Memphis Mama: Change Not Easy

by Warren Francke

Memphis, the city, means Beale Street, blues and soul food. Memphis the musical means white deejay airs black music and breaks the racial barrier.

And all that’s pre-Elvis, so you can see why Julie Johnson makes an impact every time she sings, “Change Don’t Come Easy.” She plays the mama of Huey, who visits the Beale Street underground, falls for a young black singer and the music performed there, and makes it...

Pick: Late ‘til 8 Curator Gallery Talk 6:30 pm

by Mary Day

Jan. 3, 2013
Late ‘til 8 Curator Gallery Talk 6:30 pm
Joslyn Art Museum, 2200 Dodge St.
Regular hours: Tues, Wed, Fri, Sat, 10 am - 4 pm, Thurs 10 am - 8 pm, Sun noon - 4 pm, closed Mon and major holidays; Free to members, children under 4, Sat 10 am – noon;General Admissions: $8 adults, $6 college students with ID & sr. citizens (62+), $5 age 5 – 17; Programs are free with regular Museum admission, but...

Francke Passes Column Baton to Grennan

by Warren Francke

If column-writing was a relay, I’d be passing the Cold Cream baton to Bill Grennan and wishing him as long a run as I’ve had—roughly six decades and countless other columns, long before this one.

Few in the theater community need to be told about Bill’s credentials: drama degrees from both Creighton and the University of Nebraska at Omaha plus praised performances on their stages and most of the others in the...

Pick: Public Tour: Modern and Contemporary Art 10:30 – 11:30 AM

by Mary Day

Dec. 29
Public Tour: Modern and Contemporary Art 10:30 – 11:30 AM
Joslyn Art Museum, 2200 Dodge St.
Regular hours: Tues, Wed, Fri, Sat, 10 am - 4 pm, Thurs 10 am - 8 pm, Sun noon - 4 pm, closed Mon and major holidays; Free to members, children under 4, Sat 10 am – noon;
General Admissions: $8 adults, $6 college students with ID & sr. citizens (62+), $5 age 5 – 17;
All group visits must be scheduled in...

Pick: Little Brazil

by Chris Aponick

December 27
Little Brazil w/ Sons Of..., The Brigadiers, & John Klemmensen and the Party
The Waiting Room Lounge, 6212 Maple St.
9 p.m., $7, onepercentproductions.com

Little Brazil return to the stage with a new line-up and a new batch of songs. The band has slowed down since the release of their excellent third album, 2009's Son. Singer Landon Hedges spent a chunk of 2012 with Desaparecidos, the indie-punk...

Pick: Parquet Courts

by Chris Aponick

December 28
Parquet Courts w/ Yuppies, Capgun Coup and Adult Films
Sweatshop Gallery, 2727 North 62nd St.
7 p.m., $5, facebook.com/sweatshopgalleryomaha

Parquet Courts pair rat-a-tat drumming with thin strips of lo-fi guitar to create their own DIY angular basement punk. They sandwich their sound somewhere between the Fall, Wire, Sonic Youth, Television and the Undertones. There's an attention to economic,...

Big Stage News in 2012 Hits Later

by Warren Francke

Both on stage and in the wings, 2012 was well-booked with big news and memorable performances. The best news? One dire prediction that didn’t come true.

I worried that the year’s most ironic moment would come if Chanticleer’s Happy Days musical turned out to be the unhappy end of the Council Bluffs theater’s long history. Fortunately, good citizens, including the Iowa West Foundation, came through for the...