The Reader

nov. 24 - 30, 2011 VOL.18

dish12

A Gorging We Shall Go

music25

Dreams Do Come True

mojo33 Planet Power

sports36

Language No Barrier Now OMAHA JOBS 2

Weird 34

MOjo 33

FUNNIES 5

40

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8754VGAholidaylights7.5x10.pdf

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11/15/11

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The Reader is published every Thursday by Pioneer Publishing, Inc., P.O. Box 7360, Omaha, NE 68107, 402.341.READ, Fax 402.341.6967. The Reader is free in the Omaha, Lincoln, Council Bluffs area. Domestic subscriptions area available for $35 a year. Opinions expressed herein are those of the writer(s) and may not reflect the opinion of The Reader, its management and employees or its advertisers. The Reader accepts unsolicited manuscripts. For more advertising rates contact sales@thereader.com. To send comments to the editor, contact letters@thereader.com PARTNERS Heartland Healing: Michael Braunstein, hh@thereader.com

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topnews

Lock Out

Uta Halee representatives blame facility closure on state

and juvenile detention centers, inappropriate foster homes and out on the street.”

Gov. Dave Heineman was asked about the closing at a press conference Tuesday, and said he’s not

by Robyn Wisch, KVNO News ready to comment because he doesn’t have the defter 60 years serving troubled teens in tails.

Omaha, the Uta Halee Girls Village anKaplan said in the past, the center has stayed nounced it will be forced to close its doors open, with the help of private funds, when state supnext month. port dwindled. But the facility, which has 60 beds in Nestled in the hills of north Omaha, the Uta total, is currently serving just 14 girls in its residenHalee Girls Village has provided a serene setting tial program. Uta Halee also runs several communifor troubled young kids since 1950. The center ty-based programs serving girls and boys that will provides counseling and residential psychiatric also close. But Kaplan said the all-girl program will treatment for girls with severe emotional and be- be the greatest loss. havioral problems.

“A place where a girl who had been repeatedly Leslie Byers brought forced to have sex with her daughter to the faher coach, or her mom’s cility several years ago KETV reported that one juvenile turned away from boyfriend, or her cousin, because she said she Uta Halee’s treatment programs when the state who is reacting to that had no other option. would no longer pay for it was Robert Hawkins, the with clinical depression, “When your child is cut- Von Maur shooter. with taking drugs, with “The state says, ‘No, you’re done. You’re out of acting out, with joining ting herself, when she’s throwing dishes all over here. I don’t want to pay for you anymore.’ This is gangs, could come here the place, simply be- what happens in our state. So we can’t have this any- to an all-girl environcause you said to go to more. How many shootings do we need to have?” Uta ment,” Kaplan said. “A Halee Board President Jennifer Hamann said. bed, when you’re afraid place of healing with The Omaha World-Herald reported that there for your safety, and your were still 352 beds available for youth in-patient only girls around.” other kids’ safety,” she residential care at Nebraska psychiatric facilities and Board members said. that new Medicaid regulations required facilities with said the center is workByers said when more than 16 beds to be certified psychiatric residen- ing with its current resiher daughter was in tial treatment facilities to receive funding, according dents to find alternapsychiatric crisis, the to Nebraska Medicaid Director Vivianne Chaumont. tive treatment. Ninety only option was to call employees at the center 911, because the family had run out of lifetime will also be laid off. in-patient insurance benefits. “… have them manThe closing comes amid state reforms to the handle her, handcuff her, take her to the emer- child welfare system that have led to three providers gency room, give her a tranquilizer, and a couple canceling their contracts with the state, and an audit of hours later, bring her home, all in the name of that cited DHHS for mishandling state contracts. treatment. That’s not treatment.”

A spokeswoman for the Department, Kathie OsterThe center blamed the closing, which is slat- man, said the changes in Medicaid rules were not about ed for Dec. 16, squarely on the state of Nebraska, saving money, but about coming into compliance with saying the Department of Health and Human Ser- federal regulations. She added providers were told sevvices stopped referring kids for treatment at the eral months ago the changes were coming. facility in an effort to save money. Gary Kaplan, But for parents like Leslie Byers, no matter the immediate past board chair, said DHHS has nar- details, the closing simply means fewer choices for rowly interpreted Medicaid rules that deny the parents in crisis. Her voice cracking, Byers said, “I center’s intensive level of treatment. “If the Gov- wanted my daughter to be safe, I wanted her to have ernor and his team weren’t so effective at denying a chance to graduate. I didn’t want her to have to be help to kids with traumas and mental illness and here, but I wanted all those things bad enough.” abuse, we would be staying open,” he said.

“So don’t take that option away because I don’t “But instead they’ve chosen to leave hundreds know where she would be. I don’t know where our of our young people with serious needs in shelters family would be. ,

A

Closing More Doors

5IVE

MINUTES INTO THE FUTURE bit.ly/mUdjj3 | NOV.24, 2011

With the development of online

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packages. People fleeing debts will

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by: DR. QUENTIN MARK MYSTERIAN and BUNNY ULTRAMOD

news

| THE READER |

NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

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heartlandhealing

n e w

a g e

h e a l t h

a n d

w e l l n e s s

We Live by Our Words

“W

hat are words for? When no one listens, what are words for?” So hiccupped Dale Bozzio in 1980 as I stood watching her and my friend Terry Bozzio in their rehearsal studio on Robertson Boulevard in Beverly Hills. They had just formed a band named Missing Persons and Terry invited me to produce their first studio recordings.

Decades before Gaga and years before Madonna, Dale Bozzio was onstage wearing clear plastic “C-cups” with outré costumes and hair. Her taut, tight little body was the lure but the meat in the music was the virtuoso drumming and guitar playing backing thoughtful lyrics carved by drummer-husband Terry.

After a song or two that night, I made a fateful comment. “I love you and Dale, Terry,” I said. “And you are one of the best musicians in the world. But, Terry, Dale isn’t a singer. She can’t sing.” I turned down the gig.

I was right, of course. But how wrong I was. I had forgotten what Omaha native and big-time record exec Stevie Alaimo had told me just three years before. “There are three things that make a hit record,” Alaimo jibed. “The song, the song… and the song.” And “Words” was a great song. That, plus the fact that Dale was sexy and hot and oh-so-lickable eye-candy was going to go a long, long way when MTV launched the music video network in August of 1981. Missing Persons had a string of hits.

“Say what you mean, …one thing leads to another.”

As Dale Bozzio warbled implausibly, words aren’t good for much in themselves. They are but symbols of what really matters: thought. And we have become too sloppy with our words, let alone, our thoughts.

In the parlance of self-help gurus, New Age selfactualization programs, neuro-linguistic programming schemes and positive-thinking advocates, using words to enable or manifest is often referred to as affirmation.

At differing levels of enactment, using words or phrases can be a repetitive cue to the subconscious to enlist that level of thought in creating change. On a simpler level, the everyday speaking of words and phrases also has impact on our subconscious awareness.

When we speak or write, we are putting thought into form and thought is the basic energy of creation. The words we speak have impact by reinforcing the power of the thoughts they represent. As such, being thoughtful of what words we use in everyday speaking can temper the effect we desire. Choosing our words with intent is worth the effort.

The weight of the word “I’m sick of hearing about the scandal.” “I know it’s bad for me but I love bacon.”

“I’m sorry but I can’t go to your party Saturday because I have a date with this incredible guy and I don’t have time to do both.” “It’s difficult to do.” These are examples of verbal sloppiness and the thoughtless use of negative programming.

Without adopting an obsessive accounting of every single word we utter, it can still be helpful to weed out some of the more confining catchphrases we use

B y

m i c h a e l

b r a u n s t e i n

consistently. So let’s parse our examples to see what might change.

We often say “I’m sick” but affirming sickness, either continual complaining of ailments or just the simple use of a seeming metaphor as in our example, doesn’t have to be part of one’s vernacular. Condemning bacon to “bad” in your mind, though seemingly trite, adds energy to how our body looks at eating such a food deemed detrimental.

Our third example sentence is a mother lode of sloppy speaking. Describing one’s self as “sorry”, a condition plainly perceived as pitiful, may not be the best self-talk. Options include, “forgive me,” or “my apology,” and other more positive ways to speak. More accurate for a party invitation would be “regrets.” Even with its most noble intent, that of sympathy for another, referring to one’s self as “sorry” infers the embrace of another’s pain. There are better ways of expressing sympathy than by embracing pain.

“I can’t” is possibly the single-most used malapropism in everyday speaking. It’s almost always inaccurate and untruthful. We tend to use the sentence incessantly and wrongly nearly all the time. “I can’t” almost always means “I won’t”. Remove the shackles of impotence and embrace real responsibility! At least acknowledge that yes, you can do something but you choose not to, which is most often the case. Using the verb “can’t” reinforces an untruth about yourself that erodes self-empowerment.

Be observant of using the word “because”. Inaccurately assigning cause to an outside source, strengthens a misbelief about reality. Doing that is really just another way of avoiding responsibility.

“Incredible” is misused far too often. Consider the actual meaning of the word before using it. It means unbelievable. Unbelievable is hardly an attribute I would want to assign to a new paramour.

And plain and simple, the phrase “I don’t have time” is an outright prevarication. There are 24 hours in a day. We all have the same amount.

Final example: Why use “difficult”? Why reinforce that something is hard? How about calling it “challenging” or “exciting”? One Course in Miracles teacher said that “The Course is not difficult, but it is different.”

That’s a useful take.

“Say the word and you’ll be free.” The words we use can reinforce a positive outlook and therefore a positive outcome or they can negate what we really want. José Silva founded a form of meditation training in the mid-Twentieth Century. It remains popular and effective today. As with many of the so-called human potential techniques, one of the tenets of Silva training is to remain aware of negatively programming the subconscious mind. Much as we endeavor, invariably we slip and a negative concept launches. A clever remedy popular with Silva graduates is to utter the words “cancel, cancel,” the moment we hear ourselves verbally project a negative outcome. It’s a little trick designed to counteract the gaffe.

Be well. ,

Heartland Healing by Michael Braunstein examines various alternative forms of healing. It is

provided as a source of information, not as medical advice. It is not an endorsement of any particular therapy, either by the writer or The Reader. Access past columns at HeartlandHealing.com

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nov. 24 - 30, 2011

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heartland healing

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more than 40 local vendors, handmade crafts, festive food and mulled wine, holiday decorations, unique gift ideas, seasonal treats and santa claus (sunday from 2-4 Pm)

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NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

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coverstory

drawing blood

Failure of the Super Committee Might Be the US’s Best Hope for Economic Recovery

by Marshall Auerback, AlterNet

T

he bipartisan super committee will probably fail to meet the selfimposed Nov. 23 deadline to enact $1.2 trillion of cuts over the next 10 years.

That failure, as Paul Krugman notes in the New York Times, is a good thing: “Any deal reached now would almost surely end up worsening the economic slump. Slashing spending while the economy is depressed destroys jobs, and it’s probably even counterproductive in terms of deficit reduction, since it leads to lower revenue both now and in the future.”

If the super committee fails to come up with an alternative plan by Thanksgiving, the cuts will hit defense and domestic programs equally. But those cuts won’t begin to go into effect until January 2013, two months after next fall’s election, which also means that the programmed fiscal restriction planned for next year won’t come into effect. The likelihood of failure is provoking a negative reaction in both the markets and the mainstream press. But in spite of that, failure might be the difference between sluggish, moderate growth in the U.S. and double dip recession.

The travails of the euro zone are perpetual front page news right now, but let’s try to put them aside for a moment and focus solely on the U.S. The latest U.S. economic data suggests that the economy has continued to muddle along at a positive rate of growth somewhat below its trend rate of growth. This has happened even though an unwind of the 2009 $860 billion stimulus package is now leading to moderate reductions in government spending.

October core retail sales were up +0.6%.

The three-month annualized change now stands at +6.6%. This is consistent with

personal consumption expenditure growth of perhaps +3.0%. The increase is consistent with the above trend U.S. economic growth.

Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher thinks such growth is sustainable. He expects U.S. economic output to grow +2.5% to +3.0% in this quarter and expects it to improve next year.

But not if the super committee goes big and enacts huge budget cuts. In that kind of scenario, economic growth in the U.S. next

year will be held back (or worse) by programmed fiscal restriction as even greater amounts of income are withdrawn from the economy, especially if cuts are implemented in programs such as Social Security.

Lower incomes means lower sales, and sales are what ultimately drive economic activity.

Remember: businesses lay people off when their customers stop buying, for any reason.

So the reason we lost 8 million jobs almost all at once back in 2008 wasn’t because all of a sudden all those people decided they’d

cover story

rather collect unemployment than work.

The reason all those jobs were lost was because sales collapsed.

I am also skeptical of the validity of the recent strong trend in consumer spending because it appears to be a product of consumers drawing down on savings, which began to be rebuilt in the aftermath of the 2008 crash. Unfortunately, consumers no longer have the credit availability to do that. Nor do they have the incomes to sustain taking on ever increasing burdens of private debt, as was the case in the 1990s.

And let’s be clear: Despite the distortions floated by many politicians and pundits in the mainstream press, most of the growth of the government’s deficit can be attributed to the rotten economy–which destroyed jobs and thus tax revenue. As the U.S. private sector retrenched to rebuild its balance sheet, the government’s balance moved toward deficit. This had very little to do with “excessive” and “unsustainable” entitlement programs. The positive contribution of the U.S. fiscal stimulus (with supporting monetary policy) cannot be overstated, even though many notable mainstream economists (such as Robert Barro, or Greg Mankiw) claim it made the recession worse. Without the two-pronged attack – first of shoring up the financial system to ensure the banks could lend and second, the substantial increase in government net spending (which was both the product of discretionary fiscal decisions and what economists call “automatic stabilizers” like unemployment benefits) – the world economy would have collapsed into Depression. That is not to say that the fiscal interventions were sound and well designed. I generally think they were unsound in the sense that they did not support job creation as much as they should have. But that is a separate issue.

The outlook for 2012 then depends very much on fiscal policy. Right now according to the Congressional Budge Office (CBO), we are programmed for fiscal restriction of perhaps 2.5% of GDP or more in 2012. That

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nov. 24 - 30, 2011

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coverstory y continued from page 9

could overcome the natural tendency of economies to grow, especially with real interest rates at negative levels. The question then arises, will we really go through an election year with so much fiscal restriction? The answer, of course, is in the hands of the politicians. As it now stands, the President wants a $447 billion dollar jobs plan. That is equal to almost 3% of GDP. He wants most of it to be financed with borrowings in 2012, with offsetting tax increases in future years. Passage of all of this jobs plan would turn programmed fiscal restriction into marginal fiscal stimulus.

The Republican position has been that, even if they go along with parts of this job stimulus plan like an extension of the payroll tax cut, they demand offsetting greater expenditure cuts. In other words, even if they concede to some of Obama’s demands, they insist on maintaining the overall fiscal restriction that is now programmed because they say that demonstrating a commitment to “budget discipline” will enhance business confidence and allow the private sector to create more jobs.

