Weekend Warmup for Nov. 20-22, 2009
Wanda Jackson (Associated Press photo)
Here is a list of events happening around Oklahoma today-Sunday (Nov. 20-22, 2009). For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
- Hear Wanda Jackson, Brian Dunning and the Rock & Roll Trio Saturday at the 50th anniversary celebration for 66 Bowl, 3810 NW 39 Expressway. The party goes on from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, 59 cent specials on bowling, shoes, hot dogs, soft drinks. Doors reopen at 7 p.m. for the 8 p.m. concert. Information: 946-3966.
- Take in hands-on art activities, face painting, live performances from the Oklahoma City Philharmonic and more at the Fall Family Festival celebrating the special exhibit “The Dutch Italianates” from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art, 415 Couch Drive. Information: 236-3100 or www.okcmoa.com.
- Watch the musical “Little House on the Prairie,” presented by Celebrity Attractions, at 8 tonight, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 and 7 p.m. Sunday at the Civic Center, 201 N Walker. Information: (800) 869-1451 or www.celebrityattractions.com.
Hinder
- MIAMI – Hear Oklahoma City rockers Hinder at 8 p.m. Saturday at Buffalo Run Casino. Information: www.ticketstorm.com.
- THACKERVILLE – Laugh along with Ron White at 9 tonight at WinStar World Casino. Then, hear Lyle Lovett at 8 p.m. Saturday at WinStar. Information: www.winstarworldcasino.com.
NORMAN — Listen the Gin Blossoms at 8 tonight at Riverwind Casino, 1544 W State Highway 9. Information: 322-6464 or www.riverwind.com.
- Hear Austin, Texas-based singer-songwriter Michael Fracasso at 9 tonight at the Blue Door, 2805 N McKinley. Information: 524-0738 or www.bluedoorokc.com.
“Raiders of the Lost Ark”
- NORMAN — Learn more about the state’s winter birds and build a birdfeeder from 6 to 8:30 tonight during Family Night Out at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, 2401 Chautauqua Ave. At 8:30, the museum’s Movie Night will play “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” Information: 325-4712 or www.snomnh.ou.edu.
- Share tales of “Sibling Rivalry” at OKC StorySlam’s monthly story slam tonight at Istvan Gallery, 1218 N Western Ave. Registration starts at 7 p.m., and storytelling begins at 7:30. Information: www.istvangallery.com or okcstoryslam@yahoo.com.
- Hear No Justice with Kyle Bennett Band at 10 tonight at the Wormy Dog Saloon, 311 E Sheridan. Or listen to Kevin Fowler with Kevin Pickett and Southern Rain at 10 p.m. Saturday at the Wormy Dog. Information: www.wormydog.com.
Gary Vaynerchuk
- Listen to social media sommelier Gary Vaynerchuk and sample gourmet food and drink at OK Crush It at 8 tonight at Will Rogers Theater, 4322 N Western. Information: www.okcrushit.com.
- Watch the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Washington Wizards at 7 tonight at the Ford Center, 100 W Reno. Information: www.thunder.nba.com.
- Shop for a good cause at Individual Artists of Oklahoma’s Red Dot Art Auction fundraiser from 7 to 11 tonight at IAO, 706 W Sheridan. The auction will feature artwork by more than 50 Oklahoma artists. Information: www.iaogallery.org.
- Watch the American Quarter Horse Show from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. today and Saturday at State Fair Park. Information: www.aqha.com or www.okstatefairpark.com.
-BAM
Oklahoma City’s first IMAX screen lights up Friday, grand opening planned for “Avatar”
Oklahoma City’s first IMAX theater will become operational Friday, showing the high-tech holiday adaptation “Disney’s A Christmas Carol,” reports The Oklahoman Business Writer Jennifer Palmer.
One of the 24 auditoriums in the AMC theater at Quail Springs Mall has been converted to an IMAX theater, complete with a larger, curved screen, the latest sound system and digital projector. To convert the auditorium, several rows of the front seats also were removed, reducing capacity from about 525 to 450.
Tickets will cost $4 for IMAX films than for regular movies, Jennifer reports. Movies shown in the IMAX theater also will be featured in a regular auditorium.
The Quail Springs theater will be the only AMC IMAX in the Oklahoma City market, an IMAX spokesman told Jennifer. Tulsa has boasted an IMAX theater for a few years, but the new auditorium will be Oklahoma City’s first IMAX outlet.
