July 30-31
9th Annual Studio2000 art show
Every summer theres a minor skirmish for art. People stand their ground, whimper or elbow their way (sometimes all three) to purchase items by the high school students of Studio2000. I imagine this year will be no exception.
The youth employment program pairs the student apprentices with professional artists. This years master artists are painter David Shiner, fiber artist Emily Howell and ceramicist Stephen Hammer.
The silent auction opens at 3 p.m. today and closes Thursday, July 31, at 7 p.m. The awards ceremony is also on Thursday at 5 p.m., with the tagged items going on sale after the ceremony. The money received helps fund the year-round program, part of the Louisville Metro Office of Youth Development. CONTACT _Con-419CB26F17 c s l Jo Anne Triplett
Kentucky Center for the Arts
501 W. Main St.
574-1365
www.louisvilleky.gov
Thursday, July 31
Crazy Cooter!
Redneck Boy in the Promised Land: The Confessions of Crazy Cooter is a memoir from good ol boy Ben Jones that chronicles his experiences in the South through the 60s, alcoholism, show business and addiction. Jones regales readers with the story of his recovery from alcoholism and tales from his time as Crazy Cooter, sidekick to Bo and Luke Duke on The Dukes of Hazzard. Its not all goofball: As an early supporter of integration in the South, Jones faced some seriously nasty opposition. The book also profiles dirty politics and his two-term stint in Congress, after which he returned to acting. Hell be at Borders on Thursday for a signin, ya hear? Caitlin Bowling
Borders Books
7900 Shelbyville Road
893-0133
Free; 7-8 p.m.
July 31-Aug. 2
Kentucky Art Car Weekend
Dont be alarmed if you spot something like an oversized telephone on wheels on a city street; youre not hallucinating. The Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft is holding the 7th annual Art Car Weekend, in conjunction with the First Friday Trolley Hop. To kick things off Thursday, the Mellwood Arts Center parking lot will be turned into a drive-in movie theater, complete with audio and snacks, and some of the art cars will be on display. Beginning Friday morning, the cars will creep through the city and park at the 700 block of West Main, staying there until Trolley Hop time, when a block party will begin and artists will hold demonstrations and sales. At 8:30, the cars will embark on an illuminated voyage to Lynns Paradise Café, returning to Market Street the next morning.
The block party will resume at 9 on Saturday morning, complete with a childrens workshop and Art Car lecture. At 1 p.m., the Art Car parade will proceed down Bardstown Road, and wrap things up back at the Mellwood in the evening, with the Art Car Weekend Hoedown. Honk! Jane Mattingly
Kentucky Museum of Art & Craft
715 W. Main St.
589-0102
www.kentuckyartcarweekend.com
FRIDAY, AUG. 1
William Sides Atari Party
Dont be fooled: Chiptune isnt that over-played Mario theme music.
First, Billy Sides music can be experienced live in a club setting, instead of from your living room with glassy eyes in front of the tube. Next, Sides has been rocking out with his form of electronic/techno music, which he creates with video-game equipment, for about 10 years.
Sides isnt just a gamer-gone-musician. Hes been surrounded by music his entire life and sees his Atari Sim Card medium as just one part of the strange puzzle. Im about the bigger picture of music, he said.
William Sides Atari Party is touring with Game Boy musician Giveupnewyork this summer, and their stop here on Friday is one of many.
It is crazy; this tour is like three steps up from anything Ive ever done before, Sides said. He encourages attendees to get out and dance instead of just staring at him. Giveupnewyork agrees: If youve ever played any old video games, its going to make you nostalgic and make you wanna dance. Cassie Book
The Rudyard Kipling
416 W. Oak St.
www.rudyardkipling.com
$6; 10 p.m.
Saturday, Aug. 2
Contemporary Dance Louisville
The recently formed Contemporary Dance Louisville ensemble is committed to having a positive effect on area audiences. Based in Louisville, the company has three choreographers: Kimberly Herndon (also the companys founder and artistic director), Joyelle Fobbs and Meredith Simms, all of which have earned good reputations in prestigious dancing education facilities. Herndon, a YPAS dance instructor, started the group as an artistic outlet and a way to merge some of her favorite styles. I recognize that dance is increasingly a hybrid of styles with blurred lines between modern, ballet, jazz, African and more, she said.
