Arts & Lifestyle Of Interest ... Architect hired at NCSA Stephen Atkinson of Greenville, N.C., has been appointed the new University Architect at the North Carolina School of the Arts (NCSA). He began his duties at the School in February. "Stephen Atkinson brings a wealth of experience from the private sector, the UNC system and state of North Carolina that will guide NCSA's capital pro grams with a renewed energy and perspective," said Christopher J. Boyd, associate vice chancellor for facilities management at NCSA. For the past seven years, Atkinson served as a cap ital projects manager in the Facilities Engineering and Architectural Services department at East Carolina University (ECU). In that capacity, he was responsible for design and construction administration for projects, ranging in cost from $300,000 to $20 million. In addition to his work at ECU, Atkinson has worked with several prominent private architectural firms including Lambert Architecture and Edwin Bouldin Architects, both of Winston-Salem, and J. Hyatt Hammond Associates of Greensboro. Atkinson has a Master of Architecture from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, and a Bachelor of Arts in chemistry and German from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a registered architect with both the North Carolina Board of Architecture and the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards and a member of the American Institute of Architects. Fellowship awarded to professor Sarah Watts, professor of history at Wake Forest University, has been awarded a 2008 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship in the "category of fine arts research. She was among 190 scholars, scientists and artists selected from a group of more than 2,600 applicants from the United States and Canada in the ? foundation's 84th annual competition. Guggenheim Fellows are appointed on the basis of stellar achievement and exceptional promise for continued accomplishment. . Watts is currently drafting a book manuscript based on research in which she has assembled 257 previously unstudied satirical political Watts cartoons produced between 1897 and 19 1U by German Expressionist Lyonel Feininger. "Lyonel Feininger figures prominently among German Expressionists, yet his career as one of Germany's most prominent political satirists has been overlooked, leaving him a sleeping giant in the cultur al history of Bismarck's Reich," Watts said. "My study of Feininger's cartoons will present for the first time works that have never been seen together or col lected in one place. It will analyze Feininger's satires within their milieu, delineating the possibilities and limits of political protest in Imperial Germany at a time when mass media was superseding art as a pri mary vehicle of visual culture." Watts has been a member of the Wake Forest fac ulty since 1987. She holds a bachelor's degree in his tory from Oklahoma College of Liberal Arts, a mas ter's degree in German history from the University of Oklahoma and a doctorate in United States history, also from the University of Oklahoma. Lopez to star in reality series NEW YORK (AP) - Jennifer Lopez is no stranger to reality television: She's made cameos on Fox's "American Idol" and MTV's "DanceLife," which she produced, about six aspiring dancers strug gling to make it. But this time, the full attention will be on JLo. Lopez has signed on to star in an unscripted series for TLC following the stylish actress-singer-dancer businesswoman as she juggles her career with mommy duty. Lopez, 39, and husband Marc Anthony, 38, wel comed twins Max and Emme in February. Lopez took months to publicly confirm her pregnancy last year, yet waited only weeks after giving birth to publicly display the babies on the cover of People magazine. Lopez, who has three fashion lines, is also an executive! producer on the TLC program, which will show the star launching a new fragrance to add to her collection of namesake perfumes. Youth Orchestras auditions The Winston-Salem Youth Orchestras (WSYO) will hold auditions for the 2008 - 2009 concert season in Room M201 of the Scales Fine Arts Building at Wake Forest University. Auditions will be held on Thursday, May 22 beginning at 4:30 p.m.; Tuesday, May 27 beginning at 4:30 p.m.; and Saturday, May 31 beginning at 10 a.m. ? The WSYO consists of two separate groups: the Youth Symphony, for advanced students, and the Youth Philharmonic, for intermediate students. The Youth Symphony is a full orchestra of student musi cians who have demonstrated the ability to perform at an advanced level. The Youth Philharmonic is a full orchestra for student musicians who wish to partici pate in an environment that will challenge and devel op their musical abilities. Students in grades 4-12 may audition. Students should be prepared to play one scale demonstrating their widest range and a 3 - 5 minute prepared solo piece. Students will also be asked to sight-read an orchestral excerpt. The audition fee is $20 per family, due on the day of the audition. Students must schedule an audition time in advance by calling the Winston-Salem Symphony at 336.725.1035, ext. 246. Hobbit for Hillary o Photo by Todd Luck Actor Sean Astin chats with Sweet Potatoes co-owner Vivian Joiner last week inside the Trade Street eatery. Astin, best known for his role as Hobbit Sam Gamgee in the "Lord of the Rings" films, was grabbing a bite to eat on his way to Greensboro. He was wrapping up four days of cam paigning in North Carolina for Democratic presidential hope ful Hillary Clinton, who will face Sen. Barack Obama in the state's May 6 primary. Film produced by local couple honored CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT A film produced by a Winston Salem couple for the North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching has gar nered a prestigious award. The documentary, "Teachirtg the Holocaust" has claimed three silver Telly Awards. The film focuses on the center's efforts to promote and raise awareness of its Holocaust education program ming. NCCAT was created by the state legislature in 1985 to advance the art and profession of teaching in North Carolina. The center's main focus is a year round series of five-day residen tial seminars for pre-kindergarten through twelfth-grade teachers that embrace the arts, humanities, sciences, technology, health and fitness. The Telly Awards are a widely known and highly respected national and international compe tition receiving more than 14,000 entries annually from all 50 states and many foreign countries. The awards honor outstanding local, regional and cable TV commer cials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions. The film was directed by Deni Mclntyre with cinematography by Will Mclntyre. The couple run Winston-Salem's Will & Deni Films (which produced the docu Filmmaker! photographers Will and Deni Mclntyre. mentary) and Mclntyre Photography. Marshall Crutcher of San Francisco provided original music for the "Teaching the Holocaust." ? NCCAT's Holocaust education programming provides N.C. pub lic school teachers with the critical tools and knowledge to teach the challenging lessons* of the Holocaust to students. Seminars allow teachers to engage directly with Holocaust survivors and authoritative scholars to gain a deeper understanding of events. An annual gathering of Holocaust educators allows teachers to reconnect with colleagues and maintain a high level of commit ment and excellence to teaching this important subject. The center's "Becoming Witnesses" seminar participants will travel to Germany and Poland in August to study Holocaust sites firsthand. Powerful tale hits Triad Stage Photo by NyghtFalcon Photography Actresses Soara-Joye Rots, from lop, Cassandra Lowe Williams and Bria Walker. CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT A production of "From ?the Mississippi Delta" debuted last week at Greensboro's Triad Stage. The play is based on the inspirational mem oir of Dr. Endesha Ida Mae Holland, a Civil Rights activist and Pulitzer Prize-nominated playwright who rose from the depths of poverty in the heart of the segregated South. Three actresses - Soara-Joye Ross, Bria Walker and Cassandra Lowe Williams - play all the characters in the play, be they black or white, young or old, male or female. North Carolina A&T State University adjunct profes sor Donna Baldwin-Bradby helms the produc tion as director. The creative team includes scenic designer Andrew Layton, costume designer Gregory J. Horton, lighting designer Stuart Nelson and sound designer Ryan J. Gastelum. The vocal coach is the Reverend George Pass II and the stage manager is Catherine Hagner. The show opened April 27 and will run through May 18. Single ticket prices range from $10 to $42, depending on the day of the week and seat location desired. All performances are ^t Triad Stage at The Pyrle Theater, located at 232 South Elm Street in historic ""downtown Greensboro (between Market and Washington Streets). Several special promotions-are planned. On Sunday (May 4) and Tuesday (May 6) there will be "Pay- What- You-Can" performances at 7:30 p.m. There will be a wine tasting tomorrow (May 2) prior to the evening's 8 p.m. perform ance. Also on May 2, poet Josephus III will present The Poetry Caf 6, a post-shoW event in Triad Stage's new Cabaret space following the 8 See Play on All AATPbolo Latoya Hopkins A&T student wins CNN competition SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE Judges representing the National Association of Black Journalists and CNN have selected North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University student Latoya Hopkins^as a winner in a competition among students at HBCUs. It's part of a CNN documentary to be aired in July about being black in America. Hopkins is a junior major ing in journalism. She was among nine journalism stu dents at A&T who submitted multimedia slideshows and TV packages to CNN's iReport Web site, as part of the cable news network's Black in America Series, which will air July 23 and 24 on CNN. A&T students participated in the project, along with seven other HBCUs as part of CNN's HBCU tour/contest, designed to promote the upcoming documentary. Producers at CNN felt four of the A&T pieces were so good that they "-were linked directly from the main CNN Web' site throughout the day on Tuesday. Hopkin's story about the impact of the faltering econo my on a black-owned business in Greensboro, received more than 4,000 "hits" from across the country. In addition to it airing on CNN^s main Web site , portions of the story were broadcast. Hopkins will get a digital video camera so she can do stories related to the docu mentary, and compete in the next round of the competition against 1he other seven win ners from the other HBCU schools. If she wins the grand prize, Hopkins and a guest , will attend the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans dur ing the July 4th weekend The runner up at A&T is Kelii Uitenham, a junior majoring in journalism. > View Latoya Hopkins's report at this address: http://www.ireport.com/docs/ DOC -9208