The Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau continues the new series of free jazz concerts tonight. TwiceSax is featured tonight.
Jazz in the Park will be every Wednesday night in June and July from 5:30pm to 7:30pm. They will take place in the History Pavilion in Riverfront Park (between the Junction Bridge and Peabody Park).
Beer & Wine will be available for sale – portions of the proceeds will benefit Sculpture at the River Market…so no coolers, please. Free to attend!
The State of Arkansas turns 177 later this week. A good way to mark this is to contemplate the building which has been the seat of government for over 100 of those years.
ad conclusio, per aspera; or, Two Architects, Six Governors, Dozens of Contractors, One Jailed Senator, Fifteen Years, and 2.23 Million Dollars Lead to What? is the name of a noontime conversation being hosted by the Central Arkansas Library System today, June 12.
The program, which will take place in the Arkansas State Capitol building in Room 272, will feature State Capitol historian David Ware.
It is being billed as “an irreverent overview of how the Capitol project survived.” Construction of the Arkansas Capitol began in 1899 and stalled early due to problems with financing and failed deadlines.
With the support and vision from the project’s most emphatic backer, then-Governor George Donaghey, members of the Arkansas Legislature met for the first time in the chambers of the still-unfinished Capitol on January 9, 1911. Donaghey declared the building was “done enough” to accommodate the solons and state officers.
Bottled water and cookies will be provided; guests are invited to bring their own lunch.
The dome of the Arkansas State Capitol Building is generally thought to be smooth – but as this photo shows, there are quite a few flourishes and architectural touches on the dome. Built over 16 years (from 1899 to 1915) it had two architects of record (George R. Mann and Cass Gilbert) and was both championed and reviled by various Arkansas governors during the design and construction.
The cornerstone was laid on November 27, 1900. Since this was to be a “pay as you go” project, that slowed progress considerably. When completed, it measured 440 feet along its north-south axis, and just over 195 feet from east to west. From the ground to the top of the dome is 213 feet. The building has nearly 287,000 square feet of offices.
The majority of the exterior of the Capitol is made of Batesville limestone. The curved portions of the dome, however, are made of softer Indiana limestone. Total construction cost was $2.2 million with today’s value of the building being $320 million. The cupola is covered in 24 karat gold leaf.
Tomorrow there will be a lecture on the construction of the building. More information on this will be in another entry.
Tales from the South returns with the June “Tin Roof Project” featuring Philip Martin. The program takes place tonight. Advance reservations are required and seating is limited.
Music is by the Salty Dogs and blues guitarist Mark Simpson.
Philip Martin is a columnist, editor and the chief film critic at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. He has won more than 40 regional and national journalism awards during his tenure at the newspaper, including two Green Eyeshade Awards, and he was a finalist for the 2012 James Hearst Poetry Prize.
He is also the “monkey in the nose cone” at blooddirtandangels.com, a culture blog from “the perspective of a self-identified Southerner who still reads novels and likes baseball, dogs and punk rock music.” His first album of original songs, Gastonia, was released in March 2013, and is now available on iTunes and through most other digital outlets.
Born in Savannah, Ga., Martin has played pro baseball in South America and rhythm guitar in garage bands. He lives in the Hillcrest neighborhood of Little Rock with his wife Karen and three rescue terriers.
“Tales From the South” is a radio show created and produced by Paula Martin Morell, who is also the show’s host. The show is taped live on Tuesday. The night is a cross between a house concert and a reading/show, with incredible food and great company. Tickets must be purchased before the show, as shows are usually standing-room only.
“Tales from the South” is a showcase of writers reading their own true stories. While the show itself is unrehearsed, the literary memoirs have been worked on for weeks leading up to the readings. Stories range from funny to touching, from everyday occurrences to life-altering tragedies.
The program takes place at Starving Artist Café. Dinner is served from 5pm to 6:30pm, the show starts at 7pm. Admission is $5, not including dinner.
You MUST purchase your ticket before the show
Previous episodes of “Tales from the South” air on KUAR Public Radio on Thursdays at 7pm.
