The Reader - June 2018

V ot e i n th e G ENE R A L

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JU NE 2 0 1 8 | volUME 25 | ISSU E 06

E THE M USIC ISSU

s d n a B 0 2 p o T ’s a h a m O • m is iv t c A p o H Hip ART: Artist Without Borders DISH: Feast Your Ears on This FEATURE: Coming home is sweet for Cathy Hughes Heartland Healing: Homeopathy: What it is, is what it ain’t. THEATER: Theaters harvest plays from Great Plains conference Film: Concerning Conductor Composition HOODOO: Celebrate Summer

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publisher/editor........John Heaston john@thereader.com graphic designer........... Ken Guthrie, Sebastian Molina assistant editor.....JoAnna LeFlore joanna@thereader.com rock star intern......................................Cheyenne Alexis

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

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COVER: Saddle Creek at 25: Defining indie cool again

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COVER: Hip Hop Activism with Houston Alexander

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FEATURE: Coming home is sweet for media giant Cathy Hughes

healing.........Michael Braunstein info@heartlandhealing.com arts/visual..........Mike Krainak mixedmedia@thereader.com eat....................................Sara Locke crumbs@thereader.com film...........................Ryan Syrek cuttingroom@thereader.com hoodoo.............. B.J. Huchtemann bjhuchtemann@gmail.com music...................James Walmsley backbeat@thereader.com over the edge........Tim McMahan tim.mcmahan@gmail.com theater............................................ coldcream@thereader.com

SALES & MARKETING

................................................ Kati Falk kati@thereader.com

DISTRIBUTION/DIGITAL

......................................... Clay Seaman clay@thereader.com

OFFICE ASSISTANT

...................................... Salvador Robles sal@el-perico.com

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Eat: Feast Your Ears on This

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HEARTLAND HEALING: Homeopathy: What it is, is what it ain’t.

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PICKS: Cool Things to do in June

PHOTOGRAPHY

................................. Debra S. Kaplan debra@thereader.com

OUR SISTER MEDIA CHANNELS

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ART: Artist Without Borders

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Theater: Theaters harvest plays from Great Plains Conference

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HooDoo: Celebrate Summer

OUR DIGITAL MARKETING SERVICES

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MUSIC: Top 20 Artists JUNE 2018

| THE READER |

CONTENTS

FILM: Concerning Conductor Composition

Omaha Jobs: How to Pursue a ‘Creative’ Career Pursuing a creative career sometimes invites unsolicited disdain, cautions and criticism from the people in your life.

“Make sure you have a back-up plan!”

“You know that only a small percentage of people actually make it in that career field, right?”

“But don’t you want a real job?”

Yet creative people likely find true professional happiness only if they do something that flexes their creative muscles daily. And to dissuade a creative person from seeking such a career isn’t successful if that person won’t be happy in a mundane career.

Not every artist starves Creative careers aren’t all about starving artists. In fact, there are some mainstream jobs that let you be creative while you still earn a steady paycheck.

The point is that options abound, even within creative career circles.

Minimum wage in Nebraska The minimum hourly wage varies from one state to another. Although the federal minimum hourly wage remains $7.25, the minimum wage in Nebraska is $9 an hour. This applies only to regular, non-tip-earning employees, not to independent contractors.

Small businesses that earn less than $500,000 a year are not required to pay minimum wage to their employees.

Demonstrate your talent Job seekers in creative fields need to demonstrate their talent to woo potential employers or clients. That means visual artists should have a portfolio, writers must have writing samples ready, and musicians or voice talent should have sample recordings.

These should all be updated frequently as your skills and experience evolve to accurately portray a creative person’s abilities and talent.

Don’t think because you’re creative that you don’t need an up-dated resume. Resumes give potential employers or clients a quick scan at your experience, schooling and accolades.

To expose or not expose One great debate among creative professionals is whether it’s worth it to work “for exposure,” meaning, for no pay on a “tryout” basis. While exposure of your talents to the right people can spur a career turning point, people should be paid for the work they do.

It boils down to whether you think your time and effort are worth being paid for. If you don’t think you so, there’s a good chance you aren’t ready to professionally enter the creative market.

Of course, doing work pro bono for charity is different. Do it for free because you believe in the cause. If a career-changing person stumbles upon your work, it’s simply good fortune.

Network, network, network Employers aren’t allowed to require or request employees to take lie detector tests – either as ”Networking” might make you think of professionals in business suits exchanging business cards and having stifled All Saint’s Episcopal conversations. But it doesn’t always have to be Church Rummage that way. For creative folks, networking might Sale, mean attending the events of other creatives 9302 Blondo Street, one day and getting to know people in the community.

People want to hire people whose work only, Friday. they already admire or who come highly April 20 th , 9am to 3pm. recommended by someone they trust. Many $100 dollar bills not accepted. fantastic opportunities begin with someone saying to a friend, “Oh hey, I know this person who …” Within the creative community, many of the best positions aren’t even advertised.

Get better at what you do You may have an innate talent for what you do, but dditional education will only help you create a career you’ll love. Take classes , attend lectures and workshops, and pursue knowledge from people who already do what you hope one day to also do.

Rehearse, revise and continually pursue advanced knowledge – not just to impress potential employers and clients, but to help make you improve and accentuate your talents, innate or otherwise.

Sing your own praises Don’t be afraid to let everyone know how good you are at what you do by acting as your own promotion agent. Learn to self-promote while you pursue your creative career. A welldesigned website showcasing your talents can go a long way to impress the right people.

For example, if you’re a writer, contact local book stores and libraries to introduce yourself and ask about book promotions. Do all the things you would pay someone else to do for you if your career was in full swing.

The hustle never ends You may have heard other creative people refer to their “hustle,” because that’s what you need to pursue a creative career. You can be amazingly talented and have a lot of passion for what you do, but you also have to commit the necessary time and effort into your career.

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EXPECT UP TO 15 EMPLOYERS For Complete Details go to

OMAHA JOBS

For more info or booth rates cotact:

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| THE READER |

JUNE 2018

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THE M USIC ISSUE

Saddle Creek at 25

The label that defined indie cool over a decade ago is suddenly cool again

by T I M M c M a h a n

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t was sometime in 1993 when a group of guys pulled their resources together and released a cassette tape by a 13-year-old boy named Conor Oberst. That cassette, titled Water, was the first release on Lumberjack Records, catalog number LBJ-01.

and days ahead alongside Amber Carew, the label’s new A&R representative, over beers at The Trap Room, a small bar he coowns along with music club The Slowdown, which sits about 30 feet south of us.

Earlier this year catalog number LBJ270, the debut album by Stef Chura called Messes, was released on CD, LP, tape and digital by Saddle Creek Records, the company that Lumberjack Records became.

The label’s name isn’t the only thing that’s changed over the past 25 years.

Like all independent record labels, Lumberjack/Saddle Creek started as a business run out of a bedroom. “At the time, it was very day-to-day, you know?” Nansel said of the early years.

“Our concern was ‘How are we gonna put out this Norman Bailer record?’

When I had to write the business plan for an entrepreneurship class, the goal was to sell 10,000 copies of a record.

That was the definition of success.”

Just ask the Saddle Creek founder Robb Nansel. “What’s changed since we started? Everything.”

Nansel reminisced about days gone by

It would take years for the label to hit that goal. Nansel said he considers the first 1993 Conor Oberst’s “Water” “real” Saddle Creek release cassette is released by to be LBJ-19 — Bright Eyes -Brother Justin A Collection of Songs Written 1998 Mike Mogis & Robb and Recorded 1995-1997— Nansel Form Saddle which came out in 1998 and Creek in business class was the first Saddle Creek album distributed outside the 2001 The Faint release area.

Danse Macabre, Saddle Creek opens first office in Benson

“Everything before that was just consignment around town — make a hundred copies of a cassette or seven inches or whatever, take them to Homer’s and The Antiquarium and call it a day,” he said.

2005 Bright Eyes release I’m Wide Awake and digital Ash on the same day

2007 Slowdown/Saddle Creek offices open in North Downtown

2011 Zack Nipper wins Grammy for Cassadaga album artwork

2015 Saddle Creek opens Los Angeles office 2018 Article about Saddle Creek at 25 appears in The Reader

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| THE READER |

By 2005, Saddle Creek Records had become one of the most respected and wellknown small independent record labels in the country, thanks to the success of its crown-jewel acts — Bright Eyes, The Faint and Cursive.

Nansel points to that period as the label’s most successful era in terms of national exposure and record sales, with all three bands releasing albums that sold more than 100,000 copies.

COVER

“That was when reporters were flying in from all around the world to write stories about what’s in the drinking water,” Nansel

In 2008, Conor Oberst signed to Merge Records, while The Faint started its own record label, Blank.Wav. And for the first time, Saddle Creek had turned its attention away from Omaha and began signing bands that had no real local connection— acts like Tokyo Police Club and Two Gallants and Canadian acts like The Rural Alberta Advantage and Land of Talk. It was a dramatic departure from the early days when Saddle Creek only signed bands that either came from Omaha or were friends of bands already on the label.

saddle creek’s disheveled benson office

said, “and when Dave Sink told me not to fuck up Omaha.” Sink, the owner/operator of the late, great Antiquarium Record Store, was revered among local musicians.

“He said ‘You’re gonna ruin this town; it’s going to turn into the next Seattle,’ and I said no it’s not. We have a small label, and that’s it. There’s no venues in town, there’s no other record labels. It’s hard to have that much of an impact on a city.”

Nansel knew all the national attention wouldn’t last. “Everything’s cyclical,” he said. “Scenes happen all over the world.

It just so happened that people had their microscope on Omaha then. I knew they’d move their microscope somewhere else soon enough.”

But by the time the national spotlight had shifted away from Saddle Creek, the label had built new offices in the so-called “Lo-Do” area of Omaha above what would become The Slowdown. The staff had grown to seven, including primary partner Jason Kulbel, who had originally come to Omaha to run a nightclub. Meanwhile, the roster of artists had ballooned to well over a dozen. As the label was entering its next chapter, Saddle Creek faced a number of new challenges.

At the same time, Saddle Creek finally began to feel the impact of technology that had been ravaging the music industry for years.

Until then, the internet had been the label’s best friend. “It was so important for our growth,” Nansel said. “It allowed Saddle Creek to exist on a national level. When the major labels were yelling ‘The sky is falling,’ our business was growing. They were seeing the massive catalog sales that they’d had for decades plummet.

We didn’t have a catalog, so all we saw was growth. There was a point when Saddle Creek could put out anybody’s record, and it would sell at least 5,000 copies,” Nansel said.

Fast forward just a few years and “we were putting out records that were selling like 150 copies,” Nansel said. “This was what everyone had been talking about when they said (the internet) was going to ruin the industry.”

It was a problem no one at the label had an answer for. Instead, Nansel and his staff simply put their heads down and kept going.

“We always felt that solving the music industry’s problem was not something that we as Saddle Creek were going to be able to do,” Nansel said. “That was going to be figured out by tech companies and major labels. All we could do was find bands we were passionate about and work with

THE M USIC ISSUE them and hope everything sorted itself out in time.”

Part of the answer for small independent labels like Saddle Creek has been banding together to create trade organizations that can compete with major labels for the attention of massive tech giants like Apple and Spotify, who now control the industry. The American Association of Independent Music (or A2IM) and global rights agency Merlin Network are two primary examples.

“If Saddle Creek goes up against Apple and tries to get a better deal, Apple tells Saddle Creek to fuck off,” Nansel said.

“But if Merlin goes to them representing Beggars Group and Matador and 4AD and hundreds and hundreds of independent labels, then they can get a seat at the table. In a sense, Merlin and A2IM are pushing things forward on behalf of the independent label community.”

While signing those non-Omaha-related acts, Saddle Creek continued to release albums from old favorites like Cursive, The Good Life and Azure Ray while signing locals and friends like Icky Blossoms, Twinsmith and pals Big Harp. Nansel said despite new struggles to generate income via music sales, the label never signed an act with the intent of striking it rich.

“I guess I’d be naive to say that (album sales) are completely not in my mind,” he said. “There might be some super-aggressive weird punk record that I love, but then realize we can’t do anything with it. We wouldn’t be doing them a service by working with them. It would be a disastrous relationship. But I don’t think we’ve ever signed something because we thought it would sell. We have to like it first and figure out if it’s a good partnership.”

Has making money ever been a motivation?

“No,” Nansel said. “I think that’s boring. You have to work with these people every day. Imagine having to work with a band that you don’t like. You might make money, but that doesn’t sound very fun.”

Sticking with that philosophy would eventually pay off. In October 2014, Saddle Creek signed Philly band Hop Along.

The folk-rock four-piece fronted by singer/ songwriter Frances Quinlan hit pay dirt with its third full-length, Painted Shut, re-

ground up. It’s fun. It’s the most rewarding thing possible.”

leased in May of the following year. Songs like album opener “The Knock” and “Well-dressed” earned millions of Spotify plays, while publications like AllMusic. comcalled Quinlan “among the most captivating rock singers of her generation.”

