MOVEMENT: ARTS and CULTURE

THE ARTIST SERIES PRESENTS LES BALLETS TROCKADERO de MONTE CARLO

2012-01-26T08:45:00.000-08:00

TUESDAY, JANUARY 31st
TIMES-UNION CENTER – MORAN THEATER

JACKSONVILLE, FL – Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, or the Trocks as they are lovingly referred to by their fans, have become an international phenomenon! The all-male cast of burly ballerinas performs a wide range of ballet and modern dance styles. With their impeccable technical skill as well as side splitting comedic timing, this performance is sure to have you rolling in the aisles with laughter!
The Trocks perform at Jacksonville’s Times-Union Center on Tuesday, January 31st at 7:30PM.

Founded in 1974 by a group of ballet enthusiasts for the purpose of presenting a playful, entertaining view of traditional, classical ballet in parody form and en travesti, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo has established itself over the years as a major dance phenomenon throughout the world, appearing in over 30 countries and over 500 cities worldwide.

The original concept of the show has not changed since 1974; it is a company of professional male dancers performing the full range of the ballet and modern dance repertoire. The comedy is achieved by incorporating and exaggerating the foibles, accidents, and underlying incongruities of serious dance. The fact that men dance all the parts – heavy bodies delicately balancing on toes as swans, sylphs, water sprites, romantic princesses, or angst-ridden Victorian ladies – enhances, rather than mocks,

the spirit of dance as an art form, amusing the most knowledgeable, as well as novices, in the audiences.

Tickets start at $35.00 and can be purchased at www.artistseriesjax.org or The Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373. Discounts are available for groups of 10+ by calling (904) 632-3228 or groupsales@fscj.edu.

For more information on the show, visit http://www.trockadero.org/.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call

The Artist Series Box Office at

(904) 632-3373

(toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the

The Artist Series’ website: www.artistseriesjax.org

Monty Python’s SPAMALOT

2012-01-25T15:16:00.000-08:00

THE ARTIST SERIES PRESENTS

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 16th at 7:30PM
TIMES-UNION CENTER – MORAN THEATER

JACKSONVILLE, FL – Back to taunt Jacksonville for a second time, The Tony Award-winning Best Musical of 2005, Monty Python's Spamalot, will return to the fair city of Jacksonville for one night only on Thursday, February 16th at 7:30PM at the Times-Union Center’s Moran Theater.

Lovingly "ripped-off" from the internationally famous comedy team's most popular motion picture, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Monty Python's Spamalot is the winner of three 2005 Tony Awards including Best Musical and Best Director (Mike Nichols), as well as the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards for Best Musical.

The original cast recording of Monty Python’s Spamalot recently won the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album.

Based on the Tony Award-winning direction of Mike Nichols and the riotous choreography of Casey Nicholaw, Monty Python's Spamalot features a book by Eric Idle, based on the screenplay of Monty Python and the Holy Grail by Monty Python creators Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin, with music and lyrics by the Grammy Award-winning team of Mr. Idle and John Du Prez.

Telling the legendary tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, and their quest for the Holy Grail, Monty Python's Spamalot features a chorus line of dancing divas and knights, flatulent Frenchmen, killer rabbits and one legless knight. Monty Python's Spamalot is produced by Stephen B. Kane, Michael McFadden and Phoenix Entertainment.

Mike Nichols has been acclaimed as one of the great American directors in film, theater and television. He has won the Academy Award and eight Tony Awards. He recently received the Directors' Guild of America Award for Lifetime Achievement as well as a DGA Award for the direction of the HBO adaptation of Angels in America.

Casey Nicholaw’s outstanding work on Monty Python’s Spamalot earned him nominations for the Tony Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award and the Drama Desk Award. He followed up Monty Python’s Spamalot with another smash hit Broadway musical, The Drowsy Chaperone for which he earned numerous nominations as director and choreographer.

Aside from his work with Monty Python in films and on TV, Eric Idle has written a West End play, Pass the Butler; three novels, including The Road to Mars, The Rutles - A Mockumentary; and many songs too rude to mention. He has sung opera, acted in movies, appeared on television and crossed America performing comedy on The Greedy Bastard Tour. His diary of his 15,000 mile journey by bus was recently published by Harper Collins, and his long awaited sequel The Rutles2: Can't Buy Me Lunch was released by Warner Video in March. There's no saying what he might do next...

John Du Prez has composed over 20 feature film scores including A Fish Called Wanda, A Private Function, The Meaning of Life, Personal Services, UHF, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles I, II & III. He has worked with Eric Idle since 1978.

Monty Python isn't a person, but a group of British actors and writers (and one American) that performed their famous comedy show Monty Python's Flying Circus on the BBC from 1969 to 1974, with subsequent international fame and success.

Tickets for Spamalot start at $46.50 and can be purchased at www.artistseriesjax.org or The Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373. Discounts are available for groups of 10+ by calling (904) 632-3228 or groupsales@fscj.edu.

For more information on the show, visit www.MontyPythonsSpamalot.com.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call
The Artist Series Box Office at
(904) 632-3373
(toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the
The Artist Series’ website: www.artistseriesjax.org

NEW YEAR, NEW LOOK FOR JAXEVENTS.COM SMG JACKSONVILLE LAUNCHES INNOVATIVE WEBSITE DESIGN

2012-01-11T11:41:00.001-08:00

Have you visited www.JaxEvents.com recently?We’re starting the New Year with a brand NEW look. Our website, managed by SMGJacksonville, has undergone a major transformation to ease navigation andprovide more detailed information regarding events held at SMG managedfacilities in Jacksonville. These venues include the Jacksonville VeteransMemorial Arena, the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts, the Prime F.Osborn III Convention Center, the Jacksonville Equestrian Center, EverBankField, and the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville.

“We collaborated with the directors of each of ourJacksonville facilities to find out more about their specific patron needs andthen enlisted the help of the Dalton Agency to make our vision and our design areality. We’re proud of the finished product, it’s attractive, functional andeasy to navigate,” says Robin Timothy, Assistant General Manager & Directorof Marketing for SMG Jacksonville.

Sarah Bartlo, SMG Director at the Times-Union Center for thePerforming Arts is the project manager for the website design and launch.Bartlo adds, “We logged countless hours designing the site to fit the needs ofour customers. We have to keep up with the times and over the past few yearsdemand for information and instant service online has greatly increased. JaxEvents.comoffers more information than ever before along with direct links to purchaseevent tickets and to reach booking contacts. Plus we have provided a primary,one-stop email address to contact our staff for any questions our patrons mighthave.”

Log on to www.JaxEvents.com to see our new andimproved site. Be sure to click the link on the top right corner to sign up forour JaxEvents weekly newsletter. The newsletter is your ticket to receiveconcert announcements, exclusive presale offers and event related news.

Follow JaxEvents on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/JaxEvents andon Twitter @JaxEvents.

STREET MUSE PROJECT: A DOCUMENTARY PROJECT EXPLORING THE CULTURE OF STREET AND PUBLIC MUSIC THROUGHOUT THE WORLD FEATURING GULL

2012-01-10T11:51:00.000-08:00

The Street Muse Project has launched a Kickstarter fortheir latest endeavor which seeks to document street performances inAfrica. Says Len Albright, urban sociologist and half of theteam behind the project, "We see music as a way for people to form anemotional bond with another person. We see this emotional bond at the heart ofcross-cultural learning and compassion. The history, politics,and humanitarian crises of many East and West African nations arevery complex and challenging. Through the sharing of music and musicians'stories, the Street Muse Project will offer all who participate a way to forman emotional bond and starting point for learning and engagement. The storiesand music of individuals can lead us all to broader themes of humanity. We see value in the power of music to inspire learning."

His collaborator on the project is dynamicmulti-instrumentalist Gull (Nate Rappole). Overthe past 5 years he has been performing as a street musician across the UnitedStates and Mexico and is known for the percussion project that involves thesimultaneous playing of the drums and guitar. In the Spring of 2011, Natewas joined on a tour of the American South by Len Albright, who had recentlycompleted a PhD in urban sociology. They discussed the possibility ofinterviewing musicians on the streets in other parts of the world and how thesharing of this could open pathways for creative politics and experiencesacross the globe. The Street Muse Project was born.

You can learn more about the project, watch Gull in action,and donate at the StreetMuse Project Kickstarter. Gull will also be performing a special"virtual busking" countdown at iconic New York City spots in thehours leading up to the end of the Kickstarter campaign this Friday andSaturday. Keep track of him and watch him play via his Facebookpage.

PARAMOUNT AND CIRQUE DU SOLEIL TO PARTNER ON "CIRQUE DU SOLEIL WORLDS AWAY", WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY ANDREW ADAMSON, AND PRESENTED BY JAMES CAMERON

2012-01-10T10:13:00.000-08:00

Studio to Release the 3D Event Film, Worldwide in 2012

Paramount Pictures andCirque du Soleiljointly announced today that the studio has acquiredworldwide distribution rights to the Cirque du Soleil 3D feature film entitled"Cirque du Soleil Worlds

Away". Written and directed by Andrew Adamson("Shrek," "The Chronicles of

Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe"), andexecutive produced by

Academy Award ® winning filmmaker James Cameron, the 3D filmevent features

artistic and acrobatic performances from some of the mostelaborate Cirque du

Soleil productions.The film was produced by Adamson, Aron Warner, Cirque¹sMartin Bolduc and Ed

Jones and Cary Granat. Vince Pace oversaw the 3D stereoproduction aspect of the

film.

A number of production companies collaborated to bring thefilm to life.

In addition to Cirque, Warner and Adamson¹s Strange WeatherProductions, Reel FX

and Cameron Pace Group all contributed to thisgroundbreaking production.

"The coupling of filmmaker James Cameron¹sgroundbreaking 3D visual

accomplishments and Andrew Adamson¹s beautiful direction,combined with a

timeless original story written especially for this movie,will make for a truly

amazing moviegoeing experience for audiences of all ages" said Rob Moore, Vice

Chairman of Paramount Pictures.

Said Jacques Méthé, Executive Producer, General Manager,Images, Events,

Lifestyle of Cirque du Soleil, ³This 3D event brings thespectator beyond what

they could see at a show, it takes them on the stage. Thisunique point of view

allows the audience to discover the artistic details of ourproductions and

reveal the human spirit that our artists bring to theaudience in their

performances. Jim and Andrew have masterfully captured whata Cirque du Soleil

3D experience could offer and Paramount will present it tothe world.

About Paramount Pictures Corporation

Paramount Pictures Corporation (PPC), a global producer anddistributor of

filmed entertainment, is a unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA,VIAB), a leading content

company with prominent and respected film, television anddigital entertainment

brands. Paramount controls a collection of some of the mostpowerful brands in

filmed entertainment, including Paramount Pictures,Paramount Animation,

Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Insurge Pictures, MTVFilms, and

Nickelodeon Movies. PPC operations also include ParamountFamous Productions,

Paramount Home Media Distribution, Paramount PicturesInternational, Paramount

Licensing Inc., and Paramount Studio Group.

About Cirque du Soleil

From the 20 or so performers the company featured when itall began in 1984,

Quebec-based Cirque du Soleil has become a leading providerof quality

entertainment with 5,000 employees, including more than1,300 artists who hail

from some 50 different countries. Cirque du Soleil has brought wonder and

delight to over 100 million spectators in nearly 300 citieson six continents.

For more information about Cirque du Soleil, visit www.cirquedusoleil.com

AMERICAN VOICES NOW ACCEPTING ENSEMBLE APPLICATIONS TO TOUR WITH U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE’S AMERICAN MUSIC ABROAD

2012-01-06T14:28:00.001-08:00

Who/What:

American Voices, in partnership with the U.S. Department ofState’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, is now accepting ensembleapplications for the American Music Abroad 2012-2013 touringseason.

To represent the full spectrum of the American musicallandscape, musical ensembles from across the United States that specialize inHip Hop, Rock & Roll, Jazz, Country, and other American roots musicincluding but not limited to Native American, Latin, Afro-Caribbean, Blues,Bluegrass, Cajun, Gospel and Zydeco are invited to apply for this internationalexchange program. TheAmerican Music Abroad program offers theopportunity to conduct musical exchange tours abroad, particularly to countriesnot often visited by American musicians, to foster cross-cultural engagementand understanding.

When:

January 16, 2012: Application deadline 5pm PST

January 27, 2012: Announcement of up to 40 ensemblesinvited to live auditions.

Mid-February, 2012: Live Auditions.

Spring/Summer 2012: Announcement of 2012-13 AmericanMusic Abroad finalists.

Where:

More information and applications for the 2012-2013 toursare available at www.exchanges.state.gov and www.americanvoices.org/ama

Musicians inquiring about applications can call314-732-1323, email: ama@americanvoices.org or skype:americanmusicabroad

Background:

American Music Abroad engages with people acrossthe world through music. Working in partnership, American Voices and theU.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs willproduce a series of month-long, multi-country cultural exchange programs forapproximately 10 ensembles drawn from a wide variety of American musicalgenres.

Through public concerts, interactive performances with localmusicians, lectures and workshops, the American Music Abroad programbuilds on Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s vision of “smart power”diplomacy, which embraces the full range of diplomatic tools – in this casemusic – to bring people together and foster greater understanding.

RINGLING BROS. AND BARNUM & BAILEY® CIRCUS PRESENTS DRAGONS IS COMING TO JACKSONVILLE JANUARY 19-22, 2012 DRAGONS is a Once in a Millennium Event Celebrating The Year of The Dragon!

2012-01-06T10:03:00.000-08:00

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey^® Presents DRAGONS isa once in a millennium event that honors The Year of the Dragon. Circusperformers from the farthest reaches of the earth have assembled for RinglingBros. Presents DRAGONS to showcase their astoundingacts of bravery and astonishing athleticism. Ringling Bros.^® RingmasterJohnathan Lee Iverson presides over this fantastical celebratory tournament ofcircus champions that brings together mystic dragon lore with authentic circusfeats.

DRAGONS is a never-before-seen blend of renowned spiritualand real life legends and is coming January 19-22 to the Jacksonville VeteransMemorial Arena.

The anticipation builds throughout Ringling Bros. Presents DRAGONS as ChildrenOf All Agesbear witness to one phenomenal RinglingBros. circus act after another, from Shaolin Kung Fu Warriors,charging Cossack riders, magnificent Asian elephants and fierce tigers to thefrenzied Globe of Steel. As the audience observes these and even more realworld displays that pay tribute to the dragon, their continued excitement willbring glimpses of the elusive beast. But, the big question remains; what willit take to lure a true dragon from its golden lair?

Ringling Bros. Presents DRAGONS opensan hour before show time with the All Access Pre-show availableand FREE to all ticket holders.

For more information, visit www.Ringling.com orvisit us on Facebook.

Performance Schedule:

Thursday, January 19 at 7:30 p.m.

Friday, January 20 at 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, January 21 at 11:30 a.m., 3:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Sunday, January 22 at 1:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.

Ticket Prices and Purchase:

Tickets are $69 (Circus Celebrity), $45 (Front Row), $35(VIP), $25 (Upper Level) and $15 (Lower Level). Ticketmaster servicecharges and facility fees not included. All seats are reserved, andtickets go on sale November 25 at 10:00 a.m. Tickets are available at www.ringling.com or www.ticketmaster.com,at any Ticketmaster outlet, by calling 800-745-3000, or at the JacksonvilleMemorial Arena box office (phone: 904-630-3900). For group ticket salesand information, call 866-248-8740.

WICKED ANNOUNCES LOTTERY FOR $25 SEATS

2012-01-05T09:30:00.000-08:00

PERFORMANCES ARE GOING ON NOW AT TIMES-UNION CENTER – MORAN THEATER

WICKED PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
JANUARY 4 - 22, 2012

Wednesday, January 4, 7:30pm
Thursday, January 5, 1:30pm & 7:30pm
Friday, January 6, 8:00pm
Saturday, January 7, 2:00pm & 8:00pm
Sunday, January 8, 1:30pm & 7:00pm
Tuesday, January 10, 7:30pm
Wednesday, January 11, 7:30pm
Thursday, January 12, 7:30pm
Friday, January 13, 8:00pm
Saturday, January 14, 2:00pm & 8:00pm
Sunday, January 15, 1:30pm & 7:00pm
Tuesday, January 17, 7:30pm
Wednesday, January 18, 7:30pm
Thursday, January 19, 7:30pm
Friday, January 20, 8:00pm
Saturday, January 21, 2:00pm & 8:00pm
Sunday, January 22, 1:30pm & 7:00pm

JACKSONVILLE, FL: A day-of-performance lottery for a limited number of orchestra seats will be held daily for WICKED, which will be performing from Wednesday, January 4th – Sunday, January 22nd at the Times-Union Center – Moran Theater at 300 West Water Street, Jacksonville, FL 32202. Each day, 2½ hours prior to show time, people who present themselves at the Times-Union Center box office, will have their names placed in a lottery drum and then thirty minutes later, names will be drawn for a limited number of orchestra seats at $25 each (inclusive of all fees), cash only. This lottery is available only in-person at the box office, with a limit of two tickets per person. Winner must be present with photo ID to buy tickets.

Parking is available at the Enterprise Parking Garage, adjacent to the Omni Hotel, for an hourly rate or by metered street parking (if available).

WICKED, with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (Godspell, Pippin, Disney’s Enchanted, Academy Award® winner for Pocahontas and The Prince of Egypt) and book by Winnie Holzman (“My So Called Life,” “Once And Again” and “thirtysomething”), is based on the 1995 best-selling novel by Gregory Maguire. The musical is directed by two-time Tony® Award winner Joe Mantello (Take Me Out, Love! Valour! Compassion!, The Vagina Monologues) and features musical staging by Tony® Award winner Wayne Cilento (Aida, The Who’s Tommy, How To Succeed…). WICKED, the untold story of the witches of Oz, is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.

Long before Dorothy drops in, two other girls meet in the land of Oz. One – born with emerald green skin – is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. WICKED tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good.

WICKED features set design by Tony® Award winning Eugene Lee (Ragtime, Show Boat, Candide, Sweeney Todd), costume design by Tony® winner Susan Hilferty (Spring Awakening, Into the Woods, Assassins), lighting design by Tony® nominee Kenneth Posner (Tony® Award winner for The Coast of Utopia, Hairspray) and sound design by Tony Meola (The Lion King). Stephen Oremus is the show’s music director. Orchestrations are by William David Brohn, with dance arrangements by James Lynn Abbott.

WICKED has “cast quite a spell” (Washington Post) throughout North America, breaking box office records in every city that it has played, including Toronto, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, DC, Philadelphia and Boston to name a few.

Called “a cultural phenomenon” by Variety, WICKED continues to thrill audiences around the world. There are currently seven productions of WICKED worldwide: New York; London; Japan; Holland; Australian/Asian Tour; and two concurrent North American National Tours.

WICKED begins performances on Wednesday, January 4th and runs through Sunday, January 22nd for 24 performances only! Good seats are still available for all performances. Tickets for WICKED begin at $31.00 plus service and convenience charges where applicable. Tickets are available at The Artist Series Box Office at (904)-632-3373 or online at www.artistseriesjax.org. For groups of 15 or more, call (904) 632-3228 or email groupsales@fscj.edu. VIP seats are also available for select performances. Performance schedule, prices and cast are subject to change without notice. For more information, please visit www.artistseriesjax.org.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call
The Artist Series Box Office at
(904) 632-3373
(toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the
The Artist Series’ website: www.artistseriesjax.org

Celebrate Art 2012 the Cultural Center at Ponte Vedra Beach is hosting an exhibition showcasing the diverse talents of the artist members.

2012-01-04T08:52:00.000-08:00

Five works by Gordon Meggison were selected for inclusion of this show.

Join us Friday, January 6, 2012 6:30pm- 8:00pm

50 Executive Way, Ponte Vedra Beach, Fl, 32082 www.ccpvb.org

(904) 280-0614

A panel from the triptych Acrylic canvas painting titled "Talbot in Blues and Golds", one of the five paintings in the Celebrate Art 2012 Show.

Happy New Year from Gordon Meggison

The driftwood theme I've been exploring lately has been an appropriate metaphor to me for

beauty caused by the weathering of the storms of life. I'd love to see you Jan 6, 6:30 - 8 pm at the Cultural Center of Ponte Vedra Beach, Fl.
I promised my watercolor and oil students a schedule of the upcoiming classes at Reddi Arts and JCA. so I'll post the schedule on my blog atwww.gordonmeggison.blogspot.com. ;
Hope I will see you there this year! Happy New Year

Quick Links

www.gordonmeggison.com

www.freehandstudios.com
www.gordonmeggison.blogspot.com

World-Famous Entertainment and Fine Art Photographer JEREMY SAFFER and Noisecreep.com Post Jeremy’s Top 10 Favorite Shots of 2011!

2012-01-02T09:32:00.001-08:00

World-Famous professional entertainment and fine artphotographer JEREMY SAFFER and Noisecreep.com have posted Jeremy’s top 10 favoriteshots of 2011! You can view the entire list and the shots here. Noisecreep.com is also running a contest where fanscan enter to win killer swag from Jeremy’s photo work. To enter, head toTwitter and send @noisecreep and @jeremysaffer a tweet tellingthem which of the photos in Jeremy's top 10 list was your favorite and why. Theprize list is below. Make sure you include the #saffer hashtag when you enter.Noisecreep will pick the most creative entry and Jeremy Saffer will announcethe winners on Fri, Dec. 30 on his Twitter account.

One grand prize winner: 'Top 10 Photos of 2011' mini-print collection
Second place: 4 prints from Saffer's collection
Three runner-ups: 2 prints from Saffer's collection

Jeremy recently teamed up with Chris Motionless (Motionlessin White) to release a new calendar of some of their photography over the lasttwo years. Make sure to keep a look out– this is a perfect holiday gift for anymetal fan! Also check out more information now on Jeremy’s upcoming ‘CapturingMusic’ photo seminar taking place in January! You can learn more about theseminar here.

You can visit Jeremy’s new website now atwww.jeremysaffer.com. The website features new, full screenimages, a new navigation operation, and much more.

Saffer began making the rounds within the magazine world,publishing his work on the covers of such varied publications as Metal Maniacs,AMP and Outburn. Saffer has blazed his own trail, working with artists andmodels from all across the musical spectrum. From My Chemical Romance, JeffreeStar, and A Day to Remember, to Megadeth, TheMisfits, Alice Cooper and Hatebreed, allhave spent time behind Jeremy’s watchful eye and steady hand at one point oranother. Jeremy establishes relationships with his subjects; he has earned thetrust and respect of his peers via his attention to detail, and an unerringwork ethic which can only result from years of hard work.

Recent years have seen a flurry of activity from the WesternMassachusetts native, whether it’s organizing his own seminars and workshops,or releasing his acclaimed Bring the Noisecollection of bandphotography, or his recently debuted collection of Corpse Painted Nudephotography.

One thing is certain: whatever does waitfor JEREMY SAFFER out there in the shadows…odds are prettygood that he’s going to shoot it.

www.jeremysaffer.com

CELTIC WOMAN: BELIEVE

2012-01-02T08:58:00.000-08:00

THE ARTIST SERIES PRESENTS
CELTIC WOMAN: BELIEVE
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15th
TIMES-UNION CENTER – MORAN THEATER

JACKSONVILLE, FL – Global music phenomenon Celtic Woman will perform at Jacksonville’s Times-Union Center on Wednesday, February 15th at 7:30PM.

Celtic Woman’s breathtaking new show, BELIEVE, features the all-female singing sensation performing classic Irish tunes, such as ‘The Water Is Wide,’ ‘Green Grow the Rushes,’ ‘A Woman’s Heart,’ and ‘The Parting Glass,’ timeless pop anthems such as ‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ and ‘Sailing,’ and inspirational songs including ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ and ‘Ave Maria,’ with their signature Celtic Woman twist, under the distinct musical direction of Emmy-nominated music producer, David Downes. Celtic Woman’s awe-inspiring vocalists and mesmerizing violinist will be backed by a dazzling six-piece band, the Aontas Choir, and renowned championship Irish dancer.

Since their March 2005 American debut on Public Television, Celtic Woman quickly emerged as a spectacular commercial success, selling more than six million CDs/DVDs and over two million concert tickets worldwide. Their signature sound has emerged as a transcendent force, and their spectacular live shows embody a radiance and purity that connects powerfully with their adoring fan base. Celtic Woman’s all-new production, BELIEVE, marks the pinnacle of their illustrious career, a celebration of musical enchantment to be enjoyed by the entire family!

Tickets start at $46.00. Discounts are available for groups of 10+ by calling (904) 632-3228 or groupsales@fscj.edu.

Celtic Woman’s newest studio CD and companion DVD, BELIEVE, will be available in stores January 24th through Manhattan Records. For complete tour schedule and ticket information, visit www.celticwoman.com.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call

The Artist Series Box Office at

(904) 632-3373

(toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the

The Artist Series’ website: www.artistseriesjax.org

ELVIS LIVES

2012-01-02T08:52:00.001-08:00

THE ARTIST SERIES PRESENTS
“The Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Event”

SATURDAY, JANUARY 28th

TIMES-UNION CENTER – MORAN THEATER

JACKSONVILLE, FL – ELVIS LIVES “The Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Event” is an unforgettable multi-media and live musical journey across Elvis’ life. His iconic style, embraced by many of today’s artists, continues to intrigue audiences of all generations. Featuring finalists from Elvis Presley Enterprises’ worldwide Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Contest, as well as a tribute to Ann-Margret, audiences “Can’t Help Falling In Love”® with this phenomenal theatrical concert experience!

ELVIS LIVES comes to Jacksonville’s Times-Union Center – Moran Theater on Saturday, January 28th at 8:00PM.

Capitalizing on the rave reviews of its initial debut as “The Ultimate Elvis Tribute Artist Tour” in 2010, the touring production has been enhanced to capture the imaginations and interests of all types of fans including Broadway, concert and Elvis aficionados. The nationwide tour kicks off in Morganton, N.C., on January 14.

Cast members include Bill Cherry, Ben Klein, Kevin Mills and Victor Trevino, Jr., each representing Elvis during different stages in his career. The Elvis tribute artists will be joined by a live band, back-up singers, dancers, along with an Ann-Margret tribute artist, as well as iconic imagery made available from the Graceland archives.

