Play that funky jazz...
Tonight and tomorrow night catch jazz
organist Joey DeFrancesco's fiery
performance at the Bird of Paradise. 9
and 11 p.m. $15 for students. 662-8310.
michigandaily.com /arts
IRTS
FRIDAY
DECEMBER 7, 2001
9
Amazin' Blue utilizes
new additions, sound
I
Get Up Kids hit the
Majestic with emo
By Jenni Glenn
Daily Arts Writer
Armed with new songs, new members and a
new show time, Amazin' Blue, the University's
oldest co-ed a cappella group, will perform its
Amazin'
Blue
Michigan Theater
Tomorrow at 5 p.m.
14th annual fall concert at
the Michigan Theater tomor-
row.
The concert, "Happy
Hour," showcases the group's
newest arrangements. The
new additions to its reper-
toire include a version of
Joni Mitchell's "River" and
"Father Figure" by George
Michael. Amazin' Blue also
will perform Air's "All I
Need," a "really fun, laid
back tune," said business
manager Marie Cheng, an
LSA junior.
the solos for the songs we are doing this year,"
she said.
Amazin' Blue also honed their sound with a
busy schedule of performances this semester,
Cheng said. The group has performed twice as
much this semester as they did during last year's
fall term.
The jobs prepared Amazin' Blue for its
upcoming concert. With this performance, the
members aim to master the sound system they
purchased two years ago. Amazin' Blue hopes to
reproduce the quality of their a cappella perfor-
mances at a louder volume with the equipment.
"One of the challenges is taking that extra step to
performing well with the sound system," she
said. "It's the first step to being a professional."
A change in the time of their concert inspired
the show's name, "Happy Hour," Cheng said.
Although Amazin' Blue typically performs at 7
or 8 p.ml in the evening, this show is pushed up
to 5 p.m. In spite of the change, Cheng said she
hopes attendance will top 1,000. Last year's
December show drew nearly 900 people, she
said. "The crowd at the show fuels Amazin'
Blue's energy," Cheng said.
"We all feel like divas and rock stars with our
wireless mics up on stage," she said. "You go out
there and just feel like a million bucks."
After being recognized for their achievements
by national a cappella organizations, the mem-
bers of the group feel a new energy going into
By Chris Lane
Daily Arts Writer
The Majestic Theatre's website
invites you out for a potluck of emo,
pop and punk with treats. provided by
The Get Up Kids. The event's tagline
ourtesy of Amazin' cBue
Amazin' Blue smiles pretty for the camera.
the show, Cheng said. Amazin' Blue recently
qualified for the quarterfinals of the Internation-
al Championships of Collegiate a Cappella, join-
ing fellow University groups the Compulsive
Lyres, the Dicks and Janes, Gimble and 58
Greene. The groups will compete at the Universi-
ty of Wisconsin in February except for Gimble,
which will compete at Penn State University.
In addition, an Amazin' Blue song, the Sun-
days' tune "She," was selected for inclusion on
the Best of College a Cappella 2002 album.
"Limp" by the Compulsive Lyres and the Dicks
and Janes' "Everything You Want" also will be
featured on the CD.
"I'm glad (the announcement) came right
before the concert because now we're roaring to
go," Cheng said.
The Get
Up Kids
Majestic
Sunday at 7 p.m.
release of Eudora,
boldly claims
that TGUK are
"The biggest
thing to come
out of Kansas
City since
Robert Altman
or barbecue."
But more
specifically,
TGUK is the
best band to
come out of
Kansas City ...
ever.
With the
which spans six
Cheng said Amazin' Blue staples such as
"More than Words" by BBMak and Patty Grif-
fin's "Forgiveness" also will be featured.
The fall concert will offer 'the group a chance
to show off its three new members, Josh Duchan,
Chelsea Krombach and Tobias Singer. Cheng
said the new singers joined with a lot of existing
musical experience, which improved the group
overall. "They already have snagged a couple of
friendship, break-up and make-up
that characterize their music. In
accordance with emo law, most of the
songs are about intimacy and person-
al relationships. Let no one deny it,
girlfriends are very capable muses.
But unlike most emo bands, TGUK's
songs are so tightly conceived, so lay-
ered with intelligence and sensitivity
that the arrow hits the bull's-eye every
time. That is, your cold and jaded
heart will have no chance. The butter-
flies will storm your ventricles and
flutter in your loins. And you will
sing along, even if you don't know
the words to "Anne Arbour" or "Out
of Reach." And you will be smitten.
