Friends of the Animal Shelter Foundation sent a letter to City Manager Tom Markus this month, saying that it plans to begin a $1 million capital campaign this summer.

The city is in the design phase for what is estimated to be a 12,225-square-foot, $3 million facility. The city’s old animal shelter was flooded in 2008 and the Iowa City Animal Care and Adoption Center has been working out of a temporary home since then.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has committed $1.4 million toward the shelter, which is to be built on Napoleon Lane on the south side.

A major financial commitment from the Friends of the Animal Shelter Foundation has long been part of the plans for a new facility.

In the letter, the organization said it expects to give the city $200,000 a year for five years, starting in June 2013.

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Famed satirical writer David Sedaris will be performing at the IMU Main Lounge on November 11th in Iowa City

SCOPE Productions, AEG Live, and Iowa Public Radio have proudly announced a forthcoming show from famed humor writer David Sedaris to take place on Wednesday, November 11th in the IMU Main Lounge.

Known for his immediately recognizable sardonic wit and incisive social critiques, David Sedaris has made a living crafting intelligent and humorous satirical pieces that offer a refreshingly clear observation of the current social condition.

Sedaris is the author of Barrel Fever (1994), Naked (1997), Holidays on Ice (1997), Me Talk Pretty One Day (2000), Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim (2004), and When You Are Engulfed in Flames (2008), all of which have become New York Times Best Sellers. In 2010, Sedaris released an anthropomorphic collection of stories, Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary.

As of 2008, Sedaris has sold over seven million copies of his books.

General public tickets are now available in the University Box Office, located in the Iowa Memorial Union where students can U-Bill tickets, and all Ticketmaster locations. For additional information regarding SCOPE Productions, please visit http://www.scopeproductions.org.

This year's Iowa Arts Festival is set to take place June 1-3 in downtown Iowa City

Iowa City’s Summer of the Arts is set for its famous Iowa Arts Festival happening June 1-3. Having undergone a variety of changes in styles and events, the focus on arts and culture has remained the same since the festival’s inception. The weekend long, award winning festival features over 125 local and national artists, live music and entertainment on two stages,  a Global Village for kids to learn about other countries and cultures, Children’s Day featuring activities and entertainment geared toward kids, a Culinary Row serving regional and ethnic foods, and new this year an Emerging Artist Area featuring upcoming student artists.

The Iowa Arts Festival kid’s activities are educational and fun, featuring puppets, crafts, music and dance. On Saturday, kids can pick up a passport and tour the Global Village traveling from country to country, all in one day. Families can listen to great music and dance to tunes from all over the world. Children’s Day on Sunday features over 18 booths of hands-on activities, crafts and learning experiences presented by area businesses and groups.

Be sure to come hungry! Culinary Row features local and national food vendors with a global flavor. Roam about munching on some of the area’s best foods from traditional, Indian and African fare to good old fashioned Barbecue.

This year’s festival features an exciting lineup of artists, musicians and food vendors.

For a full schedule of this year’s festival, please visit: http://www.summerofthearts.org/festival-menu/arts-festival/schedule.aspx

Iowa City School District officials are planning a vocational career class and developing partnerships with local restaurants and businesses as part of the ProStart program, a national course that instructs high-school students in skills as chefs, managers, and restaurant owners.

Joan Vandenberg, the district’s youth and family-development coordinator, said the internship would be the first of its kind in the Iowa City schools.

“I think this is a brilliant idea. It brings real world experiences to the classroom,” Vandenberg said. “I wish we had more like it in the district.”

Owners of Basta, Atlas, and Jimmy Jack’s Rib Shack restaurants have met with high-school officials to outline plans for the internship.

Jeffrey Adams, the general manager at Jimmy Jack’s, said he believes the restaurant’s atmosphere would work well with the program.

“I think that Jimmy Jack’s is definitely a learning environment,” Adams said. “That’s what we strive for, that we take the time to teach all of our employees, and that’s what we’d do with our interns.”

While students would not earn any wages directly for their 400 hours of training at the restaurants, they would receive seven credit hours if they continue on and join Kirkwood’s culinary program and also receive certification from the National Restaurant Association.

“The idea is to get the experience, and have the hands on and hopefully in the end, end up with the paying position,” Tate High Principal Will Hollander said.

Currently, plans go beyond just culinary work.