Next Saddle Creek signed Brooklyn band Big Thief in February 2016. The SADDLE CREEK STAFF, Circa 2003 four-piece, fronted by Adriphoto by ryan fox anne Lenker, saw its debut, “When (the signing) was announced, I Masterpiece, released in May 2016 to a hail of critical huzzahs, but got a lot of ‘They’re still a label?’ questions it was the follow-up, Capacity, released in and asked if I was going to meet Conor June 2017, that really caught fire, making it Oberst,” Chura said. “I love a lot of their onto a number of national critics’ annual stuff, new and old; I love what they’re dotop-10 lists. The infectious single “Shark ing now. There are separate eras (of the laSmile” would gain heavy rotation on na- bel) that are attracting different audiences. tionally broadcasted (via satellite) radio They’ve always signed artists with a lot of integrity, really good songwriters. It’s a big station Sirius XMU. compliment to be on the label.”

Brooklyn singer/songwriter Sam EviAt around the same time Chura joined an (a.k.a. Sam Owens) would come next in June 2016 and in March 2017, Saddle Saddle Creek, the label signed Chicago Creek launched its “Document” singles rockers Young Jesus, whose debut, titled series that featured unreleased music S/T, they re-released in February. The from artists outside the Saddle Creek ros- album is a departure for the label, with ter, starting with bands Posse, Palehound, tracks that range from six minutes to over 12 minutes, jangly noise collages and epic Hand Habits and Wilder Maker. jams that could be filed under “experimenThe label was entering a third life that tal.” Far from a commercially influenced included opening a satellite office in Los acquisition.

Angeles’ Eagle Rock neighborhood with “We’re not playing the analytics new-hire Amber Carew, the label’s first-ever A&R representative responsible for talent game,” Nansel said. “We’re not seeing scouting and artist development. One of who’s got a bunch of followers on FaceCarew’s first run-ins with Saddle Creek was book.” when the label signed Sam Evian out from “If that were the case, we would have under her while she was employed at label never signed Young Jesus,” Carew adds, “or Anti- Records.

Stef. I’ve made a concerted effort to talk “At the time I was like ‘Saddle Creek?

I didn’t know they were still doing stuff,’” Carew said. “I was in my own bubble. Then I looked at the label and realized that Saddle Creek was putting out records I like and doing new things.”

Carew’s first signing for Saddle Creek, Detroit singer/songwriter Stef Chura, who joined the label last November and whose debut album, Messes, was re-released by Saddle Creek in February, said she was familiar with the label in high school because of Bright Eyes, who she counts as an influence.

about the new era of Saddle Creek. When I talk to new bands, I ask them if they want to be part of it.”

Nansel said plans call for doubling the number of releases the label puts out next year. He discussed new acts that Saddle Creek is either about to sign or announce (including an Omaha band), many of which will be unknown to most fans. “They’re not even necessarily known within their communities,” he said. “They’re just brand new bands. The goal is to give people their first shot at putting out a record. It’s hard to build a band from the

COVER

So how does a label like Saddle Creek judge success in 2018? “It’s all about streams,” Nansel said. “It’s not really about physical sales anymore. I mean, that’s an important piece of it for us and our fan base. We still like to sell records, but the number of streams is the barometer of success — how many people are listening to your band online.”

And while getting your artists’ songs added to a Spotify curated playlist is a boon, Nansel said the key is for listeners to add albums and artists to their personal lists. “That’s how you retain that listener,” he said.

Streaming also is what pays the bills these days, specifically with checks from Spotify and Apple Music. “Those two primarily,” Nansel said. “Pandora and YouTube not so much. It’s like real money now.

Our Spotify check is our biggest check every month; they’re bigger than ADA, our (physical) distributors.”

Good thing, too, because the label has a lot of mouths to feed. Nansel said the staff is the largest it’s ever been with the addition of Marketing Director Katie Nowak, who literally joined the label the day of this interview. Nowak, a New Yorker, will be joining the Los Angeles staff. The Omaha staff consists of C.J. Olson, radio/project management; Jadon Ulrich, art director; Jeff Tafolla, licensing, and Sarah Murray, retail/distribution. Nate Welker, digital marketing, lives in Seattle. Jason Kulbel, who manages Slowdown and other properties, stepped away from the label years ago.

Why does the Saddle Creek bother to keep an Omaha presence? Nansel, who’s lived in LA for nearly four years, points to the staff who live here. “I have a lot of roots in Omaha,” he said. “It’s an important place to me.”

Nansel, who turns 43 this year, never thought he’d still be running the label 25 years after releasing that Water cassette.

“That’s because I’m not a planner in that way,” he said. “I never saw myself doing anything else, either. People kept making music. We kept caring about it. We kept having opportunities to do stuff with it. As long as that happens, why would we stop?”

| THE READER |

JUNE 2018

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THE M USIC ISSUE

Combining A Love of Hip-Hop with Activism with Houston Alexander

by H o u s t o n W i l t s e y “Let me show you a track Chevy Cutlass listening to that song. The real quick,” says Houston Alexander, first song that really got me interested in the host of Power Mix Sunday on Power hip-hop was ‘Pack Jam,’” he says, citing 106.9 here in Omaha. He walks over to the 1983 song by influential Boston-based one of the computers in the station’s studio hip-hop and electro-funk squad the Jonzun overlooking Dodge street, opens a file, Crew. “That was the first time I was really and hits play. I watch as the media player aware of it and really got into it.” He then opens and an orange equalizer oscillates goes era by era, listing all the artists that on the screen as the song comes booming inspired him growing up: Rakim, KRS-One, out of the studio’s monitor speakers. Before Run DMC and Tupac. Alexander makes it I can even begin to form an opinion, Al- clear that he is not just a fan of rap, he is a fan of music exander is already in general. We onto the next track. talk about AudioAnd the track after slave, A Perfect that. And yet anothCircle, Dizzy Giler track after that. lespie, Parliament In fact, we spend Funkadelic, and the next 15 minutes Queen. playing 20-second clips from his vast “I’ll listen to library of songs anything man, as from Omahalong as it’s good based rappers that music I really he has amassed don’t care.” over his 15-year caHis love of reer as a DJ. There’s music and time Culture Shock Tour a frenetic energy spent in hip-hop to this process. He is not changing the song because he has dance crews made him an easy selection grown bored by it, he is changing it be- for Omaha’s first station dedicated to hipcause he is excited by the possibility of the hop. A couple friends recruited Alexander next one; eager to share his love of Oma- to start on the promotions side of the busiha’s music scene with the curious spectator ness and he never looked back. When the station (formerly Hot 107.7) came to him in front of him. with the idea that he should have his own Many know Houston Alexander as show one idea immediately jumped out. one of the most unique competitors in “We’re in the middle of the country Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). A professional competitor since 2001, Alexander has com- and we’ve always been studying the hispeted in the UFC, Primus Fighting Cham- tory of other places: New York, California, pionship, Bellator’s Light Heavyweight down South, but I wanted something that division, Shark Fights, the RFS, KSW, and was gonna track the history and the culture Adrenaline MMA. While he has a rich ca- of what was going on here. We’ve got so reer in the sport, it’s only one facet of a many great artists here that just aren’t getgreater whole. He is a loving father, com- ting the recognition they deserve.” munity activist, sketch comedy artist, and the tastemaker of Omaha’s hip-hop scene.

His love for music started early. “My first rap song was ‘The Breaks’ by Curtis Blow,” he recalls. “I remember being a kid just riding around in the back of my dad’s

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Shining a light on that underappreciated talent is what continues to drive Alexander. He is always listening to and encouraging local artists to bring their (radio-edited) music to the NRG Media offices where Power 106.9 is located.

| THE READER |

FEATURE

“Take a guy like Montano (Omaha MC Keenen Boetel aka K3rtis Montano). The dude talks with a stutter but when he raps he’s one of the best I’ve heard in the area.” Alexander goes on to list Shannon Marie, King Iso, and Axcess as some of the most talented and consistent artists currently on the Omaha scene. “They’re not waiting for opportunities to open for someone, they’re creating opportunities for themselves by putting on their own shows.”

I ask Alexander if he has ever had an “Aha!” moment when working in radio where he has truly been excited by the power of what the medium can do for these artists. “For me, it was that instant when you’d say something and one of the 30,000 listeners would come up to me and say ‘weren’t you talking about this artist on air the yesterday.’”

get it twisted and think cause you say something over the radio you’re making change happen, that’s not how it works. To make it happen, you have to be out in the streets and really be willing to get your hands dirty - you need to set an example.”

One of his favorite activities is being able to DJ for kids across the city while also teaching them about Radio is about more b-boying (a term Alexander than just music for Alexanstrongly prefers to breakder, it is about the culture as dancing). “We actually just well. “You have to make sure got a mobile generator so these kids understand where we’re gonna be rolling into the music is coming from,” he parks this summer,” he says says. “It’s not only important with an excited grin. “That’s to put them on and make sure K3rtis montano how hip-hop started, with they are heard, but to make Herc (DJ Kool Herc - the legsure they know about the people that endary hip-hop pioneer from the Bronx) came before them.” just out on the street in the neighborhood When he’s not at the station, you can scratching records.” It’s a fitting way for Alfind Alexander working for his namesake exander to give back to the community. For foundation which looks to help out in the someone that cares so much about hip-hop community by offering educational proand the culture surrounding it, being able grams and activities to promote a more to spin records block party-style is a spepositive self-image, benefiting families and cial activity. It is hip-hop’s past, present, and the community. “Radio has always been future all converging in the same place. a great outlet to get the information out To learn more about Houston’s work, there,” he tells me. “There’s nothing like bevisit www.houstonalexander.org. ing out in the streets and working. People

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FEATURE

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JUNE 2018

7

Coming home is sweet

f o r m e d i a g i a n t C at h y H u g h e s

by L e o A d a m B i g a

S

weet nostalgia flowed when Omaha native media titan Cathy Hughes got feted in her hometown May 17-19. The Omaha African-American community that produced Hughes has long followed her achievements. Her multimedia Urban One Inc., whose brands include Radio One and TV One, are Black-centric platforms.

Despite a media footprint rivaling Oprah and a personal net worth of half a billion dollars, her Black market niche didn’t register with the general public. Until last month. Heisman Trophy-winner Johnny Rodgers marshaled coverage for street renaming, Empowerment Network and Omaha Press Club recognitions.

Surrounded by friends, family and local Black leaders, Hughes, the 71-year-old Urban One chair, and her son and business partner, CEO Alfred Liggins Jr., 53, basked in the glow of defining legacies.

Liggins said admiringly of her: “She’s got guts, grit and she still has a ton of energy.

She’s well-deserving of these honors.”

Rodgers is among history-makers whose paths she’s intersected. She appreciates him making her mogul ascent more widely known so as to inspire others.

“Johnny told me, ‘I’m doing this for the Black kids that need to know you exist – that you grew up in the projects in Omaha (to become the first Black woman chair of a publicly traded company).’ Johnny added, ‘I’m also doing it for the white folks who don’t realize that in a whole different arena and way you’re our Warren Buffett.’

That kind of caused me to choke up.”

She came up in Logan-Fontenelle public housing when northeast Omaha truly was “a village.” Her accountant father and International Sweethearts of Rhythm musician mother were civil rights warriors (the

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De Porres Club). The former Cathy Woods attended Catholic schools. She demonstrated for equal rights. When she became a teen single mom, she didn’t let that status or reality define her, but drive her.

Neither did she keep her radio fame ambitions to herself.

“Ever since I’ve been born, I’ve been running my mouth. I remember once almost getting suspended because I challenged a nun. She said, ‘You have a big mouth,’ and I said, ‘One day I’m going to make a lot of money off of my big mouth.’ I knew as a child I was a communicator. As I grew in my knowledge and awareness of my African history and legacy, I realized I was from the giro tradition of maintaining folklore and history in story form. I just innately had that ability.”

In 1972 she left for Washington D.C. to lecture at Howard University at the invite of noted broadcaster Tony Brown, whom she met in Omaha. It’s then-fledgling commercial radio station, WHUR, made her the city’s first woman general manager. She grew ad revenues and listeners. A program she created, “Quiet Storm,” popularized the urban format nationally. With ex-husband Dewey Hughes she worked wonders at WOL in D.C. After their split, she built Radio One. “Omaha provided a safe haven, but once in Washington D.C. I had to rely on and call forth everything I had learned in Omaha in order just to survive and move forward. Folks in D.C. were like, ‘Oh yeah, another small town hick girl come to town to try to make a way for herself.’ It was an entirely different environment.”

| THE READER |

FEATURE

Remarkable doors.

connections

opened

“I was prepared to recognize an opportunity and take full advantage of it.

Howard University (whose School of Communication is named after her) literally groomed me. They were proud of the fact I was the first woman in the position they placed me in and they kept going with me because Katharine Graham (the late Washington Post publisher) was enthusiastic about me.”

She met Graham through the late Susan Thompson Buffett, the first wife of billionaire investor and then-major Post shareholder Warren Buffett.

“Susie was staying at her house. At that time Susie was a singer with professional entertainment aspirations and I was her manager.”

Hughes already knew Buffett from their shared social activism in Omaha. The late publishing magnate John H. Johnson (Ebony, Jet magazines) became a friend, mentor and adviser.

She first got schooled in communitybased Black media by Omaha Star publisher Mildred D. Brown and columnist Charlie Washington. Her keen social consciousness was sharpened by Ernie Chambers, Rodney Wead and Al Goodwin. Thus, her guiding credo: “I’m unapologetically in the Black people business.”