Oh yes ... Cupid will definitely be in
the house.
But emotional sensitivity is not all
that will appetr. The most identifiable
trait of a TGUK show is fun. The
Kids are just foot tapping, teeth-click-
ing fun. Frontman Matthew Pryor and
his perfect pitch share the stage
equally with the rest of the band like
it's a bunch of friends jamming
together in their basement. James
Dewees' spastic piano and Jim Sup-
tic's quick drum fills are both amaz-
ing and hilarious to watch. The entire
band participates in the playing of the
show and compels the audience to
sing along and just have a good time.
So get yourself, your friends and
definitely your girl or boyfriend down
to the Majestic, Sunday at 7 p.m. to
share in all this love. Look for songs
from their upcoming album, especial-
ly "Wish You Were Here." Despite the
cliched title, the song is a sweet lulla-
by in the tradition of "Valentine," and
"My Apology." Indie-rock darlings
The Anniversary and Appleseed cast
are the opening acts. Tickets are $15,
and the show is all ages.
Project Greenli~ght is a go for Jones
years of 7's, EP's and other trappings
of "broke and undiscovered" rock,
the Kids pack the van once again for
their first headlining tour in over a
year. TGUK have spent most of
recent memory opening up for Green
Day and Weezer, serenading the
arena theatre world.
True, the Kids of late have
increased their pop sensibilities. The
brash punk of 1997's Woodson seems
almost immature when compared to
the deft melodies of Something to
Write Home About. But, in TGUK's
case, the pop polish has actually
resulted in shine, and not gloss. Think
Bleach to Nevermind, as opposed to
Pinkerton to The Green Album.
But the Kids truly belong in a
smaller venue. Big enough to hold
their devout fan base, yet intimate
enough to retain those echoes of
By Jennifer Fogel
Daily Arts Editor
Once again fairy tales can come
true. Over a year
Project
Greenlight
HBO
Sunday at 10 p.m.
ago, Oscar win-
ners Ben
Affleck and
Matt Damon
created Project
Greenlight, an
Internet compe-
tition for
screenwriters.
The winner of
the competition
(chosen from
over 10,000
scripts) would
receive a $1
million budget
to direct and
7.
screen a scene they directed from
their respective scripts. For most of
the 10, "just being nominated was
enough." But for some, Project
Greenlight was their final chance to
break into the business. Coming
from all different backgrounds with
only the love of film in common,
the 10 were on a whirlwind mission
to convince Affleck, Damon, pro-
ducer Chris Moore ("Good Will
Hunting," "American Pie") and pro-
duction execs from Miramax that
their script was the best.
Initially, what was a chance to
give the average Joe a shot, quickly
turned into a debate over what
makes for good filmmaking. Choos-
ing the best director and the best
script seemed almost impossible for
the judges to make, as most of the
scenes were either well directed or
well written. After a Hollywood-
style premiere for the contestants,
full of the usual pomp and circum-
stance, the 10 were whittled down
to three. Eventually, after an intense
eight-hour review and a heart-
pounding speech, Jones came out
the winner.
What makes "Project Greenlight"
interesting, and a far cry from the
documentary-stylings of DVD
extras, is the extreme amount of
Hollywood bashing featured in the
show. Playing upon various Holly-
wood stereotypes, contestants sent
in biography videos a la "The Real
World," each in some small way
incorporating familiar films, TV
shows (particularly "Survivor") and
industry antics (read: We'll do
lunch). While it is plainly obvious
what is at stake for each writer,
"Project Greenlight" comes across
as a chance for Affleck and Damon
to flex some star muscle, continual-
ly making cracks at the Miramax
execs as they debate the essence of
this one-time "small" studio. Mira-
max has suddenly become too good
for its indie roots.
Eventually the series will provide
an uncerdored look at Jones' exas-
perated journey to produce his film,
a story about life, families and the
power of a child's faith. Snide
remarks about his inexperience, an
exploding budget, pressure from the
studio and constant script changes
all impede his progress. Jones'
wide-eyed innocence doesn't last
long when he is forced to get his
hands dirty and fight for his vision
every step of the way.
