Troika's evening-length performance looks at transformations.

Artists Series Presents Multi-Media Dance Troupe

Troika Ranch, the inspiration of Nebraska native composer Mark Coniglio and choreographer Dawn Stoppiello, will present its new piece, The Chemical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz, at 7:30 p.m. April 19 in the Johnny Carson Theater. The performance is part of the Lied Center for Performing Arts' Nebraska Artists Series.

The Chemical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz is an evening-length dance, theater, and media work that examines what is lost and gained in the moment of transformation. Most of us have experienced a painful loss of innocence that leads to a deepening of wisdom. And even though we appreciate the richness that such experiences bring to our lives, we also mourn for what was lost as a result. This piece examines this process by looking at the transformations of two characters, one set 500 years in the past and the other 50 years in the future.

Since forming dance theater company Troika Ranch in 1993, artistic co-directors Coniglio and Stoppiello have been creating dynamic live performances that combine dance, music, theater and interactive digital media. Through original choreography, musical scores and use of media and theater, they explore how we can maintain our most human attributes (our emotions, our bodies, our passion) in a time of accelerating change and physical disconnection. The uneasy relationship between the organic and the electronic is the theme of their works and appears on stage as they link the movements of the dancers to interactively controlled video, sound or light. It is Coniglio and Stoppiello's hope to leave their audiences both delighted and challenged.

Coniglio, an Omaha native, began his career as a producer at American Gramophone Records, and has performed with the London Symphony Orchestra. He has taught courses in interactive music and has been a consultant for other dance companies including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Choreographer/performer Dawn Stoppiello enjoys exploring the changing state of the human body as it responds to an increasingly technological society. An Oregon native, Stoppiello's career climbed while a student at the California Institute of Arts. During that time she performed professionally with Jazz Tap Ensemble, Chicago Repertory Dance Ensemble and New Music America. After graduation she became a member of the Bella Lewitzky Dance company.

Dance instructor Kelly Holcombe will deliver a post-performance talk in the Carson theater.

Tickets are $22, half-price for students with I.D.

Call the Lied box office at 472-4747 or (800) 432-3231 for ticket availability. The box office in Johnny Carson Theater opens one hour prior to the performance. No late seating is allowed in the Carson Theater.

Kansas Turnpike intersecting the Flint Hills, by Terry Evans, 1994.

Evans' Prairie Photos Exhibited at Christlieb Gallery

Uncovering the stories of the American prairie is one goal of photographer Terry Evan's 48-photograph exhibition In Place of Prairie which opened at the Great Plains Art Collection on April 1. The exhibition runs through May 25, and includes a lecture by Terry Evans at 7 p.m. April 19 at the Great Plains Art Collection, Hewit Place, 1155 Q St. A reception will follow. The event is co-sponsored by the Friends of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries.

Evans' fascination with aerial photography resulted in a 1996-1998 Guggenheim Fellowship and expanded her horizons to include the prairie between central Saskatchewan and central Texas. Her abstract aerial photographs are highly regarded for their artistic qualities but Evans insists that they are not about abstract design, rather, ". . . they are about specific places. They show marks that contain contradictions and mysteries and raise questions about how we live on the prairie," said Evans.

A church photo taken in Crosby, N.D., is juxtaposed with a photo of an oil-pumping jack in South Dakota. Military installations are a common subject in Evans work and contrast sharply with images such as hundreds of migrating snow geese filling the skies near Regina, Saskatchewan.

Evans spent seven years photographing the prairie in the Dakotas, Illinois, Texas, Oklahoma, Canada and her home state of Kansas, in which an entire section of the exhibition is dedicated. This careful study undertaken from land and sky reveals the varying features that make up the Great Plains.

Hamlisch Delivers Showstopper Tunes to Lied Center

Marvin Hamlisch, award-winning composer, conductor and entertainer, will bring a special performance to the Lied Center for Performing Arts at 7:30 p.m. April 20.

Hamlisch is best known for his talent as a composer. Among his many successes are the Broadway musicals They're Playing Our Song and The Goodbye Girl. He is writing a new musical, Sweet Smell of Success, to open in 2002. Hamlisch is also the composer of more than 40 movie scores including the Oscar-winning score and song for The Way We Were and his adaptation of Scott Joplin's music for The Sting, which earned him another Oscar. Among the many other motion pictures Hamlisch for which has created original scores or musical adaptations are Sophie's Choice, Ordinary People, Three Men and a Baby, Ice Castles and Take the Money and Run.