“The production showcases each performer portraying Elvis in one of four eras: the 1950s, 1960s, his movie career and his concert years, so it is the complete musical package,” said Brian Brigner, Chief Operating Officer of On Stage Touring, the tour’s producers. Additional information about the Elvis Lives tour may be found at: http://www.elvislivestour.com

Tickets for the Jacksonville show start at $31.00. Discounts are available for groups of 10+ by calling (904) 632-3228 or groupsales@fscj.edu.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call
The Artist Series Box Office at
(904) 632-3373
(toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the

The Artist Series’ website: www.artistseriesjax.org

COMEDIAN BILL HICKS REMEMBERED ON HIS 50TH BIRTHDAY WITH THE RELEASE OF 12/16/61

2011-12-02T14:22:00.001-08:00

OUT DEC. 13 ON RYKO, DIGITAL EP CONTAINS PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED MATERIAL

ACCLAIMED BOX SET THE ESSENTIAL COLLECTION WILL BE OUT DIGITALLY JAN. 17 WITH NEW MATERIAL

"Still better than most stand-ups working today...like watching a 20-year-old Jesus trying out new material on a crowd." - Vanity Fair

In celebration of what would have been comedian Bill Hicks' 50th birthday, Ryko is releasing 12/16/61, a 5-track EP containing previously unreleased material. Recorded in Texas when Hicks was just 21 years old, the EP fully encompasses his short but influential career as a satirist, social critic, and stand-up comedian. Available digitally on December 13, the release comes on the heels of SPIN naming Hicks' 1997 release Rant in E Minor as #11 of the "40 Greatest Comedy Albums of All Time."

The aptly titled EP is a reference to Bill's birthday - December 16, 1961.

His brother Steve Hicks explains:
"Harder to grasp that Bill would be turning 50 and that he has been gone almost 18 years, is the idea that he has reached so many people around the world. Old fans remain fiercely loyal and new fans discover Bill and his work every day. So, appropriately, this is a big Thanks to all of you. Thanks for remembering Bill and thanks for keeping his memory alive. Enjoy this little tidbit from a 21-year-old Bill. Happy Birthday Brother."

The release of the EP comes 4 weeks in advance of the digital release of 2010's acclaimed box set The Essential Collection, a career retrospective featuring Hicks' best stand-up performances and several hours of unseen footage, interviews, photographs and more. Previously available only as a physical package, the comedic genius of Bill Hicks lives on in this updated, digital package. This 4-disc set contains all 50 skits from the physical box set's two audio CDs plus a previously unreleased, intimate audio journal titled "The Adventure." Lo-Fi Troubadour, a collection of songs written and performed by Bill (and previously only available on the physical box set's download card) will now feature the never-before-released song, "Ice Cold Macaroni." The Essential Collection digital box set is scheduled for a January 17 release date on Ryko.

Bill Hicks' extraordinary social commentary is as fresh and stunning today as it was in the 80's and 90's. He engaged his audiences by confronting mainstream beliefs and hypocrisy in a manner that provoked thought as well as laughter. Hicks called himself "Chomsky with dick jokes" and The New Yorker described him as an "exhilarating comic thinker in a renegade class all his own." Hicks' career was short in span, but powerful in impact. His rigorous touring schedule from the early 80's into the early 90's often tallied over 300 nights per year. He appeared on Late Night with David Letterman eleven times during his career. He also gained a dedicated fan base in the UK where he currently is listed as the UK's 4th Greatest Comedian in their 2010 poll (conducted by Channel 4).

For more information on Bill Hicks visit www.billhicks.com.

The physical Bill Hicks Essential Collection is available via Amazon.

Meet Kozyndan

2011-11-30T13:20:00.001-08:00

kozyndan

photo by Suzanne Marques

kozyndan (www.kozyndan.com) is a Los Angeles basedhusband-and-wife artist team, (whose commercial work includes album covers forthe Postal Service and Weezer) are widely known for their detailed andwhimsical drawings and illustrations, fantastical panoramics and beautifulgouache paintings.

Click on the image bellow to peek inside one of theirpanoramics:

Their latest body of work, debuting at Bold Hype Gallery, entitled 'Their BonesAre Coral Made' is a series of drawings and gouache paintings dealing withpassion and love, expressed through one of their own life passions; the ocean.Their adoration and respect for the sea and it's ecosystems can be seen andfelt through out their work which is meticulously detailed and delicate:

"For the last 4 years now we have been obsessed with the ocean. Weare obsessed to the p oint that we are at times distractedfrom making images. Long hours in the studio make us antsy to be underthe water - swimming with the fishes and cetaceans - observing the struggle forlife, the symbiotic relationships, the unparalleled alien beauty that seems soseparate from the world on land (and yet is inextricably linked to us, despitethe fact that most of us don't even realize it). We both have dreamsof it at night. In the day, we daydream about our next trip to some faroff place. We wish to live under water, sprout gills and leave the landbehind. We we want to die in the sea. We want our bodies to be devouredby the creatures thousands of feet below and our molecules to become part ofthe ocean ecosystem and finally leave the land behind.

In the meantime, between our stints at sea, we keep ourlonging at bay by painting images depicting marine life, the power of thewater, and somehow trying to understand our own connection with those thingsand how the ocean holds its sway over us. This collection of works is thelatest in this ongoing exploration."

-kozynan

Yuck's Daniel Blumberg to release limited edition book of drawings via Fat Possum

2011-11-30T11:17:00.001-08:00

STREAM: Last.fm Discover Session:
http://lastfmdiscover.radio.com/2011/11/28/yuck-talk-to-last-fm-discover/

STREAM: "Soothe Me" -

http://soundcloud.com/yuck/soothe-me

Fat Possum has collected Daniel Blumberg of Yuck'sdrawings made during the recording of their debut album. Each Yuckrelease so far has featured one of Blumberg's drawings, the 44 page, handsomelybound book will include all of these and many others that have not yet gracedthe cover of a 7" or LP. The book will be avail. in a limitedone-time printing of 1000. Three different packages are available toorder:

Book only: $20

Book + three b-side 45's: $30

Book + three b-side 45's + deluxe 'Yuck' double 12"album + Yuck tote bag: $40

Order now directly from the Fat Possum online store

Bio:

YUCK! Eeew, I was like, "that is soogross". Anybutt. I was like whatever. Butt then I saw the tour and it mademe feel kinda tingly. It's like totally awesome!!! Like those girlsare so cool and like that guy looks weird but then yer like omg he is like so hot.So the show was incredible but then I thought about my Dad cuz he liked killedsomebody or himself. Dad always said he loved my step mom but he was never niceto her. Where am I? Since I was a teenager I always used to take out out thedogs and he always encouraged that and once we found a bunny and the next day Ihad a carrot and we saved it. Our german shepherd was so smart. I live bymyself. My landlord said I don't have to pay rent this month but I was tryingto write some good news to my therapist and I actually paid my landlord infull. But it's all thanks to the new YUCK album!

YUCK

JANUARY//

19 - 23 MIAMI, FL - THE WEEZER CRUISE
28 // BRISBANE, Australia Laneway Festival
30 // AUCKLAND, New Zealand Laneway Festival
FEBRUARY//
04 // MELBOURNE, Australia Laneway Festival
05 // SYDNEY, Australia Laneway Festival
10 // ADELAIDE, Australia Laneway Festival
11 // PERTH, Australia Laneway Festival
12 // SINGAPORE, Laneway Festival

Yuck
Yuck Deluxe Edition
(Fat Possum)
Street Date: Oct. 11, 2011
Track List:

1. Get Away

2. The Wall

3. Shook Down

4. Holing Out

5. Suicide Policeman

6. Georgia

7. Suck

8. Stutter

9. Operation

10. Sunday

11. Rose Gives A Lilly

12. Rubber

B-Sides:

1. The Base Of A Dream Is Empty

2. Milkshake

3. Coconut Bible

4. Cousin Corona

5. Doctors In My Bed

6. Soothe Me

YUCK LINKS:

Official site - http://yuckband.blogspot.com/

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/yuckband

Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/yuckband

Label - http://fatpossum.com/

DEREK HESS Releases ‘Black Line White Lie’ Today!

2011-11-30T10:19:00.001-08:00

‘Black Line White Lie’ is the long overdue bookfeaturing over 275 black and white images by artist DEREK HESS. This bookcovers over 20 years of his black and white drawings from images of hisearliest flyers to some of his more recent works like Cancer of theSoul and Valentine. Derek dedicates this huge 300page book to his fans which also includes a chapter of over 70 tattoos thatpeople have done of his works.

Internationally-known artist DEREK HESS has spent thepast twenty years creating fine art and rock poster art that has not only madehim a household name, but has also caught the attention of both the Louvre andthe Rock and Roll Hall of Fame where his work is featured in both institutionspermanent collections. In addition to numerous CD covers he has been featuredon TLC, MTV, Fuse, VH1, Alternative Press, Spin, Juxtapoz Magazineand many others. After years of creating art for well-known bandssuch as Deftones, Thursday, Every Time I Die and Taking Back Sunday, andworking on his own fine art, Hess has finally compiled a book ofhis high in demand Black and White drawings.

‘Black Line White Lie’ goes on sale today, November 30^that 12pm EST.

Books can be purchased at –

http://www.derekhess.com

http://www.strhess.com/

http://www.facebook.com/derekhessart

http://twitter.com/#!/derekhessart

BROOKLYN GRAFFITI LEGEND MR. KAVES DESIGNS 2011 BEAUJOLAIS NOUVEAU LABEL AND WILL APPEAR IN METALLICA’S FIRST-EVER ART EXHIBIT

2011-11-23T14:20:00.001-08:00

Brooklyn, NY: Bay Ridge native Mr. Kaves began hislong relationship with graffiti by invading the tunnels of the NYC transitsystem at the insanely young age of 10. To this day, he is a highlyrespected artist amongst his peers and also among the many cutting edge companiesfor which he has created priceless images – from Nike and Adidas, to theBeastie Boys and Everlast, to MTV and the WWE… Each (and many others) hasbeen blessed by his creativity and forward-facing talents.

Fast forward to Winter 2011 and you can add Georges Duboeufand Metallica to the long list of those whom have invited Kaves into theiruniverse of expression. Mr. Duboeuf personally hand-picked this Brooklyntaste-maker to design the 2011 label for his prestigious Beaujolais Nouveauwine release. “We wanted to expose people to the celebration of Nouveauand capture the wine’s essence and the energy and unique perspective of Kaves’art seemed to be an ideal vehicle,” said Franck Duboeuf, Georges’ son andco-proprietor of Les Vins Georges Duboeuf.

Beaujolais Nouveau 2011 will be officially uncorked oneminute past midnight on Thursday, November 17, at a party at Stage 37 in NewYork City, at which Kaves will be displaying a dozen new works.

In addition to the above, Mr. Kaves has also been selectedto participate in an art tribute to heavy metal kingpins Metallicaduring their Obey Your Master exhibit beginning January 20^thand running through March 23^rd at Exhibit A Gallery in LosAngeles. Other artists scheduled to be included are Shepard Fairey,groundbreaking skateboarders Tony Alva and Steve Caballero, Metallica’s RobTrujillo, Slipknot founding member Shawn Crahan, Brian M. Viveros, Joe Petagno,Travis Louie and approximately 20 others.

For the exhibit, the artists have all chosen a specificMetallica song by and will execute their vision in their individual artisticmediums, based on their interpersonal relationship to Metallica’s lyrics andmusic. Kaves explains “Metallica played a lot of their early East Coastshows at a club called L’amour in my backyard of Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Nowthey’re arguably the biggest rock band on the planet and their music and lyricshave touched millions of people. I’ve chosen the song that I have, whichI can’t reveal until you see the painting, because I can relate the immenseloss the band experienced on their way to becoming the band we now know. I’ve experienced catastrophic loss in my life as well and feel a kinship tothose guys as a result.”

SHOP, EAT, DRINK and CRAFT at the 7th Annual BUST Magazine Craftacular and Food Fair Holiday 2011

2011-11-23T10:08:00.001-08:00

Shop for Handcrafted Gifts -- and Create a Few of Your
Own -- at this Two-Day Extravaganza!

Photo Credit: Gabi Porter

BUST Magazine is thrilled to announce their return to SoHo forthe 7^th Annual BUST Magazine Craftacular and Food Fair Holiday 2011. For the first time ever, the event will run for two days. With over 200 craft and food vendors per day, the event offers a haven for more than 6000 attendees to warm up with specialty tasty treats and unique handcrafted holiday gifts.

And for the first time visitors will also be able to handcraft a few gifts of their own. At The BUST DIY Guide To Life Lab, classes and demos will give shoppers the chance to try their hand at craft projects excerpted from the recently released book, “The BUST DIY Guide To Life”! Attendees will be able to make their own tiny terrarium, create a snowglobe, learn how to make bath bombs, discover how mozzarella can be made in a microwave, and more, all for free or a nominal fee. Book co-authors and BUST Co-publishers Debbie Stoller and Laurie Henzel will be on hand to lead classes and sign copies of their book, which will also be available for purchase.

With a wide variety of artisanal treats and handmade crafts, gift-making classes and demos, DJs spinning music, raffle prizes, and free goodie bags for the first 300 people at the door each day, The BUST Magazine Craftacular and Food Fair Holiday 2011 is the ideal destination for shopping, eating, crafting, and a whole lot of fun.

The 7^th Annual BUST Magazine Craftacular and Food Fair Holiday 2011
will take place at 82 Mercer Street on:
Saturday, December 10, 11am-8pm
Sunday, December 11, 11am-7pm
Entrance Fee: $3.00

Unique Handcrafted Gifts
Offering an eclectic mix of handmade jewelry, stationery, clothing and toys, shoppers can take pride in their holiday purchases. This year’s vendors will include COATT, featuring jewelry made from gold fill and porcelain, Yee-Haw Industrial Letterpress with their colorful eco-friendly letter-pressed posters and postcards, and dirtsa studio, who makes cute and quirky housewares.

Food for Eating & Gifting!
Lovers of food, rejoice! This year, an abundance of tasty talent will be at the Fair, including unique Mexican confections from La Newyorkina; sweet and savory macarons from Macaron Parlour; creatively complex baked goods from Whimsy & Spice, and much more. Guests can take a break from shopping at the first-ever BUST Craft Beer Garden, and the famed Red Hook Lobster Pound truck will also be on hand.

The BUST DIY Guide To Life Lab!
Visitors can learn to make their own special handcrafted gifts at The BUST DIY Guide To Life Lab, taking place on both Saturday and Sunday. BUST Magazine founders Laurie Henzel and Debbie Stoller will lead classes and demonstrations of select projects from their recently released book, “The BUST DIY Guide To Life.” Classes will include making terrariums, snowglobes, bath bombs, and more.

BUST Book Signing!
Written by BUST Magazine co-founders Laurie Henzel and Debbie Stoller (of Stitch ’n Bitch fame), “The BUST DIY Guide to Life” highlights BUST’s 15 years as a DIY innovator, and showcases a broad range of carefully selected projects for audiences from beginners to expert. More than just a crafting book, it also includes a wide variety of useful information for young, independent women, such as managing your finances, traveling on your own, how to start your own business, and more. The book will be available for purchase at the BUST Magazine Craftacular and Food Fair Holiday 2011, and Debbie and Laurie will be on site to meet guests and sign books on both days.

Celebrity Vendor!
Jay McCarroll, the fashion designer known for winning season 1 of “Project Runway” and contestant on “Celebrity Fit Club” will be manning a booth at this year’s event, selling items from his current line featuring handcrafted and affordable bags, scarves and more.

Sponsors for the 2011 BUST Magazine Craftacular
and Food Fair Holiday 2011 include:
Lower Eastside Girls Club, New York City Coalition Against Hunger, Scoutmob, EvoFem, Blue Q,
Jacqueline Hyde Teas, Night Owl Print Shop, Sock Dreams and Sublime Stitching.

The BUST Magazine Craftacular has won the prestigious Gold FAME Award for Best Special Event as well as the FOLIO Grand FAME Award for BEST OVERALL EVENT, beating out “O,” “Glamour,” and “Cosmopolitan”.

BUST is the groundbreaking, original women’s lifestyle magazine and Web site, unique in its ability to connect with bright, cutting-edge, urban-dwelling, influential young women. BUST, the magazine “for women with something to get off their chests,” addresses a refreshing variety of young women’s interests, including celebrity interviews, music, fashion, art, crafting, sex, and news. Hip, humorous, and honest, BUST is a celebration of all things female and a trusted authority on up-and-coming trends among discerning, educated, and culturally aware women.

Founded by Debbie Stoller, Co-Publisher/Editor-in-Chief and author of the New York Times bestselling knitting book series Stitch ‘n Bitch, and Laurie Henzel, Co-Publisher and Creative Director, BUST began hosting craft shows seven years ago with a holiday event in NYC and has expanded to include holiday and spring events in Los Angeles and London as well as NYC.

XL Gallery in Orlando Announces Holiday Gallery Installation w/ Special Guests Dave Hause of The Loved Ones and More

2011-11-23T08:50:00.001-08:00

November 23rd - January 5th at XL Gallery in Orlando

Who: Enemy Ink
What: The Art of Enemy
Where: XL Gallery 431 E. Central Orlando, Florida
When: Wednesday November 23rd through Thursday January 5th
Why: To show off the art, prints, and printing techniques of Enemy Ink.
How: Through a six weeks of art displays, special entertainment, and live printevents.

For the entire holiday season, Orlando-based design company Enemy Inkwill be hosting an Art Show at XL Gallery in Orlando, FL. In true EnemyInk fashion, this show will be quite a bit more than your typical wine andcheese event. Enemy will be featuring live performances by national and localartists such as Dave Hause from The Loved Ones performing solo acoustic,as well as other special guests and ongoing corresponding events.

Enemy (co-owned by founding members of Orlando-based street-punk band TheAttack) has been hard at work the past several weeks coming up with uniqueprints, themes, and one of a kind pieces to spotlight at the installation,which is also set to feature a special night of live printing on December 21st.On this night, prints made on location will be limited to one single print, atwhich time the original screen will be sold (along with the print) to ensure it’s never printed again.

Schedule of Confirmed Events:
11/23 Opening Night with DJ Kitty Bat
11/30 Dave Hause (from The Loved Ones) Solo Acoustic
12/15 Thorton 3Rd Thursday Artwalk
12/21 One of One Night – One of a Kind T’s and Limited Edition Art Printed on site.
1/4 Closing Party with DJ Eric from Enemy

* Every Thursday Deep Vibes by Stereo 77 *

+ More to Come!

About Enemy Ink:

Enemy Ink began in July 2001 with a single station screen printing presspurchased on Ebay with the goal to provide band merchandise for a band calledThe Spitvalves, a local Orlando Ska-Punk band fronted and managed by Enemyowners Charlie Bender and Brad Palkevich. Soon the word got out and Enemy founditself printing kick ass merchandise for local and national underground artistsincluding everything from tour posters, merchandise, clothing, magazines andmore.

Enemy rapidly grew in size and scope, from a small shop with a single manualpress, to a successful DIY ethos driven print shop running multiple automaticpresses capable of producing thousands of printed pieces per hour.

Enemy continues to be artist driven. Palkevich and Bender now perform in Orlandopunk band The Attack. As part of the arts community, Enemy provides variouskinds of superior printed products at amazing prices. Enemy also sponsors andparticipates in many arts-driven events such as battle of the bands events, artshows, tattoo conventions, lecture series', not-for-profit charity events andmore.

THE ARTIST SERIES PRESENTS 10th ANNUAL FAMILY NIGHT ON BROADWAY

2011-11-07T11:48:00.000-08:00

What:
10th Annual Family Night on Broadway at Disney’s Beauty and the Beast

When:
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Pre-Show (6:30PM – 7:30PM)
During Intermission
Post-Show Chat Back with the Cast

Where:
Times-Union Center Lobby
300 W. Water Street
Jacksonville, FL 32202

Who:
Meet & Greet with Shannon Miller Before the Show:
Olympic Star, TV Host, and Health and Fitness Advocate
www.shannonmillerlifestyle.com

Description: The Artist Series’ 10th Annual Family Night on Broadway is on opening night of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, the award-winning worldwide smash hit Broadway musical. The Artist Series is partnering with the Jacksonville Public Library to create a reading corner in the theater’s lobby.

Guests can sign up for library cards and check out books on site. All Family Night activities are free with paid show admission tickets. Other fun, family activities include free green screen photos, face painting, arts and crafts, and games. Kid-friendly foods will be available for purchase from Savor…Jacksonville, the Times-Union Center’s official caterer.

There is also a discount*; tickets for opening night are buy one, get one free when purchased through The Artist Series!

Disney’s Beauty and the Beast is the classic story of Belle, a young woman in a provincial town, and the Beast, who is really a young prince trapped in a spell placed by an enchantress. If the Beast can learn to love and be loved, the curse will end and he will be transformed to his former self. But time is running out. If the Beast does not learn his lesson soon, he and his household will be doomed for all eternity.

DISNEY’S BEAUTY AND THE BEAST PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Tuesday, November 8th, 7:30PM

Wednesday, November 9th, 7:30PM

Thursday, November 10th, 7:30PM

Friday, November 11th, 8:00PM

Saturday, November 12th, 2:00PM & 8:00PM

Sunday, November 13th, 1:30PM & 7:00PM

The original creators of the Broadway production are together again for this new touring production! Disney’s Beauty and the Beast features the animated film’s Academy Award®-winning score with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by the late Howard Ashman, with additional songs with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Tim Rice. The book is written by Linda Woolverton. Produced by NETworks Presentations, this elaborate theatrical production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast will come to life on stage at the Times-Union Center’s Moran Theater for 8 performances only from November 8-13, 2011!

*Discounted Family Night tickets (buy one adult ticket, get one child’s ticket free) are available for seats in price levels B & C in balcony only. This offer is valid only for tickets purchased through The Artist Series in person, online (with passcode “Child”), or by phone. Discount is not available on previously purchased tickets and expires at 3PM on 11/8/11. The recommended age for Beauty and the Beast is 4 and older.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call

The Artist Series Box Office at

(904) 632-3373

(toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the

The Artist Series’ website: www.artistseriesjax.org

Tickets start at $27.00. Discounts are available for groups of 10+ by calling (904) 632-3228 or groupsales@fscj.edu.

Florida Mining: A New Gallery Opens In Jax

2011-10-09T08:49:00.000-07:00

CPHACE
A NEW SERIES BY LAIRD

October 7 - November 1, 2011

Florida Mining, a new gallery of contemporary art, is delighted to present cphace, a series of photographs by Northeast Florida-based artist Laird.

“If I can walk down the same path as you and capture it differently, then that is what I will do.”

The new series is composed of images captured during Laird’s travels to far-reaching locations including Alaska, the Florida Keys, Costa Rica, and the Okefenokee Wildlife Refuge of Georgia. Using a camera converted to record infrared light to capture images of his surroundings, both familiar and exotic, resulted in photographs of flora stripped of their natural, vibrant colors, to be replaced with a heightened reliance on line and texture. Laird then further manipulates the imagery through mirroring and monochromatic color enhancement.

Viewers are encouraged to spend time with the resulting artwork, allowing the sundry of faces that are naturally created within the symmetrical images’ central axes to appear.

“Because they are composed of organic objects and devoid of straight lines, the symmetry of the mirrored images is not unlike that of the face,” says Laird of the series. “As humans, we instinctively search for familiar forms and our own counterparts. We search for other human faces; and see them.”

Florida Mining, a new gallery by Steve Williams, has a mission to present emerging through mid-career artists who are thought provoking and fresh with a mix of medium and perspective.

Florida Mining is located at 5300 Shad Road, Jacksonville, Florida.
904.535.7252

Seven New Cities Added to Michael Jackson THE IMMORTAL World Tour by Cirque du Soleil

2011-09-08T10:54:00.000-07:00

Written & directed by Jamie King
Seven New Cities Added to Tour Schedule
As Anticipation Grows for the World Premiere

September, 2011 – With anticipation growing for the launch of Michael Jackson The Immortal World Tour, Cirque du Soleil announced today the addition of seven new cities to the 2012 tour schedule in advance of the World Premiere on October 2, 2011 in Montreal. The show is now scheduled to perform in 56 cities across North America, with more cities expected.

The added cities for 2012 performances are: Jacksonville, FL (March 7-8); Raleigh, NC (March 10-11); Charlotte, NC (March 13-14); Columbia, SC (April 27-28); Baltimore, MD (May 5-6); Nashville, TN (June 12-13); and Chicago, IL (July 20-21). For details and the full tour schedule, please go to www.cirquedusoleil.com/MichaelJackson.

About the show

A riveting fusion of visuals, dance, music and fantasy that immerses audiences in Michael’s creative world and literally turns his signature moves upside down, Michael Jackson The Immortal World Tour unfolds Michael Jackson’s artistry before the eyes of the audience. Aimed at lifelong fans as well as those experiencing Michael’s creative genius for the first time, the show captures the essence, soul and inspiration of the King of Pop, celebrating a legacy that continues to transcend generations.

The Immortal World Tour takes place in a fantastical realm where we discover Michael’s inspirational Giving Tree—the wellspring of his creativity. The secrets of Michael’s inner world are unlocked—his love of music and dance, fairy tale and magic, and the fragile beauty of nature.

The underpinnings of The Immortal World Tour are Michael Jackson’s powerful, inspirational music and lyrics—the driving force behind the show—brought to life with extraordinary power and breathless intensity. Through unforgettable performances Michael Jackson The Immortal World Tour underscores Michael’s global messages of love, peace and unity.

In selecting Jamie King as Writer and Director for The Immortal World Tour, which will feature 60 international performers, The Estate of Michael Jackson and Cirque du Soleil chose a director Variety called one of the most influential “movers and shakers” in the music industry, and the “Jerry Bruckheimer of tent-pole concert tours". A multiple Emmy Award® and MTV Video Music Award® nominee, and greatly influenced by his early years working for both Prince and Michael Jackson, he has choreographed some of the most popular music videos and directed some of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time. For the past 12 years, he has served as Madonna's creative director, having most recently directed her 2008 Sticky & Sweet world tour, as well as her 2006 record-breaking Confessions world tour and hit music video, “Sorry”. He most recently directed Rihanna's Last Girl On Earth world tour, Celine Dion’s Taking Chances world tour, The Return of the Spice Girls reunion tour, Britney Spears' Circus tour and Avril Lavigne’s Best Damn tour. He previously directed and choreographed world tours for Madonna (Re-Invention and Drowned World); Asian superstar Rain (Rain’s Coming); Ricky Martin (Black & White and La Vida Loca); Pink (Try This); Christina Aguilera (Back to Basics and Stripped); and his first collaboration with Britney Spears (Oops I Did It Again). He has worked with an array of superstars including Mariah Carey, Shakira, George Michael, Elton John, Diana Ross, Jennifer Lopez and even Ellen DeGeneres. This is Jamie’s first show with Cirque du Soleil.

The Creative team

Michael Jackson The Immortal World Tour will call on the diverse talents of the following creative minds: Guy Laliberté, Creative Guide; Jamie King, Writer and Director; Chantal Tremblay, Director of Creation; Mark Fisher, Set Designer; Zaldy Goco, Costume Designer; Kevin Antunes, Musical Designer; Greg Phillinganes, Musical Director; Martin Labrecque, Lighting Designer; Olivier Goulet, Projection and Video Content Designer; François Desjardins, Sound Designer; Scott Osgood, Rigging and Acrobatic Equipment Designer; Germain Guillemot, Acrobatic Performance Designer; Michael Curry, Props Designer.

