Monthly Archives: November 2013

Bryant Huddleston Is Featured at Philander’s Bless the Mic

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pschuddlestonEntertainment television producer and Arkansas native Bryant Huddleston is the guest speaker for the next installment of Philander Smith College’s Bless The Mic Lecture Series at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 14.

A 1990 graduate of Sloan-Hendrix High School in Imboden, Ark., Huddleston began his broadcast career in Fayetteville at KHOG-TV before moving to KAIT-TV in Jonesboro as the station’s weekend news anchor and senior reporter. In 1998, Huddleston left Arkansas for Los Angeles and began producing news, specials, and live red carpet events for the E! Network. He joined NBC’s Access Hollywood in 2004 where he spent eight years covering the world’s biggest celebrities. Most recently Huddleston wrote and produced content to help launch the BRAVO network’s new series Property Envy.

Last May, a firestorm arose when Huddleston’s scheduled appearance as Sloan-Hendrix High School’s commencement speaker was abruptly canceled. A single father and ardent advocate for equality and adoption rights for LGBT citizens, Huddleston holds a bachelor’s degree in communications/broadcast news from Arkansas State University.

Free and open to the public, all lectures are held in the M.L. Harris Auditorium. Tickets are not required; seating is first-come, first-serve. For more information, call 501-370-5354.

Little Rock Look Back: Woodrow W. Mann

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IMG_3231Future Little Rock Mayor Woodrow Wilson Mann was born on November 13, 1916, in Little Rock.

In 1955, he ran as the Democratic nominee for Mayor of Little Rock and defeated two term incumbent Pratt C. Remmel, a Republican.  He took office in January 1956 and immediately set about to make a lot of changes.  In addition to revitalizing the City’s bus system, and removing some color barriers at City Hall, he oversaw the dismantling of the copper dome on top of Little Rock City Hall (as opposed to the repair of the dome championed by Mayor Remmel).

Mayor Mann was caught up in a grand jury investigation into purchasing practices at City Hall as well as within the City government in North Little Rock.  Partially in response to this, Little Rock voters approved a new form of government in late 1956.  Mayor Mann opposed the switch to the City Manager form and refused to set the election for the new officials but was ultimately compelled to do so.

He was also Mayor during the 1957 integration of Little Rock Central High School.  He sought to keep the peace and to broker a deal between President Dwight Eisenhower and Governor Orval Faubus.  His powers within the city were, no doubt, hampered because of his lame duck status as Mayor.  In November 1957 following the election of the new City Board of Directors, he chaired his last City Council meeting and left office.

Because of ill will toward him due to the Central High crisis and grand jury investigation, Mayor Mann felt it would be difficult to maintain his insurance business in Little Rock. He moved to Texas in 1959 and remained there the rest of his life.  He died in Houston on August 6, 2002.

ASO River Rhapsodies Tonight: Artist of Distinction Inbal Segev

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Inbal Segev, celloThe Arkansas Symphony Orchestra River Rhapsodies concert series continues tonight with cellist Inbal Segev.

The concert takes place at 7pm at the Clinton Presidential Center. A limited number of tickets are available at the door. But the concerts usually sell out.

The program includes:

Prokofiev – String Quartet No. 1 in B minor, Op. 50
Villa Lobos – Bachianas Brasileiras No. 1
Enescu – Octet in C Major, Op. 7

Israeli-American cellist Inbal Segev’s playing has been described as “characterized by a strong and warm tone . . . delivered with impressive fluency and style,” by The Strad and “richly inspired” by Gramophone. Equally committed to new repertoire and known masterworks, Segev brings interpretations that are both unreservedly natural and insightful to the vast range of music that she performs.

Architect Eric Höweler to Present Lecture on November 12th in Little Rock

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Howeler_November_12thc713d7Eric Höweler will present a lecture titled FAIL FAST on Tuesday, November 12th at the Arkansas Arts Center at 6 p.m., in the Center’s lecture hall, following a 5:30 p.m. reception. His talk is free and open to the public. Asked about the title he chose for his lecture, Höweler said FAIL FAST was part of a longer phrase, “Launch early, fail fast, iterate”, which, he believes, could easily serve as his firm’s motto.

