First off: No, I did not fall and hit my head. Or have a brain transplant. Or get taken hostage by a bunch of Will Ferrell fans.

The truth is that I actually liked Ferrell's new movie, "Blades of Glory." It's dumb and disgusting, sure, but it's also pretty smart in the way it pokes fun at professional ice skating and plays around with gender stereotypes. Besides, any movie in which a cute, benevolent, Olympic-goodwill type of mascot gets set on fire right off the bat has to get some points in my book.

And, yes, I'm aware that I liked last week's Adam Sandler movie, too. Maybe you can blame it on global warming. Read on for some more serious cultural picks, including a treat for string-quartet fans.

Because I had such a busy weekend, I didn't get to the Portable Dance Troupe's annual concert at Fresno State, titled "Escape," until Wednesday. I'm glad I finally did. (The program continues through Saturday, but tickets seem to be scarce, alas.)

With longtime artistic director Ruth Griffin out of the country, her co-artistic director, Kenneth Balint, stepped in to oversee the program. But Griffin's presence still was felt; three of her older works were used.

Two guest choreographers contributed to the program. Andy Noble's "The Clothesline" was my favorite of the two.

A rave from a reader:

A girlfriend gave me the chick flick "Something New" for Christmas, and I just got a chance to see it this week. What a surprising gem! The 2006 film (rated PG-13) stars Sanaa Lathan and Simon Baker in a story about finding love in an unexpected place. It's about a woman (successful corporate lawyer) and a man (a landscape architect). She's kind of uptight. He's a free spirit. Oh, and she's African-American, and he's white.

In today's 7 section, I have a condensed review of "High School Musical" at Children's Musical Theaterworks. Here's the full version:

For those doddering citizens in their 40s and older who were educated so long ago that the continents were positioned differently, it's reassuring to learn from contemporary theater that one thing hasn't changed:

High school.

You've still got the jocks, the brains, the nerds and the skaters all delicately intertwined to form one complex organism. (Well, back in my day, the skaters were called surfers, and even earlier than that what were they? -- hippies? beatniks? -- but the idea is the same.) In "Disney's High School Musical," presented by Children's Musical Theaterworks at Fresno Memorial Auditorium, the tried-and-true idea of high-school cliques serving as a metaphor for life is cheerfully rehashed in a big, bouncy style.

This musical isn't exactly new, in other words, but it's fun. And this production soars with energy.

In today's 7 section, I have a condensed review of "Thoroughly Modern Millie" at Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater. Here's the full version:

Just call it thoroughly delightful.

It didn't take long -- only about five years -- for the Tony Award-winning "Thoroughly Modern Millie" to make it from Broadway to Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater. (When you consider how long it took for such shows as "Beauty and the Beast" to reach the community theater level, that's a pretty fast turnaround.) It's clear this is the kind of new musical that Good Company Players can do so well. You don't need mega-sets or marquee-worthy celebrities to attract audiences -- just a talented cast, a bright and cheery production design, energetic dancing and lots of gorgeous costumes, all of which this production has in abundance.

What's fun about "Millie" is that even though it's set in the 1920s, it has its own contemporary sensibility. It takes the standard story of plucky Midwestern gal who arrives fresh in New York City without money or connections but with a lot of ambition, and then gives it some sly twists.

Reader Marilyn Oliver writes that she went to the live Metropolitan Opera broadcast of "The Barber of Seville" last Saturday at Edwards theater and enjoyed it thoroughly:

The only problem was that when we tried to buy tickets, two people working at the box office had never heard of it and said it wasn't appearing there.

In the Sunday Spotlight cover story, I write about Japanese artist and social activist Ikuo Hirayama, who has a new exhibit opening Tuesday at the Clark Center for Japanese Art & Culture in Hanford.

Hirayama is a household name in Japan but little known in the United States. He's particularly interested in preserving the legacy of the Silk Road, the old trading route from the Roman Empire to the Orient. Some of the paintings in this exhibition have never before been in this country.

