Tapestry

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March 20, 2008...

• A battle over beer is brewing in Montgomery
• New Yorker Philip Mann comes home to direct "A Man for All Seasons".
• Remember your first concert?
• Urban-jazz-rock from Birmingham band OK

When beer connoisseurs talk about their beverage of choice, some can sound like painters. This is beer you sip - like fine wine. And in Alabama it's at the center of a battle over religion, science, culture and commerce. WBHM's Tanya Ott reports.

Alabama's battle over beer

Philip Mann literally grew up in the wings of Birmingham theatres. He's the son of two -- Jack and Suzanne Mann -- half of the Wits Other End comedy troupe and stars of dozens of local productions. So it was no surprise that Philip would follow in his parents footsteps, but as a director and theatre administrator. He's had stints with the Alabama Shakespeare Festival and New Jersey's famed Paper Mill Playhouse. He also invested in the hit Broadway musical The Drowsy Chaperone. This weekend and next, Philip Mann is directing A Man for All Seasons at the Virginia Samford Theatre. I asked him what it was like to come back to Birmingham as a director.

Interview with Philip Mann

Philip Mann is currently developing a stage musical with the popular Celtic Group The Pogues for the Manhattan Theatre Club.

Remember your first rock concert? Commentator Les Lovoy does and he bets his experience was different - much different - than any first-time concertgoer today.

Concertgoing past and present

What's going on around town? Activeculture.info is a one-stop source for finding out what's going on in the Birmingham metro area.

William Barnes wears many hats. He plays as a solo artist and with the urban jazz-funk quintet OK. He's also promoting an upcoming concert at Base Camp Lounge. The psychedelic, jazz, ghetto-tech stylings of OK mix popular melodies, groove-oriented jams and inspired improvisations aimed at keeping a crowd moving. (AUDIO MONTAGE)

The song is "Imagine". OK appears at Base Camp Lounge on March 30th The show is billed as the SouthWord Super Session, a progressive, genre-melting concert which also features the up-and-coming Dallas band Snarky Puppy and New York City legends, Rudder. We'll talk with both of those bands on next week's Tapestry.

Tapestry is produced by Tanya Ott and Michael Krall, with reporting this week from Les Lovoy and production help from Coleman Lipsey, Islara Vazquez, and Q Owens. I'm Greg Bass, and we'll see you next week.