“There’s the management side of it, cooking, learning to interact, present, describe meals as a chef would — those are the aspects that come to mind immediately,” Hollander said. “The goal — besides training and educating kids — is to have that direct tie with industry and also that hands-on experience.”

The program will use resources the school already has to minimize outside costs, the principal said.

“All we need to get are some additional materials to supply the Tate High School cooking space. A lot of what we’re going to use is kitchen as it is,” Hollander said. “It’s small, but it is a commercial production kitchen.”

Vandenberg said she felt the program would be a positive addition to the post-graduation and career placement programs the Iowa City school district offers students.

“I really don’t see a downside to this,” she said. “I think it’s an excellent idea, and I’m looking forward to seeing how it turns out.”

Yet Hollander said officials still have a few kinks to work out before the class opens to students in the fall.

“It’s a long ways from being implemented,” he said. “It’s still in the brainstorm stage. We have training for staff to do, we have equipment to purchase, and transportation issues to take care of.”

And Hollander said he’s optimistic.

“Knock on wood that we do get it kicked off on time,” he said.

*Article Credit: Asmaa Elkeurti, Daily Iowan Staff

Don Nelson will hold a press conference Saturday following the commencement for the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences

University of Iowa men’s basketball All-American Don Nelson will hold a post-commencement press conference Saturday, May 12, in Carver-Hawkeye Arena’s practice gymnasium.

The press conference will begin at approximately 11:45 a.m. (CT), and will be available live from start to finish on Hawkeye All-Access, the multi-media portal inside hawkeyesports.com, the official World Wide Web of the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Nelson is 10th on Iowa’s all-time scoring list with 1,522 points in 72 games from 1960-62 (21.2 points per game). He won five world championships as a player for the Boston Celtics, and as head coach in the NBA, Nelson compiled a league-best 1,335 regular-season victories.

Rather than returning to the UI to finish his degree in 1962-63, Nelson opted for a professional playing career, and was selected 17th overall by the Chicago Zephyrs. He has since fulfilled the requirements for a bachelor’s degree in physical education, and will receive a diploma Saturday at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Commencement beginning at 9 a.m.

Article credit: hawkeyesports.com

Chicago band Panoramic and True will play Public Space One on Wednesday 5/9. Photo credit: CB Lindsey (cblindsey.com)

Chicago orch-pop band Panoramic & True will be playing dates in the Midwest and featuring material from their forthcoming sophomore album “€œWonderlust”€ (summer 2012 on Raymond Roussel Records). The dates follow recent acclaim in the Chicago Reader as well as in national music blogs The Deli and The Vinyl District. In Iowa City P&T will play Public Space One (129 E. Washington St.) on May 9, supported by No Coast. Doors at 8pm; cover $7

P&T’€™s website with video and advance songs from “Wonderlust” available: http://www.panoramictrue.com/

Listen to P&T’€™s debut album at http://panoramictrue.bandcamp.com/

Some recent press about P&T in the Chicago Reader: http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/pitchfork-music-festival-predictions-promise-ring-panoramic-true/Content?oid=5729170

Other recent press about P&T Empty Bottle show March 9: http://www.thevinyldistrict.com/chicago/2012/03/tvd-recommends-panoramic-true-at-the-empty-bottle-39/

Listed among Chicago’s best in 2011 by Huffington Post Panoramic & True is a Chicago-based 8-piece band inspired by orchestrated 1960s pop, rock, and soul, though media have also likened bandleader John Lennox’s vocal and composition styles to those of Lou Reed and Bruce Springsteen. He leads a charge of overdriven tube amps which front a backdrop of strings somewhere between Phil Spector and Mahler.

The current line up features Lennox as band-leader and vocalist/guitarist; A.J. and Amanda Bautista on violin; Randy Mollner on viola; April Savage on cello; Patrick Pritchett on bass; Jamie Carter on guitar and Daniel Majid playing percussion.

IC FilmScene and the Englert are teaming up to present the acclaimed documentary "Crazy Horse" on Friday May 18th

FilmScene & The Englert Theatre are excited to present the area premiere of Crazy Horse, the new film from acclaimed documentarian Frederick Wiseman on Friday, May 18th. Prior to the screening, enjoy a film-inspired performance by the fabulous Les Dames du Burlesque! The show starts at 8pm, with a pre-show reception at 6:30, featuring sweets from Deluxe Cakes & Pastries, drinks, and a photo op with the Dames. Tickets including the reception are only $15.

