Yearly Archives: 2013

Reel Classics with the Rep: DEATH OF A SALESMAN

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717deathLater this month, Robert Walden opens in Death of a Salesman at Arkansas Rep.  In conjunction with that, the Reel Classics with the Rep series returns for this month’s installment.

The monthly series showcases films which share connections with productions currently on stage at the Arkansas Repertory Theatre.

Tonight’s film is the 1985 version of Death of a Salesman.  This version was filmed for television and is adapted from the 1984 Tony winning revival.  It stars Dustin Hoffman as Willy Loman.  Kate Reid, John Malkovich and Stephen Lang play other members of the Loman family. Other standouts in the cast include Charles Durning and Louis Zorich.

The program begins tonight at 6pm with a discussion of the Rep’s production led by members of the Rep’s staff.  Following that, at 6:30, the film will be screened.  It takes place at Laman Library.

The Rep’s production, directed by Robert Hupp, begins performances on April 24 and runs through May 12.  Opening night is April 26.

Arkansas Arts Center Family Festival today

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arkartsctrlogoSunday, April 7, 12 p.m. – 3 p.m., Alice Pratt Brown Atrium and Children’s Theatre

52nd Young Arkansas Artists Exhibition Awards Reception and Family Festival

The winners of the Arkansas Arts Center 52nd Young Arkansas Artists Exhibition will be honored by hosting a Family Festival.  The events will bring out the artistry in every member of your family – grown-ups included! 

Kids of every age will hunt for stories, create action art, make murals and celebrate those young artists who have been chosen for special awards for their participation in the 52nd Young Arkansas Artists Exhibition. These events are free to members, Young Arkansas Artists and their families. Tickets are $20 per family for non-members. 

Artist awards will be held in the Children’s Theatre at 2:30 p.m.

New play reading of Judy Baker Goss’ LIFE SCIENCE today

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judygossLittle Rock playwright and educator Judy Baker Goss is working on a new play.  A public reading of the play will take place today at 4pm at Cabe Theatre on the campus of Hendrix College.

The play, Life Science, is set during the Arkansas trial contesting Act 590 in 1981, the play explores tensions outside the courtroom between parents and teens involved in the fight over what students should be taught in biology about evolution and who holds authority over their teaching.

Goss describes the play like this: In 1981, Phoebe is pressured beyond normal teen anxiety. Her mother, a biology teacher in remission from cancer, will testify against Arkansas’ “creation science” law, supported by Phoebe’s boyfriend, Paul, and his father, an evangelical pastor. Fearing, too, that her separated parents will divorce, she leans on Paul more, but college plans consume him.

Phoebe finds comfort from Victor, an African-American classmate and basketball player whose father also opposes mixing religion with science teaching. As Phoebe and Paul’s relationship buckles, she grows closer to Victor, but violence erupts between the boys. Parents and teens find that each alone can’t restore shattered self-respect, which is essential to surviving tests of faith in their shared environment.

Hendrix College Associate Professor and department chair Ann Muse will direct the performance with a cast of students and adult actors.

Revisions to Life Science continue, after it was discussed by Lee Blessing, Dan O’Brien and contributors in the Sewanee Writers’ Conference playwriting workshop in 2009 and again by Daisy Foote and Sewanee playwriting workshop participants in 2012.

April 5 Architeaser

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IMG_4706The above rounded glass blocks are from the Main Street structure now commonly called the Boyle Building.   Built in 1909 as the State National Bank Building, by 1916 it became known as the Boyle Building.  The 12-story, approximately 100,000 square foot building was designed by Little Rock architect George R. Mann.  It was the tallest building in the state from 1909 until the Donaghey building was completed in 1926.

 

Ballet Arkansas Springs in to Motion

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SpringIntoMotionWeb2World premiere choreography as well as classic ballet performed by Ballet Arkansas’ Professional Company is coming to the stage at The Arkansas Repertory Theater.

Ballet Arkansas’ new concert, Spring into Motion, will run from April 5-7, 2013 at The Rep. Directed by former Ballet Arkansas dancer Michael Bearden – currently a principal dancer at Ballet West in Salt Lake City – Spring into Motion will not only present dances by national choreographers, but also showcase the immense physical talents of Ballet Arkansas’ Professional Company.