The grand opening for the Quail Springs IMAX auditorium will be Dec. 18, to coincide with the debut of James Cameron’s long-awaited sci-fi adventure “Avatar.”
-BAM
Sam Noble Museum prepares for holiday food, gift drive
Visitors to the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History can bring donations of gifts and non-perishable foods Nov. 27-Dec. 3 and enter a drawing for a $50 gift card to the museum store. The drive will benefit Norman nonprofit Food and Shelter for Friends. (Photo by Steve Sisney/The Oklahoman Archives)
Richard Hanley, kitchen manager at Food and Shelter for Friends in Norman prepares turkeys for the nonprofit’s 2008 Thanksgiving dinner. The Sam Noble Museum of Natural History will begin a food and gift drive on behalf of the nonprofit Nov. 27, the day after Thanksgiving. (Photo by Steve Sisney/The Oklahoman Archives)
NORMAN – Many charitable organizations face difficulties in times of economic hardship, and the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History is helping to boost holiday donations to a local charity with a collection drive.
According to a news release, the museum will be collecting donations of gifts and non-perishable food items for Food and Shelter for Friends Nov. 27-Dec. 3.
For 10 years, the museum has collected donations for the Norman-based Food and Shelter for Friends during the annual Holiday Happening, a community event at the museum scheduled this year from 6 to 9 p.m. Dec. 3. In recent years, the museum has extended the donation period to allow museum visitors two weeks to contribute to the annual collection, resulting in a marked increase in donations.
The gifts will be distributed at Food and Shelter for Friends’ annual holiday party for the families and individuals who are under their care. Donations can be brought to the museum any time during regular museum hours, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday.
Every item donated at the museum will earn the donor an entry into a drawing to win a $50 gift certificate to Excavations, the museum store. The drawing will take place at 8 p.m. on Dec. 3, during Holiday Happening. Entrants must be present to win.
Food and Shelter for Friends is a nonprofit organization that maintains eight shelters for homeless individuals and families in Norman. The organization also provides free community lunches, assistance with rent and utility payments, children’s programs and other services to help prevent homelessness and help the needy in Norman to achieve independence.
The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History is located on the University of Oklahoma Norman campus. For more information, call 325-4712 or go to www.snomnh.ou.edu.
-BAM
Harn Homestead offering free admission today to celebrate Oklahoma statehood
Harn Homestead (Photo by John Clanton/The Oklahoman Archives)
Happy Statehood Day, Oklahoma!
To celebrate the 102nd anniversary of Oklahoma joining the United States, the Harn Homestead Museum is offering free admission today.
The museum’s Statehood Day Celebration is set for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. today. The Harn Homestead is located at 1721 N Lincoln Boulevard. The event is sponsored by Chesapeake Energy.
The Harn Homestead celebrates the territorial history of Oklahoma by offering a “hands-on” and “minds-on” experience. Visitors can experience the abundance of a territorial farm, the brilliance of a one-room school house, the grace of a Victorian home, and the waste-not, want-not ethic of a territorial farm family.
For more information, go to www.harnhomestead.com.
-BAM
What to do in Oklahoma on Nov. 15, 2009
Vienna Teng and Alex Wong
Today’s featured event:
Hear singer/songwriter/pianist Vienna Teng and Alex Wong with Suzanna Choffel at 8 p.m. Sunday at the Blue Door, 2805 N McKinley. Or hear Big Smith at 9 p.m. Saturday at the Blue Door.
For more information, call 524-0738 or go to www.bluedoorokc.com.
For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
-BAM
Weekend Warmup for Nov. 13-15, 2009
Wade Bowen
Here is a list of activities happening around Oklahoma this weekend (Nov. 13-15, 2009). For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
- Listen to Wade Bowen with Granger Smith at 9:30 tonight at the Wormy Dog Saloon, 311 E Sheridan. Information:601-6276 or www.wormydog.com.
- Hear Edmond-based indie pop group Smarty Pants play a reunion show with Euclid Crash, Student Film and Little League Hero at 8 p.m. Saturday at The Conservatory, 8911 N Western. Information: www.conservatoryokc.com.
- TULSA – Catch country star Darius Rucker in concert at 7 tonight at Osage Million Dollar Elm Casino’s Osage Event Center, 951 W 36 St. N, Tulsa. Information: (918) 699-7667 or www.milliondollarelm.com/event-center.
Curious George
- Watch the antics of an inquisitive monkey when “Curious George Live!” swings into the Cox Convention Center at 10:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. today, 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 and 4:30 p.m. Sunday. Information: (800) 745-3000 or www.coxconventioncenter.com.
