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June 18
Various locations

Teena Marie, Keith Sweat and Zapp perform in the annual free concert on American Legion Mall that caps Indiana Black Expo’s
Summer Celebration. That may be the most visible of the arts and entertainment events, but there’s also a concert at
the Indiana Convention Center July 17 with Chubb Rock, Rob Base, DJ Kool and Dru Hill, a Teen Bling Concert the same day at
Conseco Fieldhouse with Lloyd, Dondria and Durrough and more, and, at the Convention Center, visual arts presentations, readings
(including one by Pam Grier) and more throughout the weekend at the Cultural Arts Pavilion. Details here.
 

July 20
Verizon Wireless Music Center

With so many performers in and out of the lineup depending on schedules, Lilith Fair isn’t quite the same fair from
city to city. The version visiting Verizon Wireless Music Center includes Mary J. Blige, Sarah McLachlan, Suzanne Vega, Kate
Nash, 2/3 of the Dixie Chicks under the name Courtyard Hounds, first-time-at-the-fest 18-year-old Cara Salimando and local
talent-search winners Amanda Lucas and Audrey Cecil. Details on the full Indy lineup here.

July 16-17
Conner Prairie Amphitheatre

Some of the most familiar symphonic music in the world today is the themes from science fiction and fantasy films. Whether
original (John Williams’ “Star Wars” music) or indelibly repurposed (the Strauss music used in “2001:
A Space Odyssey”), the special-effects-laden images are made even more special by outstanding music.

It’s that music that will be celebrated on the prairie this weekend when the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra is joined
by the original Mr. Sulu from “Star Trek,” George Takai, soprano Kristen Plumley, and the Indianapolis Symphonic
Choir. Takai’s duties include narration from the science-fiction classic “The Day the Earth Stood Still.”
Details here.

 

July 15-25
Indianapolis Museum of Art
 
I’ve already shared my thoughts on just about every movie in this year’s Indianapolis International Film Festival
(if you missed the IBJ story, just click here. In short: There’s outstanding work to be seen across a wide range of genres
and production budgets.

But the films themselves, while a core part, aren’t the only elements of the festival. IIFF also includes parties—an
opener at Forty Five degrees after the July 15 screening of “Barry Munday” and a closer at Creation Café
after the July 24 screening of “Skateland.” And there are panel discussions, including sessions on filmmaking,
social issues on screen, and movie criticism (I’ll be involved in two of those).

Plus there’s the intangible camaraderie—the sense that you can strike up a conversation with just about anyone
about the film you just saw or the one you are going to walk into—that is the lifeblood of a film festival. For more
details and a complete schedule, click here.
 

Indianapolis city parks are introducing some eco-friendly trash compactors to give them even stronger “green cred.”
Solar-powered compactors are being installed in dozens of parks to save money on trash collection. The cutting-edge receptacles
can hold more trash than normal canisters and can determine when they are full, allowing for more efficient collection that
saves the city at least $200,000 per year. The devices each cost $3,500.
 

A runaway car slammed into two mobile homes on Tuesday night in Johnson County, sparking a gas leak that prompted the temporary
evacuation of 40 people. The accident occurred at Glendale Park, 4175 County Line Road. Witnesses said that a Toyota Camry
going at a high rate of speed hit one of the mobile homes, virtually destroying it, and then did minor damage to the second.
Reportedly, no one inside the trailers was hurt in the crash, but the driver was taken to Community South Hospital for treatment.

 

Firefighters were called Wednesday morning to a home in Carmel on Santa Anita Court that was engulfed in flames. Officials
on the scene said that a resident had shot and killed himself inside, and that the fire started afterward. Neighbors said
they heard an explosion, which investors believe may have been the gunshot. Fox59 will have more at 4 p.m.