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COMMENT

Sanders’ message Why do so many insist Bernie Sanders is offering freebies to Americans? Arkansas’s other newspaper ran a cartoon depicting the senator as the Pied Piper, tooting his flute to the tune of “free health care,” “free college tuition,” as a mesmerized group of young Americans follow like a bunch of mindless zombies, chanting “Bernie” over and over. While it’s true many young people are drawn to Sanders’ message, what’s equally true is the set of circumstances allowing for a self-described democratic socialist to emerge as a contender in the Democratic primaries. Today, many American college graduates are starting their adult lives saddled with tremendous debt. Add to that the ever-rising cost of health care and it makes for a situation in which saving for the future becomes quite the challenge. It’s no wonder so many working young adults experience such high rates of depression and addiction. They are uncertain about their financial futures. It’s easy for conservative leaders to reprimand young workers for not sav-

ing money, along with unfairly blaming them for just about all of society’s woes. The GOP’s failed policies do need a scapegoat, you know. However, saving for the future is difficult when such a large chunk of one’s income goes to paying off huge educational loans and ridiculously high health care expenses. Add to that the cost of long-waged and unnecessary wars of occupation, corporate bailouts, tax breaks for the wealthy, subsidies to major industries and stagnant wages and it’s no wonder this particular demographic is willing to support a candidate like Bernie Sanders. Who can blame them? Look at the sorry state of affairs their fathers have left them. The same fathers that hold them accountable for circumstances they did not create, but were born into. Oh yeah, I started by asking why so many accuse Bernie of wanting to give away freebies. He never said these things would be free. He simply says those who have wreaked havoc in this country over the past few decades, i.e. proponents of Reaganomics, will pay for them. It’s not too much to ask, considering the extent to which wealthy citizens disproportionately benefit in this country. And, as the

senator reminds us, we bailed them out, now it’s time they returned the favor. Richard Hutson Cabot

From the web In response to the Feb. 29 Arkansas Blog post, “And clown the stretch they come: GOP rivals spar over insults, KKK, Mussolini, dick jokes”: The GOP has spent the last decade enforcing compliance to their ideology to the point where no candidate dares disagree with a single point for fear of being Koch-blocked. Such an action can only generate an equal and opposite reaction: a front-runner for the presidency who only gets stronger by pissing on that ideology. Imagine any other Republican defending Planned Parenthood, laying 9/11 at the feet of George W. Bush, and saying he’d refuse to let people die on the street for lack of health care. Paying Top Dollar for Legislators Trump’s

earpiece

working during the interview? That’s a good one that I haven’t heard before. He’s at the point where he knows that he can say anything and it won’t matter. In a way, it’s hard to believe that there are this many people in the good ol’ USA that would follow someone like Trump. The worst part about Trump being president to me would not be that fact itself but the realization that I’d been trying to swim in a sea of idiots all this time. Olphart The chickens are coming home to roost. — Malcolm X Black Panthers for Open Carry I’m gonna go out on a limb here and predict that the R convention will be brokered and that Romney will actually end up as the nominee. But he’ll lose the same way the rest of them would lose. Vanessa In response to the Feb. 27 Arkansas Blog post, “Hillary Clinton dominates in South Carolina primary over Bernie Sanders”:

wasn’t I sure hope that when Hillary wins the nomination, she does not forget all of the young people (mostly) who went all out for Bernie. If she does, then we are doomed to have nothing but politics as usual — establishment Democrats running as if they were stuck in 1992 and not living in 2016. The Clintons moved the Democratic Party to the center. I think it is now time to regain our proud position on the left — working for poor people, for workers against greedy corporations, for women to make sure that they are treated equally in the workplace and have control of their personal choices, for equal rights for all persons. If she doesn’t, then little will be gained when she wins against the Republicans, which I think she is sure to do. Plainjim I’m not convinced Clinton can win in November. It would be great to elect the first woman president, but Clinton has so much baggage, American voters could well decide to give her a pass come November. Stranger things have happened, even if voters would be voting against their own best interests by voting for the amorphous TrumpRubioCruzCarson. Sound Policy

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

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MARCH 3, 2016

EYE ON ARKANSAS

WEEK THAT WAS

Quote of the Week 1 “I do not see his discussion of issues as serious. The words are frightening — how you’re going to build a wall, how you’re going to have Mexico pay for it. What does this mean? Let’s be realistic in our discussions and how we discuss these issues with the American people.” — Gov. Hutchinson to NPR’s Robert Siegel last week, referring to (who else?) Donald Trump. Over the weekend, Hutchinson urged Republican voters to reject Trump, saying “It is up to Arkansas to stop the Donald Trump show. The next generation of conservatives cannot allow Donald Trump to take everything we stand for and throw it away.”

BRIAN CHILSON

WHAT IS A “RAAAACIST” ANYWAY? WHAT DO THEY LOOK LIKE? A PRESIDENTIAL HOPEFUL? I SIMPLY DOUBT IT.

LEFT IN THE STREAM: A leaf is caught by rocks in the creek that runs through the ravine in the north part of Allsopp Park.

Quote of the Week 2 “Does anybody think Donald Trump is a racist? I don’t. I mean, I really don’t. I don’t know of anything in his life that indicates that this man has racist tendencies.” —Former Gov. Mike Huckabee on MSNBC defending Trump after the billionaire recently soft-pedaled a repudiation of the Ku Klux Klan. Huckabee, whose own presidential ambitions fizzled in Iowa, has said he won’t endorse anyone in the primary. However, his daughter, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, was recently hired by the Trump campaign as a senior adviser.

Why can’t every Tuesday be Super Tuesday? Arkansas’s early primary date prompted visits last weekend from four of the remaining presidential candidates: Trump, Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz and Hillary Clinton. Cruz brought along histrionic patriot Glenn Beck to rally the true conservative faithful in Little Rock on Saturday. “I’m not interested in compromising,” Cruz said — a selling point for his audience. Rubio appeared at two events, one in Rogers and one in Conway, where he continued taking on Trump. “I will never allow a con artist 6

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

to take control of the party of Lincoln and Reagan, or the conservative movement,” Rubio declared. We’ll see about that. Trump stopped in Bentonville on Saturday to lob rambling insults at “little Rubio,” and urge his supporters to get out the vote. “Maybe I’ll start shopping permanently at Walmart if we win Arkansas,” he added. Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton made a stopover in Pine Bluff on Sunday night and vowed to return to the state if she’s the Democratic nominee (despite the fact the Arkansas will almost certainly vote Republican in November.) “I am looking forward to coming back to Arkansas and campaigning in the general election,” Clinton said.

What a waste The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission announced last week that an elk shot on the Buffalo National River in October has tested positive for chronic wasting disease, a degenerative neurological malady that strikes deer and their cousins. Similar to mad cow disease or Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans, chronic wasting disease is always fatal to infected animals; though endemic in some Western states, this is the first inci-

State Capitol. Rapert, who sponsored a 2015 law allowing for the installation of such a privately funded monument on the Capitol grounds, solicited the cash in a GoFundMe effort over the past two weeks. Left unsaid is whether his funders will absorb the cost of the inevitable First Amendment lawsuit against the state for so blatantly marrying Arkansas government with the Old Testament.

dence of CWD in Arkansas. There’s not yet clear evidence CWD is transmissible to humans or livestock, but its discovery is still very bad news for both hunters and wildlife in the state. To determine how widespread the disease may be, the Game and Fish Commission will be killing and testing as many as 300 deer and elk in a five-mile radius from where the first case was detected.

Fundraising for fundamentalism State Sen. Jason Rapert (R-Conway) on Tuesday announced he had raised over $18,000 to construct a monument to the Ten Commandments to be placed at the Arkansas

Buffalo River advocates slam regulators Last week, two federal agencies delivered a “finding of no significant impact” regarding C&H Hog Farm, the 6,500-animal facility located near a major tributary of the Buffalo National River. A coalition of community and environmental groups fighting to protect the Buffalo denounced the finding, which came from the Small Business Administration (SBA) and the USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) after a federal judge ruled that an earlier environmental assessment was inadequate. The coalition said the new finding “turn[ed] a blind eye to the overwhelming scientific consensus” regarding potential harm to water quality on the Buffalo.

OPINION

Channeling Portis

ometimes, you take your laughs where you find them. For me, the funniest moment in an otherwise dreary and intermittently scary election year came when candidate Donald Trump visited the State Fairgrounds in Little Rock. A character seemingly straight out of a Charles Portis novel provided the most incisive commentary. The author of “True Grit” is the state’s best novelist, a master of deadpan comedy in a tone-perfect Arkansas twang. According to the Arkansas DemocratGazette, a Trump supporter yelled “Make America Great Again!” at a young protester while on his way into the arena to bask in the Great Braggart’s eerie orange glow. “America’s already great, you dumb butt!” the protester replied. That could have been Portis’s Norwood Pratt, the would-be country singer traveling the country with Joann the Wonder Hen, the College Educated Chicken. An ex-Marine, Norwood wasn’t one to mince words. So there was Hillary Clinton on the night of her thunderous win over Sen. Bernie Sanders in the South Carolina primary.

“We don’t need to make America great again,” she said. “America has never stopped being great. But we GENE do need to make LYONS America whole again. Instead of building walls, we need to be tearing down barriers. ... We need to show with everything we do that we’re really in this together.” Ain’t that the truth? Maybe not in Trump World, where voters who never tire of proclaiming their holiness are voting for an aging playboy who brags about the married women he’s seduced. (In his book “The Art of the Deal.”) But he’s going to put Them back in their place, isn’t he? Yeah, well, good luck with that. Anyway, I suspect Hillary has found a winning theme. Meanwhile, pundits seem oddly reluctant to say so, but Bernie’s candidacy imploded due to a classic political blunder when he accused his opponent of pandering to African-American voters by supporting President Obama.

If not Obamacare, then what?

e are 11 months from a President Trump, Clinton, Sanders, Cruz or Rubio and a final reckoning on what to do with Obamacare. In five years, the House of Representatives has voted more than 60 times to repeal it, but if one of the three Republicans sits in the Oval Office and the Senate remains Republican, this time it would mean something. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act would disappear, 15 million people would lose their health insurance and everyone else’s insurance would be affected. Ending the widely unpopular law has been the first goal of the Republican Party and all but a couple of the vast field of presidential candidates. You would expect that, so close to the goal, the remaining five would by now have the outlines of a plan to replace it. You would be wrong. In the last GOP debate, CNN interrogators belabored the candidates to describe their plans because all had said

they would install something better. It produced the best fireworks of the debates: Marco Rubio taunting the ERNEST suddenly ruffled DUMAS Trump for endlessly repeating empty catchphrases. Rubio was right, but no one was much better than Trump. They offered old ideas that are already in the law but unpopular or else solutions that already are a part of Obamacare. But no one dares to say that their popular notions are already part of the law. We have some history of that in Arkansas: provider-reimbursement reforms, the “private option” and now “Arkansas Works,” Gov. Hutchinson’s plan for “replacing” Obamacare for the poor. On the Democratic side, both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders would continue Obamacare. Sanders would convert it incrementally into a single-

“Hillary Clinton now is trying to embrace the president as closely as she possibly can. Everything the president does is wonderful. She loves the president, he loves her and all that stuff,” Sanders said sarcastically. “And we know what that’s about. That’s trying to win support from the African-American community, where the president is enormously popular.” Never mind that she was Obama’s secretary of state. Bernie delivered these remarks in an interview with BET’s Marc Lamont Hill on Feb. 18. His poll numbers have plummeted like a stone ever since. In early February, Gallup reported that Sanders’ net favorable rating stood at 57 percent to Clinton’s 44. By the March 1 “Super Tuesday” primaries, those numbers were reversed. Bernie dropped 13 points as Clinton rose. I wouldn’t presume to speak for black voters, but they tend to be very acute about being patronized. Indeed, 81 percent of Democrats generally have a favorable opinion of President Obama, along with a reported 97 percent of black voters in South Carolina. Sanders’ remarks weren’t merely insulting, but tone deaf and objectively dumb. As South Carolina’s Rep. Jim Clyburn put it, “I don’t know how you can look

at Mrs. Clinton’s history — she was not running for president in the 1970s when she came to South Carolina to work with those African-American juvenile detainees or juvenile inmates trying to better their conditions, when she went to work with Marian Wright Edelman, a native of Bennettsville, S.C., to come down here working with her trying to better the lives of children. … So, what was she doing? Who was she pandering to back then?” Not Barack Obama, Clyburn noted, who was in junior high school. But then the Sanders campaign’s idea of a South Carolina surrogate was Princeton professor and controversialist Cornell West, author of this immortal trope: As the results of this foolishness became manifest, some Sanders supporters began suggesting it was wrong for “red state” voters to have so much to say about the Democratic nomination. Only Yankees need apply. “Given the reality of a Republican presidential primary where the candidates are racing to outdo each other in their contempt for people of color … ” Nancy LeTourneau writes in Washington Monthly, “is it any surprise that African Americans would assume that this country is facing the threat of a confederate insurgency?” No surprise at all.

payer system for all. Clinton would make improvements, mostly those that would have gotten into the law in 2010 when the Senate bill and the better House version went to conference, but the loss of a filibuster-proof majority with the death of Ted Kennedy forced Congress and the president to take the Senate bill. Republican majorities since 2011 have made it impossible to change even a comma of the law, and without Democratic majorities in both houses neither Sanders nor Clinton could fix a sentence. So any change, good or bad, in Obamacare rests with a Republican president. None of the candidates had an answer that should satisfy the most rabid haters or the mildest critics of Obamacare. That is because no one has come up with a workable plan, unless it is to leave 25 million Americans who can’t afford the premiums to their own devices. The basic elements of Obamacare — mandatory insurance for individuals and large employers — was the conservative solution, devised by the Heritage Foundation and pushed by Republicans in both houses in 1993-94 and earlier by Presidents Nixon and Ford. The NixonFord plan required all employers to provide managed care for their employees. His opponents went after poor Gov.

John Kasich because, when he was in the Republican leadership in the 1990s, he and his colleagues sponsored Obamacare’s mandates and Medicaid expansion. Kasich said he now knows better. Then he proceeded to explain how, as governor of Ohio, he had fashioned changes that expanded coverage and made huge savings in health care. He will bring those reforms to the whole country. Indeed, Kasich expanded coverage in Ohio by implementing Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion for childless adults and for children. Left unsaid was that his big reforms in provider reimbursement, which vastly improved patient care, was a pilot project that Obamacare urged states to experiment with in hopes that it would spread across the insurance market. Arkansas led the way in that, too, with similar results. Former Gov. Beebe and Hutchinson never credited Obamacare either, or it would have failed. I think I see the future of Obamacare under any of these politicians. Mike Beebe and Asa Hutchinson developed the model. Repeal Obamacare, re-enact nearly all of it with new language and tweaks and call it something else. The politics is dubious but it’s workable government. www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

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No to charter expansion

efore diving into the muddy waters of charter school expansion — water that becomes oddly clear when you reach the bottom — it is a good idea to know what lies beneath the surface. That means considering the well-researched data put together by Baker Kurrus, superintendent of the Little Rock School District. Two charter school operators in Little Rock, eStem Public Charter Schools and LISA Academy, have expansion proposals that will soon be considered by the state Board of Education. Between them, the two schools hope to enroll 2,957 new students in the coming years, 75 percent of whom would likely come from the LRSD. This would assuredly result in the closing of several LRSD schools. It would also make eStem and LISA de facto competing school districts within the LRSD, but with less diverse student bodies. Seventy-five percent of LRSD students qualify for free and reduced-price lunches. In contrast, eStem has only 32 percent low-income students and LISA has 41 percent. The expansion of eStem and LISA will drive the poverty rate of the LRSD’s student body up to nearly 80 percent. Twelve percent of LRSD students receive special education services. eStem and LISA have only 7 percent special education populations. The LRSD is 65 percent African-American and 18 percent white. eStem is 45 percent AfricanAmerican and 43 percent white; LISA is 37 percent African-American and 32 percent White. Beyond the numbers, it is also important to understand the grand mission of charter schools as originally envisioned — a mission that is also embraced by fierce supporters of traditional public schools. In a 2012 article for Commons Magazine titled “After 20 Years, Charter Schools Stray from Their Mission,” David Morris explained the motivations of those who first conceived of and supported the promise of charter schools: “Groups of teachers and administrators who wanted to innovate and try new things would band together and little laboratories of education would emerge. ...The idea was simple: anything valuable culled from these experiments could be copied by the district. …” It is clear that that original statement of purpose is at odds with the expansions proposed by eStem and LISA. The intention behind the first charter schools was to strengthen traditional public school dis-

tricts, not compete with or undermine those districts’ ability to provide a great education for all. NevertheJOYCE less, Morris wrote, ELLIOTT “Within a decade the goals of experimentation and innovation were replaced by a focus on kudzulike growth. Charter schools were less and less viewed as a way of improving public schools and more and more seen as a direct competitor and eventual replacement for them.” Today, we are witnessing a wellresourced public relations campaign to convince Little Rock that charter school proliferation is the answer for what “ails” public schools. This is unfortunate and misleading. While I respect every parent’s decision to do what they consider best for their children, I simultaneously ask all parents to be concerned about all children. Regardless of your feelings toward the LRSD, most children in our city attend its schools and will continue to do so. Don’t you want those students to be as well educated as your own children? If so, doesn’t that mean all district schools need to at least approach being as good as the schools your children attend? How can that happen if the LRSD is being undermined by a steady loss of students to expanding charter schools? How can the Little Rock School District put in place a credible plan for the future if it’s being pulled apart at the core? The expansions proposed by eStem and LISA starkly exemplify how the missions of charter schools have gone way off track. All of Little Rock, including those who advocated for the state takeover of the LRSD, should take a stand to help improve all public schools. That means requiring charter schools to be what they were meant to be — laboratories of innovation, not competition. The bottom line is this: The rapid growth of eStem and LISA will further racially and socioeconomically segregate the LRSD and will make it virtually impossible for the district to emerge from state takeover. Join the effort in asking the state Board of Education not to approve these charter school expansions at such a tenuous time. Joyce Elliott of Little Rock is a state senator representing District 31.

