Entertainment blogging from The Oklahoman's Brandy McDonnell

Happy fourth birthday to BAM’s Blog!

Happy birthday to BAM’s Blog!

On Feb. 14, 2008, I posted my very first entry on the brand-new BAM’s Blog: a list of my favorite films appropriate for Valentine’s Day viewing.

Since, the blog has become home to nearly 9,000 posts and more than 38,000 comments.  For the past two years, the blog has earned more than 1 million page views a year and developed a loyal fan base.

This year, we’ve continued the tradition of posting a Valentine’s Day DVD list, which you can view here.

As part of our custom around here, we’re also collecting various items for an upcoming prize-pack. Watch for more information about that soon!

Thanks for helping to make BAM’s Blog a success!

-BAM

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BAM’s Blog fifth annual Valentine’s Day DVD list

 

Way back on Feb. 14, 2008, I posted my very first entry on the brand-new BAM’s Blog: a list of my favorite films appropriate for Valentine’s Day viewing.

The list was conveniently subdivided into different categories so that lovebirds of every feather could find the ideal cinematic treat for Valentine’s Day.

Some traditions are worth keeping, so here is the 2012 edition of BAM’s Blog recommended Valentine’s Day movies. It’s been updated to include a few new films that I’m loving on this day of devotion. As an added bonus, I previewed the list Monday in the Life section of The Oklahoman, on NewsOK and here on the blog; here is the full, official list.

So for this middle-of-the-week Valentine’s Day, curl up with your valentine and a good DVD, Blu-ray or Netflix stream:

Romantic comedies

The films in this category must be both uproariously funny and aw-inspiringly romantic. For all the rom-coms coming out of Hollywood, it’s telling that this part of the list gets updated the least:

“It Happened One Night” (1934): An out-of-work reporter (Clark Gable) and rebellious heiress (Claudette Colbert) take a bumpy road trip in Frank Capra’s Oscar-winner.

“The Philadelphia Story” (1940): Katharine Hepburn, Jimmy Stewart and Cary Grant get entangled in a love pentagon in this classic screwball comedy, which happens to be one of my all-time favorite movies.

“North to Alaska” (1960): For those fans of John Wayne or a good Western, check out this romantic screwball story about a pair of pals, Sam (Wayne) and George (Stewart Granger), who strike gold in Alaska. When Sam returns to Seattle to fetch back George’s French fiance, he finds she has married another. Determined to head off his buddy’s broken heart, Sam recruits a gorgeous French prostitute named Angel (Capucine) to become George’s new lady-love. Soon, Sam, George and George’s teenage brother Billy (Fabian) are all vying for Angel’s affections.

“When Harry Met Sally” (1989): Hilarity ensues as Harry (Billy Crystal) and Sally (Meg Ryan) move from loathing to friendship to love.

“While You Were Sleeping” (1995): Lucy (Sandra Bullock) forms a crush on a handsome man (Peter Gallagher), saves his life, is mistaken for his fiancee and falls for his charming brother (Bill Pullman).

“Bridget Jones’s Diary”(2001): Brit Bridget Jones (Renee Zellweger) tries to improve her life and find real love in this chick flick.

Happily ever after

Fairy tales and other fantasies appear here; in this category, the path to true love may be perilous, but love eventually wins the day:

“Breakfast at Tiffany’s” (1961): True love develops between professional escort Holly Golightly (Audrey Hepburn) and kept man Paul “Fred” Varjak (George Peppard) in the iconic film from the late, great director Blake Edwards, a Tulsa native.

“Ladyhawke” (1985): A knight (Rutger Hauer) and his lady fair (Michelle Pfeiffer) must break the curse set on them by an evil bishop (John Wood). Just try to ignore the dated ’80s soundtrack from The Alan Parsons Project collaborator Andrew Powell. (I’m just sure music in the 12^th century didn’t use quite so many synthesizers.)

“Pretty Woman” (1990): The movie that elevated Julia Roberts to superstardom features the redhead as a down-on-her-luck prostitute who is hired by a rich, disconnected businessman (Richard Gere) as his escort for various business and social functions. Naturally, they fall in love and make each other better people and all that.

“Serendipity” (2001): Suspend your disbelief and enjoy Jonathan (John Cusack) and Sara’s (Kate Beckinsale) efforts to find one another after their magical first meeting. The film recently was released on Blu-ray, for extra lovely viewing.

“Stardust” (2007): Neil Gaiman’s fairy tale for grown-ups has all the necessary ingredients: an enchanted kingdom, wicked villains and, of course, a happy ending.

“Enchanted” (2007): An evil queen’s (Susan Sarandon) spell sends a wide-eyed animated fairytale princess (Amy Adams) to the mean streets of real-life New York, where she charms everyone, including a cynical single dad/divorce lawyer (Patrick Dempsey).

“Letters to Juliet” (2010): An American girl (Amanda Seyfried) vacationing in Italy finds and answers a 50-year-old letter to Juliet. In the process of helping the writer (Vanessa Redgrave) find her long-lost true love, the young American gets her own chance at real romance.

“The Tempest” (2010): Many universal themes are involved in what is widely considered one of Shakespeare’s last and best plays, including betrayal, revenge, forgiveness, and yes, love. Director Julie Taymor’s adaptation features a gender switch in the main role of the wizard Prospero, with Dame Helen Mirren making the magic as Prospera. But the love story between Prospera’s innocent daughter Miranda (Felicity Jones) and the courtly Prince Ferdinand (Reeve Carney) remains unchanged and romantic as ever.

“Jane Eyre” (2011): Director Cary Fukunaga (“Sin Nombre”) and his talented young cast, including Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender and Jamie Bell, bring fresh energy to the often-adapted gothic tale. Every aspect of the narrative is heightened: The mystery crackles with suspense, the romance smolders with sensuality, and the coming-of-age story flares with intensity.

Bittersweet treats

If you need or enjoy a good weep, one of these films just might be for you. Some of the endings are kind of happy, others are a bit tragic, but love is what makes the world go ‘round in these tales:

“Casablanca” (1942): Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman give up their passionate love affair to save the world from the Nazis. Sigh. A classic.

“Roman Holiday” (1953): I don’t think you can have a romantic DVD list with too much Audrey Hepburn, so I’m also recommending this classic gem starring the elfin actress as a sheltered and restless princess who gives her handlers the slip and finds love and adventure with an American journalist, played by the dashing Gregory Peck. In the end, they can never be together, but they’ll always have Rome.