The team of high-profile choreographers is comprised of: Travis Payne, Rich and Tone Talauega, Debra Brown, Napoleon and Tabitha Dumo, Jamal Sims, Cloud and Tamara Levinson, and Mandy Moore

SOCIAL CURRENCY on Twitter. Join artist @_SteveWilliams for "Art in the Moment," tomorrow 5pm

2011-09-06T17:38:00.000-07:00

Social Currency: #POUND
Follow @_SteveWilliams

Collaborate.
Explore the unpredictable nature of this social media and see:
Who is your city at this moment?
Who is Jacksonville at this moment?

Participate.
Use the hashtag #pound to have your voice heard
Search the hashtag #pound to follow the stream

Join artist Steve Williams from 5 to 9pm during the September 7, 2011 Downtown ArtWalk located in Jacksonville, Florida as he collaborates with the ArtWalk audience, the Twitter audience, and fellow artists, arts and Downtown Jacksonville advocates to create a real time mobile/internet performance that is at once intimate and broad in scope.

The voice of the artist comes in many forms, together let's explore the unpredictable nature of this social media.

"During the upcoming First Wednesday ArtWalk, #Pound places Williams in a real time interactive collaboration with both the ArtWalk and Twitter audiences (@_SteveWilliams already boasts nearly 8,000-plus followers) to explore what he calls the "unpredictale nature" of a world of streaming feeds, "likes" and carefully cultivated profiles. Prior to the event, Williams will announce his location via @_SteveWilliams and with the tag #pound . . . What will ensue - a mix of art and chaos - is impossible to predict. But it will certainly be art in the moment."
-Dan Brown, Arts Editor, FOLIO Weekly, August 30, 2011
Produced and promoted by Cabeth Cornelius Consulting

FINAL DAYS Harry Potter and Pompeii Exhibits at the DTC in NY | Extended Final Weekend Hours

2011-08-31T10:31:00.000-07:00

It is the final days for the Harry Potter and Pompeii Exhibits at the Discovery Times Center in NY! MOVEMENT was lucky enough to be in NY during its run and both exhibits are remarkable. Esspecialy the Pompeii Exhibit. The plaster castings poured from the spaces left by the victimes of Vesuvius were haunting and beautiful at the same time. If you are in NY be sure to take the time to see both of these exclusive exhibits! More info on each below.

Experience the amazing craftsmanship of more than 200 authentic costumes and props from the Harry Potter™ films displayed in settings inspired by the films sets - including the Great Hall, Hagrid's hut and the Gryffindor^™ common room. While touring through the exhibition space, discover iconic items such as Harry's original wand and eyeglasses, the Marauder's Map, Gryffindor school uniforms as well as costumes worn at the Yule Ball. Enter the Quidditch^™ area and toss a Quaffle, pull your own Mandrake in the Herbology vignette, encounter Buckbeak^™the Hippogriff and even a giant Acromantula spider.

Showcasing the supreme artistry and amazing craftsmanship that went into the making of the ever popular film series, Harry Potter: The Exhibit is sure to spark curious minds and foster an excitement of discovery among guests of all ages.

Experience Pompeii before and after the epic eruption 2,000 years ago. Imagine the moment their world vanished and discover the miraculous artifacts unearthed since. Witness the life and death of those frozen in time by ash.

• Over 250 artifacts - includes some never-before-seen objects and the largest collection of body casts ever on display including a dramatic skeleton collection

• A brand-new, immersive movie experience depicting a timelapsed representation starting from the moment of Vesuvius' massive explosion

Find out times and ticket prices at:
http://www.discoverytsx.com/

Mark Todd's "Force Field" Exhibition Opens Friday! 7/1

2011-06-27T10:43:00.000-07:00

This Friday, July 1st, will mark the return of Mark Todd to La Luz de Jesus Gallery with his "Force Field" exhibition.

When last we showcased Mark Todd, he caught the attention of USA Today. A mere two weeks after this show opens, Mark will head down to San Diego Comicon International, where he'll be further promoting this installation. Click the image at left to access a preview gallery. Mark has delivered an incredible variety of his signature comic book deconstructions for this prestige installation that will occupy the entire space that currently showcases Glenn Barr's Faces show.
Anchoring Todd's installation is his Powerfury Fireworks Stand.

There's a maturity in the childlike simplicity of this project, which has been underway for quite some time. The explosive presentation of the sequential action that Todd's art celebrates is less juxtaposed than unleashed upon the public in a clever and relevant construction that configures the 4th of July holiday directly into the oeuvre of the show. It's a work of powerful significance that posits a logical progression from Duchamp's Urinal to Warhol's Brillo boxes to Hirst's Pharmacy. It undeniably references the nostalgic appeal of the movement that started as Lowbrow, graduated to Pop-Surrealism, and has recently found acceptance under the greater umbrella of California Modern/Figurative. It also closes the circle from comic books to graffiti to pop-art and back again.

2011 stands as a pivotal year for modern art, specifically with respect to the city of Los Angeles. It will be impossible to have any such discussion without referencing the "new school" that started 25 years ago at La Luz de Jesus and how this single gallery has pushed the envelope in ways that few others could and no others did.

La Luz de Jesus Gallery
(323) 666-7667
info@laluzdejesus.com

LGBTQ Awareness Days at UNF

2011-01-25T09:51:00.000-08:00

Hello UNF LGBT Resource Center Community and Friends – Please join us all this week for LGBTQ Awareness Days, the biggest week of events in 2011. Of particular importance and timeliness, please join us at “Bullied” on Tuesday, January 25, 7 p.m. in the Robinson Theatre for an important film screening and discussion on anti-LGBT bullying and harassment in educational settings. More information on all of the week’s events is below and attached. All events are open to the entire community, including students, faculty, staff, alumni and Jacksonville community.

LGBTQ Awareness Days – Monday, January 24-Thursday, January 27

“Gay? Fine by Me”
Tues., Jan. 25, 11am-2pm
Student Union Osprey Plaza
The “Gay? Fine by Me” T-shirt campaign returns to bring visibility to allies of the LGBT community. The campaign has distributed more than 1,200 T-shirts to campus supporters in the past three years. This year the UNG LGBTRC will be giving out more than 450 shirts to students, faculty and staff.

“Bullied” Documentary
Tues., Jan 25, 6pm,
Robinson Theatre
“Bullied” is a documentary film that chronicles one student’s ordeal at the hands of anti-gay bullies, offering an inspiring message of hope to those fighting harassment today. The UNF LGBTRC will have a question-and-answer segment following the documentary.

Free Anonymous HIV Testing
Wed., Jan. 26, 1-3pm,
58E/1111
Know your status and get tested. HIV Testing is sponsored by the UNF Health Promotions and the UNF LGBTRC.

“Queers in the Spotlight”
Wed., Jan 26, 7pm,
58W/3804
Living with Pride is a discussion series on healthy living for the LGBT and ally communities. This week, the topic will be “Queers in the Spotlight” to discuss media portrayals of LGBT people.

“Out in the Workplace"
Thurs., Jan. 27, 12pm,
58W/3803
LGBT employees face a different set of challenges when it comes to being ‘out’ in the workplace. The choice to ‘come out’ or to ‘live openly’ about their sexuality or gender orientation can pose risks of safety, discrimination and job security. A panel of LGBT professional in Jacksonville will speak with students about career and professional concerns as well as their personal experiences of being ‘out’ in the workplace. This event is sponsored by UNF Career Services and the UNG LGBTRC.

PSYCHEDELIC VINYL BATTLE/OUTSIDER ART SHOW at Modernism 101

2010-09-30T05:57:00.000-07:00

Attention ALL Psychedelic audiophiles and ALL artists! You are cordially invited to PSYCHEDELIC VINYL BATTLE/OUTSIDER ART SHOW at Modernism 101! Participate in one or both or just come support the show!

Outsider art theme only! No experience required/free show! Please submit all proposed images to: artist13jax@gmail.com for approval. We have over 5000 square feet of wall/floor space. Oh yeah, DRESS IN YOUR BEST COSTUME! Kudos to homemade attire and honorable mentions will be chosen by exhibiting artist judges and be rewarded art. We will have 2 pro tables & equipment on hand. Now taking appointments to share details. Look for the official event invite soon!!!

Saturday, October 23rd at 7pm. Be here!

"The most underground ART and avant garde music venue in Jax." Over 5000sq ft.

Modernism 101
700 Union St.
Downtown Jacksonville
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Modernism-101/145344132169541?ref=ts

VOTE for The Excavation of Mushroom Island

2010-08-04T11:35:00.001-07:00

Voting begins today for the People's Choice Award in BLURB's Annual Photography Book competition. You've already shown your support by purchasing or blogging about my book The Excavation of Mushroom Island, and now you have one more opportunity to show how much you like my fictional archaeological exploration of the Super Mario World.

Simply visit my Blurb book page and click on the orange VOTE banner located in the middle of the page. By doing so you'll help my chances of not only winning the award but also supporting creative interpretations of your favorite video games.

Thank you for all your support!

Sincerely,
Logan Zawacki
Author/artist of The Excavation of Mushroom Island
www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/723284
www.loganzawacki.com

MOVEMENT presents James Hance!

2010-07-01T14:49:00.000-07:00

Repo!'s Terrance Zdunich Debuts A Series Of Online Art Tutorials!

2010-06-29T21:59:00.001-07:00

Are you an aspiring artist, hoping to learn the tricks of the trade from those who have made it? Or maybe you're an outsider, dying to learn the secrets of those who have been blessed with the gift of creation? No matter your position, fear not! Class is now in session! Terrance Zdunich, the mastermind behind Repo! The Genetic Opera, wants to teach YOU how to paint!

Although fans best recognize Terrance as Repo!'s charismatic, creepy narrator, GraveRobber, he also provided the comic book inspired artwork that appears throughout the movie and has been independently producing his own comics series, The Molting, since September of 2009. The Molting details the dark struggles of a dysfunctional, Southern Californian family in the late 1990s.

In conjunction with the release of the fourth installment of The Molting, its author is debuting a new project: "Painting A Still Life With Terrance Zdunich" is a series of online how-to videos, a seemingly innocent collection of art lessons from "The Tutor". Pupils will notice, however, that their instructor's methods are...less than traditional and, like the lives of his characters, deceptively darker than imagined.

The first episode of "Painting A Still Life With Terrance Zdunich" premieres at TheMoltingComic.com today, Tuesday, June 1, 2010. A new lesson will be released every Tuesday until this fourteen-part series is complete. Don't be late for class, students!

The Molting, chapter 4, “Lethal Raids”, is also now available for pre-order at TheMoltingComic.com.

YO GABBA GABBA LIVE!

2010-05-21T06:43:00.000-07:00

THE ARTIST SERIES ANNOUNCES

IN JACKSONVILLE WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 27, 2010
AS PART OF THEIR 2010 NORTH AMERICAN TOUR
TICKETS GO ON SALE JUNE 4, 2010 AT 10:00AM

JACKSONVILLE, FL - Fresh off a triumphant sold-out tour debut, a headlining performance at The White House, a critically-acclaimed, chart-topping album, and an appearance at Coachella that garnered rave reviews from spectators and media alike, DJ Lance Rock and the cast of YO GABBA GABBA! are heading back on the road with YO GABBA GABBA! LIVE!: THERE’S A PARTY IN MY CITY! to play to enthusiastic fans in Jacksonville. Today’s hottest live show for families will be at the Times Union Center’s Moran Theater on Wednesday, October 27, 2010 at 10:00AM & 7:00PM for two performances only. YO GABBA GABBA! LIVE!: THERE’S A PARTY IN MY CITY! is produced by S2BN Entertainment in association with Wildbrain Entertainment and The Magic Store and presented by The Artist Series.

Champions on the stage and in the community, the Gabba Gang will partner with Habitat for Humanity to further their homebuilding efforts in Jacksonville. In addition, $1 from every ticket sold for YO GABBA GABBA! LIVE!: THERE’S A PARTY IN MY CITY! in Jacksonville will be donated to the local Habitat for Humanity affiliate, HabiJax.

The public on-sale through The Artist Series will begin on Friday, June 4, 2010. A special GabbaTix pre-sale offer for members of the Gabba community will begin on Wednesday, May 26 at 10 a.m. VIP packages with premium tickets and meet and greets will also be available. For complete tour, ticket information and VIP packages, visit www.artistseriesjax.org or www.yogabbagabbalive.com. Children under one year of age will be admitted free to sit on a parent’s lap.

YO GABBA GABBA! LIVE!: THERE’S A PARTY IN MY CITY!
Jacksonville, FL @ Times Union Center’s Moran Theater
Wednesday, October 27, 2010 10:00AM & 7:00PM

The state-of-the-art production features music, singing, dancing and animation. The show is an interactive experience that offers audience members of all ages the opportunity to witness their favorite characters come to life. Joining the characters on stage will be hip-hop legend Biz Markie to teach kids how to beat box with “Biz’s Beat of the Day”. Special guests will join the party on stage for the Super Music Friends Show and Dancey Dance segments.

Released in October, 2009, YO GABBA GABBA!: MUSIC IS AWESOME Volume 1 topped kids and overall music charts at iTunes (#1 kids album), Amazon (top 5 kids album) and Target sales, which reached more than 40,000 copies in only 6 months since its release. YO GABBA GABBA!: MUSIC IS AWESOME was picked as one of 2009’s top holiday gifts for toddlers by both PARENTS magazine and the popular Mom web destination MomLogic.com. YO GABBA GABBA!: MUSIC IS AWESOME Volume 2 will be released on iTunes and will hit shelves nationwide this September.

About Yo Gabba Gabba!
Yo Gabba Gabba! premiered in the U.S. on Nickelodeon in August, 2007 and currently ranks as one of the most popular children series on television. Yo Gabba Gabba!, was voted as one of the best new shows on television by TIME magazine, won a BAFTA Award in 2008, was awarded the “Outstanding Achievement in Children’s Television” Award by the Television Critics Association, and is a two-time Emmy nominee. The series airs three times a day, seven days a week on Nick Jr. and in several major international territories, including Australia, Canada, Israel, Latin America, New Zealand, South Africa and the U.K.

Yo Gabba Gabba! infuses retro-style and beat-driven music to teach simple life lessons through music. The series stars DJ Lance Rock (Lance Robertson) and a cast of colorful characters, including: Brobee, the little green one, Foofa, the pink flower bubble, Muno, the red Cyclops, Toodee, the blue cat-dragon and Plex, the yellow robot. Today’s most popular names in movies, television, music and sports flock to guest star in the groundbreaking show, including Jack Black, Rachel Dratch, Melora Hardin, Tony Hawk, Biz Markie, Jack McBrayer, MGMT, Mark Mothersbaugh, The Roots, Andy Samberg, Amy Sedaris, The Shins, Amare Stoudemire, The Ting Tings, Jimmy Eat World and Elijah Wood, among others. Yo Gabba Gabba! toys, apparel and other merchandise are sold in stores nationwide in the U.S. and have skyrocketed in popularity. Yo Gabba Gabba! is recommended as a trusted program for preschoolers by The Smart Television Alliance, a non-profit organization comprised of leading non-profit children’s media organizations including Common Sense Media, Parents’ Choice Foundation, Parents Television Council and Coalition for Quality children’s Media: KIDS FIRST!. Visit www.yogabbagabba.com.

About W!LDBRAIN
W!ldbrain is an award-winning entertainment company and one of the world’s foremost producers of animation. The studio develops and produces television, motion pictures, short-form programming, commercial content and licensed merchandise. W!ldbrain has produced an exceptional slate of programming, including the critically acclaimed television series Yo Gabba Gabba! (Nick Jr.) and the live touring show Yo Gabba Gabba!: There’s A Party in My City!; The Ricky Gervais Show (HBO) and the hit Disney series, Higglytown Heroes. Some upcoming television and short-form projects include Bubble Guppies, an animated series for Nick Jr., The Hard Times of RJ Berger, an animated series for MTV and Team Smithereen, the short-form stunt puppet show from Dan Clark. W!ldbrain and its creative team have won top industry awards. In film, the studio won an Annie for its computer graphics short film, Hubert’s Brain. W!ldbrain has received Clios, Addys, BDA Awards and Annies for their commercial work, reinvigorating classic brands for leading companies including The Coca-Cola Company, Honda, Kraft and Nike and has gained national attention for their animation work on behalf of Esurance, Ubisoft and Virgin America. W!ldbrain’s sister company, Kidrobot, creates limited edition toys, clothing, artwork and books, with stores in New York City, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Miami. W!ldbrain is based in Los Angeles, CA. www.wildbrain.com.

YO GABBA GABBA! LIVE!: THERE’S A PARTY IN MY CITY! will be performed at the TIMES UNION CENTER’S MORAN THEATER Wednesday, October 27, 2010 at 10:00AM & 7:00PM for two performances only. Tickets range in price from $26.00 to $36.00. Inquire within regarding VIP Pricing or Group Discounts.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call
The Artist Series Box Office at
(904) 632-3373
(toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY)

KICK UP YOUR HEELS For The 2010-2011 Broadway in Jacksonville Season

2010-05-21T06:38:00.000-07:00

RADIO CITY
CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR
LEGALLY BLONDE
CIRQUE DREAMS ILLUMINATION
And SHREK THE MUSICAL
At the Times Union Center for the Performing Arts

JACKSONVILLE - The Artist Series announces its INCREDIBLE 2010-2011 Broadway Across America – Jacksonville/The Artist Series’ Broadway Season. Experience the best Broadway has to offer this 2010-2011 season with such extraordinary productions as the RADIO CITY CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR, LEGALLY BLONDE, CIRQUE DREAMS ILLUMINATION, SHREK THE MUSICAL, and our subscriber special CATS!

RADIO CITY CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR
December 2–12, 2010
Fill your heart with Christmas as the world-famous Radio City Rockettes® bring their eye-high kicks and a cast and crew of over 100 to town in the breathtaking RADIO CITY CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR®! Every performance of the SPECTACULAR is a glittering present full of fun and surprises for the whole family! Parents enjoy the flawless precision of the Rockettes in numbers such as the legendary “Parade of the Wooden Soldiers.” Children thrill as Santa takes them on a magical ride to his workshop at the North Pole, where playful rag dolls come to life! And everyone marvels at the stunning reenactment of the very first Christmas in the “Living Nativity.” The New York Times says, “BRILLIANT! It lifts the spirit and spreads warmth, joy and good will!”

LEGALLY BLONDE
January 11-16, 2011
It's here, and it's "AN ELLE OF A SHOW" (TIME Magazine). The hilarious MGM film is Broadway's new smash hit musical, and now LEGALLY BLONDE THE MUSICAL is coming to you. Legally Blonde follows sorority star Elle Woods, an underestimated blonde who doesn't take "no" for an answer. When her boyfriend dumps her for someone more "serious," Elle puts down the credit card, hits the books, and sets out to go where no Delta Nu has gone before: Harvard Law. Along the way, Elle proves that being true to yourself never goes out of style. After turning Broadway and MTV hot pink, this “Feel-Good Song and Dance Juggernaut” (New York Magazine) is “The Best New Musical Around!” (WOR).

CIRQUE DREAMS ILLUMINATION
February 15-20, 2011
Climb aboard the all new CIRQUE DREAMS ILLUMINATION journey, from the creators of Broadway’s groundbreaking hit and only show of its kind to ever perform on Broadway, Cirque Dreams Jungle Fantasy. CIRQUE DREAMS ILLUMINATION blends world renowned imagination, critically acclaimed theatrical innovation and breathtaking presentation into a story that illuminates a city of everyday people, workers and pedestrians into feats of disbelief. Marvel as 27 world-class artists illuminate objects, balance on wires, leap structures and redefine flight with entertaining variety, comedy and extraordinary occurrences that reinvent everyday life. Urban acrobatics, dazzling choreography and brilliant illusions are ignited by special effects performed to a stylish original score of jazz, salsa, ballroom, pop and trendy beats from the streets.

SHREK THE MUSICAL
May 10-15, 2011
SHREK THE MUSICAL, based on the Oscar®-winning DreamWorks film that started it all, brings the hilarious story of everyone’s favorite ogre to life on stage. In a faraway kingdom turned upside down, things get ugly when an unseemly ogre – not a handsome prince – shows up to rescue a feisty princess. Throw in a donkey who won’t shut up, a villain with a SHORT temper, a cookie with an attitude and over a dozen other fairy tale misfits, and you’ve got the kind of mess that calls for a real hero. Luckily, there’s one on hand… and his name is Shrek. Featuring a terrific score of 19 all-new songs, big laughs, great dancing and breathtaking scenery, WWOR-TV proclaims SHREK THE MUSICAL, “FAR, FAR AND AWAY THE FUNNIEST NEW MUSICAL ON BROADWAY!” SHREK THE MUSICAL is part romance, part twisted fairy tale and all irreverent fun for everyone!

SUBSCRIBER SPECIAL!
CATS
June 17-19, 2011
There's no better way to introduce your family to the wonders of live theater than with the magic, the mystery, the memory of CATS. What began as a musical about cats after Andrew Lloyd Webber picked up a book of poems in an airport bookshop has become one of the longest running shows in Broadway's history. Winner of seven Tony Awards including Best Musical, CATS features 20 of Andrew Lloyd Webber's timeless melodies, including the hit song, "Memory.

Tickets to the 2010-2011 Artist Series season are on sale now with prices ranging from $93.33 to $248.75. Season ticket prices vary depending on the show time, day of the week and seating location. A renewal order form has been mailed to current Artists Series subscribers allowing them to confirm or upgrade their seat locations. Subscriber benefits include: premium seat locations, no waiting in line or on the phone for tickets, exclusive exchange privileges, priority ticket purchases, discounts to other Artist Series events and lost ticket insurance.

VIP Seating is available to contributors to the Artist Series at five levels Angel, Producer, Benefactor, Patron and Donor. Call the Artist Series for information and additional benefits available through the VIP Theater Club.

New subscriptions may be ordered over the phone by calling 632-3373 or 1-888-860-BWAY Monday through Friday, 10:00am to 5:00pm; by fax at 1-800-535-2929.

Tickets to individual shows in the 2010-2011 season are not available for purchase at this time. Season ticket holders have the unique opportunity to purchase additional tickets before they go on sale to the public. Broadway subscribers will also have the opportunity to purchase other Artist Series events including dance, opera, off-Broadway, concerts and family Entertainment at the “Test Drive Your Seats Event.” For more information on the 2010-2011 season please visit www.artistseriesjax.org. Reservations for groups of ten or more for individual shows can be made at this time by calling (904) 632-3228.

Performances are Tuesday through Thursday at 7:30PM, Friday and Saturday evening at 8:00PM, Saturday afternoon at 2:00PM, and Sunday at 1:30 PM and 7:00 PM. Radio City Christmas Spectacular Sunday Subscriber Performances are at 2:00PM and 8:00PM. (All times are subject to change). American Sign Language interpreted performance for the deaf are available for one pre-determined Sunday evening of each presentation. Please call the Box Office for more information.

The Artist Series is recognized by the State of Florida as a Major Sponsor/Presenter Cultural Institution and receives funding from the State of Florida, through the Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Arts Council.

Galactic Enounter Day at the Orange County Regional History Center

2010-05-05T12:12:00.000-07:00

Orange County Regional History Center
65 E. Central Blvd.
Orlando, FL 32801

GRAND OPENING OF THE WIZARDING WORLD OF HARRY POTTER AT UNIVERSAL ORLANDO RESORT SET FOR JUNE 18

2010-03-26T08:24:00.001-07:00

Universal Orlando Also Unveils Details for the Highly Anticipated New Attraction:
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey

ORLANDO, Fla. (March 25, 2010) – One of the most widely anticipated theme park entertainment experiences ever created – The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando Resort – is set for a public grand opening on June 18.

Today, Universal Orlando Resort also revealed details about what is expected to be one the most exciting theme park experiences ever created: Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. It will be one of three themed attractions within The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, including Flight of the Hippogriff and Dragon Challenge.

Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is the heart of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. This all new adventure combines a powerful storyline with spectacular new technology so effectively that guests will be completely immersed in the experience.

And as they live their adventure, guests will feel things no one has ever felt inside a theme park attraction, move in ways no one has ever moved, experience film like no one else ever has, explore vast sets punctuated by amazing special effects – and have an adventure only possible in Harry Potter’s world.

The new attraction lies deep within Hogwarts castle, a majestic structure that towers over The Wizarding World of Harry Potter - the only place in the world where the wonder, excitement and adventure of the Harry Potter books and films comes to life.

The Adventure
Imagine…

…meeting Harry, Ron and Hermione as if they were in person
…soaring over Hogwarts castle with Harry
…being swept into a Quidditch match
…feeling the chilling effect of a Dementor
…exploring your favorite places inside Hogwarts castle
…living adventures you’ve only been able to imagine – until now.

HARRY POTTER AND THE FORBIDDEN JOURNEY

The Story
Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey draws you into the excitement and chaos of Harry's life. As you venture through Hogwarts castle, you meet Harry, Ron and Hermione who convince you to skip a planned lecture and follow them. Upon taking their advice, you travel by Floo powder, and begin the adventure as you soar over Hogwarts, narrowly escape a dragon attack, have a close encounter with the Whomping Willow, get pulled into a Quidditch match and more.

"Guests will experience firsthand a completely new adventure featuring the iconic characters, amazing creatures and recognizable locations they’ve only read in the books or seen in the films," said Thierry Coup, creative director for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

The Location
The Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey experience starts as soon as you walk through the gates of Hogwarts. Within the towering Hogwarts castle, you explore a truly magical place. You journey through iconic locations taken from the films and take in the extraordinary detail of each scene. They include:

• Dumbledore’s office: Here, you meet the Headmaster as he welcomes you to Hogwarts
• Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom: Where you first meet Harry, Ron and Hermione
• Gryffindor common room: You meet three additional characters who prepare you for your journey
• Room of Requirement: Here, with hundreds of floating candles above, you take your seat on an enchanted bench and begin the Forbidden Journey
• Other locations: In addition, guests will pass through the Dungeon passageway and hallways of Hogwarts where they will have the chance to see hundreds of wizard portraits from the films, including several magical talking portraits created exclusively for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, including the four founders of Hogwarts. Guests will even get a glimpse of the Sorting Hat.

The Innovation
This is more than just an attraction and it is unlike any theme park experience ever created. It’s a revolutionary, 360-degree theme park experience and first-ever combination of live-action, advanced robotic technology and innovative filmmaking – specially designed and developed for this brand-new adventure.

"We have created an entirely new way to place our guests into the heart of one of the most compelling stories of our time," said Mark Woodbury, president of Universal Creative. "What we have done will forever change the theme park attraction experience."

The attraction’s newly created ride system envelops guests in filmed action scenes and moves those scenes with them as they travel through the ride, allowing more time in the center of the adventure and with their favorite characters. This fusion of robotic technology and filmed scenes has never been achieved until now. In some cases, technology had to be invented to achieve the highest level of guest experience. The combination of pioneering, state-of-the-art technology, innovative filmmaking and surprises around every corner make this attraction the embodiment of the Harry Potter book and film series—and the future of theme park entertainment.