Tax gas, not groceries

e are going to pay for longthe only families overdue highway maintewho were comnance in Arkansas either pletely left out of by cutting off funding for essentials the last round of like schools and social workers, or by tax cuts to chip in raising taxes. The most reasonable a disproportionELEANOR solution — a modest increase to the ate share of their WHEELER incomes for highgasoline tax at a time of historically ways. low fuel prices — hasn’t gotten much serious consideration at the state CapIncreasing the fuel tax is a much betitol, in large part because the governor ter deal for low-income families than and many legislators have ruled it out. taxing groceries: A lot of low-income Yet, some of those same lawmakworkers in Arkansas don’t have a car, ers who insisted on looking at only but they all eat. If you are on a tight “revenue neutral” budget, a fuel tax ideas for highway It is egregious to give isn’t going to hurt funding are sud- millions of dollars in tax as much as a tax on denly considering breaks to the wealthy in staple foods. an increase in the Nonetheless, capital gains kickbacks higher gas taxes grocery tax as a still burden poor possibility. Short ... and then turn around households. That of having a literal and ask the only families poor tax, a gro- who were completely is why the fair and cery tax increase left out of the last round reasonable soluis the least ethical tion is to bump up of tax cuts to chip in fuel taxes and pair method of paying a disproportionate for roads. that with a tax The grocery share of their incomes credit for working tax is hardest on for highways. families. A state low-income famiEarned Income lies because they spend a much larger Tax Credit (EITC) would help balance out the cost of the tax increase for lowshare of their income on food that is prepared at home when compared to income working families without eclipshigher-income households. Working ing the major revenue gains to the state. families who make less than $21,000 a Unless we plan on restoring the 1.5 year were left out of the 2015 personal percent grocery tax and piling a bigger income tax cuts in Arkansas that benburden on low-income working families efited every other income group. Their year after year, there is no way for the only hope for a tax break is a schedgrocery tax proposal to keep up with uled decrease in the grocery tax from growing highway needs. The long-term, 1.5 cents on the dollar to 1/8 cent on the common-sense revenue solution is a dollar, potentially saving the average modernized fuel tax. family roughly $125 a year. A 2.5-cent fuel tax increase (indexed Some legislators want to revoke the to keep pace with inflation and gains in tax decrease, leave the grocery tax at 1.5 vehicle fuel efficiency) would generate percent and send the resulting higher more revenue than the governor’s recent revenues to highways instead of finally highway plan at a cost of only $25 a year giving a break to working families. Make to middle-income Arkansans in the first no mistake: Preventing the sunset of year. Lower income people would pay even less on average. Without a smart the grocery tax is still a tax increase. fuel tax change, we will either pay for That’s because the grocery tax phasehighways by picking the pockets of the out is already in the law. No revenueneutral diehard can honestly claim that most vulnerable families in our state, or reinstating the full grocery tax in future by cutting funds from pre-K, child welyears is anything but a tax increase. It fare programs and other services that is egregious to give millions of dollars assist those same families. in tax breaks to the wealthy in capital gains kickbacks, pass a costly income Eleanor Wheeler is a senior policy anatax cut for middle- and upper-income lyst for Arkansas Advocates for Children Arkansans, and then turn around and ask and Families. www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

PEARLS ABOUT SWINE

From TV’s

How I Met Your Mother

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

Razorback roundup

t’s March, and up in the Ozarks, there is madness. Let’s not confuse this with a delusion that the Arkansas basketball programs will be participating in the NCAA tournaments on either the men’s or women’s side, but it’s been an eventful few days in Razorback Country to put it bluntly. Both basketball teams, in fairness, did endeavor to wrap up the regular season the right way. The men’s squad has followed three bad losses with three good wins, the last two of which may have been among the season’s chief accolades. First, the Hogs walloped LSU, 85-65, at Bud Walton Arena during the weeknight tilt, and the most genuinely encouraging aspect of this was the team’s ability to stretch out a narrow lead and demonstrate closing ability. After a 34-32 seesaw first half, Arkansas piled up 51 second-half points, and perhaps the best news was that Trey Thompson and Jimmy Whitt came up large off the bench with 25 combined points. It was a crippling loss for the Tigers, who now look destined for the NIT despite having the country’s consensus top individual talent in Ben Simmons. That win was followed by only the second true road victory of the year, a fairly businesslike 10-point win over undermanned Tennessee. And yet again, it was an efficient (59 percent shooting) second 20 minutes and excellent bench support that carried the day. Much-maligned Anton Beard had 10 of the Hogs’ 27 points from reserves, and the Volunteers were punchless with prolific scorer Kevin Punter sidelined. Consider this: Arkansas won for only the third time in Thompson-Boling Arena, a venue that has not exactly hosted titans the past quarter-century, so even in a year with both programs scuffling a lot, it was a solid win that has the Hogs eyeing better-than-expected seeding for the conference tourney. The women even shook off two rough road outings by throttling Ole Miss at home, and it’s undisputed that Jimmy Dykes’ extremely young crew is better now than it was two months ago. At 7-9 in league play after beating the Rebels handily, 60-49, Arkansas’s literal and metaphorical postseason occurs now with the SEC Tournament in Jacksonville, Fla., starting Thursday. Jessica

Jackson continues to be a steady scorer, and freshmen Malica Monk and Jordan Danberry are steadily BEAU gaining confiWILCOX dence in assuming leadership roles. The problem with this group is that it shoots poorly, belying the on-court effort it has given all year: only two regulars, Jackson included, are better than 40 percent from the floor, and nobody outside of Jackson scores more than nine per game. If Dykes can remedy the offensive woes with better depth, there’s no question that this is as solid a team nucleus as the program has had in the post-Gary Blair days. Off the hardcourt, onto the diamond: Arkansas baseball is scalding, and soared up the national rankings after an 8-0 start that included three wins over ranked programs in Houston over the weekend. Beating the likes of Rice, Houston and Texas Tech in the Houston College Classic was a dramatic departure from recent neutralsite invitational tourneys in which the program has participated the past few years. Instead of getting pinned with agonizing losses where offensive output or defensive gaffes were costly, the Hogs made all three games academic in different ways. Dominic Taccolini again proved that he’s the frontline starter with six stellar innings of work against the Owls in the first game, then after that the bats took over. Michael Bernal popped two homers to lead a 12-run onslaught in a rout of the Cougars on Saturday, and then he added another as Arkansas shook off an early 5-0 deficit to the Red Raiders. The rub for Dave Van Horn’s team is how it will adapt to conference play because the starting pitching has been shaky so far, and somebody has to emerge as a consistent weekend starter. Lastly, we go back to the linchpin program. Bret Bielema has been left scrambling with position coach departures again, but could he have possibly plugged holes better than by bringing in world-class recruiter and running back tutor Reggie Mitchell from Kansas and then filling the defensive backfield void with former Iowa State head coach Paul Rhoads?

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3/2 – 3/8

THE OBSERVER NOTES ON THE PASSING SCENE

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Middle child

he Observer is not given to writing for an audience of one. We’re mass communicatin’ here! Shouting, week to week, out this bare little window, hoping to be heard by the greatest number of people: folks sitting at bus stops and in doctors’ offices, in restaurants and bars, folks like you, who may be sitting there right now, flipping these dead-tree pages one-handed or scrolling through digipages with your thumb while trying to keep mustard off your blouse. The Observer has lots of lunchtime readers. Sitting-on-the- john readers, too. Hopefully no driving-inon-the-morning-commute readers, but people are crazy, so you never know. This week, however, The Observer is writing for a single person, a pal of ours who is going through a dark time, as all people must sooner or later. We’re posting it here not because we couldn’t just hit her up on Dr. Zuckerberg’s Book o’ Face, but because the feelings our friend is experiencing are so universal, so human, that we know what we have to say to her will apply equally to every person out there, even Yours Truly. So we figured we’d kill two starlings with one stone, speaking to her while simultaneously genuflecting toward that great patron saint of journalists everywhere, Phil D. Hole. And so, this one is for her: Yes. Everything you love eventually turns to shit. Everything The Observer loves eventually turns to shit, too. Everything your grandma loved eventually turned to shit. Everything your Dutch uncle, direst enemy, dearest friend, preacher, dentist and/or proctologist loves will eventually go that way as well. Unless you’re somebody like Ludwig van Beethoven, Emily Dickinson, Freddie Mercury, Marie Curie — somebody who is going to live as long as human beings have the brain power to open a book or operate a crank Victrola — everything you love is eventually going over the cliff. Here is the hard truth about the human condition, my friend: Everything goes to shit eventually. Things fall apart. The center cannot hold. The wolf of entropy is con-

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stantly scratching at the door, and she is persistent. Icebergs melt, sea levels rise and people you care about come down with leukemia. Killer comets streak out of the depths of the void and take aim on peaceful blue marbles. Eventually, the sun goes supernova and burns the dearest of her obedient chicks to a lifeless crisp. Shit Happens is not just a bumpersticker, kids. It’s the truest statement ever spoken in the history of mankind, because stories with happy endings are just those stories you haven’t read all the way to the end yet. The hardest truth of all: Even when relationships work perfectly — even if two people meet at 19, get married, spend every day in bliss, never fighting over bills or sex or whose turn it is to wash the dishes until they’re 90 years old — the end is STILL going to be variations on the same tune: He died, then she died; she died, then he died; she died, then she died; he died, then he died. That is the song of all creation. Beginnings suck. The end is worse. But … . There is the middle, my friend. There is the time after the awkward beginning, but before the inevitable end. After the first date, but before the breakup. After the first kiss but before the last. After that first bed bathed in moonlight and longing, but before the last bed, to be stripped and cleaned for the next patient, the next family, the next end. And here is what you must never forget, even now: The middle is worth the end, because the middle is where we get to live. It is where we are all allowed to forget for the moment that things fall apart. The middle is where we get to be free. But if you become so afraid of endings that you vow to never begin again, there will be no more middle. There will be no more sunlit days between the first dawn and last dusk. No more sweetness between the first sip and the cup being taken from your lips. No whispers in the quiet house between the first hello and the last goodbye. No sidelong glances between the first moment you saw her and the last time you watched as he drove away. None.

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MARCH 3, 2016

Arkansas Reporter

THE

Hunger 101 University food pantries serve students, staff. BY DAVID KOON

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

BRIAN CHILSON

ost people likely think of college as a time when the only food-related decision young people struggle with is pizza, tacos or beer? However, hunger on campus is a real and growing problem across the nation. As a June 2015 story in the Chronicle of Higher Education noted, a survey by Feeding America, a nationwide network of food banks, found that of the college students who rely on food banks in the Feeding America network, 49.3 percent reported they sometimes had to choose between buying food and paying for school-related expenses like tuition, books and rent. The rising cost of education, coupled with the Great Recession, has seen the number of on-campus food banks skyrocket in recent years. According to the College and University Food Bank Alliance (CUBFA), between 2008 and 2015 the number of campus food banks providing food to needy college students and staff increased from 4 to 184. That number includes food banks that have opened at eight schools around Arkansas, including food pantries at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, the University of Central Arkansas, Arkansas State University, North Arkansas College in Harrison, Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville, Pulaski Technical College and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff. Claire Allison is a program coordinator with the University of Arkansas’s Center for Community Engagement and helps oversee UA’s Jane B. Gearhart Full Circle Pantry. Started

FEEDING THE TROJANS: Betsy Hart, of UALR’s Campus Community Connection, fills a bag at the school’s new pantry.

in February 2011, the Full Circle Food Pantry was the first of its kind in the state, and the first campus food pantry in the Southeastern Conference. Organizers of Full Circle have since worked with schools around Arkansas to help them set up their own campus food banks. Allison said the pantry currently serves an average of 350 people per week, with food available to anyone with a university ID card. “As far as poundage per year,” Allison said, “it’s significant — tens of thousands of pounds per year.” Allison said the study of campus hunger is still an emerging field. Full Circle received a large grant from Tyson Foods in 2014, with part of the money going toward research into the issue of food insecurity among students and staff at UA. The preliminary results of that research will be coming out soon, Allison said. “The issue of campus hunger is really complex and complicated,”

Allison said. “It has to do with rising college costs. It also has to do with low-wage earners [on staff ] at the university. That’s an issue with the legislature — salary caps at the legislation level that keep wages low for some of the workers on campus. … With students, you know, it’s rising college costs, it’s less support from home. It’s really a variety of issues.” Surprisingly, Allison said, research shows that the more hours students work to make ends meet, the more food insecure they tend to be. The effects of hunger on children is shown to have significant effects on their ability to learn at school; “research is showing that at the college level as well,” Allison said. “It makes focusing on academics very hard, it makes persisting until graduation very hard. So there are certainly some significant effects.” The food distributed by Full Circle is all donated, with much of it coming from student-led campus food drives. Allison said the demand on

the food pantry is cyclical, with most requests coming around the holidays. Just before Thanksgiving, she said, they hit a record 500 food requests in one week. “We like to see our numbers grow, because that means we’re reaching more of our community,” she said. “But the ultimate goal is for that program to not be needed anymore. Of course, we’re a long way from that, but we’re contributing to that mission.” Betsy Hart is the assistant director of UALR’s Campus Community Connection Center, and has overseen the establishment of UALR’s Trojan Food Pantry. The pantry opened Feb. 1. Hart said the food bank is run by students and follows the model of Full Circle at UA. “We had suspected there was a need, and that there was food insecurity among students and staff, but we decided to do a survey, a random sampling of folks,” she said. “We found

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that there definitely was a need, so we started the process of opening a pantry.” Since beginning discussions about opening a food pantry at UALR, Hart said, she’s heard many stories from staff and faculty about the reality of hunger on campus. “So many [faculty members] will just keep granola bars in their office drawer, because they know they’re going to come across students that need something to eat,” Hart said. “I actually had a phone call from a faculty member who said that a student told him he couldn’t come to class because he was feeling weak because he was so hungry. … It’s a problem, where students are having to choose between paying their tuition or buying food. A lot of our students have families and they’re working a lot, but they’re still having to make choices on where they spend their money.” The UALR food pantry is open to the entire campus community, including students, faculty and staff, and distributes food every Thursday. Each client receives a threeday supply of food, based on household size, with recipients filling out a form to determine the kinds of food they receive. “Right now it’s all nonperishable [food items] because we don’t have any kind of refrigeration or freezers,” Hart said, “but we’re moving toward that in the future.” The system is keyed to each client’s campus ID number to maintain confidentiality and help break the stigma of seeking assistance. “That was a big concern of ours from the beginning,” Hart said, “that we wanted to make folks feel comfortable when they come to the pantry.” Over the past month, she said, the pantry has filled an average of 25 requests per week, with both students and staff members seeking assistance. The numbers are growing, she said, as word gets out about what the pantry offers. Hart said she thinks hunger has always been a part of college life for some but is only now being forced into the open. “It’s always been something that students have just suffered from silently, and they do the best they can. … I just think we’re finally addressing it.”

Texarkana residents protest nondiscrimination law City director says he doesn’t want Texarkana to miss out on economic development. BY LESLIE NEWELL PEACOCK

n Jan. 19, Texarkana joined the limited ranks of Arkansas cities that have passed ordinances providing some measure of equal protection for LGBT people. The modest measure, which was sponsored by City Director Tim Johnson, includes sexual orientation and gender identity among protected classes in city employment and personnel practices, and extends to those who contract with the city. Now, Travis Story, the lawyer who sued to stop the enactment of Fayetteville’s nondiscrimination ordinance, is taking his bathroom fright show to Texarkana as well. Last week, he met with residents who oppose the nondiscrimination ordinance, the Texarkana Gazette reported. The law says Texarkana can’t discriminate in its hiring and contracting on account of a person’s “race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, political opinions or affiliation.” The Texarkana Gazette reported on a gathering last Tuesday of 35 people at a property owned by Texarkana residents Richard Wagnon and his wife, Sheila, to hear Story. The newspaper quoted Story’s bathroom anxiety: “ ‘Any facility that is a public accommodation that does business with the city, it specifically means they are going to have to allow things like someone who claims the gender of a female, although is male in every other respect, they are going to have to allow them into their restrooms,’ he said. ‘We are going to have to allow them into [the ladies’] restroom.’ ” It is the same argument Story and others, including the Jim Bob Duggar family,

made in Fayetteville. Fayetteville’s board of directors passed one nondiscrimination ordinance, which was overturned by a referendum. A second, revised ordinance was subsequently passed by the voters and enacted in November.

the issue, which will require gathering at least 1,109 signatures of registered voters in the city limits of Texarkana, Ark., according to Story. City Director Tim Johnson said the “sole intent” of the measure was to put the city in a better position to compete for new industry and business. With the opening of Interstate 49 and recently gained water rights to Lake Millwood, Texarkana is hoping to break out of stagnation, Johnson said, and he doesn’t want the city

CITY DIRECTOR JOHNSON: Sponsor says ordinance will help Texarkana compete for new business.

Wagnon, who with his wife owns nursing homes and develops real estate, is quoted in the newspaper article as saying the ordinance “will lead to potential discrimination towards me, as a Christian, and my religious beliefs.” He warned the crowd that supporters of the ordinance “are going to tell you all kinds of lies. They are going to tell you things like ‘you’re a homophobic.’ “ Wagnon said. Those who oppose the ordinance are trying to force a referendum on

ruled out of any competition for business because it did not have an antidiscrimination policy. Johnson said he looked at other nondiscrimination policies, including Miller County’s, Domtar Paper Co.’s in Ashdown, and Christus St. Michael Health System’s, before introducing the one the board passed unanimously. He noted that at AT&T, where he worked for 36 years until retirement, “they have a very inclusive policy. ... I am not sure where the root of this opposition comes from.” www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

2016 SPRING M I

t’s been a cool and unforgiving winter, marked by political unrest, rising income inequality and the baffling widespread affirmation of Donald Trump’s crypto-fascist rhetoric, stoking the fears and deep-seated insecurities of the American heartland. Probably, you’ve been mostly holed up at home, sobbing and checking Twitter. But then here you are, poised at the threshold of spring, which brings with it a diverse array of Arkansas entertainment options. Go see Mavis Staples and Earl Sweatshirt, by all means — Weezer and Steely Dan, too. Jay Farrar, The Coathangers, Animal Collective, the freaking Doobie Brothers. It’s time to shake off your wintertime misanthropy, your bottomless nostalgia and self-pity. “Get up, get out and get something,” as the great Cee-Lo Green once put it. “Don’t let the days of your life pass by.” The weekend of March 10 will kick off with a performance by the 14

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

Arkansas Symphony Orchestra at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Howie Day at Stickyz and the legendary Nashville gospel group the Fairfield Four at South on Main. South Georgia country icon Luke Bryan headlines at Verizon Arena on March 11, while Austin altcountry band Micky & The Motorcars play at Stickyz, “RuPaul’s Drag Race”-veteran Trixie Mattel performs at Sway and Patrick Sweany returns to the White Water Tavern. On March 12, local R&B group Sean Fresh & the Nasty Fresh Crew plays at White Water and Memphis rapper (and Yo Gotti affiliate) Blac Youngsta comes to Power Ultra Lounge. In Fayetteville, gospel and soul legend Mavis Staples shares a bill with New Wave rocker Nick Lowe at the Walton Arts Center on March 12. On March 17, the award-winning trumpeter, vocalist and composer Bria Skonberg performs at South on Main.

Waco, Texas, native and country songwriter Wade Bowen performs at Revolution and Memphis singer-songwriter (and self-proclaimed “no-hit wonder”) Cory Branan plays at White Water. Hot Springs’ independent music festival Valley of the Vapors returns March 18-22, featuring Adia Victoria, Juiceboxxx, Kelley Deal (of The Breeders), Water Liars and many more, at Low Key Arts. Rising North Carolina alt-country songwriter Caleb Caudle plays at Stickyz on March 19, followed by the two-piece Nashville punk band Blackfoot Gypsies on March 22. Electro indie-rock group Autolux — former tour-mates of Thom Yorke and Trent Reznor — play at Revolution on March 23. Country Western punk group Supersuckers play at Stickyz with Jesse Dayton on March 28, and Texas folk-rock duo The Oh Hellos come to Revolution on March 30. Progressive

bluegrass group the Yonder Mountain String Band plays at Fayetteville’s George’s Majestic Lounge on March 30 and the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra performs a free concert at the Capital Hotel on March 31. April starts strong with a concert by the great Barry Manilow — Vegas legend, ’70s TV special stalwart and dean of adult contemporary easy-listening — at Verizon Arena on April 1. Also that night: Beloved alt-country band Lucero plays at George’s Majestic Lounge, St. Louis Americana trio River Kittens plays at South on Main and Grateful Dead tribute act The Stolen Faces play at Stickyz. On April 7, Grammy-winning British indie-folk group Mumford and Sons plays at Verizon Arena and Texas blues singer-songwriter Ruthie Foster plays at South on Main. Rapper and Odd Future member Earl Sweatshirt performs at Hendrix College’s Worsham

SOUNDS 0F SPRING: (From left, clockwise) Weezer, Steely Dan, Earl Sweatshirt, Dwight Yoakam, Mumford and Sons, Mavis Staples, Janet Jackson and Animal Collective.

MUSIC PREVIEW Concerts by Earl Sweatshirt, Janet Jackson, Mumford and Sons, Weezer, Steely Dan and more.

Performance Hall in Conway on April 8. The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra performs Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5 at the Maumelle Performing Arts Center April 9-10, and jazz legend Branford Marsalis plays at Fayetteville’s Walton Arts Center on April 12. On April 16, three-time Grammy Award-winning blues artist Keb’ Mo performs at the Walton Arts Center. Atlanta punk band The Coathangers plays at Low Key Arts in Hot Springs with locals Ghost Bones. On April 28, country star Carrie Underwood comes to Verizon Arena and — on the polar opposite end of the sonic spectrum — art-rock favorite Animal Collective performs at George’s Majestic Lounge. Grammy Award-winning Latin jazz ensemble Arturo O’Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Octet plays at the Walton Arts Center on April 29. On May 1, the May Festival of the Arts begins in Eureka Springs, a month long series of

live music, performing and visual arts. The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra performs the movie music of John Williams at Pulaski Academy’s Connor Performing Arts Center May 7-8. Eighties’ glam metal favorite Def Leppard plays at Verizon Arena on May 11. Jay Farrar, former front man for Uncle Tupelo and Son Volt, comes to South on Main on May 12. Austin oneman band Shakey Graves performs at Stickyz on May 13, and jam band icon the Dave Matthews Band plays at Verizon Arena on May 18. On May 19, country heavyweight Jason Aldean plays at the Walmart AMP in Rogers. English pop star Ellie Goulding performs at Rogers’ Walmart AMP on May 20 and the Artosphere Festival Orchestra performs at the Walton Arts Center on May 24. On May 26, Dom Flemons, old-time music preservationist and founding member of the Grammy Award-winning Carolina Chocolate

Drops, comes to South on Main. Classic rock fans are in for an embarrassment of riches (if not another kind of embarrassment) when Journey, The Doobie Brothers and Dave Mason perform at the Walmart AMP on May 31. That same night the ineluctably great Janet Jackson pays North Little Rock a visit with a performance at Verizon Arena. Country royalty Kenny Chesney performs at the Walmart AMP in Rogers on June 2. Riverfest, Central Arkansas’s biggest annual music festival, will this year be held June 3-5 (arts and crafts, a 5K, dog events and family-friendly activities will be held at a separate event this year, Springfest, on April 2). Headliners have not yet been announced (check the Rock Candy blog at arktimes.com for updates later this month). The Blue Man Group, which still — surprisingly and gloriously — exists, performs at the Walton Arts Center June 3-5. Billboard-charting country singer

Hunter Hayes performs at Hot Springs’ Magic Springs Water and Theme Park on June 4. The Hot Springs Music Festival, featuring world-class classical musicians from orchestras around the country, will be held at Hot Springs National Park June 5-18. Yacht rock (and dad rock) fans rejoice: Steely Dan comes to Verizon Arena with Steve Winwood on June 25. That same night, ’70s rockers Cheap Trick play at Magic Springs Water and Theme Park. One-time Van Halen front man Sammy Hagar (a.k.a. The Red Rocker) will headline at the Walmart AMP on July 2, and Weezer, nerdy power-pop icons to millennials everywhere, will perform at the Walmart AMP with Panic! at the Disco, July 17. Closing out the summer concert season is a headlining performance by country legend (and actor and regular “Tonight Show” veteran) Dwight Yoakam, who will play at Magic Springs on July 30. www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

SPRING ARTS CALENDAR Current events can be found in the After Dark calendar that begins on page 28.