“Like Water for Chocolate” (1992): Tita (Lumi Cavazos) and Pedro (Marco Leonardi) are desperately in love, but tradition prohibits Tita, the youngest daughter in her family, from marrying, instead condemning her to a lifetime of caring for her tyrannical mother (Regina Torne). The Mexican movie was nominated for a 1993 Golden Globe for best foreign language film.

“Titanic” (1997): Writer-director James Cameron’s blockbuster romance/disaster about a poor young artist named Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) who is struggling to get home to America and a beautiful socialite named Rose (Kate Winslet) who is being forced to marry to solve her family’s financial issues and how they fall in love just before their grand ship hits an iceberg will get an appropriately epic 3D and IMAX theatrical re-release on April 4. But if you can’t wait to let your heart go on the adventure, you can always set sail a little early in the privacy of your own home.

“Once” (2007): A Dublin, Ireland, street musician (Glen Hansard) and talented Eastern European immigrant (Marketa Irglova) make beautiful music together, but she has a husband and he has a girlfriend. Will they become a duet or go their separate ways? The movie, which won a best original song Oscar for the gorgeous theme “Falling Slowly,” has been adapted for the stage and is set to debut soon on Broadway.

“Becoming Jane” (2007): Jane Austen (Anne Hathaway) falls in love with roguish Irishman Tom Lefroy (James McAvoy) in this speculative romance. Austen never married, so that’s a hint that all will not go well.

“(500) Days of Summer” (2009): In his feature film debut, Marc Webb, director of the upcoming reboot “The Amazing Super-Man,” cast off the wretched conventions of modern- day romantic comedies, telling an emotionally resonant love story with a nonlinear plot line, amazing soundtrack and strong performances from Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel.

“Up” (2009): The Oscar-winning computer-animated tale by the Pixar geniuses has zany talking dogs, a crazy colorful flightless bird and the vivid spectacle of a house sent aloft by millions of balloons. But the heart of the poignant story is a grieving widower (voice of Ed Asner) making the trip he and his late wife planned but never got around to taking. And it’s a more stalwart soul than I who can make it through the montage of Carl and Ellie’s life without crying.

Family-friendly fare

So what if you have a couple of tykes snuggled between you and your sweetie on the couch? You can still enjoy a romantic movie that’s appropriate for the whole clan:

Any of the Disney “princess” movies: The ones with my favorite heroines include “Mulan,” “Aladdin” and “Tangled,” along with “Beauty and the Beast,” which is still showing in 3-D in some movie theaters.

“The Princess Bride” (1987): Westley (Cary Elwes) refuses to let pirates, a prince or even death come between him and his Princess Buttercup (Robin Wright).

“Shrek” (2001) and “Shrek 2” (2004): Grumpy ogre Shrek (voice of Mike Myers) and his Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) discover that their love isn’t based on society’s rules of beauty. And that’s OK.

“WALL-E” (2008): A lonely trash-compacting robot finds a hand to hold with a sleek probe droid in another of Pixar’s winners for best animated film.

“Gnomeo & Juliet”(2011): I’m not one to classify movies as guilty pleasures; I firmly believe different films have different purposes and there’s no point in feeling guilty if a stupid comedy makes you chuckle or a big-budget actioner gets your pulse pounding. But I feel a bit sheepish in admitting that I was utterly charmed by Disney’s transformation of The Bard’s greatest tragedy into a zanily animated, happily-ever-after comedy about a pair of garden gnomes (voiced by James McAvoy and Emily Blunt) who fall in love despite the feud between their respective color-coded families of backyard knick-knacks. Watch it with your kids and be prepared to giggle a lot and have Elton John songs stuck in your head for days.

Romance and weapons

Say you enjoy your romance mixed with plenty of action, maybe even some cinematic gunplay. Consider yourself locked and loaded with these films:

“The Terminator” (1984): Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) travels across time to save Sarah Conner (Linda Hamilton) from the Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger). He travels across time for her! Now that’s romantic.

“True Lies” (1994): A mild-mannered wife (Jamie Lee Curtis) gets drawn into the action and danger when she discovers that her seemingly boring husband (Arnold Schwarzenegger) is actually an elite government spy.

“Desperado” (1995): It’s got Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek falling in love between all the flying bullets, so this actioner offers everyone someone quite nice to look at.

“Mr. & Mrs. Smith” (2005): Shawnee-born Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have smokin’ chemistry as assassins on opposite sides.

“300” (2006): Sure, most of this pumped-up Greek legend is focused on big battle sequences and impressive pectorals, but King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) and Queen Gorgo (Lena Headey) make one hot power couple.

“Thor” (2011): Chris Hemsworth quite ably supplies the brawn as the Norse god cast down to Earth, but Oscar winner Natalie Portman gets to be the brains as relentlessly curious and lovably disorganized astrophysicist Jane Foster in the movie version of the Marvel Comic.

“Drive” (2011): Director Nicolas Winding Refn’s sun- and blood-soaked slice of Los Angeles neo-noir isn’t for the faint of heart. But if you can handle some Tarantino-level outbursts of violence, you can marvel at the crackling chemistry between Ryan Gosling as the enigmatic Hollywood stunt driver/getaway wheelman and Carey Mulligan as the lovely, vulnerable, single-mom neighbor who opens his heart and changes his life without even trying. And yes, their kiss in the elevator is as sexy as you’ve been led to believe

-BAM

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Oklahoma music stars react online to Whitney Houston’s death

As the sad news of Whitney Houston’s death Saturday in Beverly Hills, Calif., spread over the Internet, several musical talents with Oklahoma ties paid tribute to the former superstar on Twitter and Facebook:

Greyson Chance, Edmond-based singer/songwriter/pianist (on Twitter @GreysonChance):

RIP Whitney Houston. So devastating..she was a true performer. #Legend

Reba McEntire, superstar singer/actress who hails from Chockie (on Twitter @Reba):

Rest in peace, Whitney. (on Saturday)

I do think the Grammys tonight will be a wonderful way to celebrate Whitney’s career while paying tribute to her. (on Sunday before presenting at the Grammys)

Drummer Nathan Followill of Kings of Leon, who have Oklahoma City and Talihina ties (on Twitter @doctorfollowill):

RIP Whitney Houston. So sad.

Drummer Zac Hanson of Tulsa-based trio Hanson (on Twitter at @hansonmusic)

So sad to hear that #whitneyhouston has passed away. What a great voice. Sad day for music. -Z

Charlie Wilson, Tulsa-born R&B star (on Facebook):

Whitney Houston’s voice touched so many generations and lived in the hearts of her fans like a true legend. Her music will continue to live with us for countless generations and she will be truly missed by all of us who had the pleasure of knowing such a beautiful women. You left us too soon.

