J. Alan Nelson - The Austinot

Frog and Toad at Zach Theatre for Kids and Kids at Heart

Posted on October 31, 2014 by J. Alan Nelson

Nicholas Kier and Chase Brewer at Zach Theatre

Chase Brewer (Toad) and Nicholas Kier (Frog) in Zach Theatre’s A Year with Frog and Toad

Frog and Toad are your friends. They’ve been your friends for more than 40 years, since the two leap-frogged from Arnold Lobel’s head into the now classic children’s books.

A Year with Frog and Toad, playing at Zach Theatre through November 29, 2014, cleverly delivers the favorite stories of Lobel onto the stage with catchy tunes you will hum long after you leave the theatre. Director Nat Miller has crafted the latest version of the Tony-nominated show, which will take you back to the imaginary world of childhood. [Read more…]

14 Reasons to See Shakespeare on the Farm

Posted on October 14, 2014 by J. Alan Nelson

Shakespeare on the Farm Present Company Theatre

Prospero conjures The Tempest as the mariners wreck during Shakespeare on the Farm

The Tempest is the North Star of Shakespeare plays. Now, Present Company Theatre presents the North Star of Austin actors, crew and script.

Whether Prospero or Caliban is your favorite character, this Shakespeare is spiced with Austin flair. It’s the latest project from the nonprofit drama company started in 2010 by Stephanie Carll and Lindsey Doleshal, being performed at Rain Lily Farm in East Austin through November 1, 2014.

Here are 14 reasons why you should see Shakespeare on the Farm within the next 14 days: [Read more…]

7 Things You Must See at the LBJ Library

Posted on September 29, 2014 by J. Alan Nelson

The LBJ Presidential Library

You eavesdrop on a phone conversation. You realize the voices are President Lyndon Baines Johnson and former First Lady and now widow Jackie Kennedy on the line. It’s an emotional discussion. Even though the phone call happened more than 50 years ago, you feel like a kid sneaking on the extension. Your ear’s glued to the earpiece, listening to these two have a personal and almost awkward discussion about Jackie’s access to the President. You hear Jackie confess she’s received more letters from LBJ in the last 10 days than she ever received from John F. Kennedy.

You put the receiver down, a bit drained and surprised at the closeness of the phone call, as though you’d listened to a friend talking on their smartphone set to speaker.

Two presidents from Texas have built libraries in Texas in the last two decades. But you need to see LBJ’s library. [Read more…]

Call Yourself a Real Austinite If You Know Sam Hurt’s Art

Posted on September 2, 2014 by J. Alan Nelson

Austin artist Sam Hurt at Pease Park

Sam Hurt desired to become one of the best comic strip artists, ever.

He reached that goal. Unfortunately, fame and fortune did not follow.

The Art of Hurt

If you suffer from Stendahl’s Syndrome, take care with Hurt’s work. The bizarre splendor of burned out matches carrying lit candles, of spoons loving forks, of profound, yawning oceans bursting from the canvas will disorient even one with a normal psyche.

The blazing weirdness of Sam Hurt, 56, is not for those wanting to buy art to match their color scheme. Rather, you might consider designing a room around just one of Hurt’s pieces.

Of the thousands of artists in Austin, Hurt has emerged over the last decade as a giant who is known by those artists, but not by the public at large. An uncanny, poignant light burns in Sam Hurt’s paintings and drawings that draws one in like a child who can’t distinguish cartoons from reality. [Read more…]

6 Steps to Become an Extra in Austin

Posted on August 12, 2014 by J. Alan Nelson

Being an extra in Austin takes perseverance, but it can also be extremely rewarding

If you’re an egoist, this could be a cure for you.

If you’re shy, this could be a cure for you.

If you don’t like people, this is not for you.

If you like people, do it now. Be an extra. Or, as some insist, a background artist.

It’s okay if you’ve never acted. It’s okay if you were the bumblecat without lines in the third grade play The Nonsense Man.

Don’t worry if you’re plain or ugly. Don’t worry if you’re obese or emaciated. Don’t worry if you have a bump on your nose, funny hair or a scar on your face. Those characteristics make you unique.

In fact, sometimes, beauty can hinder you. On one set that was using a few extras for the day’s shot, the director decided not to [Read more…]

Elisabet Ney Museum: Meet a Woman Ahead of Her Time

Posted on July 11, 2014 by J. Alan Nelson

The Elisabet Ney Museum in Hyde Park

You don’t know it, but you know Elisabet Ney.

Her sculptures are part of your mental landscape. She’s credited by many for making Austin the Austin it is today – a center of culture. For anyone interested in the arts or Texas history, visiting the quiet little museum in the midst of a wildlife habitat at 304 E 44th Street in Hyde Park is a must.

Elisabet Ney self portrait

In the Austin of the 1880s, German sculptor Elisabet Ney insisted she be treated as an individual. The daughter of a stonemason, she won over misogynists and pushed herself to the highest power circles in Europe and United States. She always had short hair, which was extremely unusual for the times. She wore comfortable clothes, refusing corsets. She never took her husband’s name. [Read more…]

The Art of Hurt

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