1001 Ways to Highlight Black History Month

The university's observance of Black History Month will be capped off Feb. 27 with a presentation of the play "1001 Black Inventions" at the Nebraska Union.

The performance by Pin Points, a troupe from Lost Link Enterprises Inc. of Chicago, will refute the myth that African Americans consist of masses of instinctively gifted athletes sprinkled with a few endowed minds.

"1001 Black Inventions" is an unusually funny and engaging antidote to that misconception. In a series of vignettes, it tells the stories of:

o Jan Ernest Natzeliger, who was ridiculed in his day for trying to build a machine that duplicated the movements of the human hand. He succeeded in inventing a shoemaking machine that created the world's billion-dollar shoe industry;

o Benjamin Banneker, a self-taught mathematician and astronomer who built America's first clock;

o George Washington Carver, who saved the South from economic destruction by inventing more than 400 products from the peanut and the potato; and

o Daniel Hale Williams, the first to perform open-heart surgery.

The sketch "The Twilight Zone" depicts a typical modern family attempting to survive in a world without inventions by African Americans.

The performance is free and open to the public and begins at 7 p.m. in the Union Ballroom.

"1001 Black Inventions" is sponsored at NU by the Office of Multi-Cultural Affairs, Minority Assistance Program, Ronald E. McNair Program, College of Arts and Sciences, African American and African Studies Program, Black Graduate Students Association, Afrikan People's Union, College of Engineering and Technology, and the Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Diversity Enhancement Fund.

Anonymous 4 are: (from left) Susan Hellauer, Jacqueline Horner, Marsha Genesky, Johanna Maria Rose.

A Masterpiece of Contemporary Music

Voices of Light Melds Beautiful Voices With Silent Film Classic

The ethereal singing of Anonymous 4 combines with Lincoln's Abendmusik chorus and the Omaha Symphony to bring Richard Einhorn's choral masterpiece Voices of Light to the Lied Center.

Voices of Light is an oratorio synchronized to a live screening of the silent film classic, The Passion of Joan of Arc. The performance begins at 8 p.m. Feb. 25.

Einhorn is a prolific composer with opera, orchestra, chamber, film and dance scores among his many works. In 1988, while visiting the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Einhorn came across a still from the silent film, The Passion of Joan of Arc. After screening the film, Einhorn was so moved he knew he had to create a piece that reflected the emotion of the film.

Einhorn's Voices of Light has been hailed as "a great masterpiece of contemporary music" and has been performed more than 50 times in Europe and North America. The CD of Voices of Light was named Record of the Year by National Public Radio and was a Billboard classical bestseller.

The Passion of Joan of Arc, by Danish director Carl Theodor Dryer, has nearly as interesting history as Joan of Arc herself. Shot in France in 1927, the film was thought lost when two separate fires destroyed original negatives of the film. For nearly 50 years, the only versions that existed were mutilated copies that had been made from inferior duplicate negatives. Then, in the early 1980s, a print of the original version was found in a Norwegian mental institution. After being restored, The Passion of Joan of Arc was rereleased for public viewing. From the time of its original release, the film has been considered a masterpiece and the performance of Renee Falconetti as Joan, a revelation.

The four women who comprise Anonymous 4 came together in 1986 to experiment with the sound of medieval chant and polyphony (when two or more independent but connected voice parts sound against each other). Anonymous 4 will be singing the voice of Joan of Arc in Voices of Light, as they did on the CD and during other tours of the work.

Conducting this performance of Voices of Light will be John Levick, director of the Abendmusik chorus. Vocal soloists will be Yuri, soprano; Wyn Andrews, alto; Thomas Westfall, tenor; and Duane Andersen, bass. The Omaha Symphony is led by music director Victor Yampolsky, and resident conductor Ernest Richardson.

Pre-performance talks begin 55 and 30 minutes prior to curtain in the Lied's Steinhart Room. Tickets are $33, $29 and $25; half-price for students.

Mesmerizing Japanese Butoh Dance at Lied Feb. 22

The Japanese dance form of butoh grew out of the post-Hiroshima era. Buto-Sha Tenkei is one of the leaders of this form and will be performing its original dance drama, Nocturne, at 8 p.m. Feb. 22 at the Johnny Carson Theater.