Courtesy of Daniel McKee, curator at the Clark, here are some Web links with more info about Hirayama and the Silk Road:

Let's nip this fear in the bud right away: There are no nipples in "Nipples to the Wind." The closest you get are two elderly women characters whose enhanced cleavage, buried under matronly dresses, has the unfortunate tendency to shift markedly from left to right, and back again. Think Mrs. Doubtfire in her out-of-control bosom scene.

What you do have in this mildly amusing touring comedy, which continues for one more show 2 p.m. Sunday at the Tower Theatre, is a series of distinctive women characters played by two women actors. Some of these sharply defined characters are headstrong: a Little League mom who beats up a parent from the opposing team, for example. Others are pensive: a mom remembering her first crush on a pop star. All face the world with gusto.

I haven't yet seen the provocatively titled "Nipples to the Wind," which breezes into town Friday for a three-day run at the Tower Theatre, so I can't vouch for how good it is, but the premise certainly seems intriguing: Two women play a total of 14 characters in a series of personality sketches. This traveling show, which has played such places as Phoenix and San Jose, comes with a pretty good pedigree. I'm going to see it Saturday and will let you know ASAP what I think. (If anyone sees it Friday night, let Beehive readers know what you think by leaving a comment on this thread.)

Elsewhere in theater land, it's none other than "High School Musical" at Children's Musical Theaterworks, which also opens Friday. Directed by theater veteran Carolyn Robertson, this is, indeed, the stage version of the popular Disney TV movie. (I'm going to see it Saturday afternoon; I'm going to have a busy Saturday!)

Dance fans: Don't forget the Portable Dance Troupe's annual concert at Fresno State's Arena Theatre, which opens Friday night and continues through March 31. This one is titled "Escape," and I've heard some good advance word on it.

And if you're in the mood for something a little more soothing than nipples and modern dance, you might want to check out Moment Musical's latest Sunday Serenades Chamber Music concert 4:30 p.m. Sunday at St. James Episcopal Cathedral. Soprano Barbara Vlymen is part of the program, and she's always a treat.

In anticipation of the Metropolitan Opera's live high-definition broadcast of "The Barber of Seville" 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Edwards theater, a reader writes:

We're going to the opera tomorrow. How do the people dress? Oh, we're very excited about the live performance of "The Barber", but this is the first one of the live broadcasts that we will have attended.

In a word: casual.

It didn't take long for "Thoroughly Modern Millie," the Tony Award-winner for best musical in 2002, to make it to Fresno. Good Company Players presents this Roaring 1920s show -- with lots of guaranteed flapper action -- in a production that runs through May 20 at Roger Rocka's Dinner Theater.

I chat with Emily Pessano, who plays the leading role of Millie, in the current issue of 7 (the Bee's new Friday entertainment section; check it out for real if you haven't seen a copy). Here's the extended interview.

My pick of the week for best read: This is a great story from the London Times. Grayson Perry wants to ban the phrase "once in a lifetime" from being applied to any art exhibition, play, concert, etc. He writes:

There seems to be a schism opening up between the idea of attending an event and the actual experience. People appear to care more about gaining evidence of their presence at a cultural landmark than drinking in its pleasures. They want a photograph of themselves in front of the museum or even the star exhibit; they want the souvenir mousemat; in short they want its autograph. The erratic organic memory of looking at beauty seems to have been downgraded to a supporting role.

Reminds me of the time an acquaintance told me he'd been to see the Gauguin exhibit at the Met in New York. I asked how it was. He said, "Oh, I just went to the bookstore."

In my Sunday column for March 18, I write about a fantastic experience for opera fans: the new high-definition broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera in New York. With tickets just $18 for adults and $15 for children, this is the best deal in town: You get to experience the Met live without having to buy a plane ticket for New York. In its first new production of the classic in 25 years, "The Barber of Seville" will be shown at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Edwards Cinemas. Check out the Met's site for more details.

In the meantime, here are some images of the production.

And if that headline doesn't entice you to read this post, I don't know what will.