THE LITERARY AND THE LIGHTHEARTED: Lit Fest authors (from left) Laymon and Crosley and comedian Foxworthy.

GREATER LITTLE ROCK BOOKS March 11: Toad Suck Review Launchapalooza. Lantern Theater (Conway), 7 p.m. March 18: Philip Martin. Cantrell Gallery, 6 p.m. March 29: Tyrone Jaeger. Oxford American Annex, 7 p.m. March 30: James Conroy. Author of “Our One Common Country: Abraham Lincoln and the Hampton Roads Peace Conference of 1865.” Sturgis Hall, 6 p.m. April 14-17: Arkansas Literary Festival. Featuring Sloane Crosley, Adam Hochschild, Peter Guralnick, Kiese Laymon and others. Various venues downtown. COMEDY March 12: Rodney Carrington. Verizon Arena, 7 p.m., $29.75-$179.75. April 15: Jeff Foxworthy, Larry the Cable Guy. Verizon Arena, 7:30 p.m., $59.50. May 4-15: The Second City. Arkansas Repertory Theatre, 7 p.m., $35. MUSIC March 10: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, “Something Old.” St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 7 p.m., $25. March 10: Howie Day. Stickyz, 8 p.m., $12 adv., $15 day of. March 10: The Fairfield Four. South on Main, 8 p.m., $20. March 10: UALR Opera Gala. Clinton Presidential Center, 6:30 p.m. reception, performances and dinner 7 p.m. $75. March 10: Heels. A benefit for Planned Parenthood. White Water Tavern, 9 p.m. March 11: Luke Bryan. Verizon Arena, 7:30 p.m., $53-$90.50. March 11: Micky & The Motorcars. Stickyz, 9 p.m., $8 adv., $10 day of. March 11: Trixie Mattel. Sway, 9 p.m., $20. March 11: Patrick Sweany. White Water Tavern, 10 p.m., $10. 16

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

March 12: Canopy Climbers. Revolution, 8:30 p.m., $8. March 12: Sean Fresh & The Nasty Fresh Crew with Ghost Bones. White Water Tavern, 9:30 p.m. March 12: Blac Youngsta. Power Ultra Lounge, 9:30 p.m., $25. March 13: Andy Frasco & The U.N. Stickyz, 9 p.m., $8 adv., $10 day of. March 15: The Speedbumps. White Water Tavern, 9:30 p.m. March 17: Bria Skonberg. South on Main, 8 p.m., $20. March 18: Wade Bowen. Revolution, 9 p.m., $16-$20. March 18: Cory Branan. White Water Tavern, 9:30 p.m., $10. March 19: Caleb Caudle. Stickyz, 9 p.m. March 22: Blackfoot Gypsies, The Yawpers. Stickyz, 8:30 p.m., $7 adv., $10 day of. March 23: Autolux. Revolution, 8:30 p.m., $10-$13. March 26: Stephen Neeper & The Wild Hearts, The Federalis. Stickyz, 9:30 p.m., $6. March 28: Supersuckers, Jesse Dayton. Stickyz, 8 p.m., $10 adv., $15 day of. March 30: The Oh Hellos. Revolution, 8:30 p.m., $12-$15. March 31: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. Capital Hotel, 5:15 p.m., free. April 1: Barry Manilow. Verizon Arena, 7:30 p.m., $19.75-$169.75. April 1: River Kittens. South on Main, 9 p.m., $10. April 1: The Stolen Faces. Stickyz, 9:30 p.m., $8. April 2: Winter Jam 2016. Verizon Arena, 5:45 p.m., $10. April 5: Parker Millsap. South on Main, 7:30 p.m., $13. April 7: Mumford and Sons. Verizon Arena, 8 p.m., $74. April 7: Ruthie Foster. South on Main, 8

p.m., $22. April 9-10: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra’s Shostakovich Symphony No. 5. Maumelle Performing Arts Center, 7:30 p.m. Sat., 3 p.m. Sun., $19-$58. April 21: Little Rock Wind Symphony, “Overtures to a Premiere.” Gail Robertson, euphonium. Second Presbyterian Church, 7:30 p.m. April 25: The Struts. Stickyz, $13 adv., $15 day of. April 27: Cornmeal. Stickyz, 8:30 p.m., $8 adv., $10 day of. April 28: Carrie Underwood. Verizon Arena, 7 p.m., $62-$93.50. May 7-8: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra’s “The Movie Music of John Williams.” Connor Performing Arts Center, 7:30 p.m. Sat., 3 p.m. Sun., $19-$58. May 11: Def Leppard. Verizon Arena, 7 p.m., $53.50-$119. May 12: Jay Farrar. South on Main, 8 p.m., $25. May 13: Shakey Graves, Son Little. Stickyz, 9 p.m., $18 adv., $20 day of. May 14: Mulehead, Ghost Bones, Brian Nahlen & Nick Devlin. Argenta Farmer’s Market, 4 p.m., $5. May 18: Dave Matthews Band. Verizon Arena, 7 p.m., $45.50-$75. May 19: Arkansas Symphony Orchestra’s “Something Blue.” Christ Episcopal Church, 7 p.m., $25. May 26: Dom Flemons. South on Main, 8 p.m., $14. May 31: Janet Jackson. Verizon Arena, 8 p.m., $29.95-$110. June 3-5: Riverfest. Riverfront Park, $25. June 5: Little Rock Wind Symphony’s Sunday Serenade. 3 p.m., St. Paul United Methodist Church. June 12: Little Rock Wind Symphony’s “A Stars and Stripes Celebration.” MacArthur Park, 7 p.m., free.

June 12: Brit Floyd. Verizon Arena, 7:30 p.m., $42.50-$68. June 25: Steely Dan, Steve Winwood. Verizon Arena, 7:30 p.m., $78.50-$102.50. FILM March 11: “Alien.” Ron Robinson Theater, 7 p.m., $5. March 12: “Little Monsters.” Ron Robinson Theater, 2 p.m., $5. March 12: “The Fly.” Ron Robinson Theater, 7 p.m., $5. March 15: “Touch of Evil.” Riverdale 10 Cinema, 7 p.m., $7.50. March 22: “Labyrinth.” Riverdale 10 Cinema, 7 and 9 p.m., $7.50. March 24: “Jurassic Park.” Ron Robinson Theater, 7 p.m., free. April 7-10: Fantastic Cinema & Craft Beer Festival. Featuring independent genre films from Arkansas and around the world. Riverdale 10 Cinema, $100 (VIP). April 12: “Charade.” Riverdale 10 Cinema, 7 p.m., $7.50. April 15-16: Czech Film Festival. Riverdale 10 Cinema, 7 p.m., $TK. April 19: “In the Mood for Love.” Riverdale 10 Cinema, 7 p.m., $7.50. April 26: “Office Space.” Riverdale 10 Cinema, 7 p.m., $7.50. May 18: “16 Photographs at Ohrdruf.” Movies at MacArthur series, MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History, 6:30 p.m., free. June 10-12: Little Rock Picture Show. Statehouse Convention Center. June 15: “Art in the Face of War.” Movies at MacArthur series, MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History, 6:30 p.m., free. Aug. 17: Frank Capra’s “Here Is Germany.” Movies at MacArthur series, MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History, 6:30 p.m., free. THEATER March 12-26: “Into the Woods.” Studio

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A modern-day retelling of Homer’s Trojan War epic. Through poetry and humor, the ancient tale and the modern world collide in this captivating theatrical experience.

Created by Dennis O’Hare and Lisa Peterson Starring Joseph Graves | Directed by Bob Hupp

FEBRUARY 24 - MARCH 5

THE REP’S ANNEX | 518 MAIN ST. (501) 378-0405 | TheRep.org 18

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

Joseph Graves (The Poet) in The Rep’s production of An Iliad Photo by John David Pittman.

LIT FESTIVAL SPEAKER: Music critic and Sam Phillips biographer Peter Guralnick.

Theatre, 7 p.m. Thu.-Sat., 2 p.m. Sun., $25. March 18-19: “Vincent.” Weekend Theater, 7:30 p.m., $16. March 24-26: “Bill Clinton Hercules.” Arkansas Repertory Theatre, various times, $25. April 1-17: “Driving Miss Daisy.” Weekend Theater, 7:30 p.m., $16. April 6-May 1: “Bridges of Madison County.” Arkansas Repertory Theatre, various times, $55. May 4-8: Disney on Ice: “Frozen.” Verizon Arena, various times, $26-$76. June 8-26: “Windfall.” Arkansas Repertory Theatre, various times, $40. SPECIAL EVENTS March 16: Alana Semuels. Journalist for The Atlantic and author of “How to Decimate a City.” Sturgis Hall, 6 p.m. March 29: Nick Schifrin. Foreign correspondent with ABC and PBS who has reported from more than 30 countries. Sturgis Hall, 5 p.m. April 2: Springfest. A free, family-friendly event featuring arts & crafts, a 5K, the Ruff on the River Pooch Parade, food trucks and more. Riverfront Park, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. April 14: Bless the Mic: Alicia Garza. #BlackLivesMatter creator, Philander Smith College, 7 p.m. VISUAL ART March 11-June 25: “Jeanfo: We Belong to Nature”’ “Twists and Strands: Exploring the Edges”: Butler Center Galleries. March 11-February 2017: “A Diamond in the Rough: 75 Years of Historic Arkansas Museum.” Historic Arkansas Museum. March 14-April 19: “Student Competitive.” University of Arkansas at Little Rock. June 10-Aug. 28: 58th annual “Delta Exhibition”: Regional juried show, Arkansas Arts Center. May 6-July 24: 55th “Young Arkansas Artists Exhibition”: Arkansas Arts Center.

BATESVILLE FILM April 1-9: Ozark Foothills Film Festival. Screenings of narrative and documentary features, shorts and animation, with visiting filmmakers and a screenwriting workshop.

Various venues in Batesville, $25.

BENTONVILLE / ROGERS MUSIC May 19: Jason Aldean. Walmart AMP, 7:30 p.m., $35.50. May 20: Ellie Goulding. Walmart AMP, 6:45 a.m., $41-$55.50. May 31: Journey, The Doobie Brothers, Dave Mason. Walmart AMP, 7 p.m., $35$129.50. June 2: Kenny Chesney. Walmart AMP, 7:30 p.m., $60-$107. July 2: Sammy Hagar and The Circle. Walmart AMP, 7:30 p.m., $36-$81. July 17: Weezer, Panic! At The Disco. Walmart AMP, 7 p.m., $35.50-$65.50 FILM May 3-8: Bentonville Film Festival. Founded by Geena Davis. Various venues. VISUAL ART July 2-Sept. 19: “American Made: Treasures from the American Folk Art Museum.” Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

CONWAY FILM March 5: “Zodiac.” Faulkner County Library, 6 p.m. Free. March 12: “Inherent Vice,” Faulkner County Library, 6 p.m., free. MUSIC April 8: Earl Sweatshirt. Worsham Performance Hall (Hendrix College), 9 p.m., $10. April 16: Disney in Concert. Reynolds Performance Hall (University of Central Arkansas), 7:30 p.m., $27-$35. SPECIAL EVENTS April 4: Josh Radnor. Reynolds Performance Hall (University of Central Arkansas), 7:30 p.m., $15. April 29-May 1: Toad Suck Daze. Downtown Conway, free.

EUREKA SPRINGS MUSIC May 1-31: May Festival of the Arts. Venues around Eureka Springs, performing and visual arts events. June 16-19: Eureka Springs Blues Week-

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end. Featuring Alvin Youngblood Hart, The Cate Brothers, Ghost Town Blues Band, Hadden Sayers, Jimmy Wayne Garrett and more. Downtown Eureka Springs, $115. June 17-July 15: Opera in the Ozarks. With performances of “Don Giovanni,” “Albert Herring,” “Il Tabarro” and more. Inspiration Point.

FAYETTEVILLE MUSIC March 10: Madison Watkins. George’s Majestic Lounge, 8:30 p.m., $10. March 11: Andy Frasco. George’s Majestic Lounge, 9:30 p.m., $10. March 12: Mavis Staples and Nick Lowe. Walton Arts Center, 8 p.m., $23-$53. March 13: Danu’s St. Patrick’s Day Celebration. Walton Arts Center, 4 p.m., $10. March 13: The Floozies. George’s Majestic Lounge, 9 p.m., $20. March 19: Symphony of Northwest Arkansas’s “Strings in the Spotlight.” Elgar, Ibert and Haydn. Walton Arts Center, 7:30 p.m., $5-$50. March 25: Chasing Pictures. George’s Majestic Lounge, 10 p.m., $5. March 26: Eye for a Lie, 90 lb Wrench, Paralandra. George’s Majestic Lounge, 8:30 p.m., $5. March 30: Yonder Mountain String Band. George’s Majestic Lounge, 8 p.m., $25. March 21: Dirty River Boys. George’s Majestic Lounge, 8:30 p.m., $10. April 1: The Swingles. Walton Arts Center, 8 p.m., $10. April 1: Lucero. George’s Majestic Lounge, 9:30 p.m., $22. April 4: Dr. Dog. George’s Majestic Lounge, 8:30 p.m., $20. April 5: JJ Grey & Mofro. George’s Majestic Lounge, 8:30 p.m., $25. April 7: Cole Porter Band. George’s Majestic Lounge, 9 p.m., $8. April 11: Corb Lund. George’s Majestic Lounge, 8 p.m., $10. April 12: Branford Marsalis. Walton Arts Center, 7 p.m., $10. April 16: Keb’ Mo’. Walton Arts Center, 8 p.m., $27-$57. April 28: Animal Collective. George’s Majestic Lounge, 9 p.m., sold out. April 29: Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz Octet. Walton Arts Center, 7 and 9 p.m., $20. April 29: Corey Smith. George’s Majestic Lounge, 10 p.m., $20. April 30: Symphony of Northwest Arkansas’s “Glory & Grandeur.” Walton Arts Center, 7:30 p.m., $5-$50. May 1: DakhaBrakha. Walton Arts Center, 7 p.m., $10.

May 15: The Okee Dokee Brothers. Walton Arts Center, 4 p.m., $8. May 24: Artosphere Festival Orchestra. Walton Arts Center, 7 p.m., $10. May 27: Jesse Frye Band. George’s Majestic Lounge, 9:30 p.m., $7. June 3: Cyrille Aimee. Walton Arts Center, 7 and 9 p.m., $20. June 3-5: Blue Man Group. Walton Arts Center, various times, $40-$80. THEATER March 17-18: “A Night with Janis Joplin.” Walton Arts Center, 8 p.m., $30-$70. March 31-April 24: “Rapture, Blister, Burn.” TheatreSquared, Walton Arts Center, various times, $10-$39.50. April 3: “Love That Dog.” Walton Arts Center, 2 p.m., 8 p.m. April 9: Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. Walton Arts Center, 8 p.m., $10. April 10: “Menopause the Musical.” Walton Arts Center, 4 p.m., $37-$47. April 19-24: “The Bridges of Madison County.” Walton Arts Center, various times, $30-$70. April 18: Malpaso Dance Company. Walton Arts Center, 8 p.m., $10. May 6-8: “The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart.” Walton Arts Center, various times, $22.70-$25. May 12-29: “Murder for Two.” TheatreSquared, Walton Arts Center, various times, $10-$39.50.

HOT SPRINGS MUSIC March 18-22: 12th annual Valley of the Vapors. Featuring Adia Victoria, Juiceboxxx, Kelley Deal, Water Liars and more. Low Key Arts, $10-$75. April 15: Lucero. Maxine’s, 8 p.m., $20. April 21: The Coathangers, Ghost Bones. Low Key Arts, 8:30 p.m., $10 adv., $15 day of. June 4: Hunter Hayes. Magic Springs, 8 p.m. June 5-18: Hot Springs Music Festival. Hot Springs National Park, $150. June 11: Rachel Platten. Magic Springs, 8 p.m. June 18: MercyMe. Magic Springs, 8 p.m., $8-$10. June 25: Cheap Trick. Magic Springs, 8 p.m. July 2: Maddie & Tae. Magic Springs, 8 p.m. July 16: Colton Dixon. Magic Springs, 8 p.m. July 30: Dwight Yoakam. Magic Springs, 8 p.m.

SEARCY MUSIC March 31: Tatiana Roitmann, Cindy Wu. Piano and violin, 7 p.m., Harding University, $3.

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PHOTOGRAPHY IN FOCUS: “The Open Road” at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art features photographs of American scenes, including (far left) “U.S. 97, South of Klamath Falls, Oregon, July 21, 1973” by Stephen Shore. The Arkansas Arts Center’s “Dorothea Lange’s America” includes Lange’s famous “Migrant Mother” (left).

‘Open Road’ to ‘Lange’s America’ Photography at Crystal Bridges, Arts Center all about USA. BY LESLIE NEWELL PEACOCK

hotographs that reveal truths — some hard, some funny, some embarrassing — about our country are the stuff of two important spring exhibitions at Crystal Bridges Museum

of American Art in Bentonville and the Arkansas Arts Center. The works in “The Open Road: Photography and the American Road Trip” at Crystal Bridges, based on a book

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by exhibit curator David Campany, take viewers through America, from New Orleans to Las Vegas, with images of people and places — an old woman with a pistol as big as her head, a girl playing an accordion on the tailgate of a car, another girl typing on the hood of a car,

a lion through the front window of a car, mobile home parks — by some of the country’s greatest photographers. From Robert Frank, who traveled across the country in 1955 (and met with antiSemitism in Arkansas because he had a Guggenheim Fellowship), to contemporary photographer Alec Soth, these 100-plus images capture what it’s like to live in the land of the free, powered by a V8 engine or a Volkswagen van. The show runs through May 30 and is free to members ($10 to nonmembers). Crystal Bridges will screen “Pull My Daisy” (1959), a movie about the beat generation directed by Frank, and host music by Smokey and & Mirror and

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‘FLORIDA’: Photo by Joel Meyerowitz in the exhibition “The Open Road” at Crystal Bridges.

spoken-word poetry from 7 to 9 p.m. March 4. The Arkansas Times is offering bus travel to the show April 2. At the Arts Center, “Dorothea Lange’s America” will feature the Farm Security Administration documentation of the Depression by Lange, Walker Evans, Ben Shahn and Marion Post Walcott, as well as photographs by Mike Disfarmer, social reformer Lewis Hine, Appalachian photographer Doris Ulmann and filmmaker and photographer Willard Van Dyke. This work shows the faces of people trying to make it in a tough world of immense wealth among the few and widespread poverty among the many, a bit like today.