So let’s assume that the GOP is right: imagine a new government being elected on the promise of cutting national debt and in its first budget outlines a very clear plan to seriously cut the national budget deficit, reduce taxes (but definitely not put them up), cut public employment and free up the regulative environment. And let’s say that such a government also pronounced its “pro-business” credentials (self-styled).

In that situation, if the Republican view was correct, we would expect to observe

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nov. 24 - 30, 2011

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cover story

within a few months (certainly within a year) of the new government a reduction in private uncertainty, which, if the concept has any operational application, should influence discretionary behavior such as spending and employment.

It would be reasonable to expect business confidence to rise, which should mean that private investment would accelerate as business owners anticipate a consumer revival. It would be reasonable to expect firms to be keen to get staff in place to meet the renewed expectations of increased orders. It would be reasonable to expect consumers to become more confident and this confidence to translate into their consumption expenditure.

So... how does one explain the United Kingdom, which continues to deteriorate in spite of making very clear its plans and implementation for budget cutting? And how does one explain Australia, which has also been working toward reducing government spending, even as its unemployment rate has begun to tip up again?

The economics of the super committee, indeed that of virtually all of the mainstream Washington policy establishment, is still predicated on the economic equivalent of Medieval blood-letting. Continuing to “draw blood” from the US economy via ongoing cuts in government expenditure at a time of high unemployment and underused resources will ensure the patient’s death, not recovery. , Auerback is a market analyst and commentator.

Posted on November 19, 2011, Printed on November 21, 2011. http://www.alternet.org/story/153132/ failure_of_the_super_committee_might_be_the_ us%27s_best_hope_for_economic_recovery

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NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

11

A Gorging We Shall Go Renaissance Madrigal Christmas Feast ample enough to fill any appetite

green salad dressed with a tangy vinaigrette, but then the high caloric items come hot and heavy. Cream of broccoli soup. The star entree, carved sirloin with Bordelaise sauce, is served with Yorkshire Pudding, parslied potatoes, baby carrots and Green Beans Amandine. Rolls and butter for good measure.

The decadently rich, dense fare extends to a dessert of bread pudding and rum sauce.

by Leo Adam Biga Coffee and tea come with the meal. For those with he annual Renaissance Madrigal Christmas a taste for something stronger, a cash bar serves all the Feast at the Omaha Marriott is equal parts Tony usual spirits.

It’s the kind of heavy feasting that calls for a week and Tina’s Wedding, Shakespeare, Knights of the Round Table and Food Network theme show. That of fasting afterwards.

“There’s a lot of food but then it’s called a feast, is if the theme is a Saxon bacchanal. A food orgy all so nobody leaves hungry,” wrapped up in a fancy dinsays co-founder and director ner theater bow.

Dwayne Ibsen. “It’s a very For four nights in hardy meal, and then it finDecember the ballroom ishes with a pretty heavy-duis transformed into an old ty dessert, and so we always English castle hosting a have people who can only seasonal holiday celebraget through about half...” tion, circa 1600. Royals, Madrigal singer Howattendants, escorts, a court ard Swain says the food is fit jester, a kitchen wench and for a king. carolers are among the cos“We in the cast smell it tumed characters greeting as the courses are coming out guests Dec. 6-9 at the Marmadrigal christmas feast and it smells really good. One riott, 10220 Regency Circle.

More than 20 years in the running, this recre- year we all decided we want to taste this darn meal, so ation of Christmas past is one of the metro’s longest- we had it after the show one night. Oh boy, were we imrunning holiday events. It also qualifies as a regional pressed. The food is really good.”

But the play’s the thing, too. Ibsen, owner of Ibsen draw because of the holiday bus tours it attracts from Costume Gallery, designs the elaborate costumes worn around the region.

The music, dance, comedy and drama are not exactly by actors, singers, even wait staff.

He says the show “doesn’t really have a story -- it’s add-ons, but they are most definitely in service of the multicourse meal prepared by the Omaha Marriott kitchen staff. just a celebration, and its funny.” He says his script has changed over the years. “We’ve added and we’ve subThe feast features authentic dishes from the period.

The evening’s printed menu runs 12 separate lines tracted and created new characters.”

The spectacle is a major attraction. long. The meal starts light, with spiced wassail and a

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“It’s all about the costume,” says Ibsen. “Everybody loves when the queen comes in because it’s a spectacular white Elizabethan costume we entered in the National Costumers Association competition and won a huge award with.”

That costume and the other authentic pieces Ibsen makes for the madrigal have their lone annual appearance at the event.

Swain, an Omaha stage veteran, loves the “high theater” but especially the singing.

“Even though it’s very light-hearted and entertaining for the audience, these madrigals are probably some of the most difficult music you could ask a singer to sing,” he says. “Our music director Jerry Gray has refined it to the point now that it’s being sung and interpreted probably as close to the way it was originally written and originally intended to be performed as anything you’re going to hear.”

For Jan Sandoz, who co-founded the event with Ibsen and plays the Countess of Essex, performing a capella is the thrill. “I love that it’s a traditional Christmas performance without a lot of fancy lighting or a sound system. This is all done without any amplification, so it’s true madrigal music.”

Sandoz says the show also offers “a great way to get in the Christmas spirit.” She, Swain and other cast members who return year after year form a tight bond. Ibsen says the closeness extends to the audience, many of whom are regulars: “It’s really fun because it’s like family getting together for a holiday.

That’s really what it is.” , A warming hour starts at 6 p.m. Guests are escorted to their seats at 6:45. The dinner and show commence at 7. The revelry concludes at 9:20. Tickets are $50 and include dinner, show and gratuity. Purchase tickets at Ibsen Costume Gallery, 4981 Hamilton Street, or call 556-1400. Group reservations at 346-4398, ext. 109. Read more of Leo Adam Biga’s work at leoadambiga.wordpress.com

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This Holiday Season Make a Reservation and Bring Lots of Patience: According to The National Restaurant Association, an estimated 14 million Americans will visit a restaurant for a Thanksgiving meal this year, and an additional 16 million will use restaurant takeout to supplement a meal at their own or someone else’s home. In addition, 32 million Americans are expected to dine out while shopping on Black Friday, according to new research by the Association. The new research also shows that convenience is the primary reason for making restaurants part of Thanksgiving celebrations. So bring your Visa and channel some patience, because you are not the only family dining out.

Dickey’s Barbecue Pit Gives Back to the Community: On Dec. 12 Dickey’s will be donating 10 percent of all sales from the entire day to the Cornhusker chapter of the American Red Cross.

According to owner Will Carter, “The American Red Cross supports our community by helping us during some of the toughest times of our lives. We never know when tragedy will strike but thanks to the American Red Cross we will be prepared.

New Chef and Menu Changes at Marks: Marks Bistro in Dundee announced this week that Zebedee Rogers has joined the staff as executive chef and is sharing his culinary talents with Marks customers with the autumn menu change. Chef Rogers, a long-time resident of the Omaha area, has developed his culinary skills in some of the area’s finest restaurants, including as executive chef at 801 Prime Chop House. He also has extensive catering experience, most recently with Attitude on Food where he was chef decuisine. Marks Bistro is open from 11 a.m. to late evening, Monday through Saturday; closed on Sundays. Handicapped access is available from the alley in the rear.

— John Horvatinovich Crumbs is about indulging in food and celebrating its many forms. Send information about area food and drink businesses to crumbs@thereader.com

Joslyn Art Museum appreciates the support of the community and invites everyone to visit for free over Thanksgiving weekend.

FREE ADMISSION: Fri., Nov. 25: 10 am–4 pm; Sat., Nov. 26: 10 am–4 pm; Sun., Nov. 27: 12–4 pm (Joslyn will be closed on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 24)

Image: Jacob van Es, Still Life, 1630, oil on wood panel.

www.joslyn.org | (402) 342-3300 | 2200 Dodge St. | Omaha, NE

| THE READER |

NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

13

8 days TOPTV “Top Gear Top 40”

Monday, 7 pm (BBC America)

American reality shows about driving fast vehicles tend to feature boneheads like Jesse James, who act stupid and make us feel stupid in the process. Not so with the British driving series “Top Gear,” which is “Masterpiece Theatre” compared to our versions. The drivers are witty, and they pull off droll stunts like racing a sleek Porsche against a pathetic Volkswagen Beetle that’s dropped a mile from a helicopter. A new eight-episode run counts down the fans’ favorite moments.

Host Andy Wilman is acutely aware of how silly it all is, at least from the perspective of a cultured British audience. “There will be much catching of fire, much shouting of ‘Power!’” he says with heavy irony, “and I guarantee you will feel your IQ physically falling when you watch some of our finer moments.” From the American perspective, I can report that I felt my IQ physically rising.

—Dean Robbins

t h e r e a d e r ’ s ente r tainment picks n o v . 2 4 - 3 0 , 2 0 1 1

THURSDAY24 Nov. 24

CenturyLink Thanksgiving Lighting Ceremony

Gene Leahy Mall, 14th and Farnam St., 5:30 p.m., FREE, holidaylightsfestival.org.

This Thanksgiving marks the beginning of the ongoing Holiday Lights Festival. The kickoff event is a Thanksgiving Lighting Ceremony that will begin with some pre-show entertainment by The Sarpy Serenaders. The official ceremony begins at 6 p.m.

There will be hot chocolate available and the proceeds will benefit Food Bank for the Heartland. A group of local children from local Kids Café will join Mayr Jim Suttle as he leads the crowd in a countdown that will culminate with the illumination. The elderly and citizens with disabilities are welcome to view the lighting ceremony from the fourth floor of the W. Dale Clark Library. Following the lighting ceremony there will be a holiday concert at the Holland Performing Arts Center by the Nebraska Wind Symphony. Joining the symphony will be vocalist Susie Thorne. There will be a variety of events to partake in over the holiday season as part of the Holiday Lights Festival, including ice-skating in the old market and a New Year’s Eve fireworks show. Check out holidaylightsfestival.org for more information on fun this holiday season.

—Paul Clark

is “a satire on religious hypocrisy.” In the play, Tartuffe is engaged to a gentleman’s daughter while trying to seduce the same man’s wife.

Kurz said BSB’s production is set in the 18th century, complete with powdered wigs. Kurz said the appeal of Tartuffe has a lot to do with its sparkling and witty dialogue. She said everyone likes a villain, particularly one that’s very clever. Brigit Saint Brigit favorite John Durbin will play the title role. All showings of Tartuffe are followed by a wine and cheese reception.

—Cheril Lee

pher/card designer Sue Schlesinger for a fine time escaping the mall, viewing unique handcrafted art for purchase for friends and loved ones and chatting up the artists. Guests will also be able to tour Conway’s studio where she creates custom blown glass lighting, installations, glassware and sculpture for clients around the world.

—Sally Deskins

FRIDAY25

SATURDAY26

Nov. 29

Through Dec. 9

Nov. 26

Joslyn Castle, 3902 Davenport St. Friday, Nov. 25, Monday Nov. 28, Tuesday, Nov. 29, Saturday, Dec. 4 and Friday, Dec. 9 All shows at 7 p.m.

402-502-4910, www.bsbtheatre.com

Studio Illuminata, 2725 N. 62nd St. 11a.m.-5p.m., FREE illuminataglass.com, 558.1150

Tartuffe

Brigit Saint Brigit Theatre Company presents Tartuffe select days in November and December. Director Cathy Kurz said Moliere’s classic

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holiday light festival

| THE READER |

picks

TUESDAY29 Hip Hop Poet Idris Goodwin

Get Gifty Holiday Art Sale

House of Loom, 1012 S. 10th St. 7-9 p.m., FREE www.houseofloom.com

Julie Conway opens her glass studio for the 3rd Annual GET GIFTY Holiday Art Sale. Conway traditionally invites other artists to show their work for the event and this year hosts jewelry artist Amy Mather, painter Kim Reid Kuhn, mixed media artist Ying Zhu and photogra-

In an era where manufactured pop stars such as Lady Gaga and Katy Perry rule the airwaves, it’s rare to get the real deal. Idris Goodwin is the real deal. The HBO Def Jam Poet, award-winning playwright, author, teacher, hip-hop artist and all-around creative wrecking ball has made hip-hop the center of his universe. House of Loom is fortunate to host one of Goodwin’s last stops on

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his latest tour during which he is promoting his book, These Are The Breaks, and the Break Beat Bars EP. “This trip is one of my last this year and I’ve had such good times in Omaha that I’m really happy to be ending the run there,” Goodwin says. “It’s going to be a night of good hip-hop, good bars, great spoken word and free cookies if you get there on time!” Come flex your cerebral cortex and learn something.

—Kyle Eustice

WEDNESDAY30 Nov. 30

Squishtalks: Conversation Matters Omaha Creative Institute, 1516 Cuming St. 7 p.m., $15, omahacreativeinstitute.org.

Omaha Creative Institute has been host to numerous exciting workshops in recent weeks, covering subjects ranging from ukulele to digital photography. Such events allow the people of Omaha to learn a new skill from a seasoned expert. Omaha Creative Institute’s upcoming Squishtalks event is a little different. During a squishtalk, each participant is an expert, because in this conversational forum participants direct the event’s content by conversing about whatever moves them.

This event is sure to offer participants a night of stimulating conversation, but there is a larger appeal as well. Events like this go a long way towards promoting the idea that regular people possess vital ideas. When people share their vital ideas with other people those ideas can then be honed, eventually allowing for real change to occur. Sign up quick, because participation is limited to eleven random interesting people and registration is required.

—Paul Clar

e n tertai n me n t

Nov. 30

Color Me Obsessed: A Film About The Replacements

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idris goodwin

Slowdown, 729 N. 14th St., 7 p.m., $7

Replacements fans, rejoice! An evening chockfull of Replacements is coming to Omaha. Premiering on the big screen in the main room at Slowdown is Color Me Obsessed, the first documentary about the iconic ’80s indie-rock band that gave us the albums “Let It Be” and “Tim.” In the film, director Gorman Bechard eschews musical performances and tells the story of the Mats through the eyes of fans, friends and contemporaries. “I thought, people believe in God without seeing or hearing him but rather through the passion, faith and stories of others.

After watching Color Me Obsessed, I’m Pretty sure music fans will believe in The Replacements in much the same way,” Bechard said.

Following the screening of the movie will be a Q&A with Bechard. Following the Q&A will be a series of local bands playing covers of Replacements’ songs. If your band wants to join in on honoring The Replacements, email info@ theslowdown.com with your band’s name and the Replacements songs you want to play.

—Paul Clark

SATURDAY3

ethnic holidays

Dec. 3

Ethnic Holiday Festival The Durham Museum 801 S. 10th St. durham.org

Take part in the Ethnic Holiday Festival and learn how the world celebrates this joyful time of year. The event features ethnic foods and entertainment from all corners of the globe. Local cultural organizations will proudly display crafts and traditional dress while musicians and dancers perform throughout the evening from 5-9 p.m. For more information call 402.444.5071.

—Bernardo Montoya

picks

| THE READER |

nov. 24-30, 2011

15

Seriously…I’m Kidding

Ellen DeGeneres {Grand Central Publishing} $26.99 The much loved and hilarious entertainer riffs on many of her favorite topics—from hosting a talk show to what makes her happy.

