“Slowly Becoming Awake”

Poet’s art on display this month at Manna Grocery and Deli: Tuscaloosa News – Sept. 1

Canvas images from a Tuscaloosa poet’s book of abstract six-color shape-writing will be on display throughout September at Manna Grocery and Deli. Hank Lazer, a semi-retired University of Alabama professor and former UA administrator, has written “Slowly Becoming Awake,” which features shape-writing works that include simple, typed transcriptions so readers can appreciate each for its visual elements, and also read simply for text..”

Fame At Any Cost

Gun problems, or a cultural one?: The Daily Courier – Sept. 2

Last week, in the latest U.S. mass shooting at a local  St. Louis high school’s school’s football jamboree, eight-year-old Jurnee Thompson was shot and killed. The child was described in the media as “an innocent bystander” and in a public statement the local police chief said “she had done nothing wrong.” Adam Lankford, a criminal justice professor at The University of Alabama, suggests that there is a link between school shootings and the American preoccupation with fame.  “There is a ‘fame at any cost’ mentality,” says Lankford, referring to the many mass killers who explicitly cite fame as their motivation.
Pentiction Herald
Morning Sun
The Oakland Press

UA Opera

University of Alabama opera has big plans for new season: Tuscaloosa News – Sept. 3

Though barely begun, Year 13 is already a big one for Paul Houghtaling, director of opera at The University of Alabama. Friday the professor and coordinator of voice for the UA School of Music found he had been named recipient of the Frederick Moody Blackmon-Sarah McCorkle Moody Outstanding Professor Award, one of the most prestigious given at the Capstone. He’s been nominated before, but heard the news just as he’s starting his 13th season at UA, having joined the faculty in 2007. It’s hardly his first honor here: In 2015 alone, he was chosen for the Morris Lehman Mayer Award, the Druid Arts Award for Music Educator of the Year, and Outstanding Commitment to Teaching Award, the latter given by UA’s National Alumni Association.

Perks of Aging

The perks of being an older adult: Ladders – Sept. 3

Christina Pierpaoli Parker is a fourth-year graduate student in the Clinical Geropsychology doctoral program at The University of Alabama, where she researches chronic illness, psychological health, and perceived usefulness in older adults. She also writes Eng(aging): A Millennial’s thoughts on age and aging for Psychology Today.

Birmingham Dancers

3 incredible male dancers you need to know in Birmingham: Bham Now – Sept. 4

Jamorris Rivers is a first-year Instructor of Ballet and Jazz at The University of Alabama, Resident Choreographer and Artistic Director of AROVA Contemporary Ballet in Birmingham, and the second male dancer we’re featuring…

“Cats”

Cat fantastic: “CATS” premieres at Bama Theatre: Crimson White – Sept. 5

This particular production of “CATS,” directed by Joey Lay, should be of note for, if nothing else, the four students of The University of Alabama who were cast to play various roles in the show: Cole Cabiness, Autumn Fuller, Bethany Knight and Tara Richardson. Being a dance-heavy show, and combined with a two-hour runtime, “CATS” has a reputation for being rather demanding of its performers. The show is less of a leisurely stroll and more of a marathon, one commenced at breakneck speed.

For the Weekend

Five things to do in Tuscaloosa this weekend: Tuscaloosa News – Sept. 6

The Paul R. Jones Gallery will host a reception Friday for an exhibit of works by a self-taught artist from Florida who depicted his life and what he saw in his Overtown community. The reception for “Purvis Young: Born in Liberty City” will be from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Paul R. Jones Gallery, 2308 Sixth St. The exhibit will feature 27 pieces by Young, selected by the Seiler Zaden Rimes Collection. The exhibit will remain on display through Oct. 25, from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily at the gallery.