Fresno theater fans may have noticed from ads in The Bee that there's a rather odd sounding show tromping into town next weekend at the Tower Theatre: a production titled "Nipples to the Wind." It's a touring show that looks as if it's had pretty good success on the regional touring circuit. (Other stops on this tour include Phoenix, San Jose, North Hollywood and Santa Barbara.) It features actors/comics Janye Anderson and Paula Coco, who play 14 different wacky and distinctive women characters.

Here's where I need help: I have a phone interview Monday morning with one of the two cast members (I'm not sure which), and I'm looking for some Texas expertise from Beehive readers.

Is it just me (and the associated stress of helping put out a brand new entertainment tab), or does the arrival of this weekend seem especially sweet? (Speaking of which, do you like the new 7 section? Or hate it? Give us some feedback.) Here are four picks from the culture desk on this busy weekend.

This reader takes exception to my "Greater Tuna" review at the 2nd Space Theatre:

I usually don't respond to reviews, whether I agree or not, but this time, I believe you are really being unfair to the wonderfully talented participants in this play, and any other play that Second Space Players perform.

Didn't get a chance to see the popular Rogue shows "Confessions of a Church Organist" by Tony Imperatrice and "Bullet Point" by Jaguar Bennett? You have one more opportunity at a special double feature "command performance" 7 p.m. Saturday March 24 at Ashtree Studio, 1035 N. Fulton. Tickets are $10 to see both shows. That's right: For a third weekend, you can luxuriously wallow in the fertile creative atmosphere that is the Rogue. (You can even party afterward, which would no doubt be the continuation of a tradition for some Rogue diehards.) Remember that the Ashtree is a fairly small venue, so think about arriving early. No latecomers allowed.

And that's it, folks: I swear no more Rogue posts for at least a month until my entertainment equilibrium recovers.

It's the Oscar nominee that continues to tick people off. You might remember that I posted an anti-"Babel" thread last week, and sharply opinionated comments about this film continue to trickle in. Here's the latest from reader Bill Burns:

Noting your mea culpa in the paper recently regarding the movie "Babel", I am reminded that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.

The nationally prominent Ailey 2 dance company came to the Saroyan Theatre Tuesday night in a concert sponsored by the Lively Arts Foundation, and things got a little hot and bothered.

The reason: The company opted for full-scale political protest by closing its program with Abdel R. Salaam's "Axis," a commentary on global warming.

It was probably the most accessible dance of the evening, but it was also an exercise that made the part of me that sometimes wishes that modern dance be more story-driven and literal to be careful what I wish for.

There is a moment in "Handler," the ambitious and intense new production at Fresno City College, so haunting it still sends chills up my spine. Our main character and spiritual traveler, a battered man named Geordi (Brent Moser) who undergoes a near-death experience after a snake bite at a charismatic church service, is recounting what he felt on "the other side." Finally, it seems, after almost two acts of reticence, he is going to tell us what he really felt. What he really "saw."

The ensuing monologue is so bleak and riveting that it sticks to you like tangled cobwebs in a dank crawl space. It brings to mind one of literature's most hypnotically sobering moments, in Dostoevsky's "The Brothers Karamazov," when the story of the Grand Inquisitor -- called during medieval times to interrogate the returned Jesus Christ -- crushes his "savior" with a logic that goes something like this: Man created religion, not God, and He exists to serve us, not the other way around.

On the last day of Rogue, I said to my Beehive colleague Will Albritton (who has put together a couple of nifty videos on the festival that you need to be sure to check out) that I was "all Rogued out." No more shows for me. Let me luxuriate on my couch and spend the rest of the weekend in a fringe-festival-free zone.

An hour after I said that, I was at Dianna's North watching Beth Megill dance.

How could I miss this performance? It had gotten good word-of-mouth, and I was anxious to see Megill's collaboration with Fresno City College art instructor Anne Scheid. How would a dancer and a drawer come together?

I'm glad I dragged myself to one last show. Megill's solo show was a nice demonstration of craft and creativity.

In my Sunday column, I write about three major local art exhibits. As is often the case, however, we didn't have enough space in the print edition of The Bee to use all the artwork we had to illustrate the story. Alas, newsprint is a finite commodity, and the chance to use color images is even more precious. But we have plenty of space online. Here's your chance to get a little better visual sense of what I'm writing about.