Country singer Bryan White, who was born in Lawton and raised in Oklahoma City (on Facebook):

Completely moved and deeply saddened at the loss of one of the most iconic voices in modern music. Whitney, you will be sorely missed and never forgotten. Blessings on your family …

Matt Stansberry, Edmond-based singer-songwriter (on Facebook):

So sad to hear about Whitney Houston. I was in LA staying at the same hotel and saw her just yesterday afternoon. So very very sad. I know they will honor her tonight at Clive Davis’s party and Sunday at the Grammys. We lost a legend.

-BAM

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Thompson Square’s “Glass” video to premiere Tuesday, Valentine’s Day

Stoney Creek Records duo Thompson Square, which includes Miami, OK, native Keifer Thompson, burst onto the country music scene one year ago last week with its self-titled debut album, which has so far garnered a plethora of accolades, including 2011’s No. 1 Most Played Country Song, “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not,” the follow-up Top 10 hit, “I Got You,” three 2011 American Country Awards and two 2012 Grammy nominations.

Now, the husband/wife duo of Keifer and Shawna Thompson return to country radio with its new single, “Glass,” a powerful, romantic ballad that The Washington Post hailed as a “poignant meditation on human vulnerability.”

On Tuesday, which is Valentine’s Day, CMT will exclusively world premiere the music video for, “Glass,” as part of a behind-the-scenes network special, “CMT Premieres: Thompson Square – Glass” at 8 a.m., with a re-air following at 9:45 a.m. Check out the video preview above.

The video also will air across CMT’s multiple properties including CMT.com, CMT Pure, CMT Mobile and the CMT Insider App.

Directed by Roman White in classic black and white cinematography, the artfully emotional video is a fitting tribute to couples everywhere this Valentine’s Day, from one of country music’s most celebrated new couples. The single, “Glass,” is available now on iTunes.

“CMT Premieres: Thompson Square – Glass” air dates/ times:

Tues. Feb. 14

8 a.m. and 9:45 a.m.

Wed. Feb. 15

7 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

Thurs. Feb. 16

12:30 p.m. (immediately following CMT Top 20 Countdown)

Country music’s breakout act of 2011, Thompson Square pounded the pavement for 15 years in the music industry before landing a record deal with Benny Brown’s small independent label Stoney Creek Records (sister label to indie Broken Bow Records and home to Jason Aldean).

In only 12 months, Thompson Square has seen the release of its first album debut at No. 3 on the Billboard Country Sales Chart and its Platinum-plus selling single, “Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not,” reach No. 1 on both the Billboard and Mediabase Country radio charts, conquer the Billboard Heat Seekers Chart, spend 5 weeks at No. 1 on the Country Digital Soundscan Chart and remain the No. 1 Country Ringtone for 12 weeks straight.

Thompson Square ended 2011 as the “New Country Artist of the Year” (Mediabase) as well as Billboard’s #1 New Country Artist of 2011, in terms of sales. The duo also ranked as Billboard’s No. 6 New Artist of 2011 (sales – all genres).

“Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not,” was the “Most Played Song of the Year” at Country Radio (Mediabase 2011), was named iTunes’ “Country Single of 2011” and earned 2012 Grammy nominations for both Best Country Song and Best Country Duo/ Group Performance of the Year.

In December, Thompson Square returned home for the holidays as the second-most awarded act at Fox’s second annualAmerican Country Awards, winning the fan-voted trophies for Single of the Year by a Group; Single of the Year by a New Artist; Music Video of the Year by a New Artist (“Are You Gonna Kiss Me Or Not”).

In 2011, Thompson Square was named one of USA Today’s “Six Pack of Success” stories, was heralded as USA Weekend’s “Who’s Hot in Hollywood,” peaked at No. 3 on MTV’s Music Meter (all genres) and landed on Entertainment Weekly’s “Hot List.”

In their short time on the scene, Thompson Square has performed on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” “Conan,” “Fox & Friends,” NBC’s “The Better Show” and Fox’s Summer Concert Series, as well as been featured in USA Weekend, Entertainment Weekly, People Country, the Associated Press, MSN Wonderwall, Country Weekly, Southwest Spirit Magazine, USA Today, The Washington Post and Billboard.

Additionally, the 2011 American Music Award nominee for New Artist of the Year is also the only duo to reach No. 1 on CMT’s Top 50 Artist Chart in 2011. Last year also found Thompson Square nominated for multiple Country Music Association and CMT Awards as well as playing to more than 1 million fans, many as part of Jason Aldean’s “My Kind of Party Tour.”

Currently nominated for, “Vocal Duo of the Year,” at the 2012 Academy of Country Music Awards, Thompson Square will criss-cross the U.S. in 2012 as part of Lady Antebellum’s “Own The Night World Tour.” The tour will play April 7 at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman.

For more information, go to www.thompsonsquare.com or www.lloydnoblecenter.com.

-BAM

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Video: Ryan Merriman to guest star on tonight’s “Hawaii Five-0″

Choctaw-born and bred actor Ryan Merriman will appear as a guest star on tonight’s episode of the CBS series “Hawaii Five-0.”

He will play a character named Dennis Mack in the episode titled “I Helu Pu,” which is Hawaiian for “The Reckoning.”

Here is the episode description:

When Five-0 nearly causes an international incident while on a case, Lt. Governor Denning tells them one of the team members will pay for it with their job.

“Hawaii Five-0,” starring Alex O’Loughlin, Scott Caan, Daniel Dae Kim and Grace Park, airs at 9 p.m. Mondays on CBS (KWTV-9).

-BAM

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Live blog: 2012 Grammy Awards

7 p.m.: The 54th Annual Grammy Awards is getting off to an old-school star, with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band and a symphony orchestra performing The Boss’ new anthem “We Take Care of Our Own.” The performance has everyone in the star-studded crowd on their feet. As billed, it’s a very uplifting anthem on the outside but with lots of pointed social commentary on the inside, so it’s hard not to join the chorus comparing it to “Born in the U.S.A.” Mostly I’m just happy to see that Springsteen still rocks at age 62. And I hope I’m as beautiful and cool as his wife and bandmate Patti Scialfa is when I finally grow up.

7:05: The Grammys have gone back to a host this year, and LL Cool J proves from outset that he was the right man for the job: “There’s no way around this: We’ve had a death in our family. So for me, the only thing that feels right is to open with a prayer for our fallen sister Whitney Houston.” Every head in the crowd is bowed as he thanks God for letting Whitney make music for the world and asking for peace for her mother and daughter.

