Arts ^Entertainment
Thursday, July 20, 1995 Page 7
Sheldon’s new cafe adds to lofty ambiance
By Jason Gildow
Staff Reporter
Art and coffee, seminal symbols of sophisti
cated intelligentsia, are being brought together
in a major way at the Sheldon Art Gallery. The
Sheldon is the home to a new coffee shop called
the cafe.
The cafe promises to enhance the already
lofty ambiance of the Sheldon with its exotic
flavors of espresso, cappuccino and tea, as well
as specialty art magazines to expand patron’s
horizons.
Located in the Great Hall of the Sheldon Art
Gallery, the cafe will provide guests with a
unique atmosphere for their relaxation and cof
fee-enjoying needs.
Some may wonder, though, with the prolif
eration of coffee shops in Lincoln whether stu
dents will choose the cafe.
“It will give students a place that is a lot
quieter than the Union,” said University of
Nebraska-Lincoln student Jon Peterson. “How
ever, I think there will be a lot of competition
with the other coffee shops in the area.”
Another concern may be the effect the en
trance of the cafe may have on the overall
atmosphere of the Sheldon. If the cafe attracts a
large following, the calm aesthetics of the
Sheldon could become compromised.
However, employees at the Sheldon Art
Gallery said they don’t see that happening. The
Gallery directors see the Sheldon as a gathering
place as well as an art museum—the role of the
Sheldon ischangingandtheaddition ofthecafe
is consistent with that evolution.
Sheldon director George Neubert said that
I ’ -
he believes the coffee shop is a necessary addi
tion to the Gallery.
“We feel the addition ofthe cafe provides yet
another amenity for the Gallery visitor,” said
Neubert. “In fact, food and beverage conces
sions are almost expected in today’s muse
ums.”
The cafe opened July 18 and is a collabora
tive effort of both the Sheldon Art Gallery and
Jax Restaurant of Lincoln. It will be open from
9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Tuesday through Friday.
Bagels, desserts and light lunches will be avail
able as well as specialty coffees, teas and min
eral waters.
The cafe is very versatile in its coffee choices.
There are six varieties of flavoring for the
espresso, cappuccino, coffee and latte. The cafe
staff is also eager to accept alterations to their
coffee offerings, such as a cappuccino with ice,
not offered on the menu.
The opening of the cafe was relatively suc
cessful on its first day, said Lori Barr, coffee
tender for the cafe.
“We had a great coffee crowd in the morn
ing,” Barr said, “and a great lunch crowd at
noon.
“There were about 30 to 40 people here for
lunch. The promotion that the Sheldon has done
has brought the people in. I think word-of
mouth will spread.”
The clientele was mainly UNL faculty and
staff with Lincoln business people, art patrons
and a few students thrown in.
“When I got here, nearly all the tables were
full,” said Rene Meaker, UNL English graduate
student. “It appeals mainly to faculty, and I have
seen some retired folks and art patrons.”
Tanna Kinnaman/DN
The cafe, at the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, provides a classy setting for a
coffee break or lunch. From left, Kathy Thompson, Marilyn Filarsai and Eileen
Brewster, Lied Center employees, enjoy a mineral water and bagels Tuesday.
However, Meaker said she didn’t believe
students would be frequent patrons at the cafe.
“I don’t think the cafe will have a big appeal
to undergraduates; it’s a little pricey. It is a
place to while away the hours rather than just a
stop between classes.”
Meaker pointed out that in Europe, museums
and cafes just naturally go together and a sea
soned traveler comes to expect these services
everywhere.
Barr concurred with Meaker’s conclusion.
“Midwesterners find it refreshing to find the
kind of services that arc found in big cities and
overseas, like cafes in museums.
“I think that the cafe adds to the overall
atmosphere of Lincoln.”
Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.
Steven Seagal starsasex-Navy SEAL Casey Ryback in “Under
Siege 2: Dark Territory.”
Seagal on wrong track at right time
By Gerry Beltz
features Editor
Okay Hollywood, I think we’ve
gone through all the “Die Hard” varia
tions on the list, so can we get on to
something different now, please?
There’s been “Die Hard on a Bus”
(“Speed”), “Die Hard on a Plane”
(“Passenger 57”), “Die Hard on a Ship”
(“Under Siege”) and now we have
“Die Hard on a Train” with the release
of “Under Siege 2: Dark Territory.”
Seagal is back as Casey Ryback,
the straight-faced, soft-spoken cook
from the original “Under Siege” who
has now retired from the Navy and is
the owner of a very successful restau
rant in Denver.
He goes on a train trip to San Diego
with hisniece Sarah (Katherine Heigl,
“My Father The Hero”), who is his
only remaining relative after her fa
ther died just weeks earlier.
Of course, the train they take just
happens to be the train that mega
genius Travis Dane (Eric Bogosian,
“Talk Radio”) and his terrorist goons
take over so they can blackmail the
good ol’ USA for a billion bucks.
Naturally, Dane isn’t just a genius,
but he has a million one-liners as well
as one standard cruel right-hand man
in Penn (Everett McGill, “Heartbreak
Ridge”).
Gosh, will Ryback come through
and save the day while displaying a
minimum of acting talent or variant
facial expressions? What do you mean
he’s done that before?
Yeah, but it works.
Seagal lost his ponytail for “Under
Siege 2,” and it would appear that he
lost several pounds for the role as
well, but rumor has it that he was
wearing a girdle.
Ah, who cares? This is one guy
nobody would want to meet in a dark
alley or get on his bad side in general.
He starts cracking bones and bending
body parts in ways they weren ’t meant
to be bent, and the audience is happy.
Unfortunately, the cramped space
of a train prevents Seagal from doing
some of his best stuff, such as han
dling groups of stupid terrorists with
minimal effort.
(Here, he does them one at a time
instead.)
Bogosian was a little too over-the
top as the bad guy, acting more silly
than psychotic. Still, his jokes and
puns help make the movie much more
bearable.
McGill is actually pretty good as
the devious Mr. Penn, and is surpris
ing intelligent for abad guy in a Seagal
film, almost as good as Tommy Lee
Jones in the first “Under Siege” flick.
The relationship between Sarah and
Ryback isn’t nearly fleshed out
enough. It’sas though the scriptwriters
threw it in and later said, “All right,
that’senough emotion. Let’shurtsome
people.”
And, as usual, Seagal is an oak —
with his acting. If his acting gets any
more wooden, acorns are going to
start growing out of his head.
Steve, buddy. Loosen up. Do the
crossword. Try a different facial ex
pression. It won’t hurt (probably).
The action, thrills and fun make up
for any acting shortcomings, and the
Colorado scenery is well shot.
For an action flick, “Under Siege
2” fits the bill, and is on the right track
for fun.