Elsewhere in entertainment, events and the arts:
FILM
Filmmaker residency
Memphis filmmaker Craig Brewer will screen two of his movies – “Hustle & Flow” (2005) and “The Poor & Hungry” (2000) – during a two-day Arkansas Cinema Society residency Friday-Saturday in the Performing Arts Theater at the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts, 501 E. Ninth St., Little Rock.
The “Hustle & Flow” screening will be at 6:30 p.m. Friday. Terrence Howard and Ludacris star in the story of a Memphis pimp experiencing a midlife crisis who attempts to become a successful hip-hop emcee with a little help from his friends. Admission is $20. Doors open at 6 p.m.
Brewer’s debut film, “The Poor & Hungry,” screens at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Eric Tate, Lindsey Roberts and Lake Latimer star in the story of a Memphis car thief who falls in love with one of his victims. Admission is $10. Doors open at 7.
Both films are recommended for mature audiences. Brewer will take part in question-and-answer sessions after each screening.
Brewer, who also helmed the 2011 remake of “Footloose,” the 2019 film “Dolemite Is My Name” and 2021’s “Coming 2 America,” will also teach a workshop on writing and directing, 4-5:30 p.m. Saturday. Admission is $20.
Visit arkansascinemasociety.org.
MUSIC
SoNA season
Pianist Lara Downes will be the soloist in the Symphony of Northwest Arkansas’ first-ever commission for a piano concerto, Aldo López-Gavilán’s “Oceans to Cross,” written for Downes, which will have its world premiere, 7:30 p.m. Jan. 20 in Baum Walker Hall at Fayetteville’s Walton Arts Center, 495 W. Dickson St.
The program will also include the Symphony No. 1 by Samuel Barber and the “Negro Folk Symphony” by William Dawson. Music Director Paul Haas conducts.
The orchestra’s 2023-24 MainStage Season kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 23 with Haas conducting Leonard Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from “West Side Story” and Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Symphony No. 2.
The rest of the lineup (except as noted, all performances at 7:30 p.m. in Baum Walker Hall with Haas conducting):
◼️ Oct. 28: “Haunted Harmonies: A Halloween Concert,” with guest conductor Lawrence Loh
◼️ Dec. 9: “A Very SoNA Christmas,” with area soloists, the SoNA Singers and collegiate choruses, 2 and 7:30 p.m.
◼️ Dec. 10: “The Snowman: A Family Concert,” live-to-screen soundtrack of the animated film, 2 p.m.
◼️ Feb. 17: Concertmaster Winona Fifield solos in the Violin Concerto No. 1 in g minor by Max Bruch. Also on the program: “Le boeuf sur le toît” (“The Bull on the Roof”) by Darius Milhaud and the Symphony No. 3 by Louise Farrenc
◼️ April 6: Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in d minor, op.125, with vocal soloists to be announced. Also on the program: “Fuga y Misterio” by Astor Piazzolla.
Season subscription packages are $196-$323; student subscriptions start at $50. Three- to five-concert sampler subscriptions start at $104. Individual tickets are $36-$61 ($10 for “The Snowman”) with discounts for students, free for children under 18 with the purchase of an adult ticket. Call (479) 443-5600 or visit sonamusic.org.
THEATER
AMFA shows
The Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts opens a season of plays with “Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About a Terrible Monster,” Sept. 29-Oct. 1 in the Performing Arts Theatre at the museum, 501 E. Ninth St., Little Rock.
The show, from Emmy Award-winning production company Manual Cinema and based on the books by Mo Willems, involves hundreds of illustrated paper puppets, two-dimensional props, furry monster puppets, live actors and songs, live on stage and also projected upon a big screen.
The rest of the lineup:
◼️ Nov. 3-4: The Fourth Wall Ensemble performs “Without a Net,” blending music, theater, dance and acrobatics to explore what would happen if Bach, Ravel and Gershwin ran off to join the circus. The Nov. 3 show will run 90 minutes; the Nov. 4 performance will have a “family-friendly” run time of 60 minutes.
◼️ Nov. 25-Dec. 23: The museum’s Children’s Theatre company produces “Corduroy” by Barry Kornhauser, based on Don Freeman’s picture book, with weekend and special school performances.
Ticket information is available at arkmfa.org/art/performing-arts/childrens-theatre.
AUDITIONS
‘Killer’ tryouts
The Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas will hold auditions, by appointment, for actors 15 and older for “Three Murders and It’s Only Monday” by Pat Cook, 6 p.m. Aug. 21 at the Adam B. Robinson Jr. Black Box Theater, 627 S. Main St., Pine Bluff. Performances are Oct. 27-29. Register and get more information at asc701.org/auditions or call (870) 536-3375.
The Fourth Wall Ensemble performs “Without a Net” Nov. 3-4 at the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts in Little Rock. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette/Leigh Savary)
Pianist Lara Downes and the Symphony of Northwest Arkansas will give the world premiere of Aldo López-Gaviláns “Oceans to Cross,” written for Downes and commissioned by the orchestra, Jan. 20 at Fayettevilles Walton Arts Center. (Special to the Democrat-Gazette/Max Barrett)
