Category: Arts & Culture

Why did junior English major Gregory Bates submit a story for the 2002 edition of Words & Images? “It was a logical step,” he said. “A little affirmation of your creative work is always good.” Words & Images is an annual collection of writings and art by USM students, faculty and regional artists.

There is a tiny pizza shop on India Street with unique style. Portland Pie Company’s goal is right on the back of their menu: To stand out from the thousands of other pizza shops in town, written by owners Steve Freese and Nat Getchell. They offer specialty pizzas that in my opinion top the rest.

“High Crimes” is the best film of the year, if one had never seen a movie before. However, if this were one’s second movie, he or she would dismiss it as riddled with cliches. The film has some ambition to rid itself of those cliches, but ultimately succumbs to the easier route of the thriller…

Monday, April 8 Lecture, “The Enigma of Diversity & Understanding Race,” Elaine Pinderhughes, author of “Understanding Race,” 7 to 8 p.m., Luther Bonney Auditorium, Portland, free and open to the public, 228-8024. Tuesday, April 9 USM Jazz Combos in concert, 7:30 p.

“Panic Room” is a suspenseful thriller with all the potential of slipping into banality, but keeps its footing because of the talented filmmaking behind it. In the film, Meg Altman, played wonderfully by Jodie Foster, is a recently divorced woman who moves into a Manhattan townhouse with her teenage daughter Sarah (Kristen Stewart).

Another opportunity for USM to be in the national spotlight has passed. Student organizers of Spring Fling 2002 had hoped to close a deal with entertainment giant Clear Channel to bring MTV’s Campus Invasion to the Gorham campus on Monday, April 29. The Free Press learned late Friday afternoon that all dates for MTV’s campus…

Braden Chapman may be the busiest man in Portland. His days are spent sewing 150 cubits of fabric for the stage on which he will perform a one-man version of “Hedwig and the Angry Inch.” He’s also going to need props, costumes, and a set. Don’t worry-he’s got that covered too.

An Old Port landmark, Three Dollar Deweys has been in Portland for 22 years. With 36 beers on tap and free popcorn, this stop is a haven for the after-work crowd. Located on the corner of Commercial and Union Streets, the pub is a convenient place to unwind at day’s end.

Words & Images hosts a day long event in conjunction with the University’s Celebrate Writers Festival, entitled Words & Images 2002: The Event, A Celebration of Maine’s Literary and Visual Creativity. The event, scheduled for this Friday, April 12 at the USM, will coincide with the release of the much-anticipated 2002 Edition of “Words &…

It’s a common adolescent fantasy to start a rock band with your best friends and travel from club to club in a beat-up old van. What happened to the members of Jeremiah Freed when fantasy became reality? “We bought a new van,” said Nick Goodale, the band’s lead guitarist.

Lin Lisberger’s intermediate drawing class is almost done for the day. There are eight students sitting or standing around the edges of a small room with no windows save four small skylights. The room’s track lighting is mostly focused on the two women resting in the middle of the floor.

In his latest film Josh Hartnett vows to give up sex for a torturous 40 days and 40 nights. This may sound like a harsh test for someone with his good looks, but for the rest of us it’s called existence. But regardless of its exaggerated dilemma, “40 Days and 40 Nights” is an amusing…

My taste buds were craving some spice last Tuesday, so I indulged in some Indian cuisine at Bombay Club on the corner of Congress and State Streets. This restaurant is a nice change from the bland, ordinary food I am accustomed to eating. My first Indian dining experience was truly “a culinary journey to the…

Tuesday, March 5 “The Thin Line,” one-woman play addressing eating disorders followed by a panel discussion, 2 p.m., Luther Bonney Auditorium. Sponsored by the Women’s Studies Student Organization. Free and open to the public, 780-4289. “Life on the Run,” exercise and diet workshop free and open to the public, March 5, 12 p.

By Scott Marcoux Arts and Entertainment Editor Greek blues returns to USM this week when DEPTAM, the Municipal Ensemble of Mytilene, Greece performs Saturday in the Corthell Concert Hall. The event, “Rembetika: The Greek Blues,” is another part of this year’s USM Convocation, “Diaspora: Meanings of Home.

Who ever heard of Little Red Riding Hood carrying a concealed weapon? Or Cinderella’s Prince being a cheating bastard? These classic fairy tales are brought to life with a contemporary twist by the Music School and Theater Department’s production of “Into the Woods.

Picking Oscar winners is not a logical process. Academy voters are schizophrenic in their choices and predicting their behavior is next to impossible. They will choose winners based on performance or throw away an Oscar because they think someone is old enough to get one.

I found another great breakfast stop that is quaint, cozy and full of flavors. The Friendship Cafe on Congress Street stands out with its bright yellow storefront and its friendly and refreshing pineapple trademark that decorates the place both inside and out.

Monday, Feb. 11 “You the Man,” Maine premiere of one-man show about domestic violence, by Portland-based playwright and social activist Cathy Plourde. 7 p.m. at Portland High School Auditorium. Sponsored by the Portland YWCA, and introduced by Portland Police Chief Mike Chitwood.

By Scott Marcoux Arts and Entertainment Editor The four women onstage are trying to be serious, but they keep breaking into giggles. Then one says something in French, and they lose themselves to laughter. One might expect a director to be frustrated with her performers’ progress, but instead Emmanuelle Chaulet smiles at the joke before…

The Vagina Monologues are back! The student-run production is being presented in accordance with V-Day, a college initiative to celebrate women and end sexual violence. The presentation is sponsored by the USM Women’s Resource Center and 10 percent of the proceeds will go to RAWA (Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afganistan), the rest towards…

“In the Bedroom” is one of the best films of the past few years. This work of art doesn’t pull tricks to shock or manipulate emotions, but meticulously creates a unique situation where the moviegoer isn’t passively watching, but becomes entangled in the complicated reactions characters confront after a horrible tragedy.

As it gets closer to Valentine’s Day, it’s good to know a restaurant with romantic and elegant dining. An Italian restaurant that exemplifies just that is located in Portland’s West End, hidden among the residential buildings along Congress Street. The Roma Caf? was founded in 1924 and moved from 489 Congress Street to its current…

Tuesday, Feb. 5 WMPG hosts Portland’s Homelessness Marathon, 24 hours of live programming from Monument Square, Portland featuring local activists dispelling myths associated with homelessness, starting at 9 a.m. Tuesday, WMPG 90.9 FM, 104.1 FM and http://www.