Culture - The Daily Lobo

Culture

Disciples dance alongside mentors

Hunter Riley | March 3

It’s not in every department that undergraduate students get to perform alongside their professors. But in the Theatre and Dance Department’s faculty show “Strada,” five faculty members will present six pieces, using more than 60 student dancers from the program. Mary Anne Santos Newhall, a rehearsal coach for the first piece “Panorama,” said the department is interconnected. “One of the beauties of our department is that we all do different things, and we really enjoy working together,” she said.

Culture

Bradley's Books

Andrew Beale | March 3

Three times a week, Winning Coffee Co. offers more than food and coffee — it’s got something for the mind, too. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the coffeehouse doubles as a used bookstore. The bookstore, Bradley’s Books, has been operating out of Winning for four and a half years, but owner Bradley Bumgarner-Kirby has been selling books in the UNM area since the mid-70s.

Culture

‘Life of Pi’ author speaks

Chris Quintana | March 2

Who would have thought two stuffed animals and a taxidermy shop could have such deep-seated meaning? Yann Martel’s latest book Beatrice and Virgil uses childlike toys to tell a compelling, suited-for-adults allegory about the Holocaust.

Culture

Theatrical mixed bag right before your eyes

Graham Gentz | March 2

It’s one-act time again at the Vortex Theatre. In an annual competition, the Vortex selected from nationally submitted works (more than 200 this year alone) to show the eight best in a celebratory exhibition of playwriting talents. The entire showcase is called “Don’t Blink,” and each 10-minute act boasts a local director.

Culture

Documentary stays on fence

Andrew Beale | March 2

Luis Carlos Romero-Davis traveled all over the Southwestern United States, Mexico, Colombia and Chile to tell people his story — or, perhaps, other people’s stories. Romero-Davis spent four and a half years making his documentary, “389 miles,” named for the length of the Arizona-Mexico border fence.

Culture

For Your Ears

Andrew Beale | March 1

March 1 Busdriver The Spot (504 Yale Blvd. S.E.) All Ages $10 Indie-rap touchstone Busdriver recently told the Alibi that his fans are “antisocial kids who have little or no sex drive.” If this describes you (be honest), you can catch him at local house-party venue The Spot tonight at 8 p.m.

Culture

Frank endures Hitler’s horrors

Graham Gentz | March 1

Talking about the Holocaust is not easy. This is especially true for those who survived it. Yet James Still’s play “And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank” tells the naked horror of World War II with three powerful stories.

Culture

Musicians’ mettle tested at band battle

Alexandra Swanberg | March 1

There was no shortage of guttural grunting over the weekend at Battle of the Bands, but in the end, intelligible lyrics won out. The bands played in order of how many tickets they sold, with the groups that sold the fewest tickets taking the stage first. Highest-ticket-earner Croyal took the $500 grand prize, a label contract and 20 hours of free studio time.

Culture

Backstage Brass

Chris Quintana | February 24

They say behind every great man there’s a great woman. Well, in the UNM production of “And Then They Came for Me,” behind a great cast are three great women.

Culture

Breakdown of the bands

Andy Beale | February 24

There’s a lot of metal to be had at the Battle of the Bands Finals. The Daily Lobo doesn’t want you to have to wander too far down the cavern to mine the good stuff, so we found the Launchpad’s poster for the show, fired up our Myspace (it still exists!) and listened to these bands.

Culture

Competing for the metal

Alexandra Swanberg | February 24

Top New Mexico bands will partake in a fierce battle. The weapon of choice: metal. Battle of the Bands takes place at the Launchpad on Sunday.

Culture

Skateboard team fights racism, gravity

Chris Quintana | February 22

At first glance, skateboards seem nothing more than a set of wheels and some wood, but the UNM skating team thinks they can be a lot more.

Culture

Concrete abstraction amuses, confuses

Alexandra Swanberg | February 22

The “Center of the Universe,” despite what some physicists might say, is right next to Ortega Hall.

Culture

Live music, lunch a tasty combo

Antonio Sanchez | February 22

Whether it’s the hum of an acoustic guitar in UNM’s Atrium, or the bass of a band performing by the copper statues, UNM’s Noontime Concert Series provides a variety of performances Wednesdays at noon. This week acoustic musician Bryce Hample, of local band Reighnbeau, will perform a solo set at the Atrium. “It’s not very often that I have the opportunity to play for an hour,” Hample said.

Culture

Club erases poindexter stereotype

Alexandra Swanberg | February 22

The UNM Anime Club attracts those of a “nerdy bend.” It provides an avenue for nerdy students to come together in a relaxed social situation, and discuss and watch anime.

Culture

‘Othello’ villain seduces crowd

Graham Gentz | February 22

Aux Dog Theatre is back for round two in its 2011 season, tackling one of Shakespeare’s most famous tragedies, “Othello,” with the thunder and human horror it deserves. For those who didn’t read “Hamlet” in school, the title character is a Moorish general in the service of the armies of Venice (making him an Arab or North African — and certainly an outsider). He is happily married and trusted by all, except for his right-hand man, Iago, who seeks to destroy Othello’s marriage, trust and mind. Othello is the most “tragic” of Shakespeare’s tragedies.

Culture

Architecture’s alchemist

Andrew Beale | February 17

World-renowned architect Antoine Predock has a sense of humor about his work. At a presentation he gave Tuesday inside George Pearl Hall, which Predock designed, he showed a photograph of the building and the Frontier Restaurant across the street. “Anybody who saw that, which would they like better?

Culture

Hip hop hoedown gets classy

Hunter Riley | February 17

What started in an alleyway in the international district is now one of the Southwest’s highest-attended beatbox/dance battle shows. From its ramshackle roots, Breakin’ Hearts, in its ninth year, has found a more-permanent location at 508 Warehouse, and attendance has averaged about 1,000, co-founder Cyrus Gould said. “We started in a venue where you had to enter through an alley, and it was in a shady neighborhood,” he said. The event is now classier, Gould said, featuring a performance, contest and workshops to entertain people with diverse interests.

Culture

Remodeling ‘Shakespeare’s house’

Graham Gentz | February 15

Because of sadomasochism-style woman-breaking themes, “The Taming of the Shrew” has been controversial since its inception. It’s also why the play has seen a lot of light around Albuquerque in the past few years.

Culture

V-day for broke blokes

Andrew Beale | February 10

Being broke sucks on Valentine’s Day. As adults, we have to realize digging a half-eaten Snickers from between the couch cushions just isn’t going to cut it anymore — I don’t care if that’s what your dad got your mom for their anniversary three years in a row.