Theatre Review:

A Bollywood Lysistrata

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t’s a warm yet cloudy Friday in Dallas, Texas. The sky is pink and changing in color as the day dwindles down, and the 90’s retro storefront of KD Studios is illuminated.
This is the new home of Level Ground Arts, a Dallas based group of artists dedicated to creating and producing fearlessly edgy theatre. The company was founded two years ago by Bill Fountain, who also serves as artistic director.

The first play in this new space is A Bollywood Lysistrata.  In the original Lysistrata written by Greek playwright Aristophanes, Lysistrata rallies the women of Greece to protest the Peloponnesian war; collectively they boycott sex until the men stop fighting. Playwright/director Andi Allen transports this play from Ancient Greece to colonial India.

Movie Review:

The People I’ve Slept With

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he Asian Film Festival of Dallas closed its ninth and most successful festival to date with Chinese-American director Quentin Lee’s The People I’ve Slept With.

According to A.F.F.D. board member David Gibson, Asia produces over 500 films per year. A.F.F.D. members start watching films in September. The good films are voted for and presented to A.F.F.D.’s panel. The panel is made up of a diverse group of people; this is why there is always something for every filmgoer. “There are a few films out there that don’t make it to the festival that are just as good.”  Gibson admits. The People I’ve Slept With made it into the festival based on merit alone.

Wyclef Jean says he will run for president
of Haiti

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NN - Six years ago, hip hop icon Wyclef Jean released a soulful tune called "President," in which he fantasized about what it would be like to lead a country.

That fantasy may come closer to reality when the Haitian-American recording artist announces exclusively on CNN's "Larry King Live" that he intends to run for president of Haiti.

Jean, who had been an outspoken proponent for Haiti through his Yele Foundation, told CNN Tuesday that plans to make the major announcement on King's show Thursday night.

Expecting Alicia Keys weds music producer
Swizz Beatz in private ceremony

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NN - R&B power couple Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz have tied the knot, Keys' representatives confirmed to CNN on Sunday.

The two were married Saturday at a private residence overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

Keys, 29, a 12-time Grammy-award winning singer, wore a Grecian-inspired, one-shoulder Vera Wang gown.

Al Jarreau critically ill in France

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NPA -  Jazz singer Al Jarreau was still in critical condition at a hospital in France July 23, with breathing problems after collapsing on stage the night before, according to Eurweb.com.

The 70-year-old artist collapsed during a concert in Barcelonnette in the southeast of France, and was suffering from respiratory problems, according to multiple reports. He was rushed to the intensive care unit of a clinic in the southern Alpine town of Gap.

Movie Review:

The Nature of Existence

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he Nature of Existence is a comedic documentary based on the great existentialist question, what is the point of living? This hilarious film was destined to be a comedy. “As soon as I realized how absurd life was, I knew that a common theme to my movies would be humor. My goal is to draw the comedy out of humanity” says The Nature of Existence’s creator, Roger Nygard.

Questioning the cause and point of religious conviction was a daunting and scary undertaking. Nygard was nervous before his first interview, because it’s intimidating to question someone who is so devout in their beliefs. After this initial interview however, he saw how much pleasure people found while defending their religious beliefs.

Movie Review:

The Killer Inside Me

M
ichael Winterbottom successfully directs The Killer Inside Me a jarring, agonizing, and staggering film based on Jim Thompson’s pulp-thriller. Casey Affleck does an amazing job of portraying Lou Ford, a psychotic deputy in a small Texas town during the 1950’s.  Affleck’s soft, gravelly voice and calm demeanor emphasize just how detached Ford is from his murders. This objectivity allows the audience to see Ford as a cold and manipulative individual. Winterbottom does not glorify or endorse Ford’s overly-violent ways; he merely exposes them in a matter-of-fact manner which allows the audience to make their own judgments about this imbalanced individual.

Grammy winner Walter Hawkins passes away

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ippon, CA - Walter Hawkins, the Grammy Award-winning gospel singer/ composer and pastor of Oakland’s Love Center Church, died July 11th at his home in Rippon. For the last two years, Hawkins has been battling pancreatic cancer. He was 61 years old.

“Today, I lost my brother, my pastor, and my best friend,” said Hawkins’ brother, Edwin Hawkins. “Bishop Hawkins suffered bravely but now he will suffer no more and he will be greatly missed.”

During the 1970s, Walter Hawkins personified a new wave of gospel artists such as his brother Edwin Hawkins of “Oh Happy Day” fame, and Andrae Crouch, who brought a youthful contemporary vibe to gospel music. Hawkins cut a series of best-selling “Love Alive” LPs that remain gospel classics to this day.

Jazzing it up at the Bishop Arts Theater

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he stoic exterior of the Bishop Arts Theater gave no indication to what was going on inside as live jazz filled the building as national recording artist Joe McBride, gave a delighted audience what they came for. The crowd railed and rocked as McBride’s fingers danced across the keyboards. Just before he brought them down from their jazz induced ecstasy, they went flying again when jazz great Harvey Mason took the stage and gave them another round on the drums.

The night was filled with jazz wonders as the audience shout request and broke into random bouts of applauds.

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