Articulations

---

In With the New

So here we all are, in the New Year, in the New Millennium -- let's have a resolution from all you arts lovers: Resolve to support the new in the local arts scene. Austin is blessed with artists who dare to explore uncharted territory, to probe the unknown, to create things where nothing was, and they deserve an audience. We're always in need of pioneers and innovators to help us move forward, and we can always use new blood in the artistic mix. One glance at the top 10 lists in this issue will reveal how vital new work and new companies are to this community. So, why don't we all start supporting them regularly? Support something new at least once a month. There's more than enough going on to warrant making such a resolution. In fact, this month offers something new every weekend. You can:

Support a new play. A Name for a Ghost to Mutter is a new full-length work by longtime Austin theatre artist Cyndi Williams (Fish, American Arcana). The State Theater Company continues its longstanding support of local writers by staging the premiere of this history of a family from the Indian reservations of Oklahoma Territory to modern Dallas. The production runs January 5-February 4 at the State Theater, 719 Congress. Call 472-7134 for information.

Support a new opera. Cold Sassy Tree is a major new work by one of the leading composers of modern times, Carlisle Floyd (Susannah, Of Mice and Men). Austin Lyric Opera joined with four other American opera companies to commission this work, based on the popular novel by Olive Ann Burns about an unlikely romance in a small Georgia town. The ALO production runs January 11-15 at Bass Concert Hall. Call 472-5992 for information.

Support a new theatre company. Austin Playhouse is an independent company founded by former State Theater Company artistic director Don Toner. Its debut venture is the great Moss Hart comedy Light Up the Sky, starring Toner colleagues Babs George, Dirk van Allen, Thomas C. Parker, Mary Agen Cox, David Stokey, and Ellsworth Schave. The production runs January 11-28 at Schroeder Performance Hall at Concordia University. Call 476-0084 for information.

Support a new artist. Recent UT Austin graduate Adrian Parra is creating a site-specific installation for Mexic-Arte Museum's Diversity and Emergence Series. Parra will divide the back gallery into three tableaux -- The Living Room, The Bathroom, and The Laboratory -- and flood it with color and light to explore relationships between hygiene, cleanliness, and the desire for control. The exhibition runs January 12-February 24 in the Mexic-Arte Back Gallery, 419 Congress. Call 480-9373 for information.

Support new short performance. FronteraFest 2001 is the eighth edition of this performance showcase sponsored by Frontera, with close to 100 works -- most of them original -- presented over a five-week span. The Short Fringe offers pieces under a half-hour, presented five nights a week at Hyde Park Theatre. The Long Fringe offers hour-plus productions over two weekends at The Hideout, The Off Center, and other spaces. The festival runs January 16-February 17. Call 479-PLAY for information.

Support a new dance. 7 Rooms to the Soul is the latest project from accomplished local choreographer Andrea Ariel, melding dance, video, operatic choir, and an original score by the Golden Arm Trio. The production runs January 25-28 at Austin Lyric Opera's Ducloux Hall, 901 Barton Springs Road, and February 1-4 at The Off Center, 2211-A Hidalgo. Call 454-TIXS or 479-PLAY for information.