Monthly Archives: September 2015

SeptemBEER is theme of this month’s Science after Dark at Museum of Discovery

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mod septbeerThe Museum of DIscovery’s monthly Science after Dark is tonight.  This month’s theme: SeptemBEER!

It runs from 6pm to 9pm.  Admission is $5, free for museum members.  The program is for those 21 and up.

Participating breweries:
Stone’s Throw Brewing
Damgoode Pies River Market
Vino’s Pizza-Pub-Brewery
Lost Forty Brewing
Diamond Bear Brewing Company

Activities:
-Tinkering with Solo Cups
-Tinkering with beer bottles (make beer bottles into glasses)
-Beer pong physics
-Flip Cup physics
-Trick Shots (using a catapult, vacuum cannon, trebuchet, hair dryer and strike launcher)

Tonight’s Jazz in the Park: Syn RG!

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jazzinparkThis September, on Wednesday nights from 6 pm – 8 pm., Jazz in the Park continues its partnership with Art Porter Music Education, Inc. in the Riverfront Park.
Tonight features Syn RG!  The concert will take place in the History Pavilion in Riverfront Park.  In case of rain, it will be in the River Market pavilions.
The concert series is brought to you by the Little Rock Convention & Visitors Bureau.  Lost Forty Brewing beers, select wines, soft drinks & water are available for sale. Proceeds benefit Art Porter Music Education, Inc. So please, NO Coolers. Picnic blankets and chairs are welcome. As are children and pets (please leash your pets)
Art Porter Music Education, Inc. (APME) continues its mission of keeping the musical legacies of local jazz statesman Art Porter, Sr. and his son, renowned saxophonist Art Porter, Jr. alive with community enrichment opportunities, volunteerism, and the awarding of scholarships. Through music, APME works to enhance education by helping students improve reading, language and mathematical skills. The partnership with the River Market to support Jazz in the Park, a free, family-friendly event featuring jazz in downtown Little Rock, is a natural fit for both organizations.

 

Tonight’s Oxford American Local Live at South on Main: Jeff Coleman & the Feeders

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llsom jcfeedersTonight at 7:30pm, the Oxford American magazine’s Local Live concert at South on Main features Jeff Coleman & the Feeders! As always, Local Live is free and open to the public. To guarantee a table/seat for this popular series, call ahead at (501) 244-9660.

Jeff Coleman & the Feeders have shared the stage with other musical talents such as Lucero, Son Volt, Cross Canadian Ragweed, Jack Ingram, Cracker, Eli Young, Randy Rogers, Pat Green, Marty Stewart, Casey Donahew, Dash Rip Rock, and Billy Joe Shaver to name just a few.

This four-piece is comprised of Jeff Coleman (lead vocals, guitar, and keyboard), Mark Chiaro (lead guitar), Stan James (drums), and Jerry Cordova (bass, backing vocals).

Human Rights along U.S./Mexico border topic of Clinton School address today at noon

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UACSIn the summer of 2014, the headlines were dominated with stories about human rights issues at the border between the US and Mexico.  While the headlines may have faded, the issue has not.  Today at noon at the Clinton School, Chelsea Halstead will discuss “The Human Rights Crisis on the U.S. Mexico Border.”

Chelsea Halstead is a program manager for the Colibrí Center for Human Rights where she leads the Colibrí’s Family Advocacy program, speaking with families to collect information on missing persons and making case matches by comparing reports to forensic data.

The Colibrí Center is a family advocacy nonprofit based in Tucson, Arizona that works with families, forensic scientists and humanitarians to end migrant death on the U.S.-Mexico border.  The three major avenues for fulfilling their mission are: family advocacy, arts & storytelling, policy reform.

Halstead is an Arizona native. She grew up in Flagstaff and moved to Tucson in 2008 to earn her B.A. in Geography from the University of Arizona. After studying and working for a year in Guatemala, Chelsea returned to complete her senior honors thesis which explored humanitarian border activism and migrant death. After graduating in 2012, she worked as a Research Assistant for a Department of Justice-funded study investigating the practices, protocols, and procedures associated with the handling of migrant remains along the border.

In 2013, she was selected for a Humanity in Action Fellowship in Berlin. Soon after completing her fellowship, Chelsea joined the Colibrí Center for Human Rights, first as a volunteer and later as Program Manager. She currently heads Colibrí’s Family Advocacy program, speaking with families to collect information on missing persons and making case matches by comparing reports to forensic data. Chelsea also works to build relationships between Colibrí and various partners across the region.

Colibrí’s Executive Director, Robin Reineke and Forensic Anthropologist, Dr. Bruce Anderson, first began this work in 2006 as the Missing Migrant Project at the Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner. In 2013, Robin Reineke and William Masson co-founded the Colibrí Center for Human Rights to expand the Missing Migrant Project and create a more comprehensive effort for the entire U.S.-Mexico border.

The program will begin at 12noon at the Clinton School of Public Service.

Documentary THE HUNTING GROUND tonight at the Ron Robinson Theater

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the-hunting-ground-poster-e1428605428217Tonight there is an exclusive screening of a documentary about campus sexual assault presented by the Arkansas Coalition Against Sexual Assault at the Ron Robinson Theater at 7pm.

Free event. Donations will be accepted to support the Arkansas Sexual Assault Crisis Response Hotline.

Doors open at 6:30pm.

Panel discussion will follow event.

From the Academy Award-nominated filmmaking team behind The Invisible War, comes a startling exposé of sexual assault on U.S. campuses, institutional cover-ups and the brutal social toll on victims and their families.  Weaving together verité footage and first-person testimonies, the film follows the lives of several undergraduate assault survivors as they attempt to pursue – despite incredible push back, harassment, and traumatic aftermath – both their education and justice.