In conjunction with the Lange show, University of Central Arkansas art historian Gayle Seymour will give a talk, “Arkansas Post Office Murals: Women Artists of the Depression,” at 5:30 p.m. March 31, and the Arts Center will screen the documentary “Dorothea Lange: Grab a Hunk of Lightning” at 2 p.m. April 3 and 17 and at noon April 29. Machinery rather than people is the focus of the Arts Center’s “Industrial Beauty: Charles Burchfield’s ‘Black Iron,’ ” an exhibition built around the large Burchfield watercolor of a railroad drawbridge over Buffalo Creek in New York. The painting, along with sketches and writings by Burchfield,

was a gift from Hope Aldrich in honor of her father, John D. Rockefeller III. The show includes other works by Burchfield on loan from the Charles E. Burchfield Foundation, the Rhode Island School of Design and the Charles Rand Penney Collection. Burchfield, perhaps more known for his almost psychedelic treatment of nature, focused on industry in mid-career. The Lange and Burchfield shows run through May 8. Both the Arts Center and Crystal Bridges are putting the spotlight on single paintings: At the Arts Center it is William Adolphe Bouguereau’s “Admiration,” featuring the mid-19th

century artist’s favorite subject, lovely nude women, here gathered around sweet Cupid. The painting is on loan from the San Antonio Museum of Art in exchange for the earlier loan from the Arts Center of its 1914 Diego Rivera painting, “Dos Mujers,” and will be on exhibit through May 15. Crystal Bridges’ single-painting exhibit is of Samuel F.B. Morse’s “Gallery of the Louvre and the Art of Invention.” Morse, the inventor of Morse code as well as an artist, chose masterpieces from the Louvre and depicted them as if they were hung in one room. The painting is on loan from the Terra Foundation for American Art in Chicago through April 18.

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MARCH 3, 2016

A lively spring at the theater From ‘Driving Miss Daisy’ to ‘Ragtime the Musical.’ BY JAMES SZENHER

wide range of great musicals, comedies and dramas awaits theater lovers in Arkansas this spring. We should start off with a few opportunities for performances that are closing this weekend so that you don’t miss them. First, there’s still a chance to catch Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “Cinderella” at the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville. It closes Sunday, March 6. The wellloved fairy tale is given a modern take with classic songs made famous by Julie Andrews (and later R&B singer Brandy), such as “In My Own Little Corner.” The Arkansas Repertory Theatre’s one-man show “An Iliad” features Joseph Graves giving a powerful performance recounting the Trojan War. There will be a talkback after the Friday, March 4, performance featuring veterans sharing their wartime experience, and the play closes March 5. Following “An Iliad” is another shortrun solo performance, “Bill Clinton Hercules,” which features Bob Paisley as Arkansas’s favorite son giving an imaginary TED Talk about the history of democracy and his own place in it. The Rep will feature four shows March 24-26. Little Rock’s Weekend Theater will produce its own one-man show, “Vincent,” an intimate look at the artist Van Gogh’s life as told through the words of his brother, Theo. Penned by the late great Leonard Nimoy of “Star Trek,” the play will be performed only twice, on March 18 and 19, so don’t let this one pass you by. Two more dramas from The Weekend Theater will cover timely themes of racial relations and women in war. The well-known “Driving Miss Daisy,” which tells the story of a wealthy Jewish widow and her African-American chauffeur, runs April 1-17. “A Piece of My Heart” takes on the true story of six women who served in Vietnam as nurses or entertainers, and has received praise from the Vietnam Vets Association. It runs May 6-21. The Rep’s biggest feature this spring will be a musical adaptation of “The 22

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

Bridges of Madison County,” running April 8-May 1. This new Broadway musical won Tony Awards for best score and best original orchestrations, and departing director Bob Hupp calls it “the don’tmiss show of the season.” The show will also run at the Walton Arts Center April 19-24. For those craving more Broadway musical fare, there is “Ragtime the Musical,” presented by Celebrity Attractions

Community Theatre of Little Rock will produce Ernest Thompson’s “On Golden Pond,” a touching story about an elderly couple at their vacation home visited by the son of their daughter’s fiance. Next up at CTLR, running June 3-19, is Irving Berlin’s “Annie Get Your Gun: The Musical,” a staging of Annie Oakley’s time in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show. For Northwest Arkansas theater fans, TheatreSquared has two witty plays coming up. First, running March 31-April 24, is “Rapture, Blister, Burn,” a Pulitzer Prize-finalist comedy about two women who each want what the other has. It tackles the idea of whether women can “have it all” with both a successful career and fulfilling family life. Next is “Murder for Two” (May 12-29), a musical comedy murder mystery with dueling pianos. Fayetteville’s Walton Arts Center will feature “A Night with Janis Joplin” March 17-18, “Love That Dog” April 3,

‘RAGTIME’ IN SPRING: Chris Sams plays Coalhouse Walker Jr. in the April musical.

at the Maumelle Performing Arts Center April 15-17. This production takes a look at New York City at the dawn of the 20th century, a time in American history when the country was brimming with potential. The play was nominated for 13 Tony Awards, but was hampered by high costs and competition with “The Lion King,” making it a kind of lost gem in the Broadway canon. The Second City, the perennial favorite comedy troupe from Chicago, will bring its new revue, “Hooking Up,” to the Rep May 3-15. Closing out the Rep’s season is a world premiere of Scooter Pietsch’s “Windfall,” directed by none other than Jason Alexander (“Seinfeld”). This dark comedy-caper explores the depths of human deviousness and deceit when overstressed co-workers discover they may be sharing $300 million in lottery winnings and try to outwit each other to take it all for themselves. Continuing its 60th season this year,

“Menopause the Musical” April 10, “The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart” May 6-8 (Starr Theater), and “Beauty and the Beast” May 6-8 (Baum Walker Hall). For Shakespeare fans, the University of Central Arkansas will produce the Bard’s “The Winter’s Tale,” April 7-15. The Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre hasn’t yet released its schedule for the 2016 season, but stay tuned at arshakes. com; the season begins in June. Lastly, at Murray’s Dinner Playhouse this spring is a string of zany productions, including “Opal’s Husband” (through March 12, the sequel to “Everybody Loves Opal”); “Leading Ladies,” (March 22-April 16) about two Englishmen posing as women in order to claim a family fortune, “Double Wide Texas,” (April 19-May 14) about a trailer park’s attempts to thwart a nearby town from annexing them; and “The Last Potluck Supper” (May 17-June 18), the final musical in the rollicking Basement Ladies series.

Films in bloom Bentonville Film Festival, Ozark Foothills, LR Picture Show screen this spring. BY DAVID KOON

ll good things must come to an end, so there will be a gaping hole in the Arkansas film festival scene this spring. Last October, Brent and Craig Renaud, founders of the Little Rock Film Festival, announced on the festival website that the LRFF — which had brought hundreds of filmmakers and actors to town since 2005, showcasing both Arkansas-made films and flicks that would go on to win major awards — would be closing up shop after nine years. “There’s nothing that happened,” festival co-founder Brent Renaud told the Arkansas Times in October. “We have no debt, we don’t have any major issues. What we do have is a core staff of people getting older, getting married, careers taking off, and increasingly we saw more people each year with less time to volunteer. Because it wasn’t a paid staff and we put all the money earned back into the festival experience — which included flying filmmakers in from all over the world. The staff was on board with that from the beginning. That was increasingly difficult. The politics with studios and agents, the fundraising — as much as we brought on more staff, even paid staff, all that stuff still ended up being on Craig and I. And we just thought that wasn’t sustainable long-term.” Onward and upward, however. There’s still plenty of film in the Natural State this spring, starting with the Ozark Foothills Film Fest in Batesville. The 15th installment of the festival will be held over two consecutive weekends, April 1-2 and April 8-9. The oldest narrative film festival in the state, the Ozark Foothills Film Fest is run by executive

Arts find a home at Pulaski Tech A $30 million theater, gallery and classroom facility puts it all together. BY LESLIE NEWELL PEACOCK

A REAL LIFE TRANSFORMER: Eighteen-wheelers that turn into movie theaters will be at the Bentonville Film Festival.

director Judy Pest, who took over some years back from her husband and co-founder, Bob Pest. Last year, the festival screened 28 films in all genres at venues around Batesville, with specific emphasis on Arkansasmade films. The festival is accepting submissions at its website, ozarkfoothillsfilmfest.org, and Pest said a schedule is forthcoming. Tickets for screenings are $5 for general admission, $4 for students or seniors, or $25 for a pass that allows admission to all screenings. Next up, chronologically, is the Bentonville Film Festival, May 3-8. Co-founded by Oscar winner Geena Davis and backed by big-wheel sponsors Walmart, Coca-Cola and AMC Theaters, the BFF’s goal this year is to champion female and minority voices in the media. The first year of the festival lent hope it can fill the gap left by the demise of the Little Rock Film Festival, with BFF organizers screening over 75 films, offering panel discussions and bringing a raft of Hollywood A-listers to town for screenings, including Bruce Dern, Rosie O’Donnell and Robert De Niro. Festival marketing director Gina Allgaier said this year’s event will be full of surprises. Festivalgoers will be able to download an app that allows them to buy tickets, browse the schedule of events and screenings, and see a map of the festival grounds. Allgaier said the footprint of this year’s festival will be condensed, with action centered on the Bentonville town square. She said instead of fixed screening locations, the festival is bringing in three “cine-transformers” — 18-wheelers that transform into movie theaters, each with a 91-seat capacity. Allgaier said the festival is also planning a country music

concert, screenings of family films, a grilling event sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society, and a softball game that will reunite cast members from the 1992 film “A League of Their Own,” starring Davis. The BFF is accepting both feature and short film submissions at its website, bentonvillefilmfestival.com. Tickets for screenings and events last year were $8 each for films, and $15 each for panel discussions. Allgaier said passes for this year will be on sale in early March, with single passes available April 1. Last but not least, especially in the hearts of those who loved the Little Rock Film Festival, is the Little Rock Picture Show, the sci-fi, horror and fantasy film festival that once existed under the LRFF umbrella. The Little Rock Picture Show got a reprieve when it was made part of the River City Comic Expo. This year’s expo will run June 11-12 at the Statehouse Convention Center, with the LRPS opening the night before, on June 10. Little Rock Picture Show director Justin Nickels revealed that there will be a special screening of the 1994 cult classic “The Crow,” with James O’Barr — creator of the graphic novel on which the film was based — on hand to introduce the film. Nickels said the festival, now in its fifth year, will feature more fantasy and sci-fi than before. It will continue a favorite from last year: a screening of a classic silent film with live accompaniment. Nickels said tickets to the River City Comic Book Expo are $15, with admission including entry into both the Expo and any films being screened by the Little Rock Picture Show. For more information, visit rivercitycomicexpo.com.

ulaski Technical College may not sound like the place you’d go to hear Mavis Staples sing or see Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” performed or a gallery featuring work by Arkansas’s premier artists. But, like Mavis, the college says it can take you there — to its new Center for Humanities and the Arts. The 80,000-square-foot center, now the largest building on the Pulaski Tech campus in North Little Rock, celebrated its Feb. 2 opening with a preview of an upcoming performance of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” by the school’s Studio 153 Players; an aria from “La Boheme” by soprano Maria FascianoDiCarlo, a performance of Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come” by Genine Perez (accompanied by Steve Hudleson on guitar and Dr. Barry McVinney on saxophone); and an exhibition of wood sculpture and abstract art by Robyn Horn and Sandra Sells on opening day. Pulitzer Prize winner Douglas Blackmon and “An Evening with Mavis Staples” followed. The center’s theaters and studios and workshops are something out of the ordinary for a two-year college that doesn’t offer a specific degree in visual or performing arts. There are classes in drama, stagecraft, costume design, music, art and art history as part of its humanities division, Pulaski Tech’s largest, but until now, the division has never had a home of its own. Now, the college has a superb facility, constructed with a $30 million bond issue and being furnished philanthropic dollars, including $1.5 million from the Windgate Charitable Foundation. Drama students are no longer going to class in what had been an engine repair classroom. Tim Jones, associate vice president of public relations and marketing for the college, said that virtually all students at Pulaski Tech take at least one class in the arts or humanities, and those who know they will transfer to a four-year school usually take several. (There are 7,100 students enrolled at Pulaski Tech.) Most two-year schools, Jones said, don’t offer extracurricular cultural events. Many

of Pulaski Tech’s students “come out of poverty,” Jones said: Dance, drama, fine art — they’ve often not been part of their experience. “This is an effort to provide that,” Jones said, and enrich campus life. The center, which Pulaski Tech calls CHARTS, includes a 500-seat theater designed by Perkins + Will of Dallas, architects for the Shanghai Natural History Museum, San Francisco Ferry Building and the VanDusen Botanical Garden Visitor Centre in Vancouver, Canada, among other projects. The stage is large enough and equipped enough — with surround sound and an orchestra pit — that students could stage a respectable “Lion King” and its vast savannah if they wanted to. The theater can show movies as well; a screen descends from the proscenium for digital projection. Staples, who gave the theater’s first concert, autographed a wall for the occasion. The center also has a black box theater, a green room and dressing rooms for the drama students, who will put Shakespeare on stage at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. April 21-23 (tickets $10). The state finals of the Arkansas Arts Council’s “Poetry Out Loud” competition will also be held there, a nice change from the multipurpose room it’s been held in previously. The theater, while primarily for student use, will also be available to community for concerts, lectures and theatrical productions. In the lobby, the fine arts gallery, named for the Windgate foundation, features Horn and Sells’ “Merging Form and Surface,” which will be followed by a student show. The art studios on the south side of the building look out over a sculpture garden; the building also has a woodworking shop for prop building, a costume room, music rooms, arts studios, dance studio, writing and foreign language labs and places for students to kick back. By the look of things, Pulaski Tech may become an arts college; Jones said he wouldn’t be surprised. Upcoming events at CHARTS also include a talk by Graham Gordy, co-creator and producer of the Cinemax drama “Quarry,” at 6 p.m. March 10, as part of the college’s Big Rock on the Map series. www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

Arts Entertainment AND

The medium is the message V.L. Cox’s ‘Murder of Crows’ tackles hate head-on.

.L. Cox is not creating art that makes you do mental calisthenics to get its meaning, to work for the rush of the aha! moment. Her media — old steeples, barbed wire, a Klan robe, a black crow — is front-loaded with content: religion, pain, hatred, discrimination. She has purposely made the work in “A Murder of Crows,” now on exhibit at New Deal Studios and Gallery at 2003 Louisiana St., instantly accessible: There is no time to waste to counter the racism, once relegated to rural areas like her native Clark County, that is now becoming so distressingly expressed everywhere. She wants to counter the bombardment of misinformation — from what she says is a new journalism that is motivated by profit, and goads, rather than informs, the viewer — with simple truth. So her “Stained” piece — an American flag constructed of pages of the Bible made into tea bags — is no headscratcher. It’s about how tea party dogma runs counter to brotherly love. She started at the bottom with tea bags (containing real tea) she fashioned from the pages of Leviticus; in all, she used an entire Bible and part of a second to create the 606 stained bags. Some of Cox’s work is enriched by the narrative. “Soles,” created from an 1896 arched church dormer that she’s drilled holes into to make it resemble a Klan hood, a noose and a pair of shoes. She was told growing up in Arkadelphia that when Klansmen came to church 24

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

BRIAN CHILSON

BY LESLIE NEWELL PEACOCK

ON EXHIBIT: The artworks in “A Murder of Crows” by V.L. Cox (shown here) address racism and other forms of hate.

in their hoods and robes, you could still recognize who they were by their hands and shoes. Her great-grandfather, in fact, had been tied and horsewhipped by a Klan gang after being falsely accused by a man who was sour over a horse sale. Her great-grandfather wasn’t killed — he was white — but he nearly was. He later recognized on his cousin a pair of shoes that one of the Klansman involved in his whipping had worn, and never spoke to the cousin again. She’s also drilled eyeholes into the wooden pickets she’s whitewashed, wrapped in barbed wire and made into a broken-down fence (“Whitewash”). She was inspired by a gate surrounded by Confederate flags; it was outside Harrison. The gate, she says, “is the entrance into the dark world of white supremacy.” A Klan robe, paired with an old can of Puritan Cleaner, speaks for itself: It is real, purchased by Cox from an antique dealer outside Arkansas, and is stained with what appears to be blood. Its collar is stitched with the name of the robe’s owner — Wallis — as if it were the gear of a child going off to sleepaway camp. One of the works in the gallery was inspired by a story Cox read in the Arkansas Times, about a gay man who had to disinter his deceased partner from his grave in Baxter County

because of threats against the grave; even the man who moved the monument was threatened with a Bowie knife-wielding man who asked “why he had that faggot’s headstone in the back of his truck.” “No Vacancy” is made of a metal steeple Cox got from an old Delta church and is combined with a cross of her own construction. On the horizontal arm of the cross is plastic tubing made to look like neon tubing; it reads “NO VACANCY” and the “NO” is blinking red, thanks to a strobe light Cox has built into the back of the cross. Reading vertically on the cross is the word “ACCEPTANCE.” You don’t need an art expert to tell you what the piece is about: Its strength is in its fine construction, its play on a motel sign and its in-your-face nature. There is humor in the exhibit, too: In “Ready, Aim, Fire, Brimstone” Cox has taken a 1939 Coca-Cola cooler lid someone used for target practice and inserted a Bible into it, as if it had been shot in. The work “represents how careless, reckless and forceful the Bible can be thrown around these days here in the South. At times, it’s as casual as shooting a sign as you drive by it, or hitting the sign with a beer bottle.” Cox is astonished by the rise of blatant racism she sees today; she says “it’s becoming acceptable.” There is nothing

wrong with being politically correct, she would remind people: The intention is to avoid hurting others. “You don’t get a free pass because you want to be an asshole,” she said. There are 15 works in the show, including the “End Hate” door installation that Cox has shown on the mall in Washington, D.C., and in front of the state Capitol, among other places. It was the first work in the collection she’s now calling “A Murder of Crows” (the name of a flock of crows, as well as making reference to Jim Crow). Cox hopes to take the full exhibition on the road as well, and is seeking sponsors. The work is the first art exhibit in the handsome New Deal Studios and Gallery, in a woodworking and metalworking cooperative created two years ago by John Hardy and Lee Weber. They took the building, which appears to be 19th century and which most recently housed a printing business, back to its original brick walls and put in new wood flooring with a platform to serve as a stage of sorts. Arkansas Symphony Orchestra pianist Tatiana Roitman and cellist Aaron Ludwig performed in the space recently. The show will be open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays; Saturday hours may be longer. You can call Cox at 501-7861382 to arrange a private showing.

ROCK CANDY

Check out the Times’ A&E blog arktimes.com

A&E NEWS THE ARKANSAS TIMES Film Series will return on March 15 with a screening of Orson Welles’ classic 1958 film noir “Touch of Evil” at Riverdale 10 Cinema, 7 p.m., $7.50. Starring Charlton Heston, Janet Leigh, Marlene Dietrich and Welles himself, the film is a fast-paced and suspenseful thriller set on the Mexican border, one of Welles’ best and most beloved late-career achievements. It has been called “the apotheosis of pulp” by the New Yorker’s Anthony Lane. “Expressionistic in the extreme, filled with shadows, angles and cinematic flourishes,” wrote the Los Angeles Times, “the film raises the usual brooding nightmare ambiance of film noir to a level few other pictures have attempted.” THE OXFORD AMERICAN magazine has unveiled its Spring 2016 issue, led off by an editor’s letter from new editor-in-chief (and Little Rock native) Eliza Borne. The magazine features food writing by John T. Edge and Chris Offutt; essays and journalism by Alex Mar, Pia Z Ehrhardt and John McElwee; fiction by Crystal Wilkinson and C. E. Morgan; and recently rediscovered photographs by Arkansas-born musician Richard Leo Johnson accompanied by a previously unpublished poem by the late C.D. Wright. The magazine will be on newsstands March 15. THE NEW ISSUE OF THE Conwaybased literary journal Toad Suck Review has been released, featuring work by and about Frank Stanford, Jo McDougall, Guy Choate and more. The journal, edited by University of Central Arkansas professor Mark Spitzer, will be officially released and celebrated at the sixth annual Launchapalooza at 7 p.m. Friday, March 11, at the Lantern Theater in downtown Conway. GRAMMY AWARD-WINNING singer and author Rosanne Cash appears at the Arkansas Governor’s Mansion at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 3, headlining a benefit for the Johnny Cash Boyhood Home in Dyess. The event will be hosted by Gov. Hutchinson, first lady Susan Hutchinson and Arkansas State University. Tickets are $150 per person; sponsorships are also available. For more info, email pmiles@astate.edu.

Every single day in Arkansas, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth are kicked out of their homes because of who they are. But YOU can change the lives of homeless LGBT youth in Arkansas forever. Your help will build a home! Lucie's Place is in the final stretch of opening this home. Donate online today to welcome them home!

