Mid-Ohio-Con 2009

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

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

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?

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

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

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

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.