The Small Screen

Lines

Answer: Premieres 8 p.m. Saturday,
Aug. 8. Question: What's Rock &
Roll Jeopardy? The spinoff of the ven-

Writer/comedian Dean Haglund,
who plays the recurring role of Langly,
one of the "Lone Gunmen" on the
"X-Files," brings his own brand of
humor to the stage 8:15 and 10:45
p.m. Friday and Saturday, Aug. 14 and
15, at Joey's Comedy Club.
$12/$24.95 dinner-show packages.
Paisano's, 5070 Schaefer Road, Dear-
born. (313) 584-8885.

On The S

e

The Warren Civic Theatre presents
Jesus Christ Superstar 8 p.m. Fridays
and Saturdays, Aug. 7-8 and 14-15,
and 2 p.m. Sundays, Aug. 9 and 16,
in the Warren Woods Auditorium at
the corner of 12 Mile Road and
Schoenherr. The Andrew Lloyd Web-
ber/Tim Rice rock-opera includes a
high energy cast of 130. $4-$10. (810)
751-8080.
The Performance Network show-
cases Shivaree, starring Zehra Berk-
mann and Jeffrey Steiger, in a probing,
funny, heart-warming tale of a shut-in
hemophiliac who falls in love with a
belly dancer. 8 p.m. Thursdays-Satur-
days, Aug. 13-15 and 20-22, and 2
p.m. Sundays, Aug. 16 and 23. 408
W. Washington, Ann Arbor. $9-
$15/pay what you can Thursdays.

Ska Sounds

S

ax player and flutist Fred
Reiter sometimes thinks of
the hora when he plays ska,
the Jamaican music that
evolved into reggae and early rock
and carries strains of R&B and swing.
Reiter's group, the six-member
New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble,
thinks of itself as a dance band and
brings its beat to the Magic Bag for
the second time at 8 p.m. Thursday,
Aug. 13.
The group, which also has per-
formed at other Michigan clubs, has
just returned from its second Euro-
pean tour.
Besides playing songs written by its
own members, which have been
recorded on three CDs, the group
will :, cro more traditional while back-
ing up Laurel Aitken, dubbed the
godfather of ska.
"The sounds of ska and the sounds

Right: U.S. Poet Laureate
Robert Pinsky's National
Favorite Poem Project is saluted
with Brunch at Borders.

of the hora are definitely relate , •
said Reiter, in the know after launch-
ing his career at bar mitzvah parties
and recently recalling those numbers
while entertaining at his sister's wed-
ding.
"Ska is lots of fun because it's
dance music. We want everyone to
have a real good time movin' and
groovin' with the music."
Dancers don't have to worry about
learning steps or style when keeping
up with ska moods. From simple
knee bending to energetic hip-hop-
ping, anything goes.
A lot of the Magic Bag show
will include numbers from the
band's latest CD, Get This, now
58 on the college hit charts. It
has been released on Moon
Ska Records in the United

The New York Ska-Jazz Ensemble,
with, at far right, Fred Reiter:
"The sounds o f ska and the sounds of
the hora are efinitely related," he says.

The Southfield Centre for the Arts
exhibits the paintings of Bloomfield
Township resident Fran Wolok
through Aug. 21. A member of the
Birmingham Bloomfield Arts Center
and influenced by the Abstract Expres-
sionists, Wolok employs imaginative
brush strokes and a keen sense of color
to interpret space. The exhibition is
free. 24350 Southfield Road, South-
field. (248) 424-9022.

Whatnot

Above: Doug Jacobs and his Red
Garter Band perform Sunday in
Oak Park.

(734) 663-0681.
The Macomb Center's Summer
Scene features Steel Magnolias, the
touching comedy about the lives of six
women who face love and mortality, 8
p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, Aug. 14-
15 and 21-22, and 3 p.m. Sunday,
Aug. 23. 44575 Garfield Road, Clin-
ton Twp. $12 adults/$10 students and
seniors. (810) 286-2141.

The Art Scene

erable game show — sans Alex Tre-
beck — debuts in its regular timeslot
on VH1.
Live from Broadway, Jerry Seinfeld
appears in an HBO special 9 p.m.
Sunday, Aug. 9, titled "I'm Telling You
for the Last Time," in which he'll
"retire" his old repertoire of stand-up
jokes.

tares and Grover in Germany.
"This recording is a little more
commercial than the others," Reiter
said. "We do the Aretha Franklin
song 'See Saw,' and there's generally
more singing."
Reiter, 38, came up with two songs
for the jazz-infused third release.
"Moby Dick" has a chat lyric, a style
that's pure ska, with words taken

Borders Book Shop's 1 p.m. Sun-
day, Aug. 9, Special Poetry Discussion
Brunch honors U.S. Poet Laureate
Robert Pinsky's National Favorite
Poem Project, which is compiling an
audio and video archive of many
Americans reading aloud poems they
love. Community members are invited
to read aloud their favorite published
poem, and a discussion will follow.
Refreshments will be served. No
charge. 31150 Southfield Road, Birm-
ingham. (810) 644-1515.
The Ford Montreux Detroit Jazz
Festival seeks volunteers to work
behind the scenes Thursday, Sept. 3,
through Monday, Sept. 7, Hours are
flexible. (313) 962-4312.

from the classic tale. "Arachnid" is
strictly a dance tune.
The previous recording, Low Blow,
featured seven original cuts plus cov-
ers that ranged from Coltrane's
"Naima" to The Crusaders "Yo'
Mama."
"We'll really be doing two shows at
the Magic Bag — ours and the one
with Aitken," Reiter said.
Aitken, who brought ska from
Jamaica to England, has a long-stand-
ing recording career, performing all
styles of Jamaican music. He also
appeared in the mod film Absolute
Beginners with David Bowie.

—

Suzanne Chessler

The New York Ska-Jazz
Ensemble will perform
Thursday, Aug. 13, at the
Magic Bag, 22920 Wood-
ward, Ferndale. Doors at 8.
$10. (248) 544-3030.

8/7
1998

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