The Knights of the Dawn are in trouble.

Betrayals and treachery have taken their toll.

Vital artifacts have fallen into the hands of the Society of the Evening Star.

Family members have been kidnapped.

The demon prison Zzyzx is close to being opened, which will pretty much mean the end of the world as we know it — and poor Seth still can't seem to get it quite right.

Get ready for the biggest roller-coaster ride of the Fablehaven series, author Brandon Mull says.

via MormonTimes – Fablehaven fantasy series finale comes to life Tuesday.

Is it really possible to create a usable multilingual Web site that works across a broad set of languages? This has been a great challenge for the Church as we try to ensure that Web content can reach the worldwide Church and not just a subset of those who can read English.

via Multilingual Web Sites That Work-LDS Tech

Visitors to museums typically experience the beauty of artistic creation, but rarely do they have a chance while there to interact with the creators.

But visitors did just that at the Church History Museum's Feb. 26 event, “Artists at Work: the Spirit of Art.” It was the second such event held by the museum, wherein visitors observed the artists crafting their creations and, while doing so, had opportunity to chat with them.

via LDS Church News – Artists at work interact with museumgoers.

“Everything in life you learn can either beat you, or you can overcome it. I’m on the other side of things and grateful for every day.”

That picture of a little girl by her father has since grown into a successful artist who has traveled the world, painted royalty, faced tragedy, and learned a lot out of life.

via Local artist experiences success internationally.

Neon Trees is proud to be a band from Provo, Glenn said. “It has been so good to us and the music scene is fantastic.

“We had opportunities to say we were a band from other places, but I think it meant more to us that we claim Provo and give some spotlight to other bands in the area.”

via MormonTimes – Neon Trees proud of Provo, Utah, roots.

While skimming Thursday's edition of The New York Times, one headline caught my eye: “I need to vent. Hello, Facebook.”

The article, written by Douglas Quenqua, focuses on couples who use Facebook to make their arguments public, allowing friends to weigh in, keep score and, in probably most cases, feel awkward.

via MormonTimes – A call for Facebook civility.

A true pioneer of Irish dance, Register has seen the progression from heavy velvet costumes and real curls to lighter, more ornate costumes and precurled wigs. Register began dancing with Jill Crawford as a young teen and now teaches three classes a week at Crawford Irish Dance in Clearfield, one of the few certified schools along the Wasatch Front.

via Irish dance expert from Bountiful served LDS mission … to Ireland | Standard-Examiner – Ogden, Layton, Brigham, Weber, Davis, Top of Utah News.

Ask a Mormon to describe his or her favorite comedian's humor and you're bound to hear the phrase “really clean” at least once.

“Clean” is usually requisite for LDS audiences, but for some Mormon comics, being clean isn't so much a concerted effort as it is an inherent part of their humor. It's not about taking a vulgar routine and consciously cutting out all the lowbrow material.

For comedians like Ryan Hamilton, a comic from Idaho now living and performing in New York City, being clean is as simple as telling the jokes he finds funny.

Hamilton, who was a semifinalist on NBC's “Last Comic Standing,” said he tries to be authentic and true to himself when he comes up with his mix of observational, energized comedy.

“For me, it doesn't feel like I'm changing myself as a person, or making concessions. … I talk about whatever I think is funny,” he said. “I don't think of a (vulgar) joke and go 'Oh, I can't do that.' … It just doesn't come up when I'm writing.”

via MormonTimes – Comedy: Mormon stand-ups keep their humor clean.

Releasing an album on Mercury Records the same day you’re scheduled to appear on Jimmy Kimmel Live while your single is featured on a hit TV show might seem overwhelming, but for local band Neon Trees, it’s the makings of a typical Tuesday.

Having signed to Mercury Records nearly a year and a half ago, Neon Trees’ debut album “Habits” hit stores nationwide today making dreams come true for a lot of people. The band members are especially grateful, as they anticipate the months to come.

“I feel like we’re prepared to have no social life in 2010,” said guitarist Chris Allen.

From the beginning, Neon Trees has had a larger-than-life attitude, and some felt it wasn’t deserved when the band first took the stage in Provo.

via Local band goes national | Universe.byu.edu.

Retired FBI agent James Wright weaves his Mormon faith into his new book about the cases in which he worked to bring criminals to justice.

Both are important, he says.

“My religion is my way of life,” said Wright, who has written the autobiography “FBI: Fidelity, Bravery, Integrity.” “The cases were important because I was in a position to defend this country and enjoy what I was doing.”

via MormonTimes – Retired LDS FBI agent recalls career in new autobiography.

Shakespeare's stage tragedy “Romeo and Juliet” has been adapted many times for film, musicals, ballet and opera. Now, Odyssey Dance Theatre is retelling the story through hip-hop, ballroom and Latin dance.

And this will be a rare performance where audiences are asked to leave their cell phones on. That's because voting by text message will determine the star-crossed lovers' fate.