“In Omaha, we had Black pride and Black love and a militancy that was very unique. When you’re a child growing up in that you just assume you’re supposed to try to make life better for your people. That’s what was ingrained in us. We didn’t have

to wait to February for Black history. We were told of great Black accomplishments at church, in school, in social gatherings. I thank Omaha for instilling that in me.

“The combination of Charlie (Washington) always writing the truth and Mildred (Brown) keeping a newspaper solvent were both sides of my personality – the commitment side and the entrepreneurial side. Charlie taught me how to be proud of my Blackness and Mildred taught me how not to compromise my Blackness.”

Working at KOWH. the metro’s first Black radio station, affirmed for her Blacks could realize their media dreams.

Fulfilling her dreams necessitated leaving home.

“If I had not left Omaha I probably would not have become a successful entrepreneur because I had a certain comfort level here.”

Her career is based on the proposition Black media is the unfiltered voice of a people.

“It is impossible for a culture that enslaved you to accurately portray you. Our people are still under oppression and denied opportunities. We don’t need anybody to give us anything, just get the hell out of our way. All we want is self-determination.”

Her visit home sparked bittersweet nostalgia.

“Driving down North 24th Street was so disturbing to me,” she said of sparse business activity along this former Street of Dreams now undergoing revival efforts.

“I want to help put Omaha in the right light. I am unapologetically Omaha until the day I die.”

Read more of Leo Adam Biga’s work at leoadambiga.com.

June 1 – 24, 2018 Tickets on sale now!

This beloved movie musical comes to life on stage with charm, humor and stormy weather.

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FEATURE

| THE READER |

JUNE 2018

9

FEAST YOUR EARS ON THIS

Make it a Night With Dining, Dancing, and Live Music! The Reader Lets You Know Where to Go!

BY SARA LOCKE

EAT

O

SARA LOCKE is the Contributing Editor for The Reader’s Food section. She is fluent in both sarcasm and pig Latin, and is definitely going to eat the contents of her to-go box in her car on her way home. Follow her restaurant reviews and weekly what-todos online at http://thereader. com/dining/crumbs . Follow @ TheReaderOmahaDish on Instagram to find out what else she’s sinking her teeth into.

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JUNE 2018

maha is a live music heaven, but where does one go to enjoy some beats with a bite? With the closure of both Espana and Little Espana, I wanted to know if there were still places to go for dinner and a dance. What I found was that Omaha loves a meal with a side of sweet jams. Some butter on their Rock and Roll? They pay me per pun here, but I’m struggling today.Let’s just cut the cute stuff and dive right in, shall we?This is by no means a comprehensive list, and if you have a favorite spot we forgot, drop us a comment or email Sara@TheReader.Com!

Aroma’s Benson 6051 Maple st https://www.facebook.com/AromasBenson-330328950441851/ If open mic night is more your jam, grab a cuppa at Aroma’s in Benson. Partnered with the nearby 402 Collective, Aroma’s is itself teaming with talent. A make-shift office to all walks during the day, a walk-up window for the casual Bensonite, and a cool hangout for hot coffee lovers. Not your typical “coffee house” staff, the team is friendly and personable without reading as automatons. Welcoming vibe, fun music, a laid-back atmosphere, and cinnamon rolls.

Jazz, A Louisiana Kitchen 1421 Farnam https://www.jazzkitchen.com/

Herbe Sainte 1934 S 67th https://www.facebook.com/herbesainteomaha/

Let the good times roll at Jazz, A Louisiana Kitchen! A menu of Cajun and Creole specialties, by the pound crawfish, and gumbo for days can make any night feel like a warm family gathering, but the live music is what really makes it a party!

Weekends are all about the live tunes, so don’t come expecting to be able to hold a conversation.

Yes, it is loud, but maybe just this once you can shut off your brain, enjoy your messy meal, and make dinner fun! Try the sticky delicious Voodoo Wings.

Nestled in Aksarben Village, the Sam Famfounded favorite Herbe Sainte (Sacred Herb) is a warm Hallelujah to New Orleans lovers of all walks. Creole classics, drinks for days, the hospitality you’d expect from a NOLA inspired establishment. Expect pop-up performances

by The Prarie Cats! Try the Maque Choux – Blackened shrimp on polenta with parmesan, sweet corn, pickled tomato relish, onion and bell peppers.

Gorat’s 4917 Center Street http://goratsomaha.com/ More than just another Nebraska steakhouse, prepare for an expansive, yet focused menu, full bar, and live jams. If you don’t follow Gorat’s on Facebook you will never know what to expect. A revolving roster of musicians perform live music from Sax solos, R&B classics, and pop standards to smooth jazz. Be sure to try the walleye with white wine caper butter!

| THE READER |

EAT

Anthony’s Steakhouse and Ozone Lounge 7220 F st https://www.facebook.com/OzoneOmaha/

For those more attracted to the separation of music and steak, Omaha’s iconic Anthony’s Steakhouse offers a traditional menu of proteins and Italian favorites, with a few signature surprises. After you’ve wined and dined, head over for music and martinis at the adjoining Ozone Lounge. Follow Ozone on Facebook for an updated lineup of musicians to expect on your night out. Try the chicken piccata, served in a lemony white wine sauce with capers.

Bogie’s West 14334 U st https://www.facebook.com/BogiesWest.

Omaha/ If dirty dancing is more your style, dig into a messy BBQ pulled pork sandwich before hitting the dance floor at Bogie’s West. The roster of bands is available on their Facebook page, but no matter who’s playing, you should be dancing.

Ecstatic is on the docket for this month, a variety band that plays country, pop, and rock. Games, competitions, karaoke Thursdays, drink specials, and a dance floor, there’s something for everyone at Bogie’s West!

Lombardo’s 13110 Birch Dr https://www.facebook.com/lombardosbistro/ The locally owned casual Italian inspired spot offers a fresh take on your classic pizza and pasta standards. The flatbreads are over the top, but the lasagna is where the heart is. Follow along on Facebook to see which bands are playing each week, and to be aware of weather alerts, which may close the patio.

Jambo Cat 4916 Underwood Ave https://jambo.cat/ Jambo Cat in Dundee serves as its own Cocktail lounge, and as a makeshift waiting room or predrink stop before heading upstairs to Mark’s.

With fresh, house-made juices and creative cocktails, the chill spot offers live jazz 5 days a week. Small bites include Mark’s signature Mac and Cheese, or for a sweet treat, try the pumpkin donuts with cream cheese.

It’s a good time to be alive and hungry for music, life, and fantastic food in Omaha!

PRESENTED BY

| THE READER |

JUNE 2018

11

HEARTLAND HEALING

HOMEOPATHY:

HEARTLAND HEALING is a metaphysically-based polemic describing alternatives to conventional methods of healing the body, mind and planet by MICHAEL BRAUNSTEIN. It is provided as information and entertainment, certainly not medical advice. Important to remember and pass on to others: for a weekly dose of Heartland Healing, visit HeartlandHealing.com and like us on Facebook. .

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JUNE 2018

A

What it is. What it ain’t.

BY MICHAEL BRAUNSTEIN

t a mere 75 pounds, Gina is the smallest German Shepherd same symptoms as the disease. The body is stimulated to reverse the I’ve ever owned. But she’s the strongest. A willful, impulsive imbalance that caused the symptoms. and urgent six-year old red-and-black, she darted from the The idea of dilution is what really confounds the Western mind. To camper one day in April to chase a squirrel. I wasn’t ready Western thinking, a medication, whether pharmaceutical or herbal, and her leash ripped the inside of my index finger nearly to the bone. is more powerful or effective the more concentrated it is. Not so in So much skin disappeared, healing became a challenge for my body. I homeopathy. A homeopathic medicine is made by introducing the soimmediately washed the bare underlying tissue and applied nature’s best called “active” ingredient, often an herb or mineral, into pure water at antibiotic: raw, unfiltered honey. The rip was in the crease of the second a ratio of 1 part per 99. That solution is shaken vigorously in a process knuckle and after four weeks of protecting it, the wound still wasn’t healing. known as succussion, then one part is added to 99 parts of pure water.

My massage therapist reminded me of the well-known homeopathic The mixture is shaken again and the process repeated perhaps hundreds medicine, Arnica montana. Arnica is used for wounds and bruises. I had of time. Finally, the end result water is dropped onto an inert pill or tablet used it before with remarkable results. I picked some up at Whole Foods and the medicine is ready. and within 24 hours, the result was obvious. Healthy tissue was advancing, Critics contend that the final water solution is so dilute that it cannot debridement was occurring. It’s not all the way healed yet but the change contain even a single molecule of the original element. But that element is obvious. So you might say we’re revisiting a topic as a testimonial. has imparted a characteristic to the water molecules that persists. Modern When less is more. Homeopathy is a system of treatment using research now shows that indeed, water molecules are changed when these medicines derived from natural sources (plants, minerals or animals) in natural elements are introduced and the water is agitated. The molecules amounts so dilute that they are virtually undetectable. Homeopathy’s “clump” together in a regular pattern. Research suggests that the newly trump card is the belief that the body has an innate ability to heal itself “structured” water is the real trigger for the body to start healing itself. and needs only a trigger to activate its powerful healing system even Despite what Wikipedia maintains, there is peer reviewed research if the trigger is tiny. That healing ability of the body is something that that supports the efficacy of homeopathics. Research or not, it’s hard Western science can neither explain nor deny. for the Western mind to wrap itself around the notion of homeopathy.

What is most odd about homeopathy may not be that it works or Judging by consumer acceptance of homeopathic medicine, it doesn’t is gaining scientific support but that so many in the United States are matter. People want it because it works for them. drawn to using it. Homeopathic remedies are big sellers at health food Since the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act of 1938, homeopathic stores and homeopathic practitioners are sought for their advice. All medicines have been recognized as safe. There have been no reported the while, the practice is the target of harsh criticism by some who find ill effects and no deaths. After all, how could an ultra-diluted drop of that the idea of infinitesimals flies in the face of Western science. Yet water be dangerous? mainstream medicine has no problem using the same philosophy when One extensive Swiss study found proof that homeopathic remedies injecting human guinea pigs with virus particles called “vaccines.” They are effective. An English study found otherwise and considered them say it causes the body to “immunize.” placebos. But somehow, millions of people have found that homeopathy A specific science Too often, Americans misuse the term homeopathy works for them. Placebo or not, truth diluted is still truth. And the truth is, and apply it to anything that is a non-conventional therapy. But my finger is getting better with Arnica montana. homeopathy is a very specific branch of natural medicine incorporating a practice known by famous physicians throughout history. The “Law of Be well.

Similars” states that “like cures like.”

Hippocrates was the first to use the law of similars in Western culture.

Heartland Healing is a metaphysically based polemic describing The word itself is of Greek derivative. He, and later others, reasoned alternatives to conventional methods of healing the body, mind and and demonstrated that a substance producing a particular symptom in planet. It is provided as information and entertainment, certainly not a healthy person would stimulate the body to remove that symptom in a medical advice. Important to remember and pass on to others: for a sick person. Hippocrates used homeopathy extensively and 15th century weekly dose of Heartland Healing, visit HeartlandHealing.com. and like physician Paracelsus documents homeopathic medicines. us on Facebook.

In the 18th century, German physician Samuel Hahnemann disapproved of the bloodletting, leeching, blistering and purging that were the mainstream medical practices in 1759. Hahnemann worked with herbs and noticed that herbs taken in low dosages cured the same symptoms that those herbs produced when taken in high doses. He experimented on himself with quinine, the plant-based cure for malarial fever. When he took small doses of diluted quinine, he became ill with fever. When he stopped, the fever went away. For him, that proved the Law of Similars. Hahnemann developed his own ultra-diluted medicines.

Homeopathy formally came into being.

The dilution solution. Hahnemann intuited something that is difficult, if not impossible to empirically prove. The idea is that if one is sick, a homeopath administers a specific medicine containing a diluted substance, if given in full strength to a healthy person, would cause the

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HEARTLAND HEALING

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Inclined to think of Robert Arneson’s funky self-portraits or Jun Kaneko’s elegant, monumental sculptures? Then you’re edging closer to the aesthetic and material qualities that underlie Joslyn’s latest Riley CAP offering: Arlene Shechet: More Than I Know, opening June 2.

Essentially, New York artist Shechet uses clay as her primary medium in the service of mixed-media abstract sculptures. Her works are entirely idiosyncratic, with shapes that are intentionally irregular, alternatively recalling biomorphic, architectural and figurative forms. Stacked and mounded volumes threaten to topple off their pedestals.

June 1-17, 2018

Disney’s

Newsies

The Broadway Musical Rose Theater rosetheater.org Based on the real-life Newsboy Strike of 1899, this new Disney musical tells the story of Jack Kelly, a rebellious newsboy who dreams of a life as an artist away from the big city.

After publishing giant Joseph Pulitzer raises newspaper prices at the newsboys’ expense, Jack and his fellow newsies take action. With help from the intrepid reporter Katherine Plumber, all of New York City soon recognizes the power of young people.