- Hear singer/songwriter/pianist Vienna Teng and Alex Wong with Suzanna Choffel at 8 p.m. Sunday at the Blue Door, 2805 N McKinley. Or hear Big Smith at 9 p.m. Saturday at the Blue Door. Information: 524-0738 or www.bluedoorokc.com.
- Listen to an evening of “Transformations” with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic and renowned pianist Stephen Hough at 8 p.m. Saturday at the Civic Center, 201 N Walker. Information: 842-5387 or www.okcphilharmonic.org.
Artworks by Suzanne Thomas wait to be set up for the new show, featuring the art of Thomas and Billy Reid, at Istvan Gallery at Urban Art, 1218 N. Western. (Photo by Nate Billings/The Oklahoman)
- See new work by Oklahoma City artists Suzanne C. Thomas and Billy Reid from 6 to 10 tonight at an opening reception and second anniversary celebration for Istvan Gallery, 1218 N Western Ave. Information: 831-2874 or www.istvangallery.com.
- NEWCASTLE – Take in American Indian dancing, storytelling, hands-on arts activities and more at the family-friendly American Indian Festival from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Newcastle Public Library, 705 NW 10. Information: www.pioneer.lib.ok.us.
- Watch the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the L.A. Clippers at 6 p.m. Sunday at the Ford Center, 100 W Reno. Information: www.thunder.nba.com.
Julio Iglesias (Associated Press photo)
- THACKERVILLE – Hear crooner Julio Iglesias at 8 p.m. Saturday at WinStar World Casino. Information: www.winstarworldcasino.com.
- Take in art, live music, new attractions and more at the monthly LIVE on the Plaza art walk from 7 to 11 tonight in the Plaza District, on NW 16 between Indiana and Blackwelder. Information: www.plazadistrict.org.
- NORMAN – Show your stuff at the Norman Public Library’s adult gaming night from 5:30-8:30 p.m. today in the Lowry Room of the library, 225 N Webster. Those 18 and older can join in the games including “Rock Band,” “Guitar Hero,” “Dance Dance Revolution,” “Halo 3,” “Left for Dead” and more. Game systems available will include Xbox 360, Playstation 2, and the Nintendo Wii. Information: 701-2620 or www.pioneer.lib.ok.us.
Craig Morgan
- MIAMI – Listen to country singer Craig Morgan at 8 p.m. Saturday at Buffalo Run Casino. Information: www.buffalorun.com.
- TULSA – Hear Dethklok, Mastodon, Converge and High on Fire at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Brady Theater, 105 W Brady Street. Information: www.bradytheater.com.
- NORMAN – Catch Austin, Texas-based noise-rock trio Followed by Static with San Francisco’s Little Teeth at 8 p.m. Sunday at Universe City, 783 Debarr Ave. Information: www.myspace.com/universecitynorman.
-BAM
What to do in Oklahoma on Nov. 13, 2009
Stephen Kovash, owner of the Istvan Gallery, surveys a display in the Blue Sage Studio section of Urban Art, 1218 N. Western. Urban Art houses the Istvan Gallery, Art Fusion Studio, and Blue Sage Studio. (Photo by Nate Billings/The Oklahoman)
Today’s featuredStephen Kovash, owner of the Istvan Gallery, surveys a display in the Blue Sage Studio section of Urban Art, 1218 N. Western. Urban Art houses the Istvan Gallery, Art Fusion Studio, and Blue Sage Studio. By Nate Billings event:
See new work by Oklahoma City artists Suzanne C. Thomas and Billy Reid from 6 to 10 tonight at an opening reception and second anniversary celebration for Istvan Gallery, 1218 N Western Ave.
The Oklahoman’s Steve Lackmeyer talked to Istvan Gallery owner Stephen Kovash about the success of his gallery, which shares the Urban Art space with Art Fusion Studio, and Blue Sage Studio. Click here to read the story, and check out NewsOK video host Angi Bruss’ report from her gallery, embedded below.
For more information, call 831-2874 or go to www.istvangallery.com.
For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
-BAM
Weekend Warmup for Nov. 6-8, 2009
Rodney Atkins
Here is a list of events happening this weekend (Nov. 6-8) around Oklahoma. For more information, go to www.wimgo.com.
- NORMAN – Catch country star Rodney Atkins at 8 tonight at Riverwind Casino, 1544 W State Highway 9. Information: www.riverwind.com.
