What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
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August 25 - 31, 2019 WHATS UP! T5 BY MICHELLE ROSE TV Media Under the (AB)C: The Dis- ney-owned ABC Television Network has announced it's dipping a toe in the well-chart- ed waters of live TV musicals with "The Little Mermaid Live!," coming Tuesday, Nov. 5. That's big news for fans of Ariel and her underwater friends, and anyone wishing to be part of that world. But keep in mind that ABC's "live" version won't be 100 per cent live. Instead, expect to see the classic animated film mixed with all-new live musical per- formances, complete with lav- ish costumes and sets, plus a few songs from the Tony Award-nominated Broadway musical. You know her best as the voice of "Moana" (2016), but this time Hawaiian-born Auli'i Cravalho will be performing as Ariel. Queen Latifah will play the part of villainous Ursula, while reggae star Shaggy has signed on to perform as Ariel's crab sidekick, Sebastian. Not to be confused with the planned live-action movie re- make (that one will star Halle Bailey), the idea of a "Little Mermaid" TV event has been simmering on the back burner since 2017, when ABC first an- nounced the project then shelved it just a few months lat- er. This time, the concept — which will fall under the "Won- derful World of Disney" banner — was fast-tracked to coincide with the 30th anniversary of the film's original release in 1989. 'Platform' Pilot: B.J. Novak — a.k.a. Ryan "The Temp" Howard on NBC's "The Office" — recently celebrated his 40th birthday. So what kind of birth- day gift do you give a person who is already an accomplished author, director and TV pro- ducer? A pilot order, according to FX. FX Networks gave Novak the green light to produce a pilot for a new half-hour anthology series titled "Platform." And if the series is picked up, count on Novak to continue wearing multiple hats as writer, director and executive producer. Per the official release from FX, "Platform" uses "the bold- est issues of our times as a jumping-off point to tell singu- lar, character-driven stories about the world we live in to- day." Technically, this initial pilot order is for two episodes (more on that later), with each epi- sode serving as a one-off story featuring different cast mem- bers (think "Black Mirror"- style casting). Few details are known about these episodes, except that the first will feature a dramatic storyline about a sensitive subject while the oth- er has a lighter tone and in- cludes a short animation ele- ment. Production is already under- way, with Lucas Hedges ("Lady Bird," 2017), Kaitlyn Dever ("Booksmart," 2019), Jon Bern- thal ("The Punisher"), Ed As- ner ("The Mary Tyler Moore Show") and more starring in the first episodes. But back to Novak. The TV funnyman and littérateur (he's a bestselling author, too) can easily draw on past TV experi- ences to ensure future success. And many fans are hoping his latest project will get a full se- ries order. 'Power' Out: The sixth and final season of Starz's most- watched series has been given its own title ("The Final Betray- al"), an extended run (15 epi- sodes instead of 10) and a pre- miere date (Sunday, Aug. 25). So is this truly the end of "Pow- er"? Not exactly. Rumors of "Power" spinoffs have persisted since last fall, when it was revealed show cre- ator Courtney Kemp had signed a new development and production deal with Lionsgate (Starz's parent company). In May, executive producer Curtis Jackson, a.k.a. 50 Cent, an- nounced the series' end on so- cial media and revealed spi- noffs were coming down the pipeline, "so don't trip." Even Starz president of pro- gramming Carmi Zlotnik is thinking franchise: "As one chapter comes to an end, an- other will begin. Courtney Kemp and 50 Cent have created a world rich with complex and dynamic characters, and there are a number of stories we plan to tell as we continue to explore and expand the 'Power' uni- verse." And what universe is that? The one inhabited by mem- bers of the glitzy Manhattan elite and the gritty under- world of drug dealing. The two-time NAACP Image Award-winning drama is about, well, power. In last sea- son's finale, Tommy (Joseph Sikora, "Jack Reacher," 2012) went from a brother-in-arms to top-of-the-hit-list after shooting Angela (Lela Loren, "Gang Related"). We can ex- pect Ghost (Omari Hardwick, "Nobody's Fool," 2018) to seek vengeance this season, and you better believe he's going to be ruthless. Tune in Sunday to watch the action unfold. ARMADILLO BACTRIAN CAMEL BADGER BAT BEAR BONOBO CAT COLUGO COW DEAR DOG DOLPHIN DUGONG ECHIDNA GIBBON GOAT GOPHER HORSE HYRAX LEMUR LEOPARD MOLE MONKEY MOOSE MOUSE ORCA PANDA PIKA RABBIT RAT RED FOX REINDEER RHINOCEROS SEAL SHREW SKUNK SLOTH TAPIR TENREC WEASEL WOLF ZEBRA Mammals Auli'i Cravalho is set to star in "The Little Mermaid Live!" WORD SEARCH STARS ON SCREEN Solution on page T23 A/Elrod Firm 2 x 3