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Yes, you've found Lou Harry's A&E, IBJ's home for opinion, debate and discussion on arts and entertainment matters in Indy and beyond. Thanks for stopping by.
Recent Blog Posts
Pretending to like new music
July 9, 2008
Comments(6)Noted curmudgeon—and very smart and funny writer—Joe Queenan recently threw down the gauntlet at contemporary
classical music and those who, in his view, claim to like it.
Some notable quotes from his article “Admit It, You’re as Bored as...
MoreSmoking ban for 'Jersey Boys'
July 8, 2008
Comments(14)Chris Jones at the Chicago Tribune reports that the Chicago production of "Jersey Boys" (an outstanding show,
by the way--and that's me talking, not Jones) has gone smoke free.
He's not talking about the theater. He's talking about the...
MoreHutcherson visits 'Journey' crowd
July 8, 2008
Comment(1)Last night, the Heartland Film Festival (sorry, I mean Heartland Truly Moving Pictures--I'm still getting used
to the new name) added some dessert to a packed advance screening of the new adventure flick "Journey to
the Center of...
MoreYou-review-it Monday
July 6, 2008
Comments(4)It was a long weekend. Surely you found some entertainment beyond the barbecue.
Like me, did you take the opportunity to visit with the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra at Conner Prairie...on
with the Sanders Family in "Smoke on the Mountain: Homecoming"...
MoreAtt. shoppers: explicit material
July 2, 2008
Comments(12)My just-over-the-cubicle-wall colleagues at Indiana Lawyer reported yesterday that Judge Sarah Evans Barker "threw
out a new Indiana law requiring bookstores and other retailers to register with the state and pay a $250
fee if they want to sell...
More'Wall*E': Quality as business plan
July 1, 2008
Comment(1)"Quality is the best business plan of all."
So Pixar chief John Lasseter told the L.A. Times.
And the combination of reading that statement and seeing Pixar's remarkable "Wall*E" last night gives me hope
for, well, everything.
I'm not going to...
MoreAvg. TV viewer is now over 50
June 30, 2008
Comments(3)Today's Variety quotes a study stating that the average age of TV network viewers--at least, those viewing
shows live and not on DVR--is now 50. That's the highest it's ever been.
CBS has the oldest average age viewer, at 54. The...
MoreYou-review-it Monday
June 30, 2008
Comment(1)So did you visit the "On the Road" scroll at the IMA? Swing to "Swing" at American Cabaret Theatre? Try
to understand the great Joe Cocker at Verizon Wireless Music Center?
Let us know what A&E you experienced this weekend.
For me, much...
MoreMeet Indiana's new poet laureate
June 27, 2008
Comments(10)I know the suspense was killing you, so here's some relief.
As of last week, Indiana has a new poet laureate. He's Norbert Krapf, a St. Joseph's College grad with
an M.A. from Notre Dame. His name is on 21...
MoreMayor Ballard, arts patron
June 26, 2008
Comments(4)When I attended last night's sneak preview of the "On the Road Again..." exhibition at the IMA, there was
Mayor Ballard.
When I attended Gregory Hancock Dance Theatre's "Hooray for Bollywood" performance at Pike Performing Arts
Center, there was...
MoreTaking the "art" out at Keystone
June 25, 2008
Comments(14)I've got a pretty broad definition of art. And a pretty broad definition of art films.
But "Get Smart"? "You Don't Mess with the Zohan"? "Indiana Jones"? "The Happening"? "Sex in the City"?
Such is the lineup at Landmark's Keystone Art...
MoreAnn Patchett on opera and veggies
June 24, 2008
Comments(2)"Sometimes I worry that culture is like vegetables and that I'd be better off eating that which is locally
grown," writes novelists Ann Patchett in today's Wall Street Journal.
The piece isn't a celebration of local arts. Rather, it's a tribute to the...
MoreTobias Theatre events announced
June 23, 2008
Comments(4)The folks at the Indianapolis Museum of Art have named names (at least some) for programming at its soon-to-be-opening
Tobias Theatre.
The initial schedule for this new "living room" for the arts includes:
--"Virtuosos and Visions," featuring violinist Cho-Liang Lin, pipa artist Min Xiao-Fen,...