Hamlisch has won nearly every award that exists - three Oscars, four Grammys, three Emmys, a Tony and three Golden Globe awards. His groundbreaking Broadway musical, A Chorus Line, earned a Pulitzer Prize.

Hamlisch has conducted some of the great orchestras of the world. He currently holds the position of Principal Pops Conductor with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and is the first person to hold this position with the National Symphony Orchestra.

Hamlisch is a graduate of both Queens College, where he earned a bachelor of arts degree, and the Juilliard School, where he was one of the youngest students ever admitted. He and his wife reside in New York City.

Actor Dave Landis will deliver a pre-performance talk in the Lied's Steinhart room 30 minutes prior to the performance.

Tickets are $38, $34 and $30, half-price for students with ID.

Groups of 25 or more qualify for a discount. Call the Lied box office at 472-4747 or (800) 432-3231 for ticket availability.

UNL Presents New Revival of Peanuts Musical

The University Theatre, the Nebraska Repertory Theatre, and the UNL School of Music present You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown, a musical based on the long-running comic Peanuts.

Curtain times are 7:30 p.m. April 19, 20, 21, 25, 26, 27 and 28 at and 2 p.m. April 21 in Howell Theatre. The musical is based on the comic strip Peanuts by Charles M. Schulz, with book, music and lyrics by Clark Gesner, additional dialogue by Michael Mayer, and additional music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa.

Directed by Fred Stuart, You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown takes you through an "average day in the life of Charlie Brown" from his embarrassment at his inability to even speak to "the little red-headed girl" to Snoopy's wild exultation over his full supper dish. From baseball season to Valentine's Day, the "Peanuts" gang regales its audiences with bright, catchy songs, and rambunctious choreography. With captivating wit and rare insight, Charlie Brown battles his foe, the kite, shares his pain as Valentine's Day passes him by, and seeks counsel from Lucy's psychiatry booth.

Highlights include the "Peter Rabbit" homework assignment for "The Book Report," Lucy's determination to buy herself a "queendom," Snoopy's joust with the Red Baron, Linus' attachment to his blanket, and Schroeder's loyalty to Beethoven.

A must-see for young and old, this new revival, direct from Broadway, is a toe-tapping treat for the entire family.

You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown first appeared Off Broadway in 1966, and recently took Broadway by storm in 1999 winning two Tony Awards. The 1999 version features several new songs and scenes, most notably the show-stopping "My New Philosophy" and the addition of little Sally Brown to the cast. Add sparkling new arrangements by Andrew Lippa Wild Party) and the show comes roaring into the 21st century, while retaining all the charm, spirit and vitality that it had 35 years ago.

The Nebraska Rep production will be among the first in the nation to use this new Broadway version.

Cast members include Matt Bross as Charlie Brown, Steve Barth as Linus, Chris Deaton as Schroeder, Jody Christopherson as Lucy, Shavonne Washington as Patty, Adriene Gregg as Sally, and Timothy Horner as Snoopy.

Tickets are $12 patrons, $10 faculty/staff/senior citizens, and $7 students with ID/youth 18 and under. Tickets may be purchased at the Lied Center Box Office, from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and one hour prior to performances. Call 472-4747 or 800-432-3231 toll free.

Women's Film Retrospective Showing at Ross Theater

The Mary Riepma Ross Film Theater presents Women Directors/Feminist Directions, a retrospective of recently released films by women directors April 17-22.

The Directors Guild of America recently released a report slamming Hollywood for failing to hire women and minorities during the past year, especially in the all-important position of director. On the other hand, during the past year or so, there has been a profusion of new independent (made outside Hollywood) films directed by women, many of whom also happen to be minorities.

Women Directors/Feminist Directions highlights the significant and considerable contributions women have made to the art of the cinema. Several recently released fiction and non-fiction features made by, for and about women - films that express a diversity of cultures, experiences, and issues - are featured.

