New Student Edition 2006 - The Michigan Daily -11D Art on tap at Mitch's "I knew we shouldn't have asked for directions at that Amoco." For all of us with distant On the other hand, and on the other memories of Mitch's before side of campus, the museum's it closed down two years temporary space is best described as ago, we also mourn the eyesore snug - cozy enough that UMMA that still looms on the corner of will only display one special South University and exhibit at a time and South Forest avenues. none of its permanent While the oft-missed works. In contrast, the bar is moving across museum currently has the street its previous four special exhibits boarded-up second- on display, in addition story space remained to a portion of its own seemingly unoccupied collection. and abandoned. The smaller space That is until this also requires a different past June. That's when approach to the art of the University of art display. UMMA Michigan Museum of ALISON officials have decided Art moved in, at least Go not to fight the "urban" temporarily. atmosphere of the former The museum's permanent space, bar - brick walls, air ducts and Alumni Memorial Hall, which rests metal ceiling supports will be left prominently next to Angell Hall and exposed. The look, according to Tappan Hall, underwent a massive UMMA director James Steward, two-year expansion - so massive is reminiscent of an "industrial that the museum has closed its doors warehouse." to the public during construction. But not any ol' painting, mural or Meanwhile, UMMA and its sculpture will work in this temporary constituents are scattered all over space. To match its modern settings, campus. Its administration in UMMA has planned a series of the Rackham Building on East exhibitions all linked to perhaps the Washington Street, its permanent most contemporary of all media: collection in storage in various secret photography. (yes, secret) locations and finally, its The effort can be described as featured exhibitions is on display anything from obvious to genius, across the street from Village Corner but I also can't shake how perfect it and New York Pizza Depot. all is. The space itself, on a practical The space might seem like an odd level, is almost too good to be true fit for a museum, and it's certainly a - above-ground, only slightly off- departure from Alumni Hall. The campus, near parking and equipped oldbuilding's 15-foot ceilings,Beaux with a loading dock. Arts-style architecture and open-air And by exploiting the limitations feel make an adequate backdrop for of its new home, the museum can larger traditional pieces - such as now experiment with innovative the University's Monet acquisition ways of displaying progressive art. - and is as versatile as it is grand. Smaller in scale and less susceptible to unreliable climate control, photographs and moving images will complement the relatively claustrophobic site. It will also help usher in the next era for UMMA - one that will officiallybegin when its shiny new extension opens in 2008. In the meantime, standing in the clearlyunder-constructiontemporary space, I couldn't help but feela tinge of excitement. Steward talked about the newfound ability "to test out the modern aspects of the new building" and create a more inviting art scene. Although its huge windows are boarded up and the drywall was still stacked in piles on the floor, I could see exactly what he meant. The room clearly has the potential to attract average students walking to and from class - something the intimidating Alumni Hall has never been especially effective at doing. The museum will even extend its hours way past dusk - following the example of New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art, which has established itself as a viable and hip option for couples on dates. A little Pizza House, bubble tea, then a peek at the Iranian photography exhibit? The possibilities are endless. Although the space is only contracted to UMMA for two years (with the option for extension), Steward didn't write off the prospect that - if the timing, support and money all fall into place - this temporary location could be a permanent satellite gallery. Maybe couples in the class of 2015 will be taking their sweethearts to the museum instead of Palio for Valentine's Day. Not that I would know anything about that. See MITCH'S, Page 10D Savvy Depp redeems wild 'Pirates of Caribbean' sequel By Imran Syed Daily Arts Writer In the world of film, there are characters and then there are characters. The for- mer are many; they're the fellers who walk on and off the screen, Pirates of hardly noticed, forcing the audi- Caribbean: ence to squint during the credits Dead Man's just to find out their names. But Chest the latter - they're something special. They're the Indiana Disney Jones, Forrest Gump, Hannibal Lector types of guys that stick with you. They've got quirks that feel familiar, affecting personalities and inescapable grace and charm. You don't find too many of them these days, not in a time where blockbusters at multiplexes just make money and artful filmmaking is only minimally showcased on the side. But we stumbled upon one such character three years ago - and in a Disney movie based on a theme park ride at that. And now Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is back in the first of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" sequels, "Dead Man's Chest" While he remains a singular eccentric worthy of our admiration (if only for that lovably absurd sense of self-importance and pity), the sequel itself is simply more of the same - a good idea now stretched to its limits by too many characters, plot twists, wisecracks and cinematics, not to mention an exhausting 150-minute runtime. The sequel begins (proceeds, ends) in an odd, unpredictable manner. Just as they're about to be married, Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightly, "Pride & Prejudice") and Will Turner (Orlando Bloom, "King- dom of Heaven") are arrested, charged with helping the fugitive Sparrow escape (see the original film for those excellent exploits). Will cuts a deal with villain- in-wig Lord Beckett (Tom Hollander, "Pride & Preju- dice") to retrieve a treasure Jack carries with him in exchange for their release. What he doesn't know is that Jack has a deal to pay down himself, one that will lead to a showdown with the undead demon of the seas, Davy Jones (Bill Nighy, "Love Actually") and his crew of slimy, slea- zy fish-men. The epic struggle that results - for life, death and otherwise - tests the loyalties of our three heroes, pushes them to the brink and leaves them there, to be rescued next year by another sequel. Much of what made the original film an unex- pected success is present in the sequel, like har- rowing, mythic plotlines, high jinks and, of course, Jack Sparrow. But the greatest quality of the first film was its infectious fun - unexpected but genu- ine. But as is the nature of infections, they're only infectious for so long. See PIRATES, Page 10D 128th UMS SEASON UMS Student Ticket Programs Yorchance to get CHEAP TICKETS to see thworld's best music, dance and theater! 4 Easy Ways to Save! Half-Price Sales At the beginning of each semester, UMS offers half-price tickets to college students. A limited number of tickets are available for each event in select seating areas, and are sold on a first-come, first-served basis. Back by popular demand, this years' Half-Price Sales will be held online rather than in person. Watch this space for more details! Rush Tickets Rush Tickets, when available, are sold to college students at the Michigan League Ticket Office for $10 the day of the performance and for 50% off the regular ticket price at the door beginning 90 minutes before the show. UMS Student Cards The UMS Student Card is a pre-paid card for Rush Tickets,and can be used up to two weeks prior to the performance. UMS Student Cards are available at www.ums.org or at the Michigan League Ticket Office for $50/5 perfor mances or $100/10 performances. Arts & Eats UMS and Arts at Michigan have teamed up to combine all the things you love about college -- pizza, friends, educational guest speakers,and great entertainment --in one evening. Arts & Eats tickets are available for just $12 beginning ten days before the performance for select events throughout the season. Want more info? Check out our website at www.ums.org or stop by the Michigan League Ticket Office. U s 734.764.2538 www.ums.org ' ~Ticket Office Hours: M-F, 9am-5pm, S 10am-1 pm. Closed Sundays. s()Ctv I Master writing with reference books From interpreting Shakespeare's sonnets to composing a killer paper, our selection of grammar books, thesauri, and dictionaries will help you write with style. Order Your Textbooks Online Today www.whywaitforbooks.com Pierpont Commons Bookstore Pierpont Commons (North Campus) (734) 668-6022 Michigan Union Bookstore 530 S. State Street (734) 995-8877 www.umichigan.bkstore.com bksumichiganunion@bncollege.com