MoreDC: Final critical thoughts
June 23, 2008
Comments(0)More random thoughts from the American Theatre Critics Association conference in Washington.
* If the powers that be in Carmel--or any other place that aspires to be an arts destination--hasn't already
made contact, they should reach out immediately and speak to...
MoreYou-review-it Monday
June 23, 2008
Comments(4)Okay, so what did I miss?
Anyone visit the ISO on the Prairie, shop at the Eiteljorg's Indian Market, participate in the 48 Hour Film
Project or stop in at the Florie Leviton show at the Indianapolis Art Center?
What A&E encounters did you...
MoreDC: Awards matter
June 21, 2008
Comment(1)It's the fourth day of the American Theatre Critics Association annual conference and my feet or sore, my
eyes a little glazed over, and my excitement about theater and its potential increased.
Here are some notes:
* One of the factors credited...
MoreThe death of the CD
June 20, 2008
Comments(8)Reports of the death of the CD aren't exagerated.
Wired magazine reports that Apple's ITunes store has sold over five billion songs.
Meanwhile, Price WaterhouseCoopers LLC released a report that sales downloaded songs will surpass that of CDs
by 2010.
In...
MoreDC: Backstage at the Kennedy Center
June 19, 2008
Comments(0)The latest in a serious of reports from the American Theatre Critics Association conference in Washington, D.C.
It's past intermission, but I chose not to go back into the theater. Stomach issues, I claim. Truth is,
I saw a much better directed, better...
MoreDC: Dancing with Presidents
June 18, 2008
Comments(0)We're on the stage of the National Theatre, rich in history but on the verge of irrelevance. With a mere
1675 seats, it's difficult to compete for tours and concerts with the Kennedy Center and other larger houses.
This is...
MoreDC: Dinner with Harry Hamlin
June 18, 2008
Comment(1)"Hi, I'm Harry," he says, shaking my hand.
And when he sits down at our table, a woman next to him asks, "Who do you write for?"
That's the standard first question here at the American Theatre Critics Association conference in Washington.
But, in this case,...
More"Get Smart"--Your thoughts
June 17, 2008
Comments(12)Since I'm out of town, I had to miss the Tuesday IBJ Night at the Movies preview of "Get Smart." So if you were there, enlighten
me. What did I miss?
MoreDC: Critical mass in Washington
June 17, 2008
Comment(1)It’s been about a decade since I’ve been to Washington, D.C., but memories rush back.
On a junior high field trip, a kid sticking his hand in front of my Super-8 movie camera as I tried to
film a “Hard Day’s...
MoreYou-review-it Monday
June 16, 2008
Comments(6)A busy weekend for me included spending quality time with "Some Men" at the Phoenix Theatre, an afternoon
visit to the Indy Jazz Fest, finally getting to see "Iron Man" at the movies, a trip to Bollywood courtesy
of the Gregory...
MorePreview: Chakaia Booker in Indy
June 13, 2008
Comments(0)IBJ reporter Jennifer Whitson takes over the blog for a moment with some info on the upcoming Chakaia Booker
public art exhibition.
New York-based artist Chakaia Booker’s nine new sculptures will be taking over downtown...
MoreChakaia Booker
June 13, 2008
Comment(1)Chakaia Booker: Mass Transit, a public art display of nine original pieces and one existing sculpture, will
be set up in downtown Indianapolis on July 14. Here's where to go to see them:
1. “Gridlock”
2. “Tailgaiting”
3. “Plus or Minus?”...
More
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Can IBJ please stop referring to this property as "Kessler Mansion"? What a ridiculous title for the biggest, bloated, blight in our city. It's not a mansion. At best, it's an ideal site to shoot low-budget porn. Ahhh! Another business use!
Its stories like these that prove that a Ball State diploma is worth less than the paper that its printed on. A real institution of higher learning would have taken care of this long ago. No way should this crap be taught in a SCIENCE class.
It is such a shame that King Ballard has made Indianapolis into Chicago south with all of the rampant corruption.
How many of these 1,259 bills were actually heard and voted on on the floor vs how many were shot down in committee?
When a an arrogant young guy with essentially no experience and no qualifications for the job, was dropped into an Administrator position out of nowhere by his "mentor" in the Mayor's office things seemed fishy. Sometimes things are what they seem.