For the latest news about The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, visit www.UniversalOrlando.com

FREE COMIC BOOK DAY IN JAX!!!

2010-03-19T13:44:00.001-07:00

012210

2010-01-06T20:43:00.001-08:00

Draper

2009-12-15T21:04:00.000-08:00

Draper Studios one night student show.
12.15.09

Matt Allison @ Underbelly

2009-11-05T14:19:00.000-08:00

This Friday
a new installation by
Matt Allison.

Jax Underbelly
1021 Park Street
in Historic 5Points.
www.jaxunderbelly.com

6-9pm.
904.354.7002

Exploring the Unexpected

2009-11-05T13:55:00.000-08:00

Saturday Nov 7

Exploring the Unexpected
Gordon Meggison
at Hemming Plaza Jewelers
231 N Hogan St @ Hemming Plaza

Directions:
At the corner of W. Monroe St & North Hogan
next to the Skyway terminal
for more info call 354-5959
5 - 9 pm Hors D'oeuvres ,Wine

ART WALK 11.04.09

2009-11-04T18:58:00.000-08:00

Downtown Jacksonville, FL

The Blair BITCH ... oh the horror!

2009-11-03T13:12:00.000-08:00

Local Jax artist Jerrod Brown had his own horrific run in with Exorcist star Linda Blair at Ultimate Horror Weekend 2009. Here is the story in his own words...

"When she saw my Exorcist Painting of 'Regan fucking herself with a cross' she told me to get out of the room. I thought she was kidding at first and I said 'Are you Serious?' Then she got even madder, her face turned red and she yelled "You and that painting get the hell out of here!!!" Her line manager escorted me to the door. The next day, I approached a security guard that witnessed this and asked him what pissed her off? He said she has been a complete 'Bitch' the entire show and anybody that approached her with Exorcist memorabilia was not welcome at her table. My question was "why then is she at a HORROR convention if her own greatest role offends her?" Apparently she is trying to distance herself from this film and my painting was the icing on the cake for pissing her off. I looked at her table later (after the smoke had cleared) and observed that there were absolutely no photos of her in The Exorcist, only all of the other cheesy movies she's attempted to make. So... the rest of the weekend, anybody that purchased a print from me of this painting, I told them the story and what I think of her. So, I guess my painting is controversial, now that the actress in the movie hates it (Ha, Ha)."

www.myspace.com/jerrodbrown

STAR WARS in Concert

2009-10-29T20:11:00.000-07:00

Jacksonville Arena
10.29.09

Anthony Daniels clad in an all black tuxedo and metallic gold vest took the stage amidst a sea of lights, lasers, smoke and fire to narrate between the symphonic renditions of the music from STAR WARS featuring key characters (including his own C3PO) and plot moments illustrated by massive video screening filled with synched montages from all 6 films that got my midichlorians all tingly. Presented in two parts with a 20 minute intermission ended with a sustained standing ovation. Simply a must for geeks of all ages.

Below are some photos from the show and the display areas featuring props and costumes from the Lucas Films archives.

- Max Michaels / Jacksonville FL

Orlando's Premiere Pop Artists @ Bold Hype!

2009-10-29T12:20:00.000-07:00

The New Shanghai Circus

2009-10-28T13:30:00.000-07:00

RETURNING TO JACKSONVILLE
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 2009
7:30 PM WILSON CENTER FOR THE ARTS

JACKSONVILLE, FL – The New Shanghai Circus is returning to Jacksonville once again to amaze and astound audiences with their mind-blowing acrobatics! Coming to the Wilson Center for the Arts on Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 7:30pm for one public performance only!

Astonishing athletes defy gravity and execute breathtaking feats as they stretch the limits of human ability in this spellbinding show. Fearless performers with boundless energy bring you more than two thousand years of Chinese circus traditions. If it’s humanly possible-and even if it’s not! - Shanghai’s acrobats, jugglers and contortionists do it with spectacular flair. The show is a beautifully orchestrated presentation of Chinese circus acts dating back to harvest festivals of 2000 years ago. This modern day performance is enhanced by fabulous choreography, amazing lighting, enchanting scenery, and powerful music.

THE NEW SHANGHAI CIRCUS will be performed at the WILSON CENTER FOR THE ARTS on Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 7:30 PM for one public performance only. Tickets cost $34.00. Discounts are available for groups of 10+, 20+, or 40+ by calling (904) 632-3228.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call The Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY.)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the The Artist Series’ website, www.artistseriesjax.org.

DO THE DEVIL’S WORK FOR HIM: HOW TO MAKE IT IN THE MUSIC INDUSTRY (AND STAY IN IT)

2009-10-27T13:51:00.000-07:00

New York, NY/Los Angeles, CA --- McCarren Publishing is pleased to announce the release date for Do the Devil’s Work for Him: How to Make it in the Music Industry (and Stay in it)--- http://www.mccarrenpublishing.com/devilswork.htm --- the debut book from noted music and entertainment writers, Amy Sciarretto and Rick Florino. The book is scheduled to hit retail shelves and online bookseller outlets on June 26, 2009. It has received critical praise from AOL.com/Noisecreep, LAX Magazine, Outburn Magazine, Music Connection Magazine, Metal Insider, SilverTongue Online, DefHog.com. Devil… was also featured in segments on FOX NEWS and No Good TV, as well, among other outlets, publications and radio stations.

Do the Devil’s Work for Him is a “she-said, he-said” pocket guide on how to get your foot in the door of the cutthroat entertainment business, offering tips on how to intern, how to network and how to adjust to the ever-changing climate of this “eats its young” industry.

Amy Sciarretto is a 15-year veteran of the music business, having written extensively for Kerrang!, Revolver, TeenPeople.com, Spin.com, AOL Noisecreep and Spinner, Urban Ink, Rebel Ink, Guitar World, VH1.com and ARTISTdirect.com, to name a few, and having served as Loud Rock Editor for CMJ New Music Report and Hit Parader. She worked as a DJ on Sirius/XM for two years and has also worked in the promotion and publicity departments of top independent label Roadrunner Records for 8 years.

Rick Florino founded Ruin Magazine in 2006, and he's currently entertainment editor for LAX Magazine and an editor for ARTISTdirect.com. His writing has appeared in publications and web sites such as Inked, Revolver, BPM, Hit Parader, Shockhound.com, Citysearch.com and other outlets. This year, Florino also released his first novel--DOLOR: Lila. It's the first in a series of ten illustrated horror novels, and it's available as a free download at http://www.bookofdolor.com/signup.html and signed hard copies are also available.

In addition to two humorous, clever and insightful author perspectives, as well as advice, anecdotes and analysis, the book also features a complete extra chapter of advice from top-tier music and entertainment business personnel and rock stars, including members of multi-platinum acts like System of A Down, Guns N’ Roses and Korn. It’s a necessary and crucial time for those looking to break into this exciting lifestyle and career field, namely college students, high schoolers and those who dream of working with and among the stars.

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE Contest

2009-10-16T09:55:00.001-07:00

Email MOVEMENT about the wildest thing you've done (and where you did it) to be entered to win a WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE prize pack!

E-mail MovementMagazine@aol.com
One entry per e-mail address please! Prizes are limited. Entries chosen at random. Good luck!

AaaaWwwoooooooo!

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE
now playing in theaters and IMAX

DARK VISIONS This Saturday!!!

2009-10-15T21:00:00.000-07:00

EXPERIENCE THE FIRST COAST’S
MOST UNUSUAL ART EXHIBIT
EVER PRESENTED!
DARK VISIONS
The Artistree Gallery presents the frightful creations of
JERROD BROWN
and
DREW EDWARD HUNTER

The Artistree Gallery in Atlantic Beach celebrates the Halloween season with the most unique, most outrageous and most creative art exhibit ever to be seen on the First Coast – DARK VISIONS. The show will feature 90 “Portraits of Horror” by local artist Jerrod Brown, as well as “ODDITOPIA! The Midway of Marvels”, a customized G-Gauge scale sideshow train by local artist Drew Edward Hunter.

“We wanted to present something very unusual in the spirit of the haunting season,” explains Artistree Gallery owner William Meyer, “so we are showcasing the imaginative and macabre work of these two remarkable local artists. I guarantee you have never been to an art exhibit such as Dark Visions will be!”

DARK VISIONS will open on Thursday, October 15. The Artistree Gallery will remain open that evening for the North Beaches Art Walk.

A special “Shocktail Party” Artists Reception will be held the following Saturday, October 17 from 6 – 9 PM. This Halloween-themed event will allow guests to meet and greet the artists and discuss their work. There will be a few haunted surprises in store as well. It’s to be a most macabre but very entertaining evening, sure to be talked about for quite some time to come!

Artist Jerrod Brown has always been fascinated by fantasy and horror movies. His “Portraits of Horror” are inspired by the many colorful and evocative paintings created by Basil Gogos, illustrator of dozens of covers of the most notable movie monster magazine of the ‘50s and ‘60s, the iconic “Famous Monsters of Filmland”. Brown met Gogos at a convention in 2007 and was encouraged by the older artist to paint what he really loved – monsters, creatures, horror and fantasy.

Jerrod will be exhibiting nearly 100 “Portraits of Horror” he has done over the past two years. Many of the paintings are on 24” x 30” stretched canvas, and his medium of choice is acrylic. Most of the subject matter is based upon horror movies, and each painting usually features a performer from the film in a pivotal or symbolic scene or pose.

Although Jerrod recognizes the value of computer aided art, all his paintings are quite traditional. “I want to produce uniquely crafted pieces of art,” he says, “so people can see the brushstrokes, feel the textures and even smell the paints. I want them to see the many layers of labor which are involved in each painting, aside from just the image itself.”

Jerrod also is an illustrator of book covers for the science fiction and horror realm, having had dozens of covers published. In 2008 he also received an Honorable Mention as “Artist of the Year” at the 7th Annual Rondo Hatton Classic Horror Awards ceremony.

Aside from his nightmarish paintings, Jerrod has been professionally involved for many years in the creative side of the theme park industry. He has painted murals, scenery and props in theme and amusement parks, museums, resorts, restaurants and more.

Drew Edward Hunter also grew up with a tremendous fondness for fantasy and horror. With his birthday being a few days before Halloween, it just seemed natural for Drew to gravitate toward the macabre and the unusual in many of his creative endeavors. From first viewing the “Night On Bald Mountain” sequence of Walt Disney’s “Fantasia” as a young child, and from the first issue of “Famous Monsters of Filmland” magazine his dad bought him in 1959, Drew was hooked on horror and all things weird.

The DARK VISIONS exhibit will showcase Drew’s one-of-a-kind, amazing attraction, a static display of his customized G-Gauge (large scale) model sideshow train. “Professor Phobetor’s ODDITOPIA! Midway of Marvels – The World’s Greatest Sideshow on Rails!” consists of 13 intricately detailed and customized train cars. The entire train is over 19 feet in length, and will be shown in a specially designed and themed display created by Drew.

Inspired by his fascination with the culture of the traveling American sideshow, the train is a tribute to the sideshow’s history, legacy, attractions and performers. Some of the cars are based upon actual shows and performers, while others are inspired by actual attractions, and some are totally the products of Drew’s curious imagination. As a child Drew met many legendary “very special people” at various fairs and expositions, and saw many of the shows similar to the ones depicted in the train. He has become an amateur authority on the artistic style, lingo and culture of the sideshow.

Drew explains about “ODDITOPIA! The Midway of Marvels”: “This customized G-Gauge model train represents an imaginary touring sideshow train as it may have appeared in 1932. According to my back story, the mysterious and foreboding Professor Phobetor began assembling the incredible attractions and performers in 1902, and toured the shows via his train across the country for almost 34 seasons. His career and the touring ended with a disastrous train wreck in 1936, but he and the legacy of his sideshows lives on. The model train as displayed has definitely experienced better days – it’s worn, grimy and travel-weary. But it still boasts by far the widest variety of spectacular sideshow attractions ever to tour the nation!”

Accompanying the train model will be “vintage” flyers, articles, ads and posters from the heyday of the “ODDITOPIA!” sideshows, plus some recently discovered “rare” film footage of Professor Phobetor and a few of the performers in the attractions.

In addition, other frightful original works of art by Drew will be on display at the Artistree Gallery along with the train.

Aside from being a fine artist, Drew is also a versatile writer, designer, performer and director. He is currently the Vice President of Creative Design for Sally Corporation in Jacksonville, a world leader in the design and manufacture of lifelike animatronic figures and interactive dark rides for amusement and theme parks.

www.theartistree.com

'Sundays With Chris' at DVF Gallery October 22nd

2009-10-15T20:09:00.001-07:00

JOHN W. CODLING: SUNDAYS WITH CHRIS
DVF GALLERY
444 West 14TH STREET
NEW YORK NY 10011

Private Reception (By Invite Only / RSVP) October 22, 2009
Open to Public October 23 to November 1, 2009

New Yorker John W. Codling defies just about every pigeonhole you may be inclined to put him in; he's certainly neither your average Wall Street heavyweight nor your average artist. From October 22 to November 1, 2009 John Codling's much talked about Walken collection will be showcased exclusively at Diane Von Furstenberg's Gallery in the Meatpacking District.

Earlier this year, when his work first began to circulate amongst the downtown Manhattan scene, imaginations were soon hijacked by Codling’s commanding pop art and his blatant nonconformist approach. Ongoing intrigue continued as his collection grew, not only because of his unique style but because of his continual choice of subject -- the ultimate on-screen non-conformist and fellow New Yorker, Christopher Walken. Finally, to be unveiled, a world of Walkens’, created by one man, and inspired wholly by another.

Sundays With Chris transpired from a world of uncertainty as Wall Street began to implode. Codling became increasingly frustrated as the weight of Wall Street began to take its toll. As figures quickly faced south and the media onslaught seemed inescapable... one day, something within him switched. “I yearned for calm, a leader I could trust to guide me through the crisis. There were none found in the financial world so I shut off CNBC and logged out of Bloomberg. I found my leader in front of me on the canvas every Sunday. I wound up painting Christopher Walken."

And Sundays With Chris was born. ‘Walken This Way’, ‘Baby Walken’, ‘Walken In Colors’, ‘Father Walken’ and ‘I Cant Stop Walken’ are just some of the titles from this magnetic collection. Some might wonder if the wry-witted humor injected by Codling into his work is to carefully conceal the more somber side to his portraits. His inspiration, passion, and talent reach far beyond the techniques of painting, as the strokes reveal the honest emotion of loss, determination, and a drive that would soon bring him to create this series and what has quite possibly kept him sane all this time.

Codling has managed to capture and truly define resilience and rebellion, while embracing the eccentric approach to life as the very the core to survival. Walken is never vulnerable, nor is he weak (he rarely shows it, at least), and it is exactly this particular combination of artist and his muse that ensures the strength and solidity of Sundays With Chris doesn't just sit on the canvas, it leaves the gallery with you.

Profit from the sale of the artwork will go to Team Continuum to honor and support Codling’s dear friend Paul who founded Team Continuum, a non-profit organization assisting cancer patients and their families.

For further information on Team Continuum: www.teamcontinuum.net

Chiaroscuro Baby

2009-10-10T14:10:00.000-07:00

Chiaroscuro, Baby begins with a jolt of frenetic energy uncommon in typically-contemplative Jacksonville film offerings: A stylish, rock n roll-meets-art title sequence worthy of a Russ Meyer film which serves to, visually, introduce the characters. Additionally, we're introduced to the film's retro-fitted 60s mise en scene; the comparison to Russ Meyer was deliberate.

The protagonist, Calvin, is a struggling artist, a statement which may be redundant; show me an artist who isn't struggling. The relationship with his long-time, live-in girlfriend, Nancy, like his art, has grown stagnant. He stumbles, uninspired, through his day-to-day life and his art suffers for the banality of these circumstances.

It is clear from the moment that Nancy steps into frame that she is the antagonist. Without saying a word, it is all-too-obvious that Calvin views his relationship with Nancy as a burden, perhaps even an annoyance but, as we will learn, Calvin has trouble making up his own mind. No matter, Nancy is happy to do it for him.

Perhaps just as critical to the story as art, is sex: sex as a weapon. Nancy preys on all that is supposed to be desired by the one-dimensional, carnal male and she uses that to emasculate Calvin, compromise his art, and justify her own lifestyle. It is worth mentioning, Calvin and Nancy are in an open relationship, only Calvin doesn't know this yet.

Nancy insists on a career change which seems to work out. She uses this small success to leverage Calvin into switching mediums: from painting to collage. Calvin resists, caves, and soon, Nancy has used her connections to showcase Calvin's work for Arthur Profit; a very important associate of a very important JJ Willard.

The show is an overwhelming success and before you know it, Calvin and Nancy are the toast of the town: A hot young up-and-coming artist with his centerfold girlfriend free to drink, drug, and swing all on Arthur Profit's dime. And Calvin SHOULD want these things, right? I mean, what guy wouldn't want to quit his job, have someone pay his expenses, and live with a girl that brings home other girls?

Nancy and Calvin's dynamic is epitomized when a marriage proposal leads to a discussion about Calvin taking Nancy's last name which would make him Calvin Floyd. Truth be told, he is already Calvin Floyd. He is Nancy's creation. His habits, his lifestyle, even his art have all been dictated by Nancy.

At the center of his artistic/moral dilemma is a spunky (and somewhat annoying) photographer, Marjorie. After a few awkward encounters, Marjorie is posing nude for one of Calvin's paintings. The art, like the relationship with Marjorie, is kept from Nancy.

Marjorie reignites Calvin's passion for painting; however, Arthur Profit is not paying Calvin to paint. JJ Willard is not coming all the way from New York to look at paintings. And that is the conflict or, as Nancy argues early in the film:

"Some times you have to choose between what you want... and what you NEED."

Perhaps my favorite line of dialogue is spoken by the character Alice, Marjorie's roommate, who says, frankly, what the entire audience is thinking, "Rumor has it your girlfriend is a raging cunt." A raging cunt and an effective villain.

Calvin seeks refuge from Nancy with a few close friends. One of these friends is Calvin's gay neighbor/landlord, Ash, who delivers the following bit of dialogue while confessing a severe drug addiction, dramatic irony intact, "Just be glad you know who you are." Calvin hasn't quite figured that out yet.

The film follows Calvin's descent as his career ascends. I'd suggest paying special attention to the exciting opening sequence as a point of comparison for Calvin's art, juxtaposed against the dull, elitist, bourgeois scene surrounding the work of "Calvin Floyd" in the film's final sequence.

The film itself is fun to watch. Props must be given to the filmmakers for accurately reproducing the look and feel of a 60s film, imperfections and all. Whether all the imperfections were deliberate or accidental is of no consequence, the style being emulated was imperfect and they've succeeded in perfecting imperfection.

The film is not cut as tight as some films of that era and, instead, it seems to have more in common with meditative 70s films. This will almost certainly render it inaccessible to large audiences whose attention spans have been greatly reduced in an era of music video-style editing. That fatigue aside, the film could stand some tightening and that is my only real criticism. Some scenes tend to linger beyond what seems like the obvious conclusion to reveal nothing. This is being billed as an "Art" film and has been produced without catering to the needs of the masses. Still the "art crowd's" time is valuable and, sometimes, I wished the movie would move along.

Chiaroscuro, Baby is not just a good film by Jacksonville standards, it is a good film. The fact that a local group of filmmakers, actors, artists, and musicians mobilized and produced this should be a rallying cry to ALL area artists. You don't have to move to New York or Los Angeles and struggle to surround yourself with the "right people" which is a particularly daunting task considering how overwhelmingly unoriginal that notion is. Take a look at the city around you. It can be done. It has been done. Chiaroscuro is a testament to that.

I sincerely hope that the community can generate some momentum and follow Killacozy's lead.

-Samuel Farmer

Penn & Teller Return To NYC For Bill Graham Memorial Show On Nov 12th

2009-10-08T23:56:00.001-07:00

New York --- The Bill Graham Memorial Foundation will host Penn & Teller at the Gramercy Theatre on November 12, 2009. Funds raised through the exclusive appearance will be donated to a local school in the tri-state area. The goal of the Foundation is to continue Bill’s good work in assisting those whose needs are oftentimes not noticed or served by larger philanthropic organizations. Currently, the Foundation awards grants primarily in the areas of music, the arts, and education, while also supporting social work, environmental protection, and spiritual and compassionate projects in the community. The foundation has enlisted the expertise of The VH1 Save the Music Foundation to determine which school will be selected as the recipient of the donation.

Penn & Teller have not played New York City in nine years. This performance is titled 35 Years of Magic & BS. Only 400 seats will be sold at a ticket price of $99.00 to benefit the Bill Graham Memorial Foundation. Comedian and self-described “larger, louder half” of Penn & Teller, Penn Jillette shared, “Our first ticketed show in NYC in over 9 years (that's almost 10!) will be a Q&A for P&T with a few classic bits thrown in for good measure. We wanted to donate magic equipment, but we were convinced all the cool kids want to play music. Oh, and yes, Teller WILL speak." Executive Director of The Bill Graham Memorial Foundation Morton Wiggins added, “It is essential that the youth of America be afforded the opportunity to have the presence of the arts in their lives. This was always an important issue to the Bill Graham Memorial Foundation, and our efforts to support both communities and schools in need are a constant as we focus our priorities. It is a luxury to have Penn & Teller, and other legends from music and the arts, supporting our commitment to these essential programs. We could not be more thrilled, and appreciative of their joining us in making a difference.” World renowned sideshow personality Todd Robbins will serve as moderator for this special appearance.

The Gramercy Theatre is located at 127 East 23rd Street. All seats for this exclusive event will be reserved. Following the performance, there will be an audience Q&A, and a commemorative poster gifted to all attendees, with the opportunity to meet Penn and Teller and get the poster autographed. Tickets are available online at www.livenation.com, the Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza Box Office, and via phone by dialing 877-598-8694.

Serenity Rose Vol. 2, in print, this December, IN COLOR

2009-10-06T14:05:00.001-07:00

“When you’re a witch with night terrors, you might just start conjuring unspeakable monsters in your sleep. That’s what’s happening to Serenity Rose, noted witch, artist, and social-phobic, in the much-anticipated second volume of Serenity Rose by Aaron Alexovich (Kimmie66, Confessions of a Blabbermouth).

In Serenity Rose Volume Two: Goodbye, Crestfallen, due out from SLG Publishing in December 2009, Serenity is doing her best to stay awake, but if that’s not enough to make her crack, the government goons hassling her, the freaked-out tourists ogling her, and the sadistic blond witch that’s been following her will! Add into that some heavy friendship drama and the past coming back to haunt her, and it’s no wonder the stress is just about killing Sera. Can she get her head on straight before she brings the whole town down with her?

‘I wanted to seriously push myself art-wise, and tell a tight, focused, very personal story with a lot of heavy horror atmosphere and some intense, bizarre action scenes,’ said Alexovich. ‘I think people who liked the first book will be really surprised by this one. It’s the best stuff I’ve ever done, and I’m beyond excited that SLG decided to let everyone see it in full, bloody, ectoplasmicky color. I promise not to make them wait 78 years for the next one.’

Serenity Rose Volume Two: Goodbye, Crestfallen is a 144-page, full-color graphic novel full of horror, turmoil — and monsters as only Alexovich can draw them. Its ISBN is 978-1-59362-181-0 and it can be PRE-ORDERED AT COMIC BOOK STORES NOW with the DIAMOND CODE OCT090665.

Established in 1986, SLG Publishing is a San Jose, California based publisher of comic books, graphic novels and related merchandise. Some of SLG’s more notable comics and creators have included Johnny the Homicidal Maniac by Jhonen Vasquez, Milk and Cheese by Evan Dorkin and Zombies Calling by Faith Erin Hicks. For more information, visit the SLG Publishing website, WWW.SLGCOMIC.COM.”

Please check this out, as Aaron's work is a definite favourite here at the MovementNORTH offices. Feel free to pick up a copy for us, too. =D

HeartShapedSkull!

Mid-Ohio Comic Con Recap!

2009-10-05T17:44:00.001-07:00

Columbus, Ohio certainly knows how to take care of its nerds.

This past weekend, October 3rd and 4th, The Greater Columbus Convention Center played host to the 29th annual Mid-Ohio-Con. On hand were a bevy of comics and media guests, including Ray Park (Darth Maul in Star Wars Episode I, Toad in the first X-Men film, Snake Eyes in this summer's live action GI Joe, and currently part of the cast of TV's Heroes fourth season), James Kyson Lee (Ando, Hiro's bestest bud from NBC's Heroes), and Daniel Logan (who played a young Boba Fett in Star Wars Episode II.)

(His backpack's got jets, he's Boba the Fett...)

Dozens of writers and artists, big name and entirely independent alike, were gathered in Exhibit Hall E, hawking their creations, chatting with fans and peers, sketching, snapping photos, signing their great works, and generally having a grand time of it, including Mark Texeira (one of my favorite pencillers during the 1990s,) Joe Jusko, Herb Trimpe, Marv Wolfman, Michael Golden, Bernie Wrightson, Sean Forney, Lora Innes, David Mack, Todd Nauck, Len Wein, Chris Sprouse, and many, many more.

And if you were missing a few key issues of the Phalanx Covenant, Old Man Logan, Transmetropolitan, The Invisibles, The 'Nam, Spidey, Kevin Smith's current run on Batman, you name it -- you would have been hard pressed to NOT find everything you were looking for. And then some, all thanks to a rather impressive collection of vendors, ranging from those specializing in collectibles, accessories, video games, CCGs, Vader's 501st Legion, comic books (of course,) et cetera et cetera ad infinitum.

One of my favorite little hot spots this year was Avatar's booth, which was full to overflowing with back and current issues of most of their popular series, including Warren Ellis' Doktor Sleepless, Anna Mercury, Ignition City, and Black Summer; Garth Ennis' Chronicles of Wormwood and Crossed; Jamie Delano's Narcopolis and loads more. Check out my one purchase of the con, inspired by Doktor Sleepless' Grinder movement:

(It is okay to be jealous.)

And what convention would be complete without a complete regiment of cosplayers? Here, take a look at some of our favorites:

(Later that day, I narrowly avoided an assassination attempt by a camouflaged Predator, presumably for stealing photographic evidence of their existence.)

(Who the heck are you gonna call?)

(Queue up 90s X-Men theme song. ALSO! Holy crap! Someone cosplaying Cable? Nice.)

(Not the happiest looking Arrow in the quill...)

So, if you missed out on this year's mayhem, be sure to make it out next year for the 30th Anniversary of the Mid-Ohio-Con!

See you there, True Believers!

(Report by David Conkey/MOVEMENTnorth)

Mid-Ohio-Con 2009

2009-09-30T07:01:00.001-07:00

Now in its twenty-ninth year, Mid-Ohio-Con is one of America’s longest-running and most successful comic book and pop-culture conventions, carrying on a fun and family-oriented tradition of bringing fans of all ages together with leading comic book writers and artists, film and television stars and creators, and publishers and retailers from across the nation.

