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Television Page 3Ask Amy Page 4Comics Page 5

INSIDE: Catch “Chitty Chitty Bang Bang” this weekend in Raleigh / Page D6

THURSDAY, April 2, 2009

EXPANDEDONLINE CONTENT

TheTimesNews.com■ Photos ■ Videos ■ Blogs

COMING FRIDAY CONTACT USThe Times-News welcomes comments on its cover-age, as well as suggestions for stories. Dial 227-0131 and ask for the newsroom or dial editors for this section direct. Their telephone numbers and e-mail addresses are listed at right.

■ Charity Apple, Accent editor, 506-3057,e-mail: [email protected]

■ Brian Rose, asst. Accent editor, 506-3056,e-mail: [email protected]

Lori Borgman and John Rosemond discuss parenting and other topics

in their weekly family columns.

BESTbets

Complete calendar of events on Page 2

Music

Theater/Dance

Exhibits

Greensboro Symphony, 7:30 p.m. today and 8 p.m. Saturday, War Memorial Audito-rium, Greensboro. Tickets available through Ticketmaster.

Juan De Marcos and the Afro-Cuban All-Stars, 8 p.m. Friday, Carolina Theatre of Greensboro, 310 S. Greene St. $24.50. Visit carolinatheatre.com or call (336) 333-2605.

Elon University Percussion Ensemble’s Spring Concert, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Yeager Recital Hall, on campus. (336) 278-5610.

k.d. lang, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Ovens Auditorium, Charlotte. $37.50 to $67.50; tickets available through Ticketmaster.

Cheech & Chong, 8 p.m. today, Ovens Auditorium, Charlotte; and 8 p.m. Friday, Durham Performing Arts Center, Durham. $38.50 to $59.50; tickets available through Ticketmaster.

Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, today through Sunday, Carolina Theatre of Durham, 309 W. Morgan St. Visit fullframe fest.org for more details.

Triad Highland Games presents “A Taste of Scottish Culture,” part of the National Tartan Day festivities, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Greensboro Historical Museum, 130 Summit Ave., Greensboro. Visit triadhighlandgames.com or call (336) 431-8482 or (336) 348-1557 for details.

Comedian Rodney Carrington, 7 p.m. Saturday, Ovens Auditorium, Charlotte. $43.75; tickets available through Ticket-master.

N.C. Renaissance Faire, 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, 13239 Capital Blvd., Wake Forest. $12, $6 ages 5 to 12 and seniors. Visit ncrenfaire.or or call (800) 838-3006.

Caswell Spring Market, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, Caswell County Civic Center, 536 Main Street East, Yanceyville. $1 on Friday, free on Saturday. (336) 694-4591.

“Elements,” an exhibit featuring stained glass by Diane Murray, sculptures by Steve Reinhart and watercolors by Jamie Hansen, opens with a reception at 2 p.m. Sunday and runs through April 30 at the Burlington Artists League Fine Arts Gallery at Burling-ton Square Mall. (336) 584-3005.

“Soft and Hard/Cloth and Clay,” quilts by Scott Murkin and pottery by Donna Craven, opens Monday and runs through April 30, Moring Arts Gallery, 123 Sunset Ave., Asheboro. (336) 629-0399.

UNC-Greensboro’s Music and Theatre departments present a world premiere opera, “Picnic,” by Libby Larsen, 7:30 p.m. today, Aycock Auditorium, at Spring Garden and Tate streets on campus. Get ticket details at (336) 334-4849.

Triad Stage presents a world premiere adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s “Ghosts,” 7:30 p.m. today, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday, Pyrle Theater, 232 S. Elm St., Greensboro. $16 to $42. Visit triadstage.org or call (336) 272-0160.

Playmakers Repertory Company pres-ents Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice,” now through April 19, except Mondays. $10 to $40. Visit playmakersrep.org or call (919) 962-PLAY for details or tickets.

Al Staggs presents “A View from the Underside: The Legacy of Dietrich Bon-hoeffer,” 7:30 p.m. today, Whitley Audito-rium, Elon University. (336) 278-5610.

Elon University students present “Grand Night XVII,” 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Yeager Recital Hall, on campus. (336) 278-5610.

UNC-Greensboro’s Dance Department presents “Six Degrees of Instigation,” 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, UNCG Dance Theatre on campus. $12, $9 seniors and children. (336) 334-4849.

Moscow Festival Ballet, 8 p.m. Tuesday, Aycock Auditorium, at Spring Garden and Tate streets, on the UNC-Greensboro cam-pus. $28 to $35. (336) 334-4849.