Butoh dance explores the darker side of human existence. As an expression of the horrors of postwar Japan in the wake of nuclear destruction, butoh is an offshoot of the earlier dance form ankoku buto, which means "dance of darkness." Butoh works are relentlessly intense and nightmarish, yet hauntingly beautiful.

Buto-Sha Tenkei, which translates to "Heavenly Chickens," was established in 1981 by Ebisu Torii and Mutsuko Tanaka. Torii has choreographed all of the company's productions in addition to dancing in the performances, many times with Tanaka, who is the group's principal dancer. Both Torii and Tanaka studied with Tatsumi Hijikata, the creator of the butoh art form.

Featuring four dancers (including Torii and Tanaka), Nocturne is an 80-minute-long piece inspired by the night and full of dream, nightmare and sleep imagery. The piece is broken into separate, yet connected vignettes relating to the central theme. Nocturne is accompanied and enhanced by Masaru Soga's haunting music and Yoshiro Abe's atmospheric lighting.

As described by Barbara Leverone of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, "Lead dancer Mutsuko Tanaka exhibited incredible precision and control in her use of face, hands and balance, at one point eliciting in me a deeply visceral response, as every fiber in her seemed to scream to accompanying vibratory tones. The performance was not typical, it was not traditional, and it was frequently uncomfortable. But for most of us, Buto-Sha Tenkei was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience and understand another culture and, perhaps, a little bit more of our own inner landscape."

Tickets for this performance are $26; half-price for students.

Call the Lied box office at 472-4747 for ticket availability. Box office hours are 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekdays. The Carson box office opens one hour prior to the performance. No late seating will be allowed.

Sweet and Lowdown features Sean Penn (with cuestick) and Uma Thurman.

Ross Theater Offers the Sweet and Lowdown

Woody Allen is in a mellow mood with Sweet and Lowdown, opening at the Mary Riepma Ross Film Theater on Feb. 17. The movie is fictionalized biographical picture of a supposedly legendary American jazz guitarist of the 1930s.

Offering the director a wonderful showcase for presenting some of the great jazz standards he loves so much, the film is also a fascinating insight into a vaunting, egotistical, amoral character who justifies his actions with the fact that he's an artist and who, indeed, loves his guitar more than any person in his life.

With Sean Penn in formidable form in the leading role, and beautiful turns from Samantha Morton and Uma Thurman as two contrasting women in his life, Sweet and Lowdown also offers almost wall-to-wall glorious music, featuring solo guitarist Howard Alden.

Also showing is a short feature titled Greg - written, directed and starring Lincoln's own Patrick Wilkins - a hilarious and brilliantly executed terse morsel demonstrating how even a simple task like getting a cup of coffee can be a very difficult, yet revealing, process for some people. Wilkins will appear at the 7 p.m. screening on Feb. 18 to discuss his film with the audience.

Sweet and Lowdown and Greg are showing Feb. 17 through 20 and Feb. 24 through 26. Screenings are on Thursdays and Fridays at 7 and 9:15 p.m.; on Saturdays at 1, 3:15, 7 and 9:15 p.m.; and on Sunday at 2:30, 4:45, 7 and 9:15 p.m. Admission is $6.50 for adults and $4.50 for students, senior citizens, children, and members of the Friends of the Mary Riepma Ross Film Theater.

Second Annual Diversity Enhancement Project

Theatre Project Explores Collision of Cultures

An evening of two one-act plays by Jeffery Scott Elwell promise to evoke audience response. Elwell, professor and chair of the theatre department, says Contents Under Pressure: An Evening of Theater deals with the collision of different cultures, allowing the audience to confront and question issues of ethnic tolerance, peer pressure, and societal expectations.

The plays, Evening Education and The Confirmation, are presented by UNL Theatre as part of UNL's second annual Diversity Enhancement Projects.

Performances begin at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 21 and 6:30 p.m. Feb. 22 in the Studio Theatre. Admission, available only at the door, is $2 for students, and $4 for all others.

Diversity Enhancement Projects are sponsored by the offices of the chancellor and the senior vice chancellor for academic affairs to encourage pilot projects and activities on campus aimed at enhancing diversity.