Friday update: Just two more days to go in the Rogue Festival. This is where you get down to crunch time: Should you see that show that everyone is talking about? Or should you take a risk on something new and different?

Remember that as crowds grow these last two days, it pays to get to venues early. Breezing up two minutes before curtain and expecting to get in might leave you disappointed.

To help you come to some decisions, here's our updated list of reviewed productions on The Beehive. Because of the structure of the site, it isn't always easy to find them in one easy clump. So we've compiled the links on this thread so you can easily see if a show you're interested in has been reviewed. (A tip to those who want to do it the long way by navigating the Beehive: Go to the archives button on the right-hand side and click "go" next to March 2007 for access to all the Beehive entries for the month, which includes everything from this year's Rogue.)

Marcel Nunis' "Tale End" is one of the big hits of this year's Rogue Festival. Performances are selling out, and another show has been added to the schedule Saturday. Word-of-mouth is a strange and wondrous beast; I've heard many more people talk about going to "Tale End" because it's hard to get into than because it's a good piece of theater.

But commerce and art have always been linked, and kudos to Nunis for being so adept at getting bodies into the seats.

Which leaves us with "Tale End" the play, which is not the same as "Tale End" the phenomenon. There's no question this is a high-octane production with a couple of highly charged performances from its hard-working actors, Renee Newlove and Greg Taber. With a frenzied series of plot twists and enough emotional jacknifes to give whiplash to a soap opera, this cheeky and fast-moving one-act production leaves the audience breathless.

Veterans of the Broadway at the Saroyan touring series know that the shows coming through Fresno can be hit or miss. "Aida," which continues tonight (Wednesday), belongs in the "hit" column. This non-Equity production is well sung, has a suitably dazzling production design and manages, in its own Disneyfied way, to eke some real feeling out of Elton John and Tim Rice's big, brash songs.

This isn't your grandfather's "Aida." Verdi's operatic version is a mere historical marker to this production, not an inspiration. With a sometimes gaudy blend of rock, gospel, country-twang and rhythm and blues sung out on a hyper-modern set shimmering with light and fog, Disney's "Aida" is a happy exercise in excess. Then again, Verdi's opera isn't exactly known for minimalism. The epic is supposed to be eye candy, with everything from conquering armies of extras to live elephants thumping across stage. The word is spectacle, and Disney knows how to do that well.

The biggest temptation when staging LIllian Hellman's "The Little Foxes" is to let it get out of hand. When the acid-tongued Regina Giddens, one of a trio of backstabbing siblings in this classic play set in the defiantly suffering post-Civil War South, strikes a pose at the end of the second act and utters the show's most chilling line, it's hard not to play it too big.

"I hope you die," she says, the stage lights expiring upon her.

Thankfully, this sharp and sure production, which opened last Friday at California State University, Fresno and continues Tuesday-Saturday, is beautifully restrained. Director Kathleen McKinley does a superb job reining in her fine student actors. She takes care to keep the play delicately hostile, not bludgeoningly so.

One way to assess a comedy set titled "The history of America" is to critique the inevitable "Father of Our Country" joke. You know it has to be in there somewhere; it's practically mandated in the Bill of Rights. How will the George As Big Daddy routine roll?

The cheerful news is that in the Aithon Theatre Company's spiffy Rogue show, the "father" joke is fresh, well-executed and hysterical. (Let's just say some of the, er, more suggestive allusions in said joke are conveyed in a smart, literary style.) For the most part, that's what you get in this clever and boisterous show featuring the talents of Philip Bryan, Landon Weiszbrod and Byron Watkins.

Though the 45-minute routine, which I caught Sunday night at Veni Vidi Vici, takes a little time to warm up -- the opening song just bogs things down -- by the time these three talented performers get into the groove, "America" feels smooth and sure. Each actor plays a number of quick-change characters, ranging from Amerigo Vespucci and Thomas Jefferson to John Wilkes Booth. What I like most about Aithon's set is that it's a nice balance between slapstick and sophisticated. (Love the joke about the plural of Starbucks.) Offbeat and dry at times, cornball and loose at others, it has a nice flow. A recommended Rogue standout.

