Tag Archives: CALS

ODE TO JOY and Spoken Word winners presented by Arkansas Symphony Orchestra this weekend

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The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra and Music Director and Conductor Philip Mann present the fourth concert of the 2018-2019 Stella Boyle Smith Masterworks season, Beethoven’s 9th: Ode to Joy on Saturday, February 23rd and Sunday, February 24th at the Robinson Center.

The concerts begin at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, and 3:00 p.m. on Sunday. The program opens with a spoken word performance presented in partnership with the Central Arkansas Library System. After the spoken word segment, more than 300 singers from eight Arkansas collegiate and professional choirs will take the stage with ASO for Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, which also features vocal soloists soprano Maria Fasciano, mezzo soprano Christin-Marie Hill, tenor Vernon Di Carlo, and bass Adam Cioffari.

All concert ticket holders are also invited to Concert Conversations, a pre-concert talk one hour before each Masterworks concert in the Upper Tier Lobby of the Robinson Center. These talks feature insights from the Maestro and guest artists, and feature musical examples to enrich the concert experience.

Tickets are $16, $36, $57 and $68; active duty military and student tickets are $10 and can be purchased online at www.ArkansasSymphony.org; at the Robinson Center street-level box office beginning 90 minutes prior to a concert; or by phone at 501-666-1761, ext. 100. All Arkansas students grades K-12 are admitted to Sunday’s matinee free of charge with the purchase of an adult ticket using the Entergy Kids’ Ticket, downloadable at https://www.arkansassymphony.org/freekids.

Philip Mann, conductor

Spoken Word Performers
Osyrus Bolly
Brooke Elliott
Rosslyn Elliott
Red Hawk
Kristy Ikanih
Jamee McAdoo
Dariane LyJoi Mull
Marvin Schwartz

Beethoven Soloists 
Maria Fasciano, soprano
Christin-Marie Hill, mezzo soprano
Vernon Di Carlo, tenor
Adam Cioffari, bass

Arkansas Intercollegiate and Professional Chorus
Arkansas Chamber Singers, John Erwin, director
Arkansas State University, Cherie Collins, director
Harding University, Cliff Ganus, director
Lyon College, Michael Oriatti, director
Ouachita Baptist University, Gary Gerber, director
Southern Arkansas University Magnolia, David DeSeguirant, director
University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, Jerron Liddell, director
University of Central Arkansas, John Erwin, director

Program
VARIOUS – Spoken Word Performances
BEETHOVEN – Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125

The Legacy of legendary radio station KOKY explored tonight at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater

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a license plate reading KOKY Little Rock

Arkansas Sounds tonight (February 22) honors the legacy of KOKY, Arkansas’ first radio station devoted to all-black programming aimed toward an African American audience, with photos, audio clips, and a panel discussion featuring KOKY on-air personalities such as Sonta Jean “The KOKY Queen,” Mark “Chillin’” Dylan, and Billy St. James, with moderator Broadway Joe Booker.

The program will start at 7pm at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater. There is no admission charge.

The original KOKY, at 1440 AM, was a longtime heritage urban station in Little Rock from its launch in 1956. In 1979, it changed its call letters to KITA and switched its format to gospel.  The current radio station with the KOKY call letters has cited the original station as its inspiration.

SELMA on CALS Ron Robinson Theatre screen tonight as part of “Movies of a Movement” series

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Selma PosterTonight (February 21) at the CALS Ron Robinson Theater, there is the chance to view SELMA, the 2014 movie about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s campaign to secure equal voting rights via an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, in 1965.. The screening starts at 6:30.  Admission is $5.00

This movie is a part of the CALS Movies of a Movement: the Civil Rights & Social Change Collection.

The unforgettable true story chronicles the tumultuous three-month period in 1965, when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. led a dangerous campaign to secure equal voting rights in the face of violent opposition. The epic march from Selma to Montgomery culminated in President Johnson signing the Voting Rights Act of 1965, one of the most significant victories for the civil rights movement.

Direced by Ava DuVernay, it stars David Oyelowo as Dr. King and Carmen Ejogo as Coretta Scott King. Others in the cast include Tom Wilkinson, Giovanni Ribisi, Andre Holland, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Colman Domingo, Common, Lorraine Toussaint, Dylan Baker, Niecy Nash, Tim Roth, and Stephen Root.  John Lavelle plays former Arkansas Gazette reporter Roy Reed who covered Selma for The New York Times.

THE PRINCESS BRIDE on the CALS Ron Robinson Theater screen tonight

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Image result for the princess brideAs part of their “Date Night Tuesdays” series, the CALS Ron Robinson Theater is showing the romantic action thriller comedy The Princess Bride. The fact that this film spans so many genres successfully is a reason for its endearing and enduring success.