ODT artistic director Derryl Yeager and principal dancer Eldon Johnson joined forces with “So You Think You Can Dance” stars Alan Salazar and Ashleigh and Ryan Di Lello to choreograph the production. Each has choreographed sections of the show in specialized styles of jazz, hip-hop or ballroom. Yeager said the point of using such varied dance styles is to redefine the Elizabethan characters and put a new spin on the youthful tragedy.

“We've changed the Montagues' name to Monta Krew and they'll do hip-hop,” Yeager explained, “and the Capulets are the Caputans, and they will be doing Latin ballroom. Just wait until you see them battle it out.”

via Odyssey Dance Theatre: Re-wiring ‘Romeo and Juliet’ – Salt Lake Tribune.

Provo » Playwright Tennessee Williams once described “The Glass Menagerie” as the saddest play he ever wrote. In Mortal Fools Theatre Project's new production, which opened March 12 and plays selected nights through March 27, the new semi-professional company offers the full sentiment of this memory play.

On opening night, the show was graced by strong female performances, yet technical glitches marred an overall powerful production.

To tell the story, Williams offers Tom Wingfield (Reese Phillip Purser) as the story's narrator. A warehouse worker, Wingfield longs for adventure and a life of his own outside the four cramped walls of the humble St. Louis apartment he shares with his older, terribly shy sister Laura (Stephanie Foster Breinholt) and his smothering, chatterbox-of-a-mother, Amanda (Karen Baird).

via Provo theater company offers powerful performances in Williams’ ’saddest play’ – Salt Lake Tribune.

When Igor Gruppman and his wife were baptized into the LDS Church nearly 30 years ago in Los Angeles, the church gained not only two members but two major links to future European Latter-day Saints.

This week, Gruppman, the principal conductor for the Orchestra at Temple Square, will lead his all-volunteer orchestra in performing some of Russia's finest classical music for audiences in Salt Lake City. The concert, “An Evening of Russian Music,” will feature works by composers Glinka and Tchaikovsky March 19 and 20. And Gruppman is expected to play a violin solo.

via MormonTimes – Conductor helps link church to Europe.

Pushing the envelope is often part of the job for professional artists. But at BYU, students walk a fine line between artistic freedom and following university standards.

BYU’s Honor Code presents student artists seeking degrees in fine arts with the unique and sometimes stressful challenge of tailoring their art to meet the university’s moral guidelines.

While most students say they are able to enjoy their BYU experience while complying with the standards, opinions vary on the matter.

James Cole Walker, a visual art major from San Jose, Calif., has been drawing since kindergarten. He said he has found his classes at BYU fair in enabling him to express himself. If a situation does come up in which a piece is in question, instructors may ask if there’s a better way for the artist to get his or her message across.

“The limitations put in place at BYU force students to be more creative,” Walker said. “We’re taught to be more conscious. I know that I have grown as an artist.”

Karisa Price from Sacramento, Calif., majoring in art education, said she shares similar views.

“BYU isn’t a closed art institution. You learn a lot about the contemporary art world in a lot of different ways,” Price said. “I don’t feel my expression has been limited. I’m a Mormon in a Mormon institution, so there isn’t a lot of conflict there.”

via Artists stay true to creativity, church standards | Universe.byu.edu.

Nine actors and a team of volunteer directors, set-designers and crew have been working since January to prepare for Thursday's opening night of the classic British comedic play “See How They Run.”

Hundreds of volunteer hours have been put into rehearsals, and an elaborate set has been constructed. Costumes have been fitted and lines and lighting cues learned.

But Monday, the team of community artists received a devastating blow in the form of a condemnation notice on the locked door of their theater, the Sugar Factory Playhouse at 8201 S. 2200 West.

The old plant, a city building, was closed for seismic safety reasons just days before the play's Thursday opener.

In keeping with theatrical tradition, though, director Michelle Groves is convinced the show must go on.

via West Jordan playhouse closes over seismic concerns | Deseret News.

During general conference weekend this April, the Church History Library in Salt Lake City will be hosting an open house called “Treasures of the Church History Library.”

The open house will feature rare historical books, photographs, manuscripts and other Church history documents, which will be on public display

via LDS.org – News and Events Article – Library to Display Treasures during Conference.

A few years ago, Odyssey Dance Theatre artistic director Derryl Yeager gave a contemporary spin on the classic ballet “Giselle.”

This year, Shakespeare's classic “Romeo and Juliet” will get an ODT makeover during the company's spring performance series of “Shut Up & Dance.”

As with the “Shut Up & Dance” performances in the past, different productions will be featured during the run.

“Romeo + Juliet” can be seen March 19, 22, 25 and 27 at 8 p.m.

via Odyssey innovates with hip-hop ‘Romeo + Juliet’ | Deseret News.

Critical opinion about “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” doesn't really matter — teens fans of BYU grad Stephenie Meyer's Harlequin romance epic about bloodsuckers, will be hypnotized whether they belong to Team Edward or Team Jacob.

via Pop Top: Bloodless ‘Twilight’ sequel hits DVD – Salt Lake Tribune.