From the award winning minds of Alan Menken (Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin) and four-time Tony® Award winner Harvey Fierstein (La Cage aux Folles, Kinky Boots), you’ll be singing along to the hit songs “King of New York”, “Seize the Day,” and “Santa Fe”. ~ Amy Schweid

Shechet describes her approach to her clay, which allows time and flexibility in the building and shaping of forms, as one ultimately affording experimentation and play.

To this, she adds invention in the range of color and texture in her ceramics, as well as a strong sense of counterpoint in her choices of wood, steel or concrete as the bases for her sculptures.

Arlene Shechet: More Than I Know runs from June 2 through Sept 9 at Joslyn Art Museum. There is no admission fee for this show.

The museum is located at 2200 Dodge Street and is open Tues-Sun from 10am-4pm; late ‘til 8pm on Thurs. For more information, visit www.joslyn.org or call 402/342-3300. ~Janet L. Farber

June 2-9

British Invasion Joslyn Art Museum joslyn.org

Opening June 2 is Treasures of British Art 14002000: The Berger Collection, a traveling exhibition organized by the Denver Art Museum, which is the repository of this collection.

The fifty paintings in this show cover a broad spectrum of artistic development, as you might anticipate from the 600 years that it spans. It contains a diverse selection of religious, landscape, portrait and history paintings, plus the genre no good British show is complete without: sporting art.

Featured artists include John Constable, Thomas Gainsborough, Thomas Lawrence, and George Stubbs, as well as examples by the many foreign expats who revolutionized British art, including Angelica Kauffman, Anthony Van Dyck, Benjamin West and John Singer Sargent.

‘More Than I Know’ Joslyn Art Museum joslyn.org

Sh e ch et ’s abstract sculpture at Joslyn eludes easy classification for all

Petshop will become the official headquarters of Benson First Friday; a nonprofit which serves as a platform for culture within their community to create opportunity, exposure and experiences.

Among the highlights of the exhibition is the gothic altarpiece panel “The Crucifixion,” a rare survivor from pre-Reformation England.

It is currently reputed to be the best preserved example of its type in existence.

Treasures of British Art 1400-2000: The Berger Collection runs from June 2 through Sept 9, at Joslyn Art Museum. There is an admission fee for this show. The museum is located at 2200 Dodge Street and is open TuesSun from 10am-4pm; late ‘til 8pm on Thurs.

For more information, visit www.joslyn.org or call 402/342-3300.

June 2-9

Ceramics in an art museum.

If your first instinct is to visualize Greek vases or Wedgwood wares, you’re headed in the wrong direction.

walking shoes and pop on over to Joslyn Art Museum.

~Janet L. Farber

June 6

Follow the Leader Joslyn Art Museum features ‘The Berger Collection’ of British art (1400-2000)

Petshop Gallery bensonfirstfriday.com

Feeling especially Anglophilic after Britain’s recent royal wedding hoopla? You could put on the BBC, put on some tea, or put on the Beatles, but your best bet is to put on your

June is a big month of celebration for Petshop Gallery in Benson. This month marks the gallery’s six-year anniversary and will kick off a big renovation project.

pickS

Highlighting this June 1 kickoff is norm4eeva .friends4eva, a collaborative show featuring local, national and international artists in a spectacle of color, imagery and style.

The exhibit celebrates the experiences that artist norm4eva has had meeting and working with other creatives that translates into the relationship the audience builds with those artists while viewing the work. Using color, form and movement, norm evokes the education her past offers to shape her creative future.

Included in the show are Forever Young Crew (Guadalajara, Mexico), Nite Owl (Oakland, California), Noal Guard (Oxford, England), Jon Munden (Kansas City, Mo), Helen Gene Nichols (Taos, New Mexico), Albine (Jumet, Belgium), Totem Stringed Instruments (Golden, Colorado), Blasie Anderson (Lincoln,

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JUNE 2018

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Nebraska), And From Omaha, Dojorok, The JJ, Danjo, Troy Davis, Derek Shockey, Tres, and Alex Jochim. norm4eeva .friends4eva runs through June at Petshop Gallery, 2727 N 62nd Street.

For more information, visit bensonfirstfriday. com. ~Melinda Kozel

June 6-30

Merger and Acquisitions

ner Ted Kooser. Born in Ames, Iowa, Kooser was Poet Laureate for two terms from 20042006. He is Presidential Professor of English at University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

His work is known for being concise, conversational and accessible. His weekly newspaper column “American Life in Poetry” is found in over 150 newspapers, and is available online at Americanlifeinpoetry.org. Kooser will also have copies of his newest publication — Kindest Regards: New and Selected Poems — for sale at the opening.

The opening reception for Pairings is June 1, from 6 p.m.to 8 p.m. Both Dinsmore and Kooser will be in attendance at the reception.

The show will be on exhibit through June 29th. Modern Arts Midtown is located at 3615 Dodge Street. Further information is available at modernartsmidtown.com or by calling 402502-8737.

Modern Arts Midtown modernartsmidtown.com

~Kent Behrens

June 7

Story Sessions with

Dan Rodriguez B Side Theatre Bensontheatre.org/news/ Painter Stephen Dinsmore and poet/essayist Ted Kooser have collaborated for their unique exhibit: Pairings of Paintings and Poems, opening Friday, June 1st at Modern Arts Midtown.

In both national and international collections, Dinsmore of Lincoln has exhibited his paintings in solo and group venues since 1985. His work can be found in varied collections such as the American Embassy in Paris, the Mayo Clinic. and United Airlines.

Photographer Garry Winogrand is often quoted as saying “I photograph to find out what something will look like photographed.”

Dinsmore approaches his work with much the same mindset, finding beauty and reward in a wide range of oft-overlooked, everyday subjects and situations.

“Some condition in nature or subject grabs hold and I have no choice but to try to paint it,” he said in his artist statement. His impressionistic paintings have included landscapes, animals, still life, florals and abstracts; no subject is forbidden. His nuanced use of colors, and his rendering of light, combine to communicate mood over and above subject.

Dinsmore’s paintings will be paired with poems by Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize win-

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JUNE 2018

The event begins at 8:00pm at 6058 Maple Street. Tickets are $10 in advance and $15 day of show. For more information about the series, contact Benson Theatre Program Director Andrew Bailie at andrewb@bensontheatre. org. ~Staff Pick

June 7-10th

The Miracle Worker The Lofte Community Theatre 15841 Manlet Rd, Manlet, NE www.lofte.org

This classic tells the story of Annie Sullivan and her student, blind and mute Helen Keller.

The Miracle Worker dramatizes the volatile relationship between the lonely teacher and her charge. Trapped in a secret, silent world, unable to communicate, Helen is violent, spoiled, almost sub-human and treated by her family as such. Only Annie realizes that there is a mind and spirit waiting to be rescued from the dark, tortured silence. This production is part of the Lincoln Theatre Alliance celebration of women in theater! ~ Amy Schweid

June 8

Two Artists exhibit: Benson Theatre will welcome Dan Rodriguez to The B Side of Benson Theatre Thursday, June 7, for the second installment of B Side Story Sessions.

Moor and Render-Katz Connect Gallery Connectgallery.net

Rodriguez, a native of the Detroit area, moved to Minneapolis to study music when he was 18 and made it his home. “Music is my trade and performing it for people is my passion,” he says in his bio. “When I’m not in my studio writing songs and cutting records or on the road playing shows, I’m usually tending to our backyard chickens, eating fresh veggies from my wife’s huge garden or out doing one of my many outdoor hobbies.”

B Side Story Sessions feature a solo performer who weaves stories about his or her inspiration, art and life experiences – both at home and on the road – into a two-hour performance. The performances are followed by a meet and greet with the artist.

| THE READER |

pickS

at Connect Gallery, for featured artists Glenda Dietrich Moore and Evelyn Render-Katz.

In the Front window gallery, Moore presents Spirit Meditations. Her mostly-watercolor paintings span the range from contemplative abstracts to realistic, colorful impressions of landscapes and nature, animals and sometimes people. Her vibrant work has been featured in books as illustration and in several magazines.

“These paintings reflect and celebrate my sense of the Spirit. I’ve used mixed media (watercolor, acrylic and metallic inks) to give visual expression to something personal, and I am pleased with the surprises that happened in the process.”

Dietrich Moore teaches art classes, leads seminars on creativity and spirituality, and holds watercolor workshops from her home studio in Lincoln.

Primarily a painter, Evelyn Render-Katz works a variety of media, employing oils, encaustic, and collage, on canvas, wood, and plexiglass substrates. She also creates sculptural pieces employing a variety of materials such as chicken wire and bicycle tires, fabrics and objects from nature.

Render-Katz’ paintings are full of bold color and movement, expressionistic and gestural responses to her surroundings, and chicken wire sculptures offer some contrast in their quiet and static airiness.

It’s Impressionism versus Expressionism on Friday, June 8th, make sure your Second Friday activities include the opening reception

The exhibit runs from June 6th through June 30th. Opening reception is June 8th, from 5:30 to 9 PM. Connect Gallery is located at 3901 Leavenworth. Further information can be obtained at their website connectgallery. net. ~Kent Behrens

T U O LD SO

MAY 26

Migos

T

he biggest rap group in the world graced the stage to kick off the 2018 summer concert series at Stir Concert Cove. The Grammy-nominated multiplatinum Atlanta hip-hop trio stopped in Iowa to support their chart-topping new album, Culture II, before joining Drake on tour in July. Culture II, the follow-up to the massively successful Culture, was released exactly one year ago to the day of its predecessor and debuted in the top position on Apple music in over 60 countries. The album was so successful; it was certified as having a billion streams a mere 20 days after its release. In the world of rap, the triplet-laced Atlanta trap sound dominates hip-hop radio

and this Versace-wearing familial outfit rules the kingdom with an iced out fist.

The group brought with them a litany of hits including the number one Billboard smash “Bad & Boujee,” which won the best collaboration at the 2017 BET Awards, “Stir Fy,” which the band recently performed with Pharell on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, a version of “Motorsport” sans Nicki Minaj and Cardi B, and “Hannah Montana” from the group’s very first mix tape. They definitely did it for the culture.

JUNE 3

Barenaked Ladies with Better Than Ezra and KT Tunstall

B

arenaked Ladies return to Stir Concert Cove on the Last Summer on Earth Tour in support of their 15th studio album, Fake Nudes. They are one of Canada’s most successful musical acts of acts of all time as evidenced by their 18 Juno (the Canadian equivalent of the Grammy Awards) nominations and eight wins. Fake Nudes builds off the band’s harmony-rich hybrid of folk and pop/rock and pushes into more eclectic sonic terrain marking the band’s most dynamic record to date. In addition, the alt-rock stalwarts bring a diverse catalog that includes the hits “One Week” and “Pinch Me.” The band will make sure to bring all that and more (including some highly-comedic stage banter and possibly freestyle rapping) to the show.

MUSIC

There is a very communal spirit to this tour as the BNL are bringing along some of their friends to open for them. Lousiana alt-rockers Better Than Ezra and Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall will open. “2018 is going to be a blast because we’re touring with friends,” says BNL singer and guitarist Ed Robertson. “Kevin Griffin from Better Than Ezra has been a songwriting collaborator for almost a decade and KT and I rocked together in Yukon Kornelius.”

As an added bonus, everyone that purchases a ticket to the show will also receive a download of Fake Nudes.

| THE READER |

JUNE 2018

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Foster The People with AJR

I

JUNE 7

t’s hard to imagine but we are approaching a decade of Foster the People. The Los Angeles band, featuring original membersMark Foster and Mark Pontius along with newcomers Isom Innis and Sean Cimino, will be bringing their exuberant live show back to the Stir for the first time since 2014. The Los Angeles group behind “Pumped Up Kicks” released their third album, Sacred Hearts Clubin July of last year. Sacred Hearts Clubis a 12-track effort that joyously flexes the group’s infinite creative powers, fusing neo-psychedelia, punk, funk, electronic, dance and hip-hop. Bolstered by a diverse slew of groove-oriented songs, including the infectiously funked-out title track SHC, the synth-fused

glide of “Doing It For The Money,” and the psychedelic prowl of “Loyal Like Sid & Nancy,” (complete with spoken-word piece that recalls Gene Wilder’s memorable lines in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory), the band captured a patient, ‘spiritually improvised’ vibe in the studio that set the tone for the entire album and this upcoming slate of shows.

Opening for the band is New York indie-pop trio AJR (composed of Andrew, Jack, and Ryan Met).

SO LD

O U

T

Dropkick Murphys and Flogging Molly

T

JUNE 9

hey share a working-class ethos, they share an Irish heritage and Celtic folk influence, and now – for the first time – these two giants of American punk rock will be sharing the stage for a co-headlining U.S. tour. Dropkick Murphys are touring in support of their 11 Short Stories Of Pain & Glory album that debuted at number eight on the Billboard Top 200. It’s an album filled with rousing songs that are timeless in their sentiment, but directly related to today’s most pressing concerns: politics, the economy, unemployment, immigration policies gone awry, and much more.

Flogging Molly, meanwhile, are supporting Life Is Good, their first new

album in over six years, as well as celebrating their 20th anniversary as a staple in the punk scene.

Both bands have a feverish following and always aim to please by bringing a rambunctious energy to the stage. In the past, you might have only listened to these groups on St. Patricks, now’s your chance to rectify that mistake and give both groups the respect they thoroughly deserve.

