Arts & Culture

Though I've (hopefully) become a weekly fixture to keep you entertained with your morning cup of Coho coffee or while waiting at the bus stop, this was not the case a mere 12 months ago.

The deadline for next year's managerial positions is today, so I've been wondering - what happens after an arts editor comes to the end of their term? Where do they go once they clear the piles of press releases and un-reviewed albums off of their sticker-laden desk and leave the cozy confines of 25 Lower Freeborn?

Dada art is difficult to explain, but easier to experience first-hand. It's not surprising then that the word Dada is essentially a nonsense word, chosen at random to represent a radical, passionate, anti-art movement.

The Dada Cabaret art festival will take place on Saturday from 3 to 10 p.m. The event, directed by theater and dance MFA candidate Hope Mirlis will be broken up into two sections - an afternoon walking tour and scavenger hunt at various locations downtown and an evening cabaret performance at what the official website says will be a "secret" location on campus beginning at 8 p.m.

The Ellen Hansen Memorial Prize is a mixed-media exhibit of photography, performance art, painting, sculpture, poetry, fiction, comics and film produced by female UC Davis students.

The exhibit is currently being featured at Pence Gallery in Downtown Davis and will continue until May 21.

"This is the first year that the exhibit has been hosted by the Pence Gallery," said Margaret Swain, director of the Women's Resources and Research Center. "The Women's Center is very excited for this collaboration."

Though Shakespeare may not have expected his plays to be performed on anything but a theater stage, Studio 301 makes it seem like A Midsummer Night's Dream was designed for the outdoors. The independent student theater group's production debuted last night and will continue performances Thursdays through Sundays until May 24. A Midsummer Night's Dream follows three intertwining tales of love and bewitchment. First the audience meets the four youths: two men and two women who are all a bit crossed in love. Their story begins calmly but quickly escalates to an uproarious scene of infighting and competitions of machismo.

The most impressive aspect of Star Trek is how the writers managed to make a prequel interesting and entertaining. Prequels are often devoid of suspense because you know that if the characters appear in movies that occur later chronologically, nothing bad can really happen to them. This doesn't make for a very exciting film, no matter how action packed it may be (see: Wolverine).

Rarely do movies made about the Asian American experience reach a wide audience, but an ongoing event at UC Davis is trying to change that.

UC Davis' Asian American Association is in the middle of hosting its annual film festival. The event, which kicked off on May 5, continues until May 15. The films run Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays each week.

MUSIC

The Lovetones, Chief Nowhere, The Ancient Sons

Today, 9 p.m., $$, 21

Old Ironsides in Sacramento

For anyone wondering what sort of music sprouts from the land down under, the answer: It's not that different from the stuff here. The Aussies of the Lovetones bring a psychedelic touch to their Interpol-esque rock base.

With the mixed musical styles of former Bright Eyes front man Conor Oberst and the full-throttled folk back-up from Mystic Valley Band also come mixed feelings.

The band's sophomore album Outer South, which was released on May 5, is not for creatures of habitual bouts of quivering melodies and nervous serenades, as most Oberst fans have become accustomed to. While Oberst has consistently shown an ability to evolve in unexpected ways, this change is not for the better.

In many cultures around the world, footwear not only serves functional purposes, but also as indicators of social class and economic status. "Stepping Out: Footwear Around the World," an exhibition put on by UC Davis design students, features shoes from our very own design collection.

The exhibit opens on Monday and will run until July 12. An opening reception will be held on May 17 at 1 p.m. at the museum, and guided tours will be given throughout the afternoon.

After a full week of avid fundraising from Apr. 20 to 26, campus radio station KDVS 90.3 FM raised $56,375, just shy of their $60,000 goal.

The online pledge system is still up and active, continuing to accept and receive donations. Currently, the station has raised $58,745 and continues to receive pledges from fundraiser.kdvs.org.

QUAD STAGE

Mad Cow String Band

Friday, 6:30 p.m.

CEDAR STAGE

Ginger Ninjas

Friday, 7:30 p.m.

Ben Lewis

Saturday, 6 p.m.

Ayla Nero

Sunday, 10 a.m.

As we grow up, it becomes clear that the world is not black and white. That is just what psychology graduate student Lauren Berger aims to prove with "Mixed Photo Project," a photo exhibition that opened yesterday at the Memorial Union Art Lounge as part of Mixed Heritage Week.

MUSIC

Dirt Nasty, Andre Legacy, Beardo

Today, 8 p.m., $15 in advance, $17 day of show

The Boardwalk in Orangevale

Some people are so bad that they're good, and Dirt Nasty may or may not be one of those people. It all just depends whether you're into obnoxious rap songs that feature topics such as cocaine, itty-bitty baby dicks and bestiality.

Green River Ordinance

Out Of My Hands

Virgin Records

Rating: 2

Metric

Fantasies

Independent

Rating: 4

It's become a recent trend that as artists create new records, they add a variety of instruments here and there, use a pinch of synthesizer, toss in a tasty beat mix, sprinkle in a couple clever lines and gently place it into the indie rock oven and hope for the best, yes?