The production was developed as part of Elwell's proposal "Teaching Tolerance Through Theatre," which is designed to bring together a professional actor and UNL Theatre faculty and students.

Elwell describes Evening Education as "a 40-minute one-act play about the confrontation of polar opposites."

Stephen Toppman is a young, white, tenured college professor who teaches dramatic literature. Aaron Foster is a 50-year-old black janitor. Working in his office one evening, Toppman discovers that a marble obelisk on his desk has been broken. He accuses Aaron, who asserts his innocence, first calmly, then more vehemently as Toppman refuses to believe him. This evening, it is Toppman who gets the education as Aaron reveals his own past as well as the professor's. By the end of the "lesson," a bond based on mutual understanding and respect has been forged between the two men . . . or is it?

Evening Education was produced Off-Off-Broadway and in Murray, Ky., at the Kentucky Arts Theatre.

The Confirmation is a 10-minute play dealing with the close-minded panel interrogation of a man who is being judged based on stereotypes.

Elwell is a successful playwright. In the last four years, 17 of his plays have been produced Off-Off Broadway in New York, four have been produced in Los Angeles and two in Sweden. Escape from Bondage and Being Frank are published by Palmetto Play Service. A third play, The Art of Dating, was a winner in the Off-Off-Broadway Original Short Play Festival and is published by Samuel French. Two of Elwell's monologues are included in Baseball Monologues published by Heinemann. Palmetto Play Service also published the one-act plays Dead Fish and Stepping Out in 1997.

Cortez Nance Jr. plays the role of Aaron in Evening Education and the main role in The Confirmation.

Nance has a long list of acting credits. He most recently played Gabriel in Fences at the Pittsburgh Public Theater where he has also portrayed Sergeant Waters in A Soldier's Play and appeared as Doub in August Wilson's Jitney, a role he originated at Pittsburgh Public Theater. He appeared in Rhinoceros, Seven Guitars, Blood Knot, Of Mice and Men, Joe Turner's Come and Gone, and Two Trains Running. Mr. Nance toured with the Negro Ensemble Company in A Soldier's Play and the We play series. New York credits include New York Shakespeare Festival/Public Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club, and Pan Asian Repertory Theatre. Film and television credits include Dead Man Walking, Fresh, The Saint of Fort Washington, OZ, Law & Order, and America's Most Wanted.

Evening Education will also be performed for Lincoln Southeast High School and Lincoln High School students on Feb. 23 and 24 respectively, prior to a tour to College Park in Grand Island on Feb. 25.

Smokin' Joe Kubek Band on Backstage Pass

Full boogie blues are featured when the Smokin' Joe Kubek Band featuring Bnois King appears on Backstage Pass airing at 9 p.m. Feb. 18 on the statewide Nebraska ETV Network. This Backstage Pass will also be telecast on EduCable at 8 p.m. Feb. 21.

With several albums to their credit ­ including Take Your Best Shot, Got My Mind Back, Cryin' For the Moon, Texas Cadillac and Chain Smokin' Texas Style ­ Lone Star guitarist Kubek, jazz/R&B-influenced vocalist/guitarist King, and the band were captured in performance at Lincoln's legendary blues establishment, the Zoo Bar.

Snow Goose Hunt and Trout Fishing Featured on Outdoor Nebraska

A late season snow goose hunt is planned for the next edition of Outdoor Nebraska on the statewide Nebraska ETV Network. This episode of the outdoor news magazine series airs at 7:30 p.m Feb. 24, and repeats at 8 a.m. Feb. 26. The program will repeat on EduCable at 4:30 p.m. Feb. 27.

In addition to the planned snow goose hunt, viewers can join Doyle Mullen of Paxton as he reels in rainbow trout in the canal system off of Lake Ogallala. Then they can visit a shooting range southwest of Kearney that is the site each summer of an annual Fun & Freedom Shoot. The event attracts dozens of gun enthusiasts and draws a crowd of spectators for what is essentially a gun museum that comes to life as vintage weapons are actually loaded and fired at an impressive array of targets.