Home.LuciesPlace.org ARKANSAS TIMES

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MARCH 3, 2016

THE TO-DO

LIST

BY LESLIE NEWELL PEACOCK AND WILL STEPHENSON

THURSDAY 3/3

UNDERGROUND SOUNDS OPEN MIC 8 p.m. Maxine’s, Hot Springs.

ALL OVER BUT THE SHOUTIN’: Author Rick Bragg will speak at the Walton Fine Arts Center’s Rowntree Auditorium at the University of the Ozarks in Clarksville, 7 p.m. Thursday, free.

THURSDAY 3/3

RICK BRAGG

7 p.m. Rowntree Auditorium, University of the Ozarks, Clarksville. Free.

Rick Bragg grew up in the northeastern Alabama township of Possum Trot, and I have to wonder whether it wasn’t this fact — rather than Bragg’s Pulitzer Prize, his distinguished career with the New York Times, or the sterling reputation of his Deep South family-memoir “All Over but the Shoutin’ ” — that led to his gaining the trust of Jerry Lee Lewis, who calls himself “The Killer” and who many believe genuinely means it (the journalist Richard Ben Cramer

FRIDAY 3/4 alleged as much in an infamous 1984 Rolling Stone article). After all, Lewis was raised by farmers named Elmo and Mamie in eastern Louisiana; he spent his childhood hanging out with Jimmy Swaggart (a first cousin) and country singer Mickey Gilley (another cousin, he of “Don’t the Girls All Get Prettier at Closing Time” fame). Maybe Lewis thought Bragg, given his similarly reddirt upbringing, was the man to finally get it right — the whole sordid, violent, depressing, vital story: a heartbreaking work of staggering meanness. So far, many believe he has. Bragg’s biography

of Lewis, “Jerry Lee Lewis: His Own Story,” was reviewed by Stephen King in the New York Times Book Review, called “irresistible” by the Wall Street Journal, “enthralling” by Entertainment Weekly, and “the best book on rock and roll I have ever read,” by the redoubtable Grit Lit stalwart Ron Rash. “I loved every amphetaminelaced, whiskey-soaked, gun-shot page of it,” said Ann Patchett. Last year Bragg was inducted into the Alabama Writers Hall of Fame, and he’ll discuss his career Thursday at the University of the Ozarks in its Walton Arts Center. WS

instructive) artworks of your childhood. The best reason to go, however, is the opportunity to celebrate the music of one of Arkansas’s most fascinating and locally undervalued cultural exports. I’m speaking of the legendary Bob Dorough, Cherry Hill native, who collaborated with Sugar Ray Robinson, Lenny Bruce, Blossom Dearie, John Zorn, Miles Davis and Spanky and Our Gang before cryogenically solidifying his reputation as the bard of hippie chil-

dren’s music, personally responsible for “Three Is a Magic Number,” “Conjunction Junction,” “I’m Just a Bill,” and countless more classics of the genre. The man wrote “Busy Prepositions.” He wrote “Lolly, Lolly, Lolly, Get Your Adverbs Here.” Jesus, I mean he even wrote “Electricity, Electricity,” one of the show’s most abstract and forwardthinking anthems — anticipating, as it did, similar futurist jams by Kraftwerk and O.M.D. WS

FRIDAY 3/4-FRIDAY 3/25

‘SCHOOLHOUSE ROCK!’

7 p.m. Fri., 2 p.m. Sat. and Sun. Arkansas Arts Center. $12.50.

If you have kids, go see “Schoolhouse Rock!” for its sing-along, nostalgia-drenched, education-by-osmosis approach to the basics of grammar and multiplication and stuff like that. As a bonus, depending on your age bracket, you’ll get to re-encounter one of the more evocative (and practically 26

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ARKANSAS TIMES

After a quiet evening at the Ohio Club, the Gangster Museum or the Arlington Hotel’s big-band surrealistic circus, what could be better than a hi-octane underground hip-hop showcase, a cross-section of some of the year’s best and brightest Hot Springs rappers. There’s Savage Sinatra, a propulsive, charismatic rapper with a wild, nasally flow (who I can credit with at least one stone-cold novelty-rap classic in “Mario Luigi”); icy, strident R&B singer SME Tiphani; raucous West Memphis MC Trill Trell (celebrating his 21st birthday); and many others I haven’t heard yet, like MC Spooky Tooth. WS

TEDx UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ARKANSAS

8 a.m.-5 p.m., Ida Waldron Auditorium, UCA. $40 ($20 faculty, students and alumni association members)

UCA is holding its first TEDx event, a day of talks by scholars, artists, writers, a Quapaw chairman and an expert on Syria. The event is fashioned after TED talks by leading thinkers and otherwise fascinating people (Monica Lewinsky’s TED talk was surprisingly enlightening). UCA’s speakers include Mouaz Moustafa, who was raised in Syria but moved to the U.S. as a teenager and worked on the staffs of Congressman Vic Snyder and Sen. Blanche Lincoln. He is now the executive director for the Syrian Emergency Task Force. Others include music critic Rashod Ollison, Quapaw leader John Berrey, Artist’s Laboratory Theatre founder Erika Wilhite, Delta Veterans Program head Dr. Malcolm Glover and several more. LNP

IN BRIEF

THURSDAY 3/3

SUNDAY 3/6

14TH ANNUAL LITTLE ROCK MARATHON 7 a.m.-3 p.m.

It’s marathon day on Sunday, so put on your running shoes and go watch other people run! The race starts at 7 a.m. sharpish at a new jumping off point — Scott and Fourth streets — and the route makes a loop around North Little Rock before returning and heading to the Clinton Presidential Center (a good viewing place) and beyond, then back past MacArthur Park (another

good viewing place), west to Park and Daisy Bates (view the race from Central High School’s lawn), and then west on West Markham to Kavanaugh Boulevard (always lined with well-wishers and drink stands), down (whew!) on North Lookout to Cantrell Road and over to Riverfront Drive for that killer westward run to the Big Dam and back again (lots of good vantage points along this part of the route) and back up Cantrell Road to Main and Third streets. It’s exhausting just to think about, especially when you real-

ize that, with the exception of the riverside routes, this race is run in the Ouachita Mountain foothills. Remember, race streets will be closed while people are running down the middle of them. If the limit (3,300 runners) is not reached, you can still register to actually make this harrowing 26.1 mile trek at the Little Rock Marathon Health & Fitness Expo, a trade show, at the Statehouse Convention Center from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. The Kids Marathon registration is closed. LNP

WEDNESDAY 3/9

JO MCDOUGALL, ED MADDEN 7 p.m. Oxford American Annex.

L.A. VIA ARKANSAS: Valley Queen performs at the White Water Tavern with Stephen Neeper and Alexander Jones, 9:30 p.m. Monday.

MONDAY 3/7

VALLEY QUEEN

9:30 p.m. White Water Tavern.

To free associate for a minute: Think Laurel Canyon acid flashbacks and nudie-suits and Stevie Nicks and “Sweetheart of the Rodeo”; think of that story about Laura Nyro auditioning for Clive Davis by flipping all the lights out and playing piano in the dark. Think of Lynn Anderson in her prime, or the actual house that inspired Gra-

ham Nash’s “Our House.” Valley Queen is an Americana rock group fronted by Arkansas native Natalie Carol. The group’s based in L.A. now, “a crazy place,” as Carol put it in a recent interview. “You’ve got to have a community around you or you can get really down,” she said. “It’s just so big, it can swallow you up, spit you out, and make ya pay $75 for street cleaning.” Stephen Neeper and Alexander Jones open. WS

Sibling Rivalry Press, one of the country’s most exciting publishers of LGBT poetry (based here in Little Rock, no less), is hosting a book launch event for two Arkansas poets Wednesday at the Oxford American Annex (adjacent to South on Main). Jo McDougall, born and raised near DeWitt and now based in Little Rock, has published six acclaimed poetry collections, many of them navigating the landscapes and milieus of the Arkansas Delta. Her work has appeared in the Kenyon Review, the Hudson Review, the Georgia Review, and she’s the recipient of a Porter Prize. Her new collection ranges from meditations on loss and poverty to prismatic celebrations of Flannery O’Connor and Lucinda Williams (“seventeen — eighteen, maybe — she wandered among us, / her voice fetching and uneasy, / singing for dollars and nickels”). And then there are poems like “Watching ‘Casablanca’ in Arkadelphia, Arkansas”: “Those flimmering creatures on the screen are dead, / the town at this hour is dead, / the vapor of that river rises / to touch my feet.” Reading McDougall as an Arkansan (or a person), you get the sense of having been understood. Ed Madden teaches at the University of South Carolina and has published three collections of poetry. Last year, he was named the poet laureate of Columbia, S.C. His new book, published by Sibling Rivalry, is described as “a book about family, about old wounds and new rituals, about the extraordinary importance of ordinary things at the end of life.” WS

Hillcrest Shop & Sip, featuring discounts, later hours and live music in Hillcrest (held the first Thursday of every month), is at 5 p.m. “Broad Influence: How Women Are Changing the Way America Works,” a talk by Jay Newton-Small, Washington correspondent for TIME, is at the Clinton School for Public Service’s Sturgis Hall, 6 p.m., free. Singersongwriter Brian Nahlen performs at Southern Gourmasian at 6:30 p.m. Mark Currey plays at Kent Walker Artisan Cheese at 7 p.m. Comedian Greg Morton is at the Loony Bin at 7:30 p.m., $7 (and at 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, $10). Self-proclaimed “crunkcore” group Brokencyde plays at Revolution at 8 p.m., $12.

FRIDAY 3/4 Little Rock metal group Sychosys plays at Vino’s with Wild Yam and Undercover Devil, $7. Rapper Big Piph and his group Tomorrow Maybe perform at the White Water Tavern with Southwest Boaz, 9:30 p.m. Friday, $10. (The following morning Piph will also appear at the Hillary Rodham Clinton Children’s Library & Learning Center’s “Books & Bagels,” a community event with free breakfast, children’s reading time and young adult educational activities, 10 a.m. to noon.) Country singer Frank Foster performs at Revolution at 9 p.m., $22.

SATURDAY 3/5 A Marathon Party for the Little Rock Marathon will be held at the Food Truck Stop @ Station 801, 1 p.m. Grind, an Alice in Chains tribute band, performs at Revolution at 8 p.m., $10. Texarkana space-rock/ stoner-metal group Canaan performs with The Federalis and Age of Man at Hot Springs’ Maxine’s, 9 p.m., $5. Oklahoma roots singer-songwriter Travis Linville, who has performed with Willie Nelson (and alongside Hayes Carll on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”), performs at White Water along with John Calvin Abney, a Tulsa songwriter who released his debut LP, “Better Luck,” last year, 9:30 p.m.

TUESDAY 3/8 “Rightsizing Cities Initiative and the Relocal Tool,” a talk by Donovan Rypkema and Emilie Evans, is at the Clinton School for Public Service’s Sturgis Hall, noon. Local rock group deFrance plays at White Water at 9:30 p.m., donations.

www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

AFTER DARK All events are in the Greater Little Rock area unless otherwise noted. To place an event in the Arkansas Times calendar, please email the listing and all pertinent information, including date, time, location, price and contact information, to calendar@arktimes.com.

Lewis: His Own Story.” University of the Ozarks, 7 p.m. 415 N College Ave, Clarksville.

FRIDAY, MARCH 4

MUSIC

THURSDAY, MARCH 3

MUSIC

Big Red Flag, Fried Pies. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 9 p.m., $7. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501663-1196. www.afterthoughtbistroandbar.com. Bluesboy Jag & The Juke Joint Zombies. White Water Tavern, 9 p.m. 2500 W. 7th St. 501-3758400. www.whitewatertavern.com. Brian Nahlen. The Southern Gourmasian, 6:30 p.m. 219 W. Capitol Ave. 501-313-5645. www. thesoutherngourmasian.com. Brokencyde. Revolution, 8 p.m., $12. 300 President Clinton Ave. 501-823-0090. www. rumbarevolution.com/new. “Inferno.” DJs play pop, electro, house and more, plus drink specials and $1 cover before 11 p.m. Sway, 9 p.m. 412 Louisiana. Jessica Mack, Jarrod Ives. Vino’s, donations. 923 W. 7th St. 501-375-8466. www.vinosbrewpub.com. Jim Dickerson. Sonny Williams’ Steak Room, 7 p.m. 500 President Clinton Ave. 501-324-2999. www.sonnywilliamssteakroom.com. Karaoke. Zack’s Place, 8 p.m., free. 1400 S. University Ave. 501-664-6444. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Mark Currey. Kent Walker Artisan Cheese, 7 p.m. 1515 E. 4th St. 501-301-4963. www.kentwalkercheese.com. Mayday By Midnight (headliner), Trey Johnson (happy hour). Cajun’s Wharf, 5:30 and 9 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. www.cajunswharf.com. Open Jam. Thirst n’ Howl, 8 p.m. 14710 Cantrell Road. 501-379-8189. www.thirst-n-howl.com. Open jam with The Port Arthur Band. Parrot Beach Cafe, 9 p.m. 9611 MacArthur Drive, NLR. 771-2994. Ted Ludwig Trio. Capital Bar and Grill, 8 p.m., free. 111 W. Markham St. 501-370-7013. www. capitalbarandgrill.com/. Trill Trell, Savage Sinatra, MC Spooky Tooth, SME Tiphani. Maxine’s, 8 p.m., free. 700 Central Ave., Hot Springs. www.maxinespub.com.

COMEDY

Greg Morton. The Loony Bin, 7:30 p.m., $10. 10301 N. Rodney Parham Road. 501-228-5555. www.loonybincomedy.com.

EVENTS

#ArkiePubTrivia. Stone’s Throw Brewing, 6:30 p.m. 402 E. 9th St. 501-244-9154. Hillcrest Shop & Sip. Shops and restaurants offer discounts, later hours and live music. Hillcrest, first Thursday of every month, 5 p.m.501-6663600. www.hillcrestmerchants.com.

LECTURES

“Broad Influence: How Women Are Changing the Way America Works.” A talk by Jay Newton-Small, Washington correspondent for TIME. Sturgis Hall, 6 p.m. 1200 President Clinton Ave. 501-683-5200. clintonschool.uasys.edu. 28

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

EPIPHANY: Rapper Big Piph and his group, Tomorrow Maybe, perform at White Water with Southwest Boaz, 9:30 p.m. Friday, $10. The following morning Piph will also appear at the Hillary Rodham Clinton Children’s Library & Learning Center’s “Books & Bagels,” a community event with free breakfast, children’s reading time and young adult educational activities, 10 a.m. to noon. Argenta Community Theater, 7 p.m., $15. 405 Main St., NLR. 501-353-1443. www.argentacommunitytheaterr.org.

SPORTS

Horse racing. Oaklawn Park, 1:30 p.m. post time, $2.50-$4.50. 2705 Central Ave., Hot Springs. 501623-4411. www.oaklawn.com.

FILM

“Sharing the Rough.“An award-winning documentary about the East African mining economy.

BOOKS

Rick Bragg. A talk at the Walton Fine Arts Center’s Rowntree Auditorium by the Pulitzer Prizewinning author of books like “All Over but the Shoutin’” and the new biography, “Jerry Lee

THURSDAY: CRAFT BEERS

10% OFF Including Growlers

All In Fridays. Envy. 7200 Colonel Glenn Road. 501-562-3317. Big Piph & Tomorrow Maybe. White Water Tavern, 9:30 p.m., $10. 2500 W. 7th St. 501-3758400. www.whitewatertavern.com. The Dizzease, Hwy Lions. Maxine’s, 9 p.m., $5. 700 Central Ave., Hot Springs. www.maxinespub.com. Frank Foster. Revolution, 9 p.m., $22. 300 President Clinton Ave. 501-823-0090. www. rumbarevolution.com/new. Jeff Coleman and the Feeders. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 9 p.m., $7. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-1196. www.afterthoughtbistroandbar. com. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Mojo Depot. Stickyz Rock ‘n’ Roll Chicken Shack, 9 p.m., $5. 107 River Market Ave. 501-372-7707. www.stickyz.com. Richie Johnson. Cajun’s Wharf, 5:30 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. www.cajunswharf. com. Route 66. Agora Conference and Special Event Center, 6:30 p.m., $5. 705 E. Siebenmorgan, Conway. Salsa Dancing. Clear Channel Metroplex, 9 p.m., $5-$10. 10800 Col. Glenn Road. 501-217-5113. www.littlerocksalsa.com. Sychosys, Wild Yam, Undercover Devil. Vino’s, $7. 923 W. 7th St. 501-375-8466. www.vinosbrewpub.com. Ted Ludwig Trio. Capital Bar and Grill, 8 p.m., free. 111 W. Markham St. 501-370-7013. www. capitalbarandgrill.com/. Upscale Friday. IV Corners, 7 p.m. 824 W. Capitol Ave.

COMEDY

2516 Cantrell Road Riverdale Shopping Center

366-4406

Greg Morton. The Loony Bin, 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m., $15. 10301 N. Rodney Parham Road. 501228-5555. www.loonybincomedy.com. “Little Rock and a Hard Place.” An original production by The Main Thing. The Joint, 8 p.m., $22. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501-372-0205. thejointinlittlerock.com.

DANCE

Ballroom dancing. Free lessons begin at 7 p.m. Bess Chisum Stephens Community Center, 8-11 p.m., $7-$13. 12th and Cleveland streets. 501221-7568. www.blsdance.org. Contra Dance. Park Hill Presbyterian Church, 7:30 p.m., $5. 3520 JFK Blvd., NLR. arkansascountrydance.org.

EVENTS

LGBTQ/SGL weekly meeting. Diverse Youth for Social Change is a group for LGBTQ/SGL and straight ally youth and young adults age 14 to 23. For more information, call 501-2449690 or search “DYSC” on Facebook. LGBTQ/ SGL Youth and Young Adult Group, 6:30 p.m. 800 Scott St.

SPORTS

Horse racing. Oaklawn Park, 1:30 p.m. post time, $2.50-$4.50. 2705 Central Ave., Hot Springs. 501-

623-4411. www.oaklawn.com.

KIDS

“Schoolhouse Rock Live!” Arkansas Arts Center, 7 p.m., $12.50. 501 E. 9th St. 501-372-4000. www. arkarts.com.

SATURDAY, MARCH 5

MUSIC

Canaan, The Federalis, Age of Man. Maxine’s, 9 p.m., $5. 700 Central Ave., Hot Springs. www. maxinespub.com. Good Foot. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 9 p.m., $7. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-1196. www. afterthoughtbistroandbar.com. Grind (Alice in Chains tribute). Revolution, 8 p.m., $10. 300 President Clinton Ave. 501-8230090. www.rumbarevolution.com/new. Hazy Nation (headliner), Chris DeClerk (happy hour). Cajun’s Wharf, 5:30 and 9 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. www.cajunswharf. com. Karaoke at Khalil’s. Khalil’s Pub, 7 p.m. 110 S. Shackleford Road. 501-224-0224. www.khalilspub.com. Karaoke. Zack’s Place, 8 p.m., free. 1400 S. University Ave. 501-664-6444. Casa Mexicana, 7 p.m. 7111 JFK Blvd., NLR. 501-835-7876. Karaoke with Kevin & Cara. All ages, on the restaurant side. Revolution, 9 p.m.-12:45 a.m., free. 300 President Clinton Ave. 501-823-0090. www.rumbarevolution.com/new. K.I.S.S. Saturdays. Featuring DJ Silky Slim. Dress code enforced. Sway, 10 p.m. 412 Louisiana. 501-492-9802. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. MarQuis & MOOD. South on Main, 10 p.m., $15.1304 Main St. 501-244-9660. southonmain. com. Pickin’ Porch. Bring your instrument. All ages welcome. Faulkner County Library, 9:30 a.m. 1900 Tyler St., Conway. 501-327-7482. www.fcl.org. Ted Ludwig Trio. Capital Bar and Grill, 8 p.m., free. 111 W. Markham St. 501-370-7013. www. capitalbarandgrill.com/. Travis Linville, John Calvin Abney. White Water Tavern, 9:30 p.m. 2500 W. 7th St. 501-375-8400. www.whitewatertavern.com.

COMEDY

EVENTS

Books & Bagels. Free breakfast, children’s reading time and community events. Children’s Library and Learning Center, 10 a.m. 4800 W. 10th St. www.cals.lib.ar.us. Falun Gong meditation. Allsopp Park, 9 a.m., free. Cantrell and Cedar Hill Roads. Hillcrest Farmers Market. Pulaski Heights Baptist Church, 7 a.m.-2 p.m. 2200 Kavanaugh Blvd. Historic Neighborhoods Tour. Bike tour of historic neighborhoods includes bike, guide, helmets and maps. Bobby’s Bike Hike, 9 a.m., $8-$28. 400 President Clinton Ave. 501-613-7001.