Life Itself

All About Me

You’ll be sparkling this holiday season with Big Buddha’s half animal-print half bling clutch!

It’s the perfect accessory to your night out on the town.

Add a touch of beauty to any outfit this holiday season with our chandelier bracelet. Decked out with silverstone and red crystals, you’ll be the talk of the party as you can wear it dreaped over your hand or wrist.

Roger Ebert {Grand Central Publishing} $27.99

White Crane

World-famous critic and television host Roger Ebert delivers one of the most eagerly anticipated memoirs of the year.

Making a Friend

Alison McGhee with Illustrations by Marc Rosenthal {Atheneum} $16.99 This tender story about the power of friendship will stay with readers long after they turn the last page.

Red Sled

Lita Judge {Atheneum} $16.99

When a well-loved sled is left outside a cozy cabin on a still winter’s night, an unlikely cast of creatures forge new friendships during the ride of their lives.

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| THE READER |

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in custom designed jewelry and jewelry repair. Currently, our store features over nine different local artists so if you are looking to shop local this year we have got you covered. If you can’t make it downtown we offer most of our pieces for sale at www. goldsmithsilversmith. com. Happy Holidays!

Urban Abbey/Soul Desires

Urban Abbey: We are a coffee shop with a cause supporting local Non-profits (currently Together, Inc.). 10% of all of your purchases and 100% of some of our bagged coffee purchases go to support these local Non-profits. We have a wide selection of locally roasted coffee and beautiful teas perfect to share with friends and family for the holidays. Soul Desires: Books and gifts for your spiritual journey out of the major world traditions.

Goldsmith Silversmith

Goldsmith Silversmith has been your custom jeweler for over 37 years! We specialize

White Crane Gallery, located in the historic Old Market Passageway, represents handmade American Art from over 125 local & national artists.

With exquisite pieces of art made from wood, metal, ceramic, and glass, you’re sure to find the perfect holiday gift at White Crane.

The work is carefully selected by owner Judith Shepard from local, regional, and national artists.

The gallery was founded in January of 1992. For nineteen years the White Crane has proudly served the Omaha area. White Crane prides itself on its unique lines of handmade jewelry, ornaments, and decorations. White Crane Gallery is the destination of choice for beautiful art and gifts. We look forward to a visit from you soon.

Designer Beads & Charms

At Designer Beads & Charms it’s easy to create a meaningful gift for everyone on your list this holiday season. Located at 120th & Blondo in we are your authorized Chamilia retailer with a wide variety of beautiful charms to choose from. Add a little sparkle to your accessories this season with Chamilia’s Red & White Holiday Bangle. Featuring genuine red swarovski crystal and the new Frosty Glow snowman charm, this festive bracelet will brighten up your look all season long! Call 402-991-8801 or go to www.designerbeadsandcharms.com to place your order.

Red Square

Matrioshka dolls, also called nesting dolls, are traditional wooden crafted dolls nested inside of each other- getting smaller and smaller. Each doll is individually painted by various Russian artists and fine craftsmen from Russia.

Moksha

Raw silk embroidered top with silk threads -Popularly known as Kurtis/ Tunic-Made in India.

Indian Jacquard design weaving stoles women s outwear. Silk wool Pashminas scarves handcrafted in India.

Moksha is located at 1026 Howard St.

Souq

The Souq offers a truly eclectic array of goods.

Contemporary, soft dressing and ethnic inspired

clothing, accessories galore, fun ad fabulous jewelry, home décor and gift items from the elegant to the absurd.

Garden Flowers

At Garden Flowers, we use flower power to make people happy. All kinds of people - the young, the old, the corporate exec to the(almost starving) artist to the bride-to-be - you name it! We like to think of our floral work as our way of making the world a better place.

Sounds corny, but it’s true. We really love what we do, and we think you will, too! For us, it’s all about people. And the smiles that flowers bring to their lives. Stop in to visit, or give us a call next time you want to put a smile on someone’s face - or even your own!

Room

Without question, the George Nelson Bubble Lamps are tried-andtrue standards of the modern vocabulary. George Nelson designed the first lamps in 1947. These lamps with their simple sculptural shapes are constructed of an innovative taut plastic that coats a steel wire-frame. The unique designs and use of materials prove to eliminate glare and provide an abundant yet diffused light, a quality which alone is unique to this material. Find an assortment of these iconic pendant, floor, & table lamps only @ ROOM.

a space for community, conversation & great coffee

Soul Desires and the Urban Abbey are ready to welcome you with a warm cup of locally roasted coffee and a great book to inspire you this season.

www.facebook.com/UrbanAbbeyOmaha

1026 Jackson Old Market 402-898-7600

Curbside Clothing

Robot Equality? Well, maybe in the future. This Curbside T is 4.2 ounces of super duper soft pre-shrunk 50/50 combed ringspun cotton/ polyester. Shop online at CurbsideClothing.com

“A retail wine shop, wine bar and deli with an emphasis on French wines in the heart of the Old Market” Monday-Thursday 10am -11pm

Friday

10am -Midnight

Saturday

9am -Midnight

Sunday 11:30am -11:00pm

511 S 11th St. Omaha Old Market District 402.344.8627

cover story

| THE READER |

nov. 24 - 30, 2011

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www.oldmarket.com

Contempory & Ethnic Inspired Clothing, Exotic Jewelry & Gifts

25 Y E A R S

PREMIUM HOMEMADE

12th & Jackson Old Market 341-5827 Ice Cream made the Old-Fashioned way using Rock Salt & Ice

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NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

Best Ice Cream Shop

| THE READER |

1018 Howard St. Old Market Passageway (402) 342-2972

Vogel, Azevedo take reductive approach to ‘New Work’ at RNG Gallery

F

by Michael J. Krainak

gel says. “I intend for (these) portraits to be true representations…but without access to the face, the figures become at once anonymous and familiar, inviting the viewer to construct narratives and connect in a new way.”

Likewise, Azevedo says that while there is still a discernible representation of a mountain, “the distortion along with the largeness of scale is intended to evoke a subjective emotional response which helps immerse the viewer in the fantasy of the paintings.”

Nevertheless, viewer impact and point of view to each set of work is dramatically different, and certain curatorial decisions were made by gallery owner and artist Rob Gilmer in hanging

aceless portraits and figure paintings minus torso and head. Mountain vistas like blueberry, raspberry and lemon dribbled ice cream sundaes. RNG Gallery promised it wouldn’t lose its edge when it relocated east in Council Bluffs. For the most part, its inaugural exhibit delivers New Work: Stephen Azevedo and Christina Renfer Vogel offers five large landscapes named after famous moun- art by stephen azevedo tain peaks from him and nine medium and small portraits and figures from her. All New Work are oil on canvas, and though they are strikingly different in subject and style, they share a possible theory or school of art regardless of their individual aesthetic.

Vogel, the development manager at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, is an adjunct instructor in painting at UNO and Bellevue University and a frequent exhibiting artist in the Omaha area and on both coasts. She will also be featured in a Governor’s Residence Exhibition sponsored by the Nebraska Arts Council next spring.

The more elusive Azevedo, an Omaha artist, made a big splash in the art scene in 2010 with his provocative in- each in order to take advantage of RNG’s new, stallation, Heavens to Mergatroid, in the Bemis sophisticated and urbane spaces.

Azevedo’s imposing, snow-capped mounUnderground that drew graphic attention to the taintops, especially the three titled pieces, “Mt. Manson Murder rampage in 1969 and its media coverage. His current work is more abstract and Everest,” “Manaslu” and “Kangchejunga” on the long east wall, are best seen from a distance; say, introspective.

In fact, it can be said that both artists in this from midpoint in the gallery, as they then appear show take a more indirect and minimal approach to converge into a majestic, singular range, part to their separate subject matter, thus placing National Geographic idealism and part Big Rock greater demands on, and presumably greater Candy surrealism.

The two additional pieces, the yellow, meltrewards for the viewer. At least that is a bond ing “Broad Peak” on the north wall and the piAzevedo and Vogel share as indicated in their caresque “Mount McKinley” on the opposite, brief artist statements “My portraits have often invited viewers to bookend the central mountain range in Azeveconfront the subject through a direct gaze,” Vo- do’s thematic extremes respectively of escapism

and idealism. The show’s opening also included a cyclorama, “Arcadia,” which invited one to physically immerse oneself into, but it was subsequently pulled as ineffective and distracting.

It was the right decision, but perhaps it should have been made prior to the event.

Conversely, Vogel’s work, which sits mostly humbly and unobtrusively in the southwest corner and hall of the gallery, invites the viewer to come quizzically forward for closer inspection.

What one discovers is less conventional portraiture and figure studies. Mind you, those these intriguing pieces are “unfinished,” they are not to be confused with partial, exercise renderings one does in a drawing class as possible prelude to a final work.

Each piece stands on its own needing only to be completed by an imaginative response to the body language in Vogel’s subtle imagery. For example, her portraits which turn their heads away from their public nonetheless hint/reveal much in attitude or emotion to the discerning eye. “Tana” abruptly looks away though her body doesn’t follow as if frozen in the moment and unable to move or face her emotions or viewer.

Similarly, the sturdy back and firm resolve of “Brigitte” are oblivious to her observer, and a “Self Portrait” turns sideways and blushes with whatever it is that she sees off frame or has crossed her mind. Vogel’s figure studies, especially the couples in “Conversation” and “Stand-off ” suggest more than their overt titles. Interestingly, in both pairs the figure on the right appears to be the more dominant, tall and assertive with the one on the left leaning away passively, whatever the standoff or conversation.

In a culture dominated by virtual reality-TV and otherwise- and vicarious video thrills, what possesses or motivates an artist to take a more revisionist, minimalist tack when it comes to

n Joslyn Art Museum will offer free admission for everyone Thanksgiving weekend: Nov. 25-26, 10a.m.-4p.m. and Nov. 27, noon-4p.m. Guests can enjoy the permanent collection galleries and these special exhibitions: American Landscape: Contemporary Photographs of the West; From Sea to Shining Sea: Currier & Ives Prints from the ConAgra Foods Collection; and Wendell Minor: In the American Tradition.

mixedmedia

See What’s Missing

culture

n Benson-based artist Mads Anderson was one of 26 selected national artists to create a 10-foot-tall fiberglass Gibson Les Paul guitar for “Guitar Town Sunset Strip,” a public art project in Hollywood. The guitars were unveiled in August 2010. Anderson’s, entitled “Timescape,” along with the rest will go up for auction Dec. 3 at Julien’s Auction House in Beverly Hills with all proceeds benefiting the Gibson Foundation, “committed to making the world a better place for children by creating, developing and supporting programs and other non-profit organizations in their efforts to advance education, music and the arts, the environment and health and welfare causes.” Anderson is attending the live auction and created a website for the project at madsanderson.weebly.com and the auction booklet can be found at juliensauctions.com. n Omaha Benson Magnet School photography teacher Jerred Zegelis wanted to expand his student’s perspective and impact so he took the matters into his own hands. In order to engage his students in a community-oriented photography project, “The Teen Voices Project,” Zegelis created a Kickstarter campaign to raise the funds for cameras, printing, and exhibition. Zegelis: “Using the funds raised through kickstarter, each student will check out a high quality digital SLR, and will be creating photographic art for an entire semester of school. We want to break the misconceptions the rest of the city has about our community by showing the truth through the eyes of our students. It is much more vibrant and complex than the media portrays.” Then, said Zegelis, the class will create and publish a book and show prints at a community art show. kickstarter.com/projects/1394593468/the-teen-voices-project n November 27, Nebraska Women’s Caucus for Art will host a closing reception, 1:30-3 p.m., for their Pandora’s Box show at Hot Shops Art Center. Participating artists created a small jewelry box in the style and medium of their choice.

— Sally Deskins Mixed Media is a column about local art. Send ideas to mixedmedia@thereader.com.

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SEVEN AD 5 x 5

Hair and makeup by Seven Salon // three2three photography

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402.934.2177

| THE READER |

Cold Cream looks at theater in the metro area. Email information to coldcream@thereader.com.

14 Convenient Locations

y continued from page 19

3117 N. 120 ST // OMAHA, NE 68164

That was when Scrooge sadly observes his young love Belle breaking up with the business-obsessed young Ebby at his money-counting desk. Scrooge’s unoccupied bed decided to sidle up and nuzzle the desk. You know you’ve watched too many Disney movies when you sort of expected the canopied bed to shed a tear over the breakup.

I’ll comment on the Brigit classic when it resumes after Thanksgiving. n If you missed 12 Ophelias last weekend at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, note that it skips the turkey holidays and returns Nov. 30-Dec. 3. Director Cindy Phaneuf was clearly fonder than I was of the Great Plains Theater Conference offering by Caridad Svich.

She directed Svich’s Alchemy of Desire/Dead Man’s Blues, which certainly possessed some poetic power, and now presents this story of Shakespeare’s heroine returning to try and control her own fate.

You’ve also got a few weeks to see the return of Christmas with the Crawfords at SNAP! Productions and to catch the brand new Every Christmas Story Ever Told with Ben Beck, Bill Grennan and Theresa Sindelar, Nov. 25-Dec. 17 at the Blue Barn.

—Warren Francke

coldcream

n We see theater in all sorts of venues, but few can match the current opportunity to see A Christmas Carol with snow falling on a Dickensian street and Tartuffe with powdered wigs and period costumes in the splendor of the Joslyn Castle music room.

Brigit St. Brigit is blessed to present the Moliere classic surrounded by beautiful wood, whether it’s oak as described in the daily, or satinwood as I termed it last week on advice of a spokesman for the Joslyn Trust. And you can tour the castle’s other 34 rooms while tasting wine and cheese after the 7-9 p.m. performance.

And for 36 seasons now, we’ll been blessed to see the snow fall on London town, thanks to the Omaha Community Playhouse in general, and this time to Valmont, which helps water crops all over the world and is now “special effects sponsor” for the snow.

It troubles me whenever I run into someone who has never seen the Charles Jones creation.

Just do it. Go. Again and again.

I have no idea how many times I’ve seen Dick Boyd and now Jerry Longe find redemption in the auditorium that now bears the names of Howard and Rhonda Hawks. But I can tell you why it never gets old: because you can always find some new pleasure.

At Thursday’s preview, Longe’s Ebenezer Scrooge gave his usual comic flourishes to every scene, but with the added fun of a youngster in the audience whose musical laughter was contagious.

Even the only mishap was rather charming.

www.sevensalon.com

culture

spirit soars or escapes with exhilaration in sight of viewer involvement or interaction? Nerve and Azevedo’s red, yellow, blue and purple mountain skill certainly, but this approach is to be applaud- majesties. With Vogel, one breaks through to the ed given its risks and its response to more blatant third dimension by imagining what lies beyond the frame, out of sight but not out of mind. forms of expression and entertainment.