- SHAWNEE — Hear “American Idol” David Cook, who has Tulsa ties, at 7 tonight at Firelake Grand Casino, 777 Grand Casino Blvd. Information: 964-7263 or www.firelakegrand.com.
- Take in art, food and music at the sixth annual Girlie Show from 8 to midnight tonight and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday at Farmers Public Market, 311 S Klein. Information: www.thegirlieshow.net.
Classical Mystery Tour
- Watch the Oklahoma City Philharmonic perform with Beatles tribute band Classical Mystery Tour at 8 tonight and Saturday at Civic Center Music Hall, 201 N Walker. Information: 842-5387 or www.okcphilharmonic.org.
- TULSA and THACKERVILLE — Listen to country star Alan Jackson and up-and-coming band Gloriana at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the BOK Center, 200 S Denver. Information: (866) 726-5287 or www.bokcenter.com. Or catch Jackson in concert at 9 tonight at WinStar World Casino in Thackerville. Information: www.winstarworldcasino.com.
- See new art – from small works exhibits to a container show – during the monthly Paseo Gallery Walk in the Paseo Arts District. Hours are 6 to 10 tonight and noon to 5 p.m. Saturday. Information: 525-2688 or www.thepaseo.com.
- Hear Chevelle with Halestorm and After Midnight Project at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Diamond Ballroom, 8001 S Eastern Ave. Information: www.diamondballroom.net.
Billie Letts
- SHAWNEE - Hear Tulsa author Billie Letts (”Where the Heart Is”) give the keynote address at the 2009 Red Dirt Book Festival on today and Saturday. Letts will speak at 11 a.m. Saturday in the Raley Chapel at Oklahoma Baptist University. Multiple writing workshops, special programs and panel discussions with authors and editors will be included in the two-day book festival that’s sponsored by Pioneer Library System. The festival opens at 9 a.m. today. Letts and other featured authors will close out the festival with a book signing at 2 p.m. Saturday in the Geiger Center on OBU’s campus. To register for the free festival (which is required) or get more information, go to www.reddirtbookfestival.org.
- Listen to Billy Joe Winghead, Bloody Ol’ Mule, the Starkweather Boys and more from noon Saturday to 2 a.m. Sunday at “Drumming for Derek,” a benefit for Oklahoma City drummer Derek Dugger, who has brain cancer. The event will be at 66 Bowl, 3810 NW 39 Expressway. Information: 946-3966.
- MIAMI – Catch the Casey Donahew Band in concert at 7 tonight at Buffalo Run Casino. Information: www.buffalorun.com.
“Frankenstein”
- Watch Oklahoma Children’s Theatre and TheatreOCU’s production of “Frankenstein” at 11 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. today, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday in Oklahoma City University’s Burg Theatre, 2501 N Blackwelder. The production is recommended for middle school and high school students. Information: www.oklahomachildrenstheatre.org.
- TULSA – Hear Rob Zombie with Nekromantix and Captain Clegg and the Night Creatures at 6:30 p.m. Sunday at the Brady Theater, 105 W Brady Street. Information: www.bradytheater.com.
- See a Tribute to Woody Guthrie at 7 p.m. Sunday at the Blue Door, 2805 N McKinley. Also, hear Don Conoscenti at 9 tonight and John Fullbright at 9 p.m. Saturday at the Blue Door. Information: www.bluedoorokc.com.
- Watch Red Dirt Improv perform “Music, Mayhem, and Mamet” starting at 7 tonight at IAO Gallery, 706 W Sheridan. Information: www.reddirtimprov.com.
-BAM
Oklahoma City Museum of Art presenting American Indian film showcase today-Sunday
Sterlin Harjo
In celebration of American Indian Heritage Month, the Oklahoma City Museum of Art and the American Indian Cultural Center & Museum are presenting the “Native American Cinema Showcase” featuring new voices and new stories from Native America.
“Barking Water”
The weekend film series begins 7:30 tonight with “Barking Water” directed by Tulsa filmmaker Sterlin Harjo. Harjo’s second feature film is a heartwarming road trip across eastern Oklahoma with two people who have loved and lost over 40 years together.
Lead actor Richard Ray Whitman recently was awarded best actor for his role as Frankie at the American Indian Film Festival in San Francisco. The film premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and has screened at New Directors/New Films at the Museum of Modern Art, New York, and the Venice Film Festival.