The Quapaw Quarter Association’s monthly award-winning Preservation Conversation series continues tonight.
The program takes place this evening at Curran Hall, 615 East Capitol Avenue. From 5 to 5:30 a reception will take place. The program will run from 5:30 to 6:30
This month Rachel Miller and Anita Reddig will discuss ASU’s Heritage Sites Program. The program will focus on Arkansas State University’s four Arkansas Heritage Sites: Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum in Piggott, the Historic Dyess Colony: the Boyhood Home of Johnny Cash, the Southern Tenant Farmers Museum in Tyronza, and the Lakeport Plantation in Lake Village.
Each site reflects the rich heritage and cultural diversity of the Arkansas Delta. Rachel and Anita will discuss the historical and cultural significance and the development of each site, as well as the many educational opportunities these sites offer to the public.
The Quapaw Quarter Association’s mission is to promote the preservation of Little Rock’s architectural heritage through advocacy, marketing and education. Incorporated in 1968, the QQA grew out of an effort to identify and protect significant historic structures in Little Rock during the urban renewal projects of the early 1960s. Throughout its existence, the QQA has been a driving force behind historic preservation in Greater Little Rock.
Here are the Little Rock Culture Vulture predictions for the Tony Awards.
My predictions are marked with an asterisk.
67th Tony Awards
PLAY
The Assembled Parties, Richard Greenberg
Lucky Guy, Nora Ephron
The Testament of Mary, Colm Toíbín
*Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Christopher Durang
MUSICAL
Bring It On
A Christmas Story
Kinky Boots
*Matilda
PLAY REVIVAL
Golden Boy
Orphans
The Trip to Bountiful
*Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
MUSICAL REVIVAL
Annie
Cinderella
The Mystery of Edwin Drood
*Pippin
ACTOR, PLAY
*Tom Hanks, Lucky Guy
Nathan Lane, The Nance
Tracy Letts, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
David Hyde Pierce, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Tom Sturridge, Orphans
ACTRESS, PLAY
Laurie Metcalf, The Other Place
Amy Morton, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Kristine Nielsen, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Holland Taylor, Ann
*Cicely Tyson, The Trip to Bountiful
ACTOR, MUSICAL
Bertie Carvel, Matilda
Santino Fontana, Cinderella
Rob McClure, Chaplin
*Billy Porter, Kinky Boots
Stark Sands, Kinky Boots
ACTRESS, MUSICAL
Stephanie J. Block, The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Carolee Carmello, Scandalous
Valisia LeKae, Motown
*Patina Miller, Pippin
Laura Osnes, Cinderella
FEATURED ACTOR, PLAY
Danny Burstein, Golden Boy
*Richard Kind, The Big Knife
Billy Magnussen, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Tony Shalhoub, Golden Boy
Courtney B. Vance, Lucky Guy
FEATURED ACTRESS, PLAY
Carrie Coon, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Shalita Grant, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Judith Ivey, The Heiress
*Judith Light, The Assembled Parties
Condola Rashad, The Trip to Bountiful
FEATURED ACTOR, MUSICAL
Charl Brown, Motown
Keith Carradine, Hands on a Hardbody
Will Chase, The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Gabriel Ebert, Matilda
*Terrence Mann, Pippin
FEATURED ACTRESS, MUSICAL
Annaleigh Ashford, Kinky Boots
Victoria Clark, Cinderella
*Andrea Martin, Pippin
Keala Settle, Hands on a Hardbody
Lauren Ward, Matilda
DIRECTION, PLAY
Pam MacKinnon, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Nicholas Martin, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Bartlett Sher, Golden Boy
*George C. Wolfe, Lucky Guy
DIRECTION, MUSICAL
Scott Ellis, The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Jerry Mitchell, Kinky Boots
*Diane Paulus, Pippin
Matthew Warchus, Matilda
CHOREOGRAPHY