Lastly, issues of “timelessness” may be the “New Work” seems to be rooted in Reducbest argument for Retionism, a school or art by christina renfer vogel ductionism here, that theory of art conceived is, art that explores anin 1987 by E.J. Gold, other dimension where Tom X and other nothing happens in the members of the Grass usual sense and time Valley Graphics Group does not pass. Look in northern California. again at Vogel’s and Though not an exact Azevedo’s imagery and fit, Reductionism is you will see the charsaid to be “inclusive, acteristic awareness of experimental and posture, freezing the evolving” and its three frame and rendering basic qualities of essentialism, space and timelessness are present objects physically static. The effect then is to free other forms of movement such as feelings individually in Vogel’s and Azevedo’s work.

Regarding “essentialism,” their art, though or “motion through emotion.”

Looked at in this manner, the “New Work” of representational, is more important for its effect with the fewest possible lines and details, remov- both artists is new not only visually but in its less ing extraneous elements which may deviate or is more process which can only be completed by obscure that effect. Check and checkmate, includ- one sharing that experience. , ing Azevedo’s gradual transition to the abstract New Work: Stephen Azevedo and Christina Renfer and Vogel’s reductive fore and background.

As for “space,” the intention is to treat the view- Vogel continues through Dec. 4, 2011 at RNG Gallery, er not as a voyeur but rather a participant whether 157 West Broadway, Council Bluffs, Iowa. For details, physically or spiritually. Even at a distance, one’s go to dixiequicks.com or call 712-256-4140.

fashflood

Shop It Forward: Local boutiques Statement, Piper and Denim Saloon are partnering up for their first piper ever shopping tour.

Shop It Forward: Holiday Shopping Tour will run from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 1. The tour will pick up shoppers at Statement, located at 3612 N. 165th St. in Omaha and will chauffeur the group to Piper and Denim Saloon before returning to Statement at the end of statement the evening. Shoppers will receive 10 percent off all purchases, have a chance to win a $50 giveaway at each stop and feast on treats and drinks throughout the trip. Ten percent of all sales will go to select charities including Food Bank for the Heartland, Hearts United for Animals and Midwest Heart Connection. Space is limited denim saloon for this one-time-only tour, so be sure to RSVP with one of the participating boutiques to reserve your spot.

Cost for this event is $20 per person and shoppers can visit statementomaha. com, shoppiper.com or denimsaloon.com for more information.

Borrow for Your Bump: Drawing inspiration from

popular retail rental websites like Rent the Runway and Bag Borrow or Steal, Borrow for Your Bump is the next big thing in maternity wear. Created solely for expecting mothers, BFYB is an online boutique that rents and sells designer maternity clothing. During a pregnancy term, customers can grow, borrow and return clothing as many times as needed, without breaking the bank on expensive maternity clothes that they would otherwise outgrow.

BFYB is holding a launch party and fashion show with other vendors in Lincoln and Omaha on Saturday, Nov/ 26. Hot Mama’s Night Out & BFYB Launch Party will take place at Dove Shannon, a salon located at 701 P Street #206 in Lincoln. The festivities kick off at 4 p.m. and will include complimentary hair styling, massages, makeup tips and photo sessions along with a yoga session and maternity fashion show. To make an appointment for the complimentary services, email info@borrowforyourbump. com. For more information on this event and BFYB, visit borrowforyourbump.com. — Sarah Lorsung Tvrdik Sarah Lorsung Tvrdik is a stylist, costumier, wife and freelance writer based in Omaha, Neb. Her style blog can be found at fashflood.com

style

| THE READER |

Nov. 24- 30, 2011

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ART

OPENINGS

EISENTRAGER-HOWARD GALLERY, Stadium Dr. & T. St, (402) 472-5522. DRRRROP: Curatorial projects by seven emerging curators: Abbey Arlt, Scott Cook, Bentley Easler, Blair Englund, Teal Gardner, Amanda Heskett and Bryan Klopping, opens Nov. 28-Dec. 2, reception Dec. 2, 5 p.m.

EL MUSEO LATINO, 4701 S. 25th St., (402) 731-1137. VISIONS OF MEXICAN ART: Group show presented in collaboration with the Mexican Consulate of Omaha, show continues through Feb. 11.

JOSLYN ART MUSEUM, 2200 Dodge St., (402) 342-3300. SATURDAY SURPRISE: WHAT’S YOUR CHARACTER?: Compile the strange, stranger and strangest parts of your life into one great work of art, this unique show opens Nov. 12 and Nov. 26, 10 a.m.

ONGOING

THE 815, 815 O St. Suite 1, (402) 261-4905. NEW WORK: New work by emerging artist Daniel Joseph May, show continues through Nov. 9 MUSES STUDIO, 2713 N 48th St., 9musesstudio@gmail.com.

NEW WORK: New work by artist Arden Nixon, show continues through Nov. ANDERSON O’BRIEN FINE ART OLD MARKET, 1108 Jackson St., (402) 884-0911. GENERATIONS SHARED: New work by Jim Krantz, through Nov. 27.

ARTISTS’ COOPERATIVE GALLERY, 405 S. 11th St., (402) 3429617. HOT COLORS/COOL SHAPES: New work by Joan Fetter, Agenta Gaines and Marcia Joffe-Bouska. Show runs through Nov. 20.

CREIGHTON UNIVERSITY LIED CENTER, 2500 California Plaza, 402-280-2509. TURNING POINT: New work by Mary Ensz, through Dec. 9.

CRESCENT MOON COFFEE, 8th & P St., (402) 435-2828. NEW WORK: New work by Brian Everman, show continues through Nov. CULTIVA COFFEE, 1501 S. St., (402) 802-1909. FIRST FRIDAY ARTIST: New work by Anne Dake, show continues through November.

EL MUSEO LATINO, 4701 S. 25th St., (402) 731-1137. GRAPHICS OF LATIN AMERICA: Group show exploring the graphics of Latin America, through Dec. 28. DAY OF THE DEAD INSTALLATION: On view through Nov. 19.

ELDER ART GALLERY, 5000 St. Paul Ave.. JURIED STUDENT EXHIBITION: New work by NWU students, show continues through Dec. 11.

GRAND MANSE GALLERY, 129 N. 10th St., (402) 476-4560.

OBJECTS OF FASHION: New work by Allison Holdsworth, through Nov. GREAT PLAINS ART MUSEUM, 1155 Q St., (402) 472-0599.

PASSING AMERICA: New work by V....Vaughan, through Dec. 11,.

HOT SHOPS ART CENTER, 1301 Nicolas St., (402) 342-6452.

AT THE MOVIES: Group show of art depicting movies, through Nov. 27.

INTERNATIONAL QUILT STUDY CENTER AND MUSEUM, 1523 N. 33rd St., Lincoln, 472.7232, quiltstudy.org. ELEGANT GEOMETRY: AMERICAN AND BRITISH MOSAIC PATCHWORK: Through Jan. 1, 2012. YVONNE WELLS: QUILTED MESSAGES: New work by Yvonne Wells, show continues through February 26.

JOSLYN ART MUSEUM, 2200 Dodge St., (402) 342-3300.

AMERICAN LANDSCAPE CONTEMPORARY PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE WEST: Featuring the work of fourteen photographers, through Jan. 8. FROM SEA TO SHINING SEA: CURRIER & IVES PRINTS FROM THE CONAGRA FOODS COLLECTION: Nathaniel Currier and James merritt Ives offered affordable color prints that remain a vivid picture of nineteenth-century America, through Jan. 15.

KIECHEL FINE ART, 5733 S. 34th St, (402) 420-9553. DEFINING AMERICA: IMAGES OF THE 20TH CENTURY: A show that pairs heroic scenes of American history with interesting and intimate insights into artists’ private lives, show continues through Nov. 25.

KIMMEL HARDING NELSON ARTS CENTER, 801 3rd Corso St., (402) 874-9600. AND A PARTRIDGE IN A PEAR TREE: New work by Jenni Brant, through Dec. 9, reception Dec. 1, 5 p.m.

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NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

LUX CENTER FOR THE ARTS, 48th and Baldwin, Lincoln, 434.2787, luxcenter.org. RECLAIMED: ART MADE OF RECYCLED MATERIALS: Group show that examines and questions the state of our throw-away culture/society, featuring new work by Jake Balcom, Elizabeth Frank, John Garrett, Daphnae Koop, Jennifer Maestre and Conrad Quijas, this show continues through October 29. THE SATURDAY NIGHT SPECIAL: Comic book art by nationally known artist Bob Hall, show continues through Nov. 26.

MODERN ARTS MIDTOWN, 3615 Dodge St. WISH LIST: A small art works exhibition featuring Wendy Bantam, Judith Burton, Catherine Ferguson, John Himmelfarb, Jacqueline Kluver, Larry Roots, Francisco Souto, Watie White and others, through Dec. 31.

MODERN ARTS MIDWEST, 800 P St., (402) 477-2828. ANNUAL SMALL WORKS EXHIBITION: Featuring small art works by over 20 artists, through Dec. 24, reception Dec. 2, 6:30 p.m.

MORRILL HALL, 307 Morrill Hall, Lincoln 472.3779, museum. unl.edu. AMPHIBIANS VIBRANT AND VANISHING: Photographs

by Joel Sartore, through Nov. 30. FIRST PEOPLES OF THE PLAINS: TRADITIONS SHAPED BY LAND AND SKY: This modern exhibit explores the enduring traditions of Native American cultures of the Great Plains.

MOVING GALLERY, Garden of the Zodiac, 1042 Howard St., (402) 341-1877. PORTRAITS: New work by artists Gerhard Kassner and Christian Rothmann, show continues through Dec. 6.

MUSEUM OF NEBRASKA ART (MONA), 2401 Central Ave., (308) 865-8559. NEBRASKA NOW: CHAD FONFARA: New glass work by Chad Fonfara, continues through Jan. 8.

OLD MARKET ARTISTS GALLERY, 1034 Howard St., (402) 3466569. METALS: A SHINY ATTRACTION: New work by Meridith Merwald-Gofta, through Nov. OMAHA’S CHILDREN’S MUSEUM, 500 S. 20th St., 342.6163. ocm.org. DINOSAURS DAWN OF THE ICE AGE: Stomping and roaring robotic dinosaurs are invading the museum, through Jan. 8.

PARRISH STUDIOS, 14th & O St.. COLLABORATIONS IN JUNK AND OTHER ARTFULLY REPURPOSED STUFF: New work by Melanie Falk, through Nov. PASSAGEWAY GALLERY, 417 S. 11th St., (402) 341-1910.

THROUGH MY EYES: New work by Dan Waltz, through Nov. PERU STATE COLLEGE ART GALLERY, 600 Hoyt , (402) 8722271, kanderson@peru.edu. BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND A DAY JOB: New work by Andy Acker, through Nov. 5.

RNG GALLERY, 157 West Broadway, (402) 214-3061. OPENING RECEPTION: Opening reception for the new RNG Gallery, featuring new work by Stephen Azevedo and Christina Renfer Vogel.

Show continues through Dec. 4.

SHELDON ART GALLERY, 12th and R, UNL, Lincoln, sheldonartgallery.org. HISTORIES: Works from the Sheldon Permanent Collection, through Jul. 15, 2012. HARLEM RENAISSANCE SCULPTOR: Work by Richmond Barthe, continues through Jan. 15. THE ART AND SCIENCE OF CONSERVATION: WALT KUHN’S ‘APPLES IN WOODEN BOAT’: Presents findings of recent examination of the artwork including x-rays taken on Sep. 26 at BryanLGH Medical Center West, show continues through Dec. 31.

TUGBOAT GALLERY, 1416 O St., (402) 477-6200. SILENT AUCTION FUNDRAISER: Group show/silent auction featuring new work by a large number of artists, through Nov. UNO ART GALLERY, 6001 Dodge St., (402) 554-2796. ALMUTANABBI STREET STARTS HERE: Exhibition features letterpress broadsides, artists’ books and a documentary film made to honor the book center of Baghdad, which was destroyed by a car bomb in 2007. SELECTED WORKS ON PAPER AND VIDO: PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY OF CRACOW: New work by faculty and students from the University of Cracow Fine Arts Department. Curator Rafal Solewski, chair of art theory and art education for the department, selected the works to highlight the schools range.

W. DALE CLARK LIBRARY, 215 S. 15th St., (402) 444-4800.

IN A NUTSHELL: THE WORLDS OF MAURICE SENDAK: Exhibit strives to reveal the push and pull of new and old worlds in Sendak’s work and shows how his artistic journey has led him deeper into his own family’s history and Jewish identity. Through Dec. 16.

WORKSPACE GALLERY, 440 N. 8th St., workspace.gallery.lincoln@gmail.com. THE COLOR OF HAY: New work by Kathleen McLaughlin, through Jan. 5.

| THE READER |

art/theater listings

MONDAY 28

POETRY AT THE MOON, Crescent Moon Coffee 8th & P St., (402) 435-2828. 7:00 pm, FREE. LEVEL 3 IMPROV CLASS, Studio Gallery 4965 Dodge St., (402) 660-0867. 7:00 pm, $75. Learn how to completely perform a Harold, the primary learning form of Long Form Improvisation.

Send an email to backlineimprov@gmail.com to register. $75.

CHECK EVENT LISTINGS ONLINE!

THEATER OPENING

TYLER PERRY’S THE HAVES AND THE HAVE NOTS, Orpheum Theater, 409 S. 16th St., (402) 444-4750. Opens Nov. 23, 7:30 pm, $42.50. The story follows the life of a wealthy family who have everything they need and most of what they want. The characters are often preoccupied with superficial things, until they are forced to become involved with their housekeeper.

When the poverty stricken maid is forced to ask for help, the family gets a chance to see how the other half lives. While coming to the rescue of the needy, it soon becomes painfully clear, who is really in need of saving.

12 OPHELIAS, Weber Fine Arts Building, 6001 Dodge St..

Opens Nov. 30, 7:30 pm, $5. a series of scenes and songs in heightened language set, according to Svich, in a “timeless time,” depicting several characters from Hamlet in the aftermath of Ophelia’s suicide.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL, Omaha Community Playhouse, 6915 Cass St., (402) 553-4890. Opens Nov. 27, Nov. 30, 7:30 pm, $39; Students: $28. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge’s ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Yet to Come.

JUNIE B. IN JINGLE BELLS, BATMAN SMELLS!, Rose Theater, 2001 Farnam St., (402) 345-4849. Opens Nov. 25, Nov. 26, Nov. 27, 7:00 pm, $16. he holiday sing-along should be fun, but when it’s time for the Secret Santa drawing, Junie B. picks the one person she’d rather not have--tattletale May. Don’t miss this family-friendly story, with a message about the importance of giving.

POETRY/COMEDY THURSDAY 24

BACKLINE IMPROV, Studio Gallery 4965 Dodge St., (402) 6600867. 8:00 pm, $5. Weekly variety of shows, for more information call Dylan at (402) 720-7670.

COMEDY SURPRISE NIGHT, Mojo Smokehouse & Ales 2110 South 67th St., (402) 504-3776. 10:00 pm, FREE. Hosted by Nick Allen.

