Whats-Happening: Page 596

Traditional Meets Contemporary

Mbaqanga, neuvo tango, slack key guitar and “The American South” welcome February

Music
Oliver Mtukudzi

After joining and then replacing the great Thomas Mapfumo in the Zimbabwean band Wagon Wheels in the late 1970s, Oliver “Tuku” Mtukudzi became one of Southern Africa’s most popular singers, rasping his uplifting lyrics in his native Shona language, as well as in Ndebele and English, over a bubbling beat of compulsively danceable mbaqanga and other African rhythms and American R&B-influenced grooves. Continue reading →

A Hairy Landscape

One reviewer, two plays: Hair and Landscape of the Body

Theater
Rebecca Lee and Anne Lupin in Landscape of the Body

Some things never change, especially in Eugene, where great pockets of time stop and drop into a sinkhole of self-fertilization. Look at our eternal perpetuation of hippie nostalgia, which has become a cottage industry in itself, for better and worse. Marx noted that all great historical moments — like the long-gone Age of Aquarius, for instance — occur twice, the first time as tragedy and the second as farce, and for those among us who forget that Easy Rider did not have a happy ending, a pair of plays currently in production carry a strong corrective message. Continue reading →

Arts Hound

Visual Arts

Oscar prep: Who has two hours for a movie anymore (or three hours, ahem, The Wolf of Wall Street)? Bijou Art Cinemas (on 13th) and the Bijou Metro (downtown) begin screening 2014 Oscar-nominated short films Jan. 31, including animated, live action and documentary films. EW picks: The Lady in Number 6 about Alice Herz Sommer, the world’s oldest pianist and Holocaust survivor at 109 years old; the Steampunk-inspired animated hijinx of Mr. Continue reading →

Thank Dog for Mike Birbiglia

Comedy
Mike Birbiglia

Birbiglia became the poster boy for REM (rapid eye movement) behavior disorder and self-deprecating laughs after cataloging his slumbering escapades (like jumping through a second-story window) in Sleepwalk With Me. Now, Birbiglia is on a 100-city tour — his biggest yet — for the new comedy special Thank God for Jokes; he’s still making the everyday hilarious, e.g., kissing is weird when you really think about it. EW caught up with the comedian on the road.   What’s on your mind today? Continue reading →

The Daddies Do Ballet

Eugene Ballet Company brings out the softer side of the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies with Zoot Suit Riot

Dance
EBC dancers Mark Tucker, Danielle Tomie and Reed Souther

The Eugene Ballet Company is perhaps best known for its professional approach to traditional ballets, perfecting performances like The Nutcracker for the past 32 years. Yet occasionally, artistic director Toni Pimble likes to shake things up by exploring a new artistic vision or collaboration. Following collaborations with bands The Freudian Slips, Pink Martini and The Jazz Kings, the EBC will team up with local boys the Cherry Poppin’ Daddies for Zoot Suit Riot, a visual storytelling told through dance and set to the tune of the band’s extensive musical cache. Continue reading →

Capitalism bares its teeth

Film

From his early career until now, director Martin Scorsese has been documenting the dark and devious side of The American Dream, where success achieved in bad faith leads to spectacular crashes and spiritual bankruptcy. Scorsese is obsessed with the Cinderella story in reverse, where the magic slipper shatters into killing shards of glass. Continue reading →

Nappy Roots Day

Jangly piano, minimalist beats, red-beans-and-rice-style hooks

Music
Nappy Roots

What’s the most informative debut album title, you ask? Why, 2002’s Watermelon, Chicken & Gritz, of course. The title says it all, and what better way to announce yourself in the hip hop scene than that? Take three racially charged foodstuffs, slap ’em on a sleeve and call yourself Nappy Roots. Yes folks, it’s that country rap you’ve loved since Birdman, Nelly or Ludacris first pimp-slapped your brain. Jangly piano, minimalist beats, red-beans-and-rice-style hooks: It’s all you’ve ever wanted from the dirty South and more. Continue reading →