Marathon Meet-Up. The Food Truck Stop @ Station 801, 1 p.m. 801 S. Chester St. Pork & Bourbon Tour. Bike tour includes bicycle, guide, helmets and maps. Bobby’s Bike Hike, 11:30 a.m., $35-$45. 400 President Clinton Ave. 501-613-7001.

SPORTS

Horse racing. Oaklawn Park, 1 p.m. post time, $2.50-$4.50. 2705 Central Ave., Hot Springs. 501-623-4411. www.oaklawn.com. Little Rock Marathon. Downtown Little Rock, March 5-6, 7 a.m. Downtown.

KIDS

“Schoolhouse Rock Live!” Arkansas Arts Center, 2 p.m., $12.50. 501 E. 9th St. 501-372-4000. www. arkarts.com.

SUNDAY, MARCH 6

MUSIC

Irish Traditional Music Session. Hibernia Irish Tavern, 2:30 p.m. 9700 N. Rodney Parham Road. 501-246-4340. www.hiberniairishtavern.com. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com.

arkcatfish.com t-shirts, back issues and more

EVENTS

Artists for Recovery. Located in the Wesley Room, a secular recovery group for people with addictions, open to the public. Quapaw Quarter United Methodist Church, 10 a.m. 1601 S. Louisiana.

SPORTS

Horse racing. Oaklawn Park, 1:30 p.m. post time, $2.50-$4.50. 2705 Central Ave., Hot Springs. 501-623-4411. www.oaklawn.com. Little Rock Marathon. Downtown Little Rock and North Little Rock, 7 a.m.

KIDS

“Schoolhouse Rock Live!” Arkansas Arts Center, 2 p.m., $12.50. 501 E. 9th St. 501-372-4000. www. arkarts.com.

MONDAY, MARCH 7

MUSIC

Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Monday Night Jazz. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 8 p.m., $5. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-1196. www.afterthoughtbistroandbar.com. Open Mic. The Lobby Bar. Studio Theatre, 8 p.m. 320 W. 7th St. Richie Johnson. Cajun’s Wharf, 5:30 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. www.cajunswharf. com. Valley Queen, Stephen Neeper, Alexander Jones. White Water Tavern, 9:30 p.m. 2500 W. 7th St. 501-375-8400. www.whitewatertavern.com.

TUESDAY, MARCH 8

MUSIC

The Argenta Irish Festival follows the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, which starts at 1PM in Little Rock at 3rd & Rock Streets, ending at 6th & Main in Argenta with clowns, floats, antique cars, Irish Wolfhounds and more!

March 12, 2-5PM

at the Argenta Plaza, 520 Main Street Benefiting the Argenta Downtown Council

Free to the Public

Beer Garden including Diamond Bear, Lost Forty, Stones Throw, Bubba Brews, Flyway and more! Live Music, Food Trucks and Kids Activities Food trucks: Loblolly, Agrilla The Bun and Black Hound Bar-B-Q Diamond Bear Pipe & Drum, sponsored by Diamond Bear Brewing Co.

deFrance. White Water Tavern, 9:30 p.m., donations. 2500 W. 7th St. 501-375-8400. www.whitewatertavern.com. Jeff Ling. Khalil’s Pub, 6 p.m. 110 S. Shackleford Road. 501-224-0224. www.khalilspub.com. www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

AFTER DARK, CONT.

THEATER REVIEW

Jim Dickerson. Sonny Williams’ Steak Room, 7 p.m. 500 President Clinton Ave. 501-324-2999. www.sonnywilliamssteakroom.com. Karaoke Tuesday. Prost, 8 p.m., free. 322 President Clinton Blvd. 501-244-9550. willydspianobar.com/prost-2. Karaoke Tuesdays. On the patio. Stickyz Rock ‘n’ Roll Chicken Shack, 7:30 p.m., free. 107 River Market Ave. 501-372-7707. www.stickyz.com. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Music Jam. Hosted by Elliott Griffen and Joseph Fuller. The Joint, 8-11 p.m., free. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501-372-0205. thejointinlittlerock.com. Tuesday Jam Session with Carl Mouton. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 8 p.m., free. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-1196. www.afterthoughtbistroandbar.com.

COMEDY

Stand-Up Tuesday. Hosted by Adam Hogg. The Joint, 8 p.m., $5. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501372-0205. thejointinlittlerock.com.

EVENTS

HOMER AS THE HOMELESS VET: Joseph Graves tells the story of the Trojan War in the one-man show “An Iliad.”

Life during wartime The Rep updates Homer with ‘An Iliad.’ BY JAMES MURRAY

ar is a timeless theme in drama, one whose enduring status probably arises out of the fact that in war we’re forced to come to terms with our own mortality — the omnipresent prospect of death. “An Iliad,” the new one-man show presented by the Arkansas Repertory Theatre, retells Homer’s epic poem through piecemeal contemporary references illustrating what little has changed over millennia. Its true gift, though, might be in allowing us to hear the story told the way Homer himself would have. The oral storytelling tradition is amazing to witness, given the amount of information one has to memorize. We should all feel lucky that we can listen to this tale in the context of a one-man, one-act play. The Rep Annex’s Black Box stage provides a small and intimate setting. The signs of loss are prevalent, as are the cliched insignias of homelessness: a makeshift home composed of shopping carts, cardboard boxes, etc. Our poet of

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

impeccable memory, I can’t help but think, was inspired by a homeless war veteran of the sort we find far too often in American cities. His bomber jacket (which at one point is used to represent Achilles’ armor), war-related newspaper clippings, dingy overcoat and booze — which he seems to have conveniently accessible at every end of the stage — all lend authenticity to the stock image of the indigent former combatant that today persists in our culture. As the Poet, actor Joseph Graves’ ability to sustain the audience’s attention for two hours in a monologue is impressive. Our poet gestures meaningfully and touches audience members on their shoulders, asking questions, all of it in an effort to convey the immediacy and devastating power of the war experience. Even when our guide loses us with his ancient Greek incantations, he draw us back in with the familiar and contemporary — references to “the boys of Nebraska and South Dakota,”

in lieu of small Greek city-states. The disjunction between ancient warfare (sparked by missing wives and the intervention of gods) and modern warfare is dissolved during his impersonation of Achilles’ unbridled rage over the loss of his cousin Patroclus, or his raspy-voiced King Priam (very Peter O’Toole-like, by the way), pleading for the body of his son, Hector. It’s not all serious stuff, of course: With alcohol as his muse, we’re treated to a bit of levity (and four-letter words) here and there. True to the poem, Hector and Achilles are front and center, but I’ve always found this unfortunate. In the context of a play that essentially highlights the human toll of armed conflict, what do we make of the nameless Trojan civilians who died at the hands of the Greeks bearing wooden equine gifts? We get a description of how beautiful the city of Troy was before it was ransacked, a description in which the poet mentions that the homes were constructed in such a way that the lines between public and private were often muddled. It seemed to be a fitting metaphor for what sometimes happens to the losing side — the general populace will suffer even when the fighting takes place among the elite. One of the most alluring parts of the play is the poet’s bravura performance of the haunting list of just about every major war from antiquity to the present, reminding us that in war, names change but the effects remain a constant.

Little Rock Green Drinks. Informal networking session for people who work in the environmental field. Ciao Baci, 5:30-7 p.m. 605 N. Beechwood St. 501-603-0238. www.greendrinks. org. Trivia Bowl. Flying Saucer, 8:30 p.m. 323 President Clinton Ave. 501-372-8032. www.beerknurd. com/stores/littlerock.

LECTURES

“Rightsizing Cities Initiative and the Relocal Tool.” A talk by Donovan Rypkema and Emilie Evans. Sturgis Hall, noon. 1200 President Clinton Ave. 501-683-5200. clintonschool.uasys.edu.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 9

MUSIC

Acoustic Open Mic. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 8 p.m., free. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-1196. www.afterthoughtbistroandbar.com. Brian and Nick. Cajun’s Wharf, 5:30 p.m. 2400 Cantrell Road. 501-375-5351. www.cajunswharf. com. Dan Baird & Homemade Sin, The Salty Dogs. White Water Tavern, 9 p.m., $15 adv., $18 day of. 2500 W. 7th St. 501-375-8400. www.whitewatertavern.com. Drageoke with Chi Chi Valdez. Sway. 412 Louisiana. Jim Dickerson. Sonny Williams’ Steak Room, 7 p.m. 500 President Clinton Ave. 501-324-2999. www.sonnywilliamssteakroom.com. Karaoke at Khalil’s. Khalil’s Pub, 7 p.m. 110 S. Shackleford Road. 501-224-0224. www.khalilspub.com. Karaoke. MUSE Ultra Lounge, 8:30 p.m., free. 2611 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-6398. Live music. No cover charge Sun.-Tue. and Thu. Ernie Biggs. 307 President Clinton Ave. 501-3724782. littlerock.erniebiggs.com. Mark Currey. Afterthought Bistro & Bar, 5:30 p.m. 2721 Kavanaugh Blvd. 501-663-1196. www. afterthoughtbistroandbar.com. Open Mic Nite with Deuce. Thirst n’ Howl, 7:30 p.m., free. 14710 Cantrell Road. 501-379-8189. www.thirst-n-howl.com.

COMEDY

Dave Landau. The Loony Bin, 7:30 p.m., $10. 10301 N. Rodney Parham Road. 501-228-5555. www.loonybincomedy.com. The Joint Venture. Improv comedy group. The Joint, 8 p.m., $7. 301 Main St. No. 102, NLR. 501-

372-0205. thejointinlittlerock.com.

DANCE

Little Rock Bop Club. Beginning dance lessons for ages 10 and older. Singles welcome. Bess Chisum Stephens Community Center, 7 p.m., $4 for members, $7 for guests. 12th and Cleveland streets. 501-350-4712. www.littlerockbopclub.

POETRY

Wednesday Night Poetry. 21-and-older show. Kollective Coffee & Tea, 7 p.m., free. 110 Central Ave., Hot Springs. 501-321-0909. maxineslive. com/shows.html.

BOOKS

Jo McDougall, Ed Madden. Oxford American, 7 p.m. 1300 Main St.

ARTS

THEATER

“Cinderella.” Walton Arts Center, through March 3, 7 p.m.; through March 5, 2 and 8 p.m.; Sun., March 6, 7:30 p.m., $20-$70. 495 W. Dickson St., Fayetteville. 479-443-5600. “An Iliad.” Arkansas Repertory Theatre, through March 5: Wed.-Sun., 7 p.m., $25. 601 Main St. 501-378-0405. www.therep.org. Salzburg Marionette Theatre, “The Sound of Music.” Walton Arts Center, Tue., March 8, 7 p.m., $15-$20. 495 W. Dickson St., Fayetteville. 479-443-5600.

NEW GALLERY EXHIBITS, EVENTS

L&L BECK ART GALLERY, 5705 Kavanaugh Blvd.: “Old Masters’ Reproductions,” paintings by Louis Beck, drawing for free giclee 7 p.m. March 17. 660-4006. M2GALLERY, 11525 Cantrell Road: Ninth anniversary show with work by Flip Solomon, Milan Todic, Catherine Nugent, Bryan Frazier, Marcus McAllister, Hunter Brown and others, reception 6-9 p.m. March 4. 225-6257. UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS AT LITTLE ROCK, 2801 S. University Ave.: “Jobbers, Heels and Faces — Robert McCann,” paintings, Gallery I, through March 3, lecture by the artist 5:30 p.m. March 4; Scholarship exhibition, March 4-19, Gallery III. Fine Arts Building. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, 2-5 p.m. Sun. 569-3182.

CALL FOR ENTRIES Gallery 360 is taking entries of miniature works for “Shrunken,” a group show scheduled for mid-April. Two-dimensional submissions should be no more than 50 square inches, small 3D sought as well. Further info at Facebook/360Gallery, or call 663-2222. Deadline is April 5. The Arkansas Arts Council is taking applications for artist fellowships to be awarded in poetry, music composition and painting. Deadline to apply is April 15. Artists must be 25 years old and a resident of Arkansas for a least one year to be eligible. A panel of arts professionals will make the selections. Applications are available at www.arkansasarts.org. For more information, call the Arts Council at 501-324-9348 or email robinm@

parents teachers students community

arkansasheritage.org. Drawl Southern Contemporary Art and Oxford American magazine are seeking entries of art and literature for “The Gun Show,” a juried regional competition and exhibition of work about the roles that guns play in Southern life to run May 20 to June 17. Deadline is March 25. Prizes are $2,500 for first, $1,000 for second and $500 for third. Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art Chad Alligood will be juror. To enter and for more information, go to www.drawlgallery.com/the-gun-show The Arkansas Arts Center is accepting entries to the 58th annual “Delta Exhibition,” open to artists in Arkansas and contiguous states. Entry forms are at ArkansasArtsCenter.org/ delta. Deadline is March 11. The exhibition runs June 10-Aug. 28. For more information call 372-4000. The Arkansas Historic Preservation Program and the Arkansas Humanities Council are sponsoring a filmmaking contest for high school students. Films must be between five and 15 minutes long and be about a historic site (including archeological sites, buildings, or other places with historic significance at least 50 years old or older) for AETN’s “Student Selects: A Young Filmmakers Showcase.” Winning films will be screened in May at the Ron Robinson Theater. Deadline is March 18. Find more information at www. aetn.org/studentselects. The Historic Arkansas Museum will hold a log cabin repair and restoration workshop March 14-18 with Joseph Gallagher of the Campbell Center for Historic Preservation Studies. Tuition is $985. Register online at www.

Join

Us!

Tuesday, March 8, 2016 • 6-8 pm St. Mark Baptist Church Education Building 5722 W. 12th St. • 72204

campbellcenter.org, at the course list link.

ONGOING GALLERY EXHIBITS

ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER, MacArthur Park: “Dorothea Lange’s America” and “Industrial Beauty: Charles Burchfield’s ‘Black Iron,’ ” through May 8; “Miranda Young: A Printed Menagerie,” museum school gallery, through May 29; 46th annual “Mid-Southern Watercolorists Exhibition,” through April 17; “Admiration,” painting by William Adolph Bouguereau, on loan from San Antonio Museum of Art, through May 15; “Life and Light: “Nathalia Edenmont: Force of Nature,” 10 large-scale photographs, through May 1. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Fri., 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat., 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sun. 372-4000. ARKANSAS CAPITAL CORP., 200 River Market Ave., Suite 400: “Printmakers Under 30,” work by Ben Watson, Daniella Napolitano, Catherine Kim, Kristin Karr and Regan Renfro. www.arcapital.com. BUTLER CENTER GALLERIES, Arkansas Studies Institute, 401 President Clinton Ave.: “Painting 360: A Look at Contemporary Panoramic Painting,” Underground Gallery, through April 30; “ “Photographic Arts: African American Studio Photography,” from the Joshua and Mary Swift Collection, through March 26. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Sat. 320-5790. CANTRELL GALLERY, 8206 Cantrell Road: “Illustrating the Ephemeral,” paintings by Nathaniel Dailey, through March 5. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat. 224-1335. CHROMA GALLERY, 5707 Kavanaugh Blvd.: Work by Robert Reep and other Arkansas artists. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Sat. 664-0880.

Help create a vision for Little Rock School District at these upcoming Community Forums

Thursday, March 10, 2016 • 6-8 pm Don Roberts Elementary School 16601 LaMarche Dr. • 72223

SPANISH LANGUAGE INTERPRETATION, REFRESHMENTS, AND CHILD CARE PROVIDED

Visit www.lrsd.org and click on Civic Advisory Committee for updates www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

MARCH 11

AFTER DARK, CONT.

THE 2ND FRIDAY OF EACH MONTH 5-8 PM

Gourmet. Your Way. All Day.

300 Third Tower • 501-375-3333 coppergrillandgrocery.com

GRAND OPENING

GALLERY 221 & ART STUDIOS 221 Gino Hollander, The Hollander Gallery

COMPLETE SPACES ARTWORK BY MATTHEW LOPAS

Salvador Dali, The Collector’s Gallery

JOIN US TO

CELEBRATE! 5-8PM  Fine Art  Cocktails & Wine  Hor d’oeuvres

Place JOIN US MAR 11TH2Pyramid 5-8 PM & Center St nd

200 RIVER MARKET AVE. STE 400 501.374.9247 WWW.ARCAPITAL.COM ROBERT BEAN, CURATOR

Opening reception for A Diamond in the Rough: 75 years of Historic Arkansas Museum Live music by Delta Brass Combo Refreshments and vintage cocktails A unique Living History performance

Streamlined City of the Future by Max Mayer, 1938

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

FREE TROLLEY RIDES!

“80/20” by George Chlebak (501) 801-0211 “HOT SWorks” EAT” BYby Kasten Searles “New

CATHERINE RODGERS

♦ Fine Art ♦ Wine ♦ Hors d’oeuvres ♦

Pyramid Place • 2nd & Center St • (501) 801-0211

These venues will be open late. There’s plenty of parking and a FREE TROLLEY to each of the locations. Don’t miss it – lots of fun! Free parking at 3rd & Cumberland Free street parking all over downtown and behind the River Market (Paid parking available for modest fee.)

CORE BREWING, 411 Main St., NLR: “x3mex: A Solo Exhibition,” through March 18. DRAWL, 5208 Kavanaugh Blvd.: Regional artists. 240-7446. GALLERY 221 & ART STUDIOS 221, Second and Center streets: “80/20,” retrospective of work by George Chlebak, through March 18; also work by Tyler Arnold, Amy Edgington, EMILE, Kimberly Kwee, Greg Lahti, Sean LeCrone, Mary Ann Stafford, Cedric Watson, C.B. Williams, Gino Hollander, Siri Hollander, and artisan jewelry by Rae Ann Bayless. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat. 801-0211. GALLERY 26, 2601 Kavanaugh Blvd.: Recent works by Mindy Lacefield and Brian Madden, through March 12. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tue.-Sat. 664-8996. GINO HOLLANDER GALLERY, 2nd and Center: Paintings and works on paper by Gino Hollander. 801-0211. GREG THOMPSON FINE ART, 429 Main St., NLR: “21st Anniversary Exhibition,” works by John Alexander, Walter Anderson, Gay Bechtelheimer, Carroll Cloar, William Dunlap, John Ellis, Charles Harrington, James Hendricks, Pinkney Herbert, Robyn Horn, Clementine Hunter, Richard Jolley, Dolores Justus, Henri Linton, John Harlan Norris, Sammy Peters, Joseph Piccillo, Edward Rice, Kendall Stallings, Rebecca Thompson, Glennray Tutor and Donald Roller Wilson. 664-2787. HEARNE FINE ART, 1001 Wright Ave.: “Colored Porches: Views from Within a Cultural Icon,” work by Arkansas artist Rex DeLoney, through March 5. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat. 372-6822. J.W. WIGGINS CONTEMPORARY NATIVE AMERICAN ART MUSEUM, UALR Sequoyah Center, University Plaza: “Return from Exile: Contemporary Southeastern Indian Art,” through May 6. 658-6360. HISTORIC ARKANSAS MUSEUM GALLERIES, 200 E. 3rd St.: “Arkansas Contemporaries: Then, Now and Next,” work by Arkansas artists Bryan Massey, Warren Criswell, Katherine Strause, John Harlan Norris, Katherine Rutter, Grace Mikell Ramsey and others, through May 8; “Joe Barry Carroll: Growing Up … In Words and Images,” through April 17; “Maps of Arkansas,” through April 3; “Niloak Pottery Figurines,” through April 3. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Mon.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. 324-9351. LAMAN PUBLIC LIBRARY, 2801 Orange St.: “A Cast of Blues,” 15 resin-cast masks of blues legends created by Sharon McConnellDickerson, photographs of performers and juke joints by Ken Murphy, through March 11. 9 a.m.-8 p.m. Mon.-Thu., 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Fri.-Sat. 758-1720. LAMAN LIBRARY ARGENTA, 420 Main St.: “Nature of Transcendence,” paintings by Cindy Wiseman, mixed media sculpture by Melissa Lashbrook, through March 9. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Sat. 687-1061. MUGS CAFE, 515 Main St., NLR: “The Art of Gum Bichromate,” photographs by Joli Livaudais and students. 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon.Sat. 379-9101. MATT MCLEOD FINE ART GALLERY, 108 W. 6th St.: Work by McLeod, J.O. Buckley, Taimur Cleary, Kathy Strause, Alice Andrews, Max Gore, James Hayes, Harry Loucks, Dominique Simmons, Lucas Strack and Angela Davis Johnson. 725-8508. MOSAIC TEMPLARS CULTURAL CENTER, 9th and Broadway: “I Walked on Water to My Homeland,” mixed-media printmaking by Delita Martin, through March 26; permanent exhibits on African-American entrepreneur-

BEHIND THE INK

A DEMONSTRATION OF PRINTMAKING A PART OF PRINTMAKERS UNDER 30

MOVIE REVIEW ship in Arkansas. 683-3610. PULASKI TECHNICAL COLLEGE, 3000 W. Scenic Drive: “Merging Form and Surface,” sculpture by Robyn Horn and Sandra Sell, Windgate Gallery, Center for the Humanities and Arts. 812-2324. RED DOOR GALLERY, 3715 JFK, NLR: New work by Matt Coburn, Paula Jones, Theresa Cates and Amy Hill-Imler, new glass by James Hayes, ceramics by Kelly Edwards, sculpture by Kim Owen and other work. 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat. 753-5227. STEPHANO AND GAINES FINE ART, 1916 N. Fillmore St. Work by Arkansas artists. 563-4218. THEA FOUNDATION, 401 Main St., NLR: 9 a.m.-noon and 1-5 p.m. Mon.-Fri. 379-9512. BENTON DIANNE ROBERTS ART STUDIO AND GALLERY, 110 N. Market St.: Work by Dianne Roberts, classes. 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Wed.-Fri., 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat. 860-7467. BENTONVILLE CRYSTAL BRIDGES MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART, One Museum Way: “The Open Road: Photography and the American Road Trip,” 100 images by 19 photographers of America from 1950 to today, including Robert Frank, Ed Ruscha, Gary Winogrand, William Eggleston, Joel Meyerowitz and others; “Gallery of the Louvre and the Art of Invention,” painting by Samuel F.B. Morse on loan from the Terra Foundation, through April 18; American masterworks spanning four centuries in the permanent collection. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Mon., Thu.; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Wed., Fri.; 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat.-Sun., closed Tue. 479-418-5700.