Mid-Ohio-Con 2009 will be held on Saturday and Sunday, October 3–4, in Exhibit Hall E of the Greater Columbus Convention Center, 400 North High Street, Columbus, OH 43215. The show is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

One-Day Passes are $15 per person, per day.
Weekend Passes are $25.

For more info visit www.MidOhioCon.com

MOCA and UNF Partner to Promote Importance of Art and Education

2009-09-18T14:56:00.001-07:00

The Art of Teaching: Art and Design Faculty Exhibition Opens September 18

Jacksonville, Fla.—(September 18, 2009)— The Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville and the University of North Florida are joining forces to raise awareness on the importance of art and education in the Jacksonville community. As part of the affiliation, MOCA will host an exhibition season with three art exhibitions. The exhibitions, featuring the works of current and past teachers and students from UNF, will open September 18, 2009 and run through January 3, 2010.

“The Department of Art and Design at UNF is thrilled about the union with MOCA Jacksonville. Adding the museum as a cultural resource for the university allows for scheduling of studio and art history classes at the downtown building,” says Debra Murphy, Chair of the Department of Art and Design for UNF. “The new relationship also brings more visibility to an outstanding and vital department of painters, printmakers, photographers, sculptors, designers and ceramic artists while encouraging UNF students to become part of Jacksonville’s urban scene,” says Murphy. “The fall season will be filled with lectures, workshops and exhibitions by UNF faculty members and their students resulting in enriched art opportunities and experiences for the university, museum and greater Jacksonville communities.”

The Art of Teaching: Art and Design Faculty Exhibition is one exhibition that will be featured during the season. The exhibition will display paintings, drawings, printmaking, photography, sculptures and specific site instillations by 25 full-time, adjunct and visiting UNF Art and Design faculty members. Simultaneously, MOCA will present Emergence, a celebration of the progress and potential of several UNF students and graduates from the Sculpture and Ceramics program.

Coinciding with these exhibitions is MOCA’s presentation of Robert Motherwell: Lost in Form, Found in Line. Motherwell was one of the youngest leaders among American abstract expressionist painters and printers who inspired legends like Jackson Pollack. Motherwell’s abstract expressionist paintings are made of shapes, lines and forms that practice going beyond the recognizable image of art in search for a deeper reality. Motherwell’s work can be seen in numerous exhibitions in the U.S. and abroad. Forty of Motherwell’s works will be displayed in the exhibition including Seaside Studio, Paris Suite III and Game of Chance.

As a part of the partnership, UNF faculty members will lead a series of lectures to support the Motherwell and The Art of Teaching exhibitions. “Working with a Legend: Sharing My Experiences Making Prints with Robert Motherwell” will take place September 24, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. The lecture will be given by John Hutcheson, Master Printer, who worked with Motherwell at the height of his career.

MOCA’s exhibition season is generously supported by Mrs. Donald M. Cox, CSX, Haskell, River Branch Foundation, Teresa de B. and Arthur Milam, The Boeing Company and WJCT Public Broadcasting.

For more information on the exhibition season visit www.mocajacksonville.org

Star Wars In Concert

2009-09-17T20:12:00.000-07:00

Worldwide concert tour plays
October 29 at the
Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena

Tickets go on sale September 25, 2009 at 10 a.m. at all Ticketmaster Outlets, by phone(800) 745-3000, and online at www.ticketmaster.com. Ticket Prices: $34.00, $54.00, and $74.00 plus applicable service charges.
On Sale: Friday, September 25, 2009; 10 a.m.

Massive multi-media event features stunning visuals,
a live orchestra, choir and narration, plus an exclusive exhibit of
Star Wars costumes, props and production artwork

September 17, 2009 – Star Wars™: In Concert is a unique multi-media event featuring music from all six of John Williams’ epic Star Wars scores. As part of its worldwide tour, it will play October 29, 2009 at 7:30 p.m. at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida.

Tickets for the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena go on sale Friday, September 25 at 10 a.m. at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena box office, by phone at (800) 745-3000, and online at www.ticketmaster.com.

Narrated live by Anthony Daniels (the actor who portrayed C-3PO in all six films), the production features a full symphony orchestra and choir, accompanied by specially edited footage from the films displayed on a three-story-tall, high-definition LED super-screen – one of the largest ever put on tour. The live music and film elements are synchronized in order to create a full multi-media, one-of-kind Star Wars experience.

“We’ve taken the key themes from the music and cut together all the images that fit with each theme, so you can really get a sense of how the music played into the images,” said George Lucas, creator of the Star Wars Saga. “The whole soundtrack is a testament to John Williams’ creativity and his extraordinary ability to enhance the emotional aspects of the films.”

“Creating the music for the Star Wars films has been an exciting and wonderful experience for me, and I therefore have derived particular pleasure in assembling a compendium of themes from all of the films to be presented in Star Wars in Concert,” said Williams. “The editors at Lucas film have created original film montages to accompany each of the musical selections, and in the process, I believe that a singular and unique Star Wars experience has been born.”

“This event has been crafted to present Star Wars from many points of view; for the first time, the full dramatic sweep of Williams’ iconic scores can be heard performed live in one evening,” said Another Planet Touring Producer Spencer Churchill.” “The show is a new way of experiencing the epic scope of the saga.”

Accompanying the concert is an exclusive exhibit of Star Wars costumes, props, artifacts, production artwork and specially created behind-the-scenes videos from the Lucasfilm Archives. Many of these pieces are leaving Skywalker Ranch for the first time. The exhibit features many classic fan favorite artifacts, as well as several new and never-before-seen items, including:

·Full costumes for Jedi Masters Kit Fisto and Plo Koon will be on display.

·For the first time ever, pages from John Williams' original hand-written sheet music for Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace will be exhibited for the public.

·Also on display will be various never-before-seen props from the films, including blasters and helmets from Coruscant, Tatooine and other iconic Star Wars locations.

Star Wars: In Concert is produced by Another Planet Touring in association with Lucasfilm Ltd. Performances will be conducted by Dirk Brossé and the production is directed and designed by Steve Cohen. Star Wars in Concert had its world premiere at the 02 Arena in London on April 10 and 11, 2009.

For more information and to view the trailer:
www.starwarsinconcert.com

DECEMBER 21, 2012: BELIEVE THE HYPE?

2009-09-17T08:43:00.000-07:00

NEW YORK (SEPTEMBER 17, 2009) — Walk around any big city and you’ll see ubiquitous ads plastered on bus shelters and telephone booths suggesting that the world may come to an end on December 21, 2012. Turn on the TV and chances are there will be a 2012 doomsday special on History Channel or miniseries on SyFy. Browse the New Age shelves of any bookstore and you’ll find 2012 is a full-blown genre of its own.

All of which is seemingly building up to what director Roland Emmerich (The Day After Tomorrow, Independence Day) is calling the “mother of all disaster movies,” entitled, of course, 2012 (worldwide release by Sony Pictures on November 13, 2009).

Can this apocalyptic hype possibly have any substance, or is it just Hollywood marketing gone mad? Clearing a path between fantasy and reality, Alexandra Bruce’s new book 2012: Science or Superstition surveys the entire 2012 landscape, asking questions such as:

* How did 2012 come to mean “The End of Time”?

* Does the Maya calendar predict apocalypse in 2012?

* Did psychedelics facilitate the Maya “Cosmovision”?

* Should we worry about Earth Crustal Displacement?

* Is there a geomagnetic pole shift under way?

* Is the Yellowstone Supervolcano getting ready to blow?

* Is the Earth losing its Mojo?

* What the hell is “Planet X”?

Uniquely amongst a vast array of 2012 literature, this companion book to the #1 documentary film about 2012 features interviews with the leading experts — including Graham Hancock, John Major Jenkins, Daniel Pinchbeck, Alberto Villoldo and many others — and insightful, detailed analysis of the broad spectrum of opinion, debate, research and myth regarding the most compelling “end times” prediction of the 21st century.

As author Bruce points out, “The 2012 meme has evolved beyond any debates about the relevance of the Maya Long Count calendar to the lives of contemporary human beings. 2012 is about us on planet Earth at this time.”

More information is available at www.2012SOS.com.

About the Author: Alexandra Bruce is the author of five non-fiction books about popular culture, science and spirituality. This is her third book for The Disinformation Company, following Beyond The Bleep: The Definitive Unauthorized Guide to “What The Bleep Do We Know!?” and Beyond The Secret: The Definitive Unauthorized Guide to “The Secret.”

The Artist Series Presents: Celtic Thunder

2009-09-17T08:38:00.000-07:00

OCTOBER 25, 2009 7:00 PM
TIMES UNION CENTER MORAN THEATER

JACKSONVILLE, FL – Celtic Thunder, the hit Irish and Scottish male pop vocal group, has been dazzling audiences worldwide and will soon be dazzling Jacksonville when the group comes to the Times Union Center’s Moran Theater on Sunday, October 25th at 7:00 PM for one performance only!

Celtic Thunder just released their new Decca Records CD and DVD, Take Me Home, which debuted at #1 on Billboard’s Top World Albums chart, sitting alongside their previous two albums, both of which are still in the Top 10. The group’s recent spring North American tour was a major smash, with the New York Times hailing them as the “Fab Five.” They are following it up with an extensive Celtic Thunder - Take Me Home Fall 2009 Tour beginning in early October – with the stop in Jacksonville sure to create legions of new “Thunderheads,” as the group’s enthusiastic fans call themselves.

Their brand new production, Celtic Thunder – Storm, is set to be filmed live in Toronto on October 2, 2009 for a national public television special. And the quintet will make an appearance on QVC in September for QVC's "Rose of Tralee" special, promoting all their upcoming activities.

Recently recorded live at Toronto’s Casino Rama, Celtic Thunder’s Take Me Home CD and DVD features stunning versions of brand new songs for the delight of “Thunderheads” everywhere. The collection includes Celtic Thunder’s signature takes on songs including “Every Breath You Take” by The Police, the Josh Groban classic “You Raise Me Up,” Top 5 hit “500 Miles” by The Proclaimers, and many more. As the group’s third album for the Decca/Universal label, Take Me Home follows previous albums Celtic Thunder and Act Two, both of which reached #1 on the Billboard World Music chart.

In their review of Celtic Thunder’s concert at the legendary Beacon Theatre in April, The New York Times described the group as “a Fab Five peddling Celtic stylings…steadfast George, sensitive Keith, bruising Paul, caddish Ryan and angelic Damian.” The group kicked off that same tour with a whirlwind St. Patrick’s Day that found them opening New York City’s famed parade with a stirring performance, televised on NBC, after which they were immediately rushed off on a train to the nation’s capital. Just hours later, they performed at the official White House St. Patrick’s Day Party for President Obama, Irish Taoiseach (or Prime Minister) Brian Cowen, and a host of dignitaries and other distinguished guests.

Celtic Thunder first entered mainstream consciousness with their smash public television debut special in 2008, released on DVD as Celtic Thunder: The Show. They subsequently toured 48 cities across North America last fall to earn the #20 spot on Pollstar’s top tours of 2008.

CELTIC THUNDER will be performed at the TIMES UNION CENTER’S MORAN THEATER Sunday, October 25, 2009 for one performance only. Tickets range in price from $35.50 to $105.50. Discounts are available for groups of 10+ or 20+ by calling (904) 632-3228.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call The Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY.)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting The Artist Series’ website, www.artistseriesjax.org.

First Coast Freakout

2009-09-11T15:53:00.000-07:00

September 26 and 27 in Jacksonville is a bike festival called "First Coast Freakout," complete with bike polo, a trivia pursuit alleycat, and a show at Steamworks on Saturday and a the Women's ride on Sunday (all genders are invited, but women lead).

Check out this link for up-to-date info:
www.myspace.com/jaxbikepolo

X: The Human Condition Music And Film Experience

2009-09-06T18:50:00.000-07:00

New York, NY - An exclusive three night public preview of X: The Human Condition, the hypnotic music and film multimedia experience will take place at HERE, 145 Sixth Ave. (between Spring and Broome St.), NYC, from Wednesday September 9th to Friday, September 11th at 8:30 pm each evening. Admission is $15. This limited engagement three night run will be presented as part of HERE’s Special Autumn Artist Lodge Series.

In development since 1998, X: The Human Condition has been designed to embrace the expanding possibilities of multimedia in entertainment. The live, dynamic concert performance by the music group X: THC, enhanced by emotionally charged film visuals, creates an uplifting and stimulating shock to the senses, that both entertains and provokes thought. This three night performance marks the first time X: The Human Condition will be seen in public.

Musically, X: THC combines the multi-layered hypnotica of smoothly grooving electronic beats, warm emotive alternative indie rock, coldly induced new wave post-modernism, lush, heartfelt, romantic blue-eyed soul & classic songwriting, with an otherworldly experimental soundscape.

X: THC breaks down the walls between musical genres, challenging categorization, while communicating performance through multiple sensory applications, known as "synesthesia".

The live music and film multimedia experience examines the human condition, pulling you in to an alternate reality... Hypnotically delicious, it is a trance-inducing trip inside the human subconscious, combining hypnotic, surreal soundscapes with phantasmagorical, emotionally charged visual storytelling to create a unique and inspiring music and film experience.

X: The Human Condition alchemically fuses together influences of fantasy luminaries such as Tim Burton, Michael Gondry, Antoine St. Exupery, Darren Aronofsky, Guillermo Del Toro, Jean Cocteau, Rod Serling, The Brothers Grimm, and Joseph (John) Merrick, to create an imaginative, terrible beauty, both real and unreal, where the mind can make a hell of heaven, and a heaven of hell... X: The Human Condition

The story of X: The Human Condition reflects the real life experience of writer/composer and vocalist of X: THC, Michael Nova, who battled against Chronic Kidney Disease, Uveitis and Pigmentary Dispersion Syndrome causing the loss of his vision during the making of this film. He has since fully recovered.

This production is being presented through HERE’s Autumn Artist Lodge, which provides artists with subsidized space and equipment, as well as technical and administrative support. Since 1993, the OBIE-winning HERE Arts Center has been a premier arts organization in NYC and a leader in the field of new, hybrid performance work. Under leadership of Founding Artistic Director Kristin Marting and Producing Director Kim Whitener, HERE has served over 12,000 emerging to mid-career artists developing work that does not fit a conventional programming agenda. Work presented at HERE has garnered 14 OBIE awards, an OBIE grant for artistic achievement, three Drama Desk nominations, two Berrilla Kerr Awards, three NY Innovative Theatre Awards, an Edwin Booth Award and a Pulitzer Prize nomination. HERE proudly supports artists at all stages in their careers through full productions, artist residency programs, festivals and subsidized performance and rehearsal space. Work at HERE is curated based on the strength and uniqueness of the artist’s vision. HERE’s Artist Residency Program (HARP) provides development, commissions and full production for up to 20 artists over one-to-three years. In 2005, with the support of the FJC, a foundation of donor advised funds, Lower Manhattan Development Corporation and the City of New York, HERE Arts Center purchased its long-time home as part of a five-year “Secure HERE’s Future” campaign. With full-scale renovations to the space concluding in June 2008, thanks to generous support from the City of New York, HERE is poised to continue and expand its role as a downtown haven for the finest emerging art. Offering a comfortable, eclectic setting for artists and audiences alike, HERE features a new café and two state-of-the-art performance spaces.

Believe the Hype

2009-09-04T19:54:00.001-07:00

Mark your calendar!

Saturday September 12th is the next opening reception at BOLD HYPE GALLERY.

Aptly titled BELIEVE THE HYPE the next exhibit, the first to be curated by an outside curator (Dustin Orlando), features the artwork of 10 different artist. Variety being the spice of life, this exhibition will have an exciting mix of paintings, sculptures, installations, and interactive contraptions not to be missed!

Starting at 8PM and running Late, the opening reception offers free drinks, food, music by DJ KITTYBAT, and a chance to meet many of the artists! FREE ADMISSION

THE ARTISTS:

FRANCESCO LoCASTRO:
For the last ten years, Francesco LoCastro has been South Florida's thoroughfare to the national New Contemporary art scene, as both a respected artist and as the curator of intrepid art exhibitions.

"My paintings are inspired by pop culture iconography and cartoon imagery as well as the work of masters of varied genres and periods... By juxtaposing cartoon images with realism, I try frequently to address the opposing aspects of social and political issues: In today's Westernized world, the line between reality and fiction is increasingly blurred. Escapism is the new religion of a society destined to overdose on mind-numbing consumption; we stay indoors to view "reality programming." Maxed out credit cards temporarily fulfill the American dream that is not quite within our reach. Movie star idolatry rules the dogma of mediocrity and the government structure dictates the politics of greed and hegemony as basic characteristics of survival of the fittest."

BLACKBOOKS:
BLACKBOOKS is an experimental design house and custom fabricator that supplies agencies, museums, artists, galleries, designers, and corporations with top
quality production and design. Customized per project, using a number of analog / digital print methods, all fabrication is executed in house remaining hands on from concept to completion. Established in 2004 and based in the South of Florida, BLACKBOOKS has never tired. Maintaining a strong hold at the industries forefront, fabricating original concept, design, & product, in co-operation with some of todays most sought after artists and organizations.

PARAIL:
Started by Mat Curran along with Derek Toomes and Joseph Giampino, Parail Studios is a studio commissioned for murals, well rendered canvas pieces and one of the few places one can take a graffiti workshop. The three uphold the very key elements of street style in all that they do; spontaneity, immediacy, and the need to indelibly mark their environment. They are pushing the boundaries that the city authorities have set for them and also finding new, legal outlets for their work

MAT CURRAN:
Drawing from his international roots, Mathew Curran has developed a unique and personal style, which transcends a half dozen different mediums. Over the past decade, he has drawn from street life and hip-hop culture to focus primarily on stencil work.

Curran was born in Northamptonshire, England in 1979, and came to the United States as a teenager. His early years were influenced by American teen skateboarding culture, with its random and unchecked energy and raw sense of possibility. After studying fine art and graphic design at UNC Greensboro, Curran began to perfect techniques in wood, spray paint and ink. He also began experimenting with new subjects, including distorted figures and industrial objects, all the while retaining the urban street-art energy and style.

In the past few years, Curran has focused on his stencil work, and has remained at the forefront of the Raleigh arts scene by contributing to public works in Moore Square and at the North Carolina Museum of Art. His work has been displayed in galleries from his native England to Tokyo.

ROCKY GRIMES:
Rocky Grimes is a self-taught artist whose methods of creation may seem archaic to some. His do-it-yourself methodology is one that is becoming rare in this day of the quick buck, mass efficiency and max profit. He is all about the process.

"I don't really follow the rules of screen printing. I build my own frames that are often warped. I transfer my own images to my screens through a rather archaic method without the use of expensive high-powered machines. I use images that I produce from photographs of my own vs. sourcing material. I have very hands-on approach...When I share my artwork, I don't expect everyone to derive the same meaning that I do. I hope my work causes people to think rather than feel as though they are being dictated some meaning...I suppose my art is like creating a fictional world based on experiences in a more tangible world. Thus, applying the literary concepts of conflict: Human vs. Self, Human vs. Society, Human vs. Nature, Human vs. Supernatural, Human vs. Machine / Technology."

BRANDON DUNLAP:
His images and techniques resist the tendencies of the mechanical, and sometimes repetitive, nature of digital media. Brandon lives in Tampa, Florida where he received his Master's degree in painting and printmaking from the University of South Florida. For several years he worked as a production assistant at USF's Graphicstudio, working alongside many well known artists like James Rosenquist and Vik Muniz. In 2008 he branched out to pursue his own career and is currently creating new work for several upcoming exhibits.
Brandon works as an illustrator-for-hire, creating numerous gigposters and band flyers as well as custom portraits. He also applies his grungy, textured aesthetic to t-shirts, wallets, pillows and messenger bags for Resist Today.
Core to Brandon's process involves intuitive changes and happy accidents - and he encourages both as part of his ongoing personal exploration.

JOHNNY ROBLES:
Born into a multicultural family in 1984, Miami based artist Johnny Robles has been heavily immersed by contemporary urban culture and graffiti art since childhood, which he credits as a major influence in his work and lifestyle.

Robles approaches life and his work with a reserved, collective and methodical rationale that's apparent from his developing collection. His formal studies have taken him to Studio Art Centers International in Florence, Italy, to The Maryland Institute College of Art, where he received his BFA in 2006. The self-taught illustrator has received numerous scholarships and awards, including the 2005 Society of Illustrators Gold Award in New York and the 2006 bronze Award in Los Angeles.

Johnny continues to explore the unlimited possibilities of his talent and creativity with various exhibitions and positive exposure around South Florida.

DUSTIN ORLANDO:
Dustin Orlando was born in Los Angeles California on December 18th 1974. He shares the same birthday as Keith Richards and Steven Speilberg and is 1 of only 16 people in the world named Dustin Orlando. His artwork is a combination of graffiti influenced colors and cartoon styled characters, often outlined with bold solid lines. Dustin's artwork is mainly about color, composition and character development. Dustin creates his mixed media art pieces by using markers, acrylic paint, silkscreen, and wheat paste. His artwork is collected by interior designers, NFL players, bonafied rock stars, and fellow artists. Click on the thumbnails below to view a slideshow of Dustin's work.

ADRIAAN MOL
Adriaan Mol was born in Detroit, Michigan. He became a Florida transplant in his early years when his family moved to the Space Coast. While attending a local college with an art scholarship, he had the opportunity to tour with his band and later dropped out. This eventually led him to Williamsburg Brooklyn where he resumed art studies. At this time it was not though an academic school system, it was vicariously through friends getting their MFA's and the overwhelming abundance of street art. In recent years Adriaan has been involved in many art shows in cities such as Costa Mesa, CA, Long Island, NY and Orlando, FL where he currently resides.

"Influences are lowbrow street art, abstract highbrow installations, as well as music. Adriaan Mol's paintings comment on pop culture past and present, as well as our relationship with musical icons and the full spectrum of sound waves. My interests in the current street art and pop surreal movements help shape the ideas. Pushing the limits of wood is a unique and exciting challenge I've only begun to explore."

ERIC ALTHIN (yours truly) [Theirs truly, not the MOVEMENTcrew.]
From an early age I've been painting small, whether it was model airplanes, tin soldiers, or vinyl toys, it was always on a small scale using super fine brushes. I enjoy delving into that micro zone and bringing small things to life with detail.
I've always had a fascination with nature and its strange inhabitants. But I am equally amazed by the human imagination so my work tends to be a mix of reality and fantasy, a juxtaposition that I hope will remind people of the weird, fantastic, and often crazy living world that is all around us. The works I am putting in BELIEVE THE HYPE includes a few creatures, real and imaginary, that were stirring in my head, including one which will be there in the flesh (or fur) and far from tiny, thanks to the help of creature and puppet builder Tamara Marke-Lares.

See you there!

-The Bold Hype Crew

BOLD HYPE GALLERY
1844 east winter park rd
Orlando, FL 32803
T. 407 629 2965
www.boldhype.com

BERKELEY REP EXTENDS GREEN DAY’S AMERICAN IDIOT THREE WEEKS ADDED – NOW PLAYING THRU 11/1

2009-09-03T22:19:00.000-07:00

Tickets for 24 new performances on sale to the public starting on 9/9

Burbank, CA – Today, one day before the first performance of Green Day’s American Idiot, Berkeley Repertory Theatre announced that it will extend the show due to record-breaking sales and unprecedented demand for seats. Originally scheduled to close on October 11, this hotly anticipated world premiere has been extended three weeks and will now play through Sunday, November 1. Tickets for these new performances go on sale to the general public on Wednesday, September 9. American Idiot begins previews tomorrow, kicking off Berkeley Rep’s 2009/10 season in the state-of-the-art Roda Theatre.

Green Day won two Grammys – Best Rock Album and Record of the Year – for its multi-platinum American Idiot, which sold more than 12 million copies worldwide. Now the band brings that explosive album to the stage with the director of Spring Awakening, which nabbed eight Tony Awards in 2007. American Idiot follows working-class characters from the suburbs to the city to the Middle East, as they seek redemption in a world filled with frustration – an exhilarating journey borne along by Green Day’s electrifying songs. This high-octane show includes every song from the album, as well as several new songs from 21st Century Breakdown. With an onstage band and 19 young performers, American Idiot receives its world premiere at Berkeley Rep, the Tony-winning playhouse that launched last year’s provocative rock musical Passing Strange.

The show features the music of Green Day – vocalist/guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong, bassist Mike Dirnt, and drummer Tré Cool – along with Armstrong’s lyrics. It is being staged by Tony Award-winning director Michael Mayer, who collaborated with Armstrong on the story. Berkeley Rep presents American Idiot in association with Tom Hulce and Ira Pittelman, the lead producers of Spring Awakening.

The production features choreography by Olivier Award-winner Steven Hoggett with Tony-winning composer Tom Kitt providing orchestrations, arrangements, and musical supervision. The design team includes Tony-nominee Christine Jones (sets), two-time Tony-winner
Kevin Adams (lights), Baryshnikov fellow Andrea Lauer (costumes), and Obie Award-
winner Brian Ronan (sound), as well as video designer Darrel Maloney. The music director is Carmel Dean and the associate choreographer is Lorin Latarro.

Tony-winning actor John Gallagher, Jr. plays Johnny, leading an ensemble of 19 young performers that also includes Matt Caplan as Tunny, Michael Esper as Will, and Tony Vincent as St. Jimmy with Mary Faber as Heather, Rebecca Naomi Jones as Whatsername, and Christina Sajous as the Extraordinary Girl.

American Idiot is supported by several contributors to Berkeley Rep’s Annual Fund. Bill Falik and Diana Cohen, John and Helen Meyer, Sally Smith and Don Burns, the Strauch Kulhanjian Family, and Felicia Woytak and Steve Rasmussen serve as executive producers. The lead sponsor is Levi’s®. The show is also sponsored by the Phyllis C. Wattis Foundation.

To purchase tickets for American Idiot, or for complete information on all upcoming shows, call Berkeley Rep’s box office at (510) 647-2949 or toll-free at (888) 4-BRT-Tix – or just click berkeleyrep.org.

The Beautiful Deadly Children - The Gospel According to Goth

2009-09-02T12:22:00.000-07:00

A Kabaret Grotesque by Bertie Weirdly
Mallard Independent Publishing

Beautiful Deadly Children appear to be a long-lived English goth outfit that never quite made a name for themselves outside of their immediate scene in Birmingham (home of Black Sabbath and Napalm Death!), and what notoriety they gained was mostly for flamboyantly unfortunate taste in costumery. I'm talking troll ears, fake claws, batwing dresses with wings, puffy shirts aplenty, and surely illegal applications of PVC and rubber. Whereas any other band would have given up in the face of such deafening indifference, Beautiful Deadly Children took quite the opposite tack. With a delusional self-belief that rivals that of Half Japanese and Andrew WK (and usually I’d approve of such world-making), BDC decided to concentrate not on honing down the music to a darkling point, but to instead pen a lengthy tome detailing their life and times. The results aren't pretty. I'd rather not do a hatchet job on this book, because the concept behind it is something I'd certainly want one of my favorite bands to do (I think the Kills were talking about doing a photography book), but this is... definitely... not... that. Here's the problem, the writing is pretty pedestrian, it feels like I'm reading an overlong Myspace profile. To make matters worse, it seems that they run out of things to write about halfway through (which is weird, because, y'know they had complete control over the book) so by the end, when they start giving (lengthy) make-up tips, the book drops out of my hand and falls to the floor. The tone is in turns overly precious and desperately clumsy. And the pictures, ehh.... you dare not look. It's just a roly-poly bunch of chancers shoehorned into a dizzying array of inappropriate, unflattering, and faintly ridiculous attire. I don’t care if you hang out at the Factory or the Castle every weekend going back a decade, you’re going to be channeling Ogre from “Revenge of the Nerds” ‘round about page 30. I think it's possible to age with dignity in the gothic scene, but these cats just ain't there baby. May I direct you to the new Horrors album instead?