Although he forgot to remove his admittedly cool hat, I applaud Cool J for his excellent delivery of the prayer, which is leading into a video of Whitney performing “I Will Always Love You” on the Grammys back in the early 1990s. Jennifer Hudson is going to perform the song tonight in honor of her. “Whitney we will always love you, and later tonight, we will remember you the best way we know how, with a song.” He’s encouraging everyone to remember the joy Whitney brought to the world and relish the joy of tonight’s awards.

7:09: Cool J welcomes back Adele, who will give her first live public performance since her vocal cord surgery, and hypes all the big performances coming up tonight. The slate ranges from Oklahoma country star Blake Shelton to Sir Paul McCartney of the Beatles, so it’s a wide range.

7:11: Bruno Mars may be a relative newcomer to the music scene, but he’s delivering another throwback performance, from his pompadour and gold jacket and bow tie to the old-school R&B sound of “Runaway Baby.” It’s a fun performance, with a big-time nod to the late James Brown, and it gets another standing O from the crowd.

7:15: Next up, Chris Brown is going to perform. Presumably, he hasn’t beaten up any girlfriends before the show this year, so I guess this is still on. It will be interesting to see if the crowd is as unenthused about this comeback performance as I am.

7:20: Before Chris Brown comes back, Alicia Keys at keyboards and Bonnie Raitt on guitar are paying tribute to Whitney Houston and now are going to perform in honor of the late Etta James, who died last month. They are singing “A Sunday Kind of Love,” and they are making it clear that they don’t need flashing lights, carefully choreographed dance moves or color-coordinated outfits to make a Grammy moment. It’s a beautiful but heartbreaking performance. Just don’t stop, ladies. The crowd is on its feet again.

7:24: Now the lovely ladies are presenting the award for best solo pop performance and my money is on Adele:

Someone Like You

Adele

Track from: 21

[XL Recordings/Columbia Records]

 

Yoü And I

Lady Gaga

Track from: Born This Way

[Streamline/Interscope/Kon Live]

 

Grenade

Bruno Mars

Track from: Doo-Wops & Hooligans

[Elektra]

 

Firework

Katy Perry

[Capitol]

 

F***in’ Perfect

Pink

[Jive Records]

7:26: Winner: Adele. She’s getting a standing O as she immediately gets choked up. She says “Someone Like You” changed her life even before anyone else heard it. “Seeing as it’s a vocal performance, I ought to thank my doctors I guess for bringing my voice back,” proceeding to do just that. Love her. She’s already won a trophy or two in the pre-telecast ceremony, too, so I’m betting she will need a wheelbarrow by the end of the night.

7:27: Chris Brown is singing “Turn Up the Music” while running and dancing all over a stack of brightly colored LED cubes as masked doctors in capes chase him. The crowd applauds and a few stand up but he’s the first non-standing O moment of the night.

7:30: Am I the only one just tickled that Lady Gaga has been seated next to country stars and Tishomingo residents Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton? It’s a good thing she’s past her meat-dress phase or Blake would be hunting up a fork and sitting in her lap!

7:35: Fergie and Marc Anthony are up to present, and can someone please toss a robe over Fergie? First, who brought back the transparent lace trend; was the world not tacky enough already? And do you really want to show the world your black underwear under your peekaboo red dress at the Grammy Awards? Way to keep it classy Fergie. Anyway, they’re gonna present best rap performance:

Otis

Jay-Z & Kanye West

Track from: Watch The Throne

[Roc-A-Fella Records/Def Jam]

 

Look At Me Now

Chris Brown, Lil Wayne & Busta Rhymes

Track from: F.A.M.E.

[Jive Records]

 

The Show Goes On

Lupe Fiasco

Track from: Lasers

[1st & 15th/Atlantic]

 

Moment 4 Life

Nicki Minaj & Drake

Track from: Pink Friday

[Cash Money/Universal Motown]

 

Black And Yellow

Wiz Khalifa

Track from: Rolling Papers

[Rostrum/Atlantic]

7:37: Winner: “Otis.” Jay-Z is presumably still on daddy leave with his new baby girl – who as expected from any child of Beyonce is freakin’ adorable – but I’m wondering where Kanye is this fine evening. With him gone, the sense of impending disaster just isn’t as acute.

7:38: Oklahoma-born and bred superstar Reba arrives to praise the Grammys for bringing together musical artists from different musical genres like no other show. She’s introducing hot country star Jason Aldean and her pop-star pal Kelly Clarkson performing their smash duet “Don’t You Wanna Stay.” I’ve heard them sing this power ballad on a couple of different awards shows, and they’ve nailed it every time. But I wish we could’ve had more Reba on the show tonight.

7:46: Jack Black – in a red Western-style shirt – is talking about how he’s outside the Grammys because he is holding onto his indie cred. Dude, you made “Gulliver’s Travelers” into a comedy for 20th Century Fox, so no matter what you do with Tenacious D, you can never get that indie cred of which you speak back.

Anyway, just introduce the band, especially since it’s the Foo Fighters, who have already snagged four Grammys tonight. They’re performing “Walk,” they’re keeping rock relevant, and for that we thank them. Who knew that Dave Grohl would just keeping getting more awesome with each passing year? Incredible.

7:56: This is one of  the more intriguing cross-cultural matchups of tonight’s Grammys in my opinion: Rihanna with Coldplay. She’s getting it started in dance-party fashion as she coos “We Found Love,” and if she’s not thinking “suck it, Chris Brown, I don’t need you,” I’m thinking it for her. She’s got athletic backup dancers and real-life torch bearers and abs that you could crack concrete with, plus she’s now proving that she is just as good a dancer as her ex. I’m just wondering when we’re going to get to the Coldplay part of the performance.

8: The stage goes dark and Coldplay’s Chris Martin appears strumming an acoustic guitar and crooning “Princess of China,” which I think is a particularly pretty song. Rihanna returns to turn it into a duet, and even though the two parts of the much-hyped mash-up don’t really go together, she and Chris sound just lovely together. And now Coldplay is taking center stage in this medley to play their Grammy-nominated anthem “Paradise” against a backdrop of LED graffiti. Overall, I can’t really fault the quality of the performance, but I wish more had been done to actually integrate their divergent styles to make this something really special.