In this week's "Wilderness Workshop," Dick Turpin offers a simple tip on how to cut down on pot/pan soot accumulation when cooking in camp. In the "Nature Walk," viewers get a beginner's course on how to build a butterfly garden and Greg Wagner provides timely calendar reminders and tips on the "Outdoor Outlook." This week's "Nebraskaland Moment" features the scenery and activities of near neighbors Platte River State Park and Louisville State Recreation Area.

Statewide Examines Infant Mortality Rate

Nebraska lags the rest of the nation when it comes to reducing the infant mortality rate, according to an in-depth report airing at 8 p.m. Feb. 25 on Statewide, the Nebraska ETV Network's weekly magazine series. The series, which includes up-to-the-minute news reports from across the state and other features of interest, repeats at 7 p.m. Feb. 26, and 1:30 p.m. Feb. 27. Statewide also airs on EduCable at 3 p.m. Feb. 27.

Statewide correspondent Bill Kelly explains how a group of healthcare professionals and laypeople hope to find the reasons behind the troubling number of Nebraska babies dying within a year of birth. Nebraska's infant mortality rate is a good news/bad news situation: while the state's infant mortality rate continues to drop, the rate is dropping slower in Nebraska than elsewhere in the country. Kelly talks to Nebraska's chief medical officer, healthcare professionals and community activists working to reverse this seven year trend.

Johanns Scheduled for Live Q+A Appearance

Midway through his second Legislative session as governor, Mike Johanns takes time to answer Nebraskans' questions live on Q&A, the statewide Nebraska ETV Network's weekly interview series, at 7 p.m. Feb. 24. A videotape of this episode of Q&A will air on EduCable at 3:30 p.m. Feb. 27 and at 8 a.m. Feb. 29.

Nebraskans can call in during the broadcast to ask questions about any subject dealing with the Legislature or other issues affecting the state. Viewers outside the Lincoln local phone service area can call 800-676-5446 and Lincoln-area viewers can call 402-472-1212.

Q+A is hosted by Lincoln radio announcer Ward Jacobson.

Welsch Talks with NEBRASKAland Foundation's Peetz

Natalie Peetz, president-elect of the NEBRASKAland Foundation, is the next guest on Roger Welsch & when the interview series airs at 8:30 p.m. Feb. 25 on the statewide Nebraska ETV Network. The program will repeat on EduCable at 4 p.m. March 5.

Peetz will explain what the foundation is, what it does and where it's headed.

The NEBRASKAland Foundation was organized in 1962 with the mission of "Making the Good Life Better," and its volunteer board has made many contributions to tourism and economic development in the state. Among its numerous activities, the Foundation honors outstanding Nebraskans at its annual Statehood Dinner in March. When not serving in her volunteer capacity on the Board, Peetz has for the past eight years been vice president of government affairs for the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

NU Wrestling Action on Nebraska ETV Feb. 18

Two nationally-ranked Big XII Conference wrestling powers collide when the Nebraska Cornhuskers face the Iowa State Cyclones on Iowa State's home mat on "Collegiate Wrestling," at 9 p.m. Feb. 18 on EduCable, the cable television service of Nebraska Educational Telecommunications. The sports special was videotaped earlier in the evening in Ames, Iowa. This Big XII wrestling contest will also air on the statewide Nebraska ETV Network at 11 a.m. Feb. 20.

For Husker and Cyclone fans worldwide, NET will webcast the wrestling competition between Nebraska and Iowa State at 9 p.m. on NET's web site, http://net.unl.edu.

High School Wrestling Action Telecast Feb. 19

One of Nebraska's most popular high school sporting events, the Nebraska High School Wrestling Championships, will be broadcast over all stations of the Nebraska ETV Network beginning at 2 p.m. Feb. 19.

The four-hour coverage of the grappling competition will feature a special quad-split television broadcast that enables viewers to see simultaneous coverage of matches in all four high school classes in the various weight divisions.

Calling hte wrestling action will be sportscaster Steve Roth and R.J. Nebe, a former UNO wrestling All-American. The sports special is telecast from the UNL Bob Devaney Sports Center.

The high school wrestling championships will also be webcast live on NET's web site, http://net.unl.edu.