- Mathew Moyer

Lament, True Believers...

2009-09-01T15:23:00.001-07:00

For the Mighty Marvel House of Ideas has been consumed by a planet devourer that Galactus would be hard-pressed to keep up with: Disney.

It remains to be seen how this change will effect Marvel's output, but one worries that the merger might hinder the comic giant's creativity, leaving us with dumbed-down two dimensional children's stories.

We can only hope that, as both companies have stated, Disney will actually keep their fingers out of Marvel's day to day operations and let them keeping creating the great stories we've been reading for the past few years.

And as far as the movie side of things go... well, so long as Miley Cyrus and Whatever-Their-Names-Are Jonas aren't going to start taking on leading roles as our favorite spandex-clad heroes, then this could actually be a good thing. Sure, Disney fails from time to time, but no one can deny that they hit it out of the park just as often, (the first years of Miramax, anyone?) and if Marvel really will get to maintain creative control and make movies the way they've been making them these past few years, then yippee for a huge new weapon in their arsenal.

So, we'll keep an eye out and hope that the House of Mouse doesn't bring down the House of Ideas like a ...house of cards?

Excelsior, indeed.

Douglas Hoffman at BOLD HYPE

2009-08-28T18:48:00.000-07:00

The MOVEMENT boys went to Orlando last week and checked out this amazing show, if you are in the area and can stop by it is WELL worth the trip. And continue to check out this unique little gallery for some of the best artists we've seen anywhere! The last trip to the HYPE before this we caught a group show including work by Jacksonville artist DAN MAY who some of you may remember from his feature in MOVEMENT last year.

The show is only up for one more week, so if you haven't already be sure to stop in and delve into Hoffman's twisting world DO IT NOW!

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, FREE ADMISSION!

BOLD HYPE GALLERY
1844 east winter park rd
Orlando, FL 32803
T. 407 629 2965
www.boldhype.com

MOVEMENT at Mini-MegaCon booth #603

2009-08-17T16:48:00.000-07:00

COME SEE THE MOVEMENT CREW!
Mini-MegaCon
August 22nd-23rd, 2009
Orange County Convention Center Hall E1
9899 International Drive
Orlando, FL 32819
http://www.megaconvention.com/

That Summertime Sound - Debut Novel from Matthew Specktor

2009-08-05T12:14:00.000-07:00

“A rock ‘n’ roll road trip that’s also a page-turner.” -- Nylon Mag

It’s the summer after his freshman year of college, and the 19-year-old narrator of Matthew Specktor’s That Summertime Sound has two options: return home to Los Angeles, to a city and a family that hardly notice him; or journey to the heart of America—Columbus, Ohio—for a summer of unexpected and life-defining experiences.

Set against the Columbus music scene of the 1980s, Specktor’s lead character treks to Ohio in search of his favorite band, Lords of Oblivion. Headed by eccentric frontman Nic Devine, Lords of Oblivion are the antithesis of the popular New Wave sound of the decade. The narrator quickly adapts to life in Columbus, dressing in the local thrift store fashions, finding an on-again off-again girlfriend, going out, sleeping late, and above all, seeing live music. Eventually, he meets and befriends Nic Devine, cementing a friendship that will define the summer.

That Summertime Sound reads like a music encyclopedia with constant references to seminal bands like The Feelies, Hüsker Du, Pere Ubu, and Uriah Heap. Specktor’s cinematic prose is so visual that the music and characters become a reality. That Summertime Sound captures the vibrancy of youth and the thrill of summer. It’s about going along for the ride, because you can, when you can choose yourself before choosing responsibility.

To accompany the release of the novel, www.thatsummertimesound.com features audio recordings of readings done by Jeremy Irons, James Franco, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, and J Mascis of Dinosaur Jr.

Morgan Freeman reads "This is Never Going to End"

Jeremy Irons reads "The Devil in It Somewhere"

MOCA Hosts LAB Gallery Exhibitions

2009-07-29T05:01:00.000-07:00

-Summer-Long Event Features Works of Local Artists-

Jacksonville, Fla.— The Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville (MOCA), will host the LAB Gallery, a summer-long event to promote emerging contemporary artists within the Jacksonville community. The gallery gives local artists a chance to promote and sell their works in a high visibility downtown setting in the Museum.

The LAB Gallery cycle consists of five exhibitions. The first opening took place on June 11. Upcoming exhibitions run from July 2 to August 13. The exhibition openings will take place on Thursday nights from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. on the 1st floor of MOCA.

MOCA will then continue to display the artwork for a two-week period. The opening exhibit schedule is as follows:

* July 2 – Tiffany Manning and Moises Ramos
* July 16 – Caterina Lionti and Russ Wilson
* July 30 – Trinity Baker and Casey Matthews
* Aug 13 – Mary Atwood, Christopher Cahill, and Ashleigh Hunter

“MOCA is happy to present the LAB Gallery as part of our continued effort to add opportunities in support of our local artistic community,” said Ben Thompson, MOCA Associate Director. “As a contemporary art museum, we believe a thriving community requires a vibrant local art scene. We are proud to be a part of the effort to put Jacksonville on the map as a cultural destination.”

For additional information about the LAB Gallery, contact Ben Thompson, Associate Curator and Registrar at bthompson@mocajacksonville.org or Christianna White, LAB Gallery Manager at cwhite@mocjacksonville.org .

About MOCA

The Museum of Contemporary Art Jacksonville, a non-profit, visual arts educational institution, is a cultural resource of the University of North Florida and serves the community through exhibitions, collections, educational programs, outreach and publications designed to enhance an understanding and appreciation of modern and contemporary art with particular emphasis on works created after 1960. One of the largest institutions of its kind in the Southeast, MOCA Jacksonville is funded in part by the University of North Florida; the City of Jacksonville; Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville; the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and through the generous support of our members. For more information about MOCA including programs, hours and ticket pricing, please visit on-line at www.mocajacksonville.org or call (904) 366-6911

Lebowski Fest: West Coast Tour

2009-07-23T18:12:00.000-07:00

MARK IT 8, DUDE. 8TH ANNUAL LEBOWSKI FEST LOUISVILLE GOES OFF WITHOUT A HITCH

WEST COAST DATES TEED UP

Mark it 8, Dude. Over 2,000 Achievers made the pilgrimage to Louisville's 8th Annual Lebowski Fest this past weekend with comedy by Rob Riggle (Daily Show, The Hangover) and music by Black Diamond Heavies. (Full recap below)

Lebowski Fest 2009 is takin' ‘er easy for sinners all over America, starting with the West Coast. The Speed of Sound Tour Bus starts in Seattle on Monday, July 20th, with a very special event. Jeff ‘The Dude' Dowd – the inspiration for the main character in the Coen Brothers' classic, and member of the real-life ‘Seattle Seven' (it was him and six other guys) – will be honored in a homecoming ceremony at the Lebowski Fest Seattle Movie Party at Fremont Outdoor Cinema, in conjunction with The Fremont Arts Council and Fremont Chamber of Commerce. He will receive the first ever “Fremont Keys to the Universe”: recognizing outstanding example in the creation of a compelling urban mythology and enduring character that epitomizes Fremont's larger than life spirit and upholds its motto: 'Delibertus Quirkus: Freedom to be Peculiar.'

Lord, you can imagine where it goes from there. The Speed of Sound Tour rolls on through Portland, the Bay Area, and San Diego, featuring musical performances by Har Mar Superstar. Har Mar is currently working on his dance quintet and will be re-enacting the Landlord's interpretive dance. Come September, Lebowski Fest picks up where it left off in Denver and cruises on through all the way to the East Coast, and finally comes to rest in Austin, TX in October.

West Coast Tour Dates
Fri/July 10 || Executive Lawn (ft. The Daily Show's Rob Riggle) – Movie Party || Louisville, KY
Sat/July 11 || Executive Strike and Spare – Garden Party, Bowling Party || Louisville, KY

Mon/July 20 || Fremont Outdoor Movies – Movie Party** || Seattle, WA
Tue/July 21 || Acme Lanes – Bowling Party || Seattle, WA
Wed/July 22 || Aladdin Theater – Movie Party** || Portland, OR
Thu/July 23 || Hollywood Bowl – Bowling Party|| Portland, OR
Fri/July 24 || Classic Bowling Center – Bowling Party || San Francisco, CA
Sat/July 25 || Fox Theater – Movie Party** || Oakland, CA
Sun/July 26 || House of Blues – Movie Party** || San Diego, CA
Mon/July 27 || Kearny Mesa Bowl – Bowling Party|| San Diego, CA
**Ft. Har Mar Superstar

East Coast Tour Dates (Tickets on sale Friday)
Tue/Sep 8 || Ogden Theatre – Movie Party || Denver, CO
Wed/Sep 9 || Bowl-ero – Bowling Party || Denver, CO
Fri/Sep 11 || First Ave – Movie Party || Minneapolis, MN
Sat/Sep 12 || Memory Lanes – Bowling Party || Minneapolis, MN
Sun/Sep 13 || Portage Theater – Movie Party || Chicago, IL
Mon/Sep 14 || Diversey-River Bowl – Bowling Party || Chicago, IL
Tue/Sep 15 || Diversey-River Bowl – Bowling Party || Chicago, IL
Thu/Sep 17 || Phoenix Theatre – Movie Party || Toronto, ON
Fri /Sep 18 || Playtime Bowl – Bowling Party || Toronto, ON
Sat/Sep 19 || House of Blues – Movie Party || Boston, MA
Sun/Sep 20 || Kings – Bowling Party || Boston, MA
Tue/Sep 22 || Terminal 5 – Movie Party || New York, NY
Wed/Sep 23 || Lucky Strike – Bowling Party || New York, NY
Thu/Sep 24 || Brooklyn Bowl – Bowling Party || Brooklyn, NY (tix on sale June 1st)
Fri/Sep 25 || Electric Factory – Movie Party || Philadelphia, PA
Sat/Sep 26 || North Bowl – Bowling Party || Philadelphia, PA
Mon/Sep 28 || 9:30 Club – Movie Party || Washington, DC
Tue/Sep 29 || Strike Bethesda – Bowling Party || Bethesda, MD
Fri/Oct 9 || Stubb's – Movie Party || Austin, TX
Sat/Oct 10 || Highland Lanes – Bowling Party || Austin, TX

More info at www.LebowskiFest.com

Trouble Presents You Are Here: A Maze. An Installation and Performance Festival

2009-07-17T11:39:00.000-07:00

When: Saturday, July 25th 4pm - 4am
Where: Death By Stereo, 49 South 2nd Street Brooklyn, NY
Who: Ninjasonik + Aa + Nine 11 Thesaurus + Knife Hyts + Vaz + Mystery of Two + North Highlands +Sam Mickens Sings & Plays Shaolin Soul + Regattas (Sam Hillmer of Zs) + Dave Longstreth (of Dirty Projectors) + Charlie Looker (of Extra Life) + Unicornicopia + John Fell Ryan (of Excepter) + Chuck Bettis + Mega Calderos DJs: Marty McSorley (of WFMU) + Lord Easy + Rich Zerbo (of The Social Registry) Xtras: Delicious Beverages + Dome Theater + WorldDanceAround
Price: $12

You Are Here: A Maze is a performance festival in a sculptural maze taking place at Williamsburg's Death By Audio from September 10 - October 2, 2009.

This 12-hour event on Saturday July 25 from 4pm - 4am also at Death By Audio will help make You Are Here: A Maze possible. Spend $12 for 12 hours with bands like Ninjasonik, Aa, and Nine 11 Thesaurus; special solo performances by members of Dirty Projectors, Zs, Extra Life, and Excepter; DJ sets, projections, guerilla theater, B-girl dancers, and delicious beverages served up by the ladies of Delicious Beverages!

Emphasizing the sprawling and interconnected nature of New York's underground, a trip through the maze offers a peak inside NYC's diy art/music scene. A meditation on passage and desire, You Are Here engulfs the space and presents beckoning inhabitants, dead ends, and uplifting epitaphs. Medium and genre vary and overlapping and simultaneous performances are frequent, each performer establishing a different corner or dead end as his or hers. You Are Here was first presented in 2007 by Trouble (Sam Hillmer and Laura Paris) at Chashama's Visual Arts Space.

Trouble is devoted to creating extreme environments that have no exterior, public art both condoned and illegal, and other kinds of visual/sound art intended to be used for some purpose. Their work is about community, spirituality, politics, craft, and beauty. Outreach is a part of all of Trouble's projects, as is what they call in-reach: designing events that strengthen the ties within the DIY art community and the art world as a whole.

You Are Here Schedule:
4:00pm - doors/delicous beverages/dj lord easy
4:30pm - DJ set by dave longstreth - back
5:15pm - charlie looker - front
6:00pm - natalie unicornicopia - back
6:45pm - chuck bettis - front
7:15pm - mega calderos - back
8:00pm - john fell ryan - front (switch to dj marty mcsorely)
8:45pm - dometheater - btwn
9:30pm - north highlands - back
10:15pm - mystery of two - front
11:00pm - vaz - back
11:45pm - knife hyts II - front (switch to dj rich zerbo/social registry)
12:45pm - worldancearound - ninjasonik - btwn/front
1:45pm - nine 11 thesaurus - back
2:15pm - sam mickens - front
2:45pm - Aa - back
3:30pm - regattas - front

For more information, visit:
www.myspace.com/youareheremaze

Broken Lizard Live

2009-07-17T09:42:00.000-07:00

Broken Lizard Live
Featuring the Stars and Creators of ‘Supertroopers,’ ‘Beerfest,’ and ‘Club Dread’
Live at the Royal Oak Music Theatre
Saturday, October 24

AEG Live Presents Broken Lizard Live, the comedy troop behind the hit movies Supertroopers, Beerfest, and Club Dread. The show will arrive at the Royal Oak Music Theatre on October 24. Tickets go on sale Thursday, July 16 at 10am.

The five members of Broken Lizard will present stand-up comedy and sketches including characters from their previous films, improv, and original films. The group will also include a Q & A session with the audience, where they will discuss their experiences creating and filming their movies, including the upcoming The Slammin’ Salmon, which revolves around a restaurant owner trying to raise money to pay off a mob debt.

Broken Lizard will arrive at the Royal Oak Music Theatre on Saturday, October 24th. Tickets go on sale on Thursday, July 16th at 10am and are $29.50 in advance and $32 at the doors. Doors are at 7 PM and all ages are welcome. Tickets can be purchased at the Royal Oak Music Theatre box office, www.romtlive.com, all tickets.com outlets, or charge by phone at 800.919.6272.

Whitewall Magazine Digital Launch

2009-07-08T10:43:00.000-07:00

Whitewall Magazine Now Online-- an ongoing, regularly updated extension to the prestigious, quarterly print magazine containing exclusive content, extended interviews, and expert advice for readers and collectors.

This summer Whitewall Magazine will feature exclusive, in-depth interviews with four internationally acclaimed visionaries. Extended coverage and content will be available for our readers on Whitewall's website (www.Whitewallmag.com) starting June 22nd.

In their first interview in two years, Daft Punk candidly discusses mixing high and low-brow culture with performance and music, David Lynch talks diamonds, domes, and dreams, Terence Koh gets resurrected, and superstar collector, Francois Pinault gives a rare insight into one of the largest art collections in the world, not to mention a recently purchased and restored Seventeenth Century Venetian landmark for him to store it all in. All coming this summer in Whitewall Magazine and Whitewall Online.

For extended interviews, news and exclusive content from contemporary art and luxury living experts - go to - www.whitewallmag.com

Whitewall Magazine and Whitewall Online aim to reveal the personalities behind the creators that shape the art world today, inspiring a new generation of art collectors. Until now, Whitewall has been a quarterly collector's piece found in various high end hotel suites, international bookstores, jets, design boutiques, private clubs and by subscribing to their exclusive mailing list. Whitewall is the answer to the growing demand for an accessible and well respected platform that merges the disciplines of art, architecture, design, and lifestyle all in one place.

With the launching of Whitewall's online version, we're proud to reveal a one stop source, celebrating the interplay of influences and culture across the spectrum of visual creativity in popular culture today.

Online, you will find exclusive content aimed at helping today's collectors master the art of collecting and navigate the opaque art world. Through experts in the auction market, emerging international markets, advisory, art law, photography, and other arenas Whitewall will filter and dissect today's news and market trends.

"The Albino Burmese Python is quirkier than Mariah Carey"

2009-06-29T12:28:00.000-07:00

"The albino Burmese Python is a quirky, needy and rare reptile. It's
pickier than Mariah Carey" -Sinn Bohdi, the snake butler

EVER WONDER WHAT IT'S LIKE TO GO FROM CITY TO CITY WITH THE WORLD'S LARGEST TOURING ALBINO BURMESE PYTHON?

Jim Rose didn't when he agreed to purchase the mammoth deadly snake, MAURICE LE GRAND, from Belgium. It arrived in the United States yesterday. When its special crate was opened, Jim's wife gasped in sheer horror: "I knew it was big, but until you see it you can't even come close to fathoming what a complete monster it is".

MAURICE LE GRAND was purchased for $63,000, the highest price ever paid for a snake. Nearly twenty-four hours after its new home in the U.S. was set up, the Roses have adjusted somewhat. Jim says "It's actually pretty cool. We spent three months studying this species and the particulars of the nature of these rare albinos. We have also hired a snake butler who cares for it 24/7. Within two weeks I should be able to get into the encampment with it and begin bonding with the python. This has been my dream since I was a little boy. I can't wait to take it from city to city, showing people all over the United States that snakes deserve respect and dignity. In our Jim Rose Circus vs. Jake "The Snake" Roberts tour, MAURICE LE GRAND will have an entire moving habitat constructed for the journey.

The Burmese Python (Python molurus bivittatus), is the largest subspecies of the Indian Python and one of the 6 largest snakes in the world, on average growing up to 5.5 metres (18 ft) and weighing up to 71 kilograms (160 lb). They are native to rainforest areas of Southeast Asia, are nocturnal, semi-aquatic, and while young are often found near water and in trees; they are excellent swimmers, staying submerged for as much as half an hour. The Burmese Python continues to grow throughout life, and their great length is due to the presence of a large number of vertebrae. When adult girth is reached, the snakes tend to be ground hunters. An unsuitable choice for inexperienced snake handlers, Burmese Pythons are carnivorous, and are known to have attacked animals as large as alligators.

See MAURICE LE GRAND along with Jim Rose vs Jake "The Snake" Roberts in the following cities:

July 3 - Longview, WA - Cadillac Island Casino
July 5 - Kennewick, WA - Island Casino
July 7 - Portland - Wonder Ballroom
July 8 - Seattle - Showbox
July 9 - Spokane - Knitting Factory
July 11 - Boise - Knitting Factory
July 12 - Salt Lake City - Club Vegas
July 14 - Reno - New Oasis
July 16 - San Francisco - DNA
July 18 - Santa Ana - Galaxy
July 19 - San Diego - Canes
July 20 - Los Angeles - Troubadour
July 23 - Dallas - The Loft
July 24 - Shreveport - The Riverside Warehouse
July 25 - Austin - The Parish
July 27 - New Orleans - One Eyed Jack's
July 29 - Little Rock - Juanita's
July 31 - Memphis - New Daisy
August 1 - Murfreesboro - Club 527
more dates being added through September...

DOCURAMA FILMS ANNOUNCES THE DVD RELEASE - GARRISON KEILLOR:THE MAN ON THE RADIO IN THE RED SHOES - DIRECTED BY AWARD WINNING DIRECTOR PETER ROSEN

2009-06-29T12:24:00.000-07:00

“Captures the charm of A Prairie Home Companion
and its creator” – Variety
GARRISON KEILLOR:
THE MAN ON THE RADIO
IN THE RED SHOES

America’s foremost humorist and commentator, Garrison Keillor takes his skits and monologues across the country in America’s most popular radio show, A Prairie Home Companion. The acclaimed feature film GARRISON KEILLOR: THE MAN ON THE RADIO IN THE RED SHOES trails this yarn-smith and his crew of actors and musicians as they spin stories and song into American gold. Following a nationwide premiere on Thirteen’s American Masters on PBS on July 1, Docurama Films brings this candid look at the private man in the public spotlight to DVD—along with over an hour of exclusive bonus material—on July 7, 2009.

Filmed over the course of more than a year, this intimate portrait captures Keillor on- and off-stage as he mingles fact and fiction to create America’s collective hometown, Lake Wobegon, on his radio program. The result is a fascinating inside look at the enigmatic raconteur and how the imaginary world he created became a real place in America. Author of more than 20 books as well as a syndicated weekly column, Keillor is credited with reviving the lost art of live radio entertainment in America; his weekly radio show, celebrating its 35th anniversary this July, has more than 4 million listeners and is broadcast on 590 stations. Robert Altman’s 2006 film starring Meryl Streep, A Prairie Home Companion, brought Keillor and his characters to the big screen.

“His writing is never from an elevated space, so he connects with his audience,” said Peabody, DGA and Emmy® Award-winning filmmaker Peter Rosen (Eighth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition: Here to Make Music and Who Gets to Call It Art?). “But the production value of his show is highly elevated, and the novelty for viewers of this film will be to see how the magic happens.”

Keillor mixes storytelling and humor to give us a lighthearted but deeply felt reflection of ourselves. While he’s been compared to such legends as Mark Twain and Will Rogers, Garrison Keillor is unique. In this unusual biography, we begin to see how and why.
- over -

OVER AN HOUR OF EXCLUSIVE BONUS MATERIAL INCLUDES:
· Outtakes
· Garrison Keillor Talks to Students
· Interview with Robert Altman and Garrison Keillor
· Filmmaker Biography
To view the trailer: http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/garrison-keillor/the-man-on-the-radio-in-the-red-shoes/1159/

MEG

2009-06-03T20:38:00.000-07:00

Steve Alten
Variance Publishing

Review by Craig Harvey

We're all afraid of the dark. It's ingrained in our very being. Even after millions of years of evolution we still fear the unknown lurking in the blackness. In Steve Alten's world, the dark lies in the bone crushing depths of the black abyss miles below the ocean's surface where monstrous creatures long thought extinct still thrive. For Jonas Taylor and his family the stakes have been raised as they face not only these abominations, but the sixty foot megalodon Angel and her vicious new offspring still kept caged and bloodthirsty. For fans of the MEG series "Hell's Aquarium" brings us back once again to the world of Carcharodon Megalodon; the apex predator of all time. Or so we thought. Yes Dorothy, there are worse things lurking in the ocean besides prehistoric sharks. In the second book of the series "The Trench" giant Kronosaurs were discovered in the Mariana Trench, where Jonas Taylor had first glimpsed Angel's mother years before. That was just icing on the cake, because this time, the true monsters of the deep make their appearance and believe me, it's worse than anyone could have imagined.

The story begins with Angel and her two offspring still in captivity at the Tanaka Institute and Jonas seemingly having things under lock and key. But as fate would have it, this doesn't last long. Death and tragedy seem to surround Angel and her brood like a curse. Things begin to look up however, when a wealthy Dubai prince seeks to purchase the pups to be displayed in the largest aquarium in the world being built in his homeland. He even wants Jonas's son David to supervise the transition and care of the sharks in Dubai for the summer. However, the prince has another, far more dangerous objective for David; one that will test the entire Taylor family to their breaking points and beyond. A hidden and untouched world of prehistoric nightmares await beneath the Phillippine Sea Plate dubbed Panthalassa. For over 220 million years it has remained untouched and undiscovered by man, until now. The mission: to dive below into this pristine and deadly new world and lure some of these creatures up to be captured for the aquarium, and he wants David to lead the way.

I have to say of the Meg series this is my favorite. I have loved them all but "Hell's Aquarium" brings back the intensity I felt when Jonas first encountered the giant shark and faced his demons in the first book. But the greatest thing of the series is Alten's gift of making his fiction believable, his characters living, breathing, entities and not just words on paper. His best asset is the ability to blend a fantasy of what could possibly exist, yet stay firmly grounded in reality. He does his homework consulting the right people to get the science plausible without sacrificing what matters most; a great story. He crafts novels that will captivate you from the moment you start reading. Alten does that and more with "Hell's Aquarium." I guarantee fans of the series won't sleep a wink until they finish the last page of the best Meg novel yet.

GET THE LED OUT

2009-06-03T20:23:00.000-07:00

THE AMERICAN LED ZEPPELIN
SATURDAY, JUNE 20TH 8:00 PM
TIMES UNION CENTER ● MORAN THEATER
ONE PERFORMANCE ONLY!!

JACKSONVILLE, FL – From the bombastic and epic, to the folky and mystical, Get The Led Out have captured the essence of the recorded music of Led Zeppelin and brought it to the big concert stage. The Philadelphia-based group consists of six accomplished musicians intent on delivering Led Zeppelin's studio recordings with all the bells and whistles. Utilizing the multi-instrumentalists at their disposal, Get The Led Out re-create the songs in all their depth and glory with the studio overdubs that Zeppelin themselves never performed live.

Get the Led Out: The American Led Zeppelin is coming to the Times Union Center’s Moran Theater on Saturday, June 20th at 8PM for one performance only.

Dubbed by the media as "The American Led Zeppelin," Get The Led Out present a two hour + set each night that spans the mythic career of the legendary British supergroup. With a strong focus on the early years, they also touch on the deeper cuts that were seldom, if ever heard in concert.

The group is achieving strong box office scores in the Mid-Atlantic. Not uncommon are return-visits and sell-outs at a number of the region's most prominent venues and PACs including House of Blues (Atlantic City), Pennsylvania’s Sovereign Center and Keswick Theatre, and Oswego New York's "Harborfest" (two years in a row) as well as countless other theaters and national concert venues.

Get The Led Out's approach to their performance of this hallowed catalog is not unlike a classical performance. "Led Zeppelin are sort of the classical composers of the rock era," says lead vocalist Paul Sinclair. "I believe 100 years from now they will be looked at as the Bach or Beethoven of our time. As cliché as it sounds, their music is timeless."