About the film:
An inside look into Paris’ Crazy Horse cabaret – the most famous nude dance show in the world. Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman explores one of the most mythic and colorful places dedicated to women, the Crazy Horse – a legendary Parisian cabaret club, founded in 1951 by Alain Bernardin. Over the years it has become the Parisian nightlife ‘must’ for visitors, ranking alongside the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. Wiseman’s impeccable eye finds the Crazy Horse a uniquely French showcase, with an emphasis on elegance, perfectionism and a grueling schedule (2 shows a night and 3 on Saturdays, 7 days a week). The film shows us the rehearsals for and the unveiling of the brand new show – Désir – created by the renowned French choreographer Phillippe Decoufle.

“ENGROSSING and MESMERIZING! Plenty of perky bare breasts; swaying bottoms; and eye-popping, sensual and surprisingly artistic avant-garde dance sequences.” – New York Magazine

For more information, please visit: http://englert.org/event_details.php?id=731

*Please note: Admission is limited to 18+ only

FILM SCENE is a non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the cultural vitality of the Iowa City area through the presentation and discussion of film as an art form. Previous events by the organization included a screening of Terrence Malick’s acclaimed film The Tree of Life. The organization is seeking support in bringing a thriving film community to downtown Iowa City.

For more information regarding FilmScene, please visit: http://www.icfilmscene.org/

A series of events are being held this weekend to celebrate the work and career of Professor Rick Altman

All are welcome this weekend to attend a series of events on Friday, May 4th and Saturday, May 5th to celebrate the work and career of Professor Rick Altman, one of the University of Iowa’s most distinguished and revered faculty members.

Rick Altman teaches courses on film sound, film genres, and narrative theory as a member of Department of Cinema & Comparative Literature inside the University of Iowa’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. He has several publications to his name including Film/Genre (1999), Silent Film Sound (2004), and A Theory of Narrative (2008). Furthermore, Altman has enjoyed great success performing his “Living Nickelodeon” program at venues around the world.

The following is an outline of the series of events meant to celebrate the vast and successful career of Professor Altman.

Friday, May 4th:

1:30-3:30 p.m.  Critical Karaoke: presentations by CCL graduate students (101 Becker Communication Studies Building)

3:00-3:30 p.m. Opening reception in 209 BCSB

3:30-5:00 p.m. Sound Research Seminar: a special presentation by Iowa alum James Lastra (University of Chicago) on modern sound design and experimental pop music recording practice

Saturday, May 5th

10:00- noon Film screening of a rare print of the part-talkie THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND (MGM, 1929) and selected shorts (101 BCSB)

12:00-1:30 p.m. Lunch in the AJB Rotunda

1:30-3:30 p.m. Heritage Presentations by Iowa alums Jennifer Fleeger (The Catholic University) on “Mismatched Women” and Michael Slowik (Western Kentucky University) on “Before KONG: Film Music and Other Worlds in the Early 1930s”

4:00-6:00 p.m. Public Reception to Celebrate Rick Altman (Second Floor Ballroom, 243 Iowa Memorial Union)

The show opened with a quiet set from singer/songwriter Rayland Baxter, offering the audience a mellow and relaxing introduction to the evening. In addition to displaying his talent for creating and performing both thoughtful and reflective compositions, Baxter engaged in dialogue with the crowd between songs, creating a laid-back atmosphere that would build for the rest of the night.

Taking the stage slightly past 9 p.m. and playing well into the night, Grace Potter and her band The Nocturnals dazzled the audience with a careful selection of familiar tunes as well as new ones. Crowd favorites such as “Paris (Ooh La La)”, “Apologies,” and “Medicine” offered some of the evening’s highlights, yet fans also met the novel tunes with a matched enthusiasm Potter acknowledged. Between songs Potter stated her love for Iowa City, claiming it reminded her of her band’s hometown of Waitsfield Vermont. In addition to the town, Potter also commented on her love for the IMU Main Lounge, stating it seemed “strangely psychedelic.”

Effortlessly weaving between uptempo and slow tunes, Potter and the Nocturnals truly highlighted the talents of each band member, particularly Potter’s stunning voice.

Ending a two week span that saw three concerts come to the IMU that spanned several genres and performers, it has truly been a great time to be a music-lover living in Iowa City!