FRIDAY 25

J. MEDICINE HAT, Funny Bone Comedy Club 17305 Davenport St., (402) 493-8036. 7:00 pm, $18. An evening of comedy with the acclaimed Omaha-area hypnotist, comedian, and performer.

SATURDAY 26

J. MEDICINE HAT, Funny Bone Comedy Club 17305 Davenport St., (402) 493-8036. 7:00 pm, $18. An evening of comedy with the acclaimed Omaha-area hypnotist, comedian, and performer.

A NIGHT OF COMEDY AND OBVIOUS MYSTERIES SOLVED W/ ROSS BROCKLEY, TIM BURKE, JASON DOWNS, Bourbon Theater 1415 O St., (402) 477-4776. 7:00 pm, $5. An evening featuring local comedic talent.

GAGE WALLACE, KYLE HARVEY, ALL YOUNG GIRLS ARE MACHINE GUNS, BRADY WELLS, MIKE CLARK, Side Door Lounge 3530 Leavenworth St., (402) 504-3444 . 8:00 pm, FREE. An evening of poetry and music.

SUNDAY 27

J. MEDICINE HAT, Funny Bone Comedy Club 17305 Davenport St., (402) 493-8036. 7:00 pm, $16. An evening of comedy with the acclaimed Omaha-area hypnotist, comedian, and performer.

OK PARTY COMEDY PRESENTS: THE ZACH PETERSEN LIFE RETROSPECTIVE COMEDY SHOW, Waiting Room 6212 Maple St., (402) 884-5353. 9:00 pm, FREE.

TUESDAY 29

OPEN MIC POETRY, Indigo Bridge Books 701 P St. Suite 102, (402) 477-7770. 7:00 pm, FREE. IDRIS GOODWIN, KATIE F-S, House Of Loom 1012 S. 10th St., (402) 505-5494, info@houseofloom.com. 7:00 pm, FREE. Praised by the New York Times for his “grown man rap” and named one of the top 30 performance poets in the world, Idris was featured on HBO’s Def Poetry and The Discovery Channel’s Planet Green.

OPEN MIC POETRY, Indigo Bridge Books 701 P St. Suite 102, (402) 477-7770. 7:00 pm, FREE. LEVEL 1 IMPROV CLASS, Studio Gallery 4965 Dodge St., (402) 660-0867. 7:00 pm, $75. Learn how to improvise solid 2-person scenes off a single suggestion and learn the basics of Long Form Improvisation. Send and email to backlineimprov@gmail.com to RSVP for the Level 1 Class.

SHOOT YOUR MOUTH OFF, The Hideout Lounge 320 S. 72nd St., (402) 504-4434. 9:00 pm, FREE.

WEDNESDAY 30

JESSE JACKSON, Lied Education Center for the Arts 2500 California Plaza, (402) 280-2509. 11:30 am, FREE with Reservation. Jesse Jackson will be the keynote speaker for the Nebraska Black Leadership Symposium. His 11:30 a.m. speech will be a ticketed event.

SQUISHTALKS: CONVERSATION MATTERS, Omaha Creative Institute 1516 Cuming St.. 7:00 pm, $15. A completely interactive, dynamic and shared experience where the participants direct the event’s content.

ACOUSTIC OPEN MIC FOR MUSICIANS & POETS, Meadowlark Coffee 1624 South St., (402) 477-2077. 8:00 pm, FREE. THE MIDWEST POETRY VIBE, Arthur’s 222 N. 114th St., (402) 706-2491. 9:00 pm, Ladies: $5; Guys: $7.

FOR SALE Mendez model Olds Trumpet, LP Conga drums other horns and drums

Call: 402-681-4188

| THE READER |

nov. 24 - 30, 2011

23

Date: 12/15/11 Time: 7:30pm

GRAND OPENING EVENT DISCOUNTSVENDOR COMPILATION #1 / WINTER 2011

DEMONSTRATIONSPRODUCT KNOWLEDGEHOLIDAY LINGERIE

6065 Maple Street Omaha/Benson, NE Phone: 402-932-3377 WWW.LOVERLUX.COM

HEAR NEBRASKA COMPILATION RELEASE SHOW featuring DIGITAL LEATHER, THE WAGON BLASTERS, DOMESTICA, DIM LIGHT, AND MASSES

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 3 AT THE SYDNEY IN BENSON. $5 COVER

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NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

| THE READER |

GRAND OPENING EVENT

BIG HARP

music

American Idol David Cook Blows Up

D

by Kyle Eustice

since I was 15. The idea of writing songs and being in a band weren’t new things to me, but now the stakes were higher,” he explains. “I really don’t care about anyone expectations but my own.”

Apparently that suits him just fine. The self-proclaimed “arrogant asshole” adamantly declares that he is in charge of his own creative process no matter how many people are working on his music with him. On his new album,

avid Cook’s dream reluctantly began in Omaha when he decided to accompany his younger brother to the American Idol auditions. Cook hadn’t planned on auditioning, but after a little convincing, he ended up belting out Bon Jovi’s “Livin’ david cook On A Prayer” for the judges. Soon, he was off to Hollywood and gathering the most votes in American Idol history .

“In that moment when I won, I went through a conscious blackout. I don’t remember much,” Cook says with awe.

“My memory of it is exactly what everyone sees on YouTube. I don’t even remember my mother and brother coming on stage, but I guess that happened.”

Since then, it’s been a whirlwind for Cook. After winning the seventh season of American Idol, he’s been going nonstop. If success means beating Miley Cyrus’ record number of songs on the Billboard chart, then Cook is a winner. Just one week after his Idol win, he had 11 songs debut on the Hot 100 list. His self-titled debut album was certified platinum shortly after its release and he quickly embarked on a headlining tour.

“My life has changed a lot. I get to wake up and do something I love every day, which is great,” Cook says. “Past that, it’s been crazy. I mean, I thought Idol was hard. I just wannna be someone who puts out good music and plays good shows and kind of sticks around for a while. It’s the formula I’m working with.”

It’s difficult to determine who out there has a penchant for this type of music. After all, he accomplished all of this by This Loud Morning, despite having a small covering other people’s music. Obviously, Cook army in the studio with him, he insists on havisn’t for everyone. He seems to be packaged for ing the final say.

“Sitting in a room with so many people, I a very specific demographic and is most likely still manage to find my voice in the sense of repopular in the “adult contemporary” category.

“I don’t feel like I have anything to prove. ally speaking up for myself and making sure what What I tried to lean on what that I’ve doing this was happening was going to come across as me

and not ‘why’s David Cook singing somebody else’s songs?’ I’m very confident in my ability to write music, but when you can bounce ideas off of other people, it’s still a good thing.”

Whether you’re a Cook fan or not, people are talking- and lots of them. MTV, VH1, endless music magazines and online publications have all covered Cook. While it’s been over 2 and a half years since his last release, he hasn’t been laying idle (no word play intended).

“We did 154 shows on the first tour and then got right to work on the next record. I thought it would take 6 months, but as things started to materialize, it was apparent it was going to be a longer process,” he says.

“I think the end result is musically, the most mature record I’ve ever been a part of. Lyrically, it’s been the most therapeutic. I would say it’s my best record to date.”

While his goal of longevity isn’t exactly fantasy, it’s going to be a challenge, especially with how the record industry works today. Major labels drop artists faster than you can say, “wait, what?” The revolving door of pop stars spit out artists as if they were pebbles on a slingshot. Cook, at least, has massive amounts of ambition on his side.

“I would hope I’m the biggest road warrior out of all the Idols. I love being on the road. It’s my favorite thing about this whole deal.

It mixes my two favorite things, traveling and playing music,” he says. “We did a ton of shows last tour and I would love to do more on this tour. For some reason, the idea of sleeping on a bus is appealing to me.”

Not all people are made for that type of lifestyle, but Cook seems as passionate about his career as anyone else that has ever been successful in what they do, if not more. You can’t hate on that. , David Cook, November 26, at Whiskey Roadhouse, Council Bluffs, 8 p.m. Tickets are $25. Visit www.harrah.com/whiskeyroadhouse for more information.

music

backbeat

Dreams Do Come True

n Saddle Creek Records’ latest hit maker PUJOL unveiled a new video for “Mayday,, which is the first track off of his EP, Nasty, Brutish & Short. The video premiered on RollingStone.com and was directed by Jo McCaughey.

n That’s not the Creek’s biggest news lately, because one of the label’s flagship bands, Cursive, just announced news of their new album, I Am Gemini.

Tim Kasher and company will release their seventh studio album next year on Feb. 21. Tour dates start Feb. 12 in Denver with a March 3 homecoming show scheduled at the Slowdown, 729 N. 14th St. According to Saddle Creek, the band recorded the album this summer and fall with producer Matt Bayles at Omaha’s ARC Studio and mixed in Seattle at Red Room Studios. It’s also a return to the band’s love for concept albums, this time unravelling the story of a set of twins separated at birth, one good and one evil. n Local actress/singer Jill Anderson will host a holiday cabaret show, Songs for a Winter Night, at Joslyn Castle, 3902 Davenport St., Sunday, Dec. 11 at 6 p.m. Subsequent performances are set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 13 and Wednesday, Dec. 14. The show features guest vocalist Bailey Carlson and comedy from Matt Kurtz. Anderson bills the event as mixing traditional and irreverent holiday fun and is for mature audiences only.

n Local arts-and-music web site Omahype.com will play host to it’s one Christmas spectacular, hosting its 2nd annual Holiday Throwdown at the Slowdown, Sunday, Dec. 11. The event starts at 5 p.m. and is $5. Performances include sets by Honeybee & Hers, The Mynabird’s Laura Burhenn, McCarthy Trenching, Brad Hoshaw and All Young Girls Are Machine Guns, as well as live comedy from OK Party Comedy. The event also marks the first anniversary of the website itself. n Two Old Market music retailers will open early for special Record Store Day-sponsored Black Friday exclusives. Drastic Plastic, 1209 Howard St., and Homer’s Music, 1210 Howard St., will both open at 9 a.m. Friday, Nov. 25, as they unveil exclusive and limited edition releases by 50 artists, including the Beatles, the Black Keys, Grateful Dead, Nirvana and the Rolling Stones.

— Chris Aponick Backbeat takes you behind the scenes of the local music scene. Send tips, comments and questions to backbeat@thereader.com.

| THE READER |

nov. 24 - 30, 2011

25

lazy-i t h e

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Cursive’s Mind Meld

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efore we get started, Happy Thanksgiving from Lazy-i. Here’s hoping you got plenty of good music in ’11 to be thankful for. I know I did. n I’ve read the description of Cursive’s just-announced concept album, I Am Gemini, a half dozen times and it’s still disturbing. The story: Twin brothers separated at birth, one good and one evil, have an unexpected reunion that “ignites a classic struggle for the soul, played out with a cast of supporting characters that includes a chorus of angels and devils, and twin sisters CONJOINED AT THE HEAD” (The all-caps are mine, although I would suggest the fine folks at Cobra Camanda Publicity (Cursive’s “people”) use all-caps in future press releases, if only for effect).

Maybe someone can explain why the first thing to pop into my head was the classic Star Trek episode, “Let That Be Your Battlefield,” in which an alien split right down the middle - half black half white -- played

by Frank Gorshin (better known for his role as The Riddler) battles another alien split down the middle - half white half black. Talk about your symbolism. Combine that idea with the best parts of Angels in America, Ordinary People, Stuck on You and Erasurehead, and you’ve got a first-rate concept album.

Seriously though, this sounds like Cursive’s most ambitious concept album since, well, their last concept album (and aren’t they all concept albums?). Just the idea of making a concept album seems ambitious in an age when young listeners are more likely to download a single track rather than an entire collection of songs.

But you have to remember that Cursive frontman and primary songwriter Tim Kasher also is a playwright, and judging by the press release issued last week, approached this record with a story in mind, having “wrote album lyrics in a linear fashion, in order, from song 1 to song 13.”

We’ll all have to wait until Feb. 21 when Saddle Creek Records releases the album to hear how it all worked out, unless of course Cursive does a “secret show” somewhere around town as a warm-up for the tour, which kicks off in Denver Feb. 12. Will the band perform the entire record as a rock opera, a la The Who’s Tommy or Styx’s Paradise Theater? Imagine guitarist Ted Stevens and bassist Matt Maginn in full drag playing the entire set forehead-toforehead. Now that’s entertainment. n Well, well, well… Looks like Matt Whipkey’s old band, Anonymous American, has taken the Slowdown / Replacements challenge and will be among those performing after the screening of Color Me Obsessed: A Film About The Replacements at The Slowdown Nov. 30 (See last week’s column for details). Whipkey, Wayne Brekke and the rest of the band are a perfect fit for this showcase. Also added to the initial line-up is the band Witness Tree.

There’s room for more.

I was thinking it would be cool to see one of the young, dirty O’Leaver’s punk bands also play this gig,

Lazy-i

s c e n e

b y

t i m

m c m a h a n

say, a Rainy Road, Doom Town or Grotto Records band. After all, their take-it-to-the-edge no-bullshit garage aesthetic is perfectly in synch with The Replacements’ early days of punk excess.

But then it dawned on me that those youngsters may not have even heard of The Replacements. The band’s heyday was between ’81 and ’84 -- that’s 30 years ago, folks -- and they technically broke up in ’91.

So while songs like “F*** School” and “Dope Smokin’ Moron” off Stink or “Hangin’ Downtown” and “More Cigarettes” off Sorry Ma, I Forgot to Take Out the Trash would fit nicely in the current-day garage punk milieu, they could also be viewed as “old people’s music.” For those of you who were around in the ’80s, what did you consider the music from 30 years prior to that time, music from the ’50s? Say no more. n A couple weeks ago, singer/songwriter Brad Hoshaw “released” a new collection of songs titled Spirit of the Lake via his Bandcamp page. The recordings are homemade demos that capture the bare essence of Hoshaw’s latest songwriting output. On Nov. 12 we got to hear a number of those songs “fleshed out” with his band, the Seven Deadlies, and it’s safe to say Hoshaw could have another hit on his hands if he’s ever able to scratch together enough money to get his band into a studio to make a “proper” recording.

Case in point, “New Tattoo,” a desperate, creepy song about the aftermath of love gone wrong that Mr. J. Cash would have been proud to perform during his darker days. On his home recording, Hoshaw comes off lonely and broken as he sings the lines, “So tell me how you think you’ll feel / When I carve your name beneath my heel.” But on stage with his posse at The Waiting Room, the song turned into a blistering, angry threat, a pointed finger of redemption made bold and bloody by a band lost in the same homicidal redmist as Hoshaw.

As satisfying as his ’09 debut album was, I was afraid Hoshaw might be a one-and-done flash in the pan whose flash was never seen much beyond our city limits. The fact that that album never reached the audience it deserved is one of the great tragedies of our local music scene, though in all honesty, I don’t know who else to blame other than Hoshaw and an industry that, despite technology that makes almost any music available to a global audience, is unable to find and expose the greater talent to the greater masses.

After that, you couldn’t blame Hoshaw if he decided to hang it up and walk away from his dreams.

