We've read the books. We've seen the pictures. We've attended the lectures. We've watched the movies. We have learned everything there is to know about the Holocaust. Or have we?

Francis Cohen, renowned modern dance choreographer and co-founder of the dance program at the UA, has breathed new life into the famous story of Anne Frank, in "The Attic."

"Well, you know I was a teenager when the Holocaust happened," she said. "The diary was found in 1952 and I was in college. I read the diary, and the first thing I thought was, 'This would make an incredible dance.'" [Read article]

People die, cellos are smashed, but the orchestra plays on

You don't have to be the queen mother, fondle Prince Charles or like the Beatles to enjoy the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra tonight.

At 7:30, Britain's national orchestra will perform its only show at Centennial Hall. Tucson is one of its 19 touring stops in the United States.

Cassandra Burt, the orchestra's head of concerts, said the internationally known ensemble conducted by Daniele Gatti will be performing Mozart's "Symphony No. 40" and Schumann's "Symphony No. 3." [Read article]

Would you look down upon Paulette Kasal, lead singer of the world's only all-female Black Sabbath cover band, because she hasn't been so coked up that she snorted a line of ants off of a street curb?

Sure, Ozzy Osbourne did.

Or what if she hasn't taken so much acid that she can't remember years of her life at a time?

Notch another one up for the Ozz-ster.

What about the oral decapitation of live animals? [Read article]

While most of us were secretly eating paste and making hideous crafts in first grade, UA drama senior Nat Cassidy was reading Shakespeare.

Cassidy, who describes himself as a slightly hyperactive child, said it was his exasperated first-grade teacher who helped spark his passion for stage acting and Shakespeare.

"I was a pain-in-the-ass to put it precisely," said Cassidy. " My first-grade teacher made me read 'Macbeth' to calm me down." [Read article]

Bizzy Thompson
Staff Writer

Record of the Year: "Hey Ya!" OutKast

How can you deny "Hey Ya!"? My 82-year-old grandfather announced out of nowhere at Christmas dinner that "'Shake it like a Polaroid picture' was the hottest phrase of 2003." Enough said.

Album of the Year: Justified, Justin Timberlake

You know, Justin used to dream about winning a Grammy when he was a little boy. He never thought it would end up this way. Drums. [Read article]

Woof! No fun at the track

The Tucson Greyhound Park was not where I wanted to be on a Friday night, especially not if I had to be there alone and sober. I was expecting the place to be weird, but when I walked in and saw a group of men gathered around a television laughing at a midget in a phone booth grabbing at dollar bills that were blowing around him, I realized this was another dimension altogether. [Read article]

In the first of what promises to be an inspired series of word-filled books on subjects, The Haggis-On-Whey World of Unbelievable Brilliance gives us Volume 1.

"Giraffes? Giraffes!" violently attacks the reader with vibrant Photoshop-ed images, informative diagrams of tree trunk cross-sections and an endless onslaught of untrue, yet often hilarious facts about the mysterious world of the giraffe. [Read article]

I admit it. No, not that I watched "The Perfect Score," but that as I sat like a loner in the theater with a notebook and pen, I found myself laughing a few times with all the teenagers around me.

But I should also point out that one couple in their mature 20s walked out right before the film's "climax," which may indicate cinematic predictability.

"The Perfect Score" didn't win the ball game, but it did put a few blinking digits on the scoreboard with its sophomoric humor. [Read article]

When something has the name "Spike and Mike's Sick and Twisted Festival of Animation," one must expect a crowd of the displaced, tragically hip, artistic and half- (or admittedly full-) baked. In this case, expectations are exceeded. When I was handed my 3D glasses in preparation for the show and began to fill with excitement, I knew that I was one of them.

The air was thick with the smell of alcohol, stale popcorn and guacamole. There were large balloons thrown around like beach balls at a Grateful Dead concert. Guys were already screaming profanities before the festival began. It was raw. It was primitive. It was beautiful. [Read article]

The Darkness

Sounds Like: A 2004 Queen-like hair band

See Also: Any '80s band that thanks Aquanet in their notes

Permission To Land

If you can understand sarcasm without a NASA diagram, you could enjoy The Darkness.

Like "Green Eggs & Ham," it'll take more than a cursory taste to get hooked. And you will get hooked. Yes, they may appear like some trashy version of Van Halen-meets-Spinal Tap, but these Brits have recorded 10 very strong tracks for Permission. [Read article]

Today

Music in the Museum - UA Museum of Art. Music and art come together when Cale Hoeflicker plays guitar in the second-floor gallery. 12:30 p.m. - 1 p.m. 621-9507

"Buried Treasure? Fool's Gold? An Archaeology of Photographic Knowledge" - Center for Creative Photography auditorium. Sally Stein, co-author of "Quizzical Eye: The Photography of Rondal Partridge," discusses the roles of searching through archives in photography. 5:30 p.m. 621-7992 [Read article]

After working all year to perfect their pieces, students in the School of Music and Dance entered the Concerto Competition last December. Now, the winners are getting a chance to strut their stuff with the help of the Arizona Symphony Orchestra.

Although everyone is eligible for the competition, there were only male winners last year, and this year, there are all females. They include vocal senior Martina Chylikova (mezzo-soprano), music graduate Melissa Melendez (viola), clarinet senior Kara Yeater and piano freshman Sarah Wu. [Read article]