The UWM Post

In the 1700s, a family would trek out into the forest, find the nearest evergreen and Father would cut it down. The family would drag it back to the cabin and decorate it with popcorn and tinsel. Thus, the Christmas tree was born.

Two years ago, a very good friend of mine and I would meet up at the charmingly authentic Sala da Pranzo weekly for steamy panini, bottomless glasses of ice water and the occasional slice or two (or three) of cheesecake.

“Take this sinking boat and point it home/ We’ve still got time/ Raise your hopeful voice, you have a choice,” Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová tell us in their delicate ballad “Falling Slowly.” They are singing about a blooming love affair, but their “sinking boat” could just as easily be the state of popular music. Their “hopeful voice,” has come to save us all from drowning in monotony and commercialism.

Even though most of Milwaukee was glued to their TV sets this past Thursday night to catch the Packers versus Cowboys game, a small number of dance fanatics came out to see Wild Space Dance Company’s opening night of “Balancing Forces” at the Steimke Theater.

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Theatre Department presented the farce, “Ring Round the Moon” this past week at the Main Stage Theatre. The play, written by Jean Anouilh, takes place in the spring of 1912 in the gardens of a French chateau.

Continuing the motion picture trend of fantasy epics based on literary tales is “The Golden Compass,” the first of three books from the “His Dark Materials” series by Philip Pullman. Though notably more famous in Britain than in America, the film has received a mixed reception among critics on this side of the pond.

Throughout the course of my weekly rants, I may have come across as a man who has no love for the art of cinema. For any of you who think this, let me assure you: I absolutely love any and all things having to do with film.

Boiled down to its most basic aspects, “Beowulf” the game is nothing more than a “God of War” clone with a fresh coat of paint. The only problem with this is that the paint begins to chip within minutes of turning on the game.

“Mass Effect” is the first outing on the Xbox 360 by developer BioWare. Players may be familiar with past works, such as “Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic” and “Jade Empire.” Keeping with previous titles, “Mass Effect” is a Role-Playing Game (RPG); the twist is that it is a third-person shooter RPG.