Instead, he’s created another stellar collection of songs, which are almost hidden in those home recordings but are completely realized when performed on stage by his full band. Maybe instead of wasting thousands of dollars in a studio, he and his cohorts should simply polish these chestnuts to a fine sheen and record them live from The Waiting Room stage. Or maybe it’s time for Hoshaw to head to Nashville with these songs in his pocket and see if any of the current C&W elite will bite.

He and his music certainly deserve better than they’ve been getting hanging around here. ,

is a weekly column by long-time Reader senior contributing writer Tim McMahan focused on the Omaha music scene. Check out Tim’s daily music news updates at his website, lazy-i.com, or email him at lazy-i@thereader.com.

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| THE READER |

lazy-i

B L U E S ,

R O O T S ,

A M E R I C A N A

A N D

Thankful for Music

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f you’re heading out on Thanksgiving Eve, be sure to stop in at the Barley Street Tavern after 9 p.m. for Matt Cox’s second annual Canned in Benson event to benefit the Food Bank for the Heartland. A cornucopia of local songwriters perform including Cass Brostad, Brad Hoshaw, Kyle Harvey, Rebecca Lowry, Justin Lamoureux, Sarah Benck, Andrew Bailie, Matt Whipkey, Ashley Rayne Boe, Lash LaRue, Dylan Davis, Brett Vovk and Reagan Roeder. Admission is a non-perishable food item or a cash donation. No glass containers please.

Vince Guaraldi Holiday Music: Last year Donovan Johnson hosted an extremely popular show celebrating the music of The Peanuts’ cartoons composer Vince Guaraldi. This year Johnson offers three performances: Friday and Saturday, Nov. 25 and 26, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 27, at 3 p.m. See donovanjohnson.net for advance tickets.

Performing with Johnson are George Laughery, John Rosseter and special guests Steve Raybine, Lyle Yates, Merritt Smith and Willie Karpf.

Brostad Visits: Singer-songwriter Cass Brostad is back for a Thanksgiving family visit and a show Friday, Nov. 25, at O’Leaver’s, 9 p.m. Other performers include The Travelling Mercies, who tear it up extra fine with

hoodoo

M O R E

B Y

B . J .

H U C H T E M A N N

Brostad on harmonies and tambourine, plus Mike Clark (Haunted Windchimes) and Bret Vovk (Underwater Dream Machine).

Zoo Bar Music: The Darlings reunion show fires up the Zoo stage with their wild psychobilly Wednesday, Nov. 23, 9 p.m. Thanksgiving night, Nov. 24, 9 p.m., the Lil’ Slim Blues Band takes the stage. Kris Lager Band plays after 9 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 25 and 26.

Divine Davina: The ultra-fabulous swing, jazz and jump-blues music of Davina & The Vagabonds is back at Lincoln’s Zoo Bar for a show Wednesday, Nov. 30, 6-9 p.m. The band’s sparkling and passionate sound hits the The 21st Saloon Thursday, Dec. 1, 5:30-8:30 p.m. Get hip to Davina at davinaandthevagabonds.com.

Hot Notes: Wednesday, Nov. 23, you can also check out The Jazzwholes reunion show at the House of Loom.

Lash LaRue Toy Drive shows to benefit the children of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation are set. Friday, Dec. 2, at The Waiting Room features the Filter Kings, The Mercurys and The Blacktop Ramblers. Admission is $10 or one new, unwrapped toy. Sunday, Dec. 4, at the 21st Saloon, doors open at 2 p.m. with Christy Rossitter & 112 North Duck, Brad Cordle Band and guitar star Michael Burks performing. Admission is $10, in addition toy donations are encouraged. ,

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www.paradigmgardens.com

HOODOO is a weekly column focusing on blues, roots, Americana and occasional other music styles with an emphasis on live music performances. Hoodoo columnist B.J. Huchtemann is a Reader senior contributing writer and veteran music journalist who has covered the local music scene for nearly 20 years. Follow her blog at hoodoorootsblues.blogspot.com.

hoodoo

| THE READER |

NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

27

livemusiccalendar

2234 South 13th Street Omaha, NE 68108 346 - 9802 www.sokolundground.com

SEND CALENDAR INFORMATION — including addresses, dates, times, costs and phone numbers — to The Reader’s calendar editor. Mail to or drop off information at P.O. Box 7360 Omaha, NE 68107; email to listings@thereader.com; fax to (402) 341.6967.

Deadline is 5 p.m. the Thursday prior to issue date.

thursday 24

11/29/2011

mon 12/05/2011

mychildren maybride, within the ruins, lionheart, and more! show @ 6:30 auditorium black Veil brides and asking alexandria show @ 7:00

READER RECOMMENDS

MAKING SPIRITS BRIGHT HOLIDAY CONCERT W/

NEBRASKA WIND SYMPHONY, SUSIE THORNE,

(Classical) 7 pm, Holland Performing Arts Center,

FREE.

READER RECOMMENDS

straight outta 12/10/2011 Junior high w/ take me to Vegas, the minnahoonies, the shidiots, and through the stone show @ 8:00 sat

afton Presents: 12/18/2011 kayo, husalot, hisPraise, fondue & guests show @ 6:30 sun

sat 1/14/2012

“midwest elites fan aPPreciation show” byleth, the eVil that men do, words like daggers, blessed are the merciless, Valiska, and anchors show @ 7:00

GOBBLE GOBBLE GUNK, (DJ/Electronic) 9 pm, Waiting

Room, FREE. THANKSGIVING WITH THE LIL SLIM BLUES BAND, (Blues)

9 pm, Zoo Bar, $6.

tues

BASSGIVING, (DJ/Electronic) 9 pm, Bourbon Theater.

NEW MOON SONGWRITERS NIGHT, 7 pm, Crescent Moon

Coffee, FREE. SHITHOOK, 9 pm, Duffy’s Tavern, FREE.

FRIDAY 25

HIFI HANGOVER, (Cover Band) 9:30 pm, Arena Bar & Grill,

FREE. TALL WALTER, CHRIS GLOVER, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 9

pm, Barley Street Tavern, $5.

COLD TURKEY 2011 W/ MOUTH, YOU BEAUTIFUL

CREATURE, RELIC, SOLID-GOLD, DON K, THE GIFT,

WREKAFEKT, (Rock) 9 pm, Bourbon Theater, $7.

LIL’ JOE, (Blues) 8 pm, Brazen Head Irish Pub. SHURTHING, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Brewsky’s Park Drive,

FREE. RUDE BAND, (Cover Band) 9:30 pm, Cappy’s Hot Spot Bar

& Grill.

CHESHIRE GRIN, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Chrome Lounge.

MARK LOWE, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 8 pm, Crescent

Moon Coffee, FREE. JITTERBUGS’ NIGHT OUT, (Jazz) 9 pm, Eagles Lodge, $10.

A.D.D. THE BAND, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Firewater Grille.

MARIACHI LUNA Y SOL, 6:30 pm, Hector’s, FREE.

READER RECOMMENDS

FRIDAY AFTERNOON CLUB W/ CELLOIST DAVE DOWNING,

(Rock) 5 pm, House Of Loom, FREE .

GIRLS JUST WANNA HAVE GOO!, (DJ/Electronic) 10 pm,

House Of Loom, $5.

LOLLIPOP FACTORY, ONCE A PAWN, (Rock) 9 pm,

Knickerbockers.

LEMON FRESH DAY, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Loose Moose,

FREE. BLACK FRIDAY PARTY W/ DJ KWICKSTARR, TRUK,

KG KENFOLK, THA 100 CLICK, WILLIESTYLES, YOUNG LEGENDS, (Hip-Hop/Rap) 9 pm, Louis Bar and

Grill.

READER RECOMMENDS

Happy Thanksgiving from your friends at KVNO!

Saturday, Noon: Houston Grand Opera Giacomo Puccini’s Tosca WWW.KVNO.ORG

28

nov. 24, 30, 2011

TRAVELLING MERCIES, CASS BROSTAD, BRET VOVK,

MIKE CLARK, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 9:30 pm,

O’Leaver’s Pub, $5.

ROUGH CUT, (Cover Band) 9 pm, OzoNE Lounge at

Anthony’s Steakhouse, FREE. THE MUSIC OF VINCE GUARALDI AND THE PEANUTS,

(Rock) 7:30 pm, Pizza Shoppe Collective.

CACTUS HILL, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Red9.

ENVY, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Shamrock’s Pub & Grill, FREE. THE MOTHER DUDES, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Slowdown,

FREE. BIRTHDAY AND ANNIVERSARY FOR MWP, (Rock) 9 pm,

Sokol Hall & Auditorium, $7.

IDLE MINDS, (Rock) 9 pm, Stir Live & Loud, $5.

BREAKAWAY, (Country) 9 pm, Uncle Ron’s, FREE. SATCHEL GRANDE, (Rock) 9 pm, Waiting Room, $7.

LEGACY, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Whiskey Roadhouse

(Horseshoe Casino), FREE. KRIS LAGER BAND, (Rock) 9 pm, Zoo Bar, $6.

| THE READER |

music listings

SATURDAY 26

AVARICIOUS, (Cover Band) 9:30 pm, Arena Bar & Grill,

FREE. TURTLE MOON, (Rock) 9 pm, Barley Street Tavern, $5.

LIL’ JOE, (Blues) 8 pm, Brazen Head Irish Pub. CHESHIRE GRIN, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Chrome Lounge.

ACE AND DAN, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 8 pm, Crescent

Moon Coffee, FREE. DADDY MAC AND THE FLACK, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Gator

O’Malley’s, $5.

READER RECOMMENDS

SWAMPBOY BLUES BAND, (Blues) 9 pm, Havana Garage,

FREE. AFRICA UNITE AWARNESS PART W/ DJ VADO, BEN

BADIS, BRENT CRAMPTON, (DJ/Electronic) 9 pm,

House Of Loom, $5.

TREVOR TAYLOR, HINESIGHT, BROWN, (Rock) 9 pm,

Knickerbockers.

LEMON FRESH DAY, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Loose Moose,

FREE. SATURN MOTH, LOLLIPOP FACTORY, BRADLEY TURK,

(Rock) 9:30 pm, O’Leaver’s Pub, $5.

BRULE’ HOLIDAY CONCERT, (Classical) 7:30 pm, Orpheum

Theater, $33-$38.

ROUGH CUT, (Cover Band) 9 pm, OzoNE Lounge at

Anthony’s Steakhouse, FREE. THE MUSIC OF VINCE GUARALDI AND THE PEANUTS,

(Rock) 7:30 pm, Pizza Shoppe Collective.

ECKOPHONIC, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Red9.

TWITCH, ONE HEADLIGHT HIGH, 3 DAY MEAT SALE, AVERT YOUR EYES, (Rock) 9 pm, Shamrock’s Pub &

Grill, FREE.

READER RECOMMENDS

GAGE WALLACE, KYLE HARVEY, ALL YOUNG GIRLS ARE

MACHINE GUNS, BRADY WELLS, MIKE CLARK,

(Poetry/Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 8 pm, Side Door

Lounge, FREE.

READER RECOMMENDS

CANNONISTA, BAZOOKA SHOOTOUT, CELRITAS, (Rock) 9

pm, Slowdown, $5.

DEATH OF A TAXPAYER, (Rock) 9 pm, Stir Live & Loud, $5.

DFUNK, (Cover Band) 8:30 pm, The Grove, $5.

THE DECATURES, THE HOWL, RAWRSHH, ARIEL KOHLL,

(Rock) 9 pm, The Sandbox, $8.

BREAKAWAY, (Country) 9 pm, Uncle Ron’s, FREE. YESTERDAY AND TODAY, (Cover Band) 9 pm, Waiting

Room, $10.

DAVID COOK, (Rock) 9 pm, Whiskey Roadhouse

(Horseshoe Casino), $25.

KRIS LAGER BAND, (Rock) 9 pm, Zoo Bar, $6.

SUNDAY 27

SUNDAY GOLD W/ GREG K, (DJ/Electronic) 9 pm, Bar 415,

FREE. THE CURLY MARTIN TRIO SUNDAY JAZZ JAMS, (Jazz) 4

pm, Doc’s Legacy Lounge, $3.

GREAT AMERICAN DESERT, MANNY COON, KYLE HARVEY, DANIEL DORNER, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 9 pm,

Duffy’s Tavern.

READER RECOMMENDS

ROCKABILLY NIGHT W/ DEAD BUNDY AND NEAT NEAT

NEATS, SNAKE ISLAND, HOT TAIL HONEYS, (Rock) 9

pm, Gator O’Malley’s, FREE. SUNDAY LIVE SERIES W/ TARA VAUGHAN, PATRYK

LARNEY, BEN MORGAN, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 9

pm, House Of Loom, FREE. THE MUSIC OF VINCE GUARALDI AND THE PEANUTS,

(Rock) 3 pm, Pizza Shoppe Collective.

TRACEY SKRETTA, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 2 pm, Soaring

Wings Vineyard, FREE. AUDITION NIGHT, (Cover Band) 7 pm, Whiskey Roadhouse

(Horseshoe Casino), FREE. R&B SMOOTH JAZZ AND BLUES SUPPER CLUB, (Jazz/

Blues) 6:15 pm, ZIN Room, FREE.

MONDAY 28

NWU JAZZ ENSEMBLE, (Jazz) 8 pm, Brewsky’s Haymarket,

$6; Students; $5.

MUSIC FOR HOPE CONCERT SERIES FEATURING THE

CHIARA STRING QUARTET, (Classical) 6 pm, Matt

Talbot Kitchen.

PERCUSSION ENSEMBLE CONCERT, (Classical) 6:30 pm,

Nebraska Wesleyan, FREE. WOODWIND ENSEMBLE CONCERT, (Classical) 7:30 pm,

O’Donnell Auditorium, FREE. MIKE GURCIULLO AND HIS LAS VEGAS LAB BAND, (Jazz)

6:30 pm, OzoNE Lounge at Anthony’s Steakhouse,

FREE. MUSIC QUIZ HOSTED BY MARQ MANNER AND DAVID

LEIBOWITZ, 8 pm, Waiting Room, FREE. THE ZOO BAR HOUSE BAND, (Blues) 7 pm, Zoo Bar, $3.

PIANO HAPPY HOUR, 5 pm, Zoo Bar, FREE.

TUESDAY 29

READER RECOMMENDS

CHIARA STRING QUARTET, (Classical) 7:30 pm, Kimball

Recital Hall, $20; Seniors: $10; Students: $5.

FORWARD FERRETT, SANDRA FRANZ, WALTER ANDERSON, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 9 pm,

Knickerbockers.

BRASS ENSEMBLE CONCERT, (Classical) 7:30 pm,

O’Donnell Auditorium, FREE. MATT COX, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 6:30 pm, OzoNE

Lounge at Anthony’s Steakhouse, FREE. PRIL JAM, (Rock) 6:30 pm, Rookies Bar & Grill, FREE. MATT GEREAGHTY, (Jazz) 9 pm, Side Door Lounge, FREE.