Directed by Rob Reiner, this film tells William Goldman’s story of love and adventure.  A kindly grandfather sits down with his ill grandson and reads him a story. The story is one that has been passed down from father to son for generations.

As the grandfather reads the story, the action comes alive. The story is a classic tale of love and adventure as the beautiful Buttercup, engaged to the odious Prince Humperdinck, is kidnapped and held against her will in order to start a war, It is up to Westley (her childhood beau, now returned as the Dread Pirate Roberts) to save her. On the way he meets a thief and his hired helpers, an accomplished swordsman and a huge, super strong giant, both of whom become Westley’s companions in his quest.

Robin Wright, Cary Elwes, Mandy Patinkin, Chris Sarandon, Andre the Giant, Wallace Shawn, Christopher Guest, Billy Crystal, Carol Kane, Peter Cook, Peter Falk, and Fred Savage make up the main cast.  Surprisingly, the film’s only Oscar nomination was for “Best Song.”

The film starts at 7:00 pm.  Admission is $5.  Concessions are available for purchase.

Bromance and Besties on a double bill at CALS Ron Robinson Theater tonight

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Celebrate Valentine’s Day with a double feature of two classic friendship movies, picked by our followers on Facebook and Instagram: Wayne’s World (1992, PG-13) and Clueless (1995, PG-13). Doors open at 6:00 p.m., Wayne’s World begins at 7:00 p.m., and Clueless begins at 9:00 p.m.

Beer, wine, and concessions will be available.

Originally a skit on Saturday Night Live during the late ’80s and early ’90s, Wayne’s World is about two teenage dudes who host a public access TV show, which is mainly about rock, babes and people who live in the area.

Clueless, director Amy Heckerling’s fresh adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel Emma follows the misadventures of meddlesome Beverly Hills high schooler Cher, who gets more than she bargained for when she gives a fashion-challenged student a makeover.

Tonight at 6:30, CALS presents Sounds in the Stacks with the ASO Quapaw Quartet at the CALS Williams Library Branch

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Sounds in the Stacks: Quapaw QuartetExperience the beauty of string music of the highest caliber with the Quapaw String Quartet of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra!

This free concert at the CALS Williams Library will be a lovely way to take a break from the work week or introduce kids to the magic of violin, viola, and cello.

Arkansas Symphony Orchestra’s Quapaw Quartet includes Meredith Maddox Hicks, violin; Charlotte Crosmer, violin; Ryan Mooney, viola; and David Gerstein, cello.

It is today (February 12) from 6:30pm to 7:30pm at the CALS Sue Cowan Williams Library, which is located at 1800 South Chester Street.

2nd Friday Art Night at CALS Library Square

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On Friday, February 8, the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS) will open three exhibitions, Back to the Garden, Made in America: Vintage Film Posters from the Ron Robinson Collection, and Au Pair Don’t Care, and host one of the authors ofAbandoned Arkansas: An Echo From the Past.

Events will be held at the CALS downtown Little Rock campus, Library Square, 100 Rock Street, and are free and open to the public.

The Galleries at Library Square (formerly Butler Center Galleries) will host the opening reception for Paintings by Charles Henry James: Back to the Garden with featured musician Bluesboy Jag (solo acoustic and cigar box blues guitar & vocals). Artist and musician Charles Henry James, who has split his time between Little Rock and his native New York for nearly thirty years, takes a humorous, free-wheeling approach to socio/political engagement, filtered through the lens of pop culture tropes, op art, surrealism, and psychedelia. The exhibition is on view in the Concordia Hall Gallery through April 27, 2019.

Also opening is Made in America: Vintage Film Posters from the Ron Robinson Collection, in the Loft Gallery. The Butler Center for Arkansas Studies, a department of the Central Arkansas Library System (CALS), holds an extensive collection of Arkansas-related and other movie posters. The late Ron Robinson of Little Rock, an avid collector who was the president of Cranford Johnson Robinson Woods (CJRW) and also served as a U.S. Air Force officer in Vietnam, generously donated these film posters, which are mostly related to Arkansas history, U.S. politics, and American popular culture. The exhibition is on view through May 25, 2019.

The Bookstore at Library Square (formerly River Market Books & Gifts) is proud to present the new show, Au Pair Don’t Care, by artist Amily Miori. Also in the bookstore, visitors will be able to talk with Ginger Beck, co-author of Abandoned Arkansas: An Echo from the Past. Copies of the book will be available for purchase. Events at the Galleries and the Bookstore are part of 2nd Friday Art Night (2FAN), 5:00-8:00 p.m.

Call the Butler Center at 320-5700, the Galleries at Library Square at 320-5790, or the Bookstore at Library Square at 918-3093 to learn more about the concert and exhibitions. View the full calendar at www.cals.org.