The film will have additional screenings at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art on at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, November. The Saturday screening includes a special appearance by Harjo and Whitman.
“Pearl”
Another feature film made in Oklahoma, with support from the Chickasaw nation, is “Pearl.” This is the biographical story of Pearl Carter Scott, a Chickasaw girl, who at 12 years old, became America’s youngest-ever pilot. Produced by David Rennke and directed by King Hollis, the film premiered at the 2009 AFI Dallas International Film Festival and was the opening night gala film of the 2009 deadCENTER Film Festival in Oklahoma City.
“Pearl” will be screened twice, at 5:30 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Sunday.
“Emerging Native Stories”
At 5:30 p.m. Saturday, the series will include a special presentation titled “Emerging Native Stories.”
This program consists of short works by native filmmakers with Oklahoma ties: The Potawatomi Tribal Documentary Series, a preview of Julianna Brannum’s documentary “LaDonna Harris: Indian 101,” and OETA’s Stateline documentary “The People” that explores efforts in Oklahoma to preserve native languages and culture.
Film admission is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and students and $5 for museum members.
For more information, call 278-8237 or go to www.okcmoa.com/film.
-BAM
What to do in Oklahoma on Nov. 2, 2009
“Tropical Heat: Broadbilled Motmot” by Deborah Kaspari
Today’s featured event:
NORMAN — View Oklahoma artist Deborah Kaspari’s paintings and sketches in the exhibit “Drawing the Motmot: An Artist’s View of Tropical Nature” at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History, 2401 Chautauqua Ave.
The exhibit is on view through Jan. 18.
Most people will never have the opportunity to visit the rainforests of South and Central America. Kaspari’s exhibit aims to give visitors a window into these vast, fragile natural resources through the eyes of an artist.
“Drawing the Motmot: An Artist’s View of Tropical Nature” features the works of Oklahoma nature artist Deborah Kaspari. The exhibition has been several years in the making and will bring together artwork from Kaspari’s rainforest expeditions across Central and South America. The exhibit recreates an artist’s expedition and immerses the visitor in the magical world of the nature artist at work.
The artwork includes sketchbook pages with notes, field drawings, pen-and-ink studies and studio paintings, accompanied by Kaspari’s lively and thoughtful field notes and commentary that give the feeling of a personal conversation with the artist. Adding to the adventure are the sounds of toucans, monkeys and other tropical wildlife recorded in the Amazon and Panama rainforest, plus videos of works in progress in the field.
Kaspari first began drawing and painting the rainforest in Trinidad in the late 1980s. She fell in love with the lush exotic landscape and made many subsequent trips to the tropics, including sites in Panama and Costa Rica. Last winter, a grant from the Don and Virgian Eckelberry Endowment allowed her to make a trip up the Amazon River to work at a research station deep in the rainforest of Peru. There she was able to draw the flora and fauna of the rainforest canopy thanks to an elevated walkway linking 14 trees through a system of platforms and rope bridges.
For the past four years, Kaspari has been working with the museum to develop an exhibit that would give visitors the same sense of peace, beauty and wonder she herself experienced in the field.
“I wanted this to be more than just an art exhibit,” Kaspari says in a news release. “I wanted to share the environment as I see and feel it. I wanted to bring a visitor into the rainforest and give them the chance to connect with it the way I do, through artwork and media.”
With that in mind, and armed with a tiny portable art studio, Kaspari began compiling the various elements that make up “Drawing the Motmot.” A high-tech audio recorder the size of a cell phone allowed her to capture the complex symphony of rainforest sounds, from monkeys to motmots (a colorful tropical bird). A video tripod filming over her shoulder captured the artist’s-eye-view of works in progress in the field. These audio and video elements help to bring Kaspari’s artwork – and her experiences – to life for visitors.
“When visitors walk through ‘Drawing the Motmot,’ they’ll not only hear birds and animals as I heard them, but through the sketches and paintings they’ll see the same things, too,” Kaspari says in the release. “I see much more of the world when I draw it. There’s a wonderfully personal connection that opens up when drawing from nature, and I always come away with a better understanding than if I were simply looking. I hope people will enjoy seeing the rainforest this way, and be inspired to try it for themselves.”
Kaspari’s experiences in the rainforests, and her work on “Drawing the Motmot,” are documented on her blog at http://drawingthemotmot.wordpress.com. Many of the works in the exhibition are available for purchase direct from the artist.
For more information, call 325-4712 or go to www.snomnh.ou.edu.
For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
-BAM