READER RECOMMENDS

MYCHILDREN MYBRIDE, WITHIN THE RUINS, LIONHEART, I DECLARE WAR, THE PLOT IN YOU, GREG THE HERO,

(Rock) 6 pm, Sokol Hall & Auditorium, Advance: $12;

DOS: $14.

THE JAZZOCRACY, (Jazz) 6 pm, Zoo Bar, FREE. BATTLE MANTIS, DUSK BLED DAWN, (Rock) 9:30 pm, Zoo

Bar, $4.

Wednesday 30

END TIMES SPASM BAND, (Rock) 9 pm, Barley Street

Tavern, FREE. DICEY RILEYS, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 7 pm, Brazen Head

Irish Pub. TRIONOMETRY, (Jazz) 7 pm, Crescent Moon Coffee, FREE. THE JV ALLSTARS, ANTENNA UP, DAIN ESTES, (Rock/

Punk) 9 pm, Duffy’s Tavern.

Y ST. COMBO, GREY SPACE, (Rock) 9 pm, Knickerbockers.

ACOUSTIC OPEN MIC FOR MUSICIANS & POETS, (Poetry)

8 pm, Meadowlark Coffee, FREE. NWU JAZZ ENSEMBLE CONCERT, (Jazz) 7:30 pm,

O’Donnell Auditorium, FREE. HONEY & DARLING, NELSONVILLAINS, WIND-UP BIRD,

(Rock) 9:30 pm, O’Leaver’s Pub, $5.

BOZAK AND MORRISSEY, (Cover Band) 6:30 pm, OzoNE

Lounge at Anthony’s Steakhouse, FREE. CHRIS SAUB, (Folk/Singer-Songwriter) 8 pm, Pizza Shoppe

Collective, $5.

OPEN MIC NIGHT HOSTED BY THE GOLDEN HOUR, 9 pm,

Side Door Lounge, FREE.

READER RECOMMENDS

COLOR ME OBSESSED: A FILM ABOUT THE REPLACEMENTS SCREENING W/ DIRECTOR Q & A,

LIVE BAND COVERS, (Cover Band) 8 pm, Slowdown,

$7.

SCATTERED TREES, QUIET CORRAL, (Rock) 9 pm, Waiting

Room, $8.

DEAN THE BIBLE, DOODLY SQUAT, IAN HELMER’S STAGE

FRIGHT, (Rock) 9:30 pm, Zoo Bar, $5.

DAVINA & THE VAGABONDS, (Blues) 6 pm, Zoo Bar, $8.

VENUES Ameristar Casino, 2200 River Rd., Council Bluffs, ameristar.com Arena Bar & Grill, 3809 N. 90th St., 571.2310, arenaomaha.com BarFly, 707 N. 114th St., 504.4811 Barley Street Tavern, 2735 N. 62nd St., 554.5834, barleystreet.com Bourbon Theatre, 1415 O St., Lincoln, 730.5695 Duffy’s Tavern, 1412 O St., Lincoln, 474.3453, myspace.com/ duffystavern The Hideout, 302 S. 72nd St. Knickerbocker’s, 901 O St., Lincoln, 476.6865, knickerbockers.net LIV Lounge, 2279 S. 67th St. livlounge.com Louis Bar and Grill, 5702 NW Radial Hwy., 551.5993 McKenna’s Blues, Booze & BBQ, 7425 Pacific St., 393.7427, mckennasbbq.com New Lift Lounge, 4737 S. 96th St., 339.7170 O’Leaver’s Pub, 1322 S. Saddle Creek Rd., 556.1238, myspace. com/oleaverspub

Ozone Lounge at Anthony’s Steakhouse, 72nd and F, 331.7575, ozoneclubomaha.com.

Pizza Shoppe Collective, 6056 Maple St., 556.9090, pscollective.com Qwest, 455 N. 10th St., qwestcenteromaha.com Side Door, 3530 Leavenworth St., 504.3444.

Slowdown, 729 N. 14th St., 345.7569, theslowdown.com Sokol Hall, 2234 S. 13th St., 346.9802, sokolundergound.com The Sydney, 5918 Maple St., 932.9262, thesydneybenson.com Stir, 1 Harrahs Blvd., Council Bluffs, harrahs.com Venue 162, 162 W. Broadway, Council Bluffs, 712.256.7768, myspace.com/venue162 Waiting Room, 6212 Maple St., 884.5353, waitingroomlounge.com Whiskey Roadhouse, Horseshoe Casino, 2701 32nd Ave., Council Bluffs, whiskeyroadhouse.com Your Mom’s Downtown Bar, 1512 Howard St., 345.0180 Zoo Bar, 136 N.14th St., Lincoln, zoobar.com

#3 – Omaha Reader (The Reader) – 11-03-2011

DAVID COOK NOVEMBER 26

Tickets available at whiskeyroadhouse.com, Ticketmaster.com or by phone at 1-800-745-3000.

I-29 South, Exit 1B | horseshoe.com

Must be 21 years or older to attend shows or to gamble. Know When To Stop Before You Start.® Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-BETS-OFF (Iowa) or 1-800-522-4700 (National). ©2011, Caesars License Company, LLC.

V1_61921.3_4.9x7.47_4c_Ad.indd 1

11/1/11 8:11 AM

music listings

| THE READER |

NOV. 17 - 23, 2011

29

Protect your assets before the holidays.

Declare

Bankruptcy

NOW

before it is too late.

File for $975 James Walter Crampton Bankruptcy Attorney

402-341-9929

www.theomahalawyer.com

30

nov. 24 - 30, 2011

| THE READER |

E D I T E D

Eastwood prints the legend with J. Edgar

T

J. EDGAR

by Justin Senkbile

REPORTCARD

he holidays are here, which means Hollywood is busy unleashing their new batch of prestigious Oscar hopefuls. So it’s not much of a surprise to find the great old guard, Clint Eastwood, already camped out at the theaters with J. Edgar, his latest in a stream of totally respectable, slightly distant and ultimately perplexing movies.

In it, Leonardo DiCaprio plays J. Edgar Hoover, the first head of the FBI and the quintessence of red-blooded do-goodery for at least a few generations of Americans. The film follows him from his early angry years (where he shapes the young bureau like an enthusiastic sculptor) to his late angry years (as he flails wildly against his increasing irrelevance).

Naomi Watts, in the definitive “supporting role,” plays Helen Gandy, a woman who helps illuminate quite a bit about DiCaprio’s character.

When she rejects Hoover’s advances, he immediately makes her his personal secretary. Just by force of his authority, they’ve suddenly become more intimate than some married couples.

J. Edgar is an interesting but chilly exercise: expert enough to demand respect but too stoic to claim much feeling. Some of that has to do with the photography, done with a steely sheen that makes even the reds and yellows look like shades of grey. It gives the impression not of history being brought to life so much as history being brought to a really impressive museum.

Anonymous DIt got this title because no one admits they’re the one who saw it.

The Ides of March It may be a good movie, but you won’t feel good after.

Bellflower (ON DVD) First-time writer/director Evan Glodell will have to try harder next time.

D

The Rum Diary Not totally intoxicating, but you’ll catch a strong buzz.

B-

Footloose As the song says, I recommending cutting Footloose.

D

A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas If you’re open to thirds of this duo, you’ll have some fun inhaling this one.

C-

Weekend Gay or straight, love is a messy, awkward thing.

A-

READER RECOMMENDS

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2 (ON DVD) BAll mostly average things must come to an end...

Film Streams at the Ruth Sokolof Theater 14th & Mike Fahey Street (formerly Webster Street) More info & showtimes 402.933.0259 · filmstreams.org Facebook & Twitter: @filmstreams

B+

On a happier note, the script (by Milk writer Dustin Lance Black) takes on all of Hoover’s legendary vileness and does it with the utmost humanism. There’s no doubt that this Hoover is a nasty guy. But as articulated by DiCaprio, it becomes obvious that the maliciousness is just a byproduct of his intense fear of loss: loss of respect, loyalty, and above all, control.

All the infamous Hoover rumors of gay lovers and cross-dressing are here and are examined with equal respect. Such tales were perfect gossip fodder 70-odd years ago, as they surely still would be today. But our filmmakers wisely realized that it’s far more interesting, and certainly more of a challenge, to take all those myths and attempt to turn them into a man. They’re trying to work backwards from a caricature to a portrait.

From our perspective—as audience members accustomed to seeing human lives reduced to sensational sound bites and threads of truth knotted into frightening fiction (and that’s just the news)—this all has a strange effect; almost a backfire. It ends up being neither as campy nor as real as we somehow expect it to be. This all makes it seem like something’s missing.

But, technically, nothing is missing. The love story between Hoover and his aide Clyde Tyson (Armie Hammer) is there, and it’s effective. DiCaprio feels less studious and stuffy than he usually does under such historical weight. More than anything, we sense that Eastwood is in complete control here, which only adds to the frustration over the fact that J. Edgar is slightly too cold and distant. ,

GRADE: C+

B Y

R Y A N

S Y R E K

■ As someone who still giggles at the arc of Ice Cube’s career, you’ll find me chortling in the corner over this news: he’s gonna write and star in another Friday movie, possibly with Chris Tucker coming back. Tucker hasn’t made a non-Rush Hour movie since the Clinton administration, while Cube has been busy switching from “keeping it real” to “keeping it real…obvious how much I love Coors Light!”

Who knows if they’ll recapture the magic of the original, but they will capture some cash.

■ Amy Adams must have really loved her work in The Muppets. Why else would she agree to star in another film with an oddly assembled character with ridiculous eyebrows, saggy facial features and a strangely gruff voice? That’s right, Adams will appear with Clint Eastwood in Trouble with the Curve, about a baseball scout going on one last trip with his daughter. Eastwood said he was done acting after Gran Torino. Then again, he also says he likes Herman Cain for president, so I suppose we have to consider the source.

■ After much deliberation, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association has made what I believe to be their first correct decision: They’re bringing Ricky Gervais back to host the Golden Globes. Despite having savaged such legendary icons as Tim Allen, Gervais has been given another chance to make an awards show actually entertaining. In related news, Billy Crystal is hard at work penning a Monica Lewinsky joke for the Oscars.

■ After nearly five decades, the world is finally getting a big-screen Dr. Who movie. Set to be directed by David Yates, this is news that sure to leave die-hard fans of the phonebooth enthusiast and people who have never heard of the character saying “Who!” or “Who?”

CUTTINGROOM

Hoover the Damned

film

— Ryan Syrek Cutting Room provides breaking local and national movie news … complete with added sarcasm. Send any relevant information to film@ thereader.com. Check out Ryan on Movieha!, a weekly half-hour movie podcast (movieha.libsyn.com/rss), and also catch him on the radio on CD 105.9 (cd1059.com) Fridays at around 7:30 a.m. and follow him on Twitter (twitter.com/thereaderfilm).

This Week The Descendants First-Run (R)

Showtimes for The Descendants:

Directed by Alexander Payne.

Wed, 11/23: 2:00, 2:30, 4:30, 5:00, 7:00, 7:30, 9:30, 10:00 Thu, 11/24: 2:00, 2:30, 5:00, 7:00, 7:30, 9:30, 10:00 Fri, 11/25: 2:00, 2:30, 4:30, 5:00, 7:00, 7:30, 9:30, 10:00 Sat, 11/26 - Sun, 11/27: 2:00, 4:30, 5:00, 7:00, 7:30, 9:30, 10:00 Mon, 11/28 - Wed, 11/30: 2:00, 2:30, 4:30, 5:00, 7:00, 7:30, 9:30, 10:00

Coming Soon The Endless Summer (1966) with live musical accompaniment by Matteah Baim

More dates & times at filmstreams.org.

Thursday, December 1, 7pm

Starts Wednesday, November 23, exclusively at Film Streams’ Ruth Sokolof Theater!

“Watching a film as mature, moving, original and unpredictable as THE DESCENDANTS renews my faith in American movies, and reaffirms Alexander Payne’s status as one of our most gifted storytellers.”

—Leonard Maltin

film

Family & Children’s Series The Goonies 1985 Directed by Richard Donner.

Nov 19 - Dec 1 (Saturdays, Sundays, Thursdays)

| THE READER |

NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

31

ual n n A 8th

e u R a L Lash

e v i Dr rt

e c n y o Tobenefit c for

e g d i R e n i P f o ren

d l i h c e h t

TOUCHPOINTS OF A COMMUNITY UNITED Touchpoints unite people and organizations. United Way of the Midlands creates those touchpoints through powerful partnerships in education,

Sunday, Dec. 4 The 21st Saloon 4737 S. 96th St. $10 cover

financial stability and health.

Because when our community is connected, we all LIVE UNITED . 速

DIAL 2-1-1 any time to find nearby health and human services.

Donations of new unwrapped toys appreciated Michael Burks 5 p.m.

Brad Cordle Blues Band 3:45 p.m.

Christy Rossitter & 112 N. Duck 2:30 p.m.

www.lashlaruetoydrive.com 32

NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

| THE READER |

UWMIDLANDS.ORG

GIVE. ADVOCATE. VOLUNTEER.

planetpower w ee k l y

h oroscopes

T

hanksgiving is a counting of heads past the sign of the great death, Scorpio. More beings leave their bodies during Scorpio than any other sign. Since the beauty of astrology implies reincarnation, let’s wish pleasant journeys to the departed souls and say congratulations to those still embodied, who can still accomplish anything they (can) dream.

—MOJOPOPlanetPower.com i SAGITTARIUS (11.23-12.21) I know you’re chomping at the bit, but you gotta wait a month, and that’s it!

Mercury just retrograded at 20 degrees Sagittarius on the New Moon in Sagittarius, around midnight on Thanksgiving, particularly affecting Sagittarians born around December 10th. In addition, your ruler Jupiter finally moves direct on Christmas Day. Did you hear the one about the girl that had Christmas scenes tattooed on one of her legs and Thanksgiving scenes on the other? Maybe she wanted you to come up and visit between the holidays?! Keep/develop your sense of humor. That’s the rumor. j CAPRICORN (12.221.20) The Moon moves into Capricorn on Saturday night after dinner (where it resides ’til Tuesday morning), conjuncting Venus’ entry into your sign, where it will stay ’til Christmas Eve, which is the New Moon in Capricorn; when whatever’s happening in the realms of love, art and your economy is/will be due to manifest within your destiny. Make your life your yoga.

Become what you’re meant to be. It’s time to cleanse your subconscious, to better become who thou/you truly art. k AQUARIUS (1.21-2.19) Saturnians: The lessons of harmony are with you for another year. What have you learned so far, as far as the 1st, 3rd and 5th are concerned? Maybe 3 people in harmony are more powerful than 10 in unison. Uranians: Wait ’til the Full Moon Lunar Eclipse on December 10th. Trust me. Trust the truth.

