In the Media
George Gershwin had a successful Broadway career behind him when he tackled Porgy and Bess, and he put everything he'd learned about stagecraft into his tale of a troubled woman and the three men in her life in the coastal South Carolina neighborhood of Catfish Row: Porgy, the gentle outcast she loves; Crown, the charismatic thug she's drawn to; and Sportin' Life, the drug pusher she ends up with. And when you see Seattle Opera's richly gripping production, which opened Saturday, you may start asking yourself which of Gershwin's predecessors among musical dramatists honestly surpassed him in the creation of living, breathing, bleeding people. As three-dimensional personalities, knowable, memorable, and powerful, these two title characters rank with Figaro (either one), Violetta, Carmen, Rodolfo and Mimì, Brünnhilde—name your favorites.
Until this summer, perhaps the most remarkable thing about Darren O'Donnell was that he emerged a Cincinnatti Reds fan from a childhood spent in Idaho. Then he took two of his passions -- biking and baseball -- and formed another unlikely combination, attempting to ride his bike to every Major League Baseball stadium in a six-month summer odyssey.
More than 8,000 miles, countless flat tires and one HBC (hit-by-car) later, and O'Donnell, 24, has reached 18 of the 30 ballparks.
A resident of Bellingham, Wash., and graduate of Western Washington University, O'Donnell was working at a food co-op when he joined friends on a biking trip to Chico, Calif., last April. O'Donnell, who never owned a car, had only biked short distances within his community but enjoyed the road trip so much that he came up with the idea of a bicycle baseball pilgrimage.
Western Washington University distance runner Jordan Welling was picked for the fourth straight year to the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association NCAA Division II Men's Track & Field All-Academic Team announced Thursday, Aug. 4.
Welling, a senior, was one of two Vikings honored. The other was triple jumper Tim Clendaniel, a junior, who was honored for the second straight season.
Without a doubt, these last few years have been some of the most challenging in our state's history. The depth and length of this recession has been massive. We will pull out of this, I believe, stronger than before. But in Olympia we need to be making moves now to put us in a position to compete - something we've been unwilling to do since this economic crisis began.
However, there were a few successes in the last legislative session. Most notable are two measures that will improve our environment, both locally and as a state.
Samantha O’Brochta, of Freeland, thought she was dreaming when the Seattle Opera called her back.
“A friend of mine posted the audition on Facebook,” O’Brochta said.
That’s how she found out the major company was holding auditions for the chorus of “Porgy and Bess,” George and Ira Gershwin’s famous portrait of life and love on the fictitious Catfish Row in 1920s South Carolina.
“I thought, even if I didn’t get it, I still wanted to try out,” O’Brochta said.
After the November audition, the young singer was called back a month later. When she was cast, she was flabbergasted because her forte is musical theater, and she is not much of an opera singer, she said.
“I didn’t believe it at first,” she said, “because I hadn’t heard anything for about three months. But then they sent me the music and I guessed it wasn’t a dream then.”
Aug. 3 marks the one-year anniversary of a life-changing event for Delhi residents Adam and Scott Conrad and Dyersville resident Brad Mahoney. At a Peosta home to stain the basement floor, a freak accident happened in which an explosion occurred in the lower level, causing all three men to suffer third-degree burns.
The men were taken by ambulance to Mercy Medical Center in Dubuque and then airlifted to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City.
After arriving in Iowa City, each man had 11-person teams operating on him. Scott and Brad were then taken to the burn unit, while Adam stayed in intensive care.
Three men's lives changed instantly, one year ago, after an explosion happened while they were working in a basement near Peosta.
Adam Conrad, his brother Scott Conrad and Brad Mahoney, now 29, 25 and 19, respectively, were working construction in a basement, when fumes built up and ignited.
The explosion left each man with third-degree burns on more than half of his body.
On Tuesday, the three men gathered at the Conrads' parents' home in Delhi to talk about the past year and future plans.
Western Governors University continued to live up to its name on Wednesday, as Texas Governor Rick Perry announced a partnership with the fast-growing online institution — and was promptly showered with praise from nearly everyone.
Western Governors, a regionally accredited, nonprofit university founded in 1997 by 18 politicians who held that office at that time, represents an alternative model of higher education that has garnered both praise and skepticism.
Aimed at working adults (the average student is 36), Western Governors confers bachelors and master’s degrees based on a student’s ability to demonstrate skills. There are no classrooms and no professors. Students learn online and mostly on their own, with light guidance from their advisers. They take proctored tests at local testing centers whenever they feel they are ready. Students pay tuition — between $2,890 and $4,250, depending on the program — every six months until they graduate, which 40 percent of them do within four years. (First-time, full-time students are considerably less successful, graduating at a 22 percent rate.)
Family members say Zack Fogle died doing what he loved most — living life to the fullest.
The 27-year-old quadriplegic from Kingston was skydiving Saturday afternoon in northwestern Montana when he failed to manually deploy his emergency parachute after jumping.
He was pronounced dead on the scene, according to the Flathead County Sheriff's Office.
His death is ruled an accident, said Undersheriff Jordan White. Video from other skydivers indicated Fogle trying to correct his free fall, White said.
At the time of the accident, Fogle had five years of skydiving experience and more than 125 jumps.
The skydiving community is devastated by the news, White said.
Today is my first day at Ms., and I’m feeling blissfully overwhelmed by the wealth of feminist knowledge in this office—including information on hundreds of upcoming feminist or women-centered events. Below are my top six picks for this week. Here’s hoping you live near one of these cities:
Hart, Mich.: This week is the legendary Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival. Packed with performances and workshops, it’s sure to provide ample opportunity to bond with sisters from around the country. After a controversy, the festival has made a point to change their gender policy to include trans women. Go for the week or only a day. Tickets can be ordered by phone or purchased at the gate. Tuesday-Sunday, Aug. 2-7 in Hart, Mich., check out the MWMF website for directions.