FORT SMITH REGIONAL ART MUSEUM, 1601 Rogers Ave.: “Resonance and Memory: The Essence of Landscape,” 25 works by eight contemporary artists, through March 6. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tue.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. 479-784-2787.

JASPER NELMS GALLERY, 107 Church St.: Work by Don Kitz, Don Nelms, Pamla Klenczar, Scott Baldassari and others. 870-446-5477. PERRYVILLE SUDS GALLERY, Courthouse Square: Paintings by Dottie Morrissey, Alma Gipson, Al Garrett Jr., Phyllis Loftin, Alene Otts, Mauretta Frantz, Raylene Finkbeiner, Kathy Williams and Evelyn Garrett. Noon-6 p.m. Wed.-Fri, noon-4 p.m. Sat. 501-766-7584. PINE BLUFF ARTS AND SCIENCE CENTER FOR SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS, 701 S. Main St.: “A Flower’s Shade: Installation by Dawn Holder,” through April 21, STEAM Studio and Tinkering Studio. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tue.-Fri., 1-4 p.m. Sat. 870-536-3375. HISTORY, SCIENCE MUSEUM EXHIBITS ARKANSAS INLAND MARITIME MUSEUM, North Little Rock: The USS Razorback submarine tours. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 1-5 p.m. Sun. 371-8320.ARKANSAS NATIONAL GUARD MUSEUM, Camp Robinson: Artifacts on military history, Camp Robinson and its predecessor, Camp Pike, also a gift shop. 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Mon.-Fri., audio tour available at no cost. 212-5215.

SUPPER AND THE SUPERNATURAL: William (Ralph Ineson) sees sin in his family in “The Witch.”

Season of ‘The Witch’ Horrors real and imagined. BY GRANT TAYLOR

hatever sin led to the banishment of William and his family from their colonial New England plantation at the beginning of Robert Eggers’ directorial debut, “The Witch,” remains unknown throughout the film. In fact, much of what occurs on screen is an enduring mystery. We don’t know whether it was William’s sin alone, or whether Thomasin, his eldest daughter and the child who eventually emerges as the film’s central character, is somehow to blame. She later bears the brunt of her family’s scorn and reprimand after their youngest child, Samuel, vanishes. There are plenty of sins to choose from and each character seems steeped in their own Puritan guilt. There is the sin of birth; the sin of lust; the sin of idleness and idolatry on the part of the young twins, Jonas and Mercy; the sins that William confesses to on his knees as he licks the dust of the earth in repentance for his prideful piety; and most poignantly, the sin of Thomasin’s emerging sexuality as she begins her menstruation. A witch’s energy is distinctly feminine and perhaps speaks to the threat that men in patriarchal societies perceive at any display of female strength or agency. It is no coincidence that nature — which, for centuries, man has attempted

to conquer — is imagined as feminine. William, who looks like a melting Christ, sells a silver chalice belonging to his wife, Katherine, to buy a hunting rifle, and allows Katherine to accuse and deride Thomasin for the theft. Son Caleb carries his father’s gun, much too large for his frame, projecting a masculine need to bring order through violence. This struggle for power, represented by the interplay between the male and female members of the family, pervades just as the witch comes to embody the self-destructive nature of a power repressed. “The Witch” is full of symbols: a broken egg with a dead bird inside; a crow feeding from a bloodied breast; an apple regurgitated from the mouth of a child who lies “pale as death, naked and witched”; William’s great piles of firewood; the blackened corn in the field; a horned goat name Black Phillip with whom Jonas and Mercy appear to commune; Katherine’s confession to her husband of her youthful affection for Jesus; the recurring shock of red against the palette of gray skies and straw; and blood from a goat’s udder dribbling from an overturned milking pail. These do not, however, coalesce to suggest some specific moral lesson. More fever dream than narrative drama, “The Witch” rides the line

between excessive and withholding. What is left unseen still terrifies and much of the action occurs in near darkness. The interior scenes glow thanks to the gauzy candlelight, adding a softness to the edges of the frame that one imagines might obscure some unthinkable creature. But in moments of gruesome violence or great suspense, Eggers’ camera doesn’t turn away. Rather, it follows the children a bit too closely, like God, and hovers during scenes of intense bloodletting. The landscape, the tableau of the farmhouse set off against the backdrop of a grim forest, suggests Eugene O’Neill, as does the enduring shame and torment each member of the family feels by nature of their proscribed actions. They awaken from dreams and slip into nightmares. It becomes difficult to know what comprises the actual events of the film and what is spiritual texture. Even the animals look possessed. For all the talk of sin there is little evidence of true devotion. The family is violent and accusatory. By the time the film crawls bleeding to its climax, the witch herself having taken a variety of different forms, what prayers began the nightmare devolve into so much possessed screaming that you can only look on in horror, but a system of morality never quite emerges. The folk tales that inspired “The Witch” were developed to deal with the burdens of life in an oppressively hierarchical society. Eggers’ film, then, is another retelling of a necessary pseudo-parable, one whose lessons we still crave. We keep coming up with and coming back to such stories, attempting to account for the sin and the rot, and our own atonements, as the truth still lies beyond our comprehension. www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

Dining

Information in our restaurant capsules reflects the opinions of the newspaper staff and its reviewers. The newspaper accepts no advertising or other considerations in exchange for reviews, which are conducted anonymously. We invite the opinions of readers who think we are in error.

B Breakfast L Lunch D Dinner $ Inexpensive (under $8/person) $$ Moderate ($8-$20/person) $$$ Expensive (over $20/person) CC Accepts credit cards

WHAT’S COOKIN’

Mardi Gras Seafood

CORE BREWING AND Distilling has an opening time and day for its new taproom in Argenta at 411 N. Main St.: 6 p.m. March 11. The new pub follows a successful formula the Springdalebased brewery has employed in Springdale, Rogers and Fort Smith. Marketing manager Maddison Lee says there will be 10 Core beers on tap along with a mead and a cider. The menu will be limited to hot dogs and popcorn. Outside food of any kind will always be welcome, Lee says. There’ll be live music on the weekends, too. BOULEVARD BREAD CO. closed its River Market location last week. The restaurant announced the closure on its Facebook page: “It is with great sadness that we are announcing that our River Market location is closing its doors this Thursday so that we can continue to pursue other business opportunities in Little Rock. Thank you to ALL of our regular customers that have been visiting us for years at this location and we hope that you will come see us at our Main Street location or one of our other locations!!” Boulevard occupied the large space on the east end of the River Market’s Ottenheimer Hall from 2006 until last year, when it moved to a smaller space to make room for David’s Burgers, which has since made zero evident progress in taking over the space. Boulevard still has locations on South Main and the Heights.

DINING CAPSULES

AMERICAN

1515 CAFE This bustling, business-suit filled breakfast and lunch spot, just across from the state Capitol, features old-fashioned, buffetstyle home cookin’ for a song. Inexpensive lunch entrées, too. 1515 W. 7th St. No alcohol. $-$$. 501-376-1434. L Wed.-Fri., D Mon-Sat. 4 SQUARE CAFE AND GIFTS Vegetarian salads, soups, wraps and paninis and a broad selection of smoothies in an Arkansas products gift shop. 405 President Clinton Ave. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-244-2622. D Mon.-Sat., L Sun. ANOTHER ROUND PUB Tasty pub grub. 12111 W. Markham. Full bar, CC. $-$$. 501-313-2612. D Mon.-Thu., LD Fri.-Sun. APPLE SPICE JUNCTION A chain sandwich and salad spot with sit-down lunch space and a vibrant box lunch catering business. With a wide range of options and quick service. Order online via applespice.com. 2000 S. University Ave. No alcohol, all CC. $$. 501-663-7008. L Mon.-Fri. (10 a.m.-3 p.m.). ARKANSAS BURGER CO. Good burgers, fries and shakes, plus salads and other entrees. Try 34

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES

200 Higdon Ferry Road Hot Springs 501-463-9873 mardigrasseafood.com

QUICK BITE Mardi Gras has Bubba Brew’s, an Arkansas beer from Bonnerdale, on tap. When we first tried Bubba a year or so ago, we thought it had promise but needed work — that promise has been realized now with a much-improved lineup. HOURS 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. OTHER INFO All major credit cards, full bar.

PERFECT CRAWFISH: You will want to suck the heads.

A Spa City delight Mardi Gras serves up top notch Cajun food in Hot Springs.

ometimes we choose a place based on the recommendations of friends and family, or because there’s buzz in the community. Other times, we just pop into a likely-looking spot based on proximity alone, without a clue as to how the food’s going to taste. Such is the case with Mardi Gras Seafood, a sparsely decorated Cajun eatery near Oaklawn Jockey Club in Hot Springs. A fun afternoon at the track left us needing some food, and while none of us had heard anything good or bad about the place (which has only been open a couple of months), we reckoned we’d give it a shot. The dining room was mostly empty when we entered — a very odd sign given the number of people like us leaving Oaklawn in search of victuals. Normally, post-race dining is a study in patience, but we were able to grab a six-top immediately and get our drinks ordered in no time at all. Worried that the locals maybe knew something we didn’t, we contemplated the empty chairs around us and decided to just hope for the best.

Then food started coming out, and it was so good that we imagine the empty tables will be a thing of the past as soon as word gets out about Mardi Gras. We started with an appetizer sampler plate ($12.99) that consisted of one link of crawfish boudin, a pile of golden-fried alligator tail chunks and a fresh dinner roll covered in Mardi Gras’ signature gumbo. Every eye at the table went wide at the first bite in an expression of immediately exceeded expectations. The boudin was as good as any we’ve had in south Louisiana, spicy and rich with a perfect balance of meat and rice that left us thinking we should have ordered more than just one piece. The alligator was tasty (although we’ve always found it a little chewy), and the remoulade served as a dipping sauce was authentic New Orleans. The gumbo dinner roll was an entirely different level of great, though, and every gumbo lover in Arkansas needs to get some immediately. A dark, rich broth teeming with chunks of honest-to-God andouille sausage, offering

up bite after bite of a deep flavor we’ve rarely encountered in versions of gumbo we’ve sampled around the state. We were happy to see that this tasty dish served as a standard side dish for most of Mardi Gras’ entrees — one dinner roll’s worth wasn’t nearly enough. With appetizers summarily demolished, we moved on to our entrees, putting the kitchen through its paces with a host of Cajun classics. The Cajun Boiled Dinner ($11.99) was a shrimplover’s dream, with a half-pound of huge Gulf shrimp piled high on a plate that included boiled corn, new potatoes and more of that decadent gumbo. The shrimp were fresh and easy to peel, and the boil was so good that no cocktail sauce was needed. The Cajun Grilled Shrimp Dinner ($13.99), featuring two huge skewers of perfectly grilled shrimp, was another testament to the restaurant’s abilities with prawns — and portions. We were lucky to find out that crawfish ($6.50 per pound; market price) were in season, and ordered a couple of pounds. Like the shrimp, these crawfish were fresh, huge and spiced so perfectly that sucking the heads was a must at our table. The tail meat was firm without being rubbery, and there wasn’t a single bite that tasted “off,” something that even Louisiana restaurants can’t always pull off. The crowning achievement of the night, however, came with the Cajun Tamale Dinner ($13.99), a massive plate of food that paired a half-pound of delicious boiled shrimp with six of the spiciest, best-tasting Delta-style tamales we’ve ever had the pleasure to eat. Hot Springs has some famous tamales asso-

BELLY UP

Check out the Times’ food blog, Eat Arkansas arktimes.com

ciated with it — these were better. Like everything else on the menu, the firm tamales were spiced to perfection, not too hot but not shy about being a bit peppery, either. Full beyond words, we still finished with a massive slab of bread pudding ($2.99), and the meal officially ended without a bad bite. This tasty pudding was redolent of cinnamon and nutmeg, glazed with a perfect sauce that made every bite a delight. It’s a rare meal that has no nega-

tives, but this was one of those. Having eaten Cajun food from Lake Charles to Houma, we feel qualified to say that Mardi Gras is doing some of the most authentic Cajun food the Natural State has ever seen. It’s easily one of the best meals we’ve ever had in the Spa City — or anywhere else in the state, for that matter. The friendly staff and courteous service make things a pleasure, and we’re already making plans to get back and get our spice on once more.

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CATERING TO YOU Painstakingly prepared entrees and great appetizers in this gourmetto-go location, attached to a gift shop. Caters everything from family dinners to weddings and large corporate events. 8121 Cantrell Road. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-614-9030. Serving meals to go: LD Mon.-Sat. CUPCAKES ON KAVANAUGH Gourmet cupcakes and coffee, indoor seating. 5625 Kavanaugh Blvd. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-664-2253. LD Mon.-Sat. DEL FRISCO’S GRILLE Chain specializes in steak and upscale pub food. Try the crab cake. 17707 Chenal Parkway. Full bar, CC. $$-$$$. 501-448-2631. LD Mon.-Sat., BR Sun. DEMPSEY BAKERY Bakery with sit-down area, serving coffee and specializing in gluten-, nutand soy-free baked goods. 323 Cross St. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-375-2257. Serving BL Tue.-Sat. DOE’S EAT PLACE A skid-row dive turned power brokers’ watering hole with huge steaks, great tamales and broiled shrimp, and killer burgers at lunch. 1023 W. Markham St. Full bar, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-376-1195. LD Mon.-Fri., D Sat. FLYWAY BREWING A popular pico brewery that also serves up quality pub food and snacks. 314 Maple St. NLR. Beer, CC. $$. 501-350-8868. L Fri.-Sun., D Wed.-Sun. GINO’S PIZZA AND PHILLY STEAK You can get a pretty good Philly steak here in the wee hours. 8000 Geyer Springs Road. No alcohol, CC. $. 501-562-0152. LD daily. THE GRAND CAFE Typical hotel restaurant fare. 925 S. University Ave. Full bar, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-664-5020. BD daily. GREEN LEAF GRILL Cafeteria on the ground floor of the Blue Cross Blue Shield building has healthy entrees. 601 S. Gaines. No alcohol, CC. 501-378-2521. GRUMPY’S TOO Music venue and sports bar with lots of TVs, pub grub and regular drink specials. 1801 Green Mountain Drive. Full bar, all CC. $-$$. 501-225-3768. D Mon.-Sat. GUS’S WORLD FAMOUS FRIED CHICKEN The best fried chicken in town. Go for chicken and waffles on Sundays. 300 President Clinton Ave. Beer, CC. $-$$. 501-372-2211. LD daily. 400 N. Bowman. Beer. $-$$. 501-400-8745. LD daily. HERITAGE GRILLE STEAK AND FIN Upscale dining inside the Little Rock Marriott. Excellent

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the cheese dip. 7410 Cantrell Road. Beer and wine, CC. $-$$. 501-663-0600. LD Tue.-Sat. BELLWOOD DINER Traditional breakfasts and plate lunch specials are the norm at this lostin-time hole in the wall. 3815 MacArthur Drive. NLR. No alcohol, No CC. $. 501-753-1012. BL Mon.-Fri. THE BLIND PIG Tasty bar food, including Zweigle’s brand hot dogs. 6015 Chenonceau Blvd. Full bar, CC. $-$$. 501-868-8194. D Wed-Fri., LD Sat. BONEFISH GRILL A half-dozen or more types of fresh fish fillets are offered daily at this upscale chain. 11525 Cantrell Road. Full bar, all CC. $$$. 501-228-0356. D Mon.-Fri., LD Sat-Sun. BONEHEADS GRILLED FISH AND PIRI PIRI CHICKEN Fast-casual chain specializing in grilled fish, roasted chicken and an African pepper sauce. 17711 Chenal Parkway. Beer and wine, CC. $-$$. 501-821-1300. LD daily. BY THE GLASS A broad but not ridiculously large wine list is studded with interesting, diverse selections, and prices are uniformly reasonable. The food focus is on high-end items that pair well with wine — olives, hummus, cheese, bread, and some meats and sausages. Happy hour daily from 4-6 p.m. 5713 Kavanaugh Blvd. Beer and wine, all CC. $$. 501-663-9463. D Mon.-Sat. CAFE BRUNELLE Coffee shop and cafe serving sweets, tasty sandwiches and Loblolly ice cream. 17819 Chenal Parkway. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-448-2687. BLD daily. CAFE@HEIFER Serving fresh pastries, omelets, soups, salads, sandwiches and pizzas. Located inside Heifer Village. 1 World Ave. No alcohol, all CC. $. 501-907-8801. BL Mon.-Fri. CAPITAL BAR AND GRILL Big hearty sandwiches, daily lunch specials and fine evening dining all rolled up into one at this landing spot downtown. Surprisingly inexpensive with a great bar staff and a good selection of unique desserts. 111 W. Markham St. Full bar, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-370-7013. LD daily. CAPITOL BISTRO Serving breakfast and lunch items, including quiche, sandwiches, coffees and the like. 1401 W. Capitol Ave. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-371-9575. BL Mon.-Fri. CATCH BAR AND GRILL Fish, shrimp, chicken and burgers, live music, drinks, flat-screens TVs, pool tables and V.I.P. room. 1407 John Barrow Road. Full bar. 501-224-1615. BLD daily.

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DINING CAPSULES, CONT.

