ENTERTAINMENT NOTES

ENTERTAINMENT NOTES: Red Octopus offers Octopi in the Outfield

Thomas Alexander performs organ music for the Easter season Friday at Little Rock's Christ Episcopal Church.
Thomas Alexander performs organ music for the Easter season Friday at Little Rock's Christ Episcopal Church.

Elsewhere in entertainment, events and the arts:

TODAY

Outfield Octopi

Sketch comedy troupe Red Octopus Theater presents Octopi in the Outfield, an original, live sketch comedy show, 8 p.m. today-Saturday at the Public Theatre, 616 Center St., Little Rock. Doors open at 7:15. Tickets are $10, $8 for students, senior citizens and military at the door. The show is recommended for mature audiences. Call (501) 291-3896, email RedOctopusTheater@gmail.com or visit redoctopustheater.com.

Brown Bag lecture

Carl Drexler, who heads the Arkansas Archeological Survey's research station at Southern Arkansas University at Magnolia, examines early 19th-century Cherokee settlements on the Red River in a Brown Bag Lecture, "Life and Death on Lost Prairie: The 1819-20 Cherokee Settlements on the Red River," noon today at the Old State House Museum, 300 W. Markham St., Little Rock. Admission is free; attendees can provide their own lunches and the museum provides soft drinks and water. Call (501) 324-9685, email info@oldstatehouse.org or visit oldstatehouse.org.

U.S.-German relations

Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, 501 W. Ninth St., Little Rock, and Fulbright Germany host a lunchtime talk by Gary Schmidt titled "Afro-Germans Yesterday and Today: An Inclusive Approach Towards U.S.-German Relations," noon today at the center. Samples of German coffee and sweets will be available. Admission is free. Call (501) 683-3593.

Incarceration stories

The Yarnstorytelling cooperative, in its second collaboration with decARcerate, dedicated to central Arkansas prison reform, will offer "Barred II: True Stories of Incarceration," 7 p.m. today at Cranford Co., 512 Main St., Little Rock. Doors open at 6:30. Tickets are $15 in advance, $20 at the door. Visit tinyurl.com/y2gpapm5 or the Facebook event page, facebook.com/events/413598706039974.

FRIDAY

Organ post-Easter

Thomas Alexander, associate organist and choirmaster of Christ Episcopal Church, will give a recital of music for the Easter season at 7 p.m. Friday at the church, 509 Scott St., Little Rock, part of the Arts@ChristChurch series.

The program: Saraband (for the Morning of Easter) by Herbert Howells; three verses from Christ lag in Todesbanden by Heinrich Scheidemann; "Erscheinen ist der herrliche Tag," BuxWV 224, by Dietrich Buxtehude; the Easter section from Die Orgelbuchlein by Johann Sebastian Bach; Paschal Suite for Organ and Trumpet by Richard Webster, with trumpeter Jamie Atkinson Bryant; and two movements, "Adagio" and "Toccata," from the Organ Symphony No. 5 in f minor by Charles-Marie Widor.

A "festive reception" follows the concert. Admission is free; all donations support the 2019-20 Arts@ChristChurch season. Call (501) 375-2342 or visit christchurchlr.org.

Historical process

"And Then I Will See," a series of prints by Joli Livaudais, assistant professor of photography at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, will be on display Friday-June 15 at the Argenta Branch of the William F. Laman Public Library, 420 Main St., North Little Rock. Livaudais creates prints using gum bichromate, a historical process that involves hand-coating watercolor paper with a light-sensitive emulsion combined with watercolor pigments in multiple layers. Gallery hours are 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday. Admission is free. Call (501) 687-1061.

FOA Music Show

The Foundation of Arts presents its first FOA Music Show, featuring northeast Arkansas singers and dancers, 2:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday and Monday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Forum Theater, 115 E. Monroe Ave., Jonesboro. Tickets are $15 and $13; $13 and $11 for senior citizens, military and Arkansas State University students, staff and faculty; $8 for children 12 and younger. The Monday performance is "Pay What You Can." Call (870) 935-2726 or visit foajonesboro.org.

