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May 7-16
Phoenix Theatre
Anyone familiar with the music of singer-songwriter John Prine will be going into this celebratory performance with a long
wish list of tunes. For me, that list includes the misfit romance “Donald and Lydia,” the whimsical “Fish
and Whistle,” the get-you-through-the-tough times “Bruised Orange,” and, of course, “Spanish Pipedream,”
with the uniquely Prine lyric, “For I knew that topless lady/had something up her sleeve.” This might even be
a rare chance to hear his song “Kokomo” (no, not the Beach Boy one—this one is about a soldier longing for
his Indiana home).
But the truth is, Prine has written more terrific songs than a single evening can handle. And with still-green memories of
Tim Grimm and Bobbie Lancaster’s outstanding performances at Hoosier Dylan, I’m looking forward to settling into
Prine’s world for a few hours, even though he won’t be there. Tim Brickley (doubling as music director), Jenni
Gregory, Jan Lucas and Michael Shelton round out the company.  Details here.
 

A quarrel over smoking left a south-side Indianapolis man with a broken jaw and eyesocket. Gary Biggerstaf said he was smoking
Wednesday night in a kitchen he shares at a boarding house at 1872 South Shelby Street when his new neighbor, Fred Robison,
told him to put out the cigarette. Biggerstaf said Robison, 28, began to beat him when he refused. Robison told police he
was defending himself from Biggerstaf.

The Wishard Foundation announced Friday that it has named Ernest Vargo II as its president and chief executive officer.  A veteran fund-raiser, Vargo takes the job as the Wishard Foundation embarks on a $50 million capital campaign to build a new Wishard Hospital. Vargo, who is also a consultant at Johnson, Grossnickle & Associates, has […]

April 29-May 1
Hilbert Circle Theatre

The name-recognition draw for this Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra concert is Rimsky-Korsakov’s musical take on the
story of the princess who tries to thwart her murderous husband through storytelling. But there’s also an interesting
undercard, which includes “Mariel,” by Osvaldo Golijov.

The Argentinean composer has had a busy last few years, including the score for Francis Coppola’s films “Youth
Without Youth” and “Tetro,” a new opera for the Met, a song cycle for classical stars Emanuel Ax and Dawn
Upshaw, a cello concerto for Yo-Yo Ma, and a sold-out Lincoln Center festival of his music. Says the composer about “Mariel,”
which premiered at Carnegie Hall in 2008: “I attempted to capture that short instant before grief, in which one learns
of the sudden death of a friend who was full of life.” Details here.