Trust me; we all know the truth. Everybody knows…

(They’ve talked you out of believing in your Self.) i PISCES (2.20-3.20) M ‘A,’ ‘U,’ ‘M.’ Power, love and wisdom. Red, yellow, blue. The beginning, the middle, the end. Brahma, the creator; Vishnu, the preserver; Shiva, the destroyer (or changer). ‘G’ (generator), ‘O’ (operator), ‘D’ (director). The 3 “persons” in God, the 3 colors of our visual universe, the 3 sounds… ‘A,’ ‘U,’ ‘M.’ (I promised last week I’d give you the formula and you know what happens to people who don’t keep their promises… I’ll tell you next week. I promise.) a ARIES (3.21-4.20) Gardening is your passion…

You’ve got all winter to prepare your soil. One out of 10 of you is experiencing the “other side.” Half of those will fail/mess up, and the other half will “see the (clear blue) light”! That’s 1 out of 20. Hear with your 3rd ear.

With your 3rd eye, see/dream what your spring scene can/will/shall bring…

b y

mo j opo

b TAURUS (4.21-5.20) Your ruler Venus conjuncts the Moon as they both move into Capricorn on Saturday, the 26th. The responsibilities of love, your art, the design of your life and the/your reaction (especially concerning your economy) are surfin’ in with the holidays. You’ve got ’til we reach Capricorn, when you can expect some unexpected lightning bolts to nurture your Earth rebirth during a/your winter storm. Christmas starts this (economic) rebirth. c GEMINI (5.21-6.21) Mercury’s retrograding in your opposite sign for these next 3 weeks, ’til after sunset on December 13th. This represents some mouthy opposition stemming from partnerships. Become your opposite for these next 3 weeks. Then they won’t know who or what to be mad at. Makes sense to me! Dancing in the void equals “avoidance.” d CANCER (6.22-7.22) Ahhhh… To be free… What a concept. Though somehow, eventually, freedom becomes another responsibility. Strange to me…

It seems that responsibility would be the antithesis of being free, right? The New Moon Solar Eclipse and retrograde Mercury are in your theoretical 6th House of work and health.

Take a break from gorging after there are no more “leftovers” left over. I know: “Don’t want to waste…” Yeah, I know all the excuses too, and obviously, so do you. Maybe it’s not food you seek? (Oh MOJO, how come/ can you seem so mean?) The truth hurts, doughnut? e LEO (7.23-8.22) Ahhhh… Back in your element. Guess what? The confusion works for you. Sure. Go ahead. They’ll never know you did it. Nobody will question you… At least for 3 weeks, anyway… Hey, how about taking what you know and using it for the good of all? Wow! What a concept… f VIRGO (8.23-9.22) Your problems stem from your home garden/center. Prepare to water these lilies of destruction between the holidays. What better time to release one’s fertilizing manure for maximum, dramatic, creative affect on unsuspecting relatives? You are my favorite actor/ actress, aren’t you? If you act hurt enough, they will/may forget what their problem was with you, and why… g LIBRA (9.23-10.22) Please read Taurus. Your ruler Venus is in Capricorn, while Capricorn’s ruler, Saturn, is in your sign. This is called “mutual reception,” and it works for you. You are your home environment, and your home environment enhances people’s perception of you.

Your new/next “bi’ness” takes place at home. You’ll know what I mean during this coming month of your dreams. h SCORPIO (10.23-11.22) Isn’t it great when the universe lines up for just a moment and lets you know that it’s all cool? Three times in my life I’ve “seen everything.”

I can’t tell you what we had for dinner that night, but I’ll carry that flavor bouquet ’til the day I leave this body behind. I am now, forever, thankful. For just a moment on those 3 mystical occasions, I saw everything line up. And since then, I’ve known that there are no mistakes and that peace and love shall conquer all… ,

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| THE READER |

NOv. 24 - 30, 2011

33

newsoftheweird

t h e wo r l d g o n e f r e a k y b y c h u c k s h e p h e r d w i t h i l lu s t r at i o n s b y t o m b r i s c o e

Mother Love

A

t press time, Melinda Arnold, 34, was waiting to hear whether her mother would be accepted as an organ donor for her daughter -- with the organ being the mom’s womb. Melinda (a nurse from Melbourne, Australia) was born without one (though with healthy ovaries and eggs), and if the transplant

by Swedish surgeon Mats Brannstrom of Gothenburg University is successful, and Melinda later conceives, her baby will be nurtured in the very same uterus in which Melinda, herself, was nurtured. (Womb transplants have been performed in rats and, with limited success, from a deceased human donor.)

Government in Action A British manufacturer, BCB International, is flourishing, buoyed by sales of its Kevlar underwear, at $65 a pair, to U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan and Iraq.

However, soldiers and Marines must buy them directly; the “Bomb Boxers” are not supplied by the Pentagon even though nearly 10 percent of battlefield explosive-device injuries result in sometimes-catastrophic genital and rectal damage. According to an October report in Talking Points Memo, the Pentagon’s currently issued protection is inferior to BCB’s but is less expensive. (Although the Pentagon fully funds post-injury prostheses and colostomies, it could purchase about 7,700 Bomb Boxers for the price of a single Tomahawk missile.)

In what a cement company executive said is “one of those bureaucratic things that doesn’t make any sense,” the city of Detroit recently built wheelchair ramps at 13 intersections along Grandy Street, despite knowing that those ramps are either not connected to sidewalks or connected to seldom-used, badly crumbling sidewalks. The ramps were required by a 2006 lawsuit settlement in which Detroit pledged to build ramps on any street that gets re-paved, as Grandy was. (No one in city government thought, apparently, to attempt a trade of these 13 intersections for paving 13 more-widely used ones in the city.)

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Nov. 24 - 30, 2011

| THE READER |

weird news

A Chicago Tribune/WGN-TV investigation revealed in September and October the astonishing result that Illinois laws passed in 1997 and 2007 at the behest of organized labor have given at least three former union leaders lifetime government pensions as if they had been city or state employees, totaling an estimated drain on public budgets of about $7 million. Two teachers’ union officials were allowed to teach exactly one day to qualify, and an engineers’ union official was hired for exactly one day, with the remainder of the service of the three having been on the payroll of the respective unions. A September Tribune report estimated that perhaps 20 other union officials might have been eligible under similar provisions.

Great Art! It was haute couture meeting haute cuisine at the Communication Museum in Berlin in November, as prominent German chef Roland Trettl introduced his fashions (displayed on live models) made from food, including a tunic of octopus, a miniskirt of seaweed, a trouser suit made with lean bacon, a scarf of squid ink pasta, and a hat woven from lettuce. The museum director (presumably without irony) said the items were “provocative” and “raise(d) questions.”

Veteran New York City performance artist Marni Kotak, 36, gave birth to her first child, Ajax, on Oct. 25 -- and that was her “art,” as the birth took place at the Microscope Gallery in Brooklyn, N.Y., after Kotak had moved into the space two weeks earlier to interact with visitors. Previously, Kotak had “re-enacted,” as her “art,” both her own birth and the loss of her virginity in the back seat of a car. (A New York Times report suggested that Kotak may not be the most extreme performer in her family. Her artist-husband, Jason Martin, makes videos in which he dresses as a wolf or dog and “conducts seance-like rituals intended to contact the half-animal, half-human creatures that visited him in dreams as a child.”)

COPYRIGHT 2011 CHUCK SHEPHERD. Visit Chuck Shepherd daily at NewsoftheWeird.blogspot.com or NewsoftheWeird.com. Send Weird News to WeirdNewsTips@yahoo.com or P.O. Box 18737, Tampa, FL 33679. Illustrations by Tom Briscoe (smallworldcomics.com).

Police Report Cutting-Edge Policing: Officials in Prince George’s County, Md., reported that crime had fallen as much as 23 percent during the first nine months of 2011 -the result, they said, of holding meetings with 67 of the most likely recidivist offenders in five neighborhoods and sweet-talking them. The 67 were offered help in applying for various government and volunteer programs, but were told they would be watched more closely by patrols.

Milestone: Joseph Wilson, 50, was chased by police and arrested in Port St. Lucie, Fla., in October and charged with shoplifting from a Beall’s department store. It was his 100th arrest -although prosecutors are batting only .353 against him (35-for-99). (Wilson’s getaway was delayed when he jumped into the passenger seat of an idling SUV and ordered the driver to “Take off!” but the driver did not.)

Points for Style: (1) Police in Corpus Christi, Texas, looked to the public for help in October to find the man who, according to surveillance video of a city agency building, stole three surveillance cameras (not the recording units, just the cameras) by lassoing them from their perches near the ceiling. (2) Theresa Mejia, held in the Burlington, Wash., police station on kidnapping charges, climbed through a ceiling vent in a dramatic escape attempt, traversing the entire length of the building before officers knew where she was.

(However, that put her directly over the police chief ’s office, and she crashed through to the floor.)

The Aristocrats!

(1) Owen Kato, 23, was arrested following a police report in Port Charlotte, Fla., of a man grossing out customers by standing beside the entrance to a McDonald’s for about 10 minutes, popping his pimples with his fingers. (2) A man unnamed in a news story was charged on July 24 with resisting arrest (for trespassing) by failing to put his hands behind his back.

According to the Destin, Fla., police report, the man explained, “I can’t put my hands behind my back be-

cause I’m making a bowel movement (in my pants).”

(According to the report, that was true.)

Least Competent Criminals Brent Morgan, 20, was arrested in Prince George, British Columbia, in October on three counts related to the attempted theft of a Corvette. Morgan had seen the car in a driveway, jumped in and locked the doors. However, the owner had been in the process of charging the battery, which was still too weak for the car to start and for the door locks to continue working. Feeling trapped and sensing that the owner had called the police, Morgan panicked and began using any available tool inside the car to smash the window. According to the police report, officers arrived just as Morgan had broken open the driver’s side window, but too late for Morgan to realize that he could have exited the car by manually lifting the door lock with his fingers.

Recent Alarming Headlines “Maine Woman Loses Lawsuit Over Removal of Husband’s Brain.” “Condoms Rushed to Thai Flood Victims.” “Killer Sharks Invade Golf Course in Australia.” “Lingerie Football League Wants to Start a Youth League.” “Man Uncooperative After Being Stabbed in Scrotum With Hypodermic Needle.”

News of the Weird Classic (May 1991) Wanda Webb Holloway, 36, was arrested in January (1991) for putting out a murder contract on a Channelview, Texas, woman. Holloway thought killing the mother of her 13-year-old daughter’s arch rival would cause the rival to quit the junior high cheerleader squad in grief, making way for the Holloway girl’s selection. Reportedly, Holloway imagined the other girl’s death, too, but realized that she could only afford one contract. (Holloway’s story spawned two TV movies. She was convicted of soliciting murder, but the verdict was overturned, and she eventually pleaded guilty in exchange for a 10-year sentence, of which she served six months.) ,

weird news

| THE READER |

Nov. 24 - 30, 2011

35

CREIGHTON Paint the town blue!

Women’s Basketball • Sun., Nov. 27 @ 2:05 p.m.

Creighton vs. North Carolina • Sun., Dec. 4 @ 1:35 p.m.

Creighton vs. Notre Dame

Men’s Basketball • Fri., Nov. 25 @ 7:05 p.m.

Creighton vs. Campbell • Sun., Dec. 4 @ 5:05 p.m.

Creighton vs. Nebraska

Women’s home basketball games are played at D.J. Sokol Arena inside the Ryan Athletic Center (19th & Burt Street) Men’s home basketball games are played at CenturyLink Center Omaha (N. 10th Street)

www.GoCreighton.com

Language No Barrier Now Huskers’ Choi has come a long way

And he knows a lot more about football. In fact, he knows enough to play in the offensive line. No longer is he charged with plugging the middle on defense.

Choi not only has played for the Huskers this

by Mike Babcock season, he’s started at left guard when sophomore Anhe most difficult adjustment was being drew Rodriguez was injured. Choi and Spencer Long, away from family, of course. Seung Hoon the right guard, played every snap against Penn State Choi left home in Seoul, South Korea when because there were no other healthy guards.

Long, like Choi, is a walk-on. And starting cenhe was 14-years-old.

The next most difficult adjustment for Choi was ter Mike Caputo was a walk-on before earning a communication, the English language. That required scholarship, a reflection of the value of Nebraska’s the better part of two years. “I didn’t know what was walk-on program.

Choi’s story is unique, even for a walk-on. “I mean, going on, so I just sat in the class every day, just stare at teacher, try (to) figure out what she’s saying, what he’s that’s incredible,” sophomore tackle Jeremiah Sirles said.

“I couldn’t imagine. I played football since I was 8-yearssaying,” said Nebraska’s junior offensive guard. old, and it’s just something comThe classes in which he ing from somewhere, I don’t even sat were at Lincoln Christian think football’s a pastime over in High School. Because he South Korea, coming over here couldn’t speak the language, and ‘Hey, that looks fun,’ and playhe avoided classmates. “I ing at the collegiate level.” didn’t want them to ask me Choi got his first start questions,” Choi said. against Washington. “Having Once he made some never played football and then friends, however, “that’s to play, what Class C-1 (in high when my English started school), whatever that was, and picking up,” he said. then all of a sudden as a junior That’s also when he bein college you’ve starting against came interested in football. a Pac-10 (12) opponent, whatChoi saw his friends playing ever,” said Cotton. football and figured it might “That’s a heck of an accombe fun to join them – and SEUNG HOON CHOI plishment for a guy.” to wear a helmet and pads.

No longer does Choi try to avoid questions. He He liked the look of football. “It was kind of cool to asks them in the offensive line meetings. “He looks watch,” he said. like he knows what’s going on,” Sirles said. “I mean, He was a sophomore then.

Choi had played baseball and soccer in Korea, but he’s very attentive to everything that’s going on. I think football was literally foreign to him, which is why he that’s just a testament to his will. He’s a smart kid.”

He’s also “humble with the whole thing,” said started out on defense. He played noseguard, and his responsibility was to hold his ground in the middle of Sirles.

Choi no longer tries to avoid those around the line, “just play the gap.”

Someone his size, with his strength, stands out at him, either. He’s a “great guy, just very quiet,” Cotthe Class C-1 level in Nebraska. Even so, it was tough ton said. “But the guys love him, and he’s a great because “I didn’t know what was going on,” said Choi. joke teller. He’s probably one of the driest, funni“If I see a guy running with the ball, I try (to) tackle. est guys you’ve ever been around.

“They’re not really funny stories. It’s just how he That’s what they told me to do.

“I’m pretty sure I didn’t have much techniques. says them that makes them funny.”

Tackle Yoshi Hardrick, who plays alongside him, I just play.”

His technique might have been lacking, but he said Choi’s first start against Washington was “probplayed well enough that former Nebraska defensive ably the funniest game I’ve ever played.”

The Washington players were talking trash. And coordinator Kevin Cosgrove talked to him about walking on. And after Cosgrove was gone, Husker offensive Choi was talking back.

“I didn’t know he talked that much,” said line coach Barney Cotton showed an interest.

It wasn’t easy at first. When they talked on the Hardrick. “Every play when we’d break the huddle, he phone, Cotton had difficulty understanding him. just kept saying stuff . . . He’d talk very funny. I don’t know. It was just different.”

Again, language was an issue.

Clearly, Choi’s language problem has been “Actually, he talks a lot better now than he did solved. , then,” Cotton said.

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36

NOV. 24 - 30, 2011

| THE READER |

sports

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