5/25: A Simulacrum to Live Your Life Through

SCHADENFREUDE IS THE SHIZZLE: By now you have surely heard of Avenue Q, “the story of Princeton, a bright-eyed college grad who comes to New York City with big dreams and a tiny bank account. He soon discovers that the only neighborhood in his price range is Avenue Q; still, the neighbors seem nice. There's Brian the out-of-work comedian and his therapist fianceé Christmas Eve; Nicky the good-hearted slacker and his roommate Rod -- a Republican investment banker who seems to have some sort of secret; an Internet addict called Trekkie Monster; and a very cute kindergarten teaching assistant named Kate.” The thing that makes this the greatest spoof of all time is that it’s done through the glue on eyes puppets that are eerily similar to Sesame Street but seen through a “sideways reality” that includes graphic language and subject matter; or maybe we’re just uptight and it’s just a bunch of puppets keeping it real. Either way you may want to check the kids with a sitter while you go have the time of your life.

POST MODERN PANSY’S: When you step into gallery to view the work of local artist and gardener Sharen Chatterton, you can almost smell the roses and feel the butterfly wings glide across your cheek, but that wing is only a tear; a tear that strikes you straight in the heart when it rolls off your cheek after viewing these acrylic wonderworks at the Texas Discovery Gardens at Fair Park. From the artist statement: “Two of my favorite things are gardening and creating art. I love the colors, the smells, and the peace and solitude that my time spent in the garden and in front of a canvas brings to me. I endeavor to express my love of nature in each of my pieces. I try to capture the beauty created by an undeniably talented God.” Plus it’s one of the last weeks to stroll the gardens before you remember what 100° weather leaves you not smelling exactly like a rose.

LIFE THROUGH A LENS: Do you remember what it used to be like to snap a photo? What it felt like to capture a moment and completely forget about it till that moment was resurrected by the power of the chemicals inside the machine at Walgreens? It felt like a reawaking didn’t it? Right now at Fort Worth’s Amon Carter you can view their “Masterworks of American Photography: Popular Culture” exhibit. This amazing retrospective of some of our most important moments is mostly done through silver gelatin prints, although it does leave room for where photography is going, with prints such as Near Alpine, by Michael H. Marvins, which remind us the popular culture of Texas is not always about people, but about one person’s experience that can be as valid as the group think that surrounds our daily lives.