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FRIDAY, FEB. 22
Doug does radio
Doug Hoekstra splits his brain between short fiction and songwriting, but he says if he were forced to choose, “Music is my first love.”
Hoekstra’s traveled steadily promoting his new record, Blooming Roses, as much as his 2006 book of short stories, “Bothering the Coffee Drinkers,” at times stopping midway through his set to read from the collection. “In a way, it reflects off the music,” Hoekstra says. “Coffee” won a bronze medal for short fiction from the Independent Publisher’s Group.
Blooming Roses, his sixth record, reflects a singer-songwriter mentality, but only one song, the title track, strikes an autobiographical chord. “I try to write about people connecting,” says Hoekstra, who doesn’t own a cell phone. “Even with all our technology, we’re increasingly disconnected as people.” Catch him for free on/at WFPK’s “Live Lunch.” —Mat Herron
Live Lunch
WFPK 91.9-FM
619 S. Fourth St.
814-6500
www.wfpk.org
Free (first come, first seated); noon
<MUSIC>
FRIDAY, FEB. 22
Dark Side of the Block
Pink Floyd isn’t reuniting, not that they need to. Dozens of tributes ensure their catalog never falls silent. But the organizers behind “Dark Side of the Wall” wanted their homage to be more authentic, visually stunning and memorable.
For more than a year, nine local musicians recorded songs off arguably Floyd’s most influential albums, Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall, then pored over every last note to mimic the feeling Floyd created, not just the notes they played.
“It’s more about the space between those notes. It’s all about the calmness of the music. I had to learn how to be calm about it and relax in the moment,” says Allen Needham, a sales manager at Mom’s Music in Jeffersonville who plays lap steel, electric and acoustic guitars in the production.
Needham, who conceived the idea two years ago, researched sound and lighting companies, and studied video production for three months to create the projections for Friday’s concert. Building the stage will take three days and serious manpower.
When fans are involved, it really isn’t work. “The criteria for everyone involved,” Needham says, “was that you had to completely love the band and know a lot about them.”
Tickets are available at Coyote’s, Ticketmaster and ear X-tacy. —Mat Herron
City Block
133 W. Liberty St.
582-FUNN
www.thedarksideofthewall.com
$15-$23; 8:30 p.m.
<THEATER>
Feb. 22-24
Floyd Central’s ‘The Secret Garden’
The award-winning (and subject of Barry Blaustein’s soon-to-be-released documentary) Floyd Central Theatre Arts Department presents the beautifully haunting musical “The Secret Garden.” This Tony-award-winning show ran for more than 700 performances on Broadway.
Teen orphan Mary Lennox is sent to England to live with her Uncle Archibald, a widower. He lives on the gloomy Yorkshire moors, haunted by the memory of his wife Lily, who died young and by a sad secret he tried to hide. Young Mary noses around and discovers the source of this and other secrets, including the key to Lily’s garden, which Archibald has kept off-limits since Lily’s death.
Trust me — it’s worth a trip to the Knobs to see these talented kids. —Sherry Deatrick
Floyd Central High School
6575 Old Vincennes Road, Floyd Knobs
(812) 923-8811, ext. 3527
$6-$15; 7:30 p.m., 2 p.m. (Sun.)
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SATURDAY, FEB. 23
Over The Rhine
After spending countless winters home tending to family and business, Over The Rhine had an epiphany: Why stay in the cold, unpredictable Ohio Valley when we could tour sunny, green locales in the South during winter? Thus, the “Try to Find A Warm Place” Tour was born. Thankfully, they miscalculated and are making a stop in not-so-warm Louisville on Saturday.
Over The Rhine has experienced every aspect of the modern music industry in its 18 years, from signing to the legendary I.R.S. label, to several indie releases, to critical acclaim on Virgin’s Back Porch imprint to now calling the shots on their own Great Speckled Dog. Keyboardist/songwriter Linford Detweiler wouldn’t change a thing: “I loved being around people who had stories to tell … and the labels we’ve been with left us alone, but there’s nothing like having the freedom to make records, own them.”
Last year’s The Trumpet Child is a worthy addition to their impressive catalog, with Karin Bergquist adding a looser, more carefree swing to her perfect vocals. Songs like “Let’s Spend the Day In Bed,” and “If A Song Could Be President” match up perfectly with longtime OTR classics “All I Need Is Everything,” “Etcetera Whatever” and “Like A Radio.” —Damien McPherson
Bomhard Theater, Kentucky Center
501 W. Main St.
584-7777
$20-$25; 8 p.m.