SATURDAY

'Into the Blue'

Music and dance performances will be a part of "Into the Blue: An Evening of Entertainment," 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the Center for Humanities and Arts, University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College main campus, 3000 W. Scenic Ave., North Little Rock. Tickets are $50; dress code is business attire. There will be a VIP Cocktail Pre-Party at 6 p.m. Call (501) 379-9512 or or visit theafoundation.org/into-the-blue.

'Hope Arise'

New Creation Dance Company and New Creation Dance Kids offer a concert, with a special guest appearance by the Hot Springs Dance Troupe titled "Hope Arise," 5:30 p.m. Saturday at the Summit Church, 6600 Crystal Hill Road, North Little Rock. Admission is free; donations are encouraged. Visit newcreationdance.org.

SUNDAY

Singer sings

Soprano and Little Rock native Kelly Singer will offer a program titled "No Place Like Home," 3 p.m. Sunday at Second Presbyterian Church, 600 Pleasant Valley Drive, Little Rock. Admission is free; donations benefit Wildwood Park for the Arts and Praeclara. Call (501) 821-7275 or visit wildwoodpark.org.

Sunday Sonata

The Little Rock Winds Chamber Players presents a program titled "Sunday Sonata" at 3 p.m. Sunday at Highland Valley United Methodist Church, 15524 Chenal Parkway, Little Rock, part of the "Diversions" chamber concert series. The program includes the Petite Symphonie for nine winds by Charles Gounod, Trio for Oboe, Bassoon and Piano by Francis Poulenc, Delta Jukebox (bassoon duet) by Peter Schickele, the clarinet choir performing arrangements of "America" from West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein and "The Music of the Night" from Phantom of the Opera by Andrew Lloyd Webber and works by Daniel Speer, Henry Purcell, Jules Demersseman and Jacques Casterede. Tickets are $15, $12 for senior citizens 65 and older, free for students. Call (501) 666-0777 or visit tickets.lrwinds.org.

ETC.

Dance classes

Dancer/choreographer Moriah Patterson is offering an eight-week, Monday-evening dance class series, June 3-July 29 (no class July 8) at Wildwood Park for the Arts, 20919 Denny Road, Little Rock. The classes:

• 6-6:50 p.m.: Teen Broadway Dance, for youngsters 11-17 with prior dance experience and also for newbies.

• 7-7:50 p.m.: Beginner Broadway Dance, for adults, focusing on basic terminology and dance steps for musicals.

• 8-9 p.m.: Proficient Jazz and Tap Technique, for intermediate to advanced adult dancers.

Cost is $100 for all eight weeks, $15 per session if you plan to just drop in (arrive 10 minutes before class). Visit ovationtix.com/trs/pe.c/10415048.

AUDITIONS

Wizard of Oz

Wildwood and Praeclara will hold auditions, by appointment, 10 a.m.-10 p.m. June 1 in the Cabe Theatre at Wildwood for The Wizard of Oz (based on the 1939 film classic), with an Adult Cast (18 and up) and a Young Artist Cast (6-17). Available adult principal roles: the Scarecrow and the Tin Man, requiring strong singers and actors, any ethnicity; dance experience preferred. Director Bevn Keating, choreographer Moriah Patterson and producer Bruce Rentz will also cast adult ensemble members (dance experience preferred). For the Young Artist Cast, they'll be auditioning leads, secondary characters and ensemble members.

Supply a resume and head shot. Prepare one complete song from a Broadway musical and provide sheet music for the accompanist; there will also be cold readings from the script. Come dressed to move for a brief dance audition; group dance auditions will take place throughout the day.

Rehearsals begin Aug, 18; production dates are ​Oct. 17-27 and include evening, matinee and school shows. Main and supporting roles are paid; ensemble and children will receive honorariums. To schedule an audition, contact Elizabeth Riddick at ​(501) 821-7275​ or email jeriddick@praeclara.org.

Weekend on 05/16/2019

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