellence. He sees it as a means to extend the reach of classical music beyond the realm of white musicians playing music by white men to white audiences.
A year after Boxcar books opened its doors to the Bloomington public, the independent and non profit bookstore celebra-ted its Feb. 1 birthday with a sale on books, readings by local artists, food, a raffle, as well as two separate auctions.
NEW YORK -- The White House said Wednesday it postponed a poetry symposium because of concerns that the event would be politicized. Some poets had said they wanted to protest military action against Iraq.
LAS VEGAS -- Mike Tyson was talking boxing, while Meg Ryan was nearby shooting pictures. Tyson may be coming off his worst beating at the hands of Lennox Lewis, but Hollywood still recognizes a star -- even one as faded as Tyson.
Wednesday evening the IU Philharmonic Orchestra performed its first concert of the semester, and what an interesting concert it proved to be. All of the pieces featured on the program were relatively obscure to the casual listener and all featured rather interesting takes on musical tradition.
CHICAGO -- The Art Institute of Chicago has canceled an exhibit on the history of Nazi art looting, the museum announced Wednesday. The exhibit, "Nazi Art Looting and Its Legacy," was tentatively scheduled for this spring and summer. The exhibit was to include historical photos with text and possibly three works in the museum's collection related to the topic.
NEW YORK -- Norman Mailer did not expect to make it to 40, and now finds himself twice that age. He has lived longer than Ernest Hemingway and most of his other literary heroes. His body aches, but his mind remains strong.
NEW YORK -- When "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" comes out this summer, many young readers will rush to their local libraries to get a copy. But for this -- and other books -- they likely will receive a lesson in patience.
A "cheers" to the lassies, a bagpipe rendition and a birthday cake big enough to feed an army -- all contributed to the success of the annual Burns Night Supper. The dinner took place Saturday evening inside the Indiana Memorial Union's Tudor Room. The Scottish Society of Greater Bloomington hosted the celebration with a cuisine and itinerary to make the would-be 244-year-old Robert Burns do a jig in his grave.
Throughout world history, the female breast has been immortalized in odes, poems, paintings and sculptures. For some, the breast evokes a sense of beauty; for others, a sense of grief and loss.
The love and drive of the arts bring inspiration to Bloomington. Bloomington's newest gallery, The Gallery North, plans to inform and educate the community about the many creative outlets of a work of art. While the gallery has been in operation since December 2002, the grand opening of the gallery is from 5:30 to 10 p.m on Feb. 7. A silent auction will be held with a portion of the proceeds going to the Hoosier Hills Food Bank. Well-known Nashville artist Charlene Marsh will be the guest artist featured in the Spectrum Gallery. The gallery was started at the end of September 2002 by gallery president Jackie White and Paula Bates. They wanted to offer a venue for emerging as well as well-established artists, Bates said. The club of 38 members spans from young student members to a woman in her 80s.
MALIBU, Calif. -- Robert Rockwell, who played dozens of television roles including Philip Boynton, the shy biology teacher and love interest for Eve Arden in the 1950s sitcom "Our Miss Brooks," has died at age 82, his family said Monday.
NEW YORK -- That golden haze on the meadow is a bit brighter the second time around. The current Broadway revival of "Oklahoma!" received a muted welcome from many of the critics when it opened at the Gershwin Theatre last March. Tasteful, a tad sedate and a little reverential, the production was intimidated perhaps by the show's standing as a landmark of the American musical theater.