8:11: Mario Manningham and Victor Cruz of the Super Bowl-winning New York Giants and “NCIS” star Pauley Perrette, who is nearly as tall as they, are going to present the award for best rock performance. But first, Pauley compels Victor to give the crowd a bit of his salsa-style touchdown dance. Here’s an award that the Foo Fighters better win:

Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall

Coldplay

[Capitol Records/ EMI/ Parlophone]

 

Down By The Water

The Decemberists

Track from: The King Is Dead

[Capitol]

 

Walk

Foo Fighters

Track from: Wasting Light

[RCA Records/ Roswell Records]

 

The Cave

Mumford & Sons

Track from: Sigh No More

[Glassnote Records]

 

Lotus Flower

Radiohead

Track from: The King Of Limbs

[XL/ TBD Recordings]

8:14: Winners: Foo Fighters. “This is a great honor because this record was a special record for our band,” Dave says. “We made this record in my garage with some microphones and a tape machine.” Gotta love that. “To me this award means a lot because it shows that the human element of making music is the most important thing,” he says, extolling the virtues of learning your craft and declaring that music is not about sounding perfect, it’s about what goes on in your head and your heart. Preach it!

 

8:16: Dave refuses to be played off the stage, delaying the irony of having Ryan Seacrest follow the rocker’s earnest speech about keeping it real. This is the man who brought us the Kardashians, after all. Anyway, Seacrest is in the house to introduce a big moment: The 50th anniversary reunion of the Beach Boys. But not before Maroon 5 and Adam Levine’s falsetto takes on “Surfer Girl.” And now we’ve got Foster the People chiming in with “Wouldn’t Be Nice.” Wouldn’t it be nice if we’re finally going to get a Beach Boys reunion if the Beach Boys actually played it?

8:21: Finally, we’ve got the actual Beach Boys – well, the ones available to carry on – playing “Good Vibrations,” and the crowd is on its feet already. For all the drama and troubles this band has experienced over the decades, they still sound pretty darn good, even on those famous high notes. And unlike many reunited bands, I don’t see a bunch of 30-something ringers sharing the stage with a few graybeards. Now, they’re getting Maroon 5 and Foster the People involved on the last verse of their feel-good hit. And it’s not a train wreck, so that’s a good vibration for ya.

8:28: Are we actually having another snow-pocalypse here in Oklahoma, or is just the KWTV weather anchors loving the sound of their own voices and the look of their own weather maps? It’s so hard to tell sometimes …

8:30: The Trustee Awards this year go to the late Apple CEO Steve Jobs; musician, bandleader, composer, and arranger Dave Bartholomew; and recording engineer Rudy Van Gelder, who worked with jazz musicians such as John Coltrane, Miles Davis, and Thelonious Monk. They were just honored in a brief clip. The awards go to people who make significant contributions to music in a non-performing capacity.

8:31: Stevie Wonder gets a standing O just for showing up. He gives his love to Whitney and plays a bit of the Beatles’ “Love Me Do” on the harmonica, which gets people clapping along. I’d love to hear more of Stevie, but he’s introducing Paul McCartney, who will be performing with Joe Walsh and Diana Krall. Sir Paul is wearing a white dinner jacket and crooning his new romantic standard “My Valentine.” It’s lovely, especially with Walsh on guitar, but I’m just not sure I was ready for the cute Beatle to sing standards. I know he’s never gonna be able sing “When I’m 64″ without it being ironic again; still, I don’t know that I’m ready for him to not rock it up. But I can’t argue with the standing O since he sounded really good crooning.

8:36: The ever-cool Common and Oscar-nominated actress Taraji P. Henson salute Lifetime Achievement winner and R&B forefather the late Gil Scott-Heron before presenting best R&B album:

F.A.M.E.

Chris Brown

[Jive Records]

 

Second Chance

El DeBarge

[Geffen]

 

Love Letter

R. Kelly

[Jive Records]

 

Pieces Of Me

Ledisi

[Verve Forecast]

 

Kelly

Kelly Price

[My Block/Sang Girl/Malaco]

8:38: Winner: Chris Brown. He’s got a few people on their feet as he thanks God and the Grammys for the opportunity to perform and dedicates the award to his fans.

I demand a recount on behalf of Ledisi, who could sing this guy under the table.

8:39: Already two-time winners tonight, The Civil Wars arrive and cheekily thank all their opening acts tonight, “including that promising kid from Liverpool.” They proceed to amaze the crowd with their awesome harmonies on “Barton Hollow.” They’re there to warm the stage for fellow Grammy winner Taylor Swift, but they’ve made a pretty big impression with a very brief spotlight. Excellent work.

8:40: Taylor Swift is in straight-hair mode and is strumming her ganjo – that’s a banjo with a guitar neck – as she croons her Grammy-winning song “Mean” in her usual-for-this-number Depression-era garb. It’s one of my favorite of her songs, and she always sounds really good on it. She’s got the crowd clapping and singing along as she changes the lyrics to reflect her performing it at the Grammys. She’s really progressing on her awards show performances. Gotta love her getting so much acclaim out of a song designed to put down her critics. Talk about getting the last word.

8:44: And cue Taylor’s usual wide-eyed, lip-biting shocked face as she gets a standing O. It’s a well-deserved standing O, and I’m not saying she should take it for granted. But I’m just not sure that she should still be so surprised that people really, really like her.

8:50: Neil Patrick Harris is there and promising no naughty wisecracks as he presents song of the year. He says that’s hard for him, and a bit disappointing for me, I must admit. Here are the noms:

All Of The Lights

Jeff Bhasker, Stacy Ferguson, Malik Jones, Warren Trotter & Kanye West, songwriters (Kanye West, Rihanna, Kid Cudi & Fergie)

Track from: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

[Roc-A-Fella; Publishers: EMI April Music, EMI Blackwood Music, Headphone Junkie Publishing, Please Gimme My Publishing, Very Good Beats/Hip Hop Since 1978]

 

The Cave

Ted Dwane, Ben Lovett, Marcus Mumford & Country Winston, songwriters (Mumford & Sons)

Track from: Sigh No More

[Glassnote Records]

 

Grenade

Brody Brown, Claude Kelly, Philip Lawrence, Ari Levine, Bruno Mars & Andrew Wyatt, songwriters (Bruno Mars)

Track from: Doo-Wops & Hooligans

[Elektra; Publishers: Mars Force Music/Bughouse, Music Famamanem/Toy Plane Music/Art For Arts Sake/Late 80s Music/Westside Ind. Music/Studiobeat Music, Warner Tamerlane, Andrew Wyatt, Downtown DMP Songs, EMI April Music, Roc Nation Music]

 

Holocene

Justin Vernon, songwriter (Bon Iver)

Track from: Bon Iver

[Jagjaguwar; Publisher: April Base Publishing]

 

Rolling In The Deep

Adele Adkins & Paul Epworth, songwriters (Adele)

Track from: 21

[XL Recordings/Columbia Records; Publishers: Universal-Songs of Polygram/EMI Music Publishing]

8:51: Winner: Adele, who is just tearing it up tonight, as expected. She gets extra high-pitched and even more Cockney than usual – is that possible? yes, apparently – as she squeals her joy and gives much of the mike time to her producer.

