Star City Blog / Theatre & Film

'Trucker' @ The Ross

Excellent performances by Michelle Monaghan and Nathan Fillion, as well as keenly-observed details of small town life, elevate TRUCKER, an incredibly accomplished, tightly contained, remarkably thoughtful, and enormously moving piece of cinema, opening at The Ross on Friday, November 20.
 
“There are so many wonderfully unconventional things to like about this tiny independent film, Monaghan's earthy and uncompromising performance chief among them, its depth surprising you at every turn,” opines Betsy Sharkey, film critic for the Los Angeles Times.
 
Roger Ebert writes, “TRUCKER is a wonderful new movie, with a career-changing performance by Michelle Monaghan.”  Bestowing TRUCKER with 4 Stars, he continues, “Her performance clearly deserves an Oscar nomination.”

UNL’s University Theatre Presents Shakespeare's 'King Lear'

University Theatre presents KING LEAR by William Shakespeare in a split run, due to the Thanksgiving holiday, November 19- 20 & December 2, 3, 4, 5 at 7:30 p.m. and November 22 at 2:00 p.m. in Howell Theatre, first floor Temple Building, 12th & R streets. Tickets are available at the Lied Center Ticket Office, 301 N. 12th Street, 11:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and one hour prior to performances in Temple Theatre's Lobby.

Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy of the downfall of two noble families torn apart by a complex web of familial loyalty, greed, treachery and betrayal, is brought to the stage starring guest Actors’ Equity Association actor Steven Patterson as King Lear.  

Lincoln Community Playhouse Presents ‘Reefer Madness! The Musical’

The Lincoln Community Playhouse kicks off its Gallery Series with the production of REEFER MADNESS! THE MUSICAL, directed by Shawn Carlson. REEFER MADNESS opens on Friday, November 13th at 7:30pm in the Studio Theatre. Shows continue November 14 – 15 and 19 - 22, 2009. Curtain time for Thursday – Saturday performances is 7:30pm, with matinee performances at 2:00pm on Sundays.

REEFER MADNESS! THE MUSICAL, inspired by the original 1936 film of the same name, is a raucous musical comedy that takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the hysteria caused when clean-cut kid, Jimmy Harper, falls prey to marijuana, leading to a hysterical downward spiral filled with evil jazz music, sex and violence.

Enjoy Movie Talk: 'Coco Before Chanel' with Rhonda Garelick at the Ross

Visit the Ross and take part in Movie Talk: COCO BEFORE CHANEL with Rhonda Garelick on Sunday, November 15 at 3:30 p.m, following the 1:40 p.m. screening of COCO BEFORE CHANEL.

Admission to the Movie Talk is free and open to the public. Admission for COCO BEFORE CHANEL is at regular Ross prices. The Movie Talk series is sponsored by the Friends of the Ross.

'An Education' @ The Ross

Opening at The Ross on Friday, November 20, AN EDUCATION is a charming coming-of-age tale powered by the strength of relative newcomer Carey Mulligan’s standout performance.
 
Roger Ebert writes in the Chicago Sun-Times, “[Mulligan] makes the role luminous when it could have been sad or awkward.”  He continues, “She has such lightness and grace, you're pretty sure this is the birth of a star.”
 
“AN EDUCATION, one of 2009's finest motion pictures – [is] an open and honest look at sexual politics and a woman's place in the world during the early1960s,” according to James Berardinelli, film critic for Reelviews.com.

Madonna to Host Final Public Showings of 'Pathways' Before Film Festival Circuit

Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital is hosting two showings of the documentary PATHWAYS before the film is submitted national film festivals. The showings are free and open to the public. Guests will enjoy tours of newly renovated therapy areas and refreshments following the film.

The film will show at these times:

Sunday, November 8, 2009
1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
 
Saturday, November 14, 2009
10 a.m. to Noon
 
at Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital
5401 South St.
Lincoln, Nebraska
RSVP to Sherry Taylor at staylor@madonna.org or call 402-483-9524.

PATHWAYS follows the journeys of four individuals — Alexis, Derek, Mandy and Christian — as they find their way from the tragedy of brain injury to new hope through rehabilitation. Though each person is unique, with different types of injury, they all share the same path toward recovery.

View the trailer here.

 

Show Adjustments for 'You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown'

Due to the Husker game this week, the schedule for You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown is as follows: 

Thursday & Friday at 7:30 pm / Sunday at 2:00pm  

Next week (Nov.12-15): Thursday, Friday & Saturday at 7:30 pm / Added matinee Saturday, the 14th at 2:00pm / Sunday at 2:00pm  

The show concludes the week of Nov. 19-22.  

Charlie Brown Getting Rave Reviews!

Theatrix Continues its 2009-2010 Season with the Funky Comedy 'Speech and Debate'

Theatrix, the student theatre organization under the auspices of the Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film (JCSTF) continues it’s 2009-2010 season with Stephen Karam’s SPEECH AND DEBATE, a glimpse into the life of three high school teens as they fight stereotypes and make discoveries of sexuality and identity.

SPEECH AND DEBATE unites three high school teenagers around a sex scandal at their Salem, Oregon high school. As the plot thickens their secrets become bartering tools and an unlikely friendship begins to form between these misfits. Exploring themes of sexual orientation and personal identity Karam makes intimate and complex observations of adolescence and the difficulties faced by the modern American teen.

'Crude' @ The Ross

Three years in the making, this riveting new documentary, CRUDE, opening at The Ross on Friday, November 13, from acclaimed filmmaker Joe Berlinger (Brother's Keeper, Paradise Lost, Metallica: Some Kind of Monster), tells the epic story of one of the largest and most controversial legal cases on the planet.
 
“A legal thriller, [CRUDE is] a three-year investigation into the disaster environmentalists call the “Amazonian Chernobyl” that offers both sides of the story and leaves the viewer in the position of jury,” according to Liam Lacey, film critic for The Globe and Mail.

Review of 'You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown' at the TADA Theatre

By Sarah F. Sullivan

It was a dismal, rainy evening that brought audiences to the doors of the TADA Theatre for the opening night of You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. However, nobody seemed to mind. In fact, everyone’s spirits seemed to lift when they saw the set as they took their seats in the cozy theatre.

There was Lucy’s Psychiatric Booth, Snoopy’s doghouse, Charlie Brown’s porch and the brick wall where so many philosophical conversations took place amongst the Peanuts gang. It was so strange to see the settings of such a beloved comic strip rendered into a tangible, 3D set (designed by Dustin Witte). Seeing the bright stage and hearing the classic jazz music (played during Peanuts television specials) pushed everyone’s gloomy thoughts away and prepared them for an evening of fun and laughter.