A Get The Led Out concert sort of mimics the "light and shade" that is the embodiment of "The Mighty Zep." Whether it's the passion and fury with which they deliver the blues-soaked, groove-driven rock anthems, or the delicate nature of their intimate, sit-down acoustic set (complete with special guest female vocalist for "The Battle of Evermore"), it's their attention to detail and nuance that makes a Get The Led Out performance a truly awe-inspiring event!

Paul Sinclair - Lead Vocals, Harmonica

Paul Hammond - Electric and Acoustic Guitars, Mandolin, Theremin Jimmy Marchiano - Electric and Acoustic Guitars, Vocals Paul Piccari - Bass Guitar, Vocals Andrew Lipke - Keyboards, Guitar, Vocals, Percussion Adam Ferraioli - Drums, Percussion

"An homage, beautifully performed with genuine respect for the oh-so familiar material... It sells tickets!" - Steve Krempasky - Whitaker Center

"More than just an exceptional recreation of Led Zeppelin, one of the best tribute bands on the planet!" - Bruce Ranes - Sellersville Theatre

"Great music! Great guys!" - Kacy Jenkins - Ram’s Head Live

GET THE LED OUT: THE AMERICAN LED ZEPPELIN will be performed at the TIMES UNION CENTER’S MORAN THEATER June 20, 2009 for one performance only. Tickets range in price from $30.50 to $80.50. Discounts are available for groups of 10+, or 20+ by calling (904) 632-3228.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call the FCCJ Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY.)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the
FCCJ Artist Series’ website, www.artistseries.fccj.org.

Savage in Limbo

2009-05-31T16:32:00.001-07:00

NYC's The Bowery Electric to host a run of
John Patrick Shanley's Play
Savage in Limbo
June 12th-28th
Opening night performance by Ian Astbury with The Soft Revolt
Artists Band Together to Bring Creativity Back to The Bowery

May 28th - New York, NY - On June 12th, One of NYC's hottest nightspots, The Bowery Electric (327 Bowery @ 2nd Street, NYC) will host the Apollonia Players' production of SAVAGE IN LIMBO by John Patrick Shanley. Shanley is best known for his work Doubt, which was made into an Oscar-nominated film last year starring Meryl Streep and Philip Seymour Hoffman. On the opening night (June 12th), Ian Astbury will also be hitting the stage with his new project The Soft Revolt who also performed at the benefit party on April 9th at The Bowery Electric to raise money to help support the production. Astbury, who is best known as the singer for The Cult is a resident of New York City for the past two years. In his time there, has become a patron of the arts, being moved most by the raw emotion portrayed by the actors in a live staged production and has become dedicated to helping up and coming performers.

Set in a slightly seedy neighborhood bar in the Bronx, Savage in Limbo revolves around a group of regulars seeking relief from the disappointments and tedium of the outside world. “Savage in Limbo is the product of New York in its savage, untamed state,” says Astbury. “In the spirit of the play, we have turned to the original hunting grounds of that animal, The Bowery. Cultural revolt in this time of creative impotence!”
The Cast of Savage in Limbo

Backstage Magazine, in its review of the play, lauded: “John Patrick Shanley has written an often searing, existential and dramatically compelling work dealing with our search for roots and purpose in an often purposeless world.”

The Bowery Electric is run by local musicians Jesse Malin and Johnny T and has been a mainstay for local and touring musicians and artists alike so it is the prime spot to showcase Savage In Limbo which takes place in a bar.

A collective and creative endeavor by all, the bar, the actors and musicians have banded together to bring arts back to The Bowery and hope to raise money for the play and awareness for the Arts in New York City.
June 12th - 28th Tickets $18.00
Showtimes: Friday & Saturday 8pm (doors at 7pm) must be 21+ with photo ID
Sunday 3pm (doors at 2pm) All ages
Sunday 7pm (doors at 6pm) must be 21+ with photo ID

For more information, go to:
www.savageinlimbo.com

WICKED ANNOUNCES LOTTERY FOR $25 SEATS

2009-04-20T07:50:00.000-07:00

PERFORMANCES BEGIN
THURSDAY, APRIL 23RD – SUNDAY, MAY 10TH
AT THE TIMES UNION CENTER MORAN THEATER

JACKSONVILLE, FL – A day-of-performance lottery for a limited number of orchestra seats will be held daily for WICKED, which will be performing from Thursday, April 23rd to Sunday, May 10th at the Times Union Center’s Moran Theater. Each day, 2½ hours prior to show time people who present themselves at the Artist Series box office at the Times Union Center will have their names placed in a lottery drum and then thirty minutes later, names will be drawn for a limited number of orchestra seats at $25 each, cash only. This lottery is available only in-person at the box office, with a limit of two tickets per person.

WICKED is a new musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (Godspell, Pippin, Disney’s Enchanted, Academy Award winner for Pocahontas and The Prince of Egypt) and book by Winnie Holzman (“My So Called Life,” “Once And Again” and “thirtysomething”) based on the 1995 best-selling novel by Gregory Maguire. The musical is directed by two-time Tony Award winner Joe Mantello (Take Me Out, Love! Valour! Compassion!, The Vagina Monologues, 9 to 5) and features musical staging by Tony Award winner Wayne Cilento (Aida, The Who’s Tommy, How To Succeed…). WICKED, the untold story of the witches of Oz, is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.

Long before Dorothy drops in, two other girls meet in the land of Oz. One – born with emerald green skin – is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. WICKED tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch.

WICKED features set design by Tony Award winning Eugene Lee (Ragtime, Show Boat, Candide, Sweeney Todd), costume design by Tony winner Susan Hilferty (Spring Awakening, Into the Woods, Assassins), lighting design by Tony nominee Kenneth Posner (Tony Award winner for The Coast of Utopia, Hairspray) and sound design by Tony Meola (The Lion King, Man of La Mancha). Stephen Oremus is the show’s music director. Orchestrations are by William David Brohn, with dance arrangements by James Lynn Abbott.

WICKED has “cast quite a spell” (Washington Post) throughout North America, breaking box office records in every city that it has played, including Toronto, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, DC, Philadelphia and Boston to name a few.

Called “one of the most successful shows in Broadway history” by The New York Times and “a phenomenon that keeps growing” by the Los Angeles Times, WICKED continues to thrill audiences around the world. There are currently eight productions of WICKED worldwide, including two North American tours, a Broadway production, San Francisco production, London production, a Japanese-language production, a German-language production and Australian production. A Dutch-language production of WICKED will open in 2011.

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
Thursday, April 23 7:30 PM
Friday, April 24 8:00 PM
Saturday, April 25 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM
Sunday, April 26 1:30 PM & 7:00 PM
Tuesday, April 28 7:30 PM
Wednesday, April 29 7:30 PM
Thursday, April 30 7:30 PM
Friday, May 1 8:00 PM
Saturday, May 2 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM
Sunday, May 3 1:30 PM & 7:00 PM
Tuesday, May 5 7:30 PM
Wednesday, May 6 7:30 PM
Thursday, May 7 7:30 PM
Friday, May 8 8:00 PM
Saturday, May 9 2:00 PM & 8:00 PM
Sunday, May 10 1:30 PM & 7:00 PM

WICKED will be performed at the TIMES UNION CENTER’S MORAN THEATER THURSDAY, APRIL 23 – SUNDAY, MAY 10 for twenty-two performances. Good seats are still available for all performances and can be purchased for as low as $30, plus applicable service charge and facility usage fee. Discounts are available for some performances for groups of 15 by calling (904) 632-3228.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call the FCCJ Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY.)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the
FCCJ Artist Series’ website, www.artistseries.fccj.org.

SUPER SCIENTIFIC CIRCUS

2009-03-31T17:37:00.000-07:00

THE FCCJ ARTIST SERIES PRESENTS

IN JACKSONVILLE
APRIL 25, 2009 11:00 AM & 2:00 PM
WILSON CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

JACKSONVILLE, FL – Step right up for this amazing show, creatively performed by a multi-talented circus clown and a mime extraordinaire. The Super Scientific Circus starring Mr. Fish and Trent the Mime, proves that science can be fun and funny. Alternately assisted and foiled by the comedic antics of Trent the Mime, Mr. Fish uses amazing circus skills that could involve everything from boomerangs, bubbles and beachballs, to bull whips, and magic to introduce the principles of friction, inertia, centripetal force, aerodynamics, sonic booms, air pressure, and ultraviolet light.

Super Scientific Circus comes to Jacksonville’s Wilson Center for the Performing Arts on Saturday, April 25, 2009 at 11:00AM and 2:00PM.

-more-

The audience learns how to make and throw their own boomerangs, how to blow giant soap bubbles, and how to put a needle through a balloon. Whether you flunked high school chemistry or have a PhD in astrophysics, you will love this show!

Super Scientific Circus has performed at Taipei National Theatre (Taiwan), Paper Mill Playhouse (New Jersey), University of Hawaii, Civic Arts Plaza (California), North Shore Music Theatre (Massachusetts), Hong Kong International Children's Festival, Detroit Youth Theatre, The Florida Theatre, and other venues around the world.

About the Performers:

John Lepairz
Mr. Fish, born John James Lepairz, spent seven years as featured clown with the Big Apple Circus in New York and on tour. He has appeared on HBO and on ABC's "Great Circus Performances of the World," and was awarded first place in clowning at the International Circus Festival in Sarasota, Florida. His two-man show, The Funny Stuff Circus, performed in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and all over the United States and Canada. A graduate of Oberlin College and the LeCoq School of Mime and Clown in Paris, he is the proud father of three children.

Trent Arterberry
Trent Arterberry has toured across North America and Europe, and appeared as a star attraction on the QE2 and S/S Norway. He has performed with symphony orchestras and opened for Julio Iglesias, B.B. King, and the Kinks. In New York he starred in the Christmas Revels. His television appearances include an Emmy-nominated news feature, and his awards include "Performing Artist of the Year" by the National Association of Campus Activities. His most unusual assignment was being filmed underwater with the sharks and eels in the Giant Ocean Tank of the New England Aquarium.

SUPER SCIENTIFIC CIRCUS will be performed at the WILSON CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS April 25, 2009 for two performances only. Tickets cost $15.00.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call the FCCJ Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY.)

FEATURED AUTHOR: Alastair Reynolds

2009-03-20T12:44:00.000-07:00

By staff writer Craig Harvey

Alastair Reynolds hit the scene with the amazing Revelation Space. It was a dark, cold and gothic setting of mankind's future into the unforgiving blackness of interstellar space. This was hard science fiction at it's best. No faster than light travel, making trips between star systems very lengthy voyages spanning decades or centuries. Man himself adapting and evolving to colonize new and strange worlds, most of their enviorments hostile and desolate. We were not alone, but intelligence other than ourselves was scarce. Mostly dead civilizations were all that were found. There were alien forces at work however, that would give humanity it's greatest and most desperate challenge for survival. This series is still ongoing with five books and numerous short stories.

Alastair has released several stand alone novels that are seperate from this Revelation Space series, "Century Rain", "Pushing Ice", and now his most recent work "House Of Suns." This novel is breathtaking in scope, spanning millions of years on a galactic scale, and has to be his boldest, most awe inspiring science fiction novel to date. It is the story of two humans (two clones actually) Purslane and Campion. They are the offspring of Abigail Gentian who cloned herself and sent her "shatterlings" into space to categorize and observe (as well as help) civilizations across the galaxy. With no faster than light travel, they observe the rise and fall of humanity across time. There other "lines" that do the same thing and they meet every 200,000 years to share information. However, someone wants to put an end to the Gentian line and this is where the action really takes off. Trust me when I say, that this is science fiction on a scope yet unheard of. Movement had the pleasure of an earlier interview with Alastair a few years back, and he was kind enough to answer some of my in depth questions once again. (At the time of this interview, House Of Suns has been out a while, Alastair was not able to do the interview when I originally sent it to him several months ago due to work related issues). He is now working on a new novel entitled "Terminal World."

1. First congratulations on your latest book House Of Suns. It's great. My brain kind of hurt a bit after reading it (in a good way) because of the vast scope of space and time that is experienced within the story. Does writing a novel that encompasses such a huge scale pose difficulties for you? The challenge of imagining what humanity will be like millions of years in the future seems like an extremely daunting task.

"There are challenges, certainly, but at the same time it's an area of SF that has always excited me, so it's as much about fun and freedom as anything else. You'll note that the foreground characters aren't really all that different to us; it's the background ones who are stranger. Really, though, I didn't find HOS to be any more or less hard to write than any of my other books. The real problems are never the ones you anticipate at the start, anyway - they're the ones that sneak up on you."

2. The ending of House Of Suns screams for a sequel (or series of sequels). Hopefully we will be seeing one in the future?

"No firm plans, but I wouldn't rule it out. I hope it doesn't scream for a sequel in the sense of being incomplete, as that was very much not my intention; to my mind it's a story unto itself, and while the ending is relatively open, there's also a sense of closure for Campion and Hesperus."

3. The Priors (in House Of Suns) were actually an alien race that came billions of years before us, but that was the only evidence of another intelligence arising in the Milky Way correct? Do you really envision the galaxy that empty or a more probable chance of life now that we are finding extra solar planets quite common?

"Correct. But that's just an assumption I settled on for HOS. As you're aware, the RS books take an entirely different tack. It's all about exploring the most interesting or appropriate angle for the work in question. I think the whole "how common is life" thing is still a very, very open question. We are indeed finding lots of extrasolar planets, but most of them are not in the orbits we were expecting. We'll get a better picture when we have the means to detect Earthlike planets in Earthlike orbits. At the moment the most fruitful technique is biassed to find massive planets in short-period orbits, so it's not surprising that we're turning up so many oddball planets."

4. I wanted to ask a bit about distance and time in House of Suns and Pushing Ice (which I will get to a bit later) mainly relativity as to the view of the space traveler. In House Of Suns Purslane and Campion traveled 62,000 light years real time at near light speed but you stated that around 3,000 years passed ship time correct? Granted both were in status so no time passed for them. Now in the novel Pushing Ice, the crew of the Rockhopper stranded on the Janus probe traveled near the speed of light to the alien artifact some 200 plus light years away, but was then accelerated even more from the artifact they thought they were heading towards originally to an even further destination. 1. The Janus probe never actually went superluminal correct? 2. If not, the relativistic effects were described as only decades even though they traveled, I assume thousands or millions of light years further? 3. But in House of Suns the 62,000 light year
trip took 3,000 years ship time. Did I miss something? How do you calculate the relativistic time scale for ship time?

"I calculate relativistic effects using the standard equations for time dilation (actually I don't; I've got a table of values for various fractions of c, but I have done the math in the past). You're right that there is no superluminal travel in PI, even though some readers seem to have misunderstood that aspect of the novel. In PI, we can assume that Janus was accelerated much closer to c than Purslane and Campion ever got, with a correspondingly higher time dilation ratio. The closer you get to c, the less time passes, so the ratio between shiptime and planetary time can become arbitrarily small."

5. Also, the wormhole left behind by the priors (In House Of Suns) enabled superluminal travel between galaxies, but what about between the stars in the milky way? If they could travel that far, why did they not use them to travel between star systems in the galaxy itself?

"I hope I covered this: they can deal with the relatively short timescale of galactic travel, but intergalactic travel was a step too far for them. And, although I didn't go into it, we could also speculate that the technology could only be practically applied on a galactic timescale, kind of analogous to the way that we don't use rockets for inter-city transport."

6. One more tech question. In House of Suns the ships used by the line were quite large, many kilometers to be exact. You mentioned that the ships could enter a planetary atmosphere even though they could not land. Is that possible for a ship so large? This might not be the best example but in the film Independence Day (again, not a great sci-fi flick by any means) they had similar type ships and I read on one astronomy site that ships so huge would set the atmosphere on fire because of the amount of friction it would cause. Unless your ships had some way around that? Maybe this site was incorrect? Sorry to bombard you with scientific issues!

"We're so far into the realms of super-science that I think the answer is that a ship could be as large as you like, provided it's equipped with the right kind of magic gravity nullifiers etc. And I've never heard of the setting-the-atmosphere on fire thing. The ships in HOS can generate fields, of course, so their hulls wouldn't necessarily be in contact with the air. And they wouldn't have to come in so fast that they caused catastrophic effects to the planet."

7. Your previous novel Pushing Ice was said to be a stand alone novel. Again, with all the open-ended possibilities within the story, it also begs to have a sequel. Are you going to continue this story line or leave it as is?

"Again, there may be a sequel one day. My position is that I want to write one, but there are other books I want to write first."

8. You have many strong female lead characters in many of your books.. Do you find it easier or harder to write a female vs. male lead character?

"I just kind of go with the flow, in all honesty. I don't think one's harder than the other. The problems tend to arise when a character gets stuck in the wrong gender early on in the story, and I don't recognise it. Sometimes all kinds of problems can waft away as soon as I realise that he ought to be a she, or vice versa. That sounds like a very simplistic, haphazard approach, but no one hands these things down to you on a stone. It's the same with viewpoint."

9. Now the question I am most interested in. When is the next Revelation Space book coming out? The last book "The Prefect" was a wonderful detective story that really took some interesting turns and answered some major questions about the Glitter Band. You have a vast universe in which to play in with so many unique character types that the story possibilities seem endless.

"There'll certainly be another one, but again I wouldn't want to say exactly when it will happen, or exactly where in the future it will slot. I don't want to fall into the trap of explaining too much, but at the same time I'm mindful that there is still scope for new stories there. Thanks for liking The Prefect; I enjoyed that one and I'd like to do more with Dreyfus and his associates, but it might not be for a book or two (or three)."

10. Any chance of another mission to "the spire" from the novella Diamond Dogs? It would be interesting to see another team try to crack the mystery of what it is and who built it. How about Dr. Trintignant? Now there's an interesting fellow.

"I think I'm done with The Spire, and probably also done with Dr T - but who knows? I certainly don't..."

11. Your stories are what I would say are some of the hardest and best Sci-fi out there. You go to great lengths to keep it within what is possible while letting your imagination create amazing futuristic visions. Did you ever consider writing more of a space opera that was more light hearted? Full of superluminal starships, alien civilizations and epic stories? Kind of like you do now, just escape the laws of physics and have fun? Or would that difficult because of your background in physics and astronomy?

"I think House of Suns *was* that book, to be honest - it's very, very far from nuts and bolts hard SF. The new one, Terminal World, might even be further in that direction still. I don't think I could write a balls-to-the-wall Star Wars type space opera in which *everything* is possible, but that doesn't mean I won't do "fun" stuff in the future. But as it happens, the book (or rather sequence of books) that are firming up in my mind at the moment are much closer to pure hard SF than almost anything I've done to date, although I hope that they'll still have a fair measure of surprise and sense of wonder in them."

12. How do you feel about our current space program? Do you feel we are making any headway at all? We keep sending probes to Mars for signs of early life, do you think it's a dead end? Mars is a never ending fascination with Astronomers. They don't want to give up the search even if it seems to be futile.

"I'm still pretty excited about space and our exploring of it. I'd wish we were a bit further on with manned spaceflight, but there's no escaping the technological challenges, which are enormous - far more so, I think, than most people realise. Just building a rocket engine is astonishingly difficult. The fact that we did it 50 years ago doesn't take anything away from that for me.

Mars is anything but a dead end. I don't think we'll ever stop peeling back the layers of mystery there. It's going to be a fascinating few decades."

13. On the flip side as I mentioned earlier, the hunt for extra-solar planets seems to be a huge success. How long do you think it will be before we discover a terrestrial size planet such as Earth or Mars? Or better yet, one with Earth-like conditions?

"I think we'll find a terrestrial-sized planet in the next decade, and we'll have a low-res image of an Earthlike planet (with oceans, landmasses etc) within 25, if there are any out there, of course."

14. Speaking of Earth, not much is mentioned about it in the Revelation Space series. Any chance of a visit there in any part of the time-line? Perhaps during the golden age?

"No, I decided early on not to bring Earth on stage. It's pretty much iced over and under-populated for most of the sequence; the action has moved elsewhere in the solar system. I did this deliberately as I'd read far too many SF novels where the action shifts to Earth and all of a sudden the carefully engendered sense of disbelief crumbles away. I'd always end up wondering - have they still got Wales? Does it still rain? Are there still pubs and carparks and seaside pavilions? I didn't want to engage with any of that, so I didn't."

15. You seem very interested in detective stories as shown in "The Prefect" and the novel "Century Rain". Did you ever consider just writing a 1920's noir style detective novel void at all of science fiction? Or any other type of genre at all? You could do fantasy well I think, considering the Palatial virtual reality simulator that Abigail uses in House of Suns.

"I'm a big fan of detective and crime fiction, yes, but I certainly don't have the chops to do a non-SF crime novel. I can't see myself ever doing anything much resembling high-fantasy, either - the sequences in HOS are more of a piss-take than anything else. If I was going to do a fantasy, I'd try and carve out my own niche, getting as far away from wizards and dark lords as humanly possible. But I probably wouldn't bother, as I'm not terrifically excited by fantasy in the first place. I like some of the weirder stuff out there, but most of it doesn't rock my world. If I'm going to read about people hacking each other apart with swords, it might as well be a historical novel, I figure."

16. Well, that's about it other than what's currently playing in your cd player or Ipod?

"On a bit of an Arcade Fire kick at the moment, among other things."

FCCJ Artist Series Presents "One Night of Queen" April 8, 2009

2009-03-20T12:40:00.000-07:00

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 2009 7:30 PM
TIMES UNION CENTER ● MORAN THEATER

JACKSONVILLE, FL – One Night of Queen formed in 2000 after Gary Mullen won ITV’s ‘Stars In Their Eyes’ grand final with a record poll of 864,838 votes, more than double the runner up and the most votes ever received on the show. Along with his band ‘The Works’, Gary delivers the look, the sound and the showmanship of arguably the greatest live band of all time. One Night of Queen will play in Jacksonville on Wednesday, April 8, 2009 at 7:30 PM at the Times Union Center’s Moran Theater.

Over the past 7 years One Night of Queen has toured virtually non-stop around the UK, Germany, Portugal, Holland, Belgium, France and New Zealand, playing theatres, arenas and festivals to sell-out crowds everywhere.

In September 2005 the show was invited to perform at the BBC’s ‘Proms in the Park’ event in Hyde Park, London, alongside Andrea Bocelli, G4 and Simply Red. Being described as “the highlight of the day” and receiving rapturous applause from 45,000 fans, cemented One Night of Queen’s reputation as being “much more than a tribute”.

In spring 2007 as well as completing tours of the UK, France and Germany, the band took part in a Canadian TV Documentary focussing on the World’s best tribute bands. 2008 will see the show embark on it’s first ever tour of the USA and Canada.

GARY MULLEN

Born in Glasgow in 1973, Gary Mullen has been a lifelong Queen fan. A regular in the karaoke bars around Glasgow, Gary would the wow crowds with his uncanny performance of Queen’s songs.

At 26, while working as a computer sales person, Gary’s wife Jackie and mother Theresa secretly sent away an application to ‘Stars In Their Eyes’. After auditioning as Freddie Mercury, Gary was offered a place in the heats. Gary not only won his heat but went on to become grand final winner of the 2000 series. Polling 864,838 votes in the Live Grand Final, more than double the runner up, this is the all time record number of votes cast for an artiste on this TV show.

After winning the show Gary returned to his computer sales job in Glasgow. He stayed for four weeks but the demand for him to perform was too much and it became apparent that his career choice was about to change quite dramatically. Even Brian May himself wrote to Gary, wishing him well and saying what a remarkable likeness he has to Freddie, in more than just voice and appearance on stage – what finer accolade could there be?!

After touring as a one-man show for a year, Gary decided it was time to put a band together and pursue his dream of filling theatres with his tribute to Freddie and Queen. ’The Works’ were formed at the end of 2001 and One Night of Queen was complete.

Since then, Gary and The Works have thrilled audiences across the UK, Germany, France, Portugal, Holland and as far afield as New Zealand. A very special performance came in 2005 when One Night of Queen were invited to perform at the BBC’s ‘Proms In The Park’ alongside G4, Andrea Bocelli and Simply Red.

Stranger projects have included working for various advertising campaigns. In 2003 Gary recorded a version of ‘I Want To Break Free’ for an Irish internet provider. Gary sang the vocal and the sound was dubbed over an actor’s performance, i.e. someone pretending to be Gary pretending to be Freddie – bizarre!

In 2007 Gary recorded a radio advert for ‘Which?’ magazine, not a Queen song, but specially written lyrics to a popular opera tune. Rumour has it that the members of Queen have heard it and thought it spookily accurate to Freddie’s voice!

Outside of One Night of Queen, Gary is a devoted husband and father to three children. Not only a singer, Gary spends much time playing the guitar, piano and drums and writing original material.

ONE NIGHT OF QUEEN will be performed at the TIMES UNION CENTER’S MORAN THEATER Wednesday, April 8, 2009 for one performance only. Tickets range in price from $30.50 to $80.50. Discounts are available for groups of 10+ or 20+ by calling (904) 632-3228.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call the FCCJ Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY.)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the
FCCJ Artist Series’ website, www.artistseries.fccj.org.

THE FCCJ ARTIST SERIES PRESENTS GILLIGAN’S ISLAND THE MUSICAL

2009-02-05T12:24:00.000-08:00

The most syndicated show in television history is setting sail on its first National Tour and will be

DOCKING IN JACKSONVILLE
MARCH 6-8, 2009
WILSON CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

JACKSONVILLE, FL – Look out America, Gilligan's Island The Musical is docking at a desert island near you and the hilarity found in America's most cherished sitcom is in full effect in this larger than life stage musical. Bringing back all those well known and beloved characters from one of the most popular television shows of all time, this lovable musical comedy is sure to please the generations of audiences that the television show first inspired. Gilligan's Island The Musical is coming to Jacksonville’s Wilson Center for the Performing Arts March 6-8, 2009 for four performances only.

"Gilligan's Island" has been a series, three TV movies, two cartoon series, a reality series, and the subject of more comedians' jokes than the mother-in-law. "Gilligan's Island" is an icon whose theme song and characters have become pop culture icons. It has been syndicated on more cable stations than any other series in history and continues to run on both Nickelodeon and TV land. "Three hour tour," "Ginger or Mary Ann," are just a few nuggets from the Gilligans Island television show that remain part of every-day vernacular.

Gilligan's Island The Musical debuted in Flat Rock, North Carolina with Director Steve Rothman after a workshop presentation first seen in the early 1990's. From there, it went to Chicago, San Diego, and Thousand Oaks. And every production was lauded by critics and audiences alike.

"You've got to love it….Timeless" said the Today Show.

"A great time…..Fabulous!" reported CBS Morning News.

And People Magazine described it as "Love and lust among the coconuts."

The creators of the musical- Lloyd Schwartz and Hope and Laurence Juber- have continued to hone and develop the play over the years. Loyd is the son and long-time collaborator of Sherwood Schwartz, the creator of the "Gilligan's Island" television series, as well as "The Brady Bunch" television series. Hope Juber is Sherwood's daughter.