Born in Cali, Colombia, Höweler (AIA, LEED AP) received a Bachelor of Architecture and a Masters of Architecture from Cornell University. He is currently an assistant professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Design and principal at Höweler + Yoon Architecture/MY Studio in Boston.

Prior to forming Höweler + Yoon Architecture, a multidisciplinary practice, operating in the space between architecture, art, and landscape, he was a senior designer at Diller + Scofidio and an associate principal at Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates. He is the co-author of Expanded Practice, Höweler + Yoon Architecture/MY Studio (Princeton Architectural Press 2009) and author of Skyscraper: Vertical Now (Rizzoli/Universe Publishers in 2003).

Awarded the Audi Urban Future Award in 2012, the Architecture League’s Emerging Voices award and Architectural Record’s Design Vanguard in 2007 for its efforts, the firm has participated in numerous exhibitions. Among their venues are the Museum of Modern Art (New York), the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, the Institute of Contemporary Art (Boston), the Institut Valencia d’Art Modern, the Museum of Arts and Design (New York), and the National Art Center (Tokyo). Höweler has lectured both nationally and internationally.

The Art of Architecture lecture series is sponsored by the Architecture and Design Network, a nonprofit organization. Supporters include the Central Arkansas Chapter of the American Institute of Architects, the Arkansas Arts Center and the Fay Jones School of Architecture. For additional information, contact ardenetwork@icloud.com.

Sculpture Vulture: Kathleen Caricof’s Stars and Stripes

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Artspree features Nikita Mndoyants

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Coming from the family of professional musicians, pianist Nikita Mndoyants began to play piano and compose music at a very young age. He entered Central Music School in Moscow in 1995, and gave his first public recital two years later, when he was eight years old. In March of 1999, the ten-year old Nikita appeared at the Sibelius Academy Concert Hall in Helsinki. His extraordinary performance there was recorded and issued on a CD in 2001.
Nikita Mndoyants graduated from the Moscow Central Music School with honors as a pianist and composer in 2006.

In 2011 Nikita graduated from the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatoire where he studied with Professor Alexander Tchaykovsky (composition), Prof. Alexander Mndoyants and Prof. Nikolay Petrov (piano).
During his studies at school, he won several national and international piano and composition competitions.
He took part in master-classes in Verbier Festival and Academy (2004).

In summer of 2005 N. Mndoyants studied in the Tel-Hai Piano Master-classes in Israel. He won the 1st prize of The Concerto competition, that took place there. In November of 2007 he won the First prize of The VII International Paderewski Piano Competition in Poland and also special prize for the best semi-final recital. Following his successful recital in Helsinki, during the last decade Nikita toured throughout Russia, Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Latvia, Estonia, China, Switzerland, Israel, France, and the United States.

Nikita took part in numerous music festivals, including “Musical Kremlin”, “Moscow Autumn”, 14th Piano Festival in Liepae (Latvia), International Keyboard Institute & Festival (New York) and the 63rd Chopin Festival in Duszniki-Zdroj (Poland), festival dedicated to World Economic Forum in Davos, (Switzerland).

Nikita appears with recitals in the best concert halls in Moscow and St. Petersburg, Cortot Hall and Louvre Auditorium in Paris, Warsaw Philharmonic. In 2004, he appeared with the famous Borodin Quartet, performing Quintet by Shostakovich.

SantaLand Diaries in Central Arkansas this weekend

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santalandThe stores have been in the midst of Christmas since before Labor Day.  So it is not too early for theatrical ventures to turn their attentions to Christmastime.  This weekend, the Vagabond Theatre Company presents David Sedaris’ essay-turned-One-Man Show this November!

The SantaLand Diaries is a hilarious account of Sedaris’ stint working as a Christmas elf in “SantaLand” at Macy’s department store is what shot Sedaris to national recognition. Starring Jordy Neill and directed by Chad Bradford, you can catch SantaLand Diaries on Saturday, November 9, at 8 p.m. at the Quapaw Quarter United Methodist Church on 16th and Louisiana Street, in Little Rock or on Sunday, November 10, at 8 p.m. at The Lantern Theatre on 1021 Van Ronkle, in Conway.

Tickets may be purchased at the door. House opens at 7:30 p.m