The feature films included are (in alphabetical order):

o Bearwalker by Shirley Cheechoo (Canada), the dramatic and passionate story of a First Nations family struggling for justice and dignity.

o Girlfight by Karen Kusama (USA), a knockout story of a young woman from the Brooklyn projects who discovers self-worth and self-respect by training as a boxer.

o Les glaneurs et la glaneuse (The Gleaners and I) by Agnes Varda (France), in which the veteran filmmaker returns to her roots as a photojournalist in this sublime documentary exploring the centuries-old tradition of gleaning in France.

o History Lessons by Barbara Hammer (USA), prolific experimental filmmaker and documentarian, continues her ongoing look at lesbian images in society in this compelling, humorous, and empowering contribution to lesbian history.

o The Life and Times of Hank Greenberg by Aviva Kempner (USA), a witty documentary covering the career of one of the first Jewish professional baseball players to achieve celebrity status.

o Live Nude Girls Unite! by Julia Query and Vicky Funari (USA), a wickedly funny and subversive documentary that follows the efforts of a group of exotic dancers as they battle unfair working conditions.

o Rebels With a Cause by Helen Garvey (USA), the story of the hopes, rebellions, and repression of the 1960s, told by those who lived it - members of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) - that captures the passion and spirit of a decade when a generation lost its innocence and helped change America.

o Songcatcher, by Maggie Greenwals, beautifully photographed, brilliantly performed, and richly textured story centers on a musicologist who makes a startling discovery about folk songs in the Appalachian mountains.

o The Tao of Steve by Jenniphr Goodman (USA), twists the age-old dilemma of how to get the girl into a clever and buoyant bit of fun.

o What's Cooking? by Gurinder Chadha (USA), a wonderfully warmhearted story set on one of the most volatile of family holidays. Four American families - African-American, Jewish-American, Latino-American, Vietnamese-American - gather for a Thanksgiving feast.

The screenings will be complemented by interpretive program notes made available to the audience.

A panel discussion featuring local film and women's studies scholars and specialists occurs at 3 p.m. April 21. The panelists are experts on various aspects of American women's culture, history, and cinema. The discussion will be moderated by Laurie Richards, Nebraska film officer, Nebraska State Film Office.

Complete schedules are available at the Mary Riepma Ross Film Theater box office or on the web site at http://www.rossfilmtheater.org . Admission for single screenings 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. Retrospective passes, good for all screenings, are available for $25 or $12.50 for three screenings of your choice.

NPRN Holy Week Offerings Include Bach, Mahler

Listeners celebrating Holy Week can tune into the Nebraska Public Radio Network on Good Friday and Easter for special programs featuring inspiring and beautiful religious-themed music.

Music of the Baroque will present Bach's Passion According to St. Matthew at 9 a.m. April 13. Music of the Baroque has selected the piece as a centerpiece work for its 30th concert season. The performance tells the story of Christ's Passion, the dramatic circumstances leading to his suffering and death, in music that vividly communicates the emotions of the events. Although Passion According to St. Matthew was the result of Bach's profound religious contemplation of Christian themes, it is universally appreciated for its glorious music.

Mahler's Resurrection Symphony from Aspen airs at 5 p.m. April 15. For 50 years, the Aspen Music Festival has enjoyed a reputation as one of the most important and dynamic music festivals in the world. This special two-hour broadcast features the highlight of Aspen's season: a performance of Gustav Mahler's epic Symphony No. 2, The Resurrection Symphony, and a world premiere of Cathedral by American composer George Tsontakis. David Zinman conducts the Aspen Festival Orchestra, the Colorado Symphony Chorus and soloists Suzanne Mentzner and Dominque Labelle.

Photographs and Books By Wright Morris at Great Plains Art Collection

The Great Plains Art Collection will feature At Home With Wright Morris, photographs and books by and of Morris in conjunction with the Center for Great Plains Studies' 25th annual interdisciplinary symposium which was held April 6 and 7. The Wright Morris exhibition will be on view through May 25 at the Great Plains Art Collection located at 1155 Q St.

The Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery is lending 11 Morris photographs from its permanent collection for the exhibition. Other lenders include the Jane Pope Geske Heritage Room of Nebraska Authors, the University of Nebraska Lincoln Libraries and Michael Farrell

Russian Club Shows Free Films

The Russian Club, students and friends of Russian language and culture, will show two contemporary Russian comedy films with English subtitles. Taxi Blues will be shown at 7 p.m. April 12 in the Nebraska Union. Adam's Rib will be shown at 7 p.m. April 26 in the Nebraska Union.

Both films are free.