Events

By Charity AppleTimes-News

[email protected]

Joining a military band isn’t as simple as you might think. The audition lasts several hours, and focuses primarily on sight-reading.

“To get into a military band, you can’t just show up and say, ‘hey, I play an instrument.’ It’s a hard audition process,” said Master Sgt. Claudia B. Weir, a noncommissioned offi cer in charge of So-laris, a clarinet/percussion ensemble that serves as a part of the U.S. Air Force Academy Band.

There are 12 Air Force bands throughout the United States and each one holds its own audi-tions. The bands perform at schools, theaters and community centers.

Of course, patriotic selections make up a large part of the bands’ repertoire, but Weir said it

might surprise audiences to know that opera, jazz and even popular music can be performed during Solaris’ shows.

“Not only is the performance quality high, but the quality of music is very high, too,” she said. “We do a lot of concerts for schoolkids, so our pieces are very kid-friendly. We love to look out in the audience and see families in attendance.”

Solaris was founded in 1999 as a way to spot-light the clarinet. Besides Weir, it includes Master Sgt. Noelle T. Little and Technical Sgt. Laura M. Bardill on B-fl at clarinet and Chief Master Sgt. Scott Barbier on percussion. Little is an original member of the group and at one time, her father was also in the band.

Weir was born in New Zealand but grew up in Raleigh. Her father taught at North Carolina State University for 30 years. The family moved to Seattle, Wash., when Weir was 16. Solaris has seven North Carolina shows planned, including a concert at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro on Monday.

The members of Solaris also perform in the marching band and the concert band. In all, the various bands perform 600 shows a year, along

with performing at cadets’ graduation ceremo-nies.

Solaris will perform at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Paramount Theater, 128 E. Front St., Burlington; the Times-News is sponsoring this event. Admis-sion is free, but tickets are required and can be obtained at the Times-News offi ce, 707 S. Main St., Burlington, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. weekdays.

Tickets will be dispensed on a fi rst-come, fi rst-served basis and it’s best to get them early, be-cause these shows usually sell out.

Military bands, like Solaris, can’t charge for concerts because they fall under the govern-ment budget. But at each show, Weir said audi-ences are asked to fi ll out surveys about how they heard about the concert and any comments they might have.

“This is their show,” she said. “We welcome their opinions.”

For more information on Tuesday’s concert, call the Times-News switchboard at (336) 227-0131. To fi nd out more about the U.S. Air Force Academy Bands, visit the Web site: www.usafacademyband.af.mil/.

Photo submitted

Master Sgt. Noelle Little, from left, Master Sgt. Claudia Weir and Technical Sgt. Laura Bardill are members of Solaris, the clarinet/percussion ensemble of the United States Air Force Band. Solaris performs at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Paramount Theater in downtown Burlington.

Clarinets at easeU.S. Air Force Band’s Solaris heads to Burlington for show

Hello, love! Greetings from Chris Tomlin and friends

Commentary by Brian RoseTimes-News

[email protected]

Love.It’s such a simple word, yet it has

so many complex meanings.It’s hard to go through a day and

not feel love toward something: a spouse, a child, a friend, a job … whatever.

Some people even see love in things like a sunrise, a fl ower blooming or a bird chirping.

But what about God or Jesus? Do you ever think of Jesus when you hear the word “love?”

Christians across the world are in the midst of the Lenten season now, the period of 40 days leading up to Jesus’ crucifi xion and subse-quent rising from the dead. It’s a period of refl ection, a time to think about what Jesus went through and what His death on the cross meant to the world.

Which brings us back to love. It’s the word that comes to my mind

when I think of one man dying on the cross so the rest of us could be saved. In fact, that thought alone is so overwhelming and at times, it’s hard to comprehend.

Sometimes it’s hard to put into words what all this means, and Christian musician Chris Tomlin is well aware of that. He’s on tour in support of his fourth album, “Hello Love,” a collection of worship songs he said he hopes connects people with God, Jesus and … you guessed it, love.

“The thought I’ve had running through my head is that it’s time to introduce ourselves to love again,” Tomlin said in a statement. “People need to be reminded that what we’re here to do is to love God and love people. Worship is a relation-ship of love. It’s our love of God and our love of people.”

Tomlin also took a few minutes to chat on the phone during a break in his current tour, which has had several sold-out shows in recent weeks. Fans can catch the Gospel Music Association’s

Photo submitted

Christian singer/songwriter Chris Tomlin performs at 7 p.m. today at Bojangles’ Coliseum in Charlotte and 7 p.m. April 9 at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem.See HELLO, LOVE / Page D2

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