8:52: The beautiful Kate Beckinsale joins LL Cool J to introduce a woman with a great work ethic “who can shoot fireworks out of her boobs.” Yep, must be time for Katy Perry. She starts out with big production and then a fake glitch before appearing in a glass cage and skin-tight metallic catsuit and blue hair. She’s belting “Part of Me” rather defiantly. Despite all the flame effects and Chippendales-inspired backup dancers and the fake-out production breakdown, Katy seems more connected to this performance than I’ve seen in the past. At least she’s not pretending she’s still young enough to need a fake ID.

8:57: Tishomingo resident Miranda Lambert and Dierks Bentley are going to present best country album, and Ran’s hubby Blake Shelton is in the running here. So rooting for him:

My Kinda Party

Jason Aldean

[Broken Bow Records]

 

Chief

Eric Church

[EMI Records Nashville]

 

Own The Night

Lady Antebellum

[Capitol Records Nashville]

 

Red River Blue

Blake Shelton

[Warner Bros. Records]

 

Here For A Good Time

George Strait

[MCA Nashville]

 

Speak Now

Taylor Swift

[Big Machine Records]

8:59: Winner: Lady A. “Wow, we did not expect this” Charles Kelley of Lady A says, and I have to say I didn’t expect it either.

It wasn’t the hottest album as far as radio play (that would be Aldean’s), and they weren’t the hottest stars in the race (Shelton). I didn’t think it was the best album in the category (dead heat between Church and Blake, since Pistol Annies weren’t nominated and Ran’s “Revolution” was released past the deadline), and it wasn’t the biggest seller (Swift) or the one from the most respected artist (King George). No disrespect to Lady A, since I’m a fan of them, but I wonder if everyone else kind of canceled each other out in this race. “Thanks for changing our lives here last year,” Kelley adds. He and his cohorts also thanked the fans first, in the great country tradition.

9:05: “The only Oscar winner who sang here with Cee Lo last year” is the rather odd intro for Gwyneth Paltrow, who in turn is going to introduce Adele’s highly anticipated comeback performance. “We’re so thrilled that singular voice of hers is back,” Gwyneth says, and I couldn’t agree more. Already a four-time winner tonight, Adele sounds as great as ever as she belts “Rolling in the Deep.” The whole crowd seems to be clapping along. Whatever else Karl Lagerfeld or any other small-minded jerk says, she looks absolutely beautiful out there in a her elegant black dress. And she is just glowing. No question this is her night.

9:16: Already a two-time winner tonight, Taylor Swift, who looks grown-up and lovely in her long sparkly golden dress, even if it really sounded like she just referred to “Alzheimer’s” as “old timers,”  pays homage to “Rhinestone Cowboy” Glen Campell and introduces The Band Perry playing a very bluegrassy version of “Gentle on My Mind.” Every time I see them, I can’t help but think that these kids are the real deal.

9:19: Looking handsome in a simple black suit, Oklahoma’s Own Blake Shelton gets big applause as he croons “Southern Nights.” He has such a great voice, and like the Perry sibs, he’s doing right by Glen Campbell. Still, I would have preferred Blake perform one of Campbell’s great hits written by Elk City native Jimmy Webb, such as “Wichita Lineman,” “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” or “Galveston.”

9:21: And here comes Glen Campbell himself, and he’s in an embellished cream-colored jacket as he sings “Rhinestone Cowboy” and encourages the crowd to help him out. He’s got the audience on their collective feet again, and I’m so glad that they’re doing this while he’s still able to get out there and really show how great he is. Blake and the Perry trio join him, and they sound terrific together. I love that Joe Walsh and his lady were caught on camera doing a two-step in the midst of Glen’s spotlight. “Thank y’all so much,” Glen says, asking “Do I go somewhere or just shut up?”

9:24: Along with Campbell, fellow country star George Jones as well as Diana Ross, the Allman Brothers Band, the late Antonio Carlos Jobim, the late Gil Scott-Heron and the Memphis Horns are the other Lifetime Achievement Award winners. I’m glad at least one of them actually got to spend some time in the spotlight tonight.

9:30: Checotah native Carrie Underwood, in a long, sparkle-coated gown, lavishes praise on legendary crooner Tony Bennett, who won another Grammy tonight for his album “Duets II,” which features Carrie on the standard “It Had to Be You,” which they are now singing together in gorgeous fashion. It’s another retro moment and another standing O for this year’s Grammys, but it’s hard to complain when it sounds this good.

9:33: Now Tony and Carrie are going to present best new artist. Here are the noms, which are kind of all over the map musically:

The Band Perry

Bon Iver

J. Cole

Nicki Minaj

Skrillex

9:34: Winner: Bon Iver, and indie rock fans everywhere just burst into tears of joy. Justin Vernon really looks uncomfortable, but at least he’s up front about it.

“It’s really hard to accept this award. There’s so much talent here on this stage and there’s so much talent that’s not here tonight,” he says. “When I started making music it was for the inherent reward of making songs, so I’m a little uncomfortable up here. But with that discomfort there’s a sense of gratitude.”

It’s an awkward little speech but at least he remembered to thank his parents and hometown of Eau Claire, Wisc., so well done there. And he thanked the voters, calling his win a “sweet hookup.”

9:38: Recording Academy CEO Neil Portnow is telling about the Grammys’ charitable efforts and introducing the In Memoriam montage. Amy Winehouse, Heavy D, Steve Jobs, Dobie Gray, Johnny Otis, Gene McDaniels, Pinetop Perkins and Clarence Clemons are among those prominently featured, and naturally, Whitney Houston is the last pictured.

9:43: Dressed in somber black and visibly emotional, Jennifer Hudson is delivering the promised Whitney tribute, belting out “I Will Always Love You.” She gets a big standing ovation. She sounded great and managed to keep it together, which couldn’t have been easy. So well done there.

9:51: ?uestlove of The Roots joins LL Cool J to give a shout-out to the late “Soul Train” creator Don Cornelius before introducing the Grammys’ much-hyped first dance performance featuring David Guetta, Chris Brown, deadmau5, Lil Wayne and Foo Fighters.

