As our current recession seems to be winding down, the Michigan State University Department of Theatre has wound up "The American Clock" by Arthur Miller. As Miller’s "Death of a Salesman" is an intense close-up of a troubled man, "Clock" is an expansive wide shot of a troubled nation struggling through the Great Depression. However, director Tony Caselli (artistic director of Williamston Theatre) proves that with the right music, even a disjointed series of vignettes can be turned into a cohesive anthem.

"Greed is good," Wall Street wizard Gordon Gekko famously proclaimed in director Oliver Stone's 1987 hit "Wall Street." The statement was meant to be alarming but, in the rush-rush, help-yourself climate of the late 1980s, plenty of people agreed with him.Twenty-three years later, in the era of "too big to fail," we've all seen the catastrophic after-effects of that philosophy, and "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" finds Gekko, once again portrayed by Michael Douglas, serving as more of a Cassandra than a cheerleader.

Cadence Jones is not your everyday cop. Her special talent sets her apart from the crowd and that talent is — insanity.Jones, the main character of MaryJanice Davidson’s new book “Me, Myself and Why,” is not the only crazy one. “Everyone in the book has some sort of special talent. Hers just happens to be the multiple personalities she turns into that help her solve crimes and mysteries,” says Whitney Spotts, promotions coordinator at Schuler Books & Music.

Special Olympics athletes from Clinton, Ingham and Shiawassee counties will be joining their families and friends for a day of cowboy activities on Saturday, Oct. 2 at Peacock Tree Farm in Laingsburg. The event includes steer-roping, cow-milking, riding in a horse-drawn wagon, watching pig races, visiting the animal barnyard and touring the 180-acre tree plantation.

Capturing the history of a neighborhood in art is no easy feat, but one Lansing community is trying: Members of the Genesee neighborhood (on Lansing’s west side) will be painting a mural on the east wall of Black Child and Family Institute at 835 W. Genesee.

The two stalwart “V”s of MSU instrumental music will carry on a 42-year tradition of annual duo concerts when they take the stage together at the MSU Music Building Auditorium. They’ll wade into a typically hefty program of Brahms, Beethoven, Schumann and Bartok, with a cinnamon swirl of Spanish composer Joaquin Turina for dessert.

“Brigadoon” is the story of a Scottish village that emerges from a magical mist for one day every hundred years. When two American villagers stumble upon the village on that magical day, their arrival complicates matters in the enchanted town.

Art from 25 members of Michigan State University’s art faculty will be showcased at the Faculty Biennial Exhibition, opening Friday, Sept. 10 at the Kresge Art Museum.

“Last time I was here was the beginning of my career. I had a performance in the Wharton Center and the building had just finished. I think it was somewhere around '89-90,” recalls soprano Janet Williams. Since then, the Michigan State University grad has become an international opera star.

A naked nymph slithers up to a stony-faced Mexican federal Police officer and slips her hand below his waist. “What’s this long, hard thing?” she purrs.“My machete,” the cop growls, neither cracking a smile nor registering the slightest sign of arousal.Don’t get him wrong — Machete Cortez, the title character of “Machete,” is definitely not asexual: Before his story is complete, he’ll bed at least two — and possibly two more — lovely women. But he never lets getting some play interfere with getting his job done.