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surf and turf options. 3 Statehouse Plaza. Full bar, all CC. $$$. 501-399-8000. LD daily. HOMER’S Great vegetables, huge yeast rolls and killer cobblers. Follow the mobs. 2001 E. Roosevelt Road. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-374-1400. BL Mon.-Fri. 9700 N. Rodney Parham. Full bar, all CC. $$. 501-224-6637. BLD Mon.-Sat., BL Sun. IRONHORSE SALOON Bar and grill offering juicy hamburgers and cheeseburgers. 9125 Mann Road. Full bar, all CC. $. 501-562-4464. LD daily. J. GUMBO’S Fast-casual Cajun fare served, primarily, in a bowl. Will surprise you. 12911 Cantrell Road. Beer, all CC. $-$$. 501-916-9635. LD daily. JERKY’S SPICY CHICKEN AND MORE Jerk chicken, Southern fried chicken, Southern fried jerk chicken, along with burgers, sandwiches, salads. 521 Center St. No alcohol. $-$$. 501-246-3096. LD Mon.-Sat. JIMMY’S SERIOUS SANDWICHES Consistently fine sandwiches, side orders and desserts for 30 years. Chicken salad’s among the best in town, and there are fun specialty sandwiches such as Thai One On and The Garden. Get there early for lunch. 5116 W. Markham St. No alcohol, CC. $-$$. 501-6663354. LD Mon.-Fri., L Sat. JOUBERT’S TAVERN Local beer and wine haunt that serves Polish sausage and other bar foods. 7303 Kanis Road. Full bar, CC. $-$$. 501-664-9953. D Mon.-Sat. K. HALL AND SONS Neighborhood grocery store with excellent lunch counter. The cheeseburger is hard to beat. 1900 Wright Ave. No alcohol, CC. $. 501-372-1513. BLD Mon.-Sat. (closes at 6 p.m.), BL Sun. KILWINS Ice cream, candies, fudge and sweets galore made in-house and packaged for eat-itnow or eat-it-later. 415 President Clinton Ave. No alcohol, CC. $-$$. 501-379-9865. LD daily. LAZY PETE’S FISH AND SHRIMP Southern and Cajun pub grub. 200 N. Bowman Road. Beer, CC. $$. 501-680-2660. LD daily. LE POPS Delicious, homemade iced lollies (or popsicles, for those who aren’t afraid of the trademark.) 5501 Kavanaugh Blvd. Ste. J. No alcohol, CC. $. 501-313-9558. LD daily. LOBLOLLY CREAMERY Small batch artisan ice cream and sweet treats company that operates a soda fountain inside The Green Corner Store. 1423 Main St. No alcohol, CC. $-$$. 501-3969609. LD Mon.-Sat., L Sun. LOST FORTY BREWING Brewery and brewpub from the folks behind Big Orange, Local Lime and ZAZA. Good food options to accompany the popular craft beers. 501 Byrd St. Beer and wine, all CC. $$. 501-319-7335. LD Wed.-Sun. LOVE FISH MARKET Part fish market, part restaurant. Offering fresh fish to prepare at home or fried catfish and a variety of sides. 1401 John Barrow Road. No alcohol, CC. $-$$. 501-224-0202. LD Mon.-Sat. LULU’S CRAB BOIL Cajun and Creole fare from the Chi family. The crab fingers and po’ boys are standouts. 5911 R St. Full bar, CC. $$-$$$. 501-663-2388. LD daily. THE MAIN CHEESE A restaurant devoted to grilled cheese. 14524 Cantrell Road. Beer and wine, CC. $-$$. 501-367-8082. BLD Mon.-Sat. NEXT BISTRO AND BAR Live music, on the outdoor patio in nice weather, bar with specialty drinks like house sangria. No cover 2611 Kavanaugh Blvd. Full bar, all CC. 501-6636398. ONE ELEVEN AT THE CAPITAL Inventive fine dining restaurant helmed by Jöel Attunes, a James Beard award-winning chef. 111

Markham St. Full bar, all CC. $$$. 501-370-7011. BD daily, L Mon.-Fri, BR Sun. POTBELLY SANDWICH SHOP Tasty, affordable sandwiches from fast-casual chain. 314 S University Ave. No alcohol, CC. $-$$. 501-6604441. LD daily. RACK’UM SPORTS BAR AND GRILL Burgers, pub food and free Wi-Fi. 2817 Cantrell Road. Full bar. 501-603-0066. D daily. THE RELAY STATION This grill offers a short menu, which includes chicken sandwiches and hamburgers. 12225 Stagecoach Road. Full bar, all CC. $-$$. 501-455-9919. LD daily. THE ROOT CAFE Homey, local foods-focused cafe. With tasty burgers, homemade bratwurst, banh mi and a number of vegan and veggie options. Breakfast and Sunday brunch, too. 1500 S. Main St. Beer, all CC. $-$$. 501-4140423. BL Tue.-Sat., BR Sun. SCALLIONS Reliably good food, great desserts, pleasant atmosphere, able servers — a solid lunch spot. 5110 Kavanaugh Blvd. Beer and wine, all CC. $-$$. 501-666-6468. BL Mon.-Sat. SHAKE’S FROZEN CUSTARD Frozen custards, concretes, sundaes. 12011 Westhaven Drive. No alcohol, all CC. $. 501-224-0150. LD daily. SHORTY SMALL’S Land of big, juicy burgers, massive cheese logs, smoky barbecue platters and the signature onion loaf. 11100 N. Rodney Parham Road. Full bar, all CC. $$. 501-224-3344. LD daily. STAGECOACH GROCERY AND DELI Fine po’ boys and muffalettas — and cheap. 6024 Stagecoach Road. Beer and wine, all CC. $-$$. 501-455-7676. BLD Mon.-Fri., BL Sat.-Sun. TERRI-LYNN’S BBQ AND DELICATESSEN High-quality meats served on large sandwiches and good tamales served with chili or without (the better bargain). 10102 N. Rodney Parham Road. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-227-6371. L Tue.-Fri., LD Sat. (close at 5 p.m.). WING SHACK Wings, catfish and more. 6323 Colonel Glenn Road. No alcohol. 501-5620010. WINGSTOP It’s all about wings. The joint features 10 flavors of chicken flappers for almost any palate, including mild, hot, Cajun and atomic, as well as specialty flavors like lemon pepper, teriyaki, Garlic parmesan and Hawaiian. 11321 W. Markham St. Beer, all CC. $-$$. 501-224-9464. LD daily.

ASIAN

A.W. LIN’S ASIAN CUISINE Excellent panAsian with wonderful service. 17717 Chenal Parkway H101. Full bar, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-8215398. LD daily. BIG ON TOKYO Serviceable fried rice, teriyaki chicken and sushi. 400 President Clinton Ave. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-375-6200. BLD Mon.-Sat. CHINA PLUS BUFFET Large Chinese buffet. 6211 Colonel Glenn Road. Beer and wine, all CC. $-$$. 501-562-1688. LD daily. CHINESE KITCHEN Good Chinese takeout. Try the Cantonese press duck. 11401 N. Rodney Parham Road. No alcohol, CC. $-$$. 501-224-2100. LD Tue.-Sun. HANAROO SUSHI BAR One of the few spots in downtown Little Rock to serve sushi. With an expansive menu, featuring largely Japanese fare. Try the popular Tuna Tataki bento box. 205 W. Capitol Ave. Beer and wine, all CC. $$. 501-301-7900. L Mon.-Fri., D Mon.-Sat. KBIRD Delicious, authentic Thai. 600 N. Tyler. No alcohol, CC. $$-$$$. 501-352-3549. LD Mon.-Fri. MIKE’S CAFE VIETNAMESE Cheap Vietnamese that could use some more spice,

typically. The pho is good. 5501 Asher Ave. Beer, CC. $-$$. 501-562-1515. LD daily. MR. CHEN’S ASIAN SUPERMARKET AND RESTAURANT A combination Asian restaurant and grocery with cheap, tasty and exotic offerings. 3901 S. University Ave. CC. $. 501-562-7900. LD daily. NEW CHINA A burgeoning line of massive buffets, with hibachi grill, sushi, mounds of Chinese food and soft-serve ice cream. 4617 John F. Kennedy Blvd. NLR. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-753-8988. LD daily. 2104 Harkrider. Conway. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-764-1888. LD Mon.-Sun. OISHI HIBACHI AND THAI CUISINE Tasty Thai and hibachi from the Chi family. 5501 Kavanaugh Blvd. Full bar, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-603-0080. LD daily. PHO THANH MY It says “Vietnamese noodle soup” on the sign out front, and that’s what you should order. The pho comes in outrageously large portions with bean sprouts and fresh herbs. Traditional pork dishes, spring rolls and bubble tea also available. 302 N. Shackleford Road. No alcohol, all CC. $$. 501-312-7498. LD daily. TOKYO HOUSE Defying stereotypes, this Japanese buffet serves up a broad range of fresh, slightly exotic fare — grilled calamari, octopus salad, dozens of varieties of fresh sushi — as well as more standard shrimp and steak options. 11 Shackleford Drive. Beer and wine, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-219-4286. LD daily. WASABI Downtown sushi and Japanese cuisine. For lunch, there’s quick and hearty sushi samplers. 101 Main St. Full bar, all CC. $-$$. 501-374-0777. L Mon.-Fri., D Mon.-Sat.

BARBECUE

CHIP’S BARBECUE Tasty, if a little pricey, barbecue piled high on sandwiches generously doused with the original tangy sauce or one of five other sauces. Better known for the incredible family recipe pies and cheesecakes, which come tall and wide. 9801 W. Markham St. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-225-4346. LD Mon.-Sat.

EUROPEAN / ETHNIC

ISTANBUL MEDITERRANEAN RESTAURANT This Turkish eatery offers decent kebabs and great starters. The red pepper hummus is a winner. So are Cigar Pastries. Possibly the best Turkish coffee in Central Arkansas. 11525 Cantrell Road. No alcohol, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-223-9332. LD daily. KEBAB HOUSE Turkish-style doners and kebabs and a sampling of Tunisian cuisine. Only place in Little Rock to serve Lahmijun (Turkish pizza). 11321 W Markham St. No alcohol, CC. $-$$. LD Mon.-Sat. LITTLE GREEK Fast casual chain with excellent Greek food. 11525 Cantrell Road. Beer and wine, all CC. $$. (501) 223-5300. LD daily. MUSE ULTRA LOUNGE Mediterranean food and drinks. 2611 Kavanaugh Blvd. Full bar, all CC. 501-663-6398. D Mon.-Sat. MYLO COFFEE CO. Bakery with a vast assortment of hand-made pastries, house-roasted coffee and an ice cream counter. Soups and sandwiches, too. 2715 Kavanaugh Blvd. Beer, CC. $-$$. 501-747-1880. BLD Tue.-Sun. ROSALIA’S BAKERY Brazilian bakery owned by the folks over at Bossa Nova, next door. Sweet and savory treats, including yucca cheese bread, empanadas and macarons. Many gluten-free options. 2701 Kavanaugh Blvd. No alcohol, all CC. $-$$. 501-319-7035. BLD Mon.-Sat. (closes 6 p.m.), BL Sun.

ITALIAN

CAFE PREGO Dependable entrees of pasta,

pork, seafood, steak and the like, plus great sauces, fresh mixed greens and delicious dressings, crisp-crunchy-cold gazpacho and tempting desserts in a comfy bistro setting. Little Rock standard for 18 years. 5510 Kavanaugh Blvd. Full bar, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-663-5355. LD Mon.Fri, D Sat. IRIANA’S PIZZA Unbelievably generous handtossed New York-style pizza with unmatched zest. Good salads, too; grinders are great, particularly the Italian sausage. 201 E. Markham St. Beer and wine, all CC. $-$$. 501-374-3656. LD Mon.-Sat. MELLOW MUSHROOM Popular high-end pizza chain. 16103 Chenal Parkway. Full bar, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-379-9157. LD daily. THE PIZZERIA AT TERRY’S FINER FOODS Tasty Neapolitan-style pizza and calzones from the people who used to run the Santa Lucia food truck. 5018 Kavanaugh. Full bar, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-551-1388. Tue.-Sat. RADUNO BRICK OVEN AND BARROOM The South Main neighborhood’s renaissance continues with Raduno, an upscale pizza joint that also features sandwiches and unique appetizers (think mushroom gratin). 1318 S. Main St. Full bar, CC. $-$$. 501-374-7476. LD Tue.-Sat., L Sun. ROMANO’S MACARONI GRILL A chain restaurant with a large menu of pasta, chicken, beef, fish, unusual dishes like Italian nachos, and special dishes with a corporate bent. 11100 W. Markham St. Full bar, all CC. $$-$$$. 501-2213150. LD daily. ZAFFINO’S BY NORI A high-quality Italian dining experience. Pastas, entrees (don’t miss the veal marsala) and salads are all outstanding. With a more affordable lunch menu. 2001 E. Kiehl Ave. NLR. Beer and wine, all CC. 501-8347530. LD Tue.-Fri., D Sat.

LATINO

BAJA GRILL Food truck turned brick-and-mortar taco joint that serves a unique Mexi-Cali style menu full of tacos, burritos and quesadillas. 5923 Kavanaugh Blvd. CC. $-$$. 501-722-8920. LD Mon.-Sat. CHIPOTLE MEXICAN GRILL Burritos, burrito bowls, tacos and salads are the four main courses of choice — and there are four meats and several other options for filling them. Sizes are uniformly massive, quality is uniformly strong, and prices are uniformly low. 11525 Cantrell Road. All CC. $-$$. 501-221-0018. LD daily. EL CHICO Hearty, standard Mexican served in huge portions. 8409 Interstate 30. Full bar, all CC. $-$$. 501-562-3762. LD daily. HEIGHTS TACO & TAMALE CO. Throwback Southern-style tamales, taco plates, enchiladas and more, all doused with a generous helping of cheese and chili. Hits just the right balance between nostalgia and fresh flavors. 5805 Kavanaugh Blvd. Full bar, all CC. $-$$. 501-3134848. LD daily. LA TERRAZA RUM AND LOUNGE Delicious Venezuelan fare. The arepas, plantains and mojitos are especially good. 3000 Kavanaugh Blvd. Full bar, CC. $$-$$$. 501-251-8261. LD Tue.-Sat., L Sun. TAQUERIA KARINA AND CAFE A real Mexican neighborhood cantina from the owners, to freshly baked pan dulce, to Mexican-bottled Cokes, to first-rate guacamole, to inexpensive tacos, burritos, quesadillas and a broad selection of Mexican-style seafood. 5309 W. 65th St. Beer, No CC. $. 501-562-3951. BLD daily. TAQUERIA SAMANTHA II Stand-out taco truck fare, with meat options standard and exotic. 7521 Geyer Springs Road. No alcohol, No CC. $. 501-744-0680. BLD daily. www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

Ride the ARKANSAS TIMES

BLUES BUS APRIL 16, 2016

TO THE JUKE JOINT FESTIVAL IN CLARKSDALE, MS

IT'S ALL ABOUT

THE DELTA!

Enjoy small stages with authentic blues during the day and at night venture into the surviving juke joints, blues clubs and other indoor stages. Reserve your seat by calling 501.375.2985 or emailing Kelly Lyles at kellylyles@arktimes.com BUS TRANSPORTATION PROVIDED BY ARROW COACH LINES

$125

PRICE INCLUDES: + + + + +

Round-trip bus transportation Live blues performances en route Adult beverages on board Lunch at a Delta favorite Wristband for the nighttime events

BUS LEAVES AT 9 A.M. FROM IN FRONT OF THE PARKING DECK AT 2ND & MAIN STREETS IN DOWNTOWN LITTLE ROCK AND RETURNS LATE NIGHT.

The Arkansas Times Blues Bus is a related event and not affiliated with Juke Joint Festival or the non-profit Clarksdale Downtown Development Association. 38

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSASâ&#x20AC;&#x2C6;TIMES

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• Data Recovery & troubleshooting • Hardware & software installations • Computer upgrades • Organize and backup all your documents, photos, music, movies and email on all your devices with iCloud.

Follow @MovingtoMac on Twitter and Like Moving to Mac Facebook for news and deals. Call Cindy Greene Satisfaction Always Guaranteed

MOVING TO MAC

www.movingtomac.com

cindy@movingtomac.com • 501-681-5855

TOXICOLOGIST

SOUGHT BY CENTER FOR TOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH, LLC IN NORTH LITTLE ROCK, AR. Duties include: Provide support in areas of toxicology, risk assessment, industrial hygiene & emergency response; assemble, prepare & analyze data concerning toxicological, environmental & human health risk assessments. Req’d: PhD in Pharmacology & Toxicology; approx.10% travel within the continental U.S and 6 months research experience in metals toxicology, must have authored publication in the field of toxicology & have served as Scientific Peer Reviewer for toxicology journals. Must have valid HAZWOPER certification, DISA & TWIC clearance & completed training in Incident Command Structure and Emergency Response Training. Ability to obtain passport & travel internationally. Job applicants must apply through CTEH’s job portal: www.cteh.com/employment.

ARKANSAS TIMES MARKETPLACE Adopt: a loving secure couple excited to adopt and share our hearts with your precious newborn. Expenses paid. Call Christy and Vinny

800-983-3992

HIRING MAUMELLE ENTRY LEVEL POLICE OFFICERS The CITY OF MAUMELLE is hiring entry level Police Officers. The first step in joining this team is to take and pass the Civil Service examination. The next scheduled examination is Saturday, March 26, 2016. Qualifications for taking the exam are: 1. Be a United States Citizen 2. Be the age of 21 on date of the exam (Police Exam) 3. Be able to pass a background check, a drug test, and/or physical examination 4. Possess a high school diploma or equivalent 5. Possess a valid Arkansas driver’s license Starting salary is $32,500.00 per year; the City offers an excellent employee benefit package which includes employee paid health and dental insurance, life and AD&D insurance, generous retirement program and many more benefits. APPLICANTS may order the “NPST Candidate Orientation Guide” by going to http://www.fpsi.com/police-orientation-guidedownload-disclaimer/. The NPST Candidate Orientation Guide can be downloaded on the page following the instruction and disclaimer page that applicants must read and agree to. This will ensure the orientation guide is downloaded successfully. Once the guide is in the FPSI shopping cart, applicants will be given the option to pay with a PayPal account or as a PayPal guest with credit card. The download link will be located on the Order Received-Checkout Page that appears on the FPSI website as soon as payment is submitted and applicants are redirected from PayPal back to FPSI. Applicants must pay close attention to ALL instructions on both FPSI and PayPal’s websites in order to download GUIDE properly.

DENTON E. & MONA HADLEY, LOCATED AT 246 MARINGOUIN RD. E, MARINGOUIN, LA., POINTE COUPEE PARISH, HAS 5 TEMPORARY JOB OPENINGS FOR FARM WORK, SURRONDING THE ABOVE ADDRESS. ANTICAPATED START DATE 3/22/16 TO 1/10/2017, DUTIES WILL REQUIRED WORKER TO HAND PLANT SUGARCANE, LOAD PLANTERS BY HAND, SPRAY AND FERTILIZE CROPS, CUT WATER DRAINS SOMETIMES WITH SHOVEL, AND DRIVE TRACTOR WITH LOADED CANE WAGONS AND DUMP N TRUCK. MUST BE ABLE TO LIFT 50 POUNDS, WALK, STOOP, KNEEL AND REACH RECEPTIVITY FOR PROLONGED PERIODS, AND WORK IN ALL WEATHER CONDITIONS, ALL TOOLS WILL BE PROVIDED TO WORKER AT NO COST, WORKERS WILL BE EXPECTED TO PERFORM ALL DUTIES DESCRIBED AND INCIDENTAL DUTIES RELATED TO FARM WORK, NOT JUST SPECIFIC TASKS. WORKERS WHO CAN’T RETURN HOME AFTER EACH WORKDAY, HOUSING WILL BE PROVIDED AT NO COST TO EMPLOYEE, TRANSPORTATION AND SUBSISTENCE EXPENSES TO THE WORKSITE WILL BE PROVIDED BY EMPLOYER UPON COMPLETION OF THE 50% OF THE WORK CONTRACT OR EARLIER IF APPROPRIATE. THE 3/4 GUARANTEE SPECIFIED IN DEPARTMENTAL REGULATIONS AT 20CFR 655.122(I), hourly pay will be $10.69 and will get paid once a week, for more information please contact the nearest SWA, JOB ORDER 595042

has a position open in Advertising Sales. If you have sales experience and enjoy the fast paced, crazy world of advertising sales we’d like to talk to you. We have a variety of products and publications that we publish and that translates into a highincome potential for a hard working advertising executive. We have fun, but we work hard. Fast paced and selfmotivated individuals are encouraged to apply. If you have a dynamic energetic personality, we’d like to talk to you. PLEASE SEND YOUR RESUME TO PHYLLIS BRITTON, PHYLLIS@ARKTIMES.COM.

The application process will begin immediately. For additional information visit www.maumelle.org. “EOE – Minority, Women, and disabled individuals are encouraged to apply.” This ad is available from the Title VI Coordinator in large print, on audio, and in Braille at (501) 851-2784, ext. 233 or at vernon@maumelle.org.

Arkansas Times

sip LOCAL

ARKANSAS TIMES

ARKANSAS TIMES www.arktimes.com

MARCH 3, 2016

DOUBLETREE SUITES BY HILTON – BENTONVILLE Invites you to stay with us while visiting all the wonders of Northwest Arkansas!

OUR FAMILY FUN PACKAGE INCLUDES

free Breakfast for up to four guests and free Wi-Fi. Start each morning of your trip with a big breakfast, and after the day’s adventures are done, take advantage of your internet access to share photos with friends at home.

479-845-7770

301 SE Walton Blvd. Bentonville, AR 72712 • doubletree.hilton.com/Bentonville 40

MARCH 3, 2016

ARKANSAS TIMES