First up are Guetta with Lil Wayne and Chris Brown, and I’m really tired of Chris Brown at this point. There are comebacks and then there are blatant attempts to brainwash us into forgetting all about someone’s ugly past indiscretions, and this show’s crossing the line, people.

It’s a pretty fun groove, but so far it’s not worth all the fuss. Of course, the Foos haven’t played yet, and they pretty much make everything better.

9:57: Like right now, for instance. The Foos are rocking “Rope,” and I’m pretty sure deadmau5 is wearing his extra-fancy formal helmetry in honor of the occasion. My obvious rock bias aside, I really thought the Foos and the mouse (sorry, mau5) completely upstaged their collaborators.

10:04: The very handsome Drake is introducing one of the most beautiful, talented and driven women he has ever met in his life, his former bandmate Nicki Minaj. She’s in full-blown creep-out mode with her “Exorcism”-inspired rendition of “I Feel Pretty,” which she uses to lead into her debut of “Roman’s Holiday,” which has her throwing down while strapped to a kind of wall while nun-lookalikes in red habits dance around her and smoke plumes up from the stage. Now she’s levitating high above said stage while she mixes in a bit of “Come All Ye Faithful.” She gets a brief standing O, but I have to say that for me it was just the usual Nicki Minaj: really overdone and assaulting to the senses. I’m seeing a lot of style, such as it is, but not much substance.

10:10: Lady A – who want to go on record that winning this prize is pretty awesome – are going to present record of the year. And I’m betting we get to see Adele one more time:

Rolling In The Deep

Adele

Paul Epworth, producer; Tom Elmhirst & Mark Rankin, engineers/mixers

Track from: 21

[XL Recordings/Columbia Records]

 

Bon Iver

Justin Vernon, producer; Brian Joseph & Justin Vernon, engineers/mixers

Track from: Bon Iver

[Jagjaguwar]

 

Grenade

Bruno Mars

The Smeezingtons, producers; Ari Levine & Manny Marroquin, engineers/mixers

Track from: Doo-Wops & Hooligans

[Elektra]

 

Mumford & Sons

Markus Dravs, producer; Francois Chevallier & Ruadhri Cushnan, engineers/mixers

Track from: Sigh No More

[Glassnote Records]

 

Katy Perry

Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen & Sandy Vee, producers; Mikkel S. Eriksen, Phil Tan, Sandy Vee & Miles Walker, engineers/mixers

[Capitol]

10:12: Winner: Yep, it’s Adele. “Thank you so much. This is ridiculous,” she says. “I want to say thank you to every radio programmer and broadcaster for playing ‘Rolling in the Deep’ because you really helped it cross over.” She ends with a thumbs up.

10:18: LL Cool J says one of the first people who put him on TV happens to be a Lifetime Achievement winner tonight: Diana Ross, who gets a standing O and recalls when Cool J was “just a little kid.” She’s praising the show’s “fantastic energy” before praising Paul Epworth as producer of the year.

Now, she’s going to give album of the year … to Adele, most likely.

21

Adele

Jim Abbiss, Adele, Paul Epworth, Rick Rubin, Fraser T. Smith, Ryan Tedder & Dan Wilson, producers; Jim Abbiss, Philip Allen, Beatriz Artola, Ian Dowling, Tom Elmhirst, Greg Fidelman, Dan Parry, Steve Price, Mark Rankin, Andrew Scheps, Fraser T. Smith & Ryan Tedder, engineers/mixers; Tom Coyne, mastering engineer

[XL Recordings/Columbia Records]

 

Wasting Light

Foo Fighters

Butch Vig, producer; James Brown & Alan Moulder, engineers/mixers; Joe LaPorta & Emily Lazar, mastering engineers

[RCA Records/ Roswell Records]

 

Born This Way

Lady Gaga

Paul Blair, DJ Snake, Fernando Garibay, Lady Gaga, Robert John “Mutt” Lange, Jeppe Laursen, RedOne & Clinton Sparks, producers; Fernando Garibay, Bill Malina, Trevor Muzzy, RedOne, Olle Romo, Dave Russell, Justin Shirley Smith, Horace Ward & Tom Ware, engineers/mixers; Chris Gehringer, mastering engineer

[Streamline/Interscope/Kon Live]

 

Doo-Wops & Hooligans

Bruno Mars

B.o.B, Cee Lo Green & Damian Marley, featured artists; Dwayne “Supa Dups” Chin-Quee, Needlz & The Smeezingtons, producers; Ari Levine, Manny Marroquin & Graham Marsh, engineers/mixers; Stephen Marcussen, mastering engineer

[Elektra]

Loud

Rihanna

Drake, Eminem & Nicki Minaj, featured artists; Ester Dean, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Alex Da Kid, Skylar Grey, Kuk Harrell, Tor Erik Hermansen, Mel & Mus, Awesome Jones, Makeba Riddick, The Runners, Sham, Soundz, Chris “Tricky” Stewart, Sandy Vee & Willy Will, producers; Ariel Chobaz, Cary Clark, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Alex Da Kid, Josh Gudwin, Kuk Harrell, Jaycen Joshua, Manny Marroquin, Dana Nielsen, Chad “C-Note” Roper, Noah “40″ Shebib, Corey Shoemaker, Jay Stevenson, Mike Strange, Phil Tan, Brian “B-Luv” Thomas, Marcos Tovar, Sandy Vee, Jeff “Supa Jeff” Villanueva, Miles Walker & Andrew Wuepper, engineers/mixers; Chris Gehringer, mastering engineer

[Def Jam]

10:20: Winner: ADELE! And this final win seems to have finally shattered her composure: she is emotionally overcome and fighting back tears as she hugs all her producers, including Tulsa-born Ryan Tedder, and exclaiming, “Mum, gold is good! Mum, I love you and I’m sorry you’re not here.”

“This record is inspired by something really normal that everybody goes through – a rubbish relationship … and it’s really changed my life in the past year,” she says as she laughs and tries not to sob and wipes away “a bit of snot.” Great night for her, and she absolutely deserves it.

10:24: Instead of saying good night, Cool J promises to show us a good night, reintroducing Paul McCartney. Sir Paul is sitting at the piano to perform the wonderful Beatles cut “Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight/The End.” Wow. He may be singing standards this year, but Macca has still got it, baby, as he races away from the piano and takes up his guitar and plays with an all-star band including Joe Walsh, Bruce Springsteen and Dave Grohl. The crowd is up again and dancing while these guys rock away the final moments of the telecast.

What a great finish to a night that had many more highlights than miscues. I wish more Okies had won, but at least they had the honor to be nominated.

Hope you enjoyed following my live blog of the 2012 Grammys. Remember, “in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.”