With the dynamic duo as his
guide (well; maybe Affleck takes
more of an interest), Jones recently
completed shooting "Stolen Sum-
mer," which stars Aidan Quinn,
Kevin Pollak, Brian Dennehy and
Bonnie Hunt. The behind-the-
scenes look at the time and effort
put into the production of a film is
educational for any who are con-
templating venturing into the wild
produce the script, a guaranteed dis-
tribution deal through Miramax and
a chance to live a dream. Last year,
after an emotional deliberation, Pete
Jones was given the chance of a
lifetime. In conjunction with Jones'
movie debut this Spring, HBO airs
"Project Greenlight," a 13-episode
documentary series chronicling the
making of Jones' film, "Stolen
Summer."
Last Sunday night, "Project
Greenlight" debuted with two back-
to-back episodes depicting the
intense competition between the top
10 contestants as they journeyed to
Los Angeles earlier this year to
Hollywood unknown. For those
without the slightest inkling, "Pro-
ject Greenlight" is still worth your
time, taking you on a passionate
journey where the ordinary is sud-
denly thrust into the extraordinary,
and one man gets to balk the Holly-
wood system.
Congratulations Wolverines
and Welcome to
Orlando's Citrus Bowl Party Headquarters
Chilerw, r
MNBg I1G3ANeoyrewery
Latitudes W -Y.
For more info on party reservations contact Chris at:
cmeyer@cseorlando.com
33 West Church Street Downtown Orlando 407-649-4270
Carol.5ervice
Join us for our annual service of carol
singing and hearing the Scriptures of
Advent and the birth of Christ Jesus.
Sunday, December 9th
7pm, 1001East Huron
C our tsy - i re i
Matt and Ben doing their acting thing.
I
Artists use abstract
*art to re-examine
everyday objects
By Autumn Brown
Daily Art Writer
If asked to identify an abstract
painting, most people will readily
point to one of Picasso's works or Sal-
vador Dali's "Persistence of Time."
Although cubism
A Matter
of Degree
Museum of Art
Through January 27
and surrealism are
the unmistakable
norm in the
world of abstract
art, limiting the
definition of
abstraction to
these two move-
ments is a grave
fallacy.
The exhibit,
"A Matter of
D e g r e e:
Abstraction in
Twentieth Cen-
tury Art" at the
University's
wood, wool and spray paint. Dubuffet
used a sand-mixed-into oil technique
to present his message of the irony of
beauty in his work "Souirire" or "The
Smile." Finally, the soft blending of
various skin colors in the painting of
an agoraphobic woman bathing titled,
"Femme assise dans sa baignore,"
evokes the idea of passivity character-
istic of several of the pieces in the
exhibit.
One of the more easily-recognizable
artists, Andy Warhol, took his
reserved position as the feature attrac-
tion in the exhibit. The broad variety
of his works brags inconspicuously of
Warhol's ability to master an extensive
range of subject matter, ranging from
his depiction of the glamorous idol in
"Marilyn Monroe" to contemplation
of death and suffering in "The Electric
Chair."
The common theme throughout the
exhibit appears to be the artists' desire
to challenge the observer. For
instance, at first glance, "Untitled
(Torso)," by Kiki Smith, seems to be
nothing more than a display of blatant
sexuality. With further observation,
CA NTERL3URY
HOUSE
PERFORMANCE
SERIES
Every Saturday evening join the
Canterbury House for an eclectic mix of
Ann Arbor's best sound art, free jazz,
contemporary classical and new music.
Dlec. 1
DANN FRIEDMAN
AND GEOFFREY ESTY
Jazz anid beyondc
Dec. 8
THE SILVER MEASURE
AND PIOTOR MICHALOWSKI
Mixed media and Improvisation
Dec. 14
BRYAN PARDO
Graduate recital
Dc. 15
COLIN MEEK
Contemporary cello duets
Dec. 22 & 29
NO CONCERT
Shows start prnsMmsiion is $5,
$3 for Stulerv5, wMth proce eiet rig
the Ann /Arhor Huniger Coalition.
JAZZ MASS
Sunday eveningo at ip m, alternative worship
featuring the music of Suni Ka, Mingus, coltrane
and orhers5, with live music by Stephen Kush
and QO' rtex
Progressive Christianity:
Open, Curious, LG3 T Friendly
Courtesy of UMMA
Ben Nicholson's "Still Life."
PJYS
RECORDS &
USED CDS
617 Packard
Upstairs from
Subway
Paying $4 to $6
for top CD's in
top condition.
Also buying
premium LP's
Museum of Art, challenges observers
to re-examine seemingly simple art-
work, such as still life and watercolor,
in the context of abstraction.
The *vorks displayed in the exhibit
L