Cole Swindell

C

JUNE 22

ole Swindell, a Platinum-selling recording artist, and recordbreaking 10-time number one singer/songwriter, has racked up an impressive and incomparable record-breaking seven number one singles (the only solo artist in the history of the Country Aircheck/Mediabase to top the charts with first seven singles); 10 number one singles as a songwriter; one 1 billion audience reaching single (“You Should Be Here”), five Platinum singles; one Gold single; a Platinum-certified debut album (Cole Swindell); a Gold-certified sophomore album (You Should Be Here). The numbers really do speak for themselves.”

Since launching his career in 2014, Swindell has toured with the biggest superstars in country music including Luke Bryan, Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean, Florida Georgia Line, Dierks Bentley. Now Swindell is hitting the road for his first career headlining tour – Reason To Drink Tour.

Joining him on tour are two of country music’s fastest-rising stars in Chris Janson and Lauren Alaina.

Billy Currington with Ashley McBryde and The Wild Feathers

B

AUGUST 3

illy Currington has come a long way from his rural Georgia roots.

He grew up listening to vinyl records by Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Kenny Rogers, and when his mom took him to one of Rogers’ concerts, 10-year-old billy knew immediately he wanted to someday be the one on stage performing. After practicing his craft throughout high school, he moved to Nashville at the age of 18. It was there that he paid his dues before he signed to Mercury Records in 2003 and released his debut single “Walk a Little Straighter.” Since then, Cunningham has released a slew of successful albums and number one country singles including 2005’s “Must Be Doin’ Somethin’ Right” and 2009’s “People Are Crazy.”

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JUNE 2018

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MUSIC

Possessing one of the smoothest and most distinct voices in the genre, Currington is equally skilled at delivering upbeat summertime anthems as well as exploring the complexities of life and love with a poignant ballad. On Summer Forever, Currington’s sixth studio album, he brings both with a collection of songs that will take the listener on a riveting musical journey and leave them breathless at the end of the ride.

For this tour, Currington is bringing Nashville band the Wild Feathers and Arkansas singer-songwriter Ashley McBryde.

AUGUST 6

Portugal. The Man with Cherry Glazerr

S

ince 2006, Portugal. The Man toiled away in the underground, The resulting album - the aptly-titled Woodstock- and has made the steadily releasing a string of strong albums that did well with Alaska band one of the biggest in the world. The main reason for this is critics and pockets of fans across the country. However, after “Feel It Still,” the group’s slickest, most streamlined single to date. Even if the release of their 2013 album - Evil Friends- the band felt stuck. that title does not immediately ring a bell you have definitely heard it. It The group’s members recorded sporadically and experimented with has climbed to number four on the Billboard Hot 100, garnered nearly a number of new sounds and textures. Nothing was working. Lead 450 million streams on Spotify alone, and been featured in commercials singer John Gourley returned home returned frustrated returned for everything from YouTube TV to Vitamin Water. It is a delightful song home to Wasilla, Alaska. It was here John experienced two pivotal with an upbeat tone that should reverberate through the group’s entire moments with his father: his dad gave him some tough love about setlist. not finish

AUGUST 10

Halestorm & In This Moment with special guest New Years Day

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idely acknowledged as one of modern hard rock’s most explosive live acts, Grammy Award-winning band Halestorm recently released their third studio album Into the Wild Life.

The group, composed of lead vocalist and guitarist Elizabeth “Lzzy” Hale, her brother drummer and percussionist Arejay Hale, guitarist Joe Hottinger, and bassist Josh Smith. Recorded last year in Nashville with producer Jay Joyce (Cage The Elephant, Eric Church) at the helm.

The result is Into the Wild Life which is highlighted by the number one mainstream rock radio single, “Apocalyptic,” making Halestorm the fourth-ever female-led act to top the format more than once.

In addition to its extraordinary popular success, Into the Wild Life has also begun receiving unprecedented critical acclaim. “(The album) is a different beast altogether,” declared veteran rock journalist Jon Wiederhorn at Yahoo! Music, “one that forsakes everything that has worked for Halestorm thus far (slick production, traditional songwriting arrangements, a radio-ready mix of rockers and ballads) and takes a leap into the unknown... The risk of following its instincts has paid off.”

Do not miss your chance to the band roll through this remarkable new material when they stop by Stir this August.

AUGUST 11

Boy George and Culture Club with Thompson Twins’ Tom Bailey

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Since their inception in 1981 Culture Club have sold more than 50 million records worldwide, lead by their classic hits, “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me,” “Karma Chameleon,” and “I’ll Tumble 4 Ya.” The group is fronted by British singer/songwriter Boy George, who is universally recognized as one of music’s iconic artists. George was recently presented with the Ivor Novello lifetime achievement award in 2015 for his contribution to the music industry. Roy Hay, Mikey Craig and Jon Moss make up the remaining original line up set to tour.

Culture Club will be accompanied by the Thompson Twins’ Tom Bailey. With a new all-female band, Tom Bailey will be performing the Thompson Twins’ hits. The Thompson Twins had huge hits on both sides of the Atlantic. Songs such as “Hold Me Now,” “Doctor Doctor,” “You Take Me Up” and “Love On Your Side” provided the soundtrack for so many people’s lives worldwide in the mid-eighties.

Relive the era with the hair was big, the shoulder pads were bigger, and these bands were releasing some of the biggest pop singles of the day.

AUGUST 31

O.A.R with Matt Nathanson

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fter celebrating its 20th anniversary, O.A.R. is ready to begin another era this year with the release of a new album, tentatively titled The Mighty. O.A.R kicked off 2018 with the release of a new single “Just Like Paradise” and the announcement of a national summer tour that will take them back to Stir Cove once again. “It’s a song about new beginnings,” frontman Marc Roberge explained to Billboard earlier this year, “all about everyone talking about how we need summer to show up a little bit earlier this year, how we need a fresh start. That’s what the song represents, a brand new outlook to the day, a brand new start.”

MUSIC

The Rockville, Maryland band have sold close to 2 million albums and more than 2 million concert tickets, including sold out at shows at storied venues across the country - like New York City’s Madison Square Garden and Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver. They have been a mainstay on the summer tour circuit for the last decade and have impressed fans across the globe with their live performances.

Lexington, MA native Matt Nathanson, the acoustic singer-songwriter behind the platinum single “Come On Get Higher,” will open the show with his mix of folk and rock music. He sang his favorite song, “Bill Murray,” from his latest album Show Me Your Fangs, on the ABC hit Bachelor in Paradise.

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JUNE 2018

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Pentatonix

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SEPTEMBER 11

entatonix, an American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas – consisting of vocalists Scott Hoying, Mitch Grassi, Kirstin Maldonado, Kevin Olusola and Matt Sallee – are truly a modern-day success story. After winning the third season of NBC’s The Sing-Off, the group received $200,000 and a recording contract with Sony Music. After eventually being dropped by the label, the group formed its own YouTube channel and began amassing millions of subscribers and over 3 billion video views.Three-time Grammy® Award-winning and multi-platinumselling artist Pentatonix has sold nearly 10 million albums in worldwide consumption and performed for hundreds of thousands of fans at their

sold out shows across the globe. Their YouTube channel boasts more than 14.6 million subscribers, yielding over 3.1 billion video views. Their 2015 self-titled album is certified gold after debuting #1 on Billboard’s 200.

Now, the group is a three-time Grammy Award-winning and multiplatinum-selling powerhouse. Their 2015 self-titled album is certified gold after it debuted at number one on Billboard’s 200 album chart. Recently, the group released PTX Presents: Top Pop, Vol. I in April and are heading out on a North American tour in support. The album showcases the group’s distinct arrangement and vocal medleys on a wide array of today’s favorites including Bruno Mars, Kesha, and fellow Stir headliner Portugal. the Man.

Counting Crows with special guest +LIVE+: 25 Years and Counting

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SEPTEMBER 13

ounting Crows will celebrate 25 years of making music by hitting the road for a worldwide “25 Years and Counting” tour. Joining them are ‘90s multi-platinum group Live. Counting Crows – Adam Duritz (vocals), Jim Bogios (drums), David Bryson (guitar), Charlie Gillingham (keyboards), David Immergluck (guitar), Millard Powers (bass) and Dan Vickrey (guitar) – have sold more than 20 million albums worldwide after exploding onto the music scene with their multiplatinum breakout album August and Everything After in 1993. Known for creating unique and innovative concert experiences year after year, Counting Crows is recognized as one of the world’s most pre-eminent touring live rock bands.

“The nice thing about having 25 years of music to celebrate and seven studio albums we absolutely love to choose from is that we can play a different show every night,” said Crows vocalist Duritz. Duritz and company have been known to change alter and extend their songs when performing; adding additional instrumentation, tweaking songs lyrics, or changing verses entirely. In fact, most songs in Counting Crow’s repertoire have seen some form of this over the years. It makes every show feel like a completely unique and personalized experience which is a rarity in the world of touring and the main reason CC needs to be on the top of your list of bands to check out this summer.

Deep Purple and Judas Priest

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SEPTEMBER 21

he precursor to heavy metal teams up with one of the genre’s biggest acts as Deep Purple and Judas Priest embark on a co-headlining North American tour.

During their heyday, the releases of InRock (1970) Machine Head (1972) and Made In Japan (1973) catapulted Deep Purple to the top in concert grosses and album sales around the world while also cementing them as a standard on FM rock radio. Judas Priest took the blueprint of the hard rock bands before them and expanded by adding heavy riffing and taking the genre in a more progressive direction. They created one of the all-time heavy metal classics in British Steel.

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MUSIC

Deep Purple’s latest studio album, inFinite, was released on April 7, 2017, via earMUSIC. Produced by the legendary Bob Ezrin, (Pink Floyd, Alice Cooper, Kiss), InFinite featured 10 new tracks recorded with no musical boundaries in the spirit of the ‘70s.

Judas Priest’s latest studio album, Firepower, has become one of the most successful of the band’s entire career landing in the top five of 17 countries (including their highest chart placement ever in the U.S.), and scoring their highest charting commercial rock radio single in decades with “Lightning Strike.”

June 15-17

June 17

North Omaha Block Party

Reverb Lounge reverblounge.com

Juneteenth

2417 Burdette Street fb.com/NorthOmahaBlockParty

Centered in the heart of North Omaha’s arts & culture district, The North Omaha Block Party is a three-day celebration of North Omaha’s creative community. The Block Party will include: The Dream Street Slam - a three day three-on-three basketball tournament showcasing 40 of the City’s best players; the Keep The Lights On mini-festival with several of the most celebrated local musical performances, top local fashion provided by The Bubbler; Plus 16 of the the most talented designers from Omaha with new work presented by the City’s most talented artists and creatives, and of course by far some of the best food in the City. ~Staff Pick

June 16th

Big Canvas 6058 Maple St Bigcanvasne.com

nections many artists share with nature.

Her printmaking themes focus on various birds, insects and animals.

This current exhibition will feature her latest exploration of these subjects.

Speedy Ortiz

The last we heard from Massachusetts four-piece Speedy Ortiz, they were playing indie rock heavily indebted to the angular, jagged guitars of bands like Cursive and Built to Spill. It was strictly guitar-based music, and after two LPs and a handful of EPs in this style, Speedy Ortiz seemed to have found their niche. But on 2018 full-length, Twerp Verse, the band reconstructs its concept of how a guitar can or should function in a Speedy Ortiz record. Tracks like “Lean In When I Suffer” and “Villain” feature guitar mostly as a textural accent, taking as much of the mixes’ space as the alien synths and low-hanging pianos that creep up from track to track.

It’s a bold decision for a band that made its name on in-your-face distortion, and it may have something to do with frontwoman Sadie Dupuis’s recent solo dabbling in electropop.

Whatever is the root, Speedy Ortiz could have settled into its discordant brand of indie rock for the rest of its career. Instead, Dupuis and company logically evolved into a multifaceted band that can still pull off a succinctly infectious hook. The band plays Reverb Lounge this month, and tickets are $13.

Born in Omaha has bachelor’s and master’s degree in Art and Design, and another master’s degree focused on the history of printmaking. She frequently exhibits locally and nationally, has been published in the SGCI newsletter and her work is included in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art collection and the Microsoft Corporation.

Amy Haney’s solo exhibition opens Friday May 25th, from 5pm to 7pm at the Fred Simon Gallery. For additional information contact: Jared Kennedy, Communications Manager, 402.595.2122, jared.kennedy@nebraska.gov. ~Gerard Pefung

with Gerardo Meza, Conny Franko and Jocko Bourbon Theatre bourbontheatre.com

In February, Aramara Quintos Tapia, the frontwoman of Lincoln surf punk trio Histrionic, coordinated the first benefit show for Latino Lives, a recurring art series spotlighting Latino musicians and visual artists. The event, held at Lincoln skatepark/concert venue The Bay, generated $1,115 to host future Latino Lives programs. Four months later, Quintos Tapia is hosting the second edition at The Bourbon in downtown Lincoln with an eightband slate each featuring at least one Latino member.

Fred Simon Gallery

Haney exhibit features her exploration of birds, insects and animals

Haney’s primary medium is printmaking.