-BAM

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Video: Adele previews Grammy Awards performance for Anderson Cooper

Current Grammy nominee Adele will make her much-anticipated return to live performances on Sunday’s 54th Annual Grammy Awards. Poised to become of the biggest Grammy moments in recent memory, it will be her first time performing live anywhere in nearly five months since being forced to cancel a sold-out U.S. tour to undergo surgery on her vocal cords.

Hosted by two-time Grammy winner and “NCIS: Los Angeles” star LL Cool J, the Grammy Awards take place live from 7 to 10:30 p.m. Sunday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The show will air live on the CBS Television Network.

Look for my live blog of the show here on BAM’s Blog Sunday night.

“I’m immensely proud to have been asked to perform at this year’s Grammy Awards,” said Adele in the announcement. “It’s an absolute honor to be included in such a night and for it to be my first performance in months is very exciting and of course nerve-racking, but what a way to get back into it all.”

Two-time Grammy winner Adele has six nominations: Record Of The Year, Song Of The Year and Best Short Form Music Video for “Rolling In The Deep”; Album Of The Year and Best Pop Vocal Album for “21″; and Best Pop Solo Performance for “Someone Like You.”

Adele recently sat down for an interview with Anderson Cooper, and in her first public performance since the surgery, she sang “Rolling in the Deep” for him. The performance was first broadcast Friday on “CBS This Morning.”

Cooper’s interview with Adele will air during “60 Minutes” at 6 p.m. Sunday on CBS.

Other performers set up for Sunday night’s Grammys include the reunited Beach Boys with Foster The People and Maroon 5, The Civil Wars, Diana Krall, Maceo Parker, Joe Walsh, Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson, Tony Bennett and Checotah native Carrie Underwood, Chris Brown, Glen Campbell with The Band Perry and Tishomingo resident Blake Shelton, Coldplay and Rihanna, deadmau5, Foo Fighters, David Guetta, Alicia Keys and Bonnie Raitt, Lil Wayne, Bruno Mars, Paul McCartney, Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry, Bruce Springsteen And The E Street Band, and Taylor Swift.

-BAM

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Video: Reduxion Theatre Company offering a special Valentine’s Day package for tonight’s performance of Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing”

In honor of Valentine’s Day, Reduxion Theatre Company’s is offering a romantic “Couple’s Package” for its performance tonight of William Shakespeare’s beloved comedy “Much Ado About Nothing” at its Broadway Theater, 1613 N Broadway Ave.

The package includes preshow champagne and couple’s cupcakes at intermission.

Check out these NewsOK videos of the company talking about and performing selections from the play.

“We want to offer couples a fun and romantic alternative or addition to their Valentine’s plans on this romantic weekend,” said Managing Director Erin Woods in a news release. “An entertaining evening of live theatre provides a memorable, romantic experience.”

Reduxion opened its new staging of “Much Ado About Nothing” Thursday night, and performances continue at 8 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. through Feb. 25. A special Sunday matinee will be staged at 2 p.m. Feb. 19.

Billed as Oklahoma City’s fastest-growing theater company, Reduxion received much attention and positive reviews in 2011 with the opening of their intimate new venue, the Broadway Theater. Critically acclaimed productions of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “Hamlet” and the American classic “Hair, the American Tribal Love-Rock Musical,” drew more than 2,000 fans to the Broadway Theater, near Automobile Alley and downtown.

“We love romantic stories and audiences love seeing them,” said Tyler Woods, Reduxion Artistic Director and “Much Ado About Nothing” director, in the release. “We push boundaries and challenge people on an emotional level, and we hope to make a name for ourselves as producers of plays that people enjoy sharing with a loved one.”

This season, Reduxion gets back to its roots by revisiting some of their first productions as a company. The company continues its successful, “Original Sins” season with the romantic comedy “Much Ado About Nothing” by Shakespeare, which was the first show independently produced by Woods in 2000. Woods directs this hilarious, touching and fast-paced romance with the same love and care he gave the first time around, on the show that started it all!

“Although we are considered a young company, this journey has taken many years,” said Woods. “From that first independent production in 2000, to this season, our fourth residential season in Oklahoma City, and the second year in our own performance venue – we must honor our growth and the support of the Oklahoma City community in fostering our development for over a decade.”

His version of “Much Ado About Nothing” is set in the swinging 1960s in Sicily.

For more information, go to www.reduxiontheatre.com.

-BAM

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Video: “The Bourne Legacy” trailer

The first trailer for the upcoming sequel “The Bourne Legacy” has debuted, and it looks very promising.

If you’re going to continue the Bourne franchise without Matt Damon, I can’t imagine a much better situation than carrying on with two-time Oscar nominee Jeremy Renner, two-time Oscar nominee Edward Norton and Oscar winner Rachel Weisz.

Plus, Joan Allen, Albert Finney, David Strathairn and Scott Glenn are all back for the fourth film in the series.

“The Bourne Legacy” is due in theaters Aug. 3.

-BAM

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Reba McEntire’s “All the Women I Am” GAC special premiering March 17

On a recent tour stop, Oklahoma country music superstar Reba McEntire brought along a film crew to capture all the hits, the energy, the dazzling production that are a part of her amazing live shows. The result is “All the Women I Am,” a 90-minute concert special premiering at 9 p.m. Saturday, March 17, on Great American Country (GAC).

Shot at the Cajun Dome in Lafayette, La., the set list reads like a greatest hits and includes some of Reba’s signature tracks including “Is There Life Out There,” “I’m A Survivor,” “Does He Love You,” (with vocal assistance from The Band Perry’s Kimberly Perry, who was one of the openers on the tour), “Turn on Your Radio,” “Strange,” “Somebody’s Chelsea” and the title track of her current LP, “All The Women I Am.”

“I’m thrilled to be partnering with GAC for this special,” says Reba, who hails from Chockie, in the announcement on Reba.com. “We had a blast out on the road with our new production this past fall, and I hope that all the fans who tune in enjoy it as much as we did.”

“All the Women I Am” was produced by Jon Small, a creative partner of Reba’s since the mid-‘80s who has produced and directed more than 18 music videos for the star.

“When Reba steps into the batter’s box, I know what I’m going to get,” says Small. “She’s the best female singer and the most professional artist, she’s got it all. Even after 27 years of working together, I still get so excited just watching her perform.”

It’s been more than 15 years since Reba’s last televised concert special.

Reba’s “All the Women I Am” tour made a stop last November at Tulsa’s BOK Center, and the star was kind enough to give me an interview in advance of the show. To read the interview, click here.

-BAM

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