We are surrounded by media. And unless we live in a remote cave, its influence over our daily lives is enormous. It comes in a variety of forms: television, satellite radio, internet, newspapers, blogs, facebook, twitter, and so on. So what exactly is the role of the media in our lives? If we're on the receiving end, it can influence us positively by educating us, inspiring us, and entertaining us, or negatively by leading us down a destructive path.

via MormonTimes – The power of the media does wonders in Haiti.

Have a craving for some Yiddish music? Look no further than The KlezMormons, a unique band that plays klezmer music, a genre primarily found within the Jewish culture.

The group began about three years ago as part of BYU’s Folk Ensemble. Group members play clarinet, accordion, mandolin, guitar, bass, flute, violin and percussion.

What is klezmer music?

“Klezmer music in one sentence: Easter European Jewish music,” said group director Brian Watson. “It has its own feel; it’s dance music. It’s not music you hear on the radio today.”

Think “Fiddler on the Roof,” he said.

via KlezMormons bring Yiddish music to campus | Universe.byu.edu.

Who knew that Tinker Bell grew up in the Salt Lake Valley?

While it might be difficult to find Pixie Hollow listed on a Utah road map, the fairy's hometown will make an appearance when Disney On Ice presents “Worlds of Fantasy ” March 10-14 at the EnergySolutions Arena in Salt Lake City.

Draper native BreAnn Brown, 21, will be skating the featured role of Tinker Bell. Brown began skating at 7 at the Cottonwood Heights Recreation Center, before moving to the Bountiful Recreation Center, where she was coached by Stewart and Christi Sturgeon, at age 10.

via Draper skater headlines Disney on Ice production – Salt Lake Tribune.

If they had iPods back in the ’30s and ’40s, they would have been loaded with jazz songs by Glenn Miller and Count Basie, songs that BYU’s jazz band, Synthesis, will be playing this weekend. Jazz was their rock n’ roll, said Charlie Carr, a member of Synthesis.

Synthesis is going to jump ’n jive like the old days as they play classic big band songs in BYU Jazz Festival’s crowning concert tonight and on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall.

“It’s going to be an awesome two concerts,” Carr said. “What really separates us is that … we play great music and that we have a lot of fun doing it.”

via BYU’s band, Synthesis, jazzing things up | Universe.byu.edu.

When popular Latter-day Saint musicians Sam Payne and Mindy Gledhill travelled to Bulgaria last March, they weren’t quite prepared for the experience they had. They’d been thoroughly briefed on the poverty they’d see; the illness, the fear, and the despair they might witness. But one lesson they had to experience for themselves. The joy.

via Meridian Magazine :: Arts: Courage to Shine—LDS Musicians Lift Bulgarian Orphans.

The 52 voices of Brigham Young University-Idaho’s Collegiate Singers share the Ruth H. Barrus Concert Hall stage at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, March 10 with Vocal Union. This performance is a pre-show to their Music and the Spoken the Word début with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir on Sunday, March 14, in Salt Lake City.

via News Release – BYU–Idaho.

“We are proud to be honoring Orson Scott Card during this year's Gala Dinner,” said Sen. Gordon Smith, Chairman of the Advisory Board of the BYU Management Society Washington, D.C. Chapter. “His words and his example have reached millions of people, and his spirit of mentorship and service have much to offer our community,” continued Smith.

via Press Release – Orson Scott Card to receive Distinguished Public Service Award during BYU Management Society -Washington, D.C. Chapter Annual Gala Dinner on April 24.

Don Evans, recently released as Mesa Arizona Mountain View Stake president, is now serving as the Easter pageant president.

“Our hope is that everyone who attends will feel the spirit of it,” says Evans. “The pageant enables people to have a witness of Christ, and for those who are not members to walk away with a favorable impression of the church.”

via MormonTimes – Mesa Arizona Easter Pageant now largest of its kind.

Jason Lyle Black played the piano backwards on national television. The Ellen DeGeneres Show featured the BYU accounting major as part of its Most Talented Audience sequence on Jan. 25. Black played “The Entertainer” on the piano backwards, lying down and even used his head to work the pedals.

via MormonTimes – Video: Mormon backwards piano man.

So if you had to choose, as an author, would you rather be a well-respected writer that everyone considered talented, or would you rather have wheelbarrows full of cash?

via Six LDS Writers and A Frog: Money or Accolades?.

Glenn Beck has responded to accusations his recent comments to be anti-poor and anti-church. At the same time Mormons have been responding to Beck saying he doesn't get the gospel.

via MormonTimes – Beck responds to backlash, Mormons respond to Beck.

Mormon prophet Joseph Smith Jr., was shown in 2008 to have descended from Irish royalty. Ugo Perego, a senior researcher at Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation, said recent DNA tests show the connection is even more certain.

via MormonTimes – Joseph Smith now even more Irish.