<THEATER>
Feb. 24-March 30
32nd Humana Festival of New American Plays
The crown jewel of new play festivals begins this week. And the crown jewel of the festival, Lee Blessing’s “Great Falls,” begins on Sunday. In 1987, Blessing was nominated for the Tony award and Pulitzer Prize for “A Walk in the Woods.” Blessing, one of America’s top playwrights, surely won’t disappoint in this “drama about familial fallout,” as he puts it. Lucie Tiberghien directs this “road trip” involving a man and his stepdaughter.
This season’s festival is chock-full of great playwrights and interesting works. After “Great Falls,” Actors Theatre presents “Becky Shaw” by Gina Gionfriddo (author of “After Ashley”). A pair of newlyweds play matchmaker to the wife’s best friend and the husband’s co-worker. Other highlights include The Civilians’ “This Beautiful City,” an exploration into the evangelical movement taken from interviews of people in Colorado Springs, and Carly Mensch’s ”All Hail Hurricane Gordo,” directed by Sean Daniels. —Sherry Deatrick
Actors Theatre
316 W. Main St.
584-1205
www.actorstheatre.org
<SEX>
Monday, Feb. 25
Sex Workers Art Show
Strippin’ ain’t easy, ya’ll. Just remember that next time you find yourself in the back room of P.T.’s with a stash of cash. Some call it exotic dancing, some call it a way to make a living. Sadly, the industry is often stigmatized with labels like “whore,” “unintelligent” and “perverse.” The touring Sex Workers Art Show is trailblazing across this great nation to prove those generalizations wrong. You can call them dirty, but please don’t call them uncreative. The cabaret-style show features a mishmash of spoken word, music, drag and burlesque from people working in all areas of the sex industry — and that includes strippers, prostitutes, dommes, porn stars, phone sex operators and Internet models. What? Names? OK — how about burlesquer Miss Dirty Martini, feminist author Chris Kraus (“I Love Dick”), porn star Lorelei Lee and dominatrix Keva I. Lee. Tour founder and director Annie Oakley leads the three(cock)-ring circus, so be ready for anything. Oh, and it’s best to check your inhibitions at the door. —Sara Havens
Club Fuzion
1335 Story Ave.
588-8861
www.sexworkersartshow.com
$15; 9 p.m.
18+
<BOOK>
Tuesday, Feb. 26
Tim Dorsey book-signing
When Randy Smith and Ann Baumgartle opened Destinations Booksellers a few years ago, they were determined to celebrate two particular writers — Kurt Vonnegut and Tim Dorsey. The latter, a former newspaper man, left that biz and has established himself through his series of popular crime caper novels, the latest of which is “Atomic Lobster.” Dorsey is compared to Carl Hiaasen and John D. MacDonald, with a dash of Hunter S. Thompson, and his famous recurring character is Serge A. Storms, whose various coexisting mental illnesses render him obsessive, psychopathic and homicidal. Ah, but he only kills scumbags who offend his moral code, and in such creative ways, too!
The proprietors have worked on a Dorsey visit for some time now, and they’ve scored; he’ll be in New Albany to sign whatever you might bring. Arrive early, as the place ain’t big. There’s also a reservation-only after-party at Rich O’s at 7:30 p.m. (call the bookstore for reservations). Both events are free. —Cary Stemle
Destinations Booksellers
604 E. Spring St., New Albany
(812) 944-5116
www.destinationsbooksellers.com
Free; 5 p.m.
<ART>
Through Feb. 29
‘Portraits’ by Terry Tapp
You don’t want to get on Terry Tapp’s bad side, especially if you’re a politician (hear that, John Yarmuth?). He’s quick with his drawing and painting tools — as well as the ink from his tattoo parlor Electric Devil in the Highlands — and will cut you down to size. The details in his realistic portraits, coupled with more than a touch of sarcasm, are amazing.
Collectors and galleries have taken note for a while. Now it seems the national media is on the hunt. “On a personal note, Harper’s magazine, and, yes, I mean Harper’s magazine, NY, NY, contacted me,” says gallery owner Tim Faulkner. “It seems they wish to consider several of Terry’s pieces for some upcoming issue. (We’ve) got a good one here.” Just keep smiling. —Jo Anne Triplett
Tim Faulkner Gallery
815 E. Market St., #4
381-1314
<ART>
Through March 22
New paintings by Emily Church
Since Kentucky in February has similarities to Vermont in November, we can easily appreciate Emily Church’s nod to the beauty of barren landscapes. But if you are underwhelmed because you’ve been cleaning snow and ice off your car, head over to galerie hertz to bask in her paintings.
Church’s work reflects the spiritual, healing and uplifting aspects of nature. While there is a lack of people present, her — and the viewers’ — relationship to nature is still felt.
Church got to spend time in Vermont courtesy of a residency at the Vermont Studio Center in Johnson in November. She used the time fruitfully, letting us in on her “commune with nature.” —Jo Anne Triplett
galerie hertz
711 S. Third St.
584-3547