“This show brings Arkansas audiences high-quality choreographers who are currently creating works on ballet companies throughout the country,” Bearden said. In addition to classics such as Don Quixote and Black Swan, Spring into Motion boasts two newly commissioned works by nationally known choreographers Darrell Grand Moultrie and Peter Zweifel, as well as a contemporary work titled Mobile, which has recently delighted audiences of Joffrey Ballet Co., San Francisco Ballet and Kansas City Ballet.

Spring into Motion marks an important step in the evolution of Ballet Arkansas. For the first time, the company will perform at Arkansas Repertory Theatre in downtown Little Rock.   This production will be the first collaboration between Ballet Arkansas and The Arkansas Repertory Theatre, and “this collaboration adds a new dimension to what arts patrons can enjoy on The Rep stage,” said Bob Hupp, producing artistic director at Arkansas Rep.

Tickets are available through The Rep box office at (501) 378-0405 or online at http://www.balletarkansas.org.  Tickets are $35 for Orchestra and First Mezzanine seating and $30 for Second Mezzanine seating. Spring into Motion will open Friday, April 5, 2013 with an evening performance starting at 7:30 p.m. Other show times include an evening performance on Saturday, April 6 at 7:30 p.m. and a matinee on Sunday, April 7 at 2:00 p.m. Student Matinees for Spring into Motion at The Rep are currently scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on April 3, 4, and 5 for statewide student groups.

Spring into Motion will travel to the University of Central Arkansas’ Reynolds Center for a student matinee and an evening performance on Thursday, April 18. Show times include 1:00 p.m. for the student matinee and 7:30 p.m. for the evening performance. To purchase tickets for the evening performance, visit http://uca.edu.ticketforce.com/. All student matinee program reservations can be made by calling (501) 223-5150 or emailing erin@balletarkansas.org for reservation information.

April 4 Architeaser

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IMG_4699This two-toned and two-surfaced brick work is an early example of using different surfaces to showcase a building in a fairly simple and inexpensive manner.  This is from the Fulk building at 3rd and Main Streets. The building was built after the February 1900 fire which destroyed parts of South Main Street.

The building is on land that once belonged to Dr. Matthew Cunningham. The first Little Rock Council meeting took place at Dr. Cunningham’s house when it was on this property.

This building is one of several being envisioned for new life as part of the Creative Corridor plan along Main Street.

Chamber Music Society of LR hosts Sebastian Bäverstam

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sebastian-baverstamThe Chamber Music Society of Little Rock (CMSLR) presents internationally acclaimed young cellist Sebastian Bäverstam in recital at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church on Thursday, April 4 at 7:30 pm.

Accompanied by pianist Yannick Rafalimanana, Bäverstam will present a recital featuring the works of Janacek, Shubert, Debussy and Barber.  Tickets are $25 online or at the door.  Praised by The Strad for his “…powerfully expressive style,” cellist Sebastian Bäverstam is a winner of the 2009

Concert Artists Guild International Competition. His recent performance at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall was noted in The Strad for its “consummate instrumental mastery,” This remarkable recital led to Mr. Bäverstam’s subsequent selection by Musical America as its “New Artist of the Month” for June 2011.

Highlights of 2012-13 include his season-opening recital for the Rising Stars series at the Ravinia Festival, where he also spent the summer of 2012 as a member of Ravinia’s renowned Steans Institute. His cross-country recital tours encompass eighteen concerts in thirteen different states.

Sebastian Bäverstam, age twenty-three, has appeared multiple times on the nationally syndicated radio show From the Top, and has also been heard on international radio broadcasts of Voice of America. On television, he was featured on the PBS TV version of From the Top and participated in a PBS documentary filmed at Carnegie Hall, as well as a film by the Masterclass Media Foundation of Great Britain and a nationally televised commercial for Bose speakers.

Celebrating its 59th Season, The Chamber Music Society of Little Rock (CMSLR) is one of Central Arkansas’ premiere performing arts organizations. Through its annual concert series and educational events, the Society offers unique chamber music experiences to listeners ranging from connoisseurs to chamber music newcomers of all ages.  Each year CMSLR presents four concerts by award-winning solo and ensemble performers.   For more information, visit CMSLR on the web at www.chambermusiclr.com