Gilligan's Island: The Musical is a straightforward story of relationships and survival. Beginning with the #1 TV theme song of all time, Gilligan, The Skipper, Mary Ann, Ginger, The Professor, and The Millionaire and his wife are shipwrecked and trying to get off the island. Natural disasters befall them, hurricanes, quicksand, etc., as they learn to get along and survive. Their biggest challenge comes from the U.F.O. and its Alien, who monitors their behavior. By the end of the play, the castaways manage to defeat the extraterrestrial and save the entire planet, while staying marooned themselves. Updated somewhat to reflect the times, Gilligan's Island: The Musical still has comedy, heart, love, drama, nostalgia, and sing-able songs that stick true to the characters that audiences have fallen in love with for the last 40 years.

GILLIGAN’S ISLAND THE MUSICAL will be performed at the WILSON CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS March 6-8, 2009 for four performances only. Tickets cost $40.50. Discounts are available for groups of 10+, 20+, or 40+ by calling (904) 632-3228.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call the FCCJ Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY.)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the
FCCJ Artist Series’ website, www.artistseries.fccj.org.

MOMIX

2009-02-03T12:31:00.000-08:00

Review by Mia Carlin

MOMIX is a company of dancer-illusionists under the direction of Moses Pendleton. For over 25 years, MOMIX has been celebrated for its ability to conjure up a world of surrealistic images using prop, light, shadow, humor & the human body.

With its hypnotic imagery, fluid movements and overall mysticism, MOMIX is both provocative and mesmerizing. Hypnotized by each piece in the program, you forget that you are watching the actual dancers live. Some of the pieces are so magical that you wonder how on earth they pulled it off. Being in the 2nd row you would think that one would be able to identify a little bit of realism, but not me. Everything about the performance completely stunned me, leaving me awestruck about what I had just witnessed. From a very wide & creative range of ideas, MOMIX had the ability to re-invent snakes, fire, galaxies, mythology & body part separation from just a few pieces of gym equipment, lights, one screen & ribbon.

The lighting & sculpture props spellbind you in such a way that you really feel part of the story – that somehow you have been transcended in time into this foreign hemisphere. And not only are the dancers skilled but they are beautiful. I mean, strikingly, angelically beautiful! Their bodies are perfectly sculpted and it feels as though you are viewing a real life God or Goddess in action. Zeus, Athena, Triton, you name it – these dancers look like the work of Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel.

Not to mention the precise & captivating choreography. This is not just a dance performance of skill & acrobatics, but fluid movements of dynamics, muscle & strength.

The dancers use all of their body weight, holding it in mid air while being twisted, turned & glided for several minutes at a time, and for a moment you really feel as if they are actually flying. There are no strings involved – no tricks of any kind, just the dancers and their one prop – gliding them through mid air like mystified beings from another universe, another plain in time.

Although alluring in nature, MOMIX excerpts also found ways to humor the audience. In one piece, several dancers are connected head - to – ass, as they writhe on the floor to form a completely wacky centipede; making you wonder just how far one will go for the love of dance.. Another piece has the stage lit up by a black light, giving the illusion of flying seagulls, mouths, and television sets rather than dancers dressed in all black with white arms. One of the last pieces, 4 silhouetted dancers eventually morphed into one via the illusion of a giant screen & light projection. This piece went from a beautiful version of Adam & Eve to them morphing into one body & Eve’s head coming out of Adam’s crotch.

Imagination is a funny thing – a wonderful thing. It’s one of the most important outlets in life that keeps us centered when things to wrong or when life gets tough. Imagination is something that expands our minds while in the midst of boredom. It can be our friend when we have none, our teacher when we’re craving to learn, the lighted path from our hearts to our future. For Moses Pendleton, it was just that. An imaginative boy born & raised on a lonely dairy farm in North Vermont, who wanted to find a way to share his childhood fantasies with the world – and so he did.

This is not to say that we should escape from all responsibilities that adulthood has brought to our doorstep, but damn it if we can’t be excused for being absentee from it for a couple of hours.

MOMIX

2009-01-09T17:43:00.000-08:00

THE FCCJ ARTIST SERIES PRESENTS
MOMIX
COMING TO JACKSONVILLE
JANUARY 29, 2009 7:30 PM
THE FLORIDA THEATRE

JACKSONVILLE, FL – MOMIX transports audiences from their everyday lives to a fantasy world through its trademark use of magical lighting and imagery. Momix has thrilled fans in over 22 countries and has been featured on stage, screen and television. In an endless search for another gravity, Artistic Director Moses Pendleton combines athletic dance, riveting music, outrageous costumes, inventive props, and pure talent to create an entertaining multimedia experience.

The FCCJ Artist Series presents MOMIX, the company of dancer-illusionists and ingenious artistry founded by Moses Pendleton, coming to Jacksonville on Thursday, January 29, 2009 at 7:30 PM at The Florida Theatre for one performance only.

Under the artistic direction of Moses Pendleton, MOMIX brings a mesmerizing experience to audiences by presenting its unique combination of spectacle, visual wit and fantasy. Using light, shadow, props and eclectic music, Pendleton's genius for endless creativity results in endless possibility. His well-trained troupe of performers takes arabesques and pirouettes beyond the limit in performances that a New York Times critic recently noted, "defy the impossible."

MOMIX is celebrating its 20th anniversary this month with a return to New York's Joyce Theater for a three week run. Making its world premiere is Pendleton's new work, "Opus Cactus," which has audiences cheering at its beauty and sheer physical daring. Also appearing are two acclaimed and popular favorites, "MOMIX in Orbit" and "Passion," full "of those patented MOMIX moments - when your eyes forget to blink and your breath forgets to come out" (NY Newsday).

MOMIX has brought its unique style of surreal, sublime performance to theaters, screens and arenas around the globe. The company has been the focus of award-winning specials for PBS in the U.S. and for RAI in Italy, and has appeared on other broadcasts in more than 55 countries. MOMIX participated in the "Homage a Picasso" in Paris and represented the U.S. at the European Cultural Center event at Delphi. For the IMAX screen, the company's mix of power, magic and rhythmic movement is captured in the film, "Imagine." MOMIX also appeared with the Montreal Symphony in the Rhombus Media film, "Pictures at an Exhibition."

MOMIX will be performed at THE FLORIDA THEATRE on Thursday, January 29, 2009 at 7:30 PM. Tickets range in price from $30.50 to $70.50. Discounts are available for groups of 15+ or 40+ by calling (904) 632-3228.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call the FCCJ Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY.)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the
FCCJ Artist Series’ website, www.artistseries.fccj.org.

WICKED

2009-01-09T17:20:00.000-08:00

PRESENTED BY FCCJ ARTIST SERIES/SUNTRUST
BROADWAY ACROSSAMERICA – JACKSONVILLE

BROADWAY’S BIGGEST BLOCKBUSTER
COMES TO JACKSONVILLE
ON SALE DATE SET FOR
FRIDAY, JANUARY 16

BY STEPHEN SCHWARTZ AND WINNIE HOLZMAN
BASED ON THE NOVEL BY GREGORY MAGUIRE
MUSICAL STAGING BY WAYNE CILENTO
DIRECTED BY JOE MANTELLO

SO MUCH HAPPENED BEFORE DOROTHY DROPPED IN

Who:
Ticket buyers for the most anticipated musical production of the 2008-2009 Season!

What:

WICKED, the Tony Award winning smash hit Broadway Musical, goes on sale to the public! Ticket buyers are invited to special box office opening festivities. The first 95 people in line to make a purchase at the Times Union Center will receive a WICKED Cap. WAPE 95.1 and WMXQ 102.9 The Point will be broadcasting live on location in front of the theater for two hours, playing music and providing entertainment for those in line, as well as providing breakfast.

When:
Friday, January 16, 2009 8:00 AM – 10:00 AM

Where:
Times Union Center for the Performing Arts
300 Water St.
Jacksonville, FL 32202

BOX OFFICE INFO:
WICKED will be performed at the TIMES UNION CENTER’S MORAN THEATER APRIL 23 – MAY 10 for twenty-two performances. Tickets start at $30, plus applicable service charge and facility usage fee. Patrons are limited to 8 tickets per person. Discounts are available for groups of 15 by calling (904) 632-3228.

GISELLE

2008-12-15T08:40:00.000-08:00

THE FCCJ ARTIST SERIES PRESENTS
A. ADAM
GISELLE
AND THE
STATE BALLET THEATER OF RUSSIA

COMING TO JACKSONVILLE
JANUARY 9, 2009 8:00 PM
TIMES UNION CENTER - MORAN THEATER

JACKSONVILLE, FL – The tale of never-ending love – Giselle is without question the most romantic of all the classical ballets. Regarded as a masterpiece of traditional romantic ballet, Giselle is a favorite among dance aficionados and novices alike. First performed by the Paris Opera in 1841, ballet’s most famous story about love and redemption from the great beyond has been enchanting audiences for more than 175 years. Performed by a company of 50 dancers, Giselle comes to Jacksonville on Friday, January 9, 2009 to the Times Union Center’s Moran Theater at 8:00 PM for one performance only.

THE STORY

In this timeless ballet, Giselle tells the story of the tragic love triangle between Giselle, a weak-hearted young girl who is adored by her native villagers, Hans, the village gamekeeper, who is desperately in love with Giselle, and Count Albert, a engaged nobleman who becomes captivated by Giselle's frail beauty and innocence.

Hans, filled with suspicion and jealousy, becomes enraged when Giselle falls madly in love with Albert and believes that they are engaged and exposes Albert's disguise and reveals that he is already betrothed.

Overwhelmingly distraught and horrified, Giselle dies of a broken heart. Upon Giselle’s death, the Wilis appear, a group of jilted maidens who have died before their wedding night and vengefully trap any man who enters their domain, forcing him to dance to his death.

Hans is discovered beside Giselle’s body by Queen Myrta, the leader of the Wilis, and orders the Wilis to dance around him until he dies from exhaustion. Myrta then orders the same fate for Count Albert, but the Wilis cannot break through the invisible bond of love Giselle has for him. At dawn, when the Wilis lose their power and must retreat to their dwelling place, Albert is saved and Giselle forgives him.

Giselle returns with the Wilis and recognizes that now she will be one of them for the rest of time.

GISELLE will be performed at the TIMES UNION CENTER’S MORAN THEATER on Friday, January 9, 2009 at 8:00 PM for one performance only. Tickets range in price from $40.00 to $60.00. Discounts are available for groups of 15+ or 40+ by calling (904) 632-3228.

To order by phone with Visa, MasterCard, American Express or Discover call the FCCJ Artist Series Box Office at (904) 632-3373 (toll-free outside of Jacksonville 1-888-860-BWAY.)

Tickets are also available online with Instant Seat Selection by visiting the
FCCJ Artist Series’ website, www.artistseries.fccj.org.

The FCCJ Artist Series is recognized by the State of Florida as a Major Sponsor/Presenter Cultural Institution and is sponsored in part by the State of Florida, through the Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.

2008-10-28T07:06:00.000-07:00

Blue Velvet Evolve
Chelleby Photography
www.myspace.com/chelleby

Exhibit shown on:
October 30, 2008 7-10pm

at:
Bogda
1253 McDuff Ave. South
Jacksonville, FL 32205
(904)387-0852
shopbogda@gmail.com
www.myspace.com/shopbogda

“Life is a gift - Death, our promise.

Time is an illusion for the mortals. To compare their greatness to the Almighty is a gift from the Supreme Deity for us to replenish and recover from all of our folly.”

- Chelleby: Blue Velvet Evolve

Blue Velvet Evolve is an artistic protest against all of the unsolved murders of victims ages 18-24 in Jacksonville , Florida. The photography showcase was originally going to show blue velvet fabric in all of the photos, however, art photographer, Chelleby decided to take it out – hence the name “Blue Velvet Evolve.”

Chelleby further explains, “Blue velvet was the original lining of caskets. I decided that the work evolved from the caskets itself, to being actual stories of murder victims in the habitat in which they died.” The pictures are to recreate & represent crime scene photos graphically posed with blood. Chelleby posed the models naked, covered in fake blood on prominent Jacksonville monuments to make a statement. Chelleby say, “If I’m doing public nude exposures in broad daylight at various times of the day then what’s going on in this city at night?”

The artist herself has been affected by young murders in her own life. Her friend Angie, whom she’d known since childhood, was murdered allegedly by her boyfriend by the age of 22. In Angie’s honor, Chelleby has displayed a phantom letter written in Angie’s words from a dream Chelleby had about Angie prior to the show.

Angie’s murder has remained unsolved to this day.

The artist Chelleby has had over 17 friends murdered or died of mysterious deaths, all under the age of 22 years old. Chelleby explains, “By having so many youthful deaths in my lifetime, it’s given me a carpe diem to be as caring & loving to those around me. I don’t believe in tomorrow anymore. I get everything done today.

Although Chelleby’s appearance is a darker, edgy mix of Marilyn Monroe & Edie Sedgewick, her inner beauty shows that she is a joyous person, happy & loving to those around her. In Blue Velvet Evolve she hopes not to bring depression & cynicism to her viewers but to enlighten them about what’s happening in our city. Chelleby clarifies, “I hope that the art show will raise awareness of all the youthful deaths & murders in Jacksonville, so that we can come together to help prevent youthful deaths in our community.

Related links: www.outofthedarkness.org
(A community walk / foundation for suicide prevention.
Saturday Nov 2nd and the Seawalk Pavilion)

- Mia Carlin

Flux Studio/Gallery

2008-07-10T16:50:00.000-07:00

JULIUS X

2008-02-20T15:30:00.000-08:00

by Mia Carlin

The political thriller Julius X is the brainchild of playwright and national renowned slam poet Al Letson.
Four centuries ago Shakespeare penned Julius Caesar, four decades ago Malcolm X made his mark but there is still no escaping the immediacy of Letson’s Julius X; a conglomeration between 16th century Julius Caesar and 1960’s Malcolm X.

Leston first read the autobiography of Malcolm X at the age of 15 and it profoundly changed the way he looked at the world. Being a student struggling with dyslexia, Letson was taken by surprise when he was picked to read a monologue from Julius Caesar and it made perfect sense to him. Letson describes the experience as words jumping out from the page and the experience was like reading his native tongue for the first time.
To Letson, it seemed like a natural progression that Julius Caesar and Malcolm X would meet in the crossroads of his mind.

Although Letson received a grant from the Community Foundation to write the play, he was skeptical that it would see the light of day in Jacksonville. Being primarily a conservative city, Letson wondered if he could even do a big African American play in Jacksonville. Letson asked himself, "Where would you get the actors? What theatre would put it up? Is there an audience for this type of work?" Luckily director Barbara Colaciello Williams, Joe Schwarz and Players by the Sea came to his aid.

Julius X is a careful marrying of the two stories and taken some of the prominent dialogue and mixed them together. For instance, In Shakespeare’s play, Julius Caesar tells his wife Calpurnia "Cowards die many times before their deaths, the valiant never taste of death but once." Malcolm X knew this. "The price of freedom is death", he would say. Malcolm told his wife Betty Shabazz, "Don’t be bitter. Remember Lot’s wife when they kill me, and surely they will. You have to use all of your energy to do what it is you have to do."
Performed in the midst of Black History month, Julius X delves into what Malcolm X gave his life for; examining his beliefs and actions as well has bringing Julius Caesar’s characters to life again. The names and characters are from Julius Caesar but the motif and look of costume and set design predominately replicates the Malcolm X era of the 1960’s.
The controversy begins when Julius X (Freddy Tripp) comes back from Mecca leading up to his press conferences back in the U.S. Brutus (Larry knight), Julius X’s best friend winds up betraying him with the influence of Cassius (David Girard) because they believe that Harlem is living in degradation by the white man and Julius X is sinking them further.
Brutus, Cassius and Julius X all grew up together as equals in Harlem. Julius X, like the others, used to be a hustler, pimp, thief etc. and along his journey as an adult he became enlightened to a certain degree to that he went to Mecca and joined the nation of Islam, thus following their teachings. When Julius X returned, he had this exalted, higher level of thinking which in a sense made the black people of America feel threatened. They even so much as say "Oh he’s sittin’ over there eatin’ with white folks", which really isn’t the case in Mecca; there is no white, black, Asian, etc – they are all one brotherhood.
Julius comes back to the States and while trying to bring unity & advocate brotherhood he realizes there is still separatism between the races. Although Julius X promotes peace, he understands there are times when he has to be militant and stand up for what’s right; thus the saga of the play begins.

The production of Julius X isn’t so much as musical as it is a poetic interpretation. There’s African Dance, Interpretive Dance, Fighting, song, etc – it’s almost like a spiritual type of requiem; thanks to the choreographic skills of Kellina Chavoustie and DeWitt Cooper.
You get an eerie chill down your spine as you watch the Soothsayers writhe and swarm like snakes in the Interpretive Peace "Beware the Ides of March" and the gospel inspired "I know I’ve been Chained" makes the hair of your neck stand up.

There is also an interesting mesh of Old English and Ebonic dialogue within the same scenes and sometimes even within the same sentences.
A dialect you would rarely see conjugated; actor Freddy Tripp (Julius X) successfully jumps between the two with ease.

Freddy Tripp (Julius X)

Long before wowing us with his impersonation of Julius X, Freddy Tripp was impersonating a man who, unless you’ve lived on the moon for the last thirty years, was the biggest household name in the 1980’s and even today.
Yep, you guessed it – Michael Jackson.
After meeting Joe & La Toya Jackson at the age of 12, Freddy Tripp starting impersonating Michael Jackson and Prince while in a break dancing troupe on the downtown streets of Chicago. After moving to Florida, Freddy honed his craft at Douglas Anderson School of the Arts under the instruction of Dr. Lee Beger.
After graduation, Tripp immediately won the title of Mr. Beauty and the Beach on MTV being crowned "King of the Beach".
Freddy also performed in numerous well known plays including Oliver Twist, West Side Story, Rebel Without a Cause, The Jungle Book, Grease, Jesus Christ Superstar and even played Jesus Christ himself in Jacksonville’s own Passion play.
Delving into film/ T.V with roles of Illegally Yours, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, and the Celestine Prophecy, Tripp show’s us that he is no stranger to the camera.

When asked what he did to prepare himself for the role of Julius X, Tripp replied, "I had old footage of Malcolm X, stuff from the internet and of course, Denzel helped out (laughs) – he did an amazing job as Malcolm X. But definitely a lot of speeches – the third scene "tell it like it is" are actual recorded speeches that Malcolm X gave so I studied his voice from those recordings. The writer outlet was a great thing; Al Letson is an awesome writer. He’s a nationally renowned slam poet, he travels all over the country. He just won the NPR award and he’s right here from Jacksonville. Barbara Williams, the director, she was one of Andy Warhol’s right hand man, coordinated some of Andy’s events, so there are a lot of creative people behind this production."

Freddy Tripp stumbled across the opportunity to play Julius X by happenstance.
Working on a construction job for a hotel, a tenant from an antique shop owner overheard Freddy telling a co-worker about his acting antics and approached him about the show.
Freddy recalls, "I went over there (Players by the Sea), rushed in & auditioned and the girl who I auditioned with became my wife in the play; they said we had good chemistry on stage. It was funny because I had this really thick Taliban / Jesus beard and Deltoiya, who played my wife Calpurnia, well; she got around the beard (laughs). She actually caressed my beard; I would’ve gotten grossed out myself but…"
Tripp describes Deltoiya Monique as "being really lively and romantic at heart" and applauds her on her performance as Calpurnia. "She has a romantic personality by nature and had to work on being sterner which she really pulled off. She has really grown as an actress."

The rehearsal process of Julius X was a total of 6 months. Auditioning in late August, the process took a long time because there were three auditions, a month of warm up and word tossing exercises, individual monologue rehearsals and weekend dance and crowd scene rehearsals.

After the production of Julius X has run its course, Tripp plans on delving head first into the world of independent film. He is to star and direct in the indie film "The Gender Wars"; a futuristic comedy where women run the world and are hungry for "real" men, rather than their metro-sexual girly boy counterparts.
Tripp is also doing a film called "The Rescue" which is set in the 1800’s. His character is black, white and Native American in a time which starts in the Indian Suffrage and ends in the African American Suffrage.
Also noted is the film short which is currently untitled, but is in comparison to "the Kingdom" with Jamie Fox. Basically the Marines go into the Middle East like Black Ops; the highest level of Special Forces.
In this film, Freddy delights in the fact that he has a beard and a camel.
Freddy explains, "If I’m not in front of the camera, I’m behind it. I’m there all of the time. If Jacksonville has some sort of piss ant project or big one, I’m on top of it."
Freddy’s "day job" consists of being a freelance photo artist for musicians, bands and models. But unless you are Freddy’s Mamma, significant other or best friend, don’t expect a discount – this guy doesn’t believe in free handouts; and why should he?
We all gotta make money somehow.

Freddy Tripp is a talented multi-faceted actor who has a catalog of many artistic talents.
Being the son of actor/ artist Fred and costume designer/visual artist Gina, Freddy is used to being the in the spotlight.
Being the Jack of all Trades when it comes to this biz, Freddy effortlessly succeeds in many facets of the entertainment industry.
Actor, Singer, Dancer, Photo Artist, Visual Artist, Casting Coordinator, Stuntman, and Avante Guard Fashion Designer (yes Freddy actually designs, sews and makes his own fashion designs as well as hand selects the models for his shows), Freddy Tripp is one creative machine who just keeps on running.
From Michael Jackson, to King of the Beach to Julius X – no matter what his star role leads him to, Freddy Tripp know he’s always going somewhere.

With a stellar cast, interesting set design, focused direction, beautiful song and dance, and of course, a well written storyline; Julius X is a must see for the season.
For the history of times, the style of the creation and the romanticism of old Shakespearean Literature this is one production you don’t want to miss.

JULIUS X SHOWTIMES:
Players By the Sea
106 Sixth Street North Jacksonville Beach, FL 32250
(904) 249-0289 - Information & Reservations

TICKETS:
$18 General Admission
$15 for Seniors and Students

PETER MAX

2008-02-12T06:34:00.001-08:00

Multi-dimensional art expressionist Peter Max blessed Jacksonville with his presence by showcasing his newest collection of paintings at the R. Roberts Gallery in Avondale.

Spectators and art enthusiasts assembled in a single file line wrapped around the R. Roberts gallery on a cold and rainy January night to view Peter Max’s cosmic art and to perhaps catch a glance of Peter Max himself. Being a man of little words, Max was scarcely present at the exhibition except in intervals where he stood behind a small roped off section of the cramped gallery and quietly autographed paintings and memorabilia. One would think a man who paints with such loud colors would in a sense have a bold personality himself; not Peter. He saves his entire valor for his paintings.

Visionary pop artist of the 60’s and 70’s to neo expressionist master, Peter Max and his vibrant colors have become part of the fabric of contemporary American culture.
With “cosmic art” containing bold lines and bright blended colors Peter Max exploded into the American pop scene in the 1960’s & became a household name.
Through the 80’s & 90’s Max’s art evolved into a new expressionistic style featuring bold, multi-colored brush strokes. Being part of the psychedelic movement, Max has effectively stretched his creative talents to the Nth degree. He has worked with oils, acrylics, water colors, finger paints, dyes, pastels, charcoal, pen, multi-colored pencils, etchings, engravings, animation cells, lithographs, serigraphs, silk screens, ceramics, sculpture, collage, video and computer graphics. He loves all media, including mass media as a "canvas" for his creative expression. As in his prolific creative output, Max is as passionate in his creative input. He loves to hear amazing facts about the universe and is as fascinated with numbers and mathematics as he is with visual phenomena.
“If I didn't choose art, I would have become an astronomer," states Max, who became fascinated with astronomy while living in Israel , following a ten-year upbringing in Shanghai , China . "I became fascinated with the vast distances in space as well as the vast world within the atom," says Max. Peter's early childhood impressions had a profound influence on his psyche, weaving the fabric that was to become the tapestry of his full creative expression.

His childhood was filled with magic and adventure, something in which adults seemed to forget about as they grow up. However, Peter found a way to hold onto that imagination and channel his childhood energy through his art. In a sense, by capturing the creative energy of his youthful aspirations, Peter Max is able to relive his childhood fantasylands by incorporating them into each piece of art. Somewhere along the line, amidst in his childhood wonder, Peter Max began to make a name for himself by daring to do something most artists in his generation rarely did; that was to paint simply and boldly. Peter Max had something to say to America and he spoke loudly through his paintings.
Although born in Europe and raised in China , Peter Max was quite committed to the United States . A true patriot, Peter Max has used his paintings to celebrate American icons and symbols. He has painted the last five presidents; Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush and Clinton (Max has created his 100 Clintons, a multiple portrait installation whose images were used through the four days of the Presidential Inauguration.) and has enjoyed a 25 year love affair with Lady Liberty. After 911 Peter Max did many variations in the Lady Liberty series such as “Peace on Earth”,” Liberty and Justice for All” etc; but what is most impressive is the story behind his famous painting “Flag With Heart”.
One night Ronald Reagan came to Peter Max in a dream. He woke up but he couldn’t find a canvas to paint on so he painted the notorious “Flag with Heart” (now priced at $15, 650) on the back of an already painted canvas. To this day, “Flag with Heart” is always painted on the back of a canvas, unless painted on paper.
Max’s latest “Canvas” moved from the gallery to the skies with his painting on Continental 777 jumbo jet. This $160 million dollar canvas will fly throughout the world for the next two years. Peter has also been the official artist for five Grammy’s & created a 500 foot by 80 foot backdrop for Woodstock 99.
This year’s display of art from Peter Max shows a unique vision deriving mostly of hearts, angels, flowers, and sunsets with a gorgeous assortment of vibrant color. The show also consisted of painted baseball bats, NFL football helmets and a newspaper posting of Dale Ernheart’s #3 Millennium car getting revived with “Peter Max colors”. Peter Max even showcased priceless commission work; a hand embellished personal photograph of a clients wedding photo. Every painting in the show is unique; there are no pictures, no brochures, no images of Max’s art on the web whatsoever which increases the value of his work. Max’s artwork in the show ranged from $2,950 (mixed media on paper) to $75,000 (acrylic on canvas). Max’s past work, however, wasn’t as pricey or even as unique according to one former customer Charlotte Folsom. In asking what precious Peter Max remnant she had possessed, Charlotte replied, “I used to own a pair of hip hugger Peter Max bell bottoms in the 60’s. The front panel of the right leg was bright yellow, the left panel was bright green, and then there was a patch pocket on top of the bright yellow panel in bright green and a bright yellow patch pocket on top of the green panel. The waist band was bright orange and the belt loops were orange and yellow and green. They weren’t expensive at all; in fact they were the regular price of jeans. Back in the 60’s it was just art for the common person in the Sergeant Pepper era.”
From the looks of the response in the R. Roberts Gallery, I’d say Peter Max is still inspiring those from the “hippie generation”. Although they are now middle aged dressed in Armani & furs and clutching Coach Bags while sipping on Merlot; these pioneers can remember the flower child deep inside who used to clutch hippie beads, burn bras and pop Quaaludes like Tic Tacs.
And secretly Peter Max knows he has done his job for the night.

-MIA CARLIN