Lawrence.com

Musicians line up for bluegrass fest

Kansas City, Mo.  Three Kansas City festivals  Santa Fe Trails Bluegrass Festival, Prairie Winds Kite Festival and Blue Devil Barbecue Cookoff  are uniting under one moniker, Kansas City's Americana Weekend.

Americana Weekend will be from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday at the National Agricultural Hall of Fame in Bonner Springs.

Bluegrass performers include Bé¡ Fleck and the Bluegrass Sessions, made up of Sam Bush, Jerry Douglas, Stuart Duncan and Mark Schatz; Cache Valley Drifters; Big Twang; The Wilders; The Rain Dogs; Bluestem; and Kelly and Diana Wertz.

Tickets are $15 a day for Friday or Sunday, $20 for Saturday or $45 for a three-day pass. Children's tickets are $5 for the three days. There is an additional fee for camping.

Book signings planned at Raven, library

The Raven Bookstore, 8 E. Seventh St., will be sponsoring several book signings in May.

Mystery author Lise McClendon, author of "One O'Clock Jump," will read from and sign copies of her book from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. today.

Author Daniel Woodrell, whose new book is "The Death of Sweet Mister," will read from and sign copies of the book from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday. Woodrell is the author of "Tomato Red" and "Woe to Live On," the basis for the Ang Lee film "Ride With the Devil." Woodrell lived in Lawrence from 1976 to 1981 and graduated from Kansas University.

Miriam Grace Monfredo will talk about and sign copies of her novels from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. May 30 at the Lawrence Public Library, 707 Vt. Monfredo has written seven historical mysteries, including her first novel, "Seneca Falls Inheritance."

Kemper Museum acquires new artworks

Kansas City, Mo. Â The Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art, 4420 Warwick Blvd., has acquired five new works.

The works are "Girls on the Shore," a 1922 oil painting by William Glackens; "Colors," a 1999 oil painting by David Brega; "Untitled," a 2000 mixed-media and oil and acrylic painting, and "Untitled," a 2000 charcoal on paper, both by Kojo Griffin; and "Bread," a 1995 lithograph by Claudio Bravo.

Trolley running again in Atchison

Atchison  The Atchison Trolley is offering narrated, 45-minute tours showcasing the history and Victorian homes of Atchison.

The trolley tour includes several National Register homes, the Amelia Earhart birthplace, St. Benedict's Abbey, Bendictine College and the site where the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad was founded. The route also goes along the Missouri River, where passengers learn about Lewis and Clark's visit to the area in 1804.

The trolley departs each hour on the hour from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays and noon to 4 p.m. Sundays. Ticket prices are $4 for adults and $2 for children ages 4-12.

For more information, call the Atchison Area Chamber of Commerce, (913) 367-2427 or (800) 234-1854.

Historical fiction writer to sign books

Author Laura Evans-Young will sign copies of her book, "Coming of Age," at 2 p.m. Saturday at Borders, 700 N.H.

Evans-Young's book is historical fiction and based on actual events. She spent 30 years researching and writing "Coming of Age," which is a tale of life along the Kansas-Missouri border during the mid-1800s.

The book signing is free and open to the public.

East Indian musicians to give recital

Kansas City, Mo. Â A sitar and sarangi recital will be presented from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday in Goppert Theatre at Avila College, 11901 Wornall Road.

Featured performers are Manilal Nag, sitar; Subhen Chatterji, tabla; and Ramesh Misra, sarangi. They will perform solo and as duets.

Tickets are $15 for the general public and $10 for students.

The recital is organized by Pratichi, an Indian cultural nonprofit in Kansas City, Mo. For more information, go to the organization's Web site, www.pratichi.com.

Commission extends nomination deadline

Topeka  The Kansas Arts Commission has extended the nomination deadline for the 2001 Governor's Arts Awards to June 1. The original deadline for submitting complete nominations and support materials was May 1.

Any Kansas citizen or organization can submit a documented nomination in one of six categories: individual artist; arts organization; art educator; arts advocate; individual patron; or patron organization. Individual artists can be in the visual, performing, literary, folk or media arts.

For more information, contact Conchita Reyes at the Kansas Arts Commission, 700 S.W. Jackson, Suite 1004, Topeka, Kan. 66603-3761; e-mail conchita@arts.state.ks.us; or call (785) 296-4090.

Psychic workshop set for Friday

Kansas City, Mo. Â The Cornerstone Foundation and The Edge will present a workshop with Echo Bodine from 7:30 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Friday at the Unity Temple on the Plaza, 707 W. 47th St.

Bodine is the author of numerous books including: "Hands That Heal," "Passion to Heal," "Echoes of the Soul," "Relax," "It's Only a Ghost" and "A Still Small Voice: A Psychic's Guide to Awakening Intuition."

She discovered her psychic abilities at age 17 and has spent her life practicing her gift of healing and vision. She will share her journey, the realization of her ability and her knowledge of psychic gifts.

Bodine will answer questions from the audience. She will be available for autographs afterwards.

Ticket prices are $40, $30 and $25. For tickets or more information, call Cornerstone at (816) 561-1627.