"Are Ya Dating?," a solo performance from Steven Karwoski, comes across a little awkward at times, like a first date that isn't necessarily sputtering but also isn't sparking much chemistry. At the Sunday evening performance I caught, Karwoski's soft-spoken style seemed a little swallowed up in the stuffy space of Dianna's South studio (which needs better lighting and air circulation, by the way).

There are some funny bits in the performer's routine, including one time when Karwoski spent a date in a cemetery even though he's afraid of ghosts, but much of the set was standard-issue, woe-is-me, flailing-dating-guy stuff that was reasonably well delivered but hard-pressed to entrance for an hour. As a solo show, it isn't the hottest date in town.

All theater is not created equal. You're reminded of that fact as you watch Teatro Immigrante's edifying "A Yellow Rose from Texas: The Story of Emma Tenayuca," which is performed in the earnest and community-based style of Cesar Chavez's original farmworker theater.

While some theater is naturalistic (mirroring reality) and other theater is abstract or psychological, "Yellow Rose from Texas" is done in a style known as political theater: structured to make an emphatic and specific point of view. It's like the stage version of a political poster. Designed to be easily transported and performed in the fields, productions often feature inspirational songs and archetypal characters.

Emma Tenayuca was a labor organizer and civil rights organizer in 1930s San Antonio who challenged the city's power structure. Poor undocumented workers from Mexico lived in big, squalid slums and were paid pitifully low wages. Tenayuca, who brought the idea of Mexican-American identity to the forefront, is celebrated today as a tenacious and courageous fighter for equality.

During Rwanda's terrible bloodbath, members of the clashing Hutu and Tutsi ethnic groups often called each other cockroaches. How can you feel anything but ambivalence for squashing a bug?

In Aaron A. Bonilla's ambitious and partially affecting "We Are Rwanda," three actors personify the country itself. They also represent the Hutus and Tutsis as well as specific individuals who both suffered and traumatized others.

It's serious stuff that is simply and seriously told. Representing the Tutsi, the very talented Liza Madison paints a tragic figure of violence and sadness. This is a tale graphically told: the image of a machete blade slashing a pregnant woman's belly; the rape of a child; the empty stares of villagers intent upon death and destruction. Personifying the Hutus, who did much (but not all) of the terrorizing, Robert Watts III seethes with resentment and a cruelty that seems inevitable.

As a child, Barry Smith never liked hearing the story of how God asked Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son, Isaac. When God stopped the killing at the last moment and told Abraham it was just a test of faith, it was if He had said, "Abe, you've been punked," Smith says.

It was pretty clear early in his childhood that Smith, whose well-crafted "Jesus in Montana: Adventures in a Doomsday Cult" solo performance at the Rogue is a solid and appealing show, had a turbulent relationship with religion. Going from small-town Southern boy to drug-addled California hippie, he was the kind of introspective soul who was drawn not only to various forms of organized religion but also some eccentric offshoots. It isn't too hard to believe that he ended up in an informal commune of sorts in Montana, practically worshipping a Baha'i breakaway prophet named Paul who proclaimed himself the new incarnation of Jesus Christ.

One of the advantages of the Rogue is that it's like a sampler plate for local artists: You get a taste of what people are working on these days. That's particularly true this year for theater. The Fresno area is home to a number of new theater companies, and nearly all of them are performing in some permutation or another at the Rogue.

That's certainly the case with Epic Theatre Company, which tackles Christopher Durang's absurdist romp " 'dentity Crisis" with characteristic flair. Rather than attempt an original short play, which is a very iffy proposition -- just ask the producers in New York who are inundated with scripts from professional playwrights, and even most of them are problematic -- Epic artistic director Janine Christl opted for an established play. Smart move. Not only does Durang's irreverent absurdism fit in nicely with the tenor of a fringe festival, it also means not have to reinvent the wheel in terms of a serviceable script.