The premiere project of CDL, titled The Ripple Effect, opens this weekend. The performance focuses on artistic and communicative movements and includes some of Herndons former students. Jess Mahanes
University of Louisville
The Playhouse Theater
1911 S. Third St.
www.contemporarydancelouisville.org
$7 (adv.)/$10 (door); 8 p.m.
SATURDAY, AUG. 2
Ten Out of Tenn.
Generally known for its country roots, the Music City presents a group of 10 rock, pop and indie artists who decided to bring Nashville to the people rather than the other way around. The Ten Out of Tenn. tour includes both independent and major-label artists, featuring Erin McCarley, Matthew Perryman Jones, Butterfly Boucher, Griffin House, Tyler James, K.S. Rhoads, Trent Dabbs, Katie Herzig, Andy Davis and Jeremy Lister. A lot of these people just inspired each other in one way or another, said Dabbs, who started the tour with his wife and nine other artists.
The Ten Out of Tenn. Volume 2 compilation was released on July 22. Caitlin Bowling
Headliners
1386 Lexington Road
584-8088
www.headlinerslouisville.com
$8 (adv.)/$10 (door); 8 p.m.
Saturday, Aug. 2
2008 Poetry Slam
On Saturday evening, the Louisville-based non-profit organization Menswork and Expressions of You Coffee House and Gallery will be hosting the 2008 Poetry Slam, celebrating the work of the great African-American poet and novelist James Baldwin.
With his writing, Baldwin played a central role in helping dispel many of the myths about homosexuality and race in the 1950s and 60s. Also a playwright and essayist, Baldwin lived most of his life in Paris because of the stigma that came with being black and a homosexual in America. His first novel, Go Tell It On The Mountain, built a strong literary legacy for Baldwin because of its realistic depiction of the Christian church in the black community.
Baldwin was also a civil rights activist, and many of his causes were represented through his writing, one of those being womens rights. Menswork, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to educating men about violence against women, found it fitting to celebrate Baldwins work. For this years Poetry Slam, local poets and writers will gather to read Baldwins work aloud and bask in the righteousness of the many causes he stood for. Aaron Frank
Expressions of You
800 W. Muhammad Ali Blvd.
584-6886
$5; 5:30 p.m.
Aug. 5-10
The Color Purple
Well, Ive got some good news and some bad news. Good news is, my interview with Season 3 American Idol contestant LaToya London went swimmingly. I learned that shes always wanted to make the leap from music to theater, and her starring role as Nettie in the touring production of the Broadway musical The Color Purple you know, the one Oprah helped launch in 2006 that nabbed 11 Tony Awards has been a dream come true. This is something Ive always, always, always wanted to do, she told me from her hotel room in Atlanta. Its a great start for me as far as training goes doing a live show every night is definitely a challenge.
OK, so do you want the bad news now? LaToya will be on vacation while the production stops here next week. Found that out after the interview. But dont let that stop you from seeing the play thats based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alice Walker and the 1985 film directed by Steven Spielberg. Sara Havens
Kentucky Center
584-7777
$22.65-$65.25; various times
Through Aug. 15
City of Angels and Devils
Gena Neumann usually wears a happy demeanor and talks in exclamation points. Her art is a little darker, even when its coupled with humor. So it makes sense she would have an exhibition entitled City of Angels and Devils that shows both sides of her self-expression.
The show consists of 27 highly colorful, whimsical paintings plus seven mixed-media abstract sculptures. The centerpiece is Family Tree Shake It, a large painted-floor canvas that is a commentary on life and death, skeletons in our past and present, what might be found if you are brave enough to delve into your own roots, Neumann told LEO Weekly.
Gena is a dreamer was always written on my report card as far back as I can remember, she said. Even though it was meant as a derogatory comment, I viewed it with a sense of pride. The little devil. CONTACT _Con-419CB26F17 c s l Jo Anne Triplett
Kentucky Backroads Gifts & Gallery
602 S. Third St.
992-3167
This article appears in July 30, 2008.