Internet radio has had its share of trouble. Until a little more than a month ago, when President Bush signed the Small Webcaster Settlement Act into law, it was doubtful whether many small webcasters could have continued their operations into 2003.
Frank Black Cat's Cradle Monday, Nov. 18 3 Stars Frank Black is a perfect example of why -- sometimes -- the fans don't matter. Black's reign as singer/songwriter for alt-rock group The Pixies made him one of the most lauded musicians of the '80s underground, but he ditched the band in the early '90s and decided to make his own music. After a bit of solo work and shuffling between bands, Black has settled with the Catholics -- essentially the same group he formed in 1996 under a different name.
People who want to better the community through art might have a chance to turn their ideas into reality next year -- even if their ideas are expensive. The Orange County Arts Commission, which works for artistic and cultural development in the county, is accepting applications for arts grants of up to $1,500. Art projects benefiting Orange County residents are eligible for the grants, and applications are due 5 p.m. Monday. "The two main criteria are artistic excellence and benefits to the citizens of Orange County," said Martha Shannon, director of the Arts Commission.
When Richard Adler graduated from UNC in 1943, the campus lost a gifted writer who generously donated his time and talent to the arts. Now, with decades of Broadway success under his belt, Adler has found a way to give back to the University he still loves. He will present "An Evening With Richard Adler" at 8 p.m. Saturday in the Morehead Building banquet hall.
The release of the Mexican film "Y Tu Mam
Blinding lights flashed wildly, the band played furiously, and music reverberated like an earthquake Friday night, transforming Carmichael Auditorium into a dizzy swirl of energy. Below all the hubbub of the stage, the crowd below roared with anticipation. Would the next act be the amazing one it had been waiting for -- a future James Brown or Aretha Franklin -- or would it be booed back into the wings with no mercy? It was all up to the audience. Such is the tradition at Harlem's Apollo Theater Amateur Night, which made its only N.C. stop in Chapel Hill on Friday.
"Marvin's Room" Lab! Theatre Sunday, Oct. 13 4 Stars Life is short. And the age-old question of how life should be lived has spawned myriad answers and theories. Playwright Scott McPherson's "Marvin's Room" is one take on the question. Being presented at the Elizabeth Price Kenan Theatre by Lab! Theatre under director Adam Farabee, the play explores life and death with poignancy and humor.
Carrboro ArtsCenter Thursday, Oct. 10 Four Stars The recipe for good bluegrass calls for more than just a banjo and a little bit of rhythm. To generate the kind of foot-stomping and reckless dancing it takes to rock any bluegrass show, the music has to fall into a finite category -- both ultra-polished songs and sprawling jam sessions can make for a bored audience.
There are poets all around us. Too often though, their poems remain within the pages of their journals, never to see the light of day. But Tuesday nights at the Skylight Exchange Cafe, poetry is anything but hidden as students and community members share their work in the form of spoken-word poetry. Expanding since its birth at the 1990s Brooklyn slam poetry movement, spoken-word poetry incorporates performance, rhythm and music into the verses, proving that poetry is more than just words on paper.
Four Bitchin' Babes Carrboro ArtsCenter Friday, Oct. 4 5 Stars "In the words of the great Gloria Steinem, 'We've become the men we wanted to marry,'" said Sally Fingerett of Four Bitchin' Babes, commencing the female folk group's superb concert Friday. Such one-liners, celebrating women and often sending the audience into spasms of laughter, were just part of what made this show spontaneous and virtually flawless all the same.