A review of Saturday night's performance at Ashtree Studio from reader Jerry Thurston:

Saturday night's performance of "Tribute to Mississippi John Hurt," by Vince Thomas, was a fairly entertaining sampler of the legend's anthology of blues staples. The 45-minute set at Ashtree Studio, attended by some 30 festival-goers, could have been served better with a few simple changes. Firstly, part of going to a live music performance is not only in the what but also in the how--the enjoyment of watching how musicians do what they do. That pleasure was not possible for all but the first two rows at this venue, as Mr. Thomas was seated, guitar on knee, at the same height as the audience chairs. If you know even a little about Mississippi John Hurt, you know that his fingering technique was innovative and had a massive influence on a tremendous number of household-name rock gods. Vince Thomas did a solid job of recreating that distinctive Hurt sound, but neither I nor many others could see anything more than the top of his head bobbing up and down.

Casey Ballard, a performer from Selma, gives a solo performance as Anne Shakespeare, the wife left behind when the Bard left Stratford for the big city of London. "I just want my husband here where he belongs," Anne tells the audience, and then proceeds to give a little background on the practically non-existent state of her marriage. She's bitter, and she's going to tell us about it.

"Tea with Anne," which I saw Saturday at the Starline, is radically different from what I was expecting. Instead of a period piece, it's completely and utterly contemporary in terms of dress, speech and content. Anne could be an abandoned wife talking about her plight with Oprah. I can see why Ballard opted for this approach -- to drop the period language and persona and instead go for the pscyhological core of her character.

If random and absurdist humor is your thing, the wacky Los Angeles improv comedy trio of Starr, Scott and Ed is the perfect balance to some of the more dramatic offerings you might find at the Rogue. The group's set Saturday afternoon at Veni Vidi Vici included such themes as the boneless body of a cancer-ridden grandma (and, yes, they get a big laugh from that) and two characters who proclaim themselves "Christicians" -- they're Christians AND magicians.

The style is loosey-goosey (now there's an adjective I'm not sure I'd get through the copy desk if this were going in the print edition of the paper) and the tone laidback in true Southern California surfer style. Starr Ahrens put on a wonderful solo show last year at the Rogue in which she performed her own "musical." This time around the humor isn't as, how shall we say, high-brow, and I was a little disappointed we don't actually get to hear her sing for real, but the show is definitely full of laughs.

Note: the "mild sexual themes" listed in the program are a little more than mild, so don't be surprised. And if you're a Scientologist with no sense of humor, you might want to check out "American Idol" instead.

"Thread" doesn't work. As a play, it wants to be dark and mysterious. But this production from Fresno-based Entandem Productions comes across as noirish overkill.

Lisle Thread (played by Jaguar Bennett in a performance that will not be noted as his best) is a "consultant" living in a dour apartment building. Actually, he's some sort of middle-aged hit man who dispatches his targets with dispassionate zeal. A beautiful woman (Gabriela Lawson) moves in across the hall, and in her loneliness, pines for this one man who pays her the slightest bit of attention. But in the meantime he has found another love interest (Suzanne Garcia), a young and impressionable waitress half his age who soon moves in with him.

San Francisco performer Mia Paschal tried to commit suicide seven times. "I was tired of myself," she says in "This Lily Was (Fontana)," her searing and (unsurprisingly) serious solo-performance show.

Paschal is a gifted entertainer, and she commands the stage from the moment she takes it with a non-nonsense vocal strut. Following various threads of her life, including horrific childhood memories of abuse, she fuses philosophical digressions with concrete biographical jolts in a sweeping, ambitious monologue. At heart she tries to answer THE question: Why does a person try to commit suicide?

The answer, she suggests, is simple: to shock, to jar, to shake up a life.

Readers Lainey and Chango sent in this review of The Rose and Clarise Show, played by drag artistes Miss Rose Cone and Miss Clarise Sidney:

These two femme fatales of yesteryear saunter about the patio-stage ready to glint your eye and curl your smile. Rose works those hips as she fulfills your fantasy of the horny housewife, the beguiling belly dancer, and the gyrating gypsy. She'll taunt you with her skilled digital manipulation of both the finger symbols and castanets. Clarise contradicts her man-did-me-wrong lyrics with defiantly steely glares and survivor proper posture. One cannot help but be entranced as this towering dame sings her sorrows through black tulle and lined lips.

