A&E

ARTifacts

WHAT:"Yerres, Effect of Rain," Gustave Caillebotte (1875, French)

Graduate student and writer debuts first novel

The back of the novel describes it as "A Nabokovian goof on Agatha Christie; a madcap mystery in the deceptive tradition of 'The Crying of Lot 49;' The Third Policeman meets 'The Da Vinci Code.'" Confused yet? Then you're right on track.

Transformed

Daniel Shirley and Bethany Barber perform in a series of plays during "Transformations," an opera based on the book by Anne Sexton, Friday night at the Buskirk-Chumley.

Ellen DeGeneres repeats sweep of Daytime Emmys

LOS ANGELES -- Ellen DeGeneres swept the Daytime Emmy awards, winning best talk show host for the second time and earning talk show honors for the third consecutive year.

Nintendo for the brain

What if Nintendo was good for your brain? Video games would improve things other than your hand-eye coordination. Perhaps parents would encourage kids to use them to keep their brains sharper than those of non-users.

US ARTIST IMMIGRATION CONTEST

US ARTIST IMMIGRATION CONTEST -- Japanese sculptor Nao Matsuomoto works on a figure made of tape after fashioning another from chewing gum and ramen noodles, foreground, in his space at White Box, an art and performance space, April 25, in New York. Matsuomoto is one of 10 emerging artists from around the world participating in AsylumNYC, a project conceived by Berlin-based Wooloo Productions, who invited the artists to apply for "creative asylum" at White Box April 24-29, while the space is converted into a "detention center." During that time the artists are not permitted to leave the space and were stripped of all supplies they brought from home. At week's end, one artist will be selected to receive free assistance from an immigration lawyer to be able to remain legally in the United States. The project was developed to call attention to immigrants' difficulties and asylum-seekers worldwide.

Southern rappers use dance to sell music

BATON ROUGE, La. -- Some people dance for entertainment. Some dance for self-expression. Some do it for money and fame.

Art trafficking network uncovered

ROME -- Italian prosecutors on Wednesday named a New York art gallery as a key link in what they say was a vast conspiracy to market stolen artifacts that allegedly involved a former J. Paul Getty museum curator on trial here.

Alum shows film

An award-winning film by an IU graduate was recently mentioned in Grammy magazine and on the 2006 Grammy ballot. The film will be shown at 7 p.m. in Ballantine 109.

Vera Bradley booms

FORT WAYNE -- Inside a bustling warehouse, new hires at Vera Bradley Designs practice stitching paisley placemats and pink coin purses in patterns with names like Petal Pink and Chelsea Green. Nearby, others slice swatches of bold pink, blue and green quilted fabric destined to become handbags, purses and luggage.

TINY DANCERS

IU's Straight No Chaser celebrates 10 years of being All-a-chord

For the past 10 years, IU's only men's a cappella singing group has been gracing venues across the nation with its harmonized sound. The student-run group was founded in 1996 by Dan Ponce. Since then, Straight No Chaser has molded itself into IU's premier men's singing group, said junior Tyler Trepp, Straight No Chaser member and music director. The current group consists of nine members, who have formed a steady fan base by performing twice a week at various fraternities, sororities and other groups on campus, in addition to performing at other universities and off-campus events. Straight No Chaser will perform its spring concert celebrating its ten-year anniversary 8 p.m. Saturday at the IU Auditorium.

TINY DANCERS

Friends make the fashion happen

Everybody's art

Actresses' press makes pregnancy glamourous for all

NEW YORK - Like any expectant mother, Kai Walter, six months pregnant, has lots to get done before the big day. One of her most important errands: an upcoming trip to the West Coast, where she has an appointment to take off her clothes and be photographed. Not for some magazine cover, a la Demi Moore, but for her own personal collection of pregnancy memories. The idea is to artistically capture her blossoming belly in all its glory, something more and more women are doing these days. Or they might be making a plaster "belly cast" of their changing form. Or even consulting a "pregnancy stylist" to map out a cool, midriff-baring maternity wardrobe.

Union Board's 'Porn Week' aims to explore lucrative industry

Looking for something interesting to engage your attention the week before finals? Porn Week, which is being presented by the Union Board, runs April 27, 28 and 29 in the Whittenberger Auditorium at the Indiana Memorial Union. The event includes the screening of one pornography-themed movie each night at 7 p.m. The three movies include two documentaries -- "Pornstar: The Legend of Ron Jeremy" and "Inside Deep Throat" -- and "Orgazmo," a comedy. The screenings are free with a student ID and $2 for non-students.

Student composers and dancers collaborate for performance

Three days before their biggest performance of the semester, student dancers were just as excited about rehearsing as performing. Dance major and sophomore Maureen Maryanski said Monday night at her practice in the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation building that she loves coming to class everyday. "I genuinely love to dance," she said. "I'd be just as happy dancing in a room all by myself, just me." Dancers rehearsed with student choreographers who have worked all semester for the culminating concert 7 p.m. tonight at the John Waldron Arts Center. The concert, titled "Hammer and Nail" is free and open to the public, with a short reception following the performance.

Musicians prepare for emotional Jazz Fest in New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS -- There will be one less stage, one less day of music and 100 fewer performers, but one thing this year's New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival will not lack is emotion. The annual fete, started in 1970, will mark the return of hundreds of the city's musicians for the first time since Hurricane Katrina struck Aug. 29, laying waste to much of the Big Easy. And with a Louisiana-heavy lineup accented with a landmark collection of giants including Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, Bruce Springsteen and Fats Domino, performers and organizers alike say they expect raw sentimentality from everyone involved.

'Transformations' juxtaposes fairy tales, opera

Friday night promises to be bittersweet and poignant for singers and audiences of the IU Department of Opera Studies, as it stages a production of Conrad Susa's "Transformations," a thoughtful and reflective opera composed of a collection of fairy tales adapted from author Anne Sexton's poems. Transformations is at 8 p.m. Friday at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. Admission is free and open to all. Throughout her life, Anne Sexton battled a number of psychological and emotional issues, including depression, conflicting feelings concerning her own sexuality and pressures to live out the American dream, according to an e-mail from Scott Voyles, the production's conductor. As she fought her personal demons, Sexton found refuge in writing, and from her literary endeavors emerged "Transformations," a collection of fairy-tale poems in which she strove to come to terms with the events of her life and to reach a state of mental peace and contentment with the lifetime memories that haunted her, he said.