Arts ©Entertainment Thursday, November 2, 1995 Page 9 Jeff Randall City of sin tantalizes homebound As winter descends on the Mid west and the wind howls day and night, a lot of Nebraskans, myself included, will be thinking about far off lands where the sun is shining and loose-fitting threads are always in style. That’s right, kids. I’m talking about Las Vegas — the land of glitz and gleam, the city of sin and depri vation, mecca for the hopeful and oasis for the lucky. But, if potentially losing your wages doesn’t sound like an ideal vacation prospect — or if you have no wages to lose in the first place — you can visit the many facets of Las Vegas through the wonderful world of the Web. You can start your adventure in the general information archives. The best of these is probably the appro priately titled Las Vegas Information Page . Containing Vegas-related informa tion ranging from casino and hotel listings all the way down to the Las Vegas Bingo Club, the current weather and the city’s illustrious arena football team. Another appealing entry point to the world of Vegas lies within “Jon’s Las Vegas Home Page” . Run ana maintained Dy an ordinary guy who just so happens to love va cationing in Fat City, this page con tains a more realistic depiction of the city and its offerings than the usual Chamber of Commerce spiel. Dozens of pictures, travel tips and links to other informat ion-saturated sites arc present here. In his later years, Elvis Presley made Las Vegas’ stages familiar stomping grounds. Look up Elvis’ home page and browse through the world of the King. I can almost hear him crooning “My Way” right now. Ring-a-ding-ding, baby! As the world’s greatest living entertainer, Francis Albert Sinatra made Las Ve gas a regular stop. Back in the days of the Rat Pack’s glory, he could be seen at any one of Vegas’ casino ball rooms on any given night. Check out OF Blue Eyes’ home page . One of Las Vegas’ lesser-known entertainers from the ’50s and ’60s was none other than Juan Garcia Esquivel, the father of lounge music. Retired now, but still as suave as ever, Mr. Esquivel’s Web site offers up sound bites, information tidbits and the op portunity to send your questions di rectly to Esquivel himself. Despite the proliferation of por nography, legalized prostitution and general angst present within the city limits of Las Vegas, the city still holds some mysterious charm for yours truly. Where else can you get mar ried within a matter of minutes, or der a prime rib dinner for $5 and hear Wayne Newton sing “Danke Schoen” all in one exciting evening? Nowhere else, and don’t forget it. The glitter and glamour of Sin City are calling, so get online and find them for yourself. Artist depicts ordinary in striking ways By Gerry Beltz Senior Reporter An exhibit of the paintings of Tom Rierden. Northwest Pacific artist, opens Friday at the Haydon Gallery, 335 N. Eighth St. in the Haymarket. Anne Pagel, Haydon Gallery director, said Rierden and the Haydon Gallery had been working with each other for about three years. She said Ricrden’s work struck a chord in people for many different reasons. “One reason is the bright colors and patterns he utilizes," she said. “People are immediately drawn to the intense colors. “Also, he always uses figures facing away from the viewer, so there is no idea of the person’s identity." “They are read as the ‘every person,’" she said, “family people doing the ordinary things we do from day to day." Ricrden’s work isn’t just thought-provoking, but also remark ably unique, Pagel said. “He has a very personal way of expressing himself that is unlike anything 1 have seen in this area," she said. “Very few people use tempera because it is such a hard medium to work with. “In Tom’s case, he applies an egg tempera (egg and wax mixed with color pigment), then coats every layer of color with wax. “It’s a very painstaking process.” When not creating works of art, Rierden — who grew up in Lincoln — assists Seattle artist William Cumming and works as a well dig ... pi. Courtesy of the Haydon Gallery The work of artist Tom Rierden is featured in an exhibit opening at the Haydon Gallery Friday. ger on Orcas Island. “He’s been working as an artist since he was a student,” she said, “but has become much more seri ous about it. “His work has certainly grown and become more sophisticated.” An opening reception will be held on Friday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Haydon Gallery, at which Rierden will be present. Regular hours for the Haydon Gallery are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday. : Theatrix mocks Titanic By Brian Priesman Staff Reporter Take one doomed trans-Atlantic steamliner, six unusual passengers, one missing iceberg, some dead bodies and a ... dildo, and what do you get? Christopher Durang’s outlandishly funny “Ti tanic,” the latest production from Theatrix. ; ■# UNL’s student-run theater % ’■ troupe, Theatrix has long been know for pushing the ’ Thpotpr limits of avant-garde theater. .1 Hie exit# I And “Titanic” is no excep tion. The play is “lunatic com edy,” production stage man ager Amy Jirsa said. Set on the ill-fated maiden voyage of the steamliner Ti tanic, Christopher Durang’s play is a “drown ing-room” farce about the nature of the Ameri can family and the disturbed society that nur tures it. Over the course of the journey, all sorts of strange secrets and fetishes are revealed, many of the sexual kind — hence the dildo. “It’s just this thing that the captain does that’s normal to him,” said Amy Rohr, who plays Victoria, one of the bizarre passengers. Most of the characters are outlandish, but they all consider themselves normal, Rohr said. “They’re all pretty odd,” she said. The original Titanic, a deluxe steamliner that was supposedly unsinkablc, sank on its maiden voyage after hitting an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean. But in Durang’s bizarre world, the Titanic seems unable to find the iceberg destined to sink it and kill hundreds of passengers. “In the show, the Titanic does not actually sink, although several people wish it would,” Jirsa said. “You think it’s going to sink, you think it’s going to sink, you think it’s going to sink, but it doesn’t. “The people are so funny.” She added that “the presence of the dildo has been the most fun.” Rohr said the audience could expect “a pretty wild and wacky group of people.” “They need to forget about reality,” she said. “Titanic,” directed by Channing Ross, opens tonight and runs through Sunday in the Howell Theatre, 12th and R streets. Showtime is at 8 each night with a 2 p.m. show on Sunday. Ticket information is available at 472-2073. Effects make ‘Vampire ’ a treat By Gerry Beltz Rim Critic “Vampire in Brooklyn” isn’t a comeback film for either Eddie Murphy or Wes Craven, but it isn’t a failure, either. Both have suffered recent cinematic slumps (“Beverly Hills Cop III” for Murphy, “New Nightmare” for Craven), but this film is enter taining enough to help recapture some of their lost income.