These matriarchal crones are not to be missed. Sit in the front row with your dollars pulled out and your dicorum [sic] tucked in. At $4, they're a must see! You'll come home ready to try on your granny panties for your own patio-show. Be sure to invite us!

Rose and Clarise have just one more Rogue show: 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Veni Vidi Vici.

You can email us your reviews or post a comment on our open Rogue thread on the Beehive.

Berkeley storyteller Tim Ereneta returns to the Rogue with a new show that gives him a framework to "count down" the top 10 stories of the year. The idea is that he's at a big convention at which the top folks in the field from all over Europe have gathered to swap stories. (Except the ones who had to call in sick because of the plague.)

It's an OK concept that started out a little wobbly Saturday afternoon. For one thing, Ereneta's characterization as the emcee storyteller wasn't strong enough. It took a while for him to connect with the audience; either he wasn't warmed up at the Saturday show or was just off in his transitions. He looked the part in his medieval-checked vest, but the character seemed flat.

Chemistry is a big part of performance, and the laidback members of the Eclectic Duet --- poet Deanna Pierro and singer Jessica Taylor -- have the kind of easy-going, cheery rapport that induces relaxation and introspection in an audience. The idea is that these two musicians switch instruments often, first one playing on amplified guitar and then the other, in sort of an ongoing tag-team match, with a keyboard and drum kit thrown into the mix (along with a third uncredited-in-the-program member of the "duet" on bass in many of the songs).

Many of the songs have a folk-introspective feel, with themes ranging from long-distance relationships (they're tough) and religion (it can be a crock) to absent fathers (an edgy personal gripe session from Pierro, who manages to cut the bitterness with her wry, self-deprecating introduction).

A reader writes:

What's with The Good German? I read it had gotten mixed reviews, but the review in the paper today gave it a B. Yet it's only playing in Clovis on Mon and Tues?

That "B" grade you mention was from the Hollywood Reporter. It's a good review, but there are other critics out there who disliked the film. Hence the term mixed reviews: some good, some bad. (Actually, if truth be told, ALL movies get mixed reviews, because there's almost always someone out there who both loves and hates a film -- even "The Number 23," thank you very much, San Francisco Chronicle -- but the term mixed reviews is sort of reserved for ones in the big fat middle.

As for the Monday and Tuesday screenings: "The Good German" is part of what Regal calls its art film series. The good news is that the film will be shown at all. The bad news is that it's only on Monday and Tuesday. If more people went to films like this on the weekends, we wouldn't have to worry about having to tromp out on weekdays.

It's movie question time. A reader writes:

I was looking through movie offerings on NetFlix a bit ago, and came across a Poitier movie titled "The Simple Life of Noah Dearborn." Had to have been made fairly recently -- Poitier is obviously getting along in years. An enchanting story -- nothing spectacular -- no great truths as in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" or "Lilies of the Field". No sex, no violence, no objectionable language -- just Poitier -- and it was wonderful -- a sweet, little story. Wonder if you know the movie?

Haven't seen or heard of this one. Has anyone else out there?

Catching up on some of my correspondence, a besmitten fan of Audra McDonald (who hasn't been mentioned on this blog for at least two weeks, by the way) writes:

Is she the best ever? Ethel Merman. Bernadette Peters. Donna McKechnie. Linda Eder. Sarah Brightman. Nell Carter. Elaine Stritch. Andrea McArdle. Julie Andrews. Jennifer Holliday. June Allyson. Ruby Keeler. Pearl Bailey. Mary Martin. Sandy Duncan. Irene Dunne. Ann Reinking. Ginger Rogers. Barbra. Sophie Tucker. The irrepressible Gwen Verdon.

I mean, after all, Audra doesn't really dance. But for me? The Tonys speak volumes. Audra is the best ... ever. You?

My first reaction is to say: Heck, yes!