Andy Blankenbuehler, Bring It On
Peter Darling, Matilda
Jerry Mitchell, Kinky Boots
*Chet Walker, Pippin
BOOK OF A MUSICAL
Douglas Carter Beane, Cinderella
Harvey Fierstein, Kinky Boots
*Dennis Kelly, Matilda
Joseph Robinette, A Christmas Story
SCORE OF A MUSICAL
Trey Anastasio, Amanda Green, Hands on a Hardbody
*Cyndi Lauper, Kinky Boots
Tim Minchin, Matilda
Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, A Christmas Story
ORCHESTRATIONS
*Chris Nightingale, Matilda
Stephen Oremus, Kinky Boots
Ethan Popp & Bryan Crook, Motown
Danny Troob, Cinderella
SCENIC DESIGN, PLAY
*John Lee Beatty, The Nance
Santo Loquasto, The Assembled Parties
David Rockwell, Lucky Guy
Michael Yeargan, Golden Boy
SCENIC DESIGN, MUSICAL
*Rob Howell, Matilda
Anna Louizos, The Mystery of Edwin Drood
Scott Pask, Pippin
David Rockwell, Kinky Boots
COSTUME DESIGN, PLAY
Soutra Gilmour, Cyrano de Bergerac
*Ann Roth, The Nance
Albert Wolsky, The Heiress
Catherine Zuber, Golden Boy
COSTUME DESIGN, MUSICAL
Gregg Barnes, Kinky Boots
Rob Howell, Matilda
Dominique Lemieux, Pippin
*William Ivey Long, Cinderella
LIGHTING DESIGN, PLAY
*Jules Fisher & Peggy Eisenhauer, Lucky Guy
Donald Holder, Golden Boy
Jennifer Tipton, The Testament of Mary
Japhy Weideman, The Nance
LIGHTING DESIGN, MUSICAL
Kenneth Posner, Kinky Boots
*Kenneth Posner, Pippin
Kenneth Posner, Cinderella
Hugh Vanstone, Matilda
SOUND DESIGN, PLAY
John Gromada, The Trip to Bountiful
Mel Mercier, The Testament of Mary
*Leon Rothenberg, The Nance
Peter John Still and Marc Salzberg, Golden Boy
SOUND DESIGN, MUSICAL
Jonathan Deans & Garth Helm, Pippin
*Peter Hylenski, Motown
John Shivers, Kinky Boots
Nevin Steinberg, Cinderella
The American Theatre Wing and Broadway League present the 67th Antoinette Perry Awards – also known as the Tony Awards – tonight. They will be aired on CBS (THV11 in Central Arkansas) at 7pm CDT.
There are a few Arkansas connections to this year’s nominees of the best of Broadway.
Arkansas natives and previous Tony winners Will Trice and Remmel T. Dickinson are each nominated again this year for producing. Trice is one of the producers of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, nominated for Best Revival of a Play. Dickinson is a producer of Best Musical nominee Matilda. Both of those productions received multiple Tony nominations.
Tony winner Roger Horchow of Texas was married for nearly 50 years to Little Rock native Carolyn Pfeifer, until her 2009 death. Horchow and his daughter Sally are both nominated for producing the revival of Annie which is currently pleasing crowds on Broadway.
Chet Walker is nominated for his choreography for the revival of Pippin. Walker’s parents live in Maumelle. He has been a guest instructor for the Arkansas Dance Network. (Thanks to Christen Burke Pitts–herself an outstanding choreographer–for pointing out this Arkansas connection.)
Japhy Weideman is nominated for Best Lighting Design of a Play for his work on the new play The Nance. This is his first Tony nomination and his first season to be lighting plays on Broadway. He has previously received acclaim for his work Off Broadway. Weideman has been a lighting designer at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre in the past.
One final nominee with an Arkansas connection. A couple of years ago, the Clinton School of Public Service brought actor Holland Taylor to Little Rock to discuss her play Ann about Texas Gov. Ann Richards. At that point in time, Ms. Taylor was performing the play throughout the country, but she did not know if it would be performed in New York. It made it to Broadway this season, and she received a Tony nomination for Actress in a Play for her work.
Whether these nominees win or lose tonight, it is a testament to Little Rock’s cultural richness that there are several nominees this year with connections to The Rock.
Little Rock Culture Vulture 