Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 19, 1991 TAG: 9104190084
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV4 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: Donna Alvis
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
Now Jacob Holdt gives us "American Pictures."
Holdt, a native of Denmark, came to the United States in the 1970s and was met, he says, by a sight he had never seen - a robber with a gun.
"I had to find out where the anger was coming from, where the pain started," he has told audiences attending his slide shows.
Holdt will present "American Pictures," a slide show with accompanying music and ballads, Monday at 7:30 p.m. in Virginia Tech's Hancock Hall Auditorium. The auditorium is in room 100.
For five years, Holdt traveled across America with his camera. He covered over 100,000 miles and visited more than 400 homes in 48 states. He bought film by selling his own blood.
By American standards, Holdt lived the life of a tramp. But he captured America with the unattached eye of an outsider. His photos tell the story of a country distressed by apathy, poverty and racism. They also tell the story of a country built on hope.
"American Pictures" has been presented at the Cannes Film Festival and in the Smithsonian Institution. It was selected as Outstanding Film of the Year by the London Film Festival. This is the first presentation at Virginia Tech.
Holdt's showing of "American Pictures" is free and open to the public. The Virginia Tech Union Lectures Committee is sponsoring the appearance.
\ GOOD GRASS: The Tony Rice Unit plays good bluegrass music, not to mention jazz, blues and folk.
This one-of-a-kind acoustic band will perform Saturday at 8 p.m. in Radford University's Preston Auditorium. The concert is sponsored by the Appalachian Events Committee.
Guitarist Tony Rice of Danville is the leader of the five-man band. Rice, who has performed worldwide with his band, also has eight solo recordings.
Tickets, available at the Heth Hall information desk, are $7 for adults and $3.50 for children. Radford students get in free with identification.
\ CATCH OF THE DAY: "Greater Tuna," the touring production by Abingdon's Barter Theatre Players, will be at Radford University tonight - and tonight only - in Preston Hall. Curtain time is 8 p.m.
Written by Jaston Williams, Joe Sears and Ed Howard, the play centers around two radio announcers who take their audience into the homes of leading citizens in the small town of Tuna, Texas. Actors Trip Plymale and Richard Kinter play all the roles (dozens of them!) in this sprightly comedy.
The Fine Arts Center for the New River Valley is sponsoring the performance. Advance tickets, $7 for adults and $3.50 for children, are available there or at Heth Hall information desk. For information, call the Fine Arts Center at 980-7363.
\ FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE: It's the music of Piotr Ilyitch Tchaikovsky.
The New River Valley Symphony will close its season with a celebration of the Russian composer's work Saturday at 8 p.m. in Virginia Tech's Burruss Auditorium. James Glazebrook is directing.
Tech's award-winning pianist Jeanne Backofen is featured in Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat, op. 23. The program also features "The Sleeping Beauty" Suite and Slav March.
Reserved tickets are available today at the box office in University Bookstore. Call 231-5615 during business hours. Admission is $5 for adults or $3 for students and senior citizens.
\ END-OF-THE-YEAR BASH: The Virginia Tech University Jazz Orchestra will present the final concert of the season Tuesday at 8 p.m. in Burruss Auditorium. The snazzy Joe Kennedy Jr. will conduct.
Former conductor Allen Bachelder is the guest soloist. He will toot his trumpet to John LaPorta's "Rhapsody for Trumpet." Also on the program is an original arrangement, "It's A Most Unusual Day," by James Sochinski, another noted member of Tech's music faculty.
Tickets for the concert are $2 (all seats) at the door.
\ MATTHEW'S MESSAGE: "Godspell," the popular rock musical of the '70s, opens tonight at Christiansburg High School and continues through Sunday. Performances are at 8 tonight and Saturday. Sunday it's a 3 p.m. matinee.
Based on the Gospel of Matthew, the modern-day depiction of Jesus' life takes place at the circus. Performers under the big top act out familiar parables and sing songs you thought you had forgotten - "Day By Day," "By My Side," "All Good Gifts" and "Turn Back, O Man."
Christiansburg High School students are putting on the show. Of course, they have the youthful energy and spirit it takes for such a production.
Tickets for each performance will be available at the auditorium entrance. Admission for all is $3.
\ MOTHER EARTH: Earth Day officially is Sunday, but there are plenty of activities all weekend to draw our attention to the environment.
Broomin' and Bloomin' starts at 8:30 Saturday morning. The annual cleanup for Montgomery County provides a chance for all of us to make a difference with just a few hours work. To volunteer, call 382-5793, 552-4909 or 231-7801.
Community cleanup activities and educational programs for kids and adults are planned throughout the New River Valley. Check out the calendars today and Sunday in the Current for more information.
by CNB