In her process, she brings to mind the con-

Latino Lives

The Waiting Room waitingroomlounge.com

Printmaker, Naturally

~ Amy Schweid

June 22

Iceage

On view thru July 17

The Nebraska Arts Council will host an opening reception for Omaha artist Amy Haney on Friday, May 25, 2018, from 5pm to 7pm in the Fred Simon Gallery. Her work will be on display until July 17.

~Sam Crisler

June 18

~Sam Crisler

Omaha’s local short-form improv team will be hitting the Benson B-Side stage June 16th. Great for a date night or family night out, their performances are never the same twice. Sure to bring a slap to your knee, hurt to your cheeks, and a belly full of laughs. Each show is 100% original and based on the audiences suggestions.

roots and merged it with primal emotion; and 2014’s Plowing Into the Field of Love could take the cake as the most anguished rock record in recent memory. But none of the band’s restless experimentation could have predicted the convergence of sounds on their latest record, Beyondless. Punk is still one of the album’s ingredients, but on Beyondless, Iceage delves into David Byrne-esque genrebending, fitting jazz, country twang and beefy groove rock in the record’s 10 tracks.

Unsurprisingly, Beyondless has received similar acclaim to records past, and the band is hitting The Waiting Room in June as part of a month-long U.S. tour. Harpist Mary Lattimore opens the show, and tickets are $13.

For the better part of this decade, Copenhagen punk band Iceage has forged new paths for the genre and garnered rave reviews from countless music media outlets along the way. Their 2011 debut New Brigade bridged hardcore and post-punk; follow-up You’re Nothing traced punk back to its most raucous

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Lincoln folk songwriter Gerardo Meza and Omaha rapper Conny Franko top the bill, which also includes Jocko, Verse and the Vices, Otos, Threesome Egos, LOWDADDYLLOYD and Quintos Tapia’s Histrionic. Admission is free, and music starts at 6 p.m.

| THE READER |

~Sam Crisler

JUNE 2018

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June 22-23

Intents Fest II Riverwest Park in Elkhorn 23301 Maple Rd

Thursdays-Saturdays @ 8:00pm; Sundays @ 6:00pm; April 1st @ 2:00pm.

nominee for Best Visual Emerging Artist from the Omaha Arts and Entertainment Awards (OEAA). Temple also was nominated for two 2018 OEAA awards - one for Best Visual Emerging Artist and one for Best Presentation in a Non-Traditional Format.

~Amy Schweid

June 24

Young Black and Influential Awards

The little gallery will celebrate its third anniversary Friday, June 1, with cake, a pinata full of treasures and the opening of “Home Sweet Home” from 6 to 9 p.m. at 5901 Maple Street in downtown Benson.

The Venue (2112 N. 30th St) Facebook.com/YBIAwards/

Omaha musician Nathan McInnis launched Intents Fest last year after three years of dreaming up his ideal music festival with a few buddies. It brought dozens of fans and 16 bands, including Omaha rockers The Beat Seekers and Kris Lager Band, to RiverWest park in Elkhorn for two nights of art displays, music and camping. This month, the festival is back in similar form for year two, but with a lineup stacked even bigger and more diverse than the year before. Chicago jazz-rock band Marbin headlines the festival along with Colorado rock trio Evanoff and Arizona hip-hop duo Snailmate, who return to Intents Fest for the second time. Local highlights include bluegrass band Hammersaw, singer-songwriter Magū, electronic producer Cult Play and McInnis’s Doom Lagoon. Twoday passes run $29, and Friday or Saturday day passes can be purchased for $19. ~Sam Crisler.

Thru June 24th, 2018

Lazarus Syndrome 3225 California Street www.snapproductions.com

Bruce Ward’s humorous and touching play Lazarus Syndrome follows Elliot Liteman, a former concert pianist, who has spent most of his adult life as a person living with AIDS. He struggles with the emotional toll of Lazarus Syndrome, a medical term for the survivor’s guilt suffered by those who live longer than the family and friends closest to them.

With a winter storm raging outside, Elliot has planned the perfect quiet evening at home.

But his solitude is suddenly interrupted by the noisy and unexpected arrival of his brother and father laden with Manischewitz, homemade matzo ball soup and family baggage.

The ensuing confusion is raucous and funny but ultimately paves the way for Elliot’s recommitment to life. Showtimes include:

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The Young Black & Influential Awards was the brain child of Ashlei Spivey. She was frustrated with the narratives around leadership, particularly Black leadership. She knew there were so many dope emerging leaders who were doing the work, but never acknowledged because they didn’t fit into this “box” of what a leader of color should be. This event acknowledges the shades of Black leadership in the Black community–period. People that are on the ground, head down, doing the work day in and day out. ~Staff Pick

June 28th-July 1st, 2018

Once on this Island South High www.snapproductions.com

After the profound success of “In the Heights” Snap and South High are teaming up again to bring us “Once on the Island”. This is the sweeping theatrical tale of Ti Moune, a fearless peasant girl in search of her place in the world, and ready to risk it all for love. Guided by the mighty island gods, Ti Moune sets out on a remarkable journey to reunite with the man who has captured her heart. Directed by Michael Simpson, Choreographed by Roxanne Neilson, and filled with an incredible cast, this is sure to steal your heart. Showtimes include: Thurs-Sat nights at 7:30pm; Sat/Sun Matinees at 2:00pm. ~Amy Schweid

Thru June 30

Home Sweet Home Little Gallery (5901 Maple Street) Call 402.681.1901

Artist Katie B. Temple has a knack for lending an appealing graphic design to even the most skeletal of her bare bones house

| THE READER |

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paintings. This paradox may account then for the title of her new solo exhibit Home Sweet Home, which opens Friday, June 1, at the Little Gallery in Benson.

All of the paintings, over 50 ranging from 3x5” to 40x30”, are acrylic, gouache, and ink on paper, mounted to wood panel. Some pieces contain a single home in one painting and other pieces contain several layered homes in one painting.

Yet despite their virtual geometric abstract style, these “homes” are more personal than their apparent detachment. Temple explains that by constructing and layering multiple homes on top of each other in a single painting, she illustrates houses in various stages of occupation and transition, a theme very “close to home.”

“For the past three years, I have only incorporated imagery from apartment complexes, townhomes, multi-family houses, dormitories, etc. that I have lived in,” she said. “Those works were about my personal journey of moving from place to place… how each of those homes were a vessel that held me.

“The homes used in my Home Sweet Home series are about them being vacant and empty. They may be between renters, on the market to sell, foreclosed by the bank or just abandoned. I began this body of work when a home across the street from my studio suddenly went from occupied to unoccupied.”

More anchored now at home and in her career, Temple, an Omaha artist and educator, is the studio coordinator for the Kent Bellows Mentoring Program at Joslyn Art Museum. Most of all, she is an accomplished artist who earned her BFA from Bowling Green State University and her MFA from Montana State University.

Her work has been featured in various national exhibitions. Locally, she was a 2017

The exhibition, Home Sweet Home, will run from June 1st-30th. The Little Gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 3:00 to 6:00pm, Saturday from 10:00am to 1:00pm and by appointment. ~Mike Krainak

June 30

Centerpiece EP Release Reverb Lounge reverblounge.com

When Lincoln band No Tide called it quits in 2016, frontman Will Conner wasted little time heading another project, swiftly transitioning from No Tide’s hardcore-leaning pop punk to alt-country influenced indie rock with new quartet Centerpiece. The band’s debut self-titled EP dropped in May 2017, taking songwriting influence from indie darlings Pinegrove and Whitney while still incorporating pop punk harmonies and full-force rock production, courtesy of Conner himself. A year later, the band is back with EP number two, “Simple,” which drops June 26. Lead single “Blue Marble” is the dreamiest the band has sounded yet, featuring a melody fit for a Mac DeMarco LP and high-pitched organ floating like clouds through a rich blue sky, but it remains to be seen if that laid back energy will be replicated throughout the EP’s five tracks. Catch Centerpiece at its EP release show this month at Reverb Lounge with Chicago rockers North By North and Lincoln’s I Forgot To Love My Father. ~Sam Crisler

FOLLOW US ON Thru Sept. 26

Joint Venture

7300 Q ST | RALSTONARENA.COM

Kaneko thekaneko.org

When it comes to reality, art and science have often enjoyed an unusual and unexpected partnership.

Art has always shed light on reality either by replicating it or expanding it. Science presents our understanding of the real world and what we create with in it based on that understanding. Be it technology, history books or culture, the two can enrich us, inspire us, even mislead us.

KANEKO’s newest collaborative installation, Reality, opening June 1, will challenge perceptions of that very “concept”. The exhibit brings together perspectives in art, science and technology that create, alter and reflect upon our sense of what is real.

Through different mediums and disciplines, the exhibit illustrates the way reality shifts and how it can be augmented to either align with our individual truth, to shape a public opinion or to reinforce a connectedness with our surroundings.

an acoustic evening w/

Features of this exhibit include: the “Wall of Hope” from the Heartland Workers Centeran interactive display of stories from immigrants and refugees in Nebraska; a virtual fire truck experience from Simulation in MotionNebraska and Tim Guthrie’s “Museum of Alternative History” which explores bias and dissonance within the museum structure.

From narrative to technical to conceptual, Reality bends the boundaries of truth and lived experience. Reality will open to the public on June 1 and will run through September 26 at KANEKO, 1111 Jones Street. For more information visit thekaneko.org. ~Melinda Kozel

supporting act

july 11 | 8pm side room lounge at ralston arena

ralstonarena.com

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ARTIST WITHOUT BORDERS Berliner Rothmann brings his exhibit ‘Circles on the Move’ to Metro’s Garden of the Zodiac Gallery

BY MICHAEL J. KRAINAK

ART

“I

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f you can do a painting in 5 strokes, you can make it sing!” ~ Tyrus Wong “Color is a plastic means of creating intervals... color harmonics produced by special relationships, or tensions. We differentiate now between formal tensions and color tensions, just as we differentiate in music between counterpoint and harmony.” ~ Hans Hofmann Two theories from very different influences that reveal the beguiling complexity of artist Christian Rothmann’s current exhibit, Circles on the Move, on display at the Garden of the Zodiac gallery in the Old Market until July 1.

Berliner Rothmann’s past work, a mix of “flower power” paintings and “moving picture” photos has graced the Metro arts scene for nearly two decades. His current exhibition, arguably his most sophisticated seen to date in this region, puts his own painterly spin and mark on the traditions expressed above.

Wong, a relatively unknown Chinese-born American artist who died at the age of 106, was a painter, animator, calligrapher, muralist, ceramicist, lithographer and kite maker, as well as a set designer and storyboard artist. Conversely, Hofmann(1880-1966)’ a pivotal figure in Abstract Expressionism stands as one of the most important painters of post-war American art.

Whether as art director for Disney’s film “Bambi” or exhibiting with the L.A. group “Occidentals”, Wong was one of the first to infuse Asian aesthetics in American modern art, animation and design. His calligraphic brushwork, virtually eliminating all but the essential details in his fine art, lent a quiet, minimalistic beauty to both his figurative and impressionistic drawings and paintings.

Nature was the origin of art, Hofmann believed, and no matter how abstract his pictures seemed to become, he always sought to maintain in them a link to the world of objects. Even when his canvases seemed to be only collections of forms and colors, Hofmann argued that they still contained the suggestion of movement - and movement was the pulse of nature.

To suggest depth and movement in the picture, Hofmann influenced artists to create what he called “push and pull” in the image by creating contrasts of color, form, and texture.

| THE READER |

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“Minimalism, strokes and calligraphy.” “Nature, color, form, tension and movement.” No wonder then that Rothmann titled his recent exploration of this complex aesthetic accordingly . By combining these two diverse impacts, he has created a “push/pull” of his own on each of the paintings and watercolors on display, whether shown individually or in wall installations.

From his most grandiose gestural work, the titular, large scale oil “Circles on the Move” to the quieter watercolor series “Philippines”, regardless of scale, each piece effectively contrasts the merest suggestion of a botanical or orbital with its bold assertion for space and attention.

The optimism, the spirit, the lively tints, tones and pigments are what bond or stamp Rothmann’s art and point of view. This is the artist that the Metro knows. Yet, though his colorful aesthetic may bond his work, it does not bind it. This is part of what’s new in this exhibit; motion drives his evolution.

Rothmann says “I have always been a happy painter,” drawn to bold, effusive color, bright Mediterranean light and above all, nature. Patrons and viewers know him for his floral arrangements and bubble bouquets bursting forth in a pure palette. But he is neither a floral arranger nor a balloon vendor.

Once a hyperrealist, Rothmann evolved. His blossoms and orbitals can’t be found in vases, decor or still lifes. They barely stay still on his canvas.

Like his art, the artist is on the move, a sort of “artist without borders” who still loves travelling worldwide for inspiration from one artist residency to another.

Not a florist or gardener either, think of him as a hunter/gatherer, whose new found flowers are first observed on his travels and then blossom forth in various forms of abstraction. Not that objects are absent in this exhibition. Rothmann continues a career-long infatuation with circles and florals, which appear singly or in carefully composed groupings.

In fact, the re-working of three large discs used previously in outdoor installations, “Blue Horizon,” “Waterfall” and “Abstract Landscape” marks a return to a previous investigation of the circle that had come to a standstill well over a decade ago.

