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 <hltp://snark. wizard, com/ emg/
>.
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” <http://
crl. com/~jhue/Las Vegas/
welcome. html>.
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 <http://sunsite.unc.edu/
elvis/> 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 <http://
www. io. org/~buff/sinatra.html>.
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 <http://
www.state51 .co. uk/state51/hottips/
695/newesq.html> 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. </
Granted, they won’t get much for this film,
but it should help them out, at least.
See VAMPIRE on 10
Film: “Vampire in Brooklyn”
Stars: Eddie Murphy, Angela Bassett,
Allen Payne
Director: Wes Craven
Rating: R
■v. Grade: C+
Five Words: Great effects, but
predictable story
Soprano sings
sacred music
this evening
By Doug Kouma
Senior Editor
The UNL School of Music’s Faculty Re
cital Series continues tonight at Kimball Re
cital Hall as soprano Margaret Kennedy pre
sents a program of sacred solos for voice.
- Kennedy, an associate
Concert professor of voice, said
PrPViPW wealtl1 literature
rlcVlcW available and the excel
lent church music pro
gram at UNL helped her
decide to focus on sacred
music.
The first half of the re
cital will contain 17th
century baroque pieces,
featuring accompaniment
from reproductions of an historic harpsichord
and a portative organ.
Kennedy said the instruments enriched the
music.
“They have a tendency to underline the
text, to fill in the text in a way that’s very
different from the modem piano,” she said.
“There are just a lot more color possibilities
when you’re using the older instruments.”
The second half of the recital, Kennedy
said, will comprise 20th century arias.
Kennedy describes the modem music as hav
ing a bigger, more operatic sound that uses
more range than the earlier music.
Kennedy said she was looking forward to
presenting a program of sacred music.
“I enjoy it. I’ve never done a program of
all sacred music, and I thought it was a good
time to do it, because there’s so much of it,”
she said.
“I think the students need to be aware of
this literature, and they might not always have
a chance to hear it.”
Tonight’s free program begins at 8 at
Kimball Recital Hall.