WHEN
Tuesday, September 22, 2015 from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM
WHERE
CALS Ron Robinson Theater – 100 River Market Avenue, Little Rock

Before Phantom arrives in LR, Celebrity Attractions offers 4 shows for 2015-16 season

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201516 CALRCelebrity Attractions invites you to discover Broadway with the 2015–‐2016 Broadway Season at the Maumelle Performing Arts Center.

The adventure begins as four national Broadway tours take the stage: Celebrate the King himself in ELVIS LIVES. Deck the halls with Broadway and Christmas classics in NEIL BERG’S BROADWAY HOLIDAY. Sing along with the world’s best–‐loved orphan, ANNIE and travel back in time with 13 time Tony® Award nominated musical, RAGTIME.

“We are excited to be able to continue bringing national tours to the Little Rock area during the Robinson Center renovation. The Maumelle Performing Arts Center, located on the Maumelle High School campus, provides an intimate theatrical experience for our patrons,” said Ed. L. Payton, Celebrity Attractions CEO. “We are sure you will become a Broadway fan after discovering our lineup for the Celebrity Attractions’ 2015–‐2016 Broadway Season.”

ELVIS LIVES October 23–‐25, 2015 ELVIS LIVES captures the imagination and interest of fans of all ages and all types including Broadway theatregoers, concert lovers and, of course Elvis aficionados. Welcomed by Hutchinson Financial, the theatrical production is an unforgettable multi–‐media and live musical journey across Elvis’ life. Each performer represents Elvis during different stages in his career. The Elvis tribute artists will be joined by a live band, back–‐up singers and dancers, and an Ann–‐Margret tribute artist. Celebrate the King of Rock and Roll in the national hit ELVIS LIVES!

NEIL BERG’S BROADWAY HOLIDAY December 18–‐20, 2015 This winter Neil Berg’s critically acclaimed musical revue BROADWAY HOLIDAY will deck the halls with Christmas tunes from Broadway scores along with celebrated favorites from Broadway’s hottest shows. Five of Broadway brightest stars direct from New York will take the audience on a journey celebrating the great American songbook, songs from Broadway’s recent blockbusters and Christmas songs to help guarantee you’ll “Have a Merry Little Christmas.” An evening of Broadway stars singing Holiday songs and standards will be the perfect way to warm your heart this Christmas season.

ANNIE February 19–‐21, 2016 Leapin’ Lizards! The world’s best–‐loved musical will return in time–‐honored form. Directed by original lyricist and director Martin Charnin and choreographed by Liza Gennaro, this production of ANNIE will be a brand new incarnation of the iconic original. Welcomed by the Little Rock Convention and Visitors’ Bureau, ANNIE features a book and score by Tony® Award–‐winners Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin, ANNIE includes such unforgettable songs as “It’s the Hard Knock Life,” “Easy Street,” “I Don’t Need Anything But You,” plus the eternal anthem of optimism, “Tomorrow.” “Overflowing! Big, warm–‐hearted and funny!” –‐New York Post.

RAGTIME April 15–‐17, 2016 At the dawn of a new century, everything is changing…and anything is possible. Welcomed by Arkansas Federal Credit Union, RAGTIME will take to the road in all–‐new touring production and is directed and choreographed by Tony nominee Marcia Milgrom Dodge. The stories of an upper–‐class wife, a determined Jewish immigrant and a daring young Harlem musician unfold –‐ set in turn–‐of–‐the–‐century New York –‐–‐ all three united by their desire and belief in a brighter tomorrow. Their compelling stories are set to theatre’s richest and most glorious Tony® Award–‐winning score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens. Winning Tony® Awards for Best Book and Best Musical Score, this 13 time Tony® Award nominated musical is a timeless celebration of life –‐ what it could and should be! Welcomed by KATV and the Maumelle Area Chamber of Commerce

Celebrity Attractions’ 2015–‐2016 Broadway Season is held at the Maumelle Performing Arts Center, located on the campus of Maumelle High School. To guarantee great seats for all four nationally touring Broadway productions, become a Celebrity Attractions’ 2015–‐2016 Broadway Season Subscriber.

Season Subscriber benefits include many advantages: the best seats at the lowest prices, the same great seats for every show, the ability to buy additional tickets to individual shows before the public, the option to exchange show tickets to another performance before the public on sale and will be among the first to reserve seats in the newly renovated Robinson Center Music Hall for the 2016–‐17 Season which features Cameron Mackintosh’s spectacular new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA.

Little Rock Look Back: LR City Hall Ceases Operation in 1863

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LR1863 minutes of closureFollowing the Battle of Little Rock, the City of Little Rock ceased operations on September 21, 1863.

Planning for this had started in August, which would suggest that civic leaders were none too confident in the ability of Confederate forces to hold on to the city.  At the August 24, 1863, City Council meeting it was reported that the City’s funds (presumably Confederate) had been “placed in the hands of a reliable party who is well known to the Council.”  The identity of this “reliable party” has never been disclosed.

On September 21, the Council met and took three votes.  The first was to suspend the operation of City police (which at the time was not an official police force, it was a constable and some volunteers). The second was to suspend the collection of City taxes.  The final vote was to adjourn.

There is no record of Mayor William Ashley being present at this meeting.  Recorder A. J. Smith (the equivalent of City Clerk today) was not present.  The minutes were signed by “J. Ash, Deputy.” Records do not indicate if that gentleman was officially Deputy Recorder or if he had simply been deputized to take minutes at the meeting.  The five City Council members present were C. P. Bertrand (a former mayor and step-son of Little Rock’s first Mayor, Matthew Cunningham), S. H. Tucker, W. B. Walt, I. A. Henry (would would also serve on the first City Council after the war in 1866), and Lou George.