“I have always been looking for ‘open’ not determined forms, which gives freedom in interpretation,” Rothmann said. “After years I ended up

doing circles, ellipses and balls. But how can you a stamen and pistil begin to appear. One might energized by a force behind it, a captivating continue, when the form becomes (too) perfect?” even attempt to identify a species, as if that sample of a Rothmann past motif, ENERGY balls.

He credits his recent progression to mattered. But once comfortable in the artist’s Two of the three large discs, “Waterfall” and photography, which allowed him to shoot meadow, one may find that certain works are the rather prosaically titled “Abstract Landscape”, blossoms as well as other objects spontaneously particularly moving, some more seductive than are particularly captivating because they are as he found them, often unfocused. In others. closest in the show to true nature studies despite this manner, “the paintings developed, “Flowers I Black I Green” greets the viewer their minimalistic style and abstraction. In the spontaneously, transient, sketchy...watercolor first, the closest to a bouquet in the exhibit. But former water does seem to tumble below its style.” then there is that black background suggesting a frame to the viewer’s feet, and the latter features Over time the artist added the conceptual discordant push/pull of its own as if these flowers it own rushing stream with a red sky above. addition of a monochrome stripe, which were blooming somehow at night. Even the green Despite their expansive landscape, the discs stabilizes the main subject “going from a very slash of color lends a preternatural quality to this too have a curious push/pull of their own. expressive part to the quiet surface,” a tactic he accomplished work.

Hung together, the two circular frames give learned from his study of calligraphy.

Two paintings, “Hot Spring” and “Play of the impression of seeing each image through Which brings us to this exhibit. Once again, Colours”, companion pieces really, serve as a telescope or zoom lens, thus limiting one’s Rothmann is “on the move.” Though his art is prime examples of Rothmann’s art currently as perception but not imagination. Thus we are still familiar to the viewer, it is also radically the work here is more abstract than figurative. clearly seeing things through Rothmann’s eyes; different. His petals and circles vibrate, sing His circles and flowers have truly opened up. In his point of view is both formal and open. and dance. Even those works more anchored “Hot Spring” with a blue motif, the circles are On a much smaller scale are his wall installation by a single complimentary color stripe in the reduced to splashes, swirls and gestures, nearly of 20 watercolors, “Philippines”, each 9 ½” by adjacent panel, appear free and open to their finger painting. It looks like petals submerged 12”, Asian influenced, no two alike despite their environment. underwater in a pond. minimalism and shared palette. So delicate and “Colors on the Move” isn’t a garden, and it’s True to form also, “Play of Colours” features deft are these, that one almost sees the artist at not quite a jungle. The exhibit feels like one splotches of color, sun-dappled primary and work not unlike a calligrapher. The result is a has gloriously stumbled into a meadow whose secondary colors, all of them popping on a montage of natural delights as one envisions not natural setting is dominated first by color, form, bed of black and white, a brilliant interplay of only singular flowers but sunsets, northern lights, line and yes, motion. This is how Rothmann pigment and light. volcanoes, rainbows and reflective pools, among composes, because this is how he sees.

In contrast, and a personal favorite, “Blue others.

As for the viewer, the exhibit initially places Circles on the Move” runs counter to the above as And then there is Rothmann’s masterwork itself, one on sensory overload. And then, gradually its objects have been reduced to monochromatic “Circles on the Move”, which vaults its subject into stems, petals, seeds and thistles, perhaps even abstract motion. The painting vibrates as if the heavens itself from where the inspiration must

have come. The large 6’7” by 9’2” painting is a cacophony of pure abstract color, energy and form, not planted on the canvas but suspended in midair seemingly well beyond its boundaries, the yellows especially dazzling.

In a word, this work is orgasmic. It’s a feast for the senses, and it is relentless. It demands attention, and it satisfies repeated viewings the way one returns to a great movie sitting in the 6th row where one’s peripheral vision won’t admit distractions. It’s Rothmann’s climactic statement about the sublimity of Nature to both capture and inspire.

It’s his “push” beyond the borders while other works “pull” one into the frame. Several paintings and watercolors emphasize the simplistic and rely upon the reductive to dazzle. This titular work reminds us Nature will have its way, that indeed less is not always more, sometimes only more will do.

That Circles on the Move is satisfying regardless of scale is testimony to Rothmann’s ability to evolve. His art is expressive, not figurative. It’s less about what’s there and more about what you imagine. You don’t think his work, you feel it. It’s as animated as the artist himself.

“Circles on the Move” continues at the Garden of the Zodiac Gallery in the Old Market Passageway until July 1. For details and hours go to https:// www.facebook.com/TheGardenOfTheZodiac/ or call (402) 341-1877.

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Sam Ryder, 2017 Champion

ART

| THE READER |

JUNE 2018

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THEATERS HARVEST PLAYS FROM GREAT PLAINS CONFERENCE

BY LEO ADAM BIGA PHOTOS BY DEBRA S. KAPLAN

THEATER

GREAT PLAINS

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KEVIN LAWLER

SUSAN TOBERER

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ELIZABETH THOMPSON

he Great Plains Theatre Conference is more than a collaborative Students attend free and fill various roles onstage and off. around craft. It’s also a source of plays for theaters, whose productions The Young Dramatists Fellowship Program is a guided experiential give GPTC playwrights a platform for their words to take shape. ed immersion for high school students during the conference. It affords The May 27-June 2 2018 GPTC included a Blue Barn Theatre opportunities to interact with theater pros. mounting of Matthew Capodicasa’s In the City, In the City, In the City. Artistic “The participation of our local theater artists and students is a key director Susan C. Toberer booked it after a 2017 PlayLab reading. The sustaining factor of the conference,” Lawler said. “Our national and piece opened a regular run May 17, Then came a PlayFest performance. international guest artists are won over by the talent, generosity and insight The show continues through June 17 to cap Blue Barn’s 29th season. of our local theater community and that helps the conference rise to a higher Toberer said the conference is “a good source” for new material, adding, level of engagement and creativity.”

“I wouldn’t have been aware of City if not for GPTC and it became perhaps Besides honing craft at the MCC-based conference, programming extends the show we most looked forward to this season.” to mainstage and PlayFest works produced around town. Then there are Staging new works from the conference expands the relationship between those GPTC plays local theaters incorporate into their seasons. theaters and playwrights.

“We’ve always done plays touched by Great Plains.” Phaneuf said. “Now “The incredible openness of the process is one of the many joys of working it’s taking another step up where we’re committing sight unseen to do one of with a script and a playwright with such generosity of spirit. Not only were the plays selected for play reading in our season next year. That happens to we able to bring Matthew into the process early and often to offer guidance be a season of all women, so we’re reading the plays by women to decide and support,” she said, “but he invited the artists involved to imagine almost what fits into our season.” infinite possibilities. We are thrilled to bring his play to life for the first time.”

It will happen as part of UNO’s new Connections series.

GPTC producing artistic director Kevin Lawler couldn’t be more pleased.

“The idea is that UNO will connect with another organization to do work “This is part of my dream. It’s not really a dream anymore, it’s reality, that matters to both of us. This coming year that connection is with the Great that local theaters can garner and grab productions, including premiere Plains.” productions of plays from the scripts that come here to Great Plains.

Phaneuf added, “We’re also doing The Wolves by Sarah DeLappe. It also City is a great example of that,” he said. started at Great Plains and has gotten wonderful national exposure.”

“Another example is UNO now designating the third slot in their season to Additional GPTC works account for some graduate student studio fully produce a Great Plains Theatre Conference PlayLab from the previous productions in the spring. year.”

This fall Creighton University is producing the world premiere of Handled “The GPTC-UNO connection goes way back,” said University of Nebraska by CU alum Shayne Kennedy, who’s had previous works read at GPTC. at Omaha theater professor Cindy Phaneuf. She’s developed alliances with The Shelterbelt’ Theater has produced a dozen GPTC-sourced plays since conference guests, even bringing some back to produce their work or to 2006, including three since 2014: Mickey and Sage by Sara Farrington, The give workshops.

Singularity by Crystal Jackson and The Feast by Celine Song. It will present Since conference founder and former Metropolitan Community College another in 2018-2019. president Jo Ann McDowell shared her vision with community and academia As artistic director since 2014, Elizabeth Thompson said she’s nurtured theater professionals in 2006, It’s been a cooperative venture, Theater pros “a stronger bond with Great Plains, especially since GPTC associate artistic serve as directors, stage managers, actors, dramaturges and respondents. director Scott Working is one of our founders – it’s a no-brainer.”

| THE READER |

THEATER

Omaha playwright Ellen Struve has seen “The GPTC is providing an opportunity for the several of her works find productions, including community at large to develop relationships with three at Shelterbelt, thanks to Great Plains new plays from the ground up. My hope is by exposure and networking. having direct connection to these writers, Omaha“Some of the greatest advocates of my work based companies will begin shepherding new have been other writers at GPTC. I’ve helped get works onto their stages.”

GPTC writers productions and they’ve helped “Because we’re a theater that only produces me get productions. We are always fighting on new work,” Thompson said, “these plays have a behalf of each other’s work,” Struve said. “My much better chance of being produced with us first play Mrs Jennings’ Sitter was selected as a than they do with anyone else in Omaha.” mainstage reading in 2008. (Director) Marshall Doing new work is risky business since its Mason asked me to send the play to companies unfamiliar to audiences, but Thompson said he worked with on the east coast. Frequent an advantage to GPTC scripts is that some GPTC playwright Kenley Smith helped secure a Shelterbelt patrons “already know about them a production in his home theater in West Virginia. little bit because they’re developed with Omaha “When my play Mountain Lion was selected actors and directors – that helps.” (in 2009), Shelterbelt offered to produce the Twenty plays are selected for GPTC from a plays together in a summer festival. Then in blind draw of 1,000 submissions. Thus, local 2010, (playwright) Kari Mote remembered Mrs. theaters have a rich list of finely curated works Jennings’ Sitter and asked if she could produce it to draw from. in New York City.”

“These playwrights are going places,” UNO’s In 2011, Struve’s Recommended Reading for Girls Phaneuf said. “You can be in the room with was championed to go to the Omaha Community some of the best playwrights in the country and Playhouse, where Amy Lane directed it. beyond and you can get to know those writers “This kind of peer promotion-support happens and their work. It’s wonderful to see them when every year at Great Plains,” Struve said. “It has they’re just ready to be discovered by a lot of been a transformative partner for me.” people and to feel a part of what they’re doing.”

Kevin Lawler confirms “a strong history” of Whether plays are scouted by GPTC insiders “artists supporting each other’s work well beyond or submitted by playwrights themselves, it means the conference.” more quality options.

Plays come to theaters’ attention in various “It just opens up our gate as to what we consider ways. local, and while we have amazing writers that are “A lot of directors will send me the piece they’re local, they’re not writing all the time, so it gives us working on at Great Plains and say, ‘I see this at a bigger pool to pick from,” Thompson said. the Shelterbelt and I would love to stay involved When theaters elect to produce the work if possible.’ That’s definitely something we look of GPTC playwrights, a collaboration ensues. at,” Thompson said. “The writer already has a “They’re definitely involved,” Thompson said. The relationship with them and that can make the GPTC playwrights she’s produced at Shelterbelt process a little easier. all reside outside Nebraska.

“Actors involved in a reading of a script we “Their input is just as valuable as if they were produce often want to come audition for it. living here and able to come to every rehearsal.

They’re excited about seeing something they were We Face-time, Skype, text, email because they involved with in a small way get fully realized.” do have the opportunity to make some changes Capodicasa’s City was brought to Blue Barn by throughout the process.” actress Kim Gambino, who was in its GPTC reading.

For Lawler, it’s about growing the theater She studied theater in New York with Toberer. culture.

Capodicasa is glad “the script made its way to “I love that our local theaters are being able the folks at Blue Barn,” adding, “I’m so honored to take different scripts from the conference and the Blue Barn is doing the play.” He’s enjoyed throw them into their seasons – many times giving collaborating with the team for his play’s first full a premiere for the play. A lot of productions and production and is happy “to “share it with the relationships are born at the conference.”

Omaha community.”

Ellen Struve has been a beneficiary of both.

“When I served on the Shelterbelt’s reading “GPTC has given me access to some of the committee, I was charged with helping find scripts greatest playwrights alive. It’s a community. Local, that could possibly fill a gap in the season,” said national and international. It has invigorated the playwright-director Noah Diaz. “I remembered Omaha writing scene. Every year we get to see The Feast – its humor and beauty and terror – what’s possible and imagine what we’ll do next.” and suggested it. Frankly, I didn’t think it would win anyone over. To my surprise, Beth Thompson Visit www.gptcplays.com. decided to program it -- something I still consider to be deeply courageous. An even bigger Read more of Leo Adam Biga’s work at surprise came when Beth suggested I direct it. leoadambiga.com.

THEATER

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HOODOO

CELEBRATE SUMMER

HOODOO focuses on blues, roots, Americana and occasional other music styles with an emphasis on live music performances. Hoodoo columnist B.J. Huchtemann is a senior contributing writer and veteran music journalist who received the Blues Foundation’s 2015 Keeping the Blues Alive Award for Journalism.

Follow her blog at hoodoorootsblues.blogspot.com and on www.thereader.com.

Music from blues-rock to Zydeco, country and more is on tap as summertime starts to sizzle.

BY B.J. HUCHTEMANN

TEXAS-BORN BLUES-ROCKER HADDEN SAYERS AND HIS BAND MAKE A LONG-ANTICIPATED RETURN TO THE METRO AT CHROME LOUNGE THURSDAY, JUNE 21, 6-9 P.M. PHOTO BY SCOTT DOBRY

K

eyboard man and engaging entertainer Victor Wainwright & The Train are up at Chrome Thursday, June 7. Wainwright took home the Pinetop Perkins Piano Award (Instrumentalist – Piano) in the 2018 Blues Music Awards in May. Former metro area blues guitarist Harvey Brindell returns to perform Thursday, June 14, with Mitch Kasmar and SoCal’s The 44’s. Longtime local fan favorite and blues-rocker Hadden Sayers plugs in Thursday, June 21.

Sayers has a new double CD, Dopamine Machine, due out in September and has been producing podcast interviews with fellow blues artists.

Check it all out at haddensayers.com. Laurie Morvan rounds out the Thursday early shows with a gig Thursday, June 28. The Taylor Scott Band has been turning heads as an up and coming guitar-driven band.

They play Chrome Thursday, July 5. All Thursday shows are 6-9 p.m.

takes over 14th Street in front of the bar and the outdoor lineup is outstanding. Friday, July 6, it’s Evan Bartels (5 p.m.). Lil’ Ed & The Blues Imperials (7 p.m.), the legendary Los Lobos (9 p.m.) and Lincoln’s own Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal (11 p.m.) Saturday, July 7, enjoy bands from the BSO’s BluesEd youth performance development program’s Omaha and Lincoln bands at 1 p.m. Then catch Hector Anchondo Band (3 p.m.), Igor & The Red Elvises (5 p.m.), Dale Watson (7 p.m.), Tommy Castro & The Painkillers (9 p.m.) and Nikki Hill (11 p.m.). You’ll save money by buying advance tickets and you can get them online at etix.com, search for Zoo Bar Lincoln, NE. Keep an eye on zoobar.com for the schedule in the club July 2-5, the festival week always offers great entertainment too!

Zydeco Festival Midtown Crossing hosts the return of the Zydeco Festival Saturday, June 23. This event offers some great Zydeco and Cajun music. This year the event opens with Omaha’s own Prairie Gators, followed by local fan favorite and Grammy Award Winner Chubby Carrier & The Bayou Swamp Band (5 p.m.). Headlining the night is Keith Frank & the Soileau Zydeco Band (7 p.m.), hailed as one of the “leading lights of the ‘nouveau zydeco’ movement.” See midtowncrossing.com/events for details.

Hot Notes Local blues-roots musician Virginia Kathryn’s show celebrating her debut release, Vintage Sepia, is Thursday, June 14, at Reverb Lounge with guests Township & Range and The Shineys.

Friday, June 8, the Devon Allman Project with special guest Duane Betts performs at Slowdown, 8:30 p.m. Heather Newman Band plays a special show at the Breakers Bay Bar at Fun Plex Saturday, June 9, 7 p.m.

Local bluesman Drew Jude, leader of Drew Jude & The Cool Tones, passed away on May 6. There will be a celebration of life Sunday, June 10, 6-9 p.m. at The B Bar, 4333 Leavenworth St. Proceeds from the event will go to benefit St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, the late musician’s favorite charity.

Popular Chicago blues artist Studebaker John plugs in at The Corner Bar in Fremont Sunday, June 17, 5-8 p.m.

The annual Summer Arts Fest downtown, June 8-10, always offers some world-class music, all for free on the World Music Pavilion– Luigi Waites Main. Check out the schedule at summerarts.org/music.

Cody Jinks plays Sumtur Amphitheater with Ward Davis and TN Jet Friday, June 22. See onepercentproductions.com for details.

Zoo Bar 45th Anniversary & More Highlights of shows at the Zoo Bar in June include Victor Wainwright & The Train Friday, June 8, 5 p.m. The Bel Airs take the stage Saturday, June 9, 6-9 p.m. Alligator Records’ Selwyn Birchwood is in the spotlight Wednesday, June 13, 6-9 p.m. 2018 Blues Music Award nominees The Nick Moss Band featuring Dennis Gruenling are up Wednesday, June 27, 6-9 p.m.

Because of our street date schedule, I’ve got to tell you now about the big Zoo Bar 45th Anniversary. The annual Zoo Fest street party and concert happens Friday and Saturday, July 6 and 7. The Zoo

HOODOO

| THE READER |

JUNE 2018

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TOP 20 BANDS OF OMAHA

BY SAM CRISLER

T

It’s no secret that Omaha and Greater Nebraska’s music scene became nationally synonymous with the breakout success of Saddle Creek Records in the late ’90s and early 2000s. As the fame of Saddle Creek artists like Cursive and Bright Eyes began to wane though, Nebraska music continued experimenting, and in the Internet age the sounds are as vibrant and varied as ever. With Nebraska’s indie, folk, soul, metal and punk acts releasing more music available to the masses than ever before, there’s no shortage of local artists to hear from. Here are the 20 hottest acts in Nebraska music today.

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| THE READER |

MUSIC

4. Jocelyn 5. Twinsmith 6. High Up 7. Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal 8. Mesonjixx 9. Conny Franko / M34N STR33T 10. Dilla Kids 11. No Thanks 12. Conor Oberst 13. Simon Joyner 14. Matt Whipkey 15. Those Far Out Arrows 16. Matthew Sweet 17. Thick Paint 18. Matt Cox 19. Clarence Tilton 20. Little Brazil

CONCERNING CONDUCTOR COMPOSITION The Need for More Film Scores by Women B Y R YA N S Y R E K

T

hat loud, sturm-und-drang “bwaam” noise that punctuates every sci-fi/action movie trailer like a flatulent robot is the unofficial sound effect of toxic masculinity. Its omnipresence is not merely a sign of the unoriginal copycat-itis that represents Hollywood’s major birth defect. It is also a reminder that the makeup of movie composers is hella homogenous: dudes, dudes, dudes, as far as the eye can see! In fact, according to insane statistics heralded roughly as infrequently as major drug trials for conditions that primarily affect women of color, no other artistic cinematic profession is as exclusionary of women as film composing.

Congrats on Your Composing Oscar, Bro!

FILM

Dr. Martha M. Lauzen’s annual Celluloid Ceiling report is the most important film that never gets enough attention and is sure to make you feel like you’ve just downed a slurry made of Michael Bay gems. Brace yourself with a sharp swig of something strong and then swallow these digits.

Here’s how many women accounted for various roles in the top 250 films of 2017: • Producer – 25% (Up 1% from 2016) • Executive producer – 19% (Up 2% from 2016) • Editor – 16% (Down 1% from 2016) • Director – 11% (Down 2% from 2016) • Sound editors – 8% (No change from 2016) • Sound designers – 5% (Up 1% from 2016) • Cinematographers – 4% (Down 1% from 2016) • Composers – 3% (No change from 2016)

we’re not done yet. Rachel Portman became the first woman to win a composing Oscar for Emma in 1997. Anne Dudley followed behind Portman with her win for The Full Monty in 1998. They are two of only four women who have ever been nominated in that category.

Last year, 141 scores made the shortlist for Oscar. Of those, just five were composed by women. “It gets worse” should really have been the title of this piece, because it gets worse here!

Two women were on that shortlist multiple times.

So in total, exactly three women were considered for this Academy Award last year.

How bad is it for women composers? Lesley Barber, who composed the score for Manchester By the Sea, showed up for an interview to promote the movie, and someone confused her for a publicity person and not the composer.

I’m going to assume that “someone” has a name that rhymes with Schmasey Battfleck. As Kathryn Bostic, who provided the incredible music for the feature film version of Dear White People, told Variety, “The biggest issue has been that we are not even in the conversation.”

Hooray for yet another uncomfortable women’s cycle nobody feels comfortable talking about in public! Without award nominations or acclaim to raise the profile of women composers, they struggle to get work. Without work, they can’t get nominations.

Literally the only good thing about this whole discordant mess is that at least part of the fix is awareness and attention, which you’re giving the situation right now. In fact, let’s stay quasipositive, which is the highest level of optimism currently legally allowed!

Celebrating Women Who Score

Like a refresh of Donald Trump’s Twitter page, those appalling numbers are totally expected and yet somehow still feel surprisingly awful. Also just like Trump’s presidency, brace yourself because

Stop what you’re doing and watch director Sara Nesson’s short documentary Women Who Score (vimeo.com/204314500) right now!

FILM

Sorry, that was way too bossy… I just get stupid excited about people who are actively trying to change things that are stupendously terrible and unfair, and Nesson’s doc is a 12-minute “eff you” to anyone who thinks women can’t do this job. It contains excerpts from a concert that featured work by 20 women composers and also highlights the efforts Miriam Cutler, who helped found The Alliance for Women Film Composers.

That organization does basic, kick-ass things like provide a directory (theawfc.com/ members/). Now when producers say they can’t find women composers to even consider, it’s provably bullshit! Even if you’re not a woman who composes music, you can support the organization with a donation (theawfc.com/ awfc-supporters/). They have a Twitter feed (twitter.com/TheAWFC) that promotes scores by women, host numerous events and generally work to bring attention to this almost completely ignored disparity. Follow and retweet them, donate to them or do whatever you can to raise awareness. That’s right, you walked into a film section and stumbled into a call-to-arms! Your arms are now officially called!

See the thing is, not only are women missing a chance to create, we are sorely missing the sound that only they can provide. Although it pales in comparison to the frustration and challenges women composers face trying to breakthrough in an industry that has no interest in making room for them, cinema is lesser without their voices. We lovers of film ought to want equality as much out of a selfish desire to hear new sounds as out of a passion for equality. I’m just saying, if Marvel wants to avoid having all its movies sound exactly the same, maybe put give a woman a conducting staff and not just spandex.

| THE READER |

JUNE 2018

31

WOOKIE ROOKIE

BY THE BOOKIE Solo Has Fun by the Numbers B Y R YA N S Y R E K

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Prequels are the “backhanded compliments” of sequels. By their very nature, they suggest a latent distrust of a fan base’s imagination, inferring that the darkrooms of our feeble minds are shitty places for characters or stories to fully develop. I promise you, not one human who ever lived on this earth needed or wanted to know how Han Solo was given his surname. As that hellishly stupid scene plays itself out early in Solo: A Star Wars Story, Alden Ehrenreich’s smile is meta-hilariously the very epitome of a mirthless chuckle. “Not like this.

Oh God, not like this,” his tight-lipped grin weeps.

“Harrison Ford is going to crash his next plane upon mine rectum.

What’s astonishing is that, when Solo is not manically enslaved to blandly explaining every tiny minutiae of Han’s existence, it’s a vibrantly fun and swashbuckling space adventure.

In fact, it’s the first film that actually justifies having supplemental Star Wars films outside the “Episodes,” as its effervescent silliness only adds grandeur to something like The Last Jedi by comparison. To justify the preposterous panning for gold Disney has planned with its ample release dates for films in the franchise, they must vary tone and theme. Solo does exactly that whenever it is not acting like that old Chris Farley interview sketch on SNL, asking “You ‘member that one time Han Solo did that one thing. Me too. That was cool…”

The narrative is really just two heists that go wrong welded together with mundane revelations like what Lando (Donald Glover) was wearing when he lost the Millennium Falcon to Han. He was wearing a cape. He is always wearing a cape. Young Han falls into a gang led by Beckett (Woody Harrelson) and Val (Thandie Newton) after literally running into Chewbacca (Joonas Suotamo) for the first time.

They collectively biff a train robbery, which forces them to call on Lando and his more-thanplatonic robo-pal, L3-37 (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) to help with a dangerous score designed to appease an evil space mafia dick (Paul Bettany) who controls the life of Han’s former girlfriend, Qi’ra (Emilia Clarke).

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What ultimately makes Solo the best Star Wars prequel is remembering the other Star Wars prequels—apologies to Rogue One and only Rogue One. What makes it actually a good movie is its cast. Harrelson could have phoned it in but didn’t; Waller-Bridge’s robot is the best character and the only one with an actual arc; Bettany showily gargles his villainy; Glover does unapologetic Billy Dee Williams cosplay; and Ehrenreich is perfect. Yes, that’s right: perfect. His performance is bravely original at times while generally familiar enough to evoke the original character without descending into a shallow impression. If you disagree, man are you gonna hate Solo…

Movies should never, ever be judged based on behind-the-scenes tales of production chaos.

Solo is not good because it was “supposed to suck.” It’s good because a profoundly perfect cast delivered a gleefully goofy pulp sci-fi adventure.

It could have actually been great if only it wasn’t obsessed with fansplaining details literally nobody was curious about.

Three stars Synopsis: This swashbuckling space adventure has a killer cast and is a ton of fun... whenever it isn’t bogged down by explaining tiny details not even the most die-hard fan would care about. A good time that could have been great fun.

| THE READER |

MIDNIGHT MOVIES

Starship Troopers Dundee Theater— Friday, June 29, 2018

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