New York City

Book publishers have been amassing at the Javits Center since Wednesday for their annual trade show, Book Expo America, and I had the chance to take the pulse of the industry on Thursday.

I found a distinct upstairs-downstairs divide. Literally.

Up on the main conference floor, the third floor, everything looked glossy and well-lit, with exhibitor booths displaying upcoming titles, publicists handing out free ARCs (that’s advanced readers’ copies) and authors signing books. The people in line were the kind of book-industry professionals who could influence book consumers (booksellers, librarians and media types).
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People didn’t so much read Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code” as inhale it, with the page-turner selling something like a bajillion copies (now those tattered paperbacks are left behind at rental cottages all up and down the coasts).

In anticipation of his newest book, Inferno, Random House has just released the cover art.

So, go ahead, judge this book by its cover.

.Nana Adjei-Brenyah, a senior English major at the University at Albany, has joined the Times Union arts and entertainment team today (Jan. 23) as an intern for his spring semester.

Say hello and wish him well.

VISITING WRITER SERIES

February 4 (Monday): The Burian Lecture presented by Colman Domingo, actor, director, and playwright

Seminar – 4:15 p.m., Assembly Hall, Campus Center, Uptown Campus

The Burian Lecture – 8:00 p.m., Recital Hall, Performing Arts Center, Uptown Campus

Colman Domingo, rising star of the American stage, received a 2011 Tony Award nomination for Best Performance in a Broadway Musical for “The Scottsboro Boys.” He wrote and starred in the autobiographical off-Broadway play about 1970s West Philadelphia, “A Boy and His Soul,” winner of the GLAAD and Lucille Lortel awards. His film credits include Spielberg’s Lincoln and Spike Lee’s Red Hook Summer.

Cosponsored by UAlbany’s Theatre Department and funded by the Jarka and Grayce Burian Endowment

February 6 (Wednesday): Jorgen Randers, author and environmental scientist

Reading/Discussion – 7:30 p.m., Lecture Center 7, Academic Podium, Uptown Campus

A founding figure in the new field of “sustainability studies,” Norwegian environmental scientist Jorgen Randers coauthored the enormously influential 1972 book, The Limits to Growth, which predicts that world population growth will ultimately lead to the collapse of the earth’s resources. His new book is 2052: A Global Forecast for the Next Forty Years (2012), a fresh perspective on humanity’s immediate future- or possible futures.

Cosponsored by UAlbany’s School of Business, Office of Environmental Sustainability, Rockefeller College, and College of Computing and Information, as well as the System Dynamics Society Continue reading →

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We close 2012: the year in arts with a few special reports:

Amy Biancolli speaks with arts leaders of the Capital Region about how 2012 went and what they look forward to in 2013.

Steve Barnes, with the help from Amy Biancolli and me (Michael Janairo) offer a wrap up of the big news stories in the arts for 2012.

And, finally, we get the point of view from six critics, who offer their top five moments in the arts for 2012. The critics are:
Joseph Dalton
Michael Eck
Amy Griffin
Greg Haymes
Michael Janairo
Tresca Weinstein

Happy New Year to you, and see you in 2013.

A 20-year-old writing workshop based in Albany is currently seeking new, dependable members with a passion for writing and critiquing and an ability to commit to twice-monthly, 90-minute meetings on Wednesday nights.

We’re an eclectic group of writers with day jobs, currently writing and reviewing novels, short stories and, occasionally, plays and screenplays. No poetry, please. We’re looking to expand our ranks with like-minded individuals who are as interested in talking about the written word as they are in putting it down on paper.

If interested, please tell us a bit about yourself and send a sample of writing to alwechs@juno.com.

Comedy

He lost to a dog act on “America’s Got Talent,” but comic Tom Cotter got plenty of exposure from his stint on the nationally televised talent show. Cotter, who was a finalist on last season’s “AGT,” didn’t waste any time basking in his success. He’s back on the road playing comedy clubs and a few colleges over the next few weeks, including a stop in the Capital Region. Cotter, who has appeared on Comedy Central, “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” and CBS’ “The Late, Late Show,” won the Boston Comedy Festival’s grand prize and was voted Best Stand-Up at the Las Vegas Comedy Festival. He’ll do two shows when he plays Albany’s Comedy Works this week. 7:30 and 9:30 p.m. Thursday. $30-$54.95. The Comedy Works Comedy Club, 500 Northern Boulevard, Albany. 275-6897; http://www.thecomedyworks.com

Just call it comedy for the ladies. It’s “Pumps and Punchlines,” a touring comedy show featuring four women comics cracking wise about guys, gossip, family, friends, fashion, and of course, sex. The funny females are Christina Pazsizky (Tru TV’s “World’s Dumbest,”  “Chelsea Lately”), Jill-Michele (“Mad TV,” Comedy Central, TBS), Mary Lynn Rajskub (“How To Be A Gentleman”), Arden Myrin (“Mad TV,” “Chelsea Lately,” “RuPaul’s Drag Race”) and Marina Franklin (“The Tonight Show with Jay Leno,” Comedy Central). 8 p.m. Saturday. $20-$35. Proctors, 432 State St., Schenectady. 346-6204; http://www.proctors.org

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A few weeks ago, we asked for your input about Preview on an online survey. The aim of the survey was to find out how readers like you use Preview. Of course, this survey was from a self-selecting group, so it is in no way scientific, but it does offer some understanding of what a sampling of readers value in this part of the Times Union.

Here are some of the results:

• More than 75 percent of readers say they use Preview throughout the week or longer, which suggests that many people find the information of enough value to have the publication stay around the house.
• Nearly 89 percent of readers turn to movie-related coverage every week or almost every week, making it the most read subject.
• Nearly 88 percent of readers turn to the Coming Attractions section every week or almost every week.
• More than 82 percent of readers turn to the Calendar every week or almost every week,
• Music, theater and exhibits/museums followed, with 69 percent of readers turning to them every week or almost every week.
• On the other end of the spectrum, however, nearly 77